Friday Favorites 4/6/2012

Stacy Kunstel, Homes Editor
All this warm weather has me thinking sheer fabrics. So I was thrilled to find in my inbox this week a new line by Kravet, called Modern Novelties, that’s all about sheer with shimmer. The open cut-out design of these panels is so lady-like and alluring, I’d like to talk to my Boston Design Center friends about getting some yardage–not for curtains, but for a long summer skirt!

Photo courtesy of Kravet

Kara Lashley, Associate Editor
Thanks to Maine artist Tyson M. Weiss, you don’t need a pond to enjoy a beautiful school of koi swimming through your garden. At his Falmouth studio, Weiss crafts sculptural ceramic and stainless steel fish in a range of species, from koi and trout to striped bass and barracuda. Catch one–or a whole school–through his online store, Fish in the Garden.

Opal Garden Trout. Photos courtesy of Fish in the Garden

Opal Koi

Paula M. Bodah, Senior Editor
I’ve been quilting, off and on, for years, but I’ve stuck to lap blankets and wall hangings because I lack the patience to hand-stitch vast swathes of fabric. The fun for me is in conceiving the design, choosing colors and fabrics and watching the pretty images come together. I only just learned–thanks to a fun (really!) documentary called Stitched, about the annual International Quilt Festival in Houston–that it’s considered perfectly legit, at least among younger quilters, to sew entirely by machine.

I’m still trying to achieve a semblance of competence with my sewing machine’s free-motion quilting foot, so I’m planning to head to Providence for the Machine Quilters Exposition, April 11–14. The expo has classes and workshops, but it’s also a giant art exhibit that’s open to the public.

If the thought of quilting conjures images of the charming old blankets made from scraps of fabric that resourceful, thrifty women of yore put together, the expo will open your eyes to a dynamic, evolving art form. Take a look at some of the quilts exhibited at last year’s show.

Cindy Needham used a gift of vintage linen to make this “whole cloth†quilt with incredibly intricate stitching.

Photos by Jeffrey Lomicka. Building Blocks and Building Blocks detail

Martha C. Hall’s quilt of hand-dyed fabrics is called Little Peace 2 4 U and is an homage to jazz violinist Stéphane Grappelli. Its undulating lines, vivid colors and circles of various sizes suggest movement and energy.

Little Peace 2 4 U and Little Peace 2 4 U detail

The more traditional technique of piecing many small bits of fabric together is on display in this quilt, pieced by Terry Down then quilted by Diana Reinhardt Annis.

Send Me Flowers and Send Me Flowers detail

It’s not just about sewing. This quilt by Ann Horton uses appliqué and digitized embroidery for an art piece the honors the weaving women of Guatemala and the beautiful textiles they create.

Threads of Her Hands and Threads of Her Hands detail