Time for a book review and more photos from Quilt Market!
(this post was started 4 days ago...hmmmm...perhaps it needed to marinate)
This is how Reasons for Quilts begins...
(written with permission of the author)Life Beneath The ThreadsEvery quilt is a piece of art-but the true art lies among it's layers. Deep beneath the colors and patterns are the meanings that embrace the fabric of our lives. through cutting, assembling, and painstaking stitching, we dream of our quilts in their finished form. Yet the true beauty lies in the making of quilts. In the hundreds of pieces that teach us patience; in mistakes that make us a bit more humble; and through setbacks that spur even greater resolve, quilting both reflects and shapes our being."
For every quilt, there is a reason
Any surprise I'm so drawn to Edyta's work? Edyta embraces and emphasizes addresses human connectedness and reasons why we are drawn to quilt. The more depth and meaning...the more attracted I become to a persons work.
These are photos of Laundry Basket Quilts booth at Quilt Market in Houston, 2011.
If you just like to piece...Edyta has a pattern for you....if you like applique....Edyta has a pattern for you and if you like machine embroidery...Edyta has that too!!
I absolutely love the smaller quilt and the machine embroidery quilt behind it. I have taken close ups of both...
Edyta's batiks (Moda Fabrics) are absolutely beautiful.
This cornucopia is just stunning isn't it?
You know I couldn't overlook her Aurfil Thread Collection (Can you believe I didn't even try to take it? That is self restraint at it's best!!)
or her lovely quilts under her patterns....such a beautiful booth.
This is the close up...or closer up of one of my favorites....I'd love to have a quilt like this to snuggle with at night...and I'd love for all the scrap pieces to come from my friends...wouldn't that be so special?
These are close ups of Elegant Garden Machine Embroidery CD by Edyta Sitar.
Back to Edyta's latest book....Reasons For Quilts
There was a very long line to get an autographed copy of Reasons For Quilts. I arrived early and the line was already wrapped around the corner.
Edyta has written the stories behind many of her quilts and she has added quilts from her family as well. The stories and photos are beautiful, inspiring, and meaningful...such a treasure. There is also a bonus CD included in the book with 9 of Edyta's quilt patterns...can you say BONUS! That is a bonus :)
I am thrilled to have a copy to give to an IHAN blog follower. I know who ever wins this book will be thrilled. All you have to do is leave a comment on this post and share one reason you have made a quilt...just one....so easy! On Friday, December 9th I'll let the Random Number Generator choose a comment and I'll announce the winner.
THANK YOU Edyta for the books and for giving your permission so I could include some of your beautiful words in my blog post!
Smiles,
Kelly
I made a quilt (5) to cover my grandchildren-they each have a baby quilt and then their big bed quilts. I am working on #6's baby quilt. I would love this book as she lived in PA at one time!
ReplyDeleteWow, I love these quilts. I have made many baby quilts and a few years ago I made quilts for all 8 of my great-nieces and great-nephews as Christmas gifts.
ReplyDeleteI made a quilt for my aunt--Kaffe's diamonds. As soon as I saw the quilt, I knew it was meant for her!
ReplyDeleteWow, what lovely quilts! I have sewn all my life making everything except quilts. My mother made quilts though. One day I saw two pieces of fabric that I so loved and thought my mother would also. So I decided to make her a quilt. She has always made them for others, so I thought it would be a nice surprise for her to get one made by me.
ReplyDeleteI do have one of her books and love her patterns. I am going to spend this year working on my quilts and practicing my skills, would love to win her book.
ReplyDeleteDebbie
I've made all my quilts as gifts wedding, baby, and 1 for a very dear friend that suffered a stroke. I have yet to make a quilt for myself. One day!
ReplyDeleteI have made quilts to give as baby presents. I also have made a quilt for my husband and some to have around our home.
ReplyDeleteI made a quilt for me because I had been quilting for 11 years and didn't have one on my bed yet.
ReplyDeleteToday I finished a comfort quilt for my aunt who has cancer.
ReplyDeleteOh, what a FABULOUS giveaway! I sooo wanna be her when I grow up! LOL There is not one quilt of hers that I am not in love with and having this book would just be perfect! Just one reason? Hmmm..because I HAVE to quilt! Just like a painter has to paint..I have to quilt. I think I would just whither away if I didn't have it to do!
ReplyDeleteI just love her fabric collections, how she mixes prints with batiks and they go so well together! I mainly make quilts for others. I want them to know how much I love and appreciate them and that I'm thinking about them.
ReplyDeleteLucky you. How you managed to not walk away with her beautiful Aurifil thread kit warrents investigation.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun giveaway too. Her new book looks wonderful.
Can you clarify if there is another package for her machine embroidery designs?
SewCalGal
www.sewcalgal.blogspot.com
PS, If you want to, feel free to add your giveaway to the linky that I added on my page where I share insights on giveaways & contests: http://sewcalgal.blogspot.com/p/giveaways.html
I've made a quilt for my nephew when he was born two years ago. It was wonderful that my then 49 years old younger brother got to witness the birth of his first child :) And I became a proud auntie...
ReplyDeleteI've made several quilts with meaning. One just recently. I made a quilt for the son of a friend of my mother. He became a very dear friend or mine through the years. A bit like having a little brother. So when he got married, I had to make him a quilt! You can find some (bad) pictures of the quilt on my blog: http://lifeandeverythingaroundit.blogspot.com.
ReplyDeleteShe is amazing - I haven't made one of her quilts yet but she's on my list! I got to watch her in The Quilt Show, and I hope to meet her one of these days, since she lives in MI.
ReplyDeleteI love making quilts for anyone that's going through a rough patch - it's like a hug they can access anytime. And I love putting scripture in a quilt, I made one for a friend where every block was a favorite scripture verse from a friend, it was huge! Now, when she needs it, she can actually wrap up in the word of God. It's currently on loan to her adopted mum, who is in hospice.
My very first 'quilt' was really a comforter. While in college, a bunch of us girls wanted to donate something to the auction that supported our African Fellowship program. I got the idea in my head to make a quilt. Pretty grandious idea since I'd never done it before. But how hard could it be to sew square blocks together? We had no money, so we told all the guys we knew to ante up a flannel shirt, or we'd just go steal 'em. (Which we did.) We got it put together, made an 'envelope' style backing and hand-tied it with yarn. I sold at the auction and was close to the most expensive thing sold. 'Course in 19-cough-cough, $100 was a huge ton of money. A prof bought it, and we were blown away.
ReplyDeleteHer quitls are beautiful, aren't they? I've made quilts for Q4K, for friends and family, for babies, for cats and dogs. My most meaningful, I think, were several blocks I added to a quilt made by a group of us for a friend with cancer. She lost her battle, but was wrapped in our love until the end.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the opportunity.
I love Edyta and her quilts! I make quilts to see smiles on others faces when they receive them! I have decided for 2012 I am going to use my scraps to make quilts to give to patients in elderly homes for Christmas next year. I have been told that there are some patients that do not receive gifts or even visits during the year. So hopefully it will make someones day and keep them warm also!
ReplyDeleteEdyta makes the most beautiful quilts and I hope to someday be able to make quilts as wonderful as her. I love to make quilts to make people happy and to give something of myself to them. I use to quilt back in the 80's & 90's, but then life got a bit busy for me so I set quilting aside. I went back to quilting about 5 years ago when my son was getting married and I wanted to make him & his wife a wedding ring quilt. Happy to say that I did make that quilt and then the love of quilting came back to me full force.
ReplyDeleteThank you for a chance to win her newest book, I have all her others because as I said, I love her quilts.
(Please keep me out of the drawing)
ReplyDeleteThat totally sums up quilting! it is such an expression of love and giving of self....
What I adore most about her style is that she mixes traditional fabrics and batiks.
I like your idea of a friendship scrap quilt... Hmm.....
I love Edyta and all of her quilts! I made a quilt for a friend who had cancer and was also in the middle of a divorce. He was in a really low place and I hope the quilt gave him a little bit of comfort.
ReplyDeleteWow, you just feel drawn to those quilts! I made a quilt for my daughter and son in law for their wedding. Was so happy to get it finished in time!! I wanted her to still have something from momma to snuggle with even tho she had a new hubby.
ReplyDeleteMy first quilt was for a very special person, my husband. In honor of his retiring from the Air Force, I made a t-shirt quilt from his bike racing days. Thanks for the chance to win a very cool book!
ReplyDeleteAwesome photos, and her wrapping up of why we quilt is inspired. Would love to get my chubby fingers around that book! Thanks for the chance to win.
ReplyDeleteI love Edyta's quilts, especially her Eldon quilt! The first quilt I made was one I made for my nephew's birth.
ReplyDeleteI've made so many quilts for others - weddings, new babies, HS graduations, illness... the list goes on. I think the most memorable was a quilt depicting the life of a man who lost his life on 9/11 while working in one of the Trade Towers. Didn't know him or his family - but through emails, reading his obit, reading what other people had written about him - we were able to make a lasting "memorial" quilt for his family. It was truly a heart wrenching and and heart warming experience I'll never forget. Thanks for the chance to win Edyta's book! I had the pleasure of hearing her speak and teach a workshop at my guild a few years back! Wonderful!!
ReplyDeleteThe third quilt I ever made was for my mother-in-law for a Christmas present and it is draped on her favorite chair to see and use everyday. :) I am a huge fan of Edyta's work and fabrics. I have her other books and this new one is on my wish list. Thanks for a chance to win.
ReplyDeleteI would love to have the book and signed too, even better!
ReplyDeleteI made a quilt for DH since he kept seeing all the quilts I made leave so he really wanted one for himself. His was made with all junk food fabric.
Rosemary
I look forward to reading Edyta's book. She lives here in MI and I see her lectures frequently at guilds .... they are always delightful. I have participated in several triangle exchanges and look forward to participating in more.
ReplyDeleteHer style is so unique. I love her applique patterns.
Nonnie
http://nonniequiltingdreams.wordpress.com/
Nonnie's Quilting Dreams - Blog
The book looks wonderful! My sister and I worked together to make my Grandmother a quilt when Grandpa passed away. It felt so good to make something that she could wrap up in - like a hug from us across the country!
ReplyDeleteOh, there are so many reasons why I have made quilts but I think there is one that pulls my heart the most. My only daughter was 19 and living in the Netherlands. I missed her more than words can ever say. So, I made her quilt and told her that when she was having a bad day to wrap herself up in it and then she would feel my arms around her. I put my heart and soul into that quilt while imagining her snuggled within it. She has since moved back to Canada (with the quilt). I am so grateful to have her close but that quilt still represents my love for her whenever I see it!
ReplyDeleteConny from Red Deer, Alberta, Canada
I love Edyta's quilts. I took her Sugar Baskets class at my guild's quilt show in 2010 and had tons of fun. She is terrific! I would love to get an autographed copy of her new book.
ReplyDeleteThe quilt I'm currently working on is for a friend who went on an Honor Flight before we were doing quilts for the WWII vets and I really want him to have a quilt. I'm a huge fan of Edyta and have many of her patterns. This book would be a great addition to my collection. Joan from B.G., OH.
ReplyDeleteI love the process of making quilts and the feeling of accomplishment when one is completed, but mostly I love gifting them to my family. They have love stitched into them.
ReplyDeleteThis book sounds like a treasure trove. Would love to read it.
ReplyDeleteI once made a quilt of fabrics that came from clothes I made for myself (since I was 9), for my mother and my daughter. It is very special to me. It will go to my daughter some day.
The reason I quilt is to create something beautiful. I always wanted to be an artist and paint magnificent masterpieces. . . oops! that didn't work, so quilting is more satisfying and successful artform.
ReplyDeleteOne of the first quilts I ever made was a wallhanging for my parents 30th wedding anniversary. I even took a shirt out of my closet to use because it was the perfect color. Thanks for the chance to win this wonderful book.
ReplyDeleteI make quilts because it gives me such pleasure! I have heard Edyta lecture at quilt guild, and she is a delightful person. She learned much about color from painting little shoes on Hummel statues where she worked as a girl! Thanks for the chance to win....
ReplyDeleteI make quilts for all my grandchildren for their High school graduation. But I have made one special quilt for the wedding of a granddaughter of my best friend, who passed away from Cancer. I knew if Layne were here she would have made a quilt for Katie so I did it for her. It felt like Layne was looking over my shoulder the entire time I pieced it.
ReplyDeleteI just love her work. Her quilts are beautiful. The one reason I like to make quilts is I love giving them away.
ReplyDeleteThanks,
Julie
Lovely quilts! Thanks for the eye candy. Sign me up for the book, too. The #1 reason I have made quilts is because my great-grandmother made a quilt for my parents, and I fell in love with it (and I still have it, too). I had to learn how to make these wonderful expressions of love.
ReplyDeleteThe quilts are lovely. Thanks for the chance to win a copy. I made my first quilt for my first grandchild, even before I knew she was expected. I do it because I want the recipients to know how much I love them.
ReplyDeleteI love Edyta's quilts. I like the soft muted colors. I'd love to have this book.
ReplyDeleteI love to quilt and feel I am creating a legacy for my family and a way for me to be remembered long after I am no longer. Thanks for giving me an opportunity to win this book. I have several of Edyta's patterns and love her quilts!
ReplyDeleteEdyta's books and patterns are wonderful. Thanks for the giveaway. Kathie L in Allentown
ReplyDeleteI love Edyta's quilts - they're gorgeous! I'd love to have this newest book. Thanks for the opportunity.
ReplyDeleteI am in love with Edita's fabrics - just got some in our local quilt shop: a combination of batiks and prints in the most luscious colors! Love her combination of piecing and applique. Lovely. I began quilting when I found a bag of unfinished log cabin blocks in my mother's sewing room shortly after her funeral. It would have been her first pieced quilt. As it was, it became mine. And it helped to heal my grief with every stitch. I finished it and gave it to my Dad for Christmas, and my quilting journey began.
ReplyDeleteit helps keep the sanity in check? well...attempting it anyway! FABULOUS pictures of the quilts and author!!
ReplyDeleteWhy do I quilt? I have a very black & white job during the day. Something is either right or wrong, no in-betweens. I'm an accountant. Quilting brings colour and unknown possibilities into my life. So, while I'm very strict and formal by day, I can let my passions fly by night. Hope I win the book!
ReplyDeleteforgot to tell ya...love the "marinating" reference.
ReplyDeleteI quilt for all the reason Edyta gives and also so my loved ones have a piece of me when I can no longer be with with them. I love everything about Edyta's quilts and would be honored to win a copy of her book. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful book! I quilt to express myself like I can't in words. I like to give gifts (quilts) that take some thought, a theme if you will that fits the receiver. Many times I think the meaning doesn't get through to the recipient, but as I quilt I have them in mind and sew in hopes and dreams for them. Silly, probably, but it's what I do.
ReplyDeleteI typically make quilts as gifts - to make a relative happy - a niece or a nephew - and try to make it to please them - with fabric or faces they love.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the opportunity - I mainly quilt in order to give gifts of love. My most recent favourite is the I Spy quilt I made my 3-year-old grandson, we love to snuggle and play I spy.
ReplyDeleteI make quilts because I just have to make things, and I like to try new things.
ReplyDeleteI make quilts because I give them away to people. My hair dresser and I were talking about how I make quilts and I told her that my kids each have about 7 of my quilts and that I'm running out of people to give them to. She then said "I don't have a quilt". I have 9 quilts that I need to bind before Christmas and only 2 are earmarked for someone. So, my young hairdresser is getting one of them for Christmas. It was so sad that she didn't have a quilt. I'm so use to quilts, that I forgot that not everyone has one. So, I think I will give my extra quilts out to people who aren't related to me and have no way of getting a quilt without buying one.
ReplyDeleteOne of the most special quilts I've made was for my nephew when he was diagnosed with cancer at age 16 (he is now cancer-free!) I printed encouraging Bible verses on fabric and designed the quilt around those.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love Edyta's quilts!
i started maing quilts this time, for each of my children and their progenay ... i've done that. now i make for friends, charities, and even seconds for my family members who wants another something.
ReplyDeleteI made my first quilt as I was expecting my first "Bundle of Joy".
ReplyDeleteWell, I am making a quilt now for my sister-in-law from my brother's shirts. We found out he had cancer and he was gone very, very quickly. That way she can wrap herself in his shirt sleeves to remember him by.
ReplyDeleteI love Edyta's patterns and books. The meaning of a quilt can simply be related to the joy of creating something beautiful or the pleasure of giving and receiving. I love Edyta's guiding philosophy and have tried to emulate it in my own quilt making. Thanks for giving us the opportunity to win her new book.
ReplyDelete