March Desire to Inspire "Dogs and Suds" Cleans Up, thanks to Pat Gottshalk

We put out the call for a March Challenger in our Desire to Inspire feature with our "Dogs & Suds" collection by Shelly Comiskey of Simply Shelly Designs. We selected Pat Gottshalk who pushed aside all other projects on her quilting table and went to town this month on her "Dogs & Suds" effort.

Meet Pat Gottshalk, and be sure to comment below on her great effort for the March challenge! 

Hello. My name is Pat Gottshalk and I live in beautiful Bucks County, PA. I have loved fabric for as long as I can remember. One of my earliest memories is playing with the cans of buttons at my grandmother’s house. I was surrounded by sewers growing up; my mother and both grandmothers, but I do not remember learning from them. I did the usual home ec classes in high school, after nursing school began garment sewing in the late 1970’s.

My interest in patchwork and quilting was peaked in the early 1980’s I attended the Goschenhoppen Historians Folk Festival in Green Lane, PA. The festival is a snap shot of life in the 18^th and 19^th centuries in southeastern Pennsylvania. During my first visit I was fortunate to meet Ellen Gehret and Nancy H. Roan and was introduced to their book, Just A Quilt or Juscht en Deppich, in Pennsylvania Dutch dialect. This softcover book with hand drawn pictures captured my heart and made me want to be a quilter. I am now an active member of the Goschenhoppen Historians and participate in the festival every August. I also volunteer with the on line textile collection which means I get to touch all the quilts in the collection!

In 1985, as a newlywed, I attended a class offered by the PA Extension Service. This was before the internet, you-tube, and rotary cutters. Mrs. Ginny Haist came to class with wonderful illustrations, sample step-outs, and a willingness to share her gift. Her preparation prior to class makes her one of the best teachers I have ever had. I was hooked and never looked back.

I was aware of the Henry Glass “Desire to Inspire” program and I follow various Jaftex social media sites, including Scott Fortunoff. I was interested in the colors of “Dogs & Suds” designed by Shelly Comiskey. I even had a random sketch done of something I thought would work. My timeline was tight. I received the fabric March 9^th, had work and 9 vacation days planned prior to the deadline of March 31^st. The amount of fabric I received was a generous 5 yards which meant I needed to up my game and use the gift I was given. I plan to donate the pillows and quilt to a local animal rescue for fundraising.

Below is a summary of the projects pictured.

1.      The nesting Scottie dog pillow is from a doodle in my sketch book (quadrille copy book). I love how FDR’s dog Fala inspired patchwork, tea towels, and fashion. The pillow case, with zipper is 23”square. I wish I had bordered the outer dog but the patch was already big.

2.      The second pillow, same dimensions, utilized the wonderful stripe fabric from the collection. Lots of dogs all lined up, reminded me of the Sunday comics. Both pillows are backed with striped denim from a second-hand store. I am trying to learn free motion quilting and both pillows were done on my Brother using Aurifil thread and a Schmetz microtex 12. I still need lots of practice.

3.      The small fabric boat of basket is from a Lazy Girl pattern I had in my stash. The buttons were also stash along with the fusible products I used.

4.      The quilt, approximately 40” x 45”, is dog house condos. I worked in an organized improvisational method, yes I winged it. I wanted to use the head shots of the dogs. I played with a disappearing 9 patch but the heads were upside down so the tall doghouse idea just happened. 

I quilted this on my Brother using a Teflon foot and Aurifil thread. The rick rack was added for interest but I wish I had used more. The bias binding is scrappy and I rounded the corners to save a bit of time. It is a common short cut for me but only 

works with bias binding.

5.      The felt board is a work in progress. I see it used as a small child’s version of paper dolls. I made a felt envelope around a piece of cardboard and then cut out dog bones, balls, and a dog bowl.

Thanks to Vanessa, Jaftex and Henry Glass for the opportunity to play with the Dogs & Suds Collection.