Kirsten Goes RVing with Friends

I went with C & P for a week at Lake Walcott State Park in Idaho.  It was really nice and relaxing.  We did some hiking around Minidoka Dam and I picked some currants.  Did you know they have native pelicans in Idaho?  You can see many of them at Lake Walcott, which is a bird sanctuary.

 

We enjoyed watching the pelicans floating down the river, below the dam.  They would float down, then fly back upstream and float down again.  They like sitting on rocks in the river, with the cormorants.

I didn't have a bucket, so they all got to go into my mouth! Yummy!

At the boat ramp, on the north side of the Snake River, there were viewing binoculars so we could see the pelicans and cormorants closer up, as they bobbed in the river.

We also went to the Historical Museum in Rupert.  They had an amazing doll house and of course, I found a really cool quilt!

Remember, if you click on a photo, it will enlarge so you can see the details better.

But of course, we went to The Gathering Place in Rupert.  This is where all the best quilting fabrics are!

We, also, visited the very small town of Minidoka, which was founded in 1904.  

Another GweFre Tribute Quilt Has Been Completed!

Marsha got hers done and brought it over to show Jane and I.  Kirsten here.  I am excited about the progress we are all making.  Edna and Jane report that their quilt tops are done and just need to be quilted!

Marsha outdid herself on this one!  She used square-in-a-square, liberated log cabins, liberated stars and liberated nine-patch, with liberated b&w borders.  

This is me, showing off my new shoulder bag, that Mary's friend, AJ, made for me.  It also has a matching clutch purse and a smaller bag inside.  Mary has amazing crafty friends.  Also, the fabric is from JoAnn, which closed all their stores this year, so this is a historic shoulder bag that I will always cherish.

Everyone is Being Creative!

I think we decided on this "Gwen and Freddy Challenge" a little close to our upcoming show in September.  But if we each make at least one, we will have something inspirational to display in memory of these great quilters and teachers. Kirsten and Edna have made Gwen and Freddy quilts before, so we have those for the show.  We are hoping to have ten.  Jane is working on her second one.   

Edna e-mailed me a photo of what she has got going on her design wall.  Edna said she is making a bunch of liberated nine-patch blocks and on-point squares in squares.  I am really liking those bright nine-patch blocks!

Of course, Marsha hangs out with me.  Here is what she has on her design wall.  She is making lots of liberated stars, liberated log cabins, and square-in-a-square blocks for her quilt.  It is going to be interesting to see all the different quilts!  We are certainly off to a great start.

Jane's Tribute to Gwen Marston

Astrid here, again.  It seems Jane has been working uncollaboratively on this solid-colors quilt.  She finished it last night and brought it over today, to show me.  Jane loves the many quilts designed by Gwen Marston.  Gwen Marston was born in 1936 and passed away in 2019.  She has had a huge impact on thousands of quilters, worldwide.  I feel that her biggest contribution to quilting was her gift of inspiring other quilters to break away from patterns and design their own quilts, while developing their own styles, which grew out of the traditional.

This is Jane's first quilt using all solid-colored fabrics.  It looks magnificent!  She said she was playing around just sewing different colored pieces together and then cutting them and reassembling them.  When she put them on her white design-wall she had a little space between them and decided she liked the white breaking up her blocks, so that is how she improvised her own quilt design.

Astrid's "GweFre" Quilt is Fabulous!

I had so much fun designing this quilt and making the "parts".  I have some parts left over, that will likely go into another tribute quilt.  Jane is thinking of doing a vertical row quilt and include some of the parts.  I think Jane and I will do some collaborative quilting!

Marsha took this photo of my quilt and I.  It is considered a medallion quilt, which is one of the types Gwen Marsten wrote an entire book about and hosted classes on.  The color scheme is all Freddy.

Gwen and Freddy Challenge!

Astrid here.  Our little group of quilters have decided to do a Gwen Marston and Freddy Moran challenge, as a 2025 tribute to two of our favorite quilter rock stars.  I have jumped right in!  I am feeling pretty good about what I have put together so far.

I am presently making a bunch of black and white half-square triangles for another border within this quilt.  I also, have more decisions to make about what kind of flowers I am making stick out of my Gwenny basket.  I am so excited!  Edna is going to make one, too.  She made a Gwen Marsten style medallion quilt a couple years ago, so I call her a trailblazer.

Florals, Plaids, Stripes, Polka Dots, Hedge Hogs, Rabbits, and Ducks Oh My!

Many years ago, we were told that you do not mix florals, plaids, stripes, and polka dots, which does not even include hedge hogs, rabbits, or ducks.  I must state that fashion, home decor, and quilting sure was boring back then.  Those days are over baby!

Feel free to use this pallet of colors, anytime.  I, Kirsten, finished my vertical strip quilt with amazing colors, especially the yellows and purples (and all the rest!).  It has all the things in it, that I was told could not go into the same project.  My message is to all my quilting friends out there, to do what makes you happy and don't listen to the fuddy-duddys.   Happy quilting!