O is for the Off Kilter Quilt

Frances Dowell's podcast, The Off-Kilter Quilt, is another of my favourite podcasts. 

Frances has a wonderful rambley way of talking. She often gets off the track, and can take a while to finish a story but the manner is so friendly and genuine I just love it. It truly is like having a conversation with a friend. She describes her website, offkilterquilt.com as follows:

 I wanted to get all my quiltiness together in one space—the podcast and podcast show notes and quilt pix and projects and links. Secondly, I wanted to have an opportunity to write about quilts and quiltmaking, perhaps touching on topics I don’t talk about on the podcast. Finally, I’m in the process of making a home for my forthcoming quilt novel, Birds in the Air, and I thought I’d build it here. I’ll keep you posted on my progress.

Her podcasts come out fairly regularly every 10 days or so and are usually a series of quilt diaries as she documents her quilting progress. She also comments on her life in general including her boys (2 teenaged boys) and husband (aka The Man) her reading and her work. She is very interested in quilt history and has many interesting snippets gleaned from her research.

Frances is also a successful novelist for young readers and comments on how her writing is going and the exploits she gets up to in promoting her books, including lots of school visits and writer in residence type activities. A list of her books is featured on her web page

She is part of a Facebook group Twilters, a name coined from the words Twitter and Quilters. Originally it was a group for quilters on twitter, particularly those who listened to the podcasts and interacted with the podcasters both on their blogs and on twitter. It has now also migrated to Facebook and I mostly interact there. I have to be honest I never really got Twitter. I would get lost in conversations - it just never really came together for me. I get Facebook though and so I interact regularly with Frances and many of the other Twilters there.

Frances forthcoming novel Birds in the Air is so named because it is about a quilt featuring this block. 

The Birds in the Air block, made by Tina of Weezy Works 

I suggested on Twilters that we have a block swap featuring this block and am delighted to say that it has taken off and is a goer. I can't co-ordinate it because most Twilters are in the USA and I am in Australia. The postage would be a real kicker. Now I have to get my blocks made amongst all the craziness of the month. At least they aren't due till July 1st