QDS™ Challenge 1 Showcase – Terri Vanden Bosch

Amateur category finalist Terri Vanden Bosch is the owner of Lizard Creek Quilting and a finalist in the Amateur category of the Quilt Design Star™ 2012 competition.

Terri’s entry quilt is titled “Promise Kept”.

Promise Kept

In this photo, Terri displays a quilt she and her mother created in honor of her father and sent to the Parkinson’s Research Foundation.

Dragonfly Quilt

Terri wrote to us, describing her quilting background and her experience thus far in Challenge 1:

“I have always been a traditional ‘piecer’ and only just this winter have tried curved piecing and am quite hooked on the Ricky Timms’ Rhapsody style. So while I have never made this exact Amish Star Block, I have done many similar blocks. I see many possibilities for various color arrangements that should make the final quilts each have their own distinct personality.

Creativity is something that I have always encouraged in my family. A certain amount of risk is involved with being creative; there is always the possibility that your creativity may not be understood by all—such as those who wonder why you make so many ‘blankets’ and what are you going to do with them all! They just don’t understand that it is the whole process! But I digress—yes my family is extremely proud and most of the time they just wonder what I am going to try next!

The only problem I have right now is deciding which design to go with—I have a few drawn up and have them hanging on my design wall, just waiting to see which one talks to me the loudest and says it wants to be a real quilt and not just a paper one.

The immediate effect of becoming a finalist will be a complete lack of sleep! I am a farm wife and right now we are in the midst of marketing out our hogs, which means several 5AM mornings of loading the semi-trucks and late nights of sorting them for the next morning. So, in order to keep up with my long arm quilting customers, during the day I will have to get up early to do the piecing on my Challenge 1 quilt. And by the time I actually get around to planting any flowers around the yard, they might be on a clearance sale!
I like my fabrics to go with the “feel” of the design, and I have a couple different “feels” going on—hopefully will have it narrowed down by the end of the week. I’m looking towards something a little bit trendy. But don’t hold me to that as it will totally depend on what I find at the quilt shop!

The design process is very personal for me. I am a very visual person, so that is where I start. I take a long look at the block and then put it away for the day—but throughout the day as I go about my business, I am visualizing in my head all the pieces that make up the block. Before going to bed for the night I will pray about who the quilt is for and how it will be used, then come morning I am ready to start designing in my EQ7 program. There is lots more—but I will put that in my bio.” Thanks, Terri!

Read more from Terri on her blog, Meanderings Along Lizard Creek.

Don’t miss any of our QDS™ 2012 Designer Showcase posts – click here!

This QDS™ update is brought to you by Robert Kaufman Fabrics!