“The painterly style that is Shell Rummel in general, and Natural Affinity in particular, inspired both of these quilts. The design for each quilt organically grew out of the vision of Shell’s prints.”
-Jenny F. Hubbard
I had the pleasure of meeting Jenny Hubbard last year when she was in Florida… She was close by so I invited her to stop by my Southern Studio. She showed up with a smile a mile wide and a huge suitcase FILLED with stunning quilts she had made from my Time & Tide fabric line for Freespirit Fabrics. I was so taken with Jenny’s enthusiasm and love for my quilting fabrics combined with her skillful quilt making that I asked her if she’d like to design and create a few quilts for me for my next collection, Natural Affinity.
Below are the two art quilts that Jenny designed and created. They are truly works of art and my photographs don’t do them justice. I asked her to write up an inspiration statement for each quilt, knowing that the descriptions that explain her artistic vision really need to be in her own words.
Do enjoy….. They are so so lovely and unique. And don’t miss the details in The Gate Quilt… entirely hand pieced, hand embroidered, hand appliqué and hand quilted. Just… wow.
All fabrics used are from my current quilt fabric collection, Natural Affinity, which is in stores now.
~Shell
The Gate Quilt
The Gate grew out of the Look Deeper fabric. This fabric reminds me of a view of a bay or ocean. I’ve visited so many ocean front cities where wrought iron gates and balconies define the feel of the city. A gate with a view of the ocean is a perfect way to combine these two elements.
It is easy to imagine enjoying a relaxing day at a beach resort when you look at this quilt. The marble flower pot next to the open gate invites you to stop and smell the flowers, noticing tiny details of their petals in the sunshine. The open gate invites you to walk down the cobblestone path to the beach below. The ocean/bay in the background has many tiny details that draw you in.
Whether it is embroidered grasses, hinges on the gate, the quilted shadow of the gate on the foreground, delicate beading in the flowers, or big stitch quilting in the channels of the bay, the more you look, the more you see.
Quilt: Machine pieced. Hand and machine appliquéd. Hand embroidered. Hand quilted.
Made by: Jenny F. Hubbard, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
Fabrics: Natural Affinity designed by Shell Rummel for Free Spirit Fabrics
Made in 2022
Wind and Waves Quilt
Wind and Waves grew out of the Shore to Sky fabric. There is so much energy in the fabric. As you look at the fabric, you can feel the wind on your face, see the clouds in the sky, and sense the ocean currents below the surface. Two ways to harness this energy is by using propellers and windmills. In the bottom of the quilt, the ocean currents are really churned up by the blades of the propellers, or maybe the blades are harnessing the currents that already exist.
The center of the quilt is defined by quilted lines of subtle air currents and banks of cumulous clouds, a perfect representation of the energy that is in the air all around us.
Along the top of the quilt, our windmill blades come in to play again. The energy currents seen here are wind currents which are much more playful than the ocean currents below.
The blades of the propellers and the windmills are a mix of bold, dramatic fabrics and subtle fabrics that blend into the background. Some are cut with little consideration of the orientation of the print on the fabric, while others are cut to take advantage of specific sections of the print. All of these factors, specificity of fabric and cutting choices, placement of colors both bold and blended, and integration of the quilting design combine to make this quilt a symbol of what harnessing energy can be. Organic meets form and function with little environmental waste.
Crystal Wentz of Meadow Lane Stitching did a fabulous job custom quilting this quilt. She really brought my vision to life. She is able to take my words and descriptions and transform them perfectly into beautiful quilted pictures. I look forward to working with her many more times in the future.
Quilt: Designed and machine pieced by Jenny F. Hubbard, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
Custom machine quilted by Crystal Wentz, Meadow Lane Stitching, Wellington, Colorado, USA
Fabrics: Natural Affinity designed by Shell Rummel for Free Spirit Fabrics.