Project QUILTING – Meet Guest Judge Ryan Walsh of ‘I’m Just a Guy Who Quilts’

Once again, I have a wonderfully talented guest judge for this week – Ryan Walsh of ‘I’m Just a Guy Who Quilts’. I discovered Ryan on twitter and have enjoyed his blog for quite awhile. Here’s a little bio that Ryan sent me so you can all learn a little more about him:

“Ryan Walsh is a self taught quilter and quilt designer who enjoys taking classic quilt designs and updating them with a modern twist. He’s employed full time as a NYS Licensed Funeral Director and manages a funeral establishment in his hometown. A busy dad, the majority of his quilting adventures occur in the late hours of the night after his kids are in bed!

Ryan uses quilting as a vehicle to satisfy his never ending need to be creative. His work is based around combining traditional piecing methods with free-style construction techniques. As a way to challenge his ability, Ryan participates in several online bees and quilt related swaps every year. When he’s not quilting, Ryan also enjoys photography, embroidery, collage, crocheting, sightseeing and spending time with his family.

Co-owner of the quilt design company, Patchwork Squared (www.patchworksquared.com), Ryan currently resides in the Catskill Mountain region of Upstate New York with his wife and children. To see more of Ryan’s work you can visit his blog at: www.ryanwalshquilts.com.”

I just want to thank Ryan right now for taking the time to critique the projects and support this fun little venture. I can’t wait to see all the entries that he’ll have to judge! I also had to laugh when I saw that Diane had made the challenge Flying Geese as Ryan is a block designer for the Blogger’s Block A Palooza Quilt Along (his block will be posted on his blog this Thursday) that has been all about Flying Geese and Nine Patches! Too ironic!

Project QUILTING – Guest Judge QUILTDAD!

I am super excited to have some fun new guest judges this season! The first is one that I’ve been watching on Twitter – QuiltDad! QuiltDad will be the guest judge for the second challenge going on NOW!

Here’s his bio:

John Adams is a husband and father of 3 who enjoys sewing and quilting in his spare time.

Inspired by the growing number of crafting blogs and the emergence of vibrant, modern quilting fabrics in the textile industry, John convinced his wife to teach him how to use her sewing machine in 2004 and hasn’t looked back. He started his popular blog, www.QuiltDad.com, in 2008 to share his love of patchwork with others.

Since then, John has become very active in the online quilting communities. Today, he applies his modern quilting aesthetic by designing quilt patterns for both fabric designers and companies and contributing frequently to creative blogs, books and other collaborative endeavors. John is also a co-founder of the popular e-magazine Fat Quarterly.

John and his family live in Cary, North Carolina.

Quilt Dad has also just started BlockAPalooza on his blog – check it out ASAP and join along! I hope too 🙂

Meet Sue of SweetJane – this Weeks Project QUILTING Guest Judge

Without my amazing judges, Project QUILTING wouldn’t be the success that is. I also love to mix things up and snag a fantastic guest judge whenever possible. I was honored this week when Sue of SweetJane agreed to be the guest judge. Here’s a little bit about her background in quilting and be sure to check out her beautiful patterns and quilts in her etsy shop: Patchwork Quilt Fabulous Fall 50 x 61 inches lap quilt….leaves, butterflies, acorn, pine trees

Here goes. My name is Sue Pfau. I am 40 years old and have been quilting for about 8 years. I have always been drawn to working with my hands. I have memories of going to the mall when I was 9 or 10 years old and drooling over cross stitch kits that I couldn’t afford to buy. After college I took a knitting class and I knit non stop for about 4 years. I was a flight attendant at the time, and needed something to do on all my down time away from home. I got frustrating because about half of the things I made never seemed to fit. I had always wanted to quilt, but had no one to teach me. Finally I visited a semi local quilt shop and signed up for a class. The only one they had left to sign up for was appliqué. I didn’t even know what it was! It turns out I absolutely loved it. It fit my life style well because I could take the appliqué on trips with me to keep me busy. I will always be grateful for having my knitting and appliqué to keep me busy and happy while I was away so much staying in hotels and being stuck at the airport. I took an introductory piecing class as well, and for whatever reason my appliqué work slowly turned into mostly machine piecing instead.

Bold is Beautiful Moda OZ Baby or Toddler Crib Quilt, or Lap Quilt, BOY or GIRL

I entered two of my mixed appliqué and machine pieced quilts in our local guild quilt show, and won 1st and 2nd place in my category. Yeah! Quilts and More magazine also interviewed me for an article on “How to Sell on Etsy”. I am just in a small part of the article, but I can’t wait until it is published…I am so excited! My patterns have been selling well on Etsy, at the Fat Quarter Shop online, and a local quilt shop here in upstate NY. I am truly blessed making a business out of something I love!!

Grandma Mary’s Five Patch QUILT PATTERN….One Jelly Roll, EASY

I quit my job 4 years ago as a flight attendant after 13 years to raise my two kids, ages 2 and 5. I decided to try to make money making quilts and then, more recently, have been designing patterns as well. It is funny where life takes you, you really never know where you will end up. I know my quilting journey has really just begun, and I am so grateful for it’s presence in my life. It is the best therapy I know of, and such a gratifying hobby. Plus, quilters are the nicest people! I love meeting and spending time with my fellow quilters!

Moda BIRDIE Baby BOY or Toddler Crib Quilt, Lap Quilt, or Wall Hanging

Introducing Project QUILTING’s Third Judge – Barb Raisbeck of QuiltsbyBarb

Our third steady judge for Project QUILTING is going to be someone I’ve talked about a lot – Barb Raisbeck of QuiltsbyBarb. Barb is Diane’s sister, my aunt-in-law and an extremely talented long arm quilter. (oh and trust me – neither Diane or Barb will be ‘easy on me’ for scoring – if anything they are even more critical of my work!)

Flower Power Quilt

She has participated in a few of the challenges but any challenges she feels like working on will just be for ‘show’ and not eligible for any of the prizes.

Checkers Anyone?

Here’s Barb’s ‘About Me’ that I snagged from her website:

Let me tell you how I got started quilting.

Around 1990, Mom made a quilt top for my son, Cory. I was very excited when I went to WalMart and picked out a black,purple, green and gold print fabric. Then I went and selected all these plain colored polyester fabric for poor Mom to make the quilt. She didn’t complain; thank goodness I selected the Rail Fence pattern, and she made Cory’s quilt top.

Now it was time for me to hand quilt it. Mom was going to come to my home in Bloomington, Wisconsin, to get me started and teach me how to hand quilt. Before we got to do this, Mom suffered a massive heart attack and we lost our wonderful Mother just ten days later.

Bargello Trip Around the World

The quilt top sat in the closet until I saw a quilt that had been machine quilted. I thought, now that is what I can do with Cory’s quilt and it will get finished. I sent the quilt top out and had it quilted with a polyester batting with the cloud pattern. I brought it home and put about a 4 inch wide binding on the edge, all done by machine. I think Cory still has the quilt.

My daughter, Katrina, then thought she needed a quilt. I was already a lot wiser. Katrina and I went to a local quilt shop and selected four blue fabrics of 100% cotton. I made my first quilt top, a Sunshine and Shadows quilt, all in blues. I sent it off to the machine quilter and it was quilted with a pantograph pattern. I was hooked on quilting!!

Purple Heat Resistant Mini Quilt

I continued making quilt tops and sending them out to a local machine quilter. She specialized in pantographs only and I was ready for more. It was time for me to purchase my own long arm quilting machine. My husband was very skeptical as I threatened to put the machine in our living room unless we built on to our house. I threatened for about a year and eventually we built a wonderful two story addition to our home for my new quilting studio.

Fast forward a few years to 2001 and I decided this quilting stuff was alright. I quit my full time job working for the US government and Quilts by Barb became my full time passion. It has been nothing but uphill every since!

Quilts by Barb has evolved to include Quilt Retreat Getaway Weekends and Hand Dyeing Workshops. We celebrated our fifth year anniversary of fall retreats in 2007. I have taught over 300 students in Beginning Quilting 101 and a large number of other quilt classes at local quilt shops in the area and in my studio. In 2007, I had my first opportunity to teach at the Wisconsin Quilt Expo in Madison, Wisconsin, and will be back again in 2010.

Where’s the Point – Quilt PATTERN

Around Christmas time in 2006, I decided it was time to trade up from my Gammill Classic with an IntelliStitch attachment to a Gammill Optimum with a Statler Stitcher. The Statler Stitcher is a top of the line quilting system and it helps me to continue to provide the best in custom machine quilting for my quilting customers.

There are many days when I am working on a quilt for myself or a custom quilt for a customer and I think just how much my Mother would have enjoyed helping me in my quilting business. Unfortunately, I didn’t get started quilting until after I lost her but I am guessing she is watching me from above and is really glad I know better than to head to WalMart for polyester fabric as I continue to add to my quilting stash!

Check out this post to see the THREE Quilts that Barb had in the International Quilt Festival in Chicago this past April!

Barb is also the host and teacher of the Quilts By Barb Quilt Retreats each fall. 2011 looks to be just as amazing as all the past one – if not more so! Check out http://www.quiltsbybarb.com/2011quiltretreat.htm for more information on what’s going on.

I know that I’m really excited to have three permanent judges along witha fourth guest judge when possible. I love getting feedback on my work – it can only make me a stronger quilter. Thank you to my judges for helping make Project Quilting just that much more special.