Our countdown of Fabric Collage Finish Lines continues, leading up to our three-week Fabric Collage Finish Line Fabulous Give-Away starting in the first Saturday in January.
As we close in on our 100th edition of the Finish Line, remember to send in your finished fabric collage quilts to be entered in our give-away. Already sent us your submission(s) years ago? You can re-enter any one quilt of yours that has previously appeared in the Finish Line. For example, Judy Bilardello could re-submit “Kallie” the tiger (detail above), or she could choose to re-submit any one of her other finished collage quilts. Keep the submissions (and re-submissions) coming! Tom says it’s like receiving early Christmas presents in his email inbox!
Fabric Collage Finish Line Fabulous Give-Away
PRIZES
Five 3rd Place Prizes—$25 Gift Card to susancarlson.com
Five 2nd Place Prizes—$100 Gift Card to susancarlson.com
Five 1st Place Prizes—$200 Gift Card to susancarlson.com
One Grand Prize—Free Admission to any All-Levels Susan Carlson Live Online Class ($995 value)
Submit Quilt for "Finish Line"
Winners will be determined by a random drawing. To enter, simply submit any finished (quilted and bound) fabric collage quilt (in the collage method that I teach), between now and midnight December 31, 2023, Pacific Time. It is important that you complete the submission form entirely. Incomplete entries may not be accepted. Prizes are not transferable. One entry per person, please.
IMPORTANT: You may re-enter a quilt that has appeared previously in the Fabric Collage Finish Line, but you must re-submit the quilt using the link below. For those who have had multiple quilts appear in Finish Line posts, please choose one quilt and it’s story which you would like to enter and re-share for this give-away. If your work shows up in these December posts, please re-submit (or choose a different finished collage you’d rather submit) for the give-away. Thanks!
Submit Quilt for "Finish Line"
When the New Year rolls around, each Saturday we will announce winners and display the winning quilt entries in special Finish Line posts. On January 6, we will announce third place winners, on January 13, we will announce 2nd place winners, and on January 20—Finish Line post 100!—we will announce the first place and grand prize winners. Submissions not selected for a prize will be featured in future 2024 Fabric Collage Finish Line posts.
Judy Bilardello
I first met Judy Bilardello of Santa Cruz, California, in November 2019 at Art Quilt Tahoe. At that class she totally impressed me with “Lola” the blue cougar—see Lola finished here: Student Work—Finish Line 24. Judy was a pleasure to work with and I was so pleased when she signed up for an online class: May 2021 Live Online Fabric Collage Class—Part 3: Three Dogs and a Bunny Group. Judy’s quilt was the bunny, and the finished “Ozzie Bunny” is featured in this post: Fabric Collage Finish Line #80: A Live Online Class Edition.
Judy has become a regular in several of my online offerings, but at the beginning of this year, I had the chance to work with her again in a 5-day class. Judy chose another large feline as her subject, Kallie the tiger, in my January 2023 Live Online Fabric Collage Class. I was impressed again, not only with the collage, but also with Judy’s determination to create it as a donation to a large animal rescue. Hundreds of hours went into making this piece, and I know it was very hard for Judy to part with it, but she did and the proceeds went to help support Kallie and many other exotic animals who had been neglected and abused in captivity—learn more about the real-life Kallie’s story.
From Judy:
I have been a follower of Susan since I first took a class from her at Art Quilt Tahoe in November 2019. I have attended Thursday Night Live in my Studio sessions, Fly on the Wall sessions, two week-long virtual classes as well as other shorter lessons. Every time I interact with Susan, I come away feeling like I have learned something new! I keep coming back for more so I guess I’m kind of a groupie now…
“Kallie at Home” began when I learned of her rescue by Lions, Tigers and Bears and began to follow her healing process. She was found in a field by an abandoned roadside zoo in Oklahoma and was transported to California where she has received medical attention for dehydration, malnutrition, arthritis and other maladies. She is now living her best life in her forever home and will receive the care she deserves. I was so impressed with LTB and with Kallie that I decided to make a fabric collage of her image. I contacted LTB for permission to use one of their photos and they said yes. Thus began my (almost) daily adventure that lasted for 2-3 months.
Making Kallie was a challenge…all those stripes! But I started the process in a five day virtual class and Susan was there to guide me through my roadblocks. I watched her Second Draft and Third Draft sessions later in the creative process and began to notice what needed attention. Susan has such an amazing eye. Because of all of her input, I think this collage might be my best so far. I feel proud when I look at the photos of the finished work. I hope it’s ok to say that.
Cher Olsson
Cher Olsson of Surrey, BC, Canada is another fabric collage convert, where a quilt idea has been percolating for years, and by using this fabric collage process, an idea finally becomes a finished quilt. Cher has now sent us three collage quilts and I love them all—though I admit I find her pet portraits below especially amazing and endearing.
From Cher:
I started this quilt (below), 6 years ago. I was hand appliquéing Ruby, the horse, when I discovered Susan’s blog. I put my applique on hold and took time to learn Susan’s collage method, first through her book and blogs and later her online class and Master Class Manual. I was finally able to finish my quilt to match the vision I’ve had in my head all these years. I entered “Hurry Up Slowpoke” into the recent Fraser Valley Quilters’ Guild, it received a Vendors ribbon and won Viewers Choice.
Congratulations to Cher for the accolades that “Hurry Up Slowpoke” received—no surprise there, it’s visually engaging and tells such a sweet story. But wait, that’s not all Cher sent to us—there’s a great update below, on a previous quilt she submitted for a previous Finish Line post—”Siblings”—entered in that same quilt show.
From Cher:
Having made this for my friend’s 50th Birthday, I borrowed it back this year to enter in the Fraser Valley Quilters’ Guild Quilt Show. Siblings received 2 Vendors Ribbons and won Best in Show!
Congratulations again! Cher began the collage quilt above, by starting with Kona in an online class in January 2022. By the end of the class week she got as far as the in-progress photo you see below. She must have put a very concentrated amount of time into finishing this quilt since only a few months later, the triple portrait was submitted for this post: Fabric Collage Finish Line #84. Read the story in both posts above, but don’t miss Cher’s cutie-girl pug portrait in this post: Fabric Collage Finish Line No. 77.
Lynn Koelsch
From Lynn Koelsch of Raleigh, NC:
A few years ago I took Susan’s Masterclass and was very intrigued by Susan’s work and tried it myself. I loved the process but my initial results were a little lack luster. I am interested in animal species that are endangered. I’m especially fascinated by primates. This photo appealed to me because of all of the saturated color. I hope to continue to work on more primate quilts!
Lynn has now submitted three collage quilts for these Finish Line posts, the other two are linked below. She was introduced to the fabric collage technique through my Master Class and over the last few years has been putting it to good use developing a series of endangered animal quilts. Not only does Lynn have a distinctive painterly style, but the personality of each of her subjects seems to have a sort of haunting quality. Beautiful job.
Read the stories of Lynn’s other animal collage quilts here: The Fabric Collage Finish Line: Online Submissions 12 and Fabric Collage Finish Line 79.
Don’t forget to enter your completed fabric collage quilt in our
Fabric Collage Finish Line Fabulous Give-Away
Submit Quilt for "Finish Line"
Deadline midnight December 31, 2023, Pacific Time
Gift Cards Now Available for Any susancarlson.com Product
or Class Purchased Through Susan’s Website
Gifts cards are available in six designs for any amount and can be applied as a “coupon” to reduce the price of a larger purchase—or towards a smaller purchase with a remaining balance to be used at a later date.
For more information, click here.
Hello,
Is this only for ladies that have participated in your classes?….. Or can I enter my latest collage?
Best regards and Season Greetings from North Vancouver, B. C., Canada.
Anne ✂️????
Hi Anne! If your collage quilt is inspired by the fabric collage technique I teach — through blog, book, videos, eWorkshops, or classes — then yes, please do submit your collage for the Finish Line Fabulous Give-Away!
So inspiring to see these finished quilts. I had great fun looking back at many of the links. The collage process is enhanced when we see these completed works and read the stories connected with them. Love this!
I was so excited when I opened finish line #95 to see Hurry up Slowpoke and The Siblings.
Than you Susan, for all that you do to teach the rest of us how to make such cool looking quilts.