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Seven Photo Tips For Quilters

Tuesday, August 14th, 2018

Gregory Case was Road’s Official Photographer for 4 years. He often got requests for advice from quilt/textile/fiber artists who were trying to improve their photography of their design work. Gregory offered seven suggestions for photographing quilts: 1) Prepare for your photo shoot. Professional quilt photography is a combination of your quilt hung properly, a good digital camera, appropriate camera settings (including “white balance/color” settings), use of a tripod, even and consistent lighting, and the use of image-editing software. If you are not using all of these techniques, you are not helping your quilt photography succeed. 2) Allow the time necessary to take a great picture. More people will probably see the photograph of your quilt than they will see your quilt in person. Thus, take the same care you do with your photography as you do with your quilt design and choice of quilter. Plan at least an hour (or more realistically, two hours) per quilt for photography/image-editing.

Katie Pasquini Masopust

3) Photograph the “whole” quilt. The top four quilt photography problems are getting the color right, properly lighting your quilt, showing surface texture, and highlighting the details better. Take the time to learn how to be good at all four of these photography techniques.

4) The picture representing your work should be the best picture. More quilts are rejected from juried shows/magazines/books due to poor photography than any other reason! Remember, there is no asterisk (*) on your pattern, or on the juried show application, or the book proposal, for photo explanations like: “If it weren’t so sunny…,” If the wind wasn’t blowing so hard…,” “Please ignore my fingers and feet in the photo….,” “If only I had more time to take a better photo…,” or “If I could just get the color right… ,” etc. The buying public, the quilt judges, and the magazine and book editors all assume that the quilt image you present to them is an accurate portrait of your quilt, shown in its best light. Your quilt image is being compared to other’s images who have taken the time to make their image perfect. Make sure that your image lives up to their expectations!

Best of Show 2013

5) Use available tools to edit your work. If you shoot with a digital camera, you really need to learn image-editing software (e.g., Adobe Photoshop Elements, Photoshop, and Lightroom). Some problems can only be solved with your digital camera and lighting, and some problems can only be solved with image-editing software—you need to employ both strategies.

6) Practice. Practice. Practice. So, how do you get to be a better quilt photographer? Practice—a lot. Don’t wait until a deadline to start improving your quilt photography. Start practicing today and then again tomorrow and so on. I’ve been photographing quilts, textiles, and fiber art for 11 years and I work daily on improving my photography and image-editing skills. Take a quilt photography class, perhaps on the upcoming Road to California Quilt Cruise Around The Panama Canal. I will be teaching quilt photography and Photoshop Elements!

7) If all else fails, use a professional. If you don’t have the interest, equipment, or time to photograph your own work, hire a photographer who has experience with photographing quilts/textiles/fiber art. As you would not ask a seamstress to quilt your quilt, don’t ask the portrait photographer down at the shopping mall to photograph your quilt. Yes, the seamstress has a sewing machine. And yes, the portrait photographer has a camera. But neither have the needed experience. Which tip did you find most useful?]]>

Tags: Gregory Case Photography, Lightroom, Photographing quilts, Photoshop, Photoshop Elements!
Posted in Road 2 CA Blog, Road 2014, Road to California | No Comments »

Meet Carolyn Reese: Former Owner and Chief Ghoul at Road to California

Friday, October 27th, 2017

hundreds of quilts on display, awards over $92,000 in cash prizes, classes taught by experts in the quilt and fiber art world, and over 225 nationally and internationally known vendors. Born on Halloween, Carolyn felt there were no tricks when it came to overseeing Road to California but there certainly were plenty of treats. A love for family, friends, and quilting, combined with a keen business sense, all came together for Carolyn one special week in January each year.

What do you know about Carolyn Reese?

Personal: Born on Halloween on her grandparents’ homestead in Oklahoma, Carolyn and her parents moved back and forth between Oklahoma and California twice before finally settling in Southern California in 1953. Carolyn’s Halloween memories revolve around trick or treating with her children when they were growing up. Since becoming involved in the quilting world, she has spent many Halloweens at trade shows. How does Carolyn know she’s getting a call on her cell phone? It rings a haunted house melody.

When did you learn to sew? I learned to sew on my Grandma Anderson’s treadle machine. By the time I was a freshman in high school, I was making my own clothes. I worked in the yardage department of the May Company store in Lakewood when in college. We used machines to measure the fabric and then tore it off the bolt. Several years later, I sewed Barbie clothes and sold them at a local department store to make money for Christmas. How did you get in to quilting? Raising a family of three sons and a daughter, I found myself a displaced homemaker after 27 years of marriage. My mother and I decided to open a fabric store, The Fabric Patch. We soon found that we were the last two women in the area still making their own clothes. I decided to take a quilting class taught by Blanche Young in 1981 and soon after, we changed the emphasis of the store to quilting. (I finally put the binding on that first quilt to finish it in 2011).

How did The Fabric Patch become a trendsetter in the quilting world in southern California? We were one of the first quilt shops to be a vendor at guild quilt shows, one of the first in the country to offer “Mystery Weekends,” and the first to offer fiction books about quilting. I was instrumental in the forming of the Southern California Association of Quilt Shop Owners and started the Quilters Run in Southern California. I sold the store ten years ago.

When did you get involved in Road? I purchased the Road to California brand when it was just a few classes, nothing more. I had a vision to turn it into something more: classes and a quilt show. Road was first held in Anaheim and as it grew, I moved it to Ontario, California, first in the Marriott Hotel. When I was able to add the quilt show, the Marriott could no longer accommodate us, so we moved to the Hilton hotel. The show was located in the atrium of the hotel. We continued to grow in scope and attendance and moved to our current location at the Ontario Convention Center where we are their largest client. 2018 will mark Road to California’s 23rd year. What did you value most about Road? Seeing all the people walk around with a smile on their face, forgetting their problems and having a good time. Even though Carolyn retired last year from Road to California and her grandson Matt Reese is now the owner of the show, her heart is still with the show. Don’t be surprised if you see her at Road 2018 tooting along on her sit-down scooter, waving hello and encouraging a new generation of quilters.

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Tags: Halloween
Posted in behind the scenes, Road 2 CA Blog, Road 2014, Road to California | 10 Comments »

So You Want To Make A Winning Quilt: 2014 Outstanding Innovative Quilt

Wednesday, October 1st, 2014

You may have missed our deadline this year to enter your promising award winning quilt for Road to California 2015 – 20^th Anniversary Show competition, but there is always next year!!

Gail Stepanek began her journey of making an award winning quilt by taking a quilt class at a local church in the early 80’s. It was a quilt trimmed in lace. Four quilts later, she learned that there was supposed to be binding on a quilt. On the fifth quilt she made, she learned that she was supposed to make her own matching binding…not buy packages of blanket binding. “Talk about being a slow learner!” recalls Gail.

How did Stars to Mars come about? Gail likes to paper piece and she decided to try her hand at designing several stars. She didn’t feel that she was proficient enough to draft the quilt in EQ7, so she asked Barb Vlack to help her and Barb was kind enough to draft it for her. Gail learned that all she needed was one star pattern. By changing fabrics and sewing lines, she could create different looking stars.

It took over a year and a half to make the top and her collaborative partner, Jan Hutchison spent three months quilting it. Road to California 2014 was the first show that Stars On Mars was entered in and we were overjoyed at winning such a great award. Jan and Gail shared the award money– $3,000 given by Handi Quilter. Gail has used her winnings to attend several quilts shows throughout the year. In fact, she just booked her flight to Ontario, California for the 2015 Road to California show!!

What does the future hold for this award winning quilt maker? Gail and Jan hope to continue their collaboration for years to come. She just received another quilt that Jan had recently finished quilting. Gail was burning the midnight oil to make the deadline for Road 2015 so watch for it in next year’s competition.

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Tags: Handi Quilter, Winning Quilt
Posted in Road 2 CA Blog, Road 2014, Road to California | No Comments »

Quilt Guild Spotlight: Valley Of The Mist Quilters

Saturday, September 27th, 2014

Formed in 1990 and located in Temecula, California, Valley of the Mist Quilters has 125 members who meet the second Tuesday of each month. Regular meetings with guest speakers are held seven months out of the year. In July, they host a Quilt University where members present different quilt techniques in 15 minute segments.

One of Valley of the Mist Quilters philanthropies is a school for homeless children in San Diego, California. Last year, they donated over 100 quilts to the school. The guild has also donated quilts to flood victims in Colorado.

Each fall, Valley of the Mist Quilters host a unique quilt show that is completely outdoors. This year, on Saturday, October 4^th, hundreds of quilts will be displayed throughout western themed Old Town Temecula from porches, eaves, and balconies. The opportunity quit they displayed during Road to California 2014, Garden Delights, will be auctioned during the show. The guild will also be hosting quilter Karen Brow of javahousequilts.com, during their event. It promises to be a great day to share the love of quilting.

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Tags: Old Town Temecula, Quilt Guilds, Temecula
Posted in Road 2 CA Blog, Road 2014 | No Comments »

So You Want To Make A Winning Quilt? 2014 Best of Show

Wednesday, September 3rd, 2014

Sharon Schamber of Payson, Arizona created the Best of Show winning entry, Once Upon a Time, and received $6,000 from sponsor, Gammill Quilting Systems.

Sharon Schamber began quilting in 1999. Her winning entry, Once Upon A Time, took 14 years to complete. This quilt was inspired by her love for the romantic and delicate details of the Victorian era. Says Sharon, “I love how things are both simple and complex at the same time. I wanted to create a medallion quilt that spoke to that romantic notion.”

Sharon chose blue roses because “they were unique and the quilt asked/demanded something special like them.” At the time she started on the quilt, there were no actual blue roses, but by the time she had finished, they became available. Sharon likes to think that “maybe the quilt knew something that the rest of the world hadn’t thought about yet.” Talk about romantic!!!

When Sharon started the quilt in 2000, her plan was to finish it as any other quilt she had worked on. But that didn’t happen. Sharon would work for a while, and then stop because she didn’t feel like she knew what she needed to do next. During each pause, she learned and developed additional techniques to have the tools needed to continue on. This lengthy process taught Sharon that each quilt truly has its own schedule and identity. “You have to follow the clues it gives you if you want the best out of it and yourself,” remarked Sharon. Even though it took 14 years to finish, Sharon felt it was an amazing adventure and she “enjoyed every minute of it.”

How did Sharon feel after she won Best of the Show?“I was ecstatic. Road to California is a prestigious and well respected show. The best quilts in the world are competing here, so winning Best of Show was an honor.”

What did she do with her prize money? “Since winning any award is a surprise, I never have plans to spend the money. I am passionate about machine embroidery, so I bought a few things that’ll allow me to explore this art form in new and different ways.”

What does the quilting future hold for Sharon? “My plan for the future is to combine every aspect of quilting into one piece. Traditional piecing; hand embroidery; needleturn appliqué; machine appliqué and machine embroidery. Each technique has its own strengths and weaknesses and I am exploring the limits of each. You name it, and it will be in my work.”

Congratulations Sharon for winning Road to California’s 2014 Best of Show.

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Tags: Best of Show Quilt, Gammill
Posted in quilt entries, Road 2 CA Blog, Road 2014, Road to California | 2 Comments »

So You Want To Make A Winning Quilt? 2014 Best Modern Quilt

Tuesday, August 26th, 2014

Claire Victor won $2,000 for her Modern Quilt Entry, Lost in Space, from sponsor, Modern Quilt’s Unlimited

About 15 years ago, Claire Victor decided she wanted to sew her own clothing. Inspired by her mother who was a great home seamstress, she started taking lessons at her local sewing store, Hartsdale Fabrics in Hartsdale, NY. Downstairs in the store, they had a quilt shop; something she had never seen before. What she saw there was so much more interesting than any preconceived notion she had had of what quilting was, and they had classes! Because of her work schedule, she was unable to take a class at that time but she sent ahead and bought the Eleanor Burns – Log Cabin Quilt-in-a-Day book, picked out some fabrics and off she went. She figured it all out on her own, laughed a lot along the way, had fun throughout the entire process and never looked back.

What inspired Claire’s winning design, Lost in Space? “I am interested in geometric patterns, especially ones with illusion. The tumbling block is my “block of choice.” I do them every which way I can think of. Recently, I had the chance to join a hand sewing group at Monica’s Quilt and Bead in Palm Desert, CA and I started to learn appliqué. All the ladies were doing more traditional patterns which did not interest me so I designed my own, an elongated tumbling block. The group came up with the name “Lost in Space”. My favorite reference books are from Sara Nephew and Marci Baker. I had also been studying an old Katie Pasquini-Masopust book.

How long did it take to make your winning quilt? What did you learn along the way? “I decided long ago to never pay attention to how long it takes to make a quilt; I just do it until it’s finished. But if I had to guess, I would say three or four months. It was a great journey; since this was my first appliqué quilt. I was (and still am) having trouble with the technique but it was very interesting to figure out the design and combine machine piecing, English paper piecing, hand sewing and then machine quilting.

What was your reaction when you won? “My first reaction was complete disbelief, and then I cried (a little). You might wish and dream about these moments but believe me they come when you least expect them. Needless to say, once I recovered, I was extremely honored.”

Did you do anything special with your prize money? “Almost immediately I ordered a custom made Sew Steady Table and the rest just went into my general sewing fund.”

Where do you go from here with your quilting? “I just continue…open to future possibilities. After saying I would ‘NEVER do appliqué’ it has turned out to be so interesting and challenging. I can achieve things with appliqué that I could not with regular piecing. I am now working on my fourth appliqué quilt.

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Tags: Applique, Eleanor Burns, Katie Pasquini-Masopust, Modern Quilting, Modern Quilts Unlimited, Monica's Quilt and Bead, Winning Quilt
Posted in quilt entries, Road 2 CA Blog, Road 2014 | 4 Comments »

So You Want To Make A Winning Quilt? 2014 Outstanding Art Quilt

Friday, August 22nd, 2014

Lenore Crawford won $3,000 from SewBatik, sponsor of the Outstanding Art Quilt Entry

Lenore Crawford began using fabric as an art medium around 1995. She loved the warmth, texture, and value that fabric offers as compared to other media. It was fun for Lenore to create art quilts with fabric and see how far she could take the medium.

Lenore’s winning entry, Capturing Brittany was inspired by her many visits to France. She loved France’s ancient architecture ever since her first visit when she was 16 years old. To be able to create art with fabric that resembled it was very intriguing to Lenore. Being able to achieve a very realistic design that truly looked like the real thing in fabric was so exciting. This particular piece was inspired by photos taken in a village in northern France. A class of art students was sketching that day.

Capturing Brittany was mostly created during the winter over several months. While making the quilt, Lenore learned that she loved to add fine detail to her designs, making them seem even more realistic. She fuses tiny pieces to add some of the detail where it’s still feasible, and when the pieces get to be too small, she uses a little bit of fabric paint instead of fabric. Shading and detail is what made the design look more realistic.

What was Lenore’s reaction when she won? “I was very excited to win. This means to me that I am accepted by my peers in my field. It is also a very great way to advertise my work especially for teaching.”

Did she do anything special with her prize money? “I spent a good chunk of the money on a good quality espresso machine. I love good coffee and especially missed it after getting home from our trip to New Zealand last year where you can even find a fabulous latte at McDonald’s!”

What is next for Lenore and her quilting? “That is the question of the hour! I feel at this point I want to do something different. I like change. We grow when we change. I don’t know what it will be, but I will always keep creating more art because that is my passion. I would love to learn to use Photoshop to manipulate my photos I use to create my art quilts, but we will see. Running a business keeps me very busy with teaching all over the world, maintaining my stock, doing paperwork, coming up with new patterns and classes. Life is so busy and sometimes gets in the way of the creative process. I will take some time this fall to see where I want to go now.”

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Tags: France, SewBatik, Winning Quilt
Posted in quilt entries, Road 2 CA Blog, Road 2014 | No Comments »

So You Want To Make A Winning Quilt? 2014 Masterpiece Winner

Thursday, August 14th, 2014

Margaret Solomon Gunn won $5,000 from sponsor Moore’s Sewing Center for her Masterpiece entry, Big Bertha.

Margaret started sewing when she was young, mostly making clothing. She made her first quilt about 25 years ago when she got her first sewing machine. Over the years, she didn’t quilt much except for making a few for gifts.

In 2007, she decided to try quilting again by using her scraps to make a donation quilt for Project Linus. And guess what? She got hooked on quilting once more!! Between 2007 and 2010, Margaret made over 100 quilts for Project Linus (and they didn’t decrease her stash hardly at all!!) Five years ago, Margaret bought a long arm and began a business quilting shortly thereafter.

Big Bertha was inspired by Margaret’s love for taking old patterns and modernizing them with bolder fabrics. She began the Dresden plates in the summer of 2011. By the time she had all the plates hand pieced/appliquéd, she noticed that there were Dresden quilt-alongs all over the quilting blogs. This really bummed her out as she likes to make unique quilts for shows. She ended up sticking the project in a box for nearly a year. One day, when Margaret was looking for something to work on, Big Bertha was the one closest to being ready to quilt, so she pulled it out and started to work on it again. It took four months to complete the top. The quilting was done over an eight week period, taking nearly 175 hours. Big Bertha debuted at its first show in 2013.

What did Margaret learn from creating Big Bertha? “I never want to make another quilt that is this large!”

What was Margaret’s reaction when she found out that she won the Masterpiece prize? “Quite surprised! It was the single largest prize I had ever won.”

Did she do anything special with her prize money? According to Margaret, “Looks like Uncle Sam will get a nice chunk, but basically no, not really.”

What is Margaret’s next project? “I always have several show quilts in the works…one in the design stage, one in piecing/applique, and one half quilted!”

Congratulations Margaret Solomon Gunn for winning the Masterpiece category, sponsored by Moore’s Sewing Center.

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Tags: Winning Quilt
Posted in quilt entries, Road 2 CA Blog, Road 2014, Road to California | No Comments »

Road 2014: An Evening With Alex Anderson

Tuesday, August 5th, 2014

What led you to become a quilt maker?

For Alex Anderson, it was being one unit short of graduating from San Francisco State University. One month before graduating, and in a bind (pun intended), Alex approached her college counselor to get permission to obtain that remaining credit by finishing her Grandmother’s quilt that was begun in the 1930’s. Permission was granted and Alex was off to a local quilt store to buy the materials she would need to finish the quilt, which was the size of a bath mat. She wanted to stay true to the period the quilt was created in, so she purchased batting that had cotton seeds woven in it and for the back, chose some Laura Ashley upholstery fabric. Alex finished the quilt, got her degree, and forever after, became a quilt maker.

Alex’s first quilts were inspired by Amish quilt designs. In the beginning, she wanted to be an art-quilt maker. Her advice for those starting out with their own quilting adventure: “It doesn’t matter what kind of quilt maker you are. What is important is that you quilt.”

Alex reminded those in her class to take advantage of all the resources available to assist them with their quilting. “You have a virtual tool belt,” she told the 100+ crowd in her lecture. “The more tools you add, the more equipped you will be as a quilt maker.” Is there something holding you back in your quilt making? Alex had this advice: “Face your villain and embrace it.” For her, machine quilting was her demon. Alex explained that she was “a really good hand quilter” and didn’t feel she could adapt to machine quilting. After an attitude adjustment and 150 hours of practice later, she felt she finally became competent with machine quilting. The Key? “Anyone can master machine quilting if you stitch straight and get rid of the walking foot.”

The love of quilting has taken Alex on quite the quilt journey. She made 20 quilts using other people’s publications before she decided to do her own quilt book, Start Quilting. Today, it is in its 3^rd Edition and has sold over a quarter of a million copies. What this tells Alex is that “there are still people who want to quilt.” Her latest book, Scrap Quilting, came out September 13, 2013 and celebrates her “stash.”

Start Quilting led to her first television show, Simply Quilts, which had an 11 year run. Who stopped by on the first day of taping her show? Her quilt hero, Jenny Byer. And believe it or not, half the people who worked on Simply Quilts became quilters themselves! Alex’s motto: “If someone taught you to quilt, bring someone else into the quilt fold.”

Where has her quilt making taken her to today? Partnering with fellow quilter Ricky Tims in presenting the “friendliest, interactive, online community for quilters worldwide, TheQuiltShow.com. Members who join TheQuiltShow.com community not only enjoy the full length, “Web TV” programs but receive other membership perks such as multimedia tips, techniques, and tutorials, blocks of the month projects, and access to top quilting experts.

Being a quilt maker brings joy to Alex. To all quilt makers, Alex says, “As you put one foot in front of the other, you will grow as a quilt maker. Bring others in to the fold and keep our community growing.”

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Tags: Amish Quilts, Quilt Maker, RJR Fabrics, Scrap Quilting, Start Quilting, TheQuiltShow.com
Posted in Road 2 CA Blog, Road 2014, Road to California | No Comments »

The Ultimate Friendship Road Trip

Saturday, August 2nd, 2014

What does it take for nine friends, who live in Arizona, Oregon and Nebraska, to get together? Why a 10 day vacation centered around Road to California of course!!!

Last January, we caught up with part of the group outside the vendor mall. Their Road Trip took a whole year to plan. A couple of the ladies had never met before this trip but that didn’t matter. Everyone’s love for quilting was all it took to embark on this friendship gathering.

It was friend Barbara (on the far left) who brought all these women together to stay in one house and to explore Road to California and Southern California. She was the one friend who knew everyone. As she put it, “I am like a rolling stone…I gathered all this “moss.” (Oh my–there’s a photo bomber?!! I guess she wanted to be a part of their group too)

Originally from Omaha, Nebraska, Barbara had a 1,000 square quilt studio in her home. A few of these friends met Barbara by coming to her home to quilt. When her husband retired, he and Barbara established a winter home in Goodyear, Arizona. She joined the local Pebble Creek Quilt Guild and that’s how she met the other women. Because Barbara loves all her quilting friends, she wanted to find some way for all of them to meet and play. Road to California was the perfect choice. Especially since one of the friends, Chris Taylor, had three quilts entered in the show.

[caption id="attachment_2115" align="aligncenter" width="669"]

My Blue Loge Cabin – Honorable Mention- Traditional, Wall, Pieced[/caption] [caption id="attachment_2116" align="aligncenter" width="635"]

I Have Felt Lonely In A Crowded Room – Modern Piecing[/caption] [caption id="attachment_2117" align="aligncenter" width="642"]

What’s Up Buttercup?-Art, Naturescape[/caption]

What did they all think about their Road Trip? Cindy, a 30 year quilter from Oregon and an Arizona Snowbird, said, “There was so much to see. It was so inspiring for all of us.”

Happy Friendship Day to these terrific quilting friends.

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Tags: Friendship, Road Trip, Winning Quilts
Posted in behind the scenes, Road 2 CA Blog, Road 2014, Road to California | No Comments »