Thursday, May 5, 2011

Snake Trail Beauty


When it comes to recently made quilts by living artists, I'm a big fan of Etsy. I've bought several great items through Etsy, including the vintage Mountain Mist New York Beauty seen in yesterday's blog, an autographed copy of Uncommon Threads by Gayle Pritchard, and three recently made quilts, which have essentially launched my collection of New York Beauties into the 21st century.


Just yesterday, I found this gorgeous little wall quilt, a Snake Trail configuration made with New York Beauty blocks. Jana Schmitt of Waterloo, Iowa made the quilt with a variety of colorful print fabrics and batiks. Schmitt, a creative type who has enjoyed making things as long as she can remember, started quilting in 1996 and hasn't stopped since. She also knits, crochets, and does colored pencil drawings - and now that her triplets are in college, she has spare time to create.


The quilt is about 39" square, complete with ID label on the back and sleeve for hanging, and it was only $150 - a bargain as far as I'm concerned. Once the quilt arrives, I'll have four New York Beauty quilts and one top made between 1999 and 2011 in my collection. These pieces represent how the pattern evolved following the groundbreaking work of Karen Stone, who radically reinvented the New York Beauty pattern in the early to mid 90's, triggering a huge wave of new quilts. It's amazing how much the pattern has evolved during the last 150+ years!

6 comments:

  1. As you start going to more quilt shows you'll see that the member's tables and guild silent auctions are also great ways to add to your collection (oh wait you did that in Paducah...you learn fast!)

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  2. That is a fabulous quilt! So vibrant! I can't wait to try my hand at one of these.

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  3. Yankee- I'm a quilt magnet. They find me. :) Can't wait to see this one in person. Will post more pictures including a full view when it arrives.

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  4. Wow, that is a bargain and a beautiful quilt! I absolutely love NYB quilts and really anything spikey. Just gorgeous!

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  5. A lovely piece. Oh, and thanks for mentioning my book. Did you learn anything from it? : ))))

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  6. Of course! I hadn't realized what an important role Ohio had in the art quilt movement, but given the deep tradition of quiltmaking in Ohio, it makes perfect sense. The book is an eye-opener, and I highly recommend it to anyone who hasn't got a copy.

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