WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA QUILT GUILD

Tonight at 7:00 PM, I'll be presenting a lecture "Wool Collage - What's Old is New Again", at the Western North Carolina Quilt Guild's month meeting. Click link for location and directions.

I hope to see some of you there!

If you are a long time reader of this blog, you know I'm smitten by working with wool felt. It's easy to work with, I love the feel, the texture and the affect my beadwork has to these projects.

Hobby Horse is a small table topper.......that was entirely construction using the machine, with the exception of the beading.

Color in the Mountain

Button & Bow

WERE YOU WONDERING??

I've given up trying to post the clever football images I found to go along with my weekly NFL Suicide Pool chatter........I haven't whined about our lousy internet service for awhile.....so consider this a loud shout out to Hughesnet.......PROVIDE the service we are paying for!!!! The network is so oversubscribed we experience less than dismal dial up speed in the evenings....therefore often photos won't upload. GRRR!

Now I feel better...

Okay, so in case anyone out there has been wondering......I'm still in the football pool after the Viking win on Sunday. So......with NFL week 11 approaching, I've spent hours (really, I'm not kidding) previewing the possibilities for the next few weeks (should I get past this next one) and I've made my pick. So please.....cheer for a Jacksonville win on Sunday.

FAREWELL RIO GRANDE VALLEY QUILTERS

After 5 days with the Rio Grande Valley Quilters.....it was time to say goodbye. We had a lovely luncheon at Queen Anne's Lace Tea Room in Mercedes, TX. This charming half restaurant/half antique store was filled to the brim with everything from vintage hats, china, eye glasses, furniture, lamps....honestly the selection went on and on. AND....the food was good too!

This is one of the several dining areas located throughout this old home.

Many of us remarked at how much the china reminded us of our grandmothers.

The owners showcase the merchandise so effectively with their creative displays.

The bathroom door handle was embellished with this slipper!

This is a view of the bathroom.......and yes, that's a wedding dress.....

Carol Hover was my host one evening......a dedicated quilter with energy to spare. I admired the necklace she'd made from buttons, decorated with stone chips......after lunch she touched my heart by taking it off and giving it to me! We all know quilters are generous and I am so grateful....thank you again Carol.

EMBELLISHING A FUNKY ROOSTER

Wow.......students in my Funky Rooster workshop at the Rio Grande Valley Quilt Guild were on a roll....... I was amazed at the progress they made recreating my pattern using their own fabric choices.

All the motifs are attached to the stabilized quilt top with beads......how fun is that......you can embellish and applique in one step! Many seen here are secured in hoops or Q-snap frames (my preference since it helps to keep the fabric on grain) as the beads are added.

I hope you will enjoy their efforts as much as I have......

ANTIQUE PENNY RUGS

I may have to be dragged out of Texas kicking and screaming! The Rio Grande Valley Quilt guild is one of the most friendly and hospitable guilds I've ever had the pleasure of visiting.

Today....Jeanne (who I've adopted as a 'student groupie'......meant as a compliment..... since she's taken all three of my workshops) brought 2 antique penny rugs to show me. Though I've been inspired by these mid-19 century wool beauties.....I've never seen an antique one in person. What treat! These pieces of art were made to be displayed on table tops....not on the floor as their name might suggest. They were made from wool scraps; the motifs often incorporated circles and blanket stitched edges.

We wondered whether this particular piece was made to use as a pillow cover, considering the backing.

Detail

This second piece was another typical Penny Rug style that I'd only read about. The stacked wool circles were stitched to what appeared to be a heavy muslin type fabric background.

Detail

FUN WITH WOOL

Sunny and warm Texas seems like an unlikely place for students to be so interested in working with wool.....but don't tell that to the members of the Rio Grand Valley Quilt Guild.

They're an enthusiastic bunch with high skill levels. Take a look at their projects.....

Fusing fun!

Rather than creating a wall quilt.....an oval piece of wool was embellished and applied to the side of a purchased wool purse. Clever!

Based on patterns from my book, Embellishing With Felted Wool......numerous motifs are combined to provide a distinctive look.

Rather than utilizing buttons to create a lily basket.......a wool basket shape from another one of my patterns is used successfully instead.

These branches were made using mottled wool felt for a quick and effective way to add interest.

Who says wall pieces have to be square? A simple scallop shape is a pleasing and refreshing change of pace.

This striking design is a great way to use those buttons you have stored away!

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

3 flights - 2 airlines & about 12 hrs. of travel requires a positive outlook......

Okay, I know some folks love their dogs but they aren't an accessory! ......I see this as ' get a grip'......

What resession.......no seats here.......

Brightening one's day........I spotted these shoes and smiled!

But I had to remind myself more than once to be patient.......however......as often as I looked at my watch.....I wasn't succeeding.

It was all worth it.....here's Susan Flarity of the Rio Grande Valley Quilt Guild.......with her big smile and pink cowboy hat greeting me at the airport......

EMBELLISHING THE PAISLEY MOTIFS

Between running to the computer and TV to check stats on the various NFL games that impact the Suicide Pool......I still found a little time to do some work on my Paisley quilt.

BTW...Yeah....Seattle won.....but not without giving me a bit of a scare. We are down to 10 participants after 1 person got bumped out with the Packer's loss. (Sad....I NEVER want to see the Packers get defeated......we had such high hopes this year!)

So....back to the Paisley design process. My original drawing included some curls and small feather shapes migrating from several of the Paisley motifs. Transferring those shapes to the front of the piece was as simple (and not terribly time consuming) as thread basting along the design lines from the wrong side.

Tracing from my original drawing on the right side is not possible, even using a light box since the wool is too dense to see through. Besides..... obtaining narrow marking lines on wool/felt is near impossible due to its texture.

This basting trick provides a tidy, narrow line to follow for hand embroidering.

Though I'm not quite finished yet......the impact is pleasing as it provides additional depth, color and texture. Next comes the beading.....

However....that will have to wait as I'm off before the crack o'dawn tomorrow to Misson, TX where I'll lead 3 full day workshops and a lecture for the Rio Grande Valley Quilt Guild. This is my last teaching trip for the year that requires air travel and since I'm facing 3 flights and about 9 hrs. in transit, I can honestly say....YEAH! I LOVE, LOVE teaching......but all the nonsense, hassle and stress of multiple flights on different airline, when it's vital to arrive with your luggage, leaves me weak in the knees. It's a good thing I have quilter's smiling faces to look forward to!!

Will touch base as I can......

FUN WITH PAISLEY

Well....I can't help myself.......my need to play with wool/felt & the new bamboo/felt is overpowering! With the busy holiday season approaching....I've focused on preparing two projects. With all my embellishments choices now organized and set aside as well, this will allow me to grab either project do some handwork as time permits.

It's amazing how quickly a piece can be completed just by pecking away at it.

For project # 1, I was inspired by a piece of National Nonwoven's wool felt that my friend Nancy Bruce (dyer extraordinaire) overdyed for me. Some time ago I created a wool/felt beaded paisley design that was donated to the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative - Priority Quilts so I decided to explore this design element further.

The target size for the center of the piece will be 14" square....so I sketched some ideas to fit in those measurements. After some tweeking....I traced the shapes onto the paper side of Wonder-Under and applied them to several color choices of both wool/felt and bamboo/rayon felt.

These shapes were fused to the right side of the mottled wool/felt square which was stabilized with a Pellon light-weight non-fusibile interfacing. This view (from the stabilized backside) shows the first of the Paisley designs which has been machine blanket stitched in position.

Here's the front view. The small white basting stitches near the edges attach the stabilizer to the back and also provide a guide (14" sq.) for placing the Paisley shapes.....

Next I begin the fun part....the beading.....back at you soon with my progress.

Oh.....today is NFL Sunday.....we are cheering for Seattle......but we must wait...they don't play until 4:30 PM. The 11 of us remaining in the Suicide Pool have selected 5 different teams this week. No offense anyone.....but I'm hoping Atlanta, New England, New Orleans, and YIKES...this is hard to type......Green Bay all lose.....which would leave only 3 left in the pool!! Hope this confession doesn't jinx me.....

STICKS & STONES

Several days ago I began posting the process photos of my newest project working with the new and improved Xotic-Felt - Bamboo/Rayon. It's now complete......here's the rest of the story....

Originally I thought I'd need put this into a frame due to the weight of the embellishments. However by using a combination of a non-fusible stabilizer and somewhat dense machine quilting on the center section, along with additional rectangle and sq. (purple) motifs, again machine stitched, I felt it just may hold up to displaying with a traditional fabric sleeve added to the backing (reddish fabric).

The next dilemma was how to finish the edges. The traditional narrow folded binding method is too thick to achieve a tidy edge. Instead, I backed the center embellished rectangle with a larger piece of the Xotic-Felt.....it extended about 2" beyond the center's outer edges.

Next I cut strips of the same reddish felt....about 1 1/4" wide and backed it with a non-fusible stabilizer. I marked two long gentle curved lines about 1" apart and filled that area with machine stitching to resemble tree bark. Notice the strip on the far right....the left side has been trimmed up to the outside stitching line, the right side has not yet been trimmed.

I experimented with various colors of rayon thread to gauge their visual impact and stabilizing properties. In the end, I settled on a medium brown and Sulky's Stitch and Tear Stabilizer.

Sticks & Stones 10" x 13"

Price - $225 (includes insured shipping)

email me using link at upper right

**NOTE - click the photo for a larger image

The strips were positioned to cover the raw edge of the brown center, extending onto the larger backing fabric and machine stitched in place. The outside edges of each strip and excess backing was then trimmed away.

This approach not only visually framed the piece, it also provided plenty of support to allow the wall piece to hang nice and flat on the wall.

Detail - Sticks & Stones