Garden quilts inspired by a class taught by Jean Wells Keenan

I started the quilt titled "Purple Alliums" in a 2016 Empty Spools Seminars class (www.emptyspoolsseminars.com) with Jean Wells Keenan where she taught us how to make an abstract design from a photograph. My photo was of purple allium flowers. I made the second quilt titled "Summer Solstice" after I returned home from the workshop. The design was based on my childhood memories of my mother's summer zinnia gardens. Both quilts  measure about 24 inches wide by 26 inches high and are constructed from quilt cottons and designer fabrics. The allium flowers are embroidered with a blanket stitch of red embroidery floss. They are currently on display and for sale at the Bowery Art Gallery & Studio in Apalachicola, FL (www.boweryartgallery.com).

Purple Alliums

Summer Solstice

The Cat--A Portrait in Fabric Strips

Last year, I took a class from Esterita Austin at Empty Spools Seminars near Pacific Grove, CA. Students were supposed to bring to class a picture of a person to use as a template for a wall hanging. Instead, I brought a photograph I took of my female cat, "PT." It was a lot of work to cut all those fabric strips for her fur and to sew each one to a background, but I love the results. This piece, which measures about 35 x 22 inches has won two ribbons at quilt shows in Georgia.