Man quilts

 Isn't this a gorgeous quilt?   I wish you could see it better.  The backing is white, not my washed out ivory.  It's stunning in every detail.  And it's carved from wood!

We are in the midst of an event in Grand Rapids, Michigan.  It's called Art Prize.   This is only the fourth year of the event and it's taken the art world, Grand Rapids, and Michigan by storm.  Please look at the link. 

Yesterday a friend alerted me to this quilt so after work I stopped downtown to visit this beauty.  I was lucky, the artist was there answering questions so I was given the "cook's tour." 
Mr. Fraser's father owned a saw mill so he was around wood his whole life and carved for most of it. He's been to Paducah and has a quilt permanently there.  He's made 46 of these beauties!  I told him he should do a book.  He said, with a twinkle in his eye, that when he's made 52 he'll put them on a deck of cards! 

 The quilt started this way.

 Slowly he carved off half of its weight. He said every bit was carved away as saw dust.

  It now weighs 69 pounds.

 This is the sample we could touch

 You can see the color much better with this picture

And the quilting!!  While I was there another woman just couldn't get it into her head that he didn't really stitch it!  She kept 'arguing' the point.  I wanted to say, "um, ma'am, he should know!"

If you live in Michigan and plan to visit Art Prize, this is in the Women's City Club, lower level. He's concerned he's too tucked away to get much attention but I told him I'd blog it and as I was leaving another couple came and told him the same thing I did...."we heard about you so we had to come see."