In June I taught a class on a unique way to make curves on quilts without piecing. I demonstrated this technique in my Curves lecture in Madison last year, and it was such fun to do it as a recent hands-on class. The contrasting bias strips along the curves are the secret that make it work ~ plus they add some pizazz. This is my sample:

A fun group of quilters signed up! It was fascinating to see how this block worked with the variety of fabrics each quilter chose. By the end of class the blocks were made and we all helped each other try different layouts.




One of the downsides of teaching workshops is I seldom get to see the finished projects. This time it was different. One month after the class I received an email from Louise with a photo of her finished quilt ~ along with pics of a few of her other layouts. Here are some of the possibilities:


and here’s her finished quilt:

Great job Louise! Thus the gauntlet was thrown. I sent the photos to the other students with some encouragement to get their projects done, and they did not disappoint!
Louise’s sister was the next one to share a photo of her finished top. Dorothy chose to use a medallion set similar to mine to make this cheerful top:

Suzi took the challenge too and this is her lovely quilt:

The lime green border and binding really make the blocks sparkle!
Shortly after hearing from Suzi ~ Mary Clare sent me a photo of her curves quilt too! She had her own ideas about the fabrics to bring and where to place them. She took this pattern in a fun and unexpected direction ~ placing some plain blocks here and there to add to the effect.

Mary Clare is a member of the ThreadBenders group with me, and she has a very artistic eye. In the photo above the quilt is hanging in the center of the wall, and the green squares behind it are actually painted on her dining room wall! I think I want to do that!!! It’s perfect with her quilt.
Thanks to all these dear ladies for sharing their wonderful quilts with us.