50 Quilts from 50 States - Iowa

Even before I started quilting, I fell in love with the Bridges of Madison County Iowa. I read the book, I watched Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood fall in love in the movie, I even had a CD with original songs by the book's author Robert James Waller. 

My first trip to Iowa included a visit to Winterset to see the bridges, as well as the birthplace museum of John Wayne. My second trip included a trip to the Iowa Quilt Museum to see an exhibit by MaryAnn Fons.

So, obviously, my inspiration for Iowa has to be the Bridges. Obviously there is lots to see and do in Iowa. Corn, there is corn, lots of corn. A sea of corn - it stretches as far as the eye can see. The Amana Colonies are interesting from a historical and cultural perspective, as is the Mississippi River Museum in Dubuque.

Guilds and Shops in Iowa
Iowa is the home to Fons and Porter, the iconic quilting gurus who have been publishing patterns, magazines and videos for over 20 years.

The Generations Quilt Patterns website has 40 guilds and 132 shops on their list. I've visited a few in Des Moines, the Amana Colonies, and Council Bluffs - where my favorite shop is. Whenever my son AJ and I go to the Omaha Zoo (stay tuned for my Nebraska Quilt), we always stop at Cut Up & Quilt in Council Bluffs. 

The Inspiration
The Bridges - Cedar, Cutler-Donahoe, Hogback, Holliwell, Imes, and Roseman are the remaining bridges in Madison County. But how to incorporate them? I took several pictures on my trip, but they really didn't sing to me.
I did find several fabric panels with covered bridges but a wall hanging with a panel also didn't sing to me. But I was getting closer. 

My friend Liz Granberg-Jerome of Gypsy Dreamer Quilts teaches classes on using panels for One Block Wonder quilts. She calls them Hexified Panels. OK, that's it, the perfect technique for this panel wallhanging!

The Quilt
I found a panel that had good color, looked like the bridges I saw in Madison County and I thought it would be a great candidate for a One Block Wonder. The panel was made from a painting by artist Larry Hersberger.  So I ordered 7 panels (6 to stack and 1 for the focus).

Due to the strong horizontal lines in the roof and tree line, I decided to cut the strips on the diagonal - after starching it 3 times to tame those bias edges. Since the panel is not very large, I cut the strips 2 3/4 inches so I can get the maximum number of hexies from the panel. Now comes the fun, but mindless part - sewing half hexies together and arranging them on the design wall.

Then comes some decision-making. To frame the panel or not? If I frame it, what color for the frame? To set the hexies in straight-edged or allow them to flow into the panel? This is where art and design meet craft and technique.

After trying several layouts, I settled on a small yellow border (to lighten up the dark sections of the panel) and then centered it within the hexies. I arranged the hexies so that they somewhat mimicked the color placement within the panel. A simple batik border finished it off. 

I have to admit, even though I starched the heck out of the strips, it was still somewhat wavy due to the bias edges. I forewarned Lori Kukuk, one of the fantastic long arm quilters with whom I love to work, that it might take some special TLC to help it lay flat. Poor or inaccurate piecing won't always quilt out, but Lori is pretty talented and if anyone can tame those wavy edges, she can. She did not disappoint. I especially love the simple waves in the sky and the continuous curves in the hexies.

Iowa Bridges is the third quilt in my 50/50 series. I've already started on Oklahoma and have plans for about 25 more. Stay tuned!

The pattern is available to order as a hard copy, or as a download from my Etsy Site. So check it out!

I'm Curious about your visit to Iowa. Leave a comment and let me know.

One Block Wonder - One crazy fabric equals one GEORGEOUS quilt

OK I almost don't even know where to start about One Block Wonder (OBW) quilts. I love them! I probably buy more OBW fabric than any other type of fabric.





My love affair with OBW quilts actually started with a Stack-n-Whack class at Overbrook Quilt Connection. What's the difference between OBW and SnW? The OBW was designed by Maxine Rosenthal. The SnW technique was designed by Bethany Reynolds. They are close cousins - the quilts, not the designers (grin). Both are kaleidoscope quilts. Both start with layers of fabric cut in exactly the same place. OBW usually have 6 layers and SnW usually have 8. OBW are cut in equilateral triangles; SnW are cut in wedges or 90 degree triangles. OBW are usually put together without a background, SnW utilizes a background fabric. You can get books that feature both techniques.



The SnW class I took at Overbrook Quilt Connection a million years ago was wonderful, although I am sorry that I don't remember who taught it. Here is what I do remember: my friend Bobbie and I used the same focus fabric with different backgrounds - I used yellow, she used green. The teacher warned us not to get our fabric mixed up, but one look at my area and you could tell by the mess that it was mine. Bobbie's fabric was nicely trimmed and stacked and mine was all over the place. There was no way we were going to mix up our stacks of fabric!

My next one was a OBW. My son James wanted a black and green quilt, so I decided to make him a OBW (see the first pic in the post). After looking for just the right fabric for a month or so, I finally found a cool tropical flower print in Colby Kansas.  I bought 6 or so yards - enough for the 6 repeats of the pattern plus some extra for borders.  After cutting the triangles and putting together the half hexies, I set aside all the blocks with the bright red, yellow, orange and yellow flowers. So James' quilt was mostly black and green and I had plenty of leftovers for a bright tablerunner.

One of the things I love about SnW and OBW is that you can use fabrics that you wouldn't normally put in a quilt - or at least fabric that I wouldn't normally use. You could even use "ugly" fabric! Check out some of the fabrics before I stacked and cut, and then the resulting hexagons. Pretty amazing, yes? 

Western Belt Buckle fabric

Kaffe Fassett Floral fabric

The other thing I love about OBW is that the technique is fairly simple. You just layer the fabric, cut strips and then triangles, and then sew 2 sets of 3 triangles together to make 2 half hexies. The hardest part is laying the hexies out in a way that "flows".

The third aspect of OBW that thrills me is that you have a million options when it comes to the layout - you can add tumbling blocks, solid strips, make the layout asymmetrical, or any number of other creative options. 

I am going to be teaching One Block Wonder quilts at Mea Bernina sometime in the future. I've taught 2 classes already and people want more. So check out the website for upcoming classes and come play with OBW quilts with me! 

Just writing about OBW makes me want to go down to my studio and play with my pretty OBW fabrics!