Detail from "Rain Dance," an original quilt by Sherrie Spangler

Monday, November 4, 2013

Heeeere's Freddy!


At Island Quilter with Kristin, me, Freddy, Janet and Karen.
I mentioned in my last post that I was on Vashon Island for a special event, and here it is -- meeting quilter and author extraordinaire FREDDY MORAN in person at the Island Quilter shop!


She was wearing her trademark big red glasses and had a big red tote and red nail polish, but otherwise she was dressed all in black and white. Her quilts were being exhibited through October, and it was one of the most colorful exhibits I've ever seen.

The most surprising thing I heard her say is that she didn't start quilting until she was 60 and she's now 83.
 

Freddy was there last week for a book signing and tea. I bought "Freddy & Gwen Collaborate Again," written with Gwen Marston, and naturally she signed it in RED. Her other two books are "Collaborative Quilts," also written with Gwen, and "Freddy's Houses."
 

Her quilting mantra is
RED IS A NEUTRAL.
She said she uses black and white to give the eye a place to rest.
Here are some examples:




Another tidbit she offered about her freewheeling style is: "If it's too big, cut it down. If it's too small, add something." You can see that in this lively basket quilt, with the detail below showing how some basket bottoms are cut off and others float on the background. 





She also uses a lot of polka dots, and she spent a lot of time at Island Quilter's excellent polka dot shelf:


She said this next quilt, "Little House In Big Woods" represents Gwen Marston's house, which is all by itself surrounded by woods on an island in a lake.

"Little House In Big Woods" by Freddy Moran


The backs are almost as much fun as the fronts. I'm showing the detail of this sun quilting on a backside because the fabric is called "Madison WI," which is where my son lives. (Not that he ever reads my blog.)

The rest of the photos are just eye candy. You can see more of the exhibit on my earlier post: http://sherriequilt.blogspot.com/2013/10/red-is-neutral-freddy-says.html
I hope you enjoyed this as much as I did.



The cash register was a busy place during the event.

Have a colorful day

6 comments:

ellen gets crafty said...

WOW!!! How exciting to see Freddy!! I love her vivid quilts - you must have been overjoyed with all of that COLOR!! Thanks for sharing this special occasion.

The Idaho Beauty said...

I hope that first picture is now your computer screen wallpaper. Looking at that should help get you through the PNW winter!

Living to work - working to live said...

Golly, but she's not afraid to use a bit if colour! I love that she came to quilting relatively late but has really grasped the nettle.

Judy Sall Fiber Art said...

What a fabulous post! I'm very impressed that Freddy started in her 60's and is still obviously going strong!

sonja said...

What glorious color!
i agree with her that red is a neutral!

Judy Ferguson said...

I did not start quilting until I was 65. I used my painter training and became an Art Quilter. I love to use bright color also. I think that bright color makes us feel younger. lol