The trip last weekend to the Houston International Quilt Festival was a feast for the eyes. This year the festival had a special “Raining Cats & Dogs” competition category. I wanted to share these amazing quilts with you. Enjoy your trip through this virtual art gallery! And if you have a favorite, do comment and let me know. They are all so wonderful!
This post is part of a Wednesday blog hop. Please click the “Blog Paws” button in the sidebar to follow all the other wonderful pet blogs. Happy Blogging!
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Caught in the Act, by Barbara McKie
Lyme, Connecticut
Techniques: Digital imagery, threadpainted, trapuntoed, free-motion quilted
I urged my cousin’s cat, Taz, to come to the kitchen sink to drink, and she obliged as I captured her in this funny pose.
Kool in Ketchikan, by Ingrid Cattaneo
Grass Valley, California
Techniques: Fabric collaged
Kool in Ketchikan was inspired by a photograph I took of two dogs – both wearing upside down sunglasses, perched in an open window of the Bayside building in Ketchikan, Alaska. It was drizzling, I looked up and there they were. The pit bull mix dogs, mostly white with black spots, are iconic to Ketchikan, both to locals and tourists. I wanted a playful reminder of our visit to Ketchikan, consequently one dog is pink and the other dog is blue. It literally rains and pours at our local shelter with pit bull mix dogs. Won’t you please consider offering a “forever” home to a dog from your local shelter? We did. His name is Yuba. He, too, is part pit bull and a big love.
Cornered!, by Wendy Starn
Alexandria, Louisiana
Techniques: Hand-stamped, threadpainted, collaged
In August of 2008, my son found a tiny kitten under the hood of the car, covered in grease and fleas. He cleaned her up and she won his heart, as well as the scorn of our other two cats. Boris, the black cat, is determined to be Alpha male, and is also proud of his prowess at catching (catnip) mice, while Moose, the orange cat, is the might hunter of lizards and bugs, who’s afraid of everything. Oslo the kitten sleeps, dreaming, no doubt of how best to annoy her big brothers.
Charlie, by Melinda Sword
Port Charlotte, Florida
Technique: Pictorial quilting with machine applique
Materials: Cotton batting, thread, décor bond, cotton and batik fabrics
This quilt was made from a snapshot of my weimaraner, Charlie. He is lying at the foot of my bed waiting for his daddy to get home from work to play with his ball.
Yogi Bear, by Kathy Zieben
Houston, Texas
Techniques: Raw-edge appliqued, machine stitched and quilted, design from fisheye lens photo
The inspiration for creating this Yogi Bear quilt came from a special love I had for my pet, a shelter dog we rescued at 16 weeks old. Yogi had the most adorable face that peeked out from his cage. I felt it best highlighted his unique character. Everyone who was him commented on his unique look. Yogi Bear was only with us for a short five years. Making this quilt has helped me to deal with the loss of Yogi.
Live Free, by Kathleen Everett
Batavia, New York
Techniques: Improvisationally pieced, printed, free-motion quilted
After creating a collage on a playing card, manipulating it in Photoshop in a class by Red-Dog Enterprises, my pup was printed by a large format printer onto fabric. I pieced varying sized improvisational star blocks using Marcia Derse fabrics, quilted my adorable lab and stitched him to his background. He would be at home anywhere!
Unfortunately I do not have the details for this quilt.
Artie Facts, by Joyce Paterson
Ukiah, California
Techniques: Hand and fused applique, machine quilting
I have long known that dogs have their own set of rules and facts about how the world works. So, when faced with a Mendocino Quilt Artists challenge to create a quilt based on the theme “Artifact,” my mind went to dog facts. Artie is the representative of the dog world, and these are some of the known dog facts.
Sherri, by Sue Bleiweiss
Uptown, Massachusetts
Technique: Hand-dyed, raw-edge fusible appliqued, machine quilted
As soon as I found ou about the “It’s Raining Cats and Dogs” special exhibit, I sat down and sketched out this quilt. The pup on the quilt is keeping a wakeful eye out for any bone thieves!
I’m Watching You, by Barbara McKie
Lyme, Connecticut
Techniques: Free-motion threadpainted, trapuntoed, disperse dye printed, free-motion machine appliqued, free-motion machine quilted
A friend’s dog had the habit of lying on the back of the couch and watching me while I stayed with them. Fortunately, I had my camera and transferred the photo to polyester using disperse dye digital transfer.
Shade, by Mary Davis
Sunnyvale, California
Techniques: Fused applique, machine pieced and quilted
I began this quilt in a class taught by June Jaeger in Sisters, Oregon, It’s from a photo of my dog, Shade, when he was a puppy. I wanted a small dog. He was 19 pounds at the time. He grew up…now he’s 80 pounds. While his name may be Shade, he brings a lot of sunshine into my life.