The 18th Quilt Nihon Exhibition, Part 5

Finally, it is time for the last report, and it is on the Miniature Category.

First out is the winner of the category, 小方由美子. 

The quilt is called 華 (ka), which can be translated: 1) flashiness, brilliance, 2) bloom, flower, 3) China.

No 2 seems appropriate as there are appliquéd flowers, but the real reason the quilt won the First Prize must be No 1, brilliance.

 Why? 

Well, the quilt is small, 34 x 34 cm, and the material is 'chirimen', the tricky silk crêpe. 

In the picture below, look closely at the border, consisting of no fewer than eight thin strips of chirimen. We can clearly see the different weaves of crêpe, which all fray easily and can be a nightmare to handle. The appliquéd circles, as well as the hexagon and rhombus parts, are also minute and impeccable. The binding is so thin it looks like piping. 

The technical skills needed for such fine work are well worth a Gold Medal.

Here is another quilt with tiny parts in the piecing and appliqué. Created by 椋橋芳子.

What can be said about this quilt? Well, if you didn't know the size (55 x 55 cm), you would think it is a large wall quilt.

近康予made good use of her sewing machine's fancy embroidery stitches. I like how she has created the  White Horses, or whitecaps, of the waves with Feather Stitch quilting.

With the aid of her sewing machine and a good portion of patience, 加瀬サト子, excelled in making sharp points.

Notice the gradual angle of the five swirls, how the one in the middle is almost square compared to the two at the edges.

花岡順子 worked by hand to make this little charmer (25 x 25 cm).

木藤紀子loves hexagons and proves that she can make small appliquéd dots.

The quilting motifs in this small whole cloth quilt are all Japanese symbols. East meets West. 石井智美

Q: What is the size of this quilt? A: 42 x 42 cm. 

Q: What's the title? A: My Star of Bethlehem.

Q: Who quilted it? A: 菅谷由希子(Sugaya Yukiko)

There are plenty of details to drool over.

Here is another of those fantastic hand-quilted whole cloth quilts. The quilting lines are so narrow, the stitches so small.

'White - 2024' by 大石容子

Do you remember the Onion Quilt?  Here is its scaled-down version, of course made by the same quilter, 大澤惠美子.

Are you a fan of Colonial Knots and the quilting style called Candle Wicking? Would you make a small quilt with all these knots? 横井由紀 did.

The last quilt to report on is 浜場美由岐's 'Bon Voyage', (44 x 44 cm).