Elizabeth and I are so excited to kick off this year’s Pantone Quilt Challenge in only ONE WEEK! Today we’re thrilled to announce the judges for this year’s challenge and share all the fantastic prizes that are up for grabs from our generous sponsors.
But first — a few reminders:
IF YOU MISSED THE KICKOFF POST, stop here and go read the challenge announcement first!
Next, we encourage you use the hashtag #PantoneQuiltChallenge2023 when sharing on social media!
And finally, a recap of the rules:
- Your project must contain Viva Magenta. Do your best to get in the ballpark; there’s a list of recommended solid fabrics to use (or use as a reference) in the kickoff post. You can use any other fabrics that you like in any quantities – but we’d like to see Viva Magenta as a feature, and the judges will take this into account.
- Your project must fit into one of the following 5 categories. There are 4 judged categories and one non-judged category.
- Quilts: Any completed quilt with the shortest side at least 30”.
- Mini/Wall: Any completed quilt with the shortest side under 30”. Pillows, table runners, placemats, etc are included in this category.
- Just The Top: Any completed quilt top with the shortest side at least 30”.
- Quilted Item: New for 2023! This category includes anything quilted that is not actually a quilt – bags, pouches, coats, etc.
- For Exhibit Only: Any Viva Magenta project that doesn’t quite fit the other categories, or if you want to participate without being judged.
- You can submit one entry per judged category (i.e. up to 4 entries). Entries for Throw & Larger, Mini/Wall, and Quilted Item should be finished items.
- All items in judged categories should be completed in 2023. Older items can be shared in the “For Exhibit Only” category.
- The challenge will run from March 20 – May 15, 2023, with the linkup open for 1 week from May 8-15. Entries will close on May 15 at 11:59 pm US Central time. Winners will be announced approximately 1 week later, on/around May 22, 2023. Each entry should link to a blog post, Instagram post, or other social media post where you share your entry. You should include the project title, quilt dimensions, and country of residence.
- When using the #PantoneQuiltChallenge2023 hashtag or submitting your final project, you agree that your photo(s) may be shared by the hosts in blog and social media posts about the challenge.
Ok — on to the good stuff!
Judges
We’re thrilled to introduce four accomplished quilters as our panel of judges for the 2023 challenge: Steph Skardal, Tara Faughnan, Latifah Saafir, and Rebecca Bryan!
Steph Skardal is a quilt designer, educator, and maker who loves finding the balance between order and chaos in her quilts, mixing hard geometric lines and structure with an element of randomness in texture, color, or layout. With a background in software engineering, she is motivated to experiment with different techniques and technology to create original quilt designs. You can find her most recent blend of quilting and technology in a color app called “A Quilty Solid” – available for iOS and Android devices.
Latifah Saafir is known for her bold and innovative modern quilts. Combining her training as an engineer with her lifelong passion for sewing, Latifah creates designs that are graphic and contemporary, featuring challenging techniques with meticulous attention to detail. A co-founder of both the Los Angeles Modern Quilt Guild and the worldwide Modern Quilt Guild, Latifah currently teaches workshops to guilds around the country.
Tara Faughnan is a quilter, teacher and pattern designer who is passionate about always learning new things, stretching her skills and playing with color! She enjoys simple geometry, complex color interaction and finding the line that exists somewhere between harmony and discord.
Rebecca Bryan has a passion for helping quilters create beautiful quilts — and previously hosted the Pantone Challenge! She’s known for her colorful quilts, and has taught thousands of quilters and shown her quilts around the world. When not quilting or teaching, you can find her enjoying a hot cup of coffee and a good book, with Bruce Wayne the Weiner Dog curled up on her lap.
Sponsors
Before we get to the prizes, we have to give a huge THANK YOU to our wonderful challenge sponsors! Our challenge benefits from their enthusiastic and generous support! Make sure to check out their websites and social media accounts for more, and don’t hesitate to give them a shout-out for being such great partners.
Prizes
We want to make sure the challenge and prizes are open to anyone, from anywhere! However, due to shipping costs, we’ve had to allocate prizes as either US only or International. There will be 3 US winners (1st, 2nd, 3rd) and 1 International (non-US) winner per category. These will be selected by our judges and announced on May 22.
Note: For international prizes, any customs and/or duty fees are the responsibility of the winner.
Quilts (>30″)
Judge: Steph Skardal
- 1st – Daylight Company Black Lumi Lamp
- 2nd – Moda Fabrics prize package – Ruby Star Society Speckled FQ bundle, Bound Co Beyond Bella layer cake + Bella Solids color card
- 3rd – Aurifil Small Spool Collection – SKY Ombre by Jennifer Sampou
- International – Aurifil Large Spool Collection – Color Crush by Kitty Wilkin
Mini/Wall (<30″)
Judge: Latifah Saafir
- 1st – Oliso Mini Iron, Felt Carrying Bag & Pressing Mat
- 2nd – Latifah Saafir Studios bundle – HuRTy Ruler + 3 patterns
- 3rd – Aurifil Small Spool Collection – SKY Ombre by Jennifer Sampou
- International – Aurifil Large Spool Collection – Color Crush by Kitty Wilkin
Just The Top (>30”)
Judge: Tara Faughnan
- 1st – Quilters Dream Batting – 3 twin-size battings
- 2nd – Sew Kind of Wonderful bundle – Quick Curve Ruler, Quick Square Ruler + 2 patterns
- 3rd – Aurifil Small Spool Collection – SKY Ombre by Jennifer Sampou
- International – Aurifil Large Spool Collection – Color Crush by Kitty Wilkin
Quilted Item (Bag, Pouch, Coat, Etc)
Judge: Rebecca Bryan
- 1st – Hancock’s of Paducah $100 gift card
- 2nd – Crimson Tate – FreeSpirit solids bundle
- 3rd – Aurifil Small Spool Collection – SKY Ombre by Jennifer Sampou
- International – Aurifil Large Spool Collection – Color Crush by Kitty Wilkin
In addition to the category winners, we have more than a dozen additional prizes to give away! Participants who complete the challenge per the rules above will be eligible for these prizes, which will be selected via random number generator and also announced on May 22.
Note: all entrants regardless of location and judges’ selections are eligible to win the amazing CraftOptics package. But in the interest of giving more people a chance, winners selected by the judges will not be eligible for the remaining US and International prizes.
All entrants will be eligible to win:
- CraftOptics WOW Package – includes Magnifying Eyeglasses, high resolution binocular magnifiers, and rechargeable DreamBeam Light and travel case
US entrants who do NOT win a category prize will be eligible to win:
- Andover Fabrics 25-piece Century Solid fat quarter bundle (2 prizes)
- Cotton & Bourbon Clapper & Ruler Stand
- OLFA 45mm rotary cutter + pinking blade
- Sewfinity – PURE Solids color card
- Sewfinity – Kona Cotton color card
- Modern Makes box from Modern Makes by Alderwood Studio (2 prizes)
- Sew Much Moore – 6-piece Painters Palette Half Yard Rainbow Bundle
International entrants who have NOT win a category prize will be eligible to win:
- Quilt Pattern Mart $50 gift card
- Sew Fine Thread Gloss – 3 tins of winner’s choice
- Curated Quilts digital issue (2 prizes)
We hope you’re as excited as we are about the great variety of prizes we’ve lined up for this year’s challenge!
On Your Mark…Get Set…
We’ll be back next Monday March 20 to officially kick things off!
