We started Friday night with Sample Spree—it’s an opportunity for quilt store owners and their staffs to purchase products before the show opens. It’s always a crazy time with people lining up several hours before the doors open.

Sample Spree, doors just opened

Sample Spree

Before it got too crowded, I had a chance to see a couple of our designers.

Lynette Anderson

Lynette Anderson has had blocks in 100 Blocks, volumes 1, 3 and 4. Check out the cute slippers she’s holding!

Karla and Lisa of Sweetwater

Karla Eisenach of Sweetwater had a block in 100 Blocks, volume 1. See that face poking out behind Lisa? That’s Michael, Edyta Sitar‘s husband getting into the act.

Market started on Saturday. At the George Brown Convention Center, there were 23 aisles filled with designers, fabric companies, notions companies and more, all promoting their newest products. Here are a few of the designers I visited with.

Julie Herman and me

Julie Herman of Jaybird Quilts stopped by our booth. She’s had quilts in a couple of regular issues of Quiltmaker, plus blocks in 100 Blocks, volumes 2 and 3.

Celine Perkins and Susan Knapp

Celine Perkins of Perkins Dry Goods has been in a regular issue of Quiltmaker. Both she and Susan Knapp have had blocks in 100 Blocks.

Susan Marth

Susan Marth has had blocks in 100 Blocks, volumes 2, 3 and 4.

Sue Daley

Sue Daley had a block in 100 Blocks, volume 2.

Robin Koehler

Robin Koehler had a block in 100 Blocks, volume 2.

Sue Marsh

Sue Marsh of Whistlepig Creek has been in several issues of Quiltmaker and has had blocks in 100 Blocks, volumes 1 and 4.

Arlene Stamper and Melissa Harris

Arlene Stamper and Melissa Harris have had blocks in 100 Blocks, volumes 2 and 3.

Debbie Caffrey

Debbie Caffrey designed our 2011 mystery quilt Secret Window and had a block in 100 Blocks, volume 3. And, yes, that’s a spider on her head. It was Halloween after all!

Jo Morton

Jo Morton has been in several regular issues of Quiltmaker and had blocks in 100 Blocks, volumes 2 and 4.

Chris Hoover

Chris Hoover of Whirligig Designs has had blocks in 100 Blocks, volumes 1 and 4.

Thomas Knauer

Thomas Knauer designs fabric for Andover and we’ll be featuring his newest collection, Pear Tree, in a quilt in our March/April ’12 issue.

Judy Martin

This is Judy Martin, block and quilt designer extraordinaire. Did you know that Judy has designed well over 900 blocks and quilts and that years ago, she used to work for Quiltmaker and our sister publication Quilter’s Newsletter? We had a wonderful dinner with Judy and her husband Steve one night. You’ll be seeing more from Judy in upcoming issues of Quiltmaker and 100 Blocks.

Whew! That’s a lot, and it doesn’t cover half of who I saw at market. You’ll be seeing more from these designers and many others in future issues of Quiltmaker, as we work hard to keep great quilt ideas coming your way!

Salt Lake Temple

The temple itself is a magnificent building that took over 40 years to build. The grounds around the buildings were immaculate and the flowers were in full bloom.

Tulip garden

There were tulips in all colors and sizes as well as petunias, pansies and other colorful flowers.

More tulips

And more tulips

I could have spent the day there admiring the beauty! But I headed inside to begin the work day! Here are some of the designers I visited with.

Bonnie Sullivan and Monique Dillard

Bonnie had a block in 100 Blocks, vol. 1 and Monique has had blocks in all 3 so far. Their booths were next to each other.

Monique Dillard

Monique “borrowed” her quilt that she had made for the vol. 3 gallery back to show in her booth. It will be part of a gallery exhibit here in our Golden, CO offices this summer.

Eleanor Burns

Eleanor had a block in vol. 1 and will have one in a future issue of 100 Blocks.

Konda Luckau

Konda has a block in vol. 3.

Barbara Groves and Mary Jacobson

Barb and Mary, the two sisters behind Me and My Sister Designs, had blocks in vol. 2 and vol. 3. These two are such a hoot! It took three tries to get a picture of them where they were both smiling and not making funny faces!

Doug Leko

Doug had a block in vol. 2 and a quilt, Rhapsody in Bloom, in the March/April ’11 issue of Quiltmaker. Doug is an amazing young designer who has already been quilting for quite a few years.

Pam Vieira-McGinnis

The delightful Pam Kitty Morning has had blocks in all 3 volumes of 100 Blocks.

Carol Hopkins

Carol had a block in vol. 2, and you’ll be able to see another of her wonderful designs in one of our fall issues.

Amanda Murphy

Amanda has a block in vol. 3 as well as a quilt, Cafe Mocha, in the March/April ’11 issue of Quiltmaker. Find more of her wonderful work in the July/August ’11 issue of Quiltmaker and future issues of 100 Blocks. Amanda also designs fabric for Robert Kaufman.

Julie Herman

Julie had a block in vol. 2 and vol. 3. She also had quilts in a couple of our regular issues—Cornflower Fields in the March/April ’10 issue and Raspberry Dessert in the May/June ’11 issue. This was her first booth at Quilt Market.

Lynette Anderson

Lynette had blocks in vol. 1 and vol. 3. You’ll see more from Lynette in future issues.

Marcia Derse

Marcia designs fabric for Troy Corporation. We love her fabric and have used it in patterns for Quiltmaker.

Alllison Harris

Read about Allison in her blog Cluck. Cluck. Sew. We’ll be working with Allison and some of her designs in future issues of Quiltmaker.

Market was fun and exhausting. We found new designers, new fabric and new notions that we’ll be sharing with you in future issues of Quiltmaker.

Thursday night was Sample Spree, or what I like to refer to as the buying frenzy! Different companies set up tables with their products, selling items at reduced costs. The lines to get in start forming hours before the doors open. And when the doors open, watch out! We were able to get in a  few minutes early to take some pictures. Many of our 100 Blocks designers had tables at Sample Spree.

Sample Spree before the doors opened.

Deanne Eisenman, Snuggles Quilts, at Sample Spree

Sue Daley, Patchwork with Busyfingers, at Sample Spree

Debbie Field, Granola Girl Designs, at Sample Spree

Pam Buda, Heartspun Quilts, at Sample Spree

And then the doors opened. I’ll apologize now for the blurriness of some of the photos. People came running in and it was hard to focus!!

Whew! It was a madhouse. But the stores found lots of good deals to bring home for their customers!

Come back tomorrow, and I’ll share pictures from Salt Lake City and some of the designers I talked to on the show floor.

Ballyseede by Monique Dillard from Quiltmaker Jan/Feb 2011

Ballyseede is an unusual name for a quilt. What is its origin?

A couple of years ago, a friend and I traveled to Ireland for a tour of the country.  We stayed in a castle in Tralee and the castle’s name is Ballyseede.

The tile floor in the entryway had a beautiful design.  I thought it was perfect inspiration for a quilt.

Please tell us a little about the trip: its purpose, your traveling companions, places you visited.

The purpose of the trip was purely pleasure.  I lived in Germany for two years.  My parents taught for the military and were based in Lahr in the Black Forest about 30 miles from Strasbourg, France. I had many opportunities to travel in the main part of Europe but not Ireland. I had always wanted to go there and definitely want to return.

About three years before we went, my friend Sue and I started saving for the trip. We planned for months and gathered opinions from friends who had been there. First we spent 3 days in London and then we flew to Dublin and headed straight for the countryside.

One of the things I like to do when I visit another country is to bring small handmade gifts for people that we meet. If they are particularly helpful or friendly, we will give them a gift. The first time that I did this, my friend and I made small wool table mats and for this trip to Ireland, we made pillowcases.  The recipients were very pleased with their gifts and it felt good to show our appreciation.

What did you find inspiring during the trip and how are those inspirations finding their way into your quilts?

The tile works and scenery were so inspiring!  The beautiful greens of the countryside were admirable. There were tile floors all over and the possibilities were endless. I have named several of my quilts after places that we visited in Ireland. The town of Kinsale was inspiration for one of my quilts.

Our favorite village, Inistioge, was also an inspiration for our Block of the Month book. Up the hill from Inistioge is Woodstock Gardens. We named one of the quilts after this stunning place. The trees, shrubs, flowers and grass areas were unbelievable.

What travel recommendations would you make for others going to the same places? What would you recommend that people not miss?

Stay in B & B’s so that you can talk to the owners of the establishments and learn the best places to go. Take time to stop and have a beer and talk to the locals. I loved the small towns, the history and the scenery. If you are brave enough to drive, do it! The roads are very narrow but it is worth being able to go wherever you want. We saw many things that would be hard to see from a train. There were times when we stopped just to take a picture or wander around.

Places that shouldn’t be missed: Adare, Kinsale, Kenmare, Dingle, Inistioge, and Doolin. Sites not to miss: Woodstock Gardens, Ring of Kerry, Dingle Peninsula, Wicklow Mountains and the Irish Countryside views.

Anything else about the quilt, your work or yourself you’d like our readers to know?

I grew up sewing with my aunt and I loved Home Ec. I was born in Canada. When I was 21 and I moved to the U.S. to marry my husband, I told him I wanted two things: to get my degree and to get an Old English Sheepdog. I did both.

My degree in mathematics plays an important role in my quilting career. I use math in my patterns to figure yardage, cutting and the geometry of the quilts. I have designed three rulers and math plays an important part in designing them.

I have designed over 75 patterns, three block of the month books with my friend Sue, one baby book and a line of fabric with Maywood Studio. My love of antique textiles, tapestries and tiles gave me inspiration to design my fabric line, Olde World Style. Traveling throughout Europe and seeing the beautiful architecture has been inspirational.

If Quiltmaker’s 100 Blocks Volume 2 is not available locally, you can buy it online. If a designer does not have a website, he/she has been linked to the appropriate industry tie-in.

Barbara Jones

Marian Mapes

Delectable Grapes by Marian Mapes

Vicki Willems

Carolyn McCormick

Cori Blunt

Melissa Harris/Arlene Stamper

Marsha McCloskey

Rosalie Quinlan

Summer Fun by Barbara Groves and Mary Jacobson

Carrie Quinn/Katie Reed

Linda Ambrosini

Laura Blanchard

Deborah Borsos

Tapestry by Rebecca LoGiudice

Kathy Brown

Mickey Charleston

Emily Cier

Sharyn Craig

Tina Curran

Gudrun Erla

Hummingbird Haven by Cathy Van Bruggen

Karen Griska

Carol Hopkins

Pearl Louise Krush

Margaret Miller

Scott Murkin

Versailles by Chloe Anderson and Colleen Reale

Leslee Price

Marjorie Rhine

Cindy Simms

Darlene Zimmerman

We have more copies of 100 Blocks to give away! Please leave us a comment here by noon on Wednesday, Nov. 24 and we’ll pick winners! Answer this question: will you sew on Turkey Day? Four winners have been chosen: comments #20, 34, 15 and 33. Those issues will be mailed on Monday!

We’re having a contest called Quiltmaker’s Treasure Hunt, and today we’re featuring contest sponsor FreeSpirit from Westminster Lifestyle Fabrics.

Look through the FreeSpirit website for a Treasure Hunt button (shown below). Click on the button on their website for an entry form and a chance to win.

A free pattern is available for the “Journeys” fabric line by Kathy Davis for FreeSpirit. Kathy’s newest line is “Blossoming” in three fragrant colorways.

Be sure to see what’s new from Westminster by Amy Butler, Kaffe Fassett and Brandon Mably.

Westminster has donated copies of Amy Butler’s book Style Stitches and bundles of 2-yard cuts of Amy Butler fabric. We’re very grateful to FreeSpirit and Westminster Fibers, Inc. for their generous sponsorship.

Joni Pike, Sew Special Designs

Lisa, Susan and Karla, Sweetwater

Joanna Figueroa, Fig Tree Quilts

Jo Morton

Lissa Alexander, Director of Marketing for Moda Fabrics

Carrie Nelson, Miss Rosie's Quilt Company

Kathy Brown, Teacher's Pet

Sue Marsh, Whistlepig Creek Productions

Check back tomorrow for more.

Darlene Zimmerman

Spring is here! With summer not far behind! In celebration of spring I created the small quilt Bloomin’ 30s for Quiltmaker’s Small Quilts publication. Don’t you just love those sweet little blooms? You can accent the flowers with buttons, embroidery or tiny yo-yos in the centers.

Bloomin' 30s

My first quilts were small wall quilts. I didn’t have the time, money or expertise to attempt a large quilt at first, so I started making small quilts with my sewing scraps. Small quilts are fun to make for several reasons: 1) they don’t take very long to make and finish, 2) you can experiment with colors and fabric choices you’d be afraid to try with a large quilt, and 3) you can experiment with blocks, settings and border treatments on a small scale before committing time and money for a large quilt.

When I finally attempted my first large quilt, I did not realize the importance of accurate 1/4″ seams. As a result, the pieces didn’t fit together as they were supposed to, and alas! my blocks varied quite a bit in size. Somehow the quilt was put together and finished, and I didn’t let a few problems discourage me.

Over the last 18 years I have designed quite a few quilting tools with EZ Quilting by Wrights and Simplicity. Having learned everything I know about quilting the hard way (making mistakes), I try to design tools that take all the math out of quilting and make the cutting easier. The tools help me to be more creative as I can easily change the size of a block or unit just by changing the size of the strips I am using. The tools also help me cut accurately, as I love to piece miniature quilts with 1/2″ finished triangle-squares and other tiny units, using the same tools, seam allowance and techniques used in larger quilts.

To help others with the basics of quilting and finishing techniques, refer to my books Quilting: The Complete Guide and The Quilter’s Edge. You’ll find them easy to read and generously illustrated with step-by-step photos. Find these and my other products on my website.

Darlene Zimmerman

We’re hosting a giveaway of this issue at this post: It’s a Quiltmaker Jigsaw Puzzle! Leave a comment by noon Tuesday, May 11 for your chance to win. Another chance to win is found in The Two-Legged Half. You have until May 14 on this one.

Some of the issue’s featured designers will be hosting magazine giveaways. Feel free to explore everything these folks have to offer:

Jo Morton: jomortonquilts.com

Just a hint of Jo's Lone Star Salute

Darlene Zimmerman: feedsacklady.com

A peek at Darlene's Bloomin' 30's quilt

Lori Smith: frommyhearttoyourhands.com

One little block in Lori's beautiful design.

Becca LoGiudice: willowhillquilts.net

A peek into Becca's wool project for your tabletop.

And that’s just the beginning! Stop by tomorrow for a glimpse at designs from a reader, our staff members and more—plus another chance to win a copy for yourself.

Margo Krager

Do you love the look of old fabrics? They are my passion! I love buying and selling them, designing reproductions, learning about their history as well as writing and lecturing about the chemistry, technology and skills that made it all possible.

Reproduction fabrics are the focus of my store in Bozeman, MT. We sell to quilters as well as costume designers from television, theater, the movies, re enactors and living history museums. Our website brings us customers from around the world. Recently, I did have to check the map for the exact location of Estonia as I was taping up the box.

Delving into the rich history of textile printing and design is my idea of a really good time! I try to include, in each order, a page of information about the fabrics in the box. That could be an essay on double pinks or violets, a listing of fabric colorations and styles popular during the Civil War or a short history on the advent of those much loved Depression Era prints.  

 My favorite lecture topics are Textiles of the Fur Trade Era and Indigos. Indigo dyed threads have been found in the selvedge of a 2000 B C Egyptian mummy wrap. A synthetic form of Indigo now dyes 1 billion pairs of jeans annually. From the 17^th century to the early 19^th century, North American Furs were a global commodity and exchanged for manufactured goods of all kinds. Merchant ledgers from New France detail an amazing list of products used for trade, including printed and plain cottons, woolens and silks.

Dargate book

Beginning in 1997, I started collecting antique fabric sample books. I now own nine of them; six from the 19^th century and three from the 20^th.  I have been designing reproduction lines from these books since 2002 and just recently signed a contract with Blue Hill Fabrics. We hope to introduce my newest line, Little Pink Stars, at Quilt Market in Minneapolis this May.

To Market, To Market

There is a local Bozeman company that prints Vintage Images on fabric. Their collection of antique post cards and other old art work has been my inspiration for quilt and craft projects recently. Designing the “To Market, To Market” bag was fun! The Royal Anne Cherries and Black Raspberry can labels caught my eye—elegant designs from the 1930s. I thought the dramatic brass and rich indigos were the perfect balance for the delicate coloration of these fruit cans labels.

People often tell me I have a dream job. I own a fabric business with great employees and wonderful customers around the world. I get to write on a regular basis for my blog and travel around the country lecturing and sharing my passion for the history as well as the spectacular art and craft of antique printed cottons.