2017 Ohio State Fair Quilts – III

August 17, 201712 Comments

I wanted to share a few more quilts from the 2107 Ohio State Fair with you.

Pinwheels are a favorite of mine and these batik fabrics were quite lovely.

No words can describe the amazing quilt below.

Another pinwheel quilt….love it!

The quilting below was as interesting as the colors and patterns!

This quilt depicts downtown Columbus, Ohio. Lots of nice quilting details!

Below is a favorite of mine. Notice the words quilted into the design. They are all words relating to the State of Ohio. LOVE!!!

Check out these Cathedral Windows…wow! I mean wow!

Color, pattern, texture, dimension… this quilt captures it all!

The quilt below is just amazing! Close ups follow.

How cute are these ducklings? The flowers? The leaves? The butterfly? But wait…there’s more!

How about these little birdie eggs?! And the nest?!

Well, this concludes my tour of 2017 Ohio State Fair quilts.

I might enter something in the 2018 Ohio State Fair quilt exhibit but as you can see, the competition is intense! To even get “honorable mention” would be an honor.

2017 Ohio State Fair Quilts

July 31, 20175 Comments

The Ohio State Fair has many beautiful quilts on exhibit and I’d like to share some of them with you.

The pattern for the quilt below is titled “Artful Album Quilts” by Jane Townswick. Ruth Pennell, the creator of this quilt, accomplished a beautiful mix of colors in this bright album quilt. Her applique work is something I can only hope to aspire to!

Second Place Winner – Ruth Pennell

The quilt below is called “Circle of Friends” and won a third place ribbon. Rebecca Hamilton, creator of this quilt, used a nice mix of colors and textures. Very ribbon worthy!

Third Place Winner – Rebecca Hamilton

We can’t show quilts of the Ohio State Fair without The Ohio State University’s Buckeye colors! This scarlet/gray/white and black quilt was even more beautiful in person. This quilt was made by Laura Nolletti…nice job, Laura!

Ohio State Bargello – Laura Nolletti

The small quilts below really caught my eye! Lots of color and pattern!

Below is another quilt by Ruth Pennell. As you can see, it is exquisite (in Buckeye colors) and worthy of the “Best of Show” title! Ruth’s applique work and piece work is beautiful. This quilt pattern is called “Ruffled Roses”.

First Place Winner and Best of Show – Ruth Pennell

I have lots more photos to show you…stay tuned for more quilts from the Buckeye State!

Opinions and more!

June 5, 20178 Comments

Thanks for your opinions on my binding color! I will be shopping for my binding this week and appreciate all your comments. It’s helpful to get lots of ideas and it’s fun to see how we all approach color and pattern.

Congratulations, Meg our-house-quilts! You won the drawing for the American Made Brand patriotic 5″ squares package. Send a comment to me with your address ( I won’t publish your comment) and I will drop your prize in the mail tomorrow morning.

This weekend was a good sewing weekend for me. I have lots of projects in the hopper and I am feeling a bit stressed about having so many things unfinished.

I’m making a baby quilt for our niece; she is expecting a girl! Last year I posted about a fast, adorable baby quilt from a pattern called “4 B’s”. You can read more about it here.

I predicted more of these quilts would be in my future…now I get to make one in pink! These are the fabrics I am using for the center and borders 1 and 2. The sparkly stars add some shine.

Below is a photo with the flannel outer border which is also the backing. I love the polka dot flannel because it’s so soft and cozy. I just have to quilt this tonight and I can check this off my list!

One project down, 8 more to go!

Big Block Tree of Life

May 8, 20174 Comments

Several years ago, “oldest” sister asked me to make a Tree of Life wall hanging for her. The cover of a book written by Nancy Johnson-Srebro titled “Big-Block Quilts by Magic” captured her interest and a helpful quilt shop owner worked with her on fabric choices.

I remember thinking one of the fabrics for the leaves was “slightly” less than beautiful. BUT after sewing everything together, it actually became one of my favorites. Smaller pieces can bring beauty…lesson learned!

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This was one of my first attempts at machine quilting. She requested minimal quilting so I did a “stitch in the ditch” with clear thread.

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I like how the blue wall brings out all the bright colors of the leaves on the tree.

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As I was preparing to write this blog, I looked through Nancy’s book again and found several patterns I’m going to try with some of the fabrics in my stash. You’ll be reading about Big-Block Quilts by Magic again here at Gray Barn Designs!