This last summer, they had the quilt tops all completed and brought them to show me.

All I can say is, WOW!!!

As you’ll see, I managed to get photos of their quilts but not of them! These gals are kind of shy and retiring but I just had to brag about them. I told them they have stick-to-it-iveness!

This is Laureen Baker’s quilt, using Civil War reproduction fabrics.

Here we have Judy Uyemura’s basket quilt, with the adorable polka-dot background.

And this is Amy Wang’s, made with American Jane fabrics. I sent the gals down the aisle to show this to Sandy Klop, who was just as thrilled and speechless as I was!

Great job, gals!! I’m so happy that you chose my pattern to devote years of your appliqué life to. I am quite honored.

Funny tag ending: Judy told me that the gals had been intimidated by the dogtooth border and had devised some folded-fabric kind-of backward prairie points instead. I told her, are you nuts? If you can appliqué all those baskets, the dogtooth border is gonna be a cinch!

I saw Judy again at the San Diego show and she pulled out her quilt top. There was the dogtooth border! She said, you’re right, it was so easy! Yay!

Baskets to Appliqué is out of print but you can get all the basket patterns in a pack at my website, on the patterns page.

Until next time,
Kay
By Kay Mackenzie

Marilyn did a fantastic job. I love the way she made the eggs into Easter eggs!

Marilyn picked up Growing Hearts to Appliqué at the show and says she plans to use pinks instead of reds. Can’t wait to see it!

Thanks a million, Marilyn!

Until next time,
Kay
By Kay Mackenzie

I am a member of Feather Princess Appliqué Guild of Tampa, Florida. One of the sewing circles of the guild is “Sewrority Sisters Appliqué Sewciety.” We meet once a month for four hours of sewing and fun at one of the local libraries. We wanted to give something to the library for allowing us to use one of their rooms, so we decided to make a raffle quilt and donate all the proceeds to the Riverview Library.

I contacted you last year about using your basket patterns for a raffle quilt, and you gave us permission. My group has finally finished the quilt and I’m sending a photo of it.

Basket Quilt by the SSAS, 80 x 100

Is this not a masterpiece of a quilt? I am totally blown away. This is a group of gals who are not afraid of appliqué! They enlarged the blocks, designed a new setting, and embellished many of the blocks in a most delightful fashion, I love it!

Rebecca continues:

Each person donated $10 towards the cost of fabric, batting, etc., for the quilt. Sixteen women volunteered to make blocks, one person did the piecing, another the quilting and another the binding. We used your 16 patterns from Baskets to Appliqué, and I designed four more to make a total of 20 blocks.

My friend Shari Gillis and I designed the sashing for setting the 12″ blocks. Some of the women added their own designs to the baskets and one person changed it completely. The quilt is finished, and we are now in the process of selling the raffle tickets. This is a beautiful quilt, I wish you could see it in person. Thank you so much for allowing us to use your patterns. We are hoping to make a large donation to the library.

Oh my goodness, I should think so! Huge thanks to you and your group, Rebecca, for choosing my basket designs for your quilt. I feel honored. You have elevated the designs and you’ve inspired me!

Here are some closeups of the blocks.

I’m so glad Rebecca sent me closeups so that I could see the delightful sewing doodads that were added to these blocks. How fun! My hat’s off!

Here are the four blocks that Rebecca designed herself. As I told her, they’re so lovely and entirely to my taste. Do we see a new pattern designer emerging here?

Here are two labels for the quilt that Rebecca did up in EQ7.

Great job with the computer work!!

Now a word of news about Baskets to Appliqué. Gentle quilters, it’s very nearly out of print. That’s right, there are now exactly 9 copies left in captivity. But never fear, the designs will still be available once these copies are gone. I’ll be offering all 16 designs in a different format, an unbound pattern pack in a baggie. There won’t be any color photos or instructions, just the designs for your appliqué pleasure. The baskets will go on!

Until next time,
Kay
By Kay Mackenzie

Gloria gave me an order on the spot for a batch of the books and told me of her plans to make a sample to hang in her booth. Since that time she has become a wonderful friend and a mentor to me, sharing her knowledge of area quilt shows and giving me great tips. Every time I would talk to her or see her at a show she would tell me that the baskets were coming along. Last spring I saw the blocks, completed but not set together yet. They were just gorgeous… soft and rich looking.

Well, at the recent River City Quilt Guild show in Sacramento, I checked in with her during setup and there was the quilt, finished and up on the wall.

Victorian Baskets by Gloria Foley

Wow!!! Look at that red setting. Talk about punch! It looks so different from mine, I love it! Gloria used needleturn appliqué and, instead of a dogtooth border, she used prairie points in the border.

Sixteen Baskets by Kay Mackenzie

At the Sacramento show, people had fun walking back and forth between our booths to look at the two versions.

Until next time,
Kay
By Kay Mackenzie

“Here is the picture of the baskets that I promised to send you. I sure enjoy your books. Betty”

BOM Basket Quilt by Betty Kisbey

These are the designs from Baskets to Appliqué. Oh, is this quilt exquisite… the soft browns, beiges, and reds create a soothing effect to me. Betty has put her own creative touches on some of the blocks. I love it when quilters do this; it makes things happen that I could never see in my own mind’s eye. In the second row, she broderie-persed some beautiful roses in the first basket, where I had lollipops, and added some roses to the ivy basket too. Wonderful.

I asked Betty what methods she used, and it sounds like she pulled out all of her appliqué bag of tricks!

“I used hand appliqué,” she reports, “a combination of needle turn, back basting, freezer paper, starch methods, etc. We did the BOM with it and this is the result.”

Thank you, Betty and Karol of The Quilter’s Stash! Betty reports, “Next I will use your new book, Easy Appliqué Blocks.”

Fantastic!

Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs

I sent her a copy of my book Baskets to Appliqué, which features 16 charming basket designs to appliqué using the method of your choice.

In my next post, I’m going to show you a fabulous Baskets to Appliqué quilt that was made by a shop for their BOM!

Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs

Doesn’t the black set off the beautiful batik colors?

Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs

This change-up shows the lemons from one design sitting in a basket from another. Also, piecing the background puts the basket on a table!

Fabric choice also creates the look and feel you like. I made two samples of the lollipop basket using 30’s repro fabrics. The yellow one wound up in the book. Here’s the green one.

The photos that appear in my books are available for viewing on the Quilt Puppy website, on the “See the quilts” link.

Speaking of baskets, the National Quilting Association is holding a special Basket Quilt exhibit as part of their annual show in Columbus, Ohio, in June. I’m happy to say that my sampler quilt Sixteen Baskets has been accepted into the exhibit! More information at the NQA website.