Windswept Sparks



This is "Windswept Sparks".

I'm fortunate to have a small quilting group that retreats together, at a property called 'Windswept'.  At our retreat in the fall of 2018, I created this beauty. 

I've been collecting Shweshwe fabrics from Meerkat Shweshwe as they vend at various shows.  The fabric is produced in South Africa.  The colours are deep and designs are fabulous.  I spent a day prepping the fabrics before the retreat, and packed up a nice, deep black solid to pop all the colours.   
On my way to retreat, literally, running through how I wanted to put these fabrics together, I had a lightning bolt of an idea.  A method I have not seen before.  And I had to stop in at a couple of shops to pick up some bright solids to work with.  
This is the result, and I love it!  The quilt is a nice lap size.
 I quilted this with arcs in the colour side of the HST and straight lines in the black, with Hab 'n Dash Glide Teal thread.  Echoing the straight lines around the 'sparks' of solid brights created some fun quilted angles.  My Bernina Q24 counted 137,522 stitches in this quilt.
 
I just adore this quilt!  So much that I took a bold leap and entered it into QuiltCon2019.  December 2018 email brought the news that it was not juried in.  My entry was #423 of more than 1,750 quilts submitted, and only 400 are accepted.  So it became part of the Instagram #quiltconreject quilt show!

I submitted this for the National Juried Show for the Canadian Quilter's Association for the 2019 show in Ottawa, and it was accepted!  It was on display June 12 - 15, 2019.  Happy, happy dancing!  I even took a road trip with my BFF to the show to see it hanging - and take in a few classes.  There may have been some shopping.  Maybe some new Shweshwe purchased.

I'll also be showing this at our London Modern Quilt Guild show in Sept 2019.