I came across an article on a Gee’s Bend quilter’s exhibit in Knoxville and it just reminded me that easy quilt patterns do not have to equal a boring quilt. They can literally be art!

Black women in the tiny town of Gee’s Bend, Alabama had been making simple quilts from scraps for generations. Now these beautiful works hang in museums. There can be no greater testament of what you can achieve with easy quilt patterns.

So, if you are looking for some inspiration and happen to be in the Knoxville area, a trip to the Knoxville Museum of Art should definitely be on your to-do list. The museum’s new exhibit is called Mary Lee Bendolph: Gee’s Bend Quilts and Beyond.

I made my way to the Gee’s Bend exhibit when it came to Atlanta and was blown away. What these women were able to do with simple quilt patterns was amazing.

They used what they had. They added their personality. The end was art. Did you know that they used corduroy for some of their quilts? Who does that? But because they had corduroy scraps, that is what they used.

After seeing these beautiful quilts up close, the first thing you’ll want to do is dig through your easy quilt patterns and start a new project.

Check out the full article here – http://www.metropulse.com/news/2008/aug/06/around-bend/