Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Talent Tuesday!

Welcome back for another edition of Talent Tuesday! Today I have the fabulous Starla Kaye here sharing one of her other talents besides writing. Take it away, Starla!
 
My Journey in Making Memory Quilts
I started quilting several years ago along with my sister, taking basic lessons in quilt making. But I knew right away that making those big, beautiful full-sized quilts was not for me. I don’t have that kind of patience. I like doing things that take a much smaller amount of time.
My first memory quilts was designed from a photo I had taken on a trip to Blarney Castle in Ireland with my daughter. It shows the basic elements from the photo and I included a copy of our admittance ticket for that day. I enjoyed making this quilt, but it was a real learning experience about what things Not To Do the next time.
 
After more quilting lessons and more practice, I designed a quilt involving one of the favorite little restaurants in Carmel, CA that my daughter and I like: Tuck Box.
 
Then one day recently I found this neat two-dimensional ceramic picture my sister had of a small English village. I had to quilt it! I’ve visited several small villages in the UK that reminded me of this picture and wanted to add this to my memory quilt collection. I’m not sure you will be able to see it, but there is a dragon behind the houses by the castle tower. That was my brother-in-law’s teasing suggestion and I jumped on the idea because it seemed like fun. My sister thought I needed to add the swan to the river in front.
 
One of my more unique quilts that goes along with my writing is what I call my Western Romance Covers Quilt. It highlights 12 of my book covers, which is only about half of my Western romance books. It turned out really nice and I will use it at book signings and to hang in my office.
 
Making these small quilts goes right along with writing. I see both creative efforts as outlets for my over-active imagination. They are both about basically creating a puzzle and figuring out how to put it together.
 
Author: Starla Kaye
 
 

10 comments:

  1. Thanks for having me here today to share one of my hobbies, my other talent.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wow, Starla, those are wonderful quilts. Love the one with your book covers! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They were all fun to make, but the book covers one is special to me.

      Delete
  3. I love them, but you know that already. You're fab, Starla. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks. It was a lot of fun. Now I'm thinking about my next project.

      Delete
  4. Ironically, my fav is your first one when you didn't know what you were doing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Not a problem. It is probably my favorite too, because it was my first one and because of what it meant to me. But my skills have gotten better in designing and putting them together.

      Delete
  5. They're gorgeous! What a neat idea to have another creative outlet. I think you may have inspired me to take up quilting. I absolutely adore your house one with the dragon and swan.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If you're creative like me, you need multiple outlets. I work on more than one story at a time. And I usually work on a couple of other projects as well. Keeps my brain hopping!

      Delete
  6. Starla, I was so disappointed at having to miss your upcoming session on quilting. I've started a funky cat quilt and it is going great.It seems that whenever there is something I really want to attend that it always falls on the day I have to go to the dentist, doctor, or vet.

    Bonnie Myrick
    Keyhole Conversations

    ReplyDelete