I am a "modern" quilter and joined my local modern quilt. holice i was gonna suggest the same website that clsurz noted. i love the bold colorful fabrics that are being created these days and while traditional quilts can be stunning the patterns didn't seem to tug at my artistic strings. my thoughts were there just had to be another way to make these patterns appeal to my sense of style and color. in stepped this whole modern approach to quilting and took hold of me.
i am (well was now i am a quilter) a clothing designer by training and have sewn since the age of 7. i had started my own boutique and custom children's clothing business that i operated for approximately 18 years creating uniquely colorful and embellished clothing for children. i also custom designed dresses for girls. i say all of this to say i was use to sewing and creating my own style and designs. when i started quilting about 6 years ago, i felt the same need to create my own quilt styles using a variety of colors, fabrics and design.
when initially looking at the traditional quilt patterns, i did not feel they represented my design sense and i knew that i needed something different to represent me. the first 17 quilts that i made for family were all done with freestyle design and a mixture of fabrics and textures. i had a very small fabric stash from my sewing days which was not all cottons but where high end fabrics. so using my sense of color and balance, i created these quilts as i made them with geometric cuts and strategic placing of fabrics and using embellishments. each quilt is unique and was made without a pattern.
while the modern quilt movement loosely (to me) describes their style by the use of negative space (the grays & white fabrics), simple lines and plentiful use of solids, there could be a sub-category for quilters like me within this genre, those who are freestylers with emphasis on colors, patterns and mixed fabrics and textures.
and if i can put an updated spin on a traditional block, sign me up.
but to me modern quilting is more than reintrepreting a traditional block but we need to create new blocks to reflect our design aesthetics. i truly believe there is room at the quilting table for all of us no matter what our style is. to me it is not a traditional vs modern quilter mentality at work here but there is room for us to learn from each other. and this is just my 2 cents.
happy mother's day to all.
