BASTE

this  title could also be titled”Determination” or “Hard-Headedness.” I have been trying to sew a piece of silk to a strip of velvet for a art quilt. The silk crawls and the velvet slithers. After two ripping outs I finally got it. Baste, baste, baste.

YES. And, yes, I will clean it up and remove the basting and the little stray threads. The black thread is not basting. It’s decorative.

Wild & Crazy, 3 & 4

I’m at it again. Another Quilt As You Go quilt. This one is bigger than the last. Hopefully it will be about 74″ x 74″. I want to keep it and use it on a blond mid-century bed that used to be my Mom’s.  These are numbers 3 & 4 of four made. Five more to go but the rain has finally stopped and I’ve GOT to get out into the garden. Yes, I can sleep under it. The room will be dark and my eyes will be closed.

Slow Progress

Because the weather is so wonderful, the deck is being rebuilt, and the vegetable garden calls, little time is being spent in the studio. “Cover Lovers Askew” has been embellished with a fancy satin stitch and is ready to quilt and there she sits – waiting.

Two Projects at the Same Time

Two Projects at the same time is fun, but the studio is a mess.

Note the two sewing machines. I’m trying to use both of them. The little ripped, worn out ironing board and my chair have to trade places depending on which machine I’m using at the moment. There’s an old Pfaff on the right and a big Singer commercial machine on the left; it has a wider needle swing and I’ve spent two days off and on trying to correct it’s tension. Almost there.

Here are the two projects:

Cover Lovers Askew is now pinned and ready to embellish.

Flower Patch blocks – there are 14 so far, not enough room on the design wall to display them all and there will be more.

This is how they will go together using the QAYG  (quilt as you go) technique.

Marianne at The Quilting Edge blog has excellent “how to” tutorials on the technique.

Cover Lovers Askew

You may remember that one of my New Year’s resolutions is to make a quilt out of these blocks given to me by my old Florida friends, The Cover Lovers, about 15 years ago.

While looking for something to use as a background, I put this fabric on the design wall and slapped some of the block up, helter-skelter, just to see how they look on the fabric.

Oh, wow. I just don’t have enough fabric and will have to find something else that is in the same vein. I  like it that some of the blocks are askew and hang off the edge and could go on over into the border. My light bulb is lighting up!!

One resolution is finished but I can’t show it yet, ’cause it’s a surprise.

Dandelions

Since the last post, I’ve turned thebackground fabric 90∘and like it better. Then moved the apron and blouse toward the center. Now what will the apron “arms” do? I thought about butterflies, bubbles, and have settled on dandelions.

I’ve quickly sketched a dandelion on tracing paper and pinned it in the upper left corner.

Not sure How I will depict it but some inspiration will come along. So many possibilities. Machine embroidery, hand embroidery, silk screen, applique and embroidery. Ummmmm.

And then in the top picture you see a table runner pinned to the bottom. Those flowers along the borders look too much like dandelions making it impossible not to incorporate it some way. You might think it’s too pretty to cut up, but there are stains and besides, think of it as a beautiful piece of cloth instead of as a finished product.

Solving delimmas

Last week there were two areas on my current project that I was having trouble resolving.  See previous post. One problem I worked out by myself while restoring in yoga. I know, I know; I’m supposed to relax during that time, but my brain never stops! I hand quilted this area so that it is subtle but still stands out.

My art quilt group, Uncommon Threads, gave me suggestions for the other problem, one of which I took, thank you Lily, and the rest I worked out again in yoga restorative.

I traced over the stitched writing, which was too  pale, ever so lightly with a Sharpie pen and I will probably put the musical staff and notes on, with a pen. Have to go to Hobby Lobby to find the right pen. Any suggestions for a proper pen would be gratefully accepted!

Ideas are Slow to Come to Fruition

This current project has beenon the back burner for months. Finally, I said, “Just do it” and now I think it’s coming together. There has been a lot of sewing and ripping and more ripping, but just to have it up on the design wall where I see it every day is actually comforting. What started out as a rather gloomy piece has become uplifting; certainly color wise. The most pressing decision at the moment is deciding which bird to use. They are printed on paper so it’s easy to move them around.

Bird #1

Bird #2

I think just going through the exercise of writing and publishing this post has helped me decide.

More Progress With Carrots

Why am I having so much fun with Carrots?

Circles

I saw a picture somewhere and now I can’t find it and don’t remember what it was in, but it was of a painting of nine circles and I thought it could be translated into fiber. Maybe it’s just as well that I don’t have the photo for now I can create my own without being influenced. Here’s one. It’s polyesters on a silk organza background.

Many people find polyester offensive, especially quilters. I’ll admit that cotton is much more forgiving and can be eased into curves but for this project I like the sheen of the polys, which doesn’t show up in this photograph.

Susan Leslie Lumsden has been creating quilt art with circles for several years. I’m beginning to see her fascination with circles for as I sew, I keep thinking up new directions. Circles may be an endless exploration.