Holy Moly!!! I just found out that this quilt that I made for the Hoffman Challenge 2016 (called Garden Star 3 – A Butterfly Enchantment) has made it to the next stage. What does this mean? Well, I need to add a sleeve to the back of the quilt, as well as add a label to the back of it. Then all that’s left is to do is ship it out ASAP!!! Whoo Hoo!! I am so excited and really want to applaud Hoffman Fabrics on getting info out so quickly. I submitted it to their website about 16 days ago. In my experience… that’s record time.

If you would like to see more quilts in the Garden Star Series click here.

I have been working on this quilt for some time. Creating a pattern for it but didn’t want to release the pattern before the deadline of the challenge. Needed to upgrade my printer so I can print them internally. The quilt made it into the traveling show and will be gone for a year. Do I need to make another version? I think my head is just about to explode. So much to do!!! So many ideas!!! So little time… Does anyone else get lost in possibilities? 

I digress. Let’s talk about the challenge. The Hoffman Challenge is something I have wanted to do for a couple of years now. I had googled quilt competitions and the Hoffman Challenge is the first one that popped up, however at that time it was closed. Time passed (a year, maybe two. Who can keep track) and I searched again and BINGO!! I caught it right in time. And then my LQS had bolts of the challenge fabric right in their store. It was just too easy!! I didn’t have to, but I used all Hoffman fabrics for the front and back of my quilt mixing the batiks and digital printed fabric.

Oh yes. The challenge fabrics are digitally printed. Why is this so special? You don’t have to use spot colors. You have access to every single color under the sun (other than metallics those are spot colors). Very, very versatile.

The Hoffman Challenge in a nutshell:

First round – Judged on photos submitted through the Hoffman Fabric site
Second round – Judged in person and get to travel in the show
Prizes!! – 1st, 2nd and 3rd and Honorable Mention, People’s Choice, Best Hand Workmanship, Best Machine Workmanship
Categories – Quilts; Home Dec. & Accessories + Clothing(not sure it they are together or separate); Best Use of Aurifil
Judging – August 1 – August 8th

When I first saw the fabric, I had no idea what to do with it. Actually, black prints scared me a little. But I took the challenge head on pushing my comfort zone. Pulling colors found in the black print for my complimentary fabrics. I couldn’t love this quilt any more than I do. The colors in the challenge fabric collection Crystalia are so beautiful, built layer by layer creating an unreal dimension. It is like looking through a prism. Participants had the ability to use the challenge fabric in black or in white. I used the black challenge butterfly fabric and I added a bit of the white challenge fabric as well. I think it looks like there are butterflies flying over the design. That is my favorite part of the quilt.

In honor of the special occasion, me designing the pattern and then entering it into a challenge that would be judged in person(eeek), I thought I needed to do something incredibly unique. So I sent it to My Quilt Diet and she quilted it. She did a fabulous job! It is amazing! I don’t know how she does it. I used free motion on a long arm for my Virtual Challenge quilt and let’s just say I went batty! It took me hours upon hours and the lines were not straight 🙁  *sigh*

I hope you like it! Wish me luck!!