I just returned from Quilt Market in Salt Lake City and while I had a wonderful time, it was also exhausting so I am happy to settle into my own desk chair back at home today to tell you about another quilt from my book, Intentional Piecing.  This quilt is called Transatlantic and I had so much fun digging through my stash to choose the travel themed fabrics.  As it turns out, I have hoarded quite a few of them over the years!  If you have not and are in search of them, Tim Holtz just introduced his Correspondence collection at market, full of airmail stripes and envelope prints.

I normally sew a couple of small items for his booth and as soon as I saw his new collection, I asked if I could use my Transatlantic pattern to highlight it. They were kind of made for each other!  This is a photo from his booth. I pieced the airplane and the words “FLY” and they were stapled onto canvas stretchers for wall art.

The bag was made using the tote pattern from my book but substituting the airmail envelope from the Transatlantic Quilt for the pocket. I intentionally created these blocks to be the same size so they could be used on the bag too, if desired–providing you with lots of options.  The handles were modified to add some of Tim’s new hardware.

I really wanted to take a picture of this quilt on an actual plane.  There’s a small historical airport nearby with training planes and I worked up my courage to go ask the men running it if I could take a quilt picture. It was worth it but when I had to return for a second time, due to the wind, they remembered me as the “quilt lady.”  That was slightly embarrassing!  Thankfully, I didn’t need to return for a third time!

I want to take this chance to thank Laura Collins for agreeing to pose for me last summer for a series of “vignettes” we were attempting.  They didn’t make it into the book but I love them just the same and appreciate her cooperation!  The idea was that her car broke down and she had to unload her luggage and was waiting roadside for help to come by.  We felt that the pictures had a bit of an Indigo Girls vibe…Wide Open Spaces…

The quilt is block based but includes negative space blocks and some larger blocks at the bottom.  The placement of the luggage, envelopes and luggage tags within the blocks make it appear to be alternate gridwork but it isn’t–so sneaky and easy to assemble!