Kim Konen | Quilts

A Journal of Modern Quilts & Minimal Knits. Handmade in Wisconsin.

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

Create With Kim | Tiny Woven Wall Art

Let's weave some magic, shall we? In this creative, beginner-friendly workshop, you’ll make your very own loom using recycled cardboard—yours to keep for future projects—and dive into the art of simple weaving. Using a variety of colorful yarns and textures, you’ll design and create a one-of-a-kind woven wall hanging that's perfect for adding handmade charm to any space. All supplies are provided—just bring your creativity and get ready to unwind with some mindful making.

Details:

Saturday, September 13, 2025

Crafting tutorial: 12pm - 2pm

Live music: 3pm - 5:30pm

Wolf & Fox Winery in New Holstein, Wisconsin

Ticket price includes:

All crafting supplies.

Hands-on instruction.

A glass of wine.

Admission to the live music.

Meet me in the barn as early as 11:45! 

RSVP HERE!

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

Create With Kim | Make a Merit Badge

Ready to earn some serious creative bragging rights? In this hands-on, beginner-friendly embroidery workshop, you’ll learn the basics of hand-stitching and design your very own custom merit badge! Whether you want to celebrate a personal achievement, craft a badge for a friend, or just make something totally hilarious, you'll leave with a one-of-a-kind piece you can wear proudly—or gift to someone who needs a little extra recognition. All supplies are provided—just bring your imagination!

Join me at the Wolf & Fox Winery Woelful Homestead for an afternoon of crafting and music in the big barn.  

Saturday, August 16, 2025

Crafting tutorial: 12pm - 2:30pm

Live music: 3pm - 5:30pm

Wolf & Fox Winery in New Holstein, Wisconsin

Ticket price includes:

All crafting supplies.

Hands-on instruction.

A glass of wine.

Admission to the live music.

RSVP HERE!

Meet me in the barn as early as 11:45! 

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

Warm Autumn Baby Quilt

Handmade for a family who is expecting their first grandchild. Grandma-to-be chose the colors and gave me carte blanche on design. It's soft, warm, and ready for it's companion.

Approx 35" x 45"

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

Scarlet Moon Quilt

The Scarlet Moon quilt was originally designed in collaboration with my client. It will live in Ohio, where the state flower is the Scarlet Carnation. This gigantic quilt was inspired by southwest vibes and modern design.

110" x 105"

By request, three handmade holiday stockings to match the quilt.

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

Muted Rainbow Baby Quilt

I loved working on this beautiful custom quilt for a family who are expecting a rainbow baby. The custom embroidery on back was very personal for them, reminding them that miracles can happen after loss.

38" x 38"

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

New Mexico Quilt: Pattern by Simple Geometric Quilting.

The pattern originally called for queen size, but I customized the size of each block by 1.5" and increased the borders by 4" to achieve king size.

Custom made for my BFF who lives on the east coast. Handmade in 2022. 110" x 105".

About the pattern maker: Laura's approach to quilting is relatable, which is why I'd been looking forward to making a quilt from her pattern, New Mexico Quilt. She says, "Quilting should be approachable, everyone is creative, and perfection is overrated." Learn more about her patterns here: Simple Geometric Quilting.

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

Hidden Hope Quilt. A Love Letter.

Dear Queer Kid in a Small Town,

You may feel like your colors cannot shine as bright as they truly are. You may feel alone in your town where people are so loud and refuse to think outside of the binary to understand you. Hidden in this quilt is hope. Please look outward to the brightness. Please know that there is a beautiful world full of colors and communities who accept you and love you. There is hope. There is hope. You are a star. 

Love,

Your ally in a small town

About the quilt • 60" x 60" • Machine stitched & quilted

I chose black, grey, and white to represent how binary life can feel to a non binary kid.

Inspired by the events in Kiel, WI, in May 2022 when a nonbinary student was bullied and the media spun it into a “misuse of pronoun” issue completely lacking in empathy for the victim and the nuances of the whole situation.

While repeated bomb threats closed our schools, libraries and community, parents tossed out what seemed like a million lies and falsehoods about transgender kids.

I could not stop thinking about how this one child was feeling. Perhaps they must have felt so bad just for being who they truly are.

My hope is to give at least one person the ability to look at something they don’t understand and see it through the lens of grace and empathy, not bomb threats and terror.

The quilt is bound with rainbow cotton that features stars, representing a larger community who accepts trans and gay kids for who they truly are.

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

Custom quilt made for a lovely human in Colorado. Lone Star quilt with southwest inspired details. Horizontal quilting.

75" x 75"

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

Barn Star Love Quilt

This Lone Star quilt deserves it’s very own name. This quilt was inspired by the star my client was betrothed under in a barn. She wanted a star with ascending circles surrounding it. It was an honor to make this quilt. 

Dimensions: 104″ x 94″ 

The barn star that inspired the piece. 

The group of water color sketches I made. She chose the bottom left. 

My daughter getting into the photo shoot on a warm November day. 

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

Tiny Hearts Wedding Quilt

Custom baby quilt made from a jacquard wedding dress (stock photo below) and Kona Cotton in Snow. 50″ x 60″. Long-arm quilted and bound by hand. I used the pattern + tutorial from Cluck Cluck Sew. I’m so in love with how subtle it turned out. What an honor to be trusted with such a project. 

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

Woven Roots Quilt

85″ x 100″. Features naturally dyed shades of dusty rose, peach and rusty pink. Also included are Kona solids in three shades of grey, black, snow and white. 

Inspiration: Anni Albers. Custom quilt headed to Brooklyn, New York. 

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

Lone Star Dino Quilt

A custom quilt designed and made for one of my oldest best pals who is getting a new baby in her family very soon. I hand-quilted the star and machine quilted the negative space in the background. It measures 52″ x 51″. It has that perfect quilty weight and crinkle that motivates me to keep making. 

What’s a quilt without a hand-knit toy to go along with it? Knitting pattern by Barrett Wool Co. and knitted by me using Spud and Chloe yarn. 

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

Polar Vortex 3 | Black Walnut + Indigo | Natural Dye

Polar Vortex 3 is a naturally dyed, original design inspired by traditional quilting including the Lone Star block and half-square triangle patch. Last Autumn, my daughter and I collected black walnuts that had fallen from the tree. Then I let them dry in the sun for a few days before breaking them open and boiling the husks to extract the dye. 

Next, she helped me harvest the Japanese Indigo we’d be growing in our summer garden. Using the saltwater method, I was able to achieve these three shades of sage green. The cotton had a pre-mordant to help grab and keep the color from the plants. 

This quilt measures 41″ x 46″.

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

Wisconsin Museum of Quilts & Fiber Arts

The first time I visited the WMQFA, I fell in love. Listening to its creaky floors while following the lines of the beautifully designed renovated barn with my eyes had me hooked. I have been to a few exhibitions since my first visit and each time the talent shown by fiber artists astound me. It is an honor to have one of my quilts hanging in the space among so many talented Wisconsin Artists for the On Wisconsin Fiber Arts Biennial. (Yes, I totally wore a Wisconsin shirt to the artist’s party, I love a theme.) 

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

Excel Spreadsheet Quilt

This is a custom baby quilt I made for my friends in Hamburg, Germany. They reached out about a quilt for a dear friend who has a new baby. I had many of these pre-cut patches from my Quiltcon 2019 gift bag. I didn’t intend for it to look like a spreadsheet, but after completion, I decided it was perfectly nerdy. 

Here is the quilt I made for my Hamburg friend's when they had their new baby in 2015.

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

Grandpa’s Shirt Quilt

This quilt was made from my husband’s grandpa’s striped shirt, with complimentary blue shades to surround it. I made this for his cousin’s wedding. 

[kimkonenhandmadejournal]

North Star | Root to Rise Quilt

Designed and made for one specific wall in a local yoga studio, this custom quilt features naturally dyed fabric from fresh leaf indigo leaves mixed with Robert Kaufman Kona cotton. Its purpose is to help you stay focused while breathing in all the oxygen and to keep you rooted as you breathe out. 

Dimensions: 35″ x 85″