These were the very first quilts I did. Some were based on existing patterns, but I also started creating my own designs before too long. I experimented with a stencil technique called theorem painting, and several of the examples in this gallery reflect that. Many of the pictures of the early quilts were scanned from very small pre-digital photographs, so forgive the poor quality of a few of the pictures in the first gallery. Sorry.
Most (but not all) of the shots in these galleries (there are several more after this one) show a full view of a quilt followed by a detailed view. What’s a quilt without a good look at the stitching, right? All of these quilts at this point were machine pieced (except for any applique, of course), and were hand quilted. I didn’t start machine quilting until a decade or more into the 21st Century.
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1988, My First Quilt
1988, a detail from My First Quilt
1989, a detail from Basket of Roses
1989, closer detail from Basket of Roses
1989, Grapes for Dianne
1989, Grapes for Dianne (plus Minay)
1989, Poppies for Jennie (our neighbor)
1989, a detail from Poppies for Jennie
1989, The Elephant Quilt (the elephants inside the squares are theorem stenciled)
1989, a detail from The Elephant Quilt
1990, Grape Circle
1990, Grape Lattice (quilted)
1990, a detail from Grape Lattice (unquilted)
1990, Grape Panel
1990, a detail from Grape Panel
1990, Grapes and Squares
1990, a detail from Grapes and Squares
1991, Blueberry Pillow
1991, Everything Old is Nouveau Again
1991, a detail from Everything Old is Nouveau Again (back)
1991, a detail from Everything Old is Nouveau Again (front)
1991, Grape Pillow
1991, a detail from Grape Pillow
1991, an original stencil painting, On Dogwood Lane
1991, Peace Worth Preserving
1991, a detail from Peace Worth Preserving
1991, Violets
1991, a detail from Violets
1991, Christmas Table Runner for Minay’s sister, Lyndy
1992, a detail from Lily O’Keefe
1992, Stars of Joy (for Michael’s mom, Joy)
1992, a detail from Stars of Joy
1992, Christmas Mice Table Runner
1992, a detail from Christmas Mice Table Runner
1993, Arbor Grapes
1993, a detail from Arbor Grapes
1993, Theorem Basket of Fruit
1993, a detail from Theorem Basket of Fruit (front)
1993, a detail from Theorem Basket of Fruit (back)
1993, Town and Country Tree Skirt
1993, a detail from the Town and Country Tree Skirt