Favourite Things Friday: Lori Holt

Her needlework both plain and ornamental was excellent, and she might have put a sewing machine to shame. –James Edward Austen-Leigh, about Jane Austen



Lori Holt is one if my favorite pattern designers. She creates the cutest vintagey appliqué quilts, ever. And her hand work is absolutely amazing. Not only is she creative and talented with appliqué, but everything she does is done with precision, beauty and style. And she's one nice lady.

I first saw one of her quilts at my favorite LQS during Shop Hop in Spring 2009. It was hanging on the wall half-way up the steps to the loft where all the best fabric treasures are hidden. I marveled over it for what seemed like hours. I couldn't get enough of looking at this amazing quilt that had a vacuum cleaner and a broom and a mop and furniture polish and a roll of paper towels appliquéd on it. The tag said it was made by Lori Holt. And I loved it. Then I noticed a basket on the stairs under it with the pattern sitting in it. There was just one pattern left in the basket, so I snatched it up and marched straight back down the stairs and bought it.

As soon as I got home, I read through the pattern from start to finish. I loved looking through it and soaking in all the amazing details in this quilt. As I was finishing up, I noticed on the back cover that Lori Holt was the pattern designer and she had a web-site. I got right on the computer and browsed through her projects. I fell absolutely in love with her work. I ordered two more of her patterns on-line that night. Then I started collecting just the right fabrics for these fabulous appliqué quilts. I prepared all of the freezer paper templates for that Woman's Work quilt, and then I got involved in other projects and my appliqué quilts have been waiting patiently for me to get back to them.

What with Grace being on holiday and everything, I thought now might be a good time to bring out the hand work for something to do in between cleaning the refrigerator and organizing the Little Bugs' toy area. But let's face it; making an appliqué quilt about housework is way more fun than actually doing housework, so I fear that all my plans of being Wonder Woman while my machine is in for repairs might just come to naught. Look at what I've been doing instead of cleaning the living room carpets.

A roll of paper towels! In fabric! I mean, how cute is that? Go ahead and click on it so you can see it in detail. I'm doing the broom next. And I suppose when I finish with it, I'll find an actual broom and do some actual sweeping with it.

Lori has been doing her quilts as a block of the month appliqué club at a couple of shops not too far away from me. Last fall I discovered that she'd just started the cutest quilt called Paper Dolls. They were already three months in when I found out about it, but I very nearly joined late anyway. My only hesitation was that the holidays were coming. I always get a little crazy with the making presents at Christmas. I decided it would be in the best interest of my mental health not to join the appliqué club, but to wait until she released the complete pattern. It is finally here. And look how absolutely adorable this quilt is:

{Photo © Lori Holt
Used with permission}

To celebrate the release of her newest pattern, Lori is giving the Paper Dolls pattern away to three lucky winners {check out her web-site for details on the giveaway and more pictures of this super cute quilt}. I'm hoping that I'm one of them. LadyBug would make the cutest paper doll ever. She looks just like the cute little blondie on the right {and has her personality too – look! Bandaids in the very same spots!}. And I think that Miss Butterfly would be the perfect paper doll playmate for the LadyBug paper doll. Which means I that if I don't win a pattern I'm going to have to buy it. And I might have to make two paper doll quilts.

If you're not into appliqué, don't count Lori out yet, because she is 12 kinds of awesome. She gardens, cooks, crochets, collects vintage, does traditional quilting, sews with her daughter and is an awesome grandma. Her blog is definitely worth checking out. Her Hexie tutorial {Part I, Part II and Part III} is the best I've seen and will definitely come in handy.

Thanks for the inspiration, Lori! I'm off to sew a broom.

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