A little online reading, listening, viewing

We have a long weekend here in NSW on the first weekend in October -more time for quilting perhaps, or watching the NRL Grand Final, adjusting to the start of daylight saving, enjoy the beautiful spring weather … or to catch up on some listening, viewing or reading about quilts and quilting. Here are a few links to get started:

A film about men quilting in a Missouri prison has 'overwhelmed' the system with donations

A Netflix documentary about men quilting in a Missouri prison has prompted an outpouring of fabric and yarn donations, to the point that the state Department of Corrections is asking people to slow down and think about giving money instead … Torryionna Miller, Columbia Missourian, 11 June 2025

If you haven’t seen it yet ‘The Quilters’ is streaming on Netflix in Australia.

Interview with Jenifer McShane - ‘The Quilters’ film maker

The Quilter on Fire podcast 4 December 2024. 1 hr 52m

Reviving Rocking Stitch and Saving Wholecloth Quilting
… Hand quilting in a frame is being placed on the Red List of Endangered Crafts by the Heritage Crafts Council as the number of elderly practitioners of this skill, mainly in Wales, Northern England and the Scottish Borders continues to dwindle and quilting frames disappear.

But here we talk to two quilters who are seeking to reverse that by recognising, protecting, and reviving whole cloth quilting, and the tools needed to carry it out … Haptic and Hue podcast, 3 July 2025

The Witches of Scotland: How a New Tartan Became a Living Memorial
… The Witches of Scotland Tartan sold out long before it went into production after its registration was spotted by an eagle-eyed American, testament to the fact that the tragedy of the witchcraft trials spread to America with the colonists of the 1600s. It also speaks volumes for the power of textiles that the two determined women, who have been campaigning for a pardon for all those accused of witchcraft in Scotland, have chosen a fabric that can be worn by all as a living memorial to those who lost their lives, rather than a statue or a fixed monument … Haptic and Hue podcast, 11 June 2025

 

Quilt Conservation – National Quilt Museum

The National Quilt Museum’s Collection comprises nearly 700 quilts. In this video, Laura Hendrickson, Director of Collections and Registrar, illustrates how quilts are cared for at the museum. For more tips on quilt conservation, see the article below by Gerald E. Roy of the Pilgrim Roy Collection.

Let's Talk Quilts

So, you've poured your heart and soul into piecing a beautiful quilt top. Congratulations! Now comes the exciting part – envisioning how it will look after being longarm quilted. As longarm quilters, we're just as excited as you are to bring your vision to life. However, sometimes, before we load your masterpiece onto our machines, we might spot a few little quirks in the piecing that are worth a quick chat about. Think of it as a pre-quilting pep talk to ensure the best possible outcome for your treasured project! …

Tracey Browning Constantin Quilts

Book Review: Improv Quilting by Irene Roderick

… while quilting has long balanced on that fine line between tradition and innovation, Improv Quilting steps proudly into the realm of improvisation. These are quilts that are made without any specific intention, breaking the boundaries of tradition while allowing the freedom to explore and experiment.

For some, quilting is a world of carefully measured patterns, precise piecing and historical techniques, but here, it’s a playground of possibility and opportunity … Cathy Jack Coupland, Stitch Safari, September 2025

 

Reading, viewing, listening ...

https://youtu.be/jmbDaCGu8Hw

Kaffe Fassett discussing his quilts at 2021 Festival of Quilts, with Natasha McCarty.

‘Studio Spades’ is a series of posts about textile artists’ work spaces produced once or twice a week by Fibre Arts Australia. You can subscribe to receive an email alert each time a post is made. Alternatively you can simply read the posts at the website. There is currently an archive of fourteen entries:

https://www.fibrearts.net.au/studiospaces

It’s an interesting insight into how and where the artists work, and what they regard as essential to their practice.

Greg Lauren and the Gee’s Bend Quilters crafted wearable Americana

In our era of hyperfast consumption, Greg Lauren has a zeal for patience. His slow-made approach to reconstruction finds new life for otherwise unwanted scraps and textiles, a time-consuming process that undermines the typical more-more-more industry mentality.  

So, Lauren's partnership with the Gee's Bend Quilters feels like the designer both paying his dues and paying forward the renown garnered by his own designs.  Jake Silberi, Highsnobiety, 16 October 2021

 

How Singer Won the Sewing Machine War

The Singer Sewing Machine changed the way America manufactured textiles, but the invention itself was less important than the company’s innovative business … Alex Palmer, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 July 2015

 

Artist Bisa Butler on creating new narratives through portrait quilts

Artist Bisa Butler has been called a modern-day Griot – but instead of using words to tell stories, she uses stitches and cloth. Her quilts have graced the covers of magazines and she created the striking illustration for the soon-to-be-released book "Unbound," the memoir of activist and Me Too movement founder Tarana Burke. Nancy Chen reports.

CBS This Morning, 4 September 2021

Bisa Butler: Portraits
Erica Warren (Editor), et al, Yale University Press, 2020

Bisa Butler (b. 1973) is an American artist who creates arresting and psychologically nuanced portraits composed entirely of vibrantly colored and patterned fabrics that she cuts, layers, and stitches together. Often depicting scenes from African American life and history, Butler invites viewers to invest in the lives of the people she represents while simultaneously expanding art-historical narratives about American quiltmaking. Situating her interdisciplinary work within the broader history of textiles, photography, and contemporary art, contributions by a group of scholars—and entries by the artist herself—illuminate Butler’s approach to color, use of African-print fabrics, and wide-ranging sources of inspiration. Offering an in-depth exploration of one of America's most innovative contemporary artists, this volume will serve as a primary resource that both introduces Butler’s work and establishes a scholarly foundation for future research. 

COVID 19 quilt project

While many of us are continuing to stitch, quilt, knit, embroider, crochet and work on other crafts during quarantine for the COVID19 pandemic, the Covid 19 Global Quilt project is an Instagram initiative focussing on crafters activities especially during and in response to the pandemic. If you are an Instagrammer you might be interested in either seeing what others have posted, or in contributing to it yourself.

The project was launched by Kate Just @katejustknits and Tal Fitzpatrick @talfitzpatrick - artists and craftivists living and working in Melbourne, Australia, when they posted on 4 April:

'We are excited to launch our Covid 19 Global Quilt project @covid19quiltWe invite textile contributions from people all around the world that reflect on the Covid-19 pandemic and the impact it is having on the world, your lives, families, work, jobs, relationships, health and more. At a time when most of us are advised not to touch anyone or anything, and gathering in groups is no longer possible, we wanted to create a project that allows people to experience the sense of a joining a quilting bee or knitting circle. Working with our hands makes us feel calm, focussed and gives us a sense of purpose. We all need that right now. 

You don’t need to be an artist or experienced crafter to participate and we welcome submissions from people of all ages. In keeping with the times, you can make your square from whatever textile materials you have around the house already that are suited to the task! 

If you have already made a textile work about Covid-19 or would like to make a new textile square for this project, we would welcome these at @covid19quilt! Please check out project info in Story Highlights (on the @cid19quilt homepage - the purple icon in the screenshot below) and start sending us your responses via direct message!

And please let us know if you are willing to share and help us translate the project instructions in languages other than English! 

We can’t wait to see what this will bring! '

#covid19quilt #covid19crafts #isolationcreation #covid19 #knitting #sewing #pandemic #quiltingbee

Gwen Marston 1936 - 2019, quilter, writer, teacher

The international quilting community is remembering and mourning Gwen Marston, who died at her home in the US on 17 April, aged 82.

Some of us were lucky enough to see Gwen Marston's beautiful quilts, to hear her talk about them, and to take classes with her here in Sydney in 2013, on a trip arranged by Sarah Fielke.

• Gwen Marston - her own fine self, Quiltfolk’s profile of Gwen Marston from the Michigan issue, with photos of her quilts and her home, written by Meg Cox. 

• A Note About the Keynote: Gwen Marston, Moda's blog, Cutting Table.

Epping Quilters 'Show and Tell' morning

A few of us enjoyed a lovely spring morning last week - and a fabulous morning tea - hosted by Epping Quilters, with a great show and tell session of personal and charity quilts. Miriam was asked to draw the first lucky door prize - and drew her own, as did the third prize winner!

Thank you for the invitation Epping Quilters - it was a great way to get together with our quilting neighbours, compare notes, see lots of beautiful quilts, and to raise some funds for breast cancer research. We look forward to next time.

Jenny Bowker AO - Queens Birthday Honours 2018

Congratulations Jenny Bowker - you can see more of her stunning quilts here.

Canberra quiltmaker Jennifer Bowker has found a way to combat misconception of Arab culture, one artwork at a time
Rashida Yosufzai, SBS, 11 June 2018

... “I just wanted to create the sort of image where people could look into a face and see that they were kind and good and gentle,” Ms Bowker said. 

“I wanted my friends in America and in Australia … to realise the people I was working with were really great, good people and not in any way people to be afraid of" ...

Tutorial for a knit wholecloth quilt

If most of your sewing is quilting, how long is it since you sewed with knit fabrics? You might have noticed that a growing number of quilting fabric designs are being released in a variety of base cloths in addition to quilting cottons, including knits. A quilt in a knit fabric could be particularly soft cuddly. Here is a recent tutorial on making a knit wholecloth quilt:

Sew Your Own Whole Cloth Knit Quilt…Yes, I Said Knit

Mister Domestic, Stitching Sewcial, 26 February 2017

... after a few years of persistence and humility, I can confidently say that I have conquered knit… enough so that I am going to share with you how to make your own whole cloth knit quilt. And I promise that it won’t fall apart ...

Modern Quilting Big Morning Tea

Well that was fun!

Our Biggest Morning Tea fundraiser in support of the Cancer Council this week had a modern theme, taken up in the table decorations, and our guest quilters from the Sydney Modern Sewists and Quilters (Sydney ModQuad) who delighted our audience of members and friends with a spectacular presentation of just some of their modern quilts.

Congratulations to Linda Parsons and the team – Sue Brennan, Robyn Leek, Janice Freelander, Roslyn Pullen and Elsa Kachwalla – on the organising of a very successful event. We raised over $600 for a cause close to our hearts - many of us have had too close encounters with cancer ourselves, or in loved ones, and we know the importance of research and support in the field of cancer. Thank you to every one who came and helped us to make that donation to the work of the Cancer Council.

Our thanks too to Natasha Renstead, Selina Cheng and Bec Proshogo from Syd ModSquad for bringing their stunning quilts, and to Jenn Davis who allowed us to see hers, even though she could not be with us. We loved your quilts, your commitment to and enthusiasm for quilting -  we are in awe of your  needlework, design and quilting skills. And thank you for allowing us to use your photos.

Linda chose a fun modern decorating theme, in keeping with
our much anticipated visit from the Syd ModSquad. The tables
were laid with fat quarters that were 'lucky plate' prizes.

Of course there was a wonderful morning tea spread,
donated by Fairholme members, and as it happens, Linda
is a brilliant cake maker and decorator - and her specialty is
towers of macaroons!

One of the aims of Sydney Modern Sewists and Quilters is 'to engage with the wider Sydney community by contributing charity quilts and acts of service.' One way of doing that is to make a group quilt each year (this year's is the fifth), that is entered into the group category at Sydney Quilt Show, and then raffled as a fundraiser for a charity that supports women in need. We saw two of those quilts on Monday:

Rainbow Skyline was made in 2015, from
Tula Pink's book '100 Modern Quilt Blocks'.
Each colour column was made by a different 
ModSquad member, graduating blocks
from dark to light tones of a single colour.
It will be raffled later this year.
(Photo: from @sydmodsquad)

In 2016 Grey Skies and Rainbow Fields was designed
for the group by Jenn Davis, and members chose blocks
to make, assisted by a detailed colour map. Blocks range
in size from 8" to 24" square, with rectangular flying
geese units.It won third place for a group quilt at
the 2016 Sydney Quilt Show. (Photo: from @sydmodsquad)

Bec's beautiful modern take on a classic Storm at Sea.
Its four year old owner agreed to allow her to bring it only
on the condition that she came with it to keep an eye on
it (and on us)! Smart little boy. Bec quilted it herself
on her domestic machine. Check out her own post
on this beauty on Instagram @skyberries for additional
images in close up, and of the reverse.
(Image: from @skyberries)

Bec made her toddler sized Drunkard's Path quilt for
her one year old daughter, from the same Tula Pink
fabrics as a quilt she had made for her own Mum. 

Syd Mod Squad is a very co-operative and collaborative
group, who often work together. Tash pattern tested
'Shattered Star' designed by Jenn Davis, using print
fabrics for the half-square triangles, and a white
solid for the background. Selina made a larger version
in very different fabrics as a pattern test too.
The pattern may be released for sale in the future.

Most of the Mod Squad members are active on social
media, especially Instagram. Selina @seldear 's
diamond blocks were gathered from a birthday swap
conducted via Instagram. She quilted it herself on the
longarm available for hire by customers at HobbySew at
Top Ryde. 

Selina made her Intulawoven quilt from fabric
mostly acquired in an Instagram based swap of
 designer Tula Pink's charm squares, that resulted in
 each swapper receiving 112 different 5" squares.
The intricate pattern is achieved with a single
block 'just rotated through 90º - easy' she said ...

Selina devised a modern take on the disappearing
9 patch block design by gradually increasing the
negative space and eliminating some block elements
across her quilt, and by varying the print elements.

Rain Chains is another of Jenn's own designs,made and 
quilted by her, by hand and machine. The fabrics are all 
solids. You will find her on Instagram @pennypoppleton.

Jenn's splendid modern version of Mrs Billing's Coverlet (pattern 
by Karen Styles from Somerset Patchwork and Quilting) won 
a second prize in the 2016 Sydney Quilt Show. It was hand and 
machine pieced over an 18 month period, to mark her 30th 
birthday, and machine quilted by Leanne Harvey of Mount 
Vincent Quilts @leanne_mountvincentquilts in the 
Hunter Valley.
(Photo from @pennypoppleton)

Snapped as it was being refolded, here you can see some of the
very detailed fussy cutting, piecing and quilting in 'Jenn does
Mrs B' as this wonderful quilt was known during its making.

Sydney Modern Sewists and Quilters blog, has contact details and the meeting schedule, and can be found on Instagram @sydmodsquad and #sydmodsquad.

Run out of ideas for scraps?

Are you looking for ideas to use up all those scraps? Well, maybe not all of them ... here are a couple of ideas:

Warm and Cool - a great scrap-buster quilt by My Quilt Infatuation
It turned out shockingly busy and loud; and I totally love it!

Good Day Sunshine: A Scrappy Quilt Tutorial - from Sew Mama Sew
... (It) does double-duty! It chips away at your scraps while shaking off the last weeks of winter, in a palette that promises spring is on its way.

Odd quirks ...

For anyone who has ever sewn a block, or part if one backwards, upside down or even back-to-front, Barbara Brackman's recent post will assure you that you are not alone (you probably already know that). Not all the quirks in the quilts in her post are mistakes, some are just design elements ...

• Quilters who don't think like we do, Material Culture: quilts and fabric past and present, 10 March 2017

Fussy cutting - a tutorial, or just a beautiful post for looking at the pictures, and an introduction to 'Passacaglia'

Blog posts can be prepared ahead of time and scheduled to post automatically - but you have to check the 'schedule' box in the blog editing program. Sometimes that doesn't happen, and posts (like emails) languish in the 'drafts; folder, like this one from 2014!

We have some virtuoso paper piecers at Fairholme, with expert fussy cutting skills ... but some of us have not ventured there yet.  This post from UK quilter Flossie Teacakes (who obviously doesn't take herself too seriously), is both an excellent tutorial and a beautiful little feast for the eye.

Other tutorials that might catch your eye, too are linked from her side-bar (left side). If you are captured by the Passacaglia 'cogs' in her banner, take a look at the first and last images (more about that second image here) in this post too (which is not about epp) ... there is much to see in this blog
'from between the stitches'.

Passacaglia is one of the projects in Millefiori Quilts, published by Quilt Mania.

And if you want to see more about a Passacaglia quilt in progress, Lilabelle Lane's dedicated page is a good place to start ... or just put 'Passacaglia' into Google, and follow the links under 'images'.
See you on the other side.

Some quilty reading and viewing for the long weekend

The backstory of a popular book in our library, Sunday Morning Quilts, by Cheryl Arkison:

• How Sunday Morning Quilts Changed My Life

Cheryl Arkison will be visiting Australia as the guest tutor for the inaugural Creative Retreats, to be held in NSW and Victoria in June-July .

The Invisible Quilter
The Off-Kilter Quilt, 15 March 2016

The other day I went to a friend’s birthday lunch at a local cafe. I was seated among a group of women I didn’t know, and when I mentioned that I made quilts I got the response I almost always get when amongst the muggles (i.e. nonquilters): admiration (“that’s so cool!”) underscored by confusion. People still make quilts? ...

Why Does My Longarmer Charge ‘So Much’?

AndiCrafts, 21 March 2016

... It was obvious she had used all of her talent, training and PASSION for quilting to turn this top into a show stopper. And do you know how much she earned for all of this hard work? Around $13 per hour ...

Paper pieced 'Unicorn' block
Robynieland publishes interesting paper piecing patterns, including a very attractive unicorn block:

... R. T. Rognstad is an American artist and sewist creating in New Zealand. Her work involves a variety of animals as curious and alluring characters ...

And in case you are travelling to the US sometime, a fabric store you might want to check out ...

• Obies, the fabric hoarding store of your dreams

Sarah Fielke visits Fairholme

Thanks for the photo Sarah
 - we were so busy admiring the
quilts, we forgot to take any!

This week we had the great pleasure of a a visit from Sarah Fielke, for a trunk show of some of the quilts from her books, the stories behind them, and a little (!) shopping from her fabric ranges and other products.

It was so good to hear from such a dedicated, professional and passionate quilter. Beautiful quilts and books, and her new fabric range was very popular. We'll be keeping an eye out for her new book, Old Quilts, New Life in September (we got to preview a couple of the quilts), and will add it to our library,where we already have Sarah's previous books.

Sarah is an active participant on social media, as you will see from the links on her website.

Thanks Sarah, and thanks Georgie for organising such an enjoyable morning.

An 'ordinary' family treasure

Amanda Jean Nyberg wrote Sunday Morning Quilts, with Cheryl Arkison - one of the most popular new books added to our library last year, so we know we like her style and approach to quilting.

In this recent post on her blog, Crazy Mom Quilts, she shares one of her first quilts that is still much loved by her family, flaws and all.

Many of us would have one with a story just like it ...

Canadian 'touch' quilts

In 2013 we made this tactile quilt (see this post for detailed photos of all the blocks) at the request of the diversional therapists at a nursing home. It is larger than a lap-quilt, and hangs on an easily accessible wall so that it is available to the residents at any time.

This Canadian article reports on the effectiveness of lap 'touch quilts' for people with dementia in hospital:

Quilting to change quality of life for those with dementia Janice Henderson, Ottawa Citizen, 1st May 2015
Touch quilts are textured lap quilts designed for those who need sensory stimulation, especially those with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. Straightforward to make, these charity quilts have an incredible impact on quality of life.According to the Alzheimer Society of Manitoba, “sensory stimulation can increase happiness, enjoyment and relaxation as well as lessen sadness and fear”. Touch quilts can provide dementia patients with sensory stimulation, reducing unwanted behaviours without requiring sedatives or physical restraints ...

We have recently completed another special commission for the same nursing home - more on that in a few weeks.

Modern pieced animal quilt blocks

If you can make a basic Drunkard's Path block, you can easily make one of the cleverest and cutest sets of pieced animal blocks that ever got itself quilted.  Dani Miller's online Wee Animal Quilt tutorial caught the attention of Cindy of Live a Colorful Life, who produced her version, Animal Planet, for her little grandson.  The two blog posts together feature many excellent photos of the process and the finished quilts.

• Dani Miller on Instagram: @knitty34
• Live a Colorful Life on Instagram:@liveacolorfullife

One of our members' test block for
Elizabeth Hartman's Fancy Fox pattern

Elizabeth Hartman, of Oh Fransson! fame is also renowned for her growing menagerie of very cute and clever pieced animal blocks (kittens, foxes, hedgehogs, whales, with bunnnies, owls and others in development).  Her website/blog is currently under reconstruction for a relaunch at the end of this month, but you can see images and purchase patterns from her online shop in the meantime, and several local quilt shops (such as Cottage Quiltworks and Kim Bradley Creations) stock print editions, and have sample quilts on display.

• Elizabeth Hartman on Instagram: @elizabethagh

Some modern Christmas quilts (2014)

A post of modern Christmas quilt links is now customary here, having been very popular with readers for the last three years, so here is our fourth annual selection from this year's blog surfing:

Mini Trees Quilt, Crazy Mom Quilts

Christmas Tree blocks, Quilt Matters

Christmas tree Skirt in July, Freshly Pieced

Christmas table runner, Sewcial Stash

Fair Isle Christmas quilt, Freshly Pieced

The Hood (Christmas tree skirt), Fresh Lemons

Quilted Christmas Tree Tutorial (No Sew) - Fabric Tree, Carly Nicole Elliotte

Modern quilters interviewed

If you have even a passing interest in modern quilts, you will probably enjoy the Modern Quilting Modern [Wo]man series of posts currently running on Two Little Aussie Birds blog right now. Interviews of well known modern quilters, along with beautiful photos of their quilts.

Some of the international list of interviewees: Latifah Safir, Chris Thompson, Mollie Sparkles, Weeks Ringle, Sarah Fielke ... lots to like.

Bloggers Quilt Festival Fall 2014

The annual Houston (Texas) fall QuiltMarket (an industry-only event) has just concluded, and the famed International Quilt Festival opens on Thursday (US time) ... so it must be time for Amy's Creative Side's Fall Bloggers Quilt Festival.  If you you're not going to Houston (and most of us aren't, after all!) the six-monthly Blogger's Quilt Festival provides an online visual feast of quilts, and might lead you to discover new blogs to add to your blog-reading app.

Voting for your favourite quilt in a number of categories opens on 1st November - everyone can join in.  Happy blog reading - but be warned: this event just gets bigger each time, and there are many, many beautiful quilts to be looked at.

An easy way to sort fabric by value

Wanda Hanson is an American quilter of more than 50 years experience  - she generously shares her experience and prolific quilting output (and her equally prolific stash!) through her popular blog, Exuberant Colour.

In this classic short, well illustrated blog post from 2010, Wanda gives an effective lesson on sorting fabrics by value - light, darks, mediums, then light mediums and dark mediums, till you have them fully scaled.

You will find a lot to like on Wanda's blog, including many beautiful quilts.