4 GREEN TREES - AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE

After 10 days - averaging 6 hours each = 60 hours NOT including the hours spent printing the fabric nor the cost of materials.....the hourly rate I've earned is about $3.00, pretty pathetic!  However, the creative pleasure gained can't be measured.  Perhaps you'd like to give this piece a home?

4 GREEN TREES- 19" x 32.5"

$225

Artist deconstructed screen printed cottons, machine applique & quilted.
Prepared for hanging. Shipping included on this piece.

CONTINUING - DESIGN PROCESS - Facing & label

Part 6 -  Creating a wall art quilt - from start to finish.....

I'm now in the finishing phase so today we will look at how I finished the edge and created the label for this piece.

*Note - if you've missed the other posts, scroll back to see the entire process.

Some quilts benefit from a clean finish edge, rather than the addition of a binding.  4 - 2" wide strips are needed.  2 strips are cut 2" shorter in length than the vertical measurement & 2 are cut 2" longer than the width of the piece.  I've pressed a 1/4" hem on each.  Starting with the sides: match raw edges, right sides together & sew with a 1/4" seam.  

Before attaching the horizontal strips, press each side strip to the outside and stay stitch 1/8" from the seam line as shown.  This will make it easier and tidier to turn the facing to the wrong side.

 Stay stitching is completed and it's ready to turn to the back side of the quilt.

(Viewed from wrong side)....only the thinnest amount of the quilt top will be visible after turning and pressing the facing to the back. 

 I find it easier to get sharp corners if I take the time to turn, press, and hand sew the side facings before the last two facing strips are sewn.  Once that's complete, repeat with the remaining strips.  When hand sewing these last two strips, turn in the excess fabric at the corners.

NOW....let's look at how I create my LABELS.

 My labels are printed onto fabric using an Espon printer fitted with Durabright ink.  I've created a master form in my word processing file which can be changed with each new quilt.  Though I'm not a big fan of spray adhesive, I find it a good tool for this task.  A rough cut piece of fabric is sprayed lightly on the wrong side and adhered to a piece of card stock.  In this case I used a piece shorter than the length of the paper, the edges have been trimmed to size. Painters tape is secured to the top edge to keep the fabric in place as it's grabbed by the printer's rollers. 

 I sign it before removing from the card stock.

 Next it's peeled away from the card stock, heat set, fused with a paper-back fusible to the wrong side, and rotary cut using a wavy edge blade.

Finally the paper backing is removed and the label is fused to the back of the quilt.

One last step is necessary before calling this piece complete.  Come back and check out my method of creating a fabric hanging sleeve.

CONTINUING - DESIGN PROCESS

Part 5 -  Creating a wall art quilt - from start to finish.....

*Note - if you've missed the other posts, scroll back to see the entire process.

As you can perhaps surmise, the applique has been completed and 3 other more subtle details have been added.  I purposely stayed away from a bright color for the birds, choosing instead a more blendable color to allow the viewer to 'discover' them upon closer inspection of the piece.

A backing has been added and the tree motifs have been outline quilted to better hold the layers together.  The final step will be to finish the edges with a facing and I'll show you the method I use in the next post.

Linking to:  Nina-Marie's Off The Wall Friday & Sarah's Whoop Whoop Friday.

CONTINUING - DESIGN PROCESS

Part 4 -  Creating a wall art quilt - from start to finish.....

At last....I'm satisfied with the tree motifs which are pinned in position to the quilt top on my design wall.

I came up with a clever trick numerous years ago when working on a piece that required precision placement of its many small design elements.  Rather than trying to move work this size to a pressing surface and hoping nothing shifts (of course it will), I use a Clover mini-iron to tack each piece in place. Once the elements are temporarily secured, the entire piece is transferred to a large pressing surface and permanently fused together. 

Here's another trick to use when machine appliqueing to avoid those pesky frayed threads along the edge of a fused motif.  Before machine stitching, use a tiny paint brush to coat the edge of the applique with Fray Block - a June Tailor product. Batiks don't fray as easily, but being hyper fussy about high quality workmanship, it's my standard procedure no matter what fabric I'm working with. I learned about this product from my pal Linda Cantrell....well known for her detailed humorous appliqué quilts.  

With matching thread, I've machine appliqued each section.  The machine is equipped with an open toe embroidery foot and programed with  a narrow blanket stitch.

Again, being the control freak I am about tidy workmanship, I pull the beginning and ending thread ends on each and every section to the wrong side and tie off. Yes, it's very time consuming....and it's just another example of why it can take me so much time to create a quality wall art quilt.

It's almost finished.....stay tuned for the rest....

CONTINUING....DESIGN PROCESS

Part 3 - Creating a wall art quilt - from start to finish.....

 If you guessed this fabric, we agreed.....however, even after my 25+ years of quilting experience, teaching/speaking on the national quilt circuit.....I can still get it wrong! Most of my work now features simple motifs/uncluttered designs which is why I chose only 4 large tree motifs as the design elements for this busy background.

 However, since 4 tree blobs felt heavy and uninspiring, fracturing them seemed to fit the background style better.  Which is where I ran into problems....though this green batik fabric appears to stand out quite well in this close up....in person the pieces didn't have enough contrast.  I spent way too much time trying to make it work; outlining the edges with a brighter green, free motion stitching within the section, and even considering hand embroidering a blanket stitch around each one.  If I wanted to fracture the trees, I'd need to switch fabric.

So, I gave up and moved onto a darker batik fabric.  I'm days into this project already and this is what I have to show for all that time....a background, 1 tree blob, 1 dark fractured tree, and 1 lighter fractured tree failure.

 Okay.....moving on....I'm going with the darker fractured tree but another problem cropped up. Notice how the split between the top left two pieces nearly disappears?  The background in that section was too dark.....

 I tried moving the position of this tree but it needed to be where it was.....so I used an oil pastel to lighten the background of that area.

Here's the result....you'd never know the background fabric has been altered.  Next step......fusing and then appliqueing the trees in place.  Watch for part 4 soon.

DESIGN PROCESS CONTINUED.....

.......The collage background was a tad fussier to piece because the majority of the deconstructed screen printed fabrics were polished cotton.  That fabric printed with beautiful color and detail, but it's flimsy and difficult to work with. It wasn't long before I grabbed spray sizing to help to tame it somewhat.

 Top now pieced - about 33" x 20"

 The top is still more unstable then I'd like (that darn polished cotton!!), so I went ahead and added batting and straight line quilting to provide additional texture and strength.

 The vertical lines of quilting were stitched at varying widths from one another.

Now that the background is finished, more than an hour went into digging through my stash to find what I hope will be the right choice for main motif elements.  The plan is to use only 1....which one do you think I picked?

AHHHH, AN IDEA IS BORN

Are you curious about how a wall art quilt is made from beginning to end? Follow along as I begin a new piece. Sometimes, even before a design idea gets born, certain fabrics that I previously created start trying to get my attention. I know it sound silly but it's almost like they are yelling pick me, pick me....I've been waiting on the shelf too long.

 So I arranged several pieces of deconstructed screen printed polished cotton on my design wall. Still not knowing where this is going....I pulled some hand-dyed cottons in accent colors of greens and reds.

After several days of passively pondering over design options, I think an idea is finally born. The large pieces (plus more from my stash) are being cut apart, arranged and sewn back together collage fashion to create a background. 

Check back to see the next step.....

DECONSTRUCTED SCREEN PRINTING RESULTS

Here are my rather disappointing results from our deconstructed screen printing day.  The good thing is I think I know the reason why some are so poor....which will be helpful for future attempts.

1.  Since we were indoors, I was being extra cautious not to slop the colored print paste.....so I probably didn't use as much as I should.

2.  The section of the table I was using had two small cracks......so my screen didn't lay very flat and it wasn't very wide.  I just didn't have enough room to lay out things properly.

3.  We were working directly on a wood surface.  In the past at Val's house, where we had a dream set up.....we worked on padded table surfaces...which yielded a better print.

Some of the really poor ones not shown here will be overprinted.  Nothing will be lost....just an opportunity to play again.  Still it was so great to be working with one of my favorite techniques.  Thank you Judy for hosting and Sue for sharing all your interesting resists.

PLAYING WITH DECONSTRUCTED SCREEN PRINTING

It's been AGES.....since the opportunity presented itself to spend a day doing deconstructed screen printing.  My long time pal Judy Simmons, Sue Lee, and I began on a raining, but mild temperature wise day.  Our outdoor set up got moved into her husband's woodworking studio...which required some shrinkage of workspace but yahoo......we were creating!!!

With sharing in mind, we all brought resists that were no deeper than about 1/8" and silk screens.  This technique is really a simple process, but there are so many variables to obtain great results.  We just wish there were absolute RULES......so we could work off a check list (ha....not that we ever would).  Basically we wing it.....if we aren't happy with what got printed.....heck, we can always add surface design or print over it!

 I started with some ferns, picked the night before and stored flat in my car outside overnight so they stayed fairly cool.  Unfortunately, the rhythm I had developed was absent after such a long time away from this technique.  So, starting simple.....ferns were arranged on plastic, surrounded by thin wood button.

 My smallish screen was placed over the arrangement.

 My second layout began with pine needles, a tin metal 'something or other', and corrugated cardboard.

 Again, covered with my screen.

 And my final layout, already covered with a homemade screen.

 The next step is to squeegee dye infused print paste through the screen......this is a small piece of Judy's.

 After each screen has been covered with colored print paste, they are left to dry.  

 Next, the fun begins.....starting on the left....the screen is placed over dry fabric that had been soaked in soda ash.  This step aides the dye molecules to attach to the fiber.  Clear thickened print paste is pressed through the silk screen.....dissolving the dye and allowing it to attach to the prepared fabric below.  Each 'pull' yields a different look.  Normally 4-5 prints can be achieved from one screen.

 Here's my second pull from my first screen......because of space limitations....I rolled each print between black plastic before printing the next one.  The bundle will 'batch' for at least 24 hrs.

 This was one of Judy's wonderful prints.....I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the color.

I'm anxious to process the fabric in 24 to 48 hrs. because so far, I'm not finding the kind of prints I expected.  The ferns, pine and cedar branches don't seem to have printed well.  No matter what I get...I know I'll be grinning........  Come back and see won't you??

See what other artists have been working on this week:  Nina-Marie's Off The Wall Friday, Sarah's Whoop, Whoop Friday.

PRARIE STYLE ART QUILT

The new professional piecing foot for the Janome 8900 that was recently purchased has totally changed my mind about piecing. I've never had such a trouble-free experience piecing.....any ripping that was done was due to my errors of placement or pattern choices.  Why, oh why didn't I know about this helpful foot ages ago?  

REMEMBERING FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT #2   24" x 22"

Available here

Deconstructed screen printed, ice-dyed, indigo-dyed cottons.

Machine stitched.

ALTERING ALTERED FABRIC

What's your favorite color?  Mine's blue....honestly, I never tire of the color blue.

But yikes, I'm in desperate need to hit the dye pots to replenish my almost depleted inventory.

 Seriously, I had a difficult time pulling together enough fabric for a small art piece.  It's interesting how so many different techniques can still yield fabrics that can work together fairly well.

Utilized here are deconstructed screen printing, traditional indigo dyeing, and ice dyeing.

Many designers advocate working with light, medium, and dark colors.....unfortunately my darks outweigh the other two.  After managing to  eke out an almost pleasing arrangement, it became apparent some areas were simply too dark.  

So, it was with trepidation that a hunk of indigo dyed fabric (right) was taken to the sink along with a bottle of bleach and some Q-tips.(left)  Magic!!  Now the ability to proceed with a better visual flow for my piece would be complete. A few dozen more threads to bury, plus the binding and I'll be able to post a photo.

In the meantime, see what magic other artists have come up with this week:  Nina-Marie's Off The Wall Friday, Sarah's Whoop, Whoop Friday, Crazy Mom Quilts
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JAPANESE MAPLE

You'll see just how much 'seat' time I had during 'the husband's' hospital stay....here's another semi-prepared project finished off with hand stitching during this time.

 My pile of deconstructed screen printed silk noil is slowly shrinking.  It's one of my favorite methods of altering fabric.  When planning to mount a project on a canvas wrapped frame, it's helpful to baste reference lines to ensure ample turn over margins are available. 

 Awhile ago I prepared this background and played with featuring an Asian design.  It just wasn't hitting the mark for me so I put it aside.

The fall season brought my attention to a beautiful Japanese Maple tree located at the entrance to our tiny subdivision. Large scale, richly colored leaves made using commercial batik fabric was a better design choice.

 The veins were hand embroidered.....a bit of a challenge due to the number of layers (plus stabilizer) that had to be pierced.

JAPANESE MAPLE  14" x 11.5"

AVAILABLE HERE

Deconstructed screen printed silk noil, machine appliqued,

hand embroidered, mounted on canvas wrapped wood frame.

Linking to:  Nina-Marie's Off The Wall Friday, Sarah's Whoop Whoop Friday, Crazy Mom Quilts.

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