More Nantes

Love at first sight with the Austr alian quilts from Brigitte Giblin and Cathy Doughty, vivid sparkling colors, the overall look is modern, but yet so traditionnal.

Brigitte mixes American fabrics with antique French fabrics, both blending in in a harmonious way.

I hope we will meet them again in Europe, blogs are filled up with comments and both speak very good French.

Brigitte showed us with much patience her way of basting hexagons, i'm trying to get familiar with it.

Three quilts from Cathy Doughty

In the evening i accompanied Joes and Isabeau and some other friends to the BRASSERIE LA CIGALE, with an authentic Jugendstil tile decor, overwhelming and very friendly service.

Whenever you plan to go there, make a reservation, many people were refused, totally crowded.

Unfortunately i could stay only one hour with them, i had to catch the train back home.

This is what i carried home: some fabric, two books and two embroidered squares from the Afghan ladies.

I was tempted by many other things, but one has to make choices...

From a windy Paris, Will V

Nantes...........;

was far beyond my wildest expectations and i looked so forward to come to the show for the third time.

After a 2 hours ten minutes trip with the fast train and a few minutes walk to the convention center i met Joes and Isabeau for breakfast in their hotel, where they were chatting with the Aussies, great fun because i missed them in Paris: on the picture you see from left to right:

Randi from Norway, Valérie, Bev, myself and half hidden behind me Isabeau,Joes, Linda from Quilts from the Barn and an English quilter.

Precious, precious moments and laughter before the left for the Mont St. Michel...

This is the Maggie Bonamoni room, filled with rustic woolen wallhangings,quilts and penny rugs, lovely decorator's items in style.

The bedquilt was made from the most humble scraps.

Pictures with the red background are small wallhangings started with smaal embroidered squares of approx. 4 inches.

These squares are made by Aghan women, to provide them some relief and money.

The doll was crocheted by an Italian lady, her booth was filled with only crocheted items, very creative.

Convention center

An unexpected meeting with a lady whom i met as a client in the Paris quiltshop where i worked in the nineties, and we share the love for traditionnal quilts and fabrics.

She showed me parts of the hexies quilt she started, the plastic bag filled with flowers.

She made my day and i wonder how many quilters are now working on the same project.

The incredible triangle quilt was made from only triangles, just two fabrics, one square of triangles mesures half an inch.......
WHAT A JOB.................

I have now finished the top of the medallion quilt and i'm searching for an opportunity to take a decent pic.

More Nantes to come and wish you a good weekend from a dull and chilly Paris, windy too
Will V

I'm boring, another quilt.....

One of my favourite spots in Paris is the Japanese bookshop JUNKU, rue des Pyramides, they carry irresistable books about many subjects: quilting, sewing, embroidery, clothing, interior decor, and allthough i'm more disciplined about buying books as i was before, while browsing a recent issue of Quilts Japan, this picture of an antique American quilt made me decide to buy it immediately.

So i left everything behind, no complicated cooking , cleaning or other boring household stuff, ,this quilt was yelling in my ears, make me , make me....

Designing the center was surprisingly easy peasy,i worked with graph paper and a pencil, templates made from thin plastic, nothing complicated and the quilter who made the the original one certainly acted the same way.

The little circle in the center was appliquéd with freezerpaper.

All the fabrics came from stash,that is why the corner blocks are slightly different, but that doesn't bother me at all.

And then, relaxing with AN MOONEN'S book, ( her latest - i discovered this on page 137: the center, the broken dishes, very similar....

But this quilt, better say unfinished top, is made in the Netherlands.

Both quilts are made around 1800.

I wonder if ladies magazines were available in that period.

The fabric for the intermediate border, and the one more row of broken dishes.

I'm trying to get some help with the translation of the Japanese text, very curious if there is a link between these quilts.

The center panel turned out slightly bigger then intended, but with the rows of broken dishes the balance became much better.

We have nasty weather here, stormy, take care i follow your blogs with much attention and spend also a lot of time on Pinterest....

Friday morning i take the fast train for Nantes, take care you all....