Leave a comment

Early Spring

Posted by ovbrantley on February 1, 2012 in A Quilter's Life, For Sale

Early Spring, 11 x 20 inches, by O.V. Brantley, 2010. For sale at etsy.com/shop/ovbrantleyquilts

I have many talents. I do not have a green thumb. I keep trying though because I admire beautifully landscaped yards so much. I especially admire those yards that seem to have something blooming all year.

This fall I took a tiny step toward stamping out my yard envy. I planted daffodil bulbs. I wanted my yard to be one of those that announced the first signs of spring.

Lo and behold, they are coming up! That makes me smile.

Tags: , , , , , , Permalink
Leave a comment

I Believe in Angels #19

Posted by ovbrantley on January 30, 2012 in A Quilter's Life, For Sale, I Believe in Angels

I Believe in Angels #19, 32 x 34 inches, by O.V. Brantley, 2011. For sale at etsy.com/shop/OVBrantleyQuilts

I believe that I am surrounded by all types of angels who whisper in my ear when the time is right. I like to keep lots of angels in my studio as well as share them with others. After sharing the first 10 angels in this series, I am now working on #11-20. You can find the word “believe” in all of these quilts

I Believe in Angels #19 is an art quilt that measures 32 x 34 inches. The angel is dressed in a green African robe. The dominant colors of the quilt are green and pink. The quilt is embellished with buttons, charm, inspirational words and a jingle bell to create a sense of music. I did the appliqué on my machine as well as the quilting.

There is a hanging sleeve on the back for easy display and a label that documents the quilt. This quilt is signed on the front and is one of a kind and is offered for sale in my studio store.

Tags: , , , , , , , , Permalink
2 Comments

Waiting to Exhale is New Series

Posted by ovbrantley on November 5, 2011 in A Quilter's Life, For Sale

Waiting to Exhale #1, 33 x 34 inches, by O.V. Brantley, 2011. For sale at ovbrant.etsy.com.

How many of us are waiting for Act 2 of our lives? Waiting to Exhale #1, first in my newest series of quilts, captures that time in our lives when we are mulling over “what’s next?”

The purple, green and blue batik background in the 33 x 34 inch quilt is intended to invoke a zen-like feeling. To carry out the theme, the quilt is embellished with inspirational words such as “rejuvenate”, “relax” and “exhale”. A butterfly fabric is on the back of the quilt.

Waiting to Exhale #1, is one in a series of three quilts although each quilt is unique. They are listed for sale in my studio store.

Tags: , , , , , Permalink
Leave a comment

Be Ready! (Even If You Don’t Get to Go)

Posted by ovbrantley on December 27, 2011 in A Quilter's Life, For Sale

Be Ready! #1 (Even If You Don't Get To Go)

Just in time for those New Year’s resolutions, my new series called Be Ready! (Even If You Don’t Get to Go) stresses the importance of preparation. These are small quilts that measure 10 x 12 inches, but they make a big impact.

Be Ready! #1 (Even If You Don’t Get to Go) features an appliqued dress in a red and orange African print. Although it does not show up well in the photo, the cream background fabric has gold specks. It is embellished with inspirational words, buttons, charms and beads. I have written the words “Be Ready” on the front of the quilt.

The fabric on the back is a journey motif to further carry out the theme. There is a hanging sleeve on the back and a label that documents the quilt. I signed it on the front.

This quilted wallhanging is one of a kind. It is offered for sale in my studio store.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , Permalink
Leave a comment

Save the Date: Jewelry and Quilt Open House is November 10

Posted by ovbrantley on January 6, 2012 in A Quilter's Life, Places to See My Quilts

The next Jewelry and Quilt Open House will be held November 10, 2012 from 1 p.m. – 7 p.m. at the home of Connie Marshall, 500 Stonebriar Way, Atlanta, GA. We have decided to hold our open house only once per year, on the second Saturday in November.

Mark your calendar now because this is when you can get deeply discounted prices on my quilts and special pricing on Connie’s unique jewelry. Plus, it is always a lot of fun. I am looking forward to seeing all of my collectors and wannabe collectors!

Tags: , , , , , , , Permalink
Leave a comment

Give Yourself Flowers Today

Posted by ovbrantley on January 1, 2012 in A Quilter's Life, For Sale

Give Yourself Flowers Today, 16 x 20 inches, by O.V. Brantley, 2011. For sale at www.etsy.com/shop/OVBrantleyQuilts

Today is my birthday! Yes, I am a New Year’s baby, and I am 58 years old today (aging well, I might add).

The older I get, the more I realize how important it is to be good to yourself first. That was why I first made a quilt called Give Yourself Flowers, and then a line of lapel pins, and now Give Yourself Flowers Today.

Whatever your other New Year’s resolutions are, treating yourself well should be number one on the list. As my mother always said, there is only one you.

See you in the  new year at the flower shop!

Tags: , , , , , , , , Permalink
Leave a comment

Add Journey of Hope to Your Collection

Posted by ovbrantley on February 5, 2012 in A Quilter's Life, Book Reviews

Black History Month is a great time to add an African American Quilt Book to your collection. Since  President’s Day is also this month, I recommend you check out Journey of Hope by Carolyn Mazloomi.

No matter how you feel about President Barack Obama, he inspired some amazing quilts!

Check out all of my favorite African American quilt books in my studio book store.

Tags: , , , , , Permalink
Leave a comment

My Favorite Baby Quilt Book

Posted by ovbrantley on February 4, 2012 in A Quilter's Life, Book Reviews

Since I have been making baby quilts this week, I took a little time to peruse my baby quilt book collection. My all time favorite baby quilt book is Even More Quilts for Baby by Ursula Reikes. This is the third book in her series.

As it turned out, I did not have the first book entitled Quilts For Baby (Easy as ABC), so I ordered it from Amazon. Luckily, it is still available as is More Quilts For Baby. Even More Quilts for Baby was only available from one author on amazon.

These books are very inspirational, and the patterns are very easy. I recommend them highly if you need a quick baby quilt. Check out my listing of baby quilts in my studio book store.

Tags: , , , , , , Permalink
Leave a comment

Block #1 of Choose to Bloom

Posted by ovbrantley on January 31, 2012 in A Quilter's Life, What's In My Hoop?

Some quilts are quick. Other quilts are a journey. Choose to Bloom is a journey quilt. It will take at least a year to complete, probably more.

The quilt is based on a pattern by Kim McLean. It is a quirky Baltimore Album style quilt that has 13 blocks and 4 border sections. I am doing it in a mixture of batiks and African fabrics.

In quilting when they say “enjoy the journey”, they mean it. I hope you will enjoy the journey with me as I share the blocks as I finish them.

Shown here is Block #1.

Tags: , , , , Permalink
1 Comment

Babies, Babies, Babies!

Posted by ovbrantley on January 29, 2012 in A Quilter's Life, What's In My Hoop?

I don’t make a lot of baby quilts, but I do make them for friends who convince me that they just must show up at a special baby shower with the wow! gift. Right now I  am working on three at one time. I feel like babies are everywhere.

The good thing about baby quilts is that there is a deadline. No procrastination allowed!

Tags: , , , Permalink
Leave a comment

I Believe in Angels #18

Posted by ovbrantley on January 23, 2012 in A Quilter's Life, For Sale, I Believe in Angels

I Believe in Angels #18, 28 x 31 inches, by O.V. Brantley, 2011. For sale at http://www.etsy.com/shop/ovbrantleyquilts

I believe that I am surrounded by all types of angels who whisper in my ear when the time is right. I like to keep lots of angels in my studio as well as share them with others. After sharing the first 10 angels in this series, I am now working on #11-20. You can find the word “believe” in all of these quilts

I Believe in Angels #18 is an art quilt that measures 28 x 31 inches. The angel is dressed in a batik red robe. The dominant colors of the quilt are purple and red. The quilt is embellished with buttons, inspirational words and a jingle bell to create a sense of music. I did the appliqué on my machine as well as the quilting.

There is a hanging sleeve on the back for easy display and a label that documents the quilt. This quilt is signed on the front and is one of a kind. It is listed for sale in my Studio Store.

Tags: , , , , , , , Permalink
1 Comment

Sorting Scraps

Posted by ovbrantley on January 22, 2012 in A Quilter's Life, Studio Organization

Yesterday was a horrible weather day in Atlanta. There were tornado warnings and severe thunderstorms most of the day. Since I wasn’t going to leave home, I decided to sort scraps. I had been avoiding this task since I moved into my new studio, because instead of keeping my scraps dumped in a pile, I was determined to organize them in some way. My friend Marva gave me a beautiful basket for my scraps, and my friend Roz gave me her annual bag of scraps for my collection. Two more motivating reasons to tackle the task.

Although I did not finish, I made progress. Sorting scraps can be very therapeutic — like washing dishes. It frees the mind. So as I sorted and sorted and sorted, I hope I came up with some new quilt ideas.

How do you organize your scraps?

Tags: , , , , , Permalink
Leave a comment

Blue Heart

Posted by ovbrantley on January 22, 2012 in A Quilter's Life, For Sale

Blue Heart, 44 x 52 inches, by O.V. Brantley, 2012. For sale at etsy.com/shop/ovbrantleyquilts

I guess the cold gray days of January have put me in a blue mood. My first quilt of 2012  turns out to be a blue quilt. (I almost never make blue quilts). I had no particular purpose in making this quilt. As with many of my quilts, the fabric speaks to me. I named it Blue Heart.

After making the quilt, I spent some time adding some hand stitching trying to discern the meaning of this quilt. Hand stitching always clarifies my thoughts.

Blue Heart is listed for sale in my studio store. Let’s hope the weather changes soon.

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , Permalink