Civil War Bride & Ladies At Sunset

One of the attractions of going to a quilt show is to see the diversity in tastes among quilters.

At the Arizona Quilters Guild show, I noticed two wonderful quilts hung next to each other that provided great contrast.

My Civil War Bride

Made and hand quilted by Janice Hartman

I have noticed so many quilters working on these blocks this last year, represented especially well on Australian blogs.

In fact, many ladies link their progress and follow along on at http://thecivilwarbridequilt.blogspot.com/

Pattern by Corliss Searcey of Threadbear in Australia

I especially like the uniqueness of the elephant block.

Janice wrote that she used Reproduction fabrics gathered over the years.

Silk thread was used for the applique and she hand quilted around each piece.

Hand quilted diagonally in the borders.

I love the fringe on the tablecloth.

You can see why this was an award winner at the show.

Right next to Civil War, in contrast hung Ladies At Sunset, a very modern Southwestern quilt.

Pieced and quilted by Nancy Norrander

Nancy wrote that she made this quilt for her new home in Arizona.

"It represents a very peaceful time of day and a time to reflect."

My eye was drawn to her use of 3-D jewelry.

And flowing skirts.