Dynamic Duo Inspires Me

I have recently discovered Gwen Marston and Freddy Moran, two colorful and dynamic ladies who co-authored Collaborative Quilting, 2006, Sterling Publishing. Shown are the cover of the book along with photos of two of their quilts showcased in the book. If you look carefully at the close-up photo, you'll discover why it's called "Home on the Range".

Oh, the blocks and quilts within these pages speak to me! I love vivid, saturated colors, but have never tried working with them like these ladies have. I found myself propped up in bed for hours studying how these seemingly slap-dash profusions of shapes and hues actually work.

I knew I had to make one (or die trying)!

Easier said than done. In raiding my stash, I quickly found that, although I love bright colors, it was hard to find enough fabrics that screamed, "Yes! I'm bright and loud enough! Use me! Luckily, I had recently been beefing up my stash of black and white prints, so I pulled some of those, too. They figure prominently in the Marston/Moran style to pop the colors and rest the eye.

Once I had gathered what seemed to be a sufficient number of fabrics (a lot!), I jumped into cutting and sewing.

Again, easier said than done! Many of my sassy new blocks just didn't work. Hmmm. This was harder than I had thought, apparently. Back to studying the quilts on those pages. After many discards, re-dos, and frustrations, my experiment in color on my design wall is beginning to take shape. Boy, have I ever learned a lot from my trials and errors this week. And, what fun!

Can't wait to show you my completed project soon!