QUILTING = LOVE....PASS IT ON.....

What a needle and thread has added to my life could never be measured....even in a 1,000 page book, never mind this blog.  In addition to having taught in all but 3 states in the US, plus so many unforgettable international locations, I count the friends I've made along the way as the most important benefits. 

 As a guest speaker, sitting at a guild meeting, I've heard glowing remarks from members who proudly display projects inspired by a workshop, book, or style of an instructor.  It's rewarding to know that even though often the path of the student/instructor is only fleeting.....it never-the-less can have a lasting impact.  And...that goes both ways.

I was gifted this beautiful glass cabochon from one such person.....thank you Janet.....I can't wait to incorporate it into an upcoming project.  It's very much appreciated!

Speaking of sharing....I blogged about this simple patchwork lap quilt here.  It took me a bit longer to finish it than expected.....so before it's sent off to its new owner, here's a final look.  No....this isn't a master piece in design with intricate patchwork or machine quilting....rather, it was made with love as a surprise gift. Isn't this why so many of us quilt??  

SUNFLOWERS

Recently I blogged about stenciling/printing some roadside foliage onto a few piecess of my hand felted/sun printed wool.  Read about it here.

So...now it was time to see what I could create with one of the designs.

My inspiration was a field of huge sunflowers which were at their peak of height and brilliance. Paper motifs are helpful for me to get a handle on the size, scale, shape for a composition.  I may or may not actually use them as templates....but the exercise of having a partial layout with paper is a good beginning. 

 So...with a plan.....I set about beading the centers of some sunflowers.  After I completed two it became apparent that no matter how closely I beaded, a bit of the lighther colored background was slightly visible.

 A Sharpie marker worked great to fill in the space where the beading would take place for the remainder of the flowers.  I could have used black wool or fabric as well....but this approach was far more immediate!

Stems, leafs and flower petals were cut and thread basted in position after the beading was completed.  To complete construction, each was hand embroidered in place.

 SUNFLOWERS  15" X 10"

Available here

Artist hand felted sun printed wool, stenciled with woodland foliage,

hand embroidered, and bead embellished.

**photos are clickable to get a better view......

 Detail - Sunflowers

RELAX

The word RELAX, is fairly foreign to me. I'm pretty much a 'fast forward' kinda gal.  Today our PTA group gathering was smaller than usual which led to a relaxing outdoor picnic at the Pisgah Inn, along the Blue Ridge Parkway.

At elevation 5,000 feet the views are breathtaking...and of course even better than this photo when it's clearer.  NOTE to self..... take the time to relax more often!!

EARLY MORNING DAWN

Recently, along with two pals.....I did some ice dyeing.......

 Instead of using traditional woven cottons, I experimented with other fabrics. This piece is wool....good quality white wool left over from a garment project years ago. Not all wool will felt, even if it's 100% wool. This one didn't so I decided to see how it would take dye and then...what I could do with it.

Happily, the results were pleasing  Now...what to do??  It's quite flimsy so adding an agate slice as the design focal may not be smart.  But, what the heck...I like a challenge!

I stabilized the wool with Pellon's lightweight, non-fusible interfacing....before fusing a rectangle of hand dyed gauze, outlined with hand stitching.   

 To provide more stability, machine stitched lines about 1/4" apart where sewn.  Next, the agate was secured to the layers using a Peyote stitch. (If you are planning to attend the AQS show in Phoenix, Feb. 2014....this technique is the focus of one of my workshops.)  

  At this point, the design was a bit lacking/lonely, so some hand embroidery and a few more beads were added.

Despite my two stabilizing tricks, the weight of this rather large agate was still a concern. So instead of finishing with a facing as planned, I mounted it on a yellow batik covered canvas frame.  

Seriously, my fingers are still sore from hand tacking the layers together.  Quality construction is a high priority since my work is for sale! The process was necessary, otherwise the agate could have looked like one large Double DD saggie boobie!

Additionally, and it's unfortunate that I hadn't thought of it earlier....I decided to add more beads trailing from the top of the piece to the agate.  Believe me....this was no easy chore because of the wood framework. I'm glad I did though!

EARLY MORNING DAWN   8" X 10"

AVAILABLE HERE

Artist ice dyed wool, bead embellished agate, hand embroidered,

mounted on a 3/4" deep frame.

PATCHWORKING AGAIN...

This Modern Quilting trend is onto something. 

Simple patches & big blocks, that's my kind of patchwork!  Yes, I did intricate patchwork years ago, but even then I didn't enjoy the process like I should.  Once I started creating my own funky, folk art embellished (often humorous) designs...I found my place.  Of course if you view my work now, except for the beadwork, you may not even see a glimmer of my once trademark quilts.  

I've found a new passion when I was working on my wool book and haven't stopped exploring since!

 But...what do you see here?  Yes, 100% cottons that have for the most part been lingering in my closet for well onto 25 years!  

 It's truly amazing how little one's stash is reduced even after piecing nearly all of a quilt!  BUT....gosh...I need a backing and since I don't have any one fabric with enough yardage, I'll have to piece one.  So, the stack of fabric should get even slightly smaller.

This may be the last view you'll see, it's a gift and when it's done, it will be on its way.....and I'm sure you can imagine the finished quilt w/o a photo anyway!

I plan to machine quilt it with vertical straight lines.  I won't kid you....really that's all I'm capable of.  I LOVE to hand quilt, and I have mastered that technique (if you are attending the Feb. 2014 AQS Phoenix show....look for my workshop on that subject), however this is a lap quilt, meant to be used and even abused so I'll save my hand quilting for another project.

DISAPPOINTED

Even Sooty is depressed after the Packer's hard fought loss yesterday (and might I add.....for the 2nd game in a row....a bad call by the officials). However, the Pack played so much better then they did the last time they met....SFO has a really good team and they got the W in their column.  Next time it will be our turn.

Sooty's actually not allowed on the furniture....so this surprise pose provided lots of laughs for us and a little bit of a scolding for her!

THE PACK IS BACK!!!!

Well.....like any good Cheesehead.....we wait....hoping that this is our year again.  You can take the gal out of Wisconsin, but never her love of the Green Bay Packers......  Even our son, who now lives in the Bay area, will be cheering for the green and gold.

Soooooo........GO PACK, GOooooooooo!!!  

We are grateful for what we suspect is an intervention by "Saint Vincent" for getting the game on national TV so we can enjoy it at home.  Our flags will be flying high.

BOTANICAL PRINTING

Oh my....there's a nip in the air already......our overnight temperatures are going down into the 50's already.  Boo hoo.....  Yet, it still warms up nicely to the high 70's in the daytime, plus the constant rain we've experienced all summer is now absent.

I've been spying the roadside foliage as I trudge along the mountain roads on our 'daily forced march'.  It won't be long before it dies back.....so today I gathered some for a little botanical printing.

 This isn't a difficult task....messy, yes....but quite easy with minimal equipment needs. That's good for me because I have no space for wet work.

Using acrylic fabric paint, several sizes of brushes....lots of paper towels and other barriers....I mixed some paints to obtain several shades of green.  From almost black to shamrock green (which never printed bright!)  

A larger brush works well for bigger leaves....just paint the wrong sides of the leaves/stem with as much paint as it will hold, carefully place it wrong side down where you want the design to appear on your fabric.  Cover with a piece of paper towel or fabric (I use something that will absorb the excess paint....rather than wax paper.)  Press down firmly to transfer the paint, then carefully remove the leaves.  Try to lift straight up to avoid excess paint smearing onto the fabric.

I was printing onto some of my very heavily felted wool that I had sun printed earlier this summer.  That meant I wouldn't get a very detailed, crisp print.  In some areas I had to go back with a tiny but stiff brush and fill in where dips in the felt didn't allow the paint to penetrate. 

Usually one print per leaf/fern works best...though if it's still quite firm you can do two.  After that, the foliage becomes flimsy, making it too difficult to control.

This was about a two hour process. Gathering the supplies, indecision about placement/design, plus picking over the foliage I gathered, probably took more time than the actually printing.  Some of the specimens I picked simply weren't suitable....too delicate to control once the paint was applied.  

The painted felt will now need to dry....and then heat set.  What will I do with them???  Hummm....I don't know, but I'll post the results as I have time to tackle each.

NOTE....in answer to Margaret's question:  I transfer the wet foliage directly to the fabric without any drying period.  I don't do much textile painting, therefore the little bit of paint I own is old and probably thicker than a new product might be.  If the paint one is using is super thin....there are such things as 'extenders' that thicken the paint which might help to avoid drips.  The thing is....the paint seems to be absorbed pretty quickly by the leaf anyway, so it really hasn't caused problems for me.  I suggest practicing on a scrap to test before printing to check your products.

ROCKS IN MY HEAD!!

Well.....I've been having fun......big fun if the truth be told.  Kuddos to Lisa Sorensen @ kaizenjourney   I've been smitten with her embellished river rocks ever since I first laid eyes on them. 

So the other day, I kept my felted wool on the shelf and tried my hand at embellishing several small rocks instead.  Yikes, my respect for Lisa grew even greater if that was possible.  

I have a lot to learn and must find a source for small smooth flat rocks.  NC mountains has rocks....and we have rivers....but the two have not combined to cross my path.  I'm on a mission now.

NUNO FELTED MINI COMPLETED

Recently during its construction, I blogged about this mini Nuno felted piece. Click here to learn more. And....now it's complete.  I enjoy selecting a pile of threads and beads....and with needle in hand.....putter around with one eye on our evening TV programing and the other on my work.  

Believe me, one eye on the TV is enough.....'the husband' controls the remote so any program that features wheels and motors typically airs. However, now that the rest of the world has heard about 'Duck Dynasty', I can proclaim, we've been watching it since day one.  Oh....you don't think that's an accomplishment?? I'm not sure it is either, but I do know what all the buzz is about! Grinning......

                     THIS & THAT 10.5" X 7"Artist made Nuno wool felt, hand embroidered, bead embelllished.