Hi friends!
This week I am in Chicago at a quilt and fiber trade show called h+h Americas. This year I am having a booth and it has been a lot of work getting ready for the show!
If you are on Instagram of Facebook you may have already seen some pictures but for those of you who haven’t seen them, I want to share a couple images of my art quilt that I made for display in the lobby of the show.
Art Quilt Installation
Last year h+h asked a few quilt pattern designers who were vending at the show (last year I had a smaller vender space in a group pavilion) if they wanted to be part of art installation for the next years show. And I was excited to be able to be a part of it!
The theme of the installation is Grow Your Creativity and it took me a while to come up with my design. Once I did, it seems almost obvious!
Grow Your Creativity
So many of us (myself included) believe that we aren’t naturally creative- that other, more talented people are. But really, we are creative. All of us. We are just different in the way we show that creativity, in the items and mediums we use, the colors we are drawn to, the final products we create and yes, in the innate talent we have BUT , and this is big, you don’t have to create stunning masterpieces to be creative.
Maybe you create wonderful meals for your family. Maybe you have a lovely garden. Maybe you knit sweaters and hats for family and friends. Maybe you paint, or do needlepoint or maybe create quilts.
For me, I love designing quilts and fabrics. And then using those inspirations in my cross stitch and embroidery. I suffer from imposter syndrome; I didn’t go to art or design school; I went to nursing school. And so I approached the idea of an art quilt with a lot of trepidation. I am not an art quitter. I make log cabin quilts and half square triangles! But then I remembered; I don’t have to make someone else’s version of an art quilt I just have to make mine, in my style with elements that reflect me.
My Quilt
For my quilt, I decided the piece would reflect my creative growth in my quilt pattern business. I have grown from a quilt pattern designer, to a designer of acrylic templates for making braids, to a quilt book author, to a batik fabric designer and lately I am even designing cross stitch and peel and stick embroidery patterns! So I worked up a design to incorporate all those elements.
Here is my artist statement for my quilt which I called Creativity Blooms:
This quilt celebrates the joy of creative growth. Using fabrics from my upcoming batik line Groovy, I combined pieced quilt blocks, machine stitching, hand stitching, and a coordinating cross-stitch design created specifically to coordinate with the fabric line. Each technique represents a different part of my creative journey—from quilt pattern designer to braid template designer, to fabric designer and now cross-stitch designer. Like a garden that grows and changes over time, each new skill adds another layer of creativity, allowing new ideas to bloom.
Other Companies
Part of the process was to work with other companies and I was lucky enough to work with a few different companies for my quilt. Trailhead Company supplied me with thread- these beautiful spools of size 8 Tercel pearl. So yummy!
By Annies supplied Soft and Stable for the quilt. I wanted to use that instead of batting so it held up to being hung in the larger art piece.
Riley Blake supplied the black fabric for the binding for all the quilts so it all was coordinated.
And of course, Island Batik of Lumin Fabrics supplied the batiks I used – both the background black fabric and the batiks from my upcoming line called Groovy!
I hope you like the quilt. It was a labor of love!
happy quilting!
Kate
p.s. And if you are on IG or FB, please go find my posts and like them so they can reach more people and show off the quilt! And you can see pictures of my booth there and my groovy jeans and jacket!