We ♥ Modern Quilts!

In case you hadn't noticed, we kind of love quilts over here at Hello Stitch. As a a matter of fact, while we embrace all types of sewing, crafting and creating, our studio was built on the foundation of quilts and the community that is created around the act of making and sharing the love of quilts. Kristen, Terri and I, the founders of Hello Stitch, got to know each other through the monthly meetings of the East Bay Modern Quilters. I can't even TELL you how wonderful and creative the people at these meetings are. You can see for yourself some of their amazing work on their Flickr page. I also can't even tell you, (but I bet you can guess!) how much being involved with this group has changed all three of our lives. The Modern Quilt Guild started in Los Angeles in late 2009 and the East Bay group started very soon after, in early 2010. We've watched from the beginning as the larger organization has shifted and grown. The rise of the MQG has caused some controversy within the quilt community, but no matter how you feel about the group or the "modern quilts" label, the change the movement has brought about is undeniable.

This past December, the Modern Quilt Guild released the book, Modern Quilts, Designs of the New Century, highlighting over 200 examples of quilts made by members (past and present) of the MQG.

It is exciting to see a book like this, which isn't a sewing how-to book, but a gallery featuring many different ideas about what a quilt can look like. It's by no means a complete picture of all of the fresh takes on quilts created in the past 10-15 years, but it's a good start.

Oh - and did I mention that I have a quilt in it? I do! My X-Quilt was exhibited at QuiltCon a few years ago.

X Quilt

X Quilt Back, quilting detail

I originally created this quilt for a juried exhibition, Amish: The Modern Muse at the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles. Modern Muse was a show organized by all of the modern quilt groups in the SF Bay Area and another wonderful example of people coming together through the love of making quilts. The X Quilt is based on a very traditional block and pieced with up-cycled fabric. If you're interested, I wrote more about it on my personal blog at the time of the show.

Just a little taste of the wonderful quilts in the new Modern Quilts book.

If you'd like to follow along with the book's blog tour and learn something about other quilts in pictured in the book, you can find all of the participating bloggers here:

12/13/17      Amber Corcoran       Fancy Tiger Crafts
12/14/17      Heidi Parkes             Heidi Parkes Arts
12/15/17      Melissa Cory             Happy Quilting
12/16/17       Penny Gold              Studio Notes
12/18/17       Shruti Dandekar      13 Wood House Road
12/19/17       Amy Friend              During Quiet Time
12/20/17       Paige Alexander      Quilted Blooms
12/21/17       Angela Bowman      Angela Bowman Design
12/22/17       Lysa Flower             Lysa Flower
12/27/17       Sheri Cifaldi-Morrill  Whole Circle Studio
12/28/17       Jacquie Gering        Tall Grass Prairie Studio
12/29/17       Christa Watson       Christa Quilts
12/30/17       Heather Black         Quilt-achusetts
1/2/18           Kristin Shields         Kristin Shield Art
1/3/18           Krista Hennebury    Poppy Print Creates
1/4/18           Cinzia Allocca         Deux Petites Souris
1/5/18           Suzanne Paquette   Atelier Six Design
1/6/18           Yvonne Fuchs          Quilting Jetgirl
1/9/18           Ben Darby                Hunts Patch Quilts
1/10/18         Nicole Daksiewicz    Modern Handcraft
1/11/18         Kristi Schroeder       Initial K Studio
1/12/18         Kathy York               Art Quilts by Kathy York
1/13/18         Marla Varner            Penny Lane Quilts
1/15/18         Brigette Heitland     Zen Chic
1/16/18         Stacey Sharman      Hello Stitch Studio
1/17/18         Stacey O’Malley      SLO Studio
1/18/18         Kim Soper               Leland Ave Studios
1/19/18         Steph Skardal         Steph Skardal Quilts
1/20/18         Cheryl Brickey        Meadow Mist Designs
1/22/18         Shea Henderson     Empty Bobbin Sewing Studio
1/23/18         Katie Larson            Katie Larson Studio
1/24/18         Katie Pedersen        Sew Katie Did