QuiltCon Phoenix | The Quilts

It's hard to focus on just a handful of quilts when there were SO MANY gorgeous ones at QuiltCon. So first, I'll share the group quilt in which I had a block. 

You might remember me making blocks for Linda @flourishingpalms' potholder quilt project back in January 2024. My one block that made the final cut is the one in the upper right corner. Linda bound all of the hand-quilted blocks, then hand-stitched them all together. It was great to be able to see the quilt in person AND to meet some of the other makers as we gathered for a group photo. I also overheard several folks examining the quilt, so intrigued by its unique construction.

Standing L: Charlotte @kirkenoll

Kneeling L-R: Sherry @otterbeequitling; Candi @candipursuits; Kathy @kathycookquilts; me

Standing L-R: Linda @flourishingpalms; Patty @elmstreetquilts

From here, I'll just share a few of my favorite quilts from a mix of categories.....

Seriously, that was just the tip of the iceberg. Be sure and check out all the QuiltCon 2025 Winners, and The Works of Tara Faughnan, beautifully captured by Holly Harper @redheadwiththread. It really was a very impressive, inspiring quilt show.

QuiltCon Phoenix | Classes, Tour, and Lectures

For my own sake as well as yours, I thought I'd share about the classes, tour, and lectures I attended. As far as classes, there were two:

1. Off the Grid Improv Design with Allie McCathren @exhaustedoctopus. In this class, Allie shared about letting quilt blocks speak, and using non-grid methods to piece blocks of a variety of shapes and sizes into a cohesive whole. A special treat was seeing her sashiko quilt in person!

2. Fundamentals of Hand Quilting with Tara Faughnan @tarafaughnan. Rachel and I had taken a class from Tara at a previous QuiltCon, so we were excited to take another. I was especially pleased to learn about Tara's preferred thread for hand-quilting, and will be experimenting with that in my own work. We were reminded that not only are Tara's classes very informative, they are a lot of fun!

Something I had also done at a previous QuiltCon was to take a Special Exhibit Tour with Mary Fons @yomaryfons. Even though it began at 8 AM(!) it was totally worth it. This time, Mary focused on two exhibits: The Works of Tara Faughnan and Quilts of the Southwest, joined by National Heritage Fellow Susan Hudson @navajoms. It was definitely an hour well spent.

Then I was able to attend three lectures, all of which were excellent. 

1. Pushing Boundaries with Robert Bosscher @rjbosscher.

2. Unlocking Mexican Textiles & Embroideries Secrets with Lilia Jimenez Meza and Lina Owen. 

3. Keynote - Quilts as Art: Valuing Our Work with Tara Faughnan @tarafaughnan.

Right after the keynote, the Seattle MQG gathered for a group photo! I heard there were over 40 of us in attendance in Phoenix, so glad we could get at least a good number of us gathered together!

QuiltCon Phoenix | The Beginning

Where to even start? QuiltCon 2025 was just a delight in every way. I traveled and attended with my daughter Rachel @snippetsofsweetness, and we headed out with the Cargo Duffles we'd made for our first QuiltCon, back in 2015!

Our first full day started off with breakfast at Press Coffee, which served up great iced coffees, and equally delicious breakfast empanadas. We enjoyed the whole package so much, we went back for more each day until we left Phoenix.

We were fortunate enough to stay in a hotel just a couple of blocks from the convention center, and had a great view of downtown Phoenix from our room.

If I have a regret about QuiltCon, it's only that I didn't take enough photos with people! There were so many great connections, and all I have to show for them from Day 1 is a plate of my avocado tacos (yum!) at lunch at Blanco Cocina with Ellyn @ellynz.....

and a picture that Rachel actually took at Floor 13 Rooftop Bar, where we met up with Bee Sewcial.

We also attended classes and saw lots of quilts - which I will share in separate posts. It was a VERY full day, proven by my Fitbit tracker. But what a great start to QuiltCon 2025.

Small Handmades

Over the course of the last few weeks, I made several small handmade gifts, which I'm recording here so I can be reminded what patterns I used for future use.

1. A gray linen Slim Pencil Case, using the pattern by SotakHandmade @sotakhandmade. It's quite small - 3" x 7", and would also be very good for an eyeglasses case.

2. A yellow/vinyl zippered pouch, AKA Bridget's Bagettes, by Atkinson Designs @atkinsondesigns. The pattern offers various sizes, and I believe this is the largest.

3. Small and large Petal Pouches using the pattern by Anna Graham @noodlehead531. This pouch has such a cute shape.

4. QuiltCon Name Tag Holders by Laura Hopper @sonicstitches - the blue one for my daughter Rachel @snippetsofsweetnes, and the green for me. I actually added the mesh pocket on the back, using Fold Over Elastic (AKA FOE, who knew?). The front vinyl pocket was for our QuiltCon name tags, as the name implies; I added the mesh pocket thinking I could put my stickers-to-share in there to keep them handy. They worked out great.

5. And finally, I made a scissors cozy, another pattern from SotakHandmade @sotakhandmade, one I'd made several times before. It turns out great every time!

Pretty sure the recipients will enjoy using these small handmades as much as I enjoyed making them.

Blanket Stitches | Detached Stitches | Filling Stitches

Last summer, Rebecca Ringquist of Dropcloth Samplers @dropcloth asked if I'd be interested in stitching ahead on a few samplers that would be part of her new stitch of the month program that was coming out in 2025. I said, "yes, please!" right away, not really knowing what to expect, other than that the samplers would feature different stitches.

Well before long, I got a package, and it contained way more than I expected! Rebecca had included nearly everything I'd need to stitch the samplers.

• Wonderfil x Dropcloth—Picnic Perle Cotton Threads set
• Tulip Hiroshima Milliner’s Needles Size 3
• Vintage Thread Label Needle Minders
• Polka Dot Embroidery Scissors in Wonderbread
• the three samplers backed with Shape-Flex Interfacing

Gotta say, that all made starting in even more fun than usual! Here are the samplers I stitched.

Blanket Stitches

Detatched Stitches

Filling Stitches

I was excited to see that the series that these samplers are part of recently got released - as 

Stitch Passport Samplers. The set includes twelve samplers, each focused on a different family of stitches. Plus there's a corresponding class available on creativebug - Embroidered Sampler Passport Book: A Daily Practice. If you look close, you might get a glimpse of my three samplers in the class sessions. Glad I can finally share about them!

Open Jar TEXT | UN(settled)

The @open_____jar prompt this month is TEXT. It could be used literally, or as inspiration only, so I spent some time mulling that over. I had a word that kept coming to me, and over the weekend it really took hold. 

The word was 'unsettled.' It was in my mind and swirling in the actual feelings enveloping me. I was concerned about the well-being of family members and about changes taking place in our country. As an introvert, I was anticipating the extrovert paradise that is QuiltCon. And of course, so much more. So 'unsettled' became the focus of my TEXT piece, and I began with pulling some scraps from the scrap basket - bright, bold colors along with various shades of gray and natural. The colors themselves meant nothing to me. They just felt like something I'd enjoy playing with in that moment.

I had a speck of time to sew a few days ago and as a way of expressing the inspiration word, I decided to use just too letters, un. They were easy to piece, and obvious in a way, but not overtly so. More of the inspiration would come in my sharing of the finished piece.

Once I had the UNs pieced, I filled in with Kona Dresden Blue, and then grid-quilted with Aurifil 50wt 2600 [Light Gray]. The grid is pretty dense - about 1/8" - 1/2", as the piece is relatively small - about 18" square. As I was piecing and quilting, I started thinking of other words that started with 'un' besides unsettled that were currently resonating with me.... unkind, unnecessary, understanding, undervalued, unfair, uncertain, undone, unlawful, unbelievable. The list could go on and on.

When it came time for binding, I used what Dresden Blue I had left to cut strips 2.25" wide. I would have liked it wider in this instance, but that was still wider than my normal 2" so whatever. What I was able to follow though with was in the trimming. Or lack thereof. I trimmed, but I didn't square. Let's call it unexpected, shall we?

The goal of making UN(settled) was to embrace a given prompt, and in this instance, it affected me in a personal and emotional way. Is it my best piece ever? I don't think so. But I appreciate what it offered me in the making, and that's worth a lot.

Linking up with Quilting Jetgirl's Favorite Finish {February 2025}.