Think Modern Thursday #7 - The Square Family Reunion.

And I'm finally back with Think Modern Thursday!  And I'm even trying to work ahead and get next week's TMT ready to go.  Oi vey...  I've been working too much.  As I typed TMT, I wanted to type TMNT, which is the acronym for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, which I typed several times today while updating our inventory system.


But anyway!  I'm caffeinated and ready to go!


This week I bring you The Square Family Reunion by Linda Miller.  Check out her flickr!  Linda is awesomely prolific and has tried several different techniques and styles.  One of her tops, Pure Color, has even warmed my opinion on the whole Stack'N'Whack thing.  But that's a top for another discussion!  For a more in depth look at Linda's body of work, check out her web page.

Linda said, "I always enjoy making the boxes - scrappy ones are really fun! The name came from the fact that the little boxes, which finish at two and a half inches, made me think of a bunch of little kids running around:) For the other boxes, I just made up sizes that would work with the little boxes and also that used the sizes of strips and squares that I have."


I love the way this went together!  It's actually serving as the inspiration for the backing for one of my quilts.  I like that there's a huge variety of prints, and that not all of them are 'modern'.  It's the fearless throwing together of so many prints that really wins this one over for me, since I started my quilting life as a scrap quilter.

And you know what I thought of first when I saw the preview image for this top? 

Klimt.  Gustav Klimt. 

Do you see it?

The incredible, and deceptive, texture Klimt gave to his textiles by using repeated, slightly warped geometric shapes?  

Are you getting the sense of motion?  That the subject could move off the canvas at any moment?

That's what I felt when I saw The Square Family Reunion for the first time.  Like the squares could dance right out of their border, and do so gleefully.  While Linda's squares aren't warped, they have a delightful sense of movement to them.


Tee-hee.  It's a square dance.

Knee Issues... And an Apology

I have to apologize for the delay of this week's edition of Think Modern Thursday...

I worked open to close on Wednesday, which is when I would normally write this segment, so that I can hit the "post" button just a few minutes after midnight, so that it's ready as soon as it's actually Thursday.

Well, this past Wednesday, I did... something to my left knee.  Now, I've had knee problems since playing tennis in high school.  But whatever I did Wednesday night, which was no different from any other work day, stressed my knee out.

A lot.

By the time we were done picking up a friend at the mall, my knee did not want to support my weight.  I spent the evening keeping my knee elevated and resting.  It didn't hurt, just ached dully.

When I woke up Thursday, the whole middle of my leg encompassing the knee and about four inches above and below it, were freakily numb.  I persevered, though, put on my knee brace and went to work.

My knee buckled every fifteen to twenty minutes as I worked.  I kid you not.  I finally got worried enough that I left work early, and headed to Dean Urgent Care to have someone take a look-see.

One exam and three x-rays later, I still don't know anything.  The PA who examined me noted the buckling, could actually feel something popping when she maneuvered my leg around.  However, she said the x-rays looked fine.  Yet, she gave me a referral for orthopedics, and I have an appointment on Tuesday morning to see what is actually up.

*sigh*

So anyway, that's why Think Modern Thursday #7 is late.  I know what I want to post, but I think I'll leave it until next week.  That way I have a little wiggle room before post #100 comes up.

Meanwhile, I'm working another open to close today.  (My poor knee!) A fellow employee had a tooth pulled, so isn't really able to effectively communicate, which is kind of a necessity in the retail world.  Thank goodness, I thought ahead and wore my brace today, because I'm feeling the strain.  Hopefully this weekend will be a little more restful.

So, again...  I'm sorry about missing this week's Think Modern Thursday.  I'll be back on the horse next week!

Think Modern Thursday #6 - Modern Quilt for an Old Friend

How do you all like the new logos for my weekly segments?  I'm really feeling the graphic design bug lately, and have no problem working it.  Thank goodness that the muses are actually awake, caffeinated and talking.  


I'll be incorporating these into my sidebar sometime this week, and list each individual segment, so that they can all be found quickly and easily.  


It's amazing what comes to me at nearly 3 AM...


Anyway, on to Think Modern Thursday #6 (finally!):


This week's offering comes to us courtesy of Amy.  Check out her flickr, and her blog, Diary of a Quilter, is a great read!  Also check out her Uber-Beginning Quilt-a-long at Make and Takes.

The first thing that caught my eye about this quilt was, obviously, the solids.  So much solids love going on in this corner of blog-land!  It's even better that the solids aren't the grays I've been seeing everywhere. (And there's totally nothing wrong with gray - I'm still in love with it!)  Browns are good.  Very good, in this case!  I really like combination of the dark chocolate brown with the kraft paper brown.

I'm really enjoying the simplicity of the shapes in this quilt.  It's the perfect way to showcase some of those great graphic prints out there.  I love how the solids unify the whole thing, so that the prints don't have to come even close to coordinating.  My eye is actually caught most by the pops of deep orange and yellow.  I love how they contrast with the dark brown.

I'm actually very tempted to make a quilt inspired by this one.  Unfortunately, my stash seriously lacks big and bold prints, since I have a habit of buying primarily tone on tone prints.  Hmm.. Maybe I should start a swap.  

Hehehe... a BBC swap, perhaps?  Big Bold Charms?  I kind of like that.  Any one want in?  Leave a comment!  I'll determine if I actually run the swap based on response.

Anyway, I digress!  Thank you very to Amy, for allowing me to highlight her wonderful quilt here, as well as for inspiring me to actually get off my duff and do something - even if it is running a swap! ;)

Think Modern Thursday #6...

... is going to be delayed until next week.  I'm working extra hours this week, along with having had house guests, and haven't had a chance to actually write the post.

Who knows?  I might even show off something I see at the Madison Quilt Expo this Saturday!

Think Modern Thursday #5 - Bee Mod Quilt

Today's quilt is sort of a two-for-one deal.

Get ready for this...

It's double-sided!

This particular quilt is the joint effort of the Bee Mod Quilting Bee, though it belongs to Lauren, aka uppitygirl on flickr.  They are all also members of the L.A. Modern Quilt Guild.  The talent of these quilters makes me so jealous.

I love this side!  I'm totally biased, and this is my favorite side.  I love the circles.  I keep wanting to do circles in a quilt, but I'm a little intimidated.  I think my favorite block is the one in the bottom row, second from the left.  The combination of turquoise and that rich sunshine yellow just makes me happy.  I love that the white, for me, enhances the quilt, instead of overwhelming it.  That's the way I normally see white in quilts now, anyway, a detraction, drawing my eye away from everything else.

This side may make me revise my opinion on non-symmetrical/wonky log cabin blocks.  I'm not a big fan, never have been.  I think it's the lack of structure, oddly enough.  I'm just not a wonky kind of gal, as you all know.  I've made a couple of wonky log cabin blocks, but not a complete quilt.  I might have to try my hand at a mini-quilt, just to test it out completely for myself.

I love the strong, highly graphic prints throughout this quilt.  I really love that each side has a theme that unifies all of the blocks, while each stands on its own.  The very selective color palette is awesome, proof that we don't need a riot of colors to make a visual statement.  

I think what makes this quilt so intriguing to me, visually, is that these are all disparate, yet unified, visions of several different artists.  Each of them put their own spin on the end goal.  You can almost catch glimpses of their personalities in each block.

Think Modern Thursday #4 - Proposal Moon by Jacquie

I have to apologize for the lateness of this post... I ended up working a different shift than usual, and it threw off my whole day!  I actually almost forgot that it was Thursday today.

This week I'm pleased to bring you a quilt by Jacquie from Tallgrass Prairie Studio.  Check out her flickr for more views of her quilty goodness!

Now, before I get into her the actual top that I've selected for this week, I just wanted to share with you all my love for Jacquie's quilts.  In my humble opinion, Jacquie's work achieves the aesthetic that I picture in my head when I think 'modern'.

First of all, I love the inspiration for this quilt.  It's such a sweet story.  

I'll be honest... I don't have a lot to say about this particular quilt top.  There isn't much to be said, that the picture doesn't say for me.  Yeah, I really do love this top to bits!  Anyway... 

I am addicted to gray in quilts.  It's probably my favorite neutral.  Gray has such a wonderful way of reflecting the hues in the surrounding fabrics, rather than absorbing them, like black, or diminishing them, like white.

I am also, still, very addicted to graphic black and white prints, which Jacquie makes such wonderful use of here.  And, I really dig that persimmon orange solid.  It's such a rich contrast to the gray solid.

I really enjoy the fact that this quilt isn't perfectly symmetrical, yet has a beautiful balance to it.  It just shows us all that we don't have to ensure that each quadrant of a quilt is the mirror image of its opposite.

When I asked Jacquie for permission to post about Proposal Moon here, she was kind enough to tell me that she was working on the back of the quilt and was hoping to start quilting it soon.  I'm so excited to see what the final product looks like!  

Thank you very much, Jacquie, for allowing me to show off Proposal Moon for this edition of "Think Modern Thursday!"

Think Modern Thursday #3 - A Mini-Quilt by flossybossy

DQS9 (or check out the flickr) is going to provide plenty of inspirational fodder for me!  Today's modern example also hails from a participant of this round, Brioni, also known as flossybossy.  And, yes, it's another example of a solely solids quilt.  I just can't get away from them!!

Once again, I'm totally jealous of whomever is going to receive this little gem, which is really odd, because it's in a softer color palette than I would normally go in.  

So, what's so modern about this one?  

Check out those flying geese!  Traditional flying geese blocks are comprised of three triangles, where the length is twice the height.  Very simple.  These flying geese come in a variety of acute angles, defying the standard.

That pop of chocolate/burgundy in the center is genius.  The contrast of that rich, saturated hue against the (in comparison) effervescent pastels is wonderful.  

 Speaking of effervescence, the pebble quilting is perfection against the otherwise harsh angles.  I love the way the dense quilting pops out the shape of the un-quilted portions of the quilt.  

Even  better?  This isn't a square quilt!  It's a hexadecagon!  (Yeah, I totally had to look that up, lol.) That's 16-sided!  I'm envious of how neat the binding looks on this quilt, but that's more a commentary on my total lack of binding skillz.  *glares at WIP*

Anyway, to see more of flossybossy's awesomeness, check out her blog.

Think Modern Thursday #2 - A Top by The Sewbot

One of my first experiences with online swaps was Doll Quilt Swap 7.  It was a wonderful learning process, and I think I am about ready to participate in another DQS.  I'll have to wait until DQS 10, though, as 9 is well underway.  Still, I love to poke through the DQS flickr group for inspiration on a regular basis.

I came across this:

Jessica, also known as The Sewbot, is a woman after my own heart!  She's a self-described "supernerd", which just makes me giggle, as I'd totally slap that label on my own person.  Check out her blog or her flickr. She's incredibly talented, and I love her color sense!

Which brings me to the top above...  Need I say that I'm totally jealous of her swap partner?

I love the asymmetry in this top, and the medley of bright oranges is just superb.  (I went through an orange fabric buying phase, and this top makes me want to play with them!)  It's even better that there are so many polka dots!  The big black polka dots help to tie in the center panel without making it obvious that they're bringing a little balance.

I love, love, love the tone on tone, layered circles in the center.  They make me think of a jumble of planets against the dark vastness of space.  I'm really digging how the aqua just leaps out at me.  The contrast between the hard lines of the triangles and the curves of the circles create an amazing unity.

Thank you, Jessica, for allowing me to showcase this top!

Think Modern Thursday #1: Vintage Jacob's Ladder

Okay, so you all know that I'm on a solids kick.  I'm seriously tempted to start buying fabrics to make a quilt completely out of solids, especially since Joann's has a decent selection of Kona cottons that just make my heart sing.

Anyway, on another trip through blog-land, I came across this photo of a lovely, lovely vintage Jacob's Ladder top:

Yeah, that doesn't look very vintage does it?  Ann Champion is the lucky owner of this top.  It's thanks to her kind permission that I'm able to share this beauty with you.  Check out her post for the details on this stunner.

Now, the reason that this top caught my eye is because I've been thinking so much about the whole 'modern' quilting thing.  And that led me to considering that I should maybe show off the tops and quilts that capture the heart of 'modern' to me.  That brings me to this: the very first Think Modern Thursday.  I'm hoping to do this on a weekly basis, but I can't promise that the muse will cooperate.  (Not to mention, there's the whole self-discipline thing...)

Anyway, why does this particular top make me think 'modern'?


Jacob's Ladder is normally seen set within sashing.  In this example, the blocks are all set side by side, creating an interesting secondary pattern.

Next, the use of color in this top is extraordinary!  The 'background' is not comprised of white (or cream).  Instead, the maker elected to use a lavender instead.  And really, how many of us would think to use lavender with two shades of orange?  Not many of us, I'd guess.  I'd have thought about using a deep purple as a foil to those luscious oranges, but never something as light as that lavender.

Also, I love that the white catches the eye without overwhelming the rest of it.  The white and lavender provide a nice counterbalance to the two oranges.  The turquoise gives the quilt a zing, bringing some cool to what would otherwise be a very warm quilt.

I love when traditional quilt blocks are given such a crisp 'make-over'.  The lines in this top are strong, uninterrupted by busy prints that confuse the eye.

I think that does it for now.. Let's see what I come up with for next Think Modern Thursday!