Little by Little - Design Wall Monday

  After a long day in studio yesterday - 10 hours! - I'm getting close and closer to the finish of the piecing of Curves2.

I finally got my studio up to 70 degrees which makes it just that much easier to stay productive in there.  By the end of the night, I was tired!

 Still I did notice something.  The last yellow piece I put on did not read "Dark Yellow" under the studio lights.  When the lights are off you can tell its suppose to be dark yellow, but with the lights on it just reads a touch darker than its curving counterpart.

You know what that means right?  sighhhhhhhhh

I'll have to do that section again.  It shouldn't take  that long.  I'm hoping to  get the bottom section piecing done this week so I can layer it up on my studio day on Thursday.

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Watercolor Wonder - Design Wall Monday

 

This weekend I went back digging into my quilt closet - you know the one  otherwise known as. . . The Home for Leftovers and found the fusible grid Pellon.  Don't you love clever people who come up with clever things?  Once the watercolor craze hit in the 90's, the people at Pellon came up with the idea that you could use a light fusible to help sew all the pieces together.  The way it works is that you just put the squares onto the gridded interfacing.  Iron them on.  Turn over the interfacing folding at the lines and sew the 1/4" seam.  Cool, huh?!  

You really didn't think I was going to sew all those 2" squares together did you?  That falls under the catagory. . . "I'm getting too old for this Sh. . . ".  Still there is something relaxing about this project.  I love the rhythm of traditional quilting.  Just spending a couple of hours replacing the squares onto the pellon was quiet easy work.  Sorta like Jigsaws for Dummies.  Once again, my idea of ditching my traditional ironing board and using an ironing "table board" comes in handy!  So much easier doing it on a table!

Anyways, I'll spend this week getting it all sewn together.  For once I'll have my assignment in Elizabeth Barton's masterclass done early.  Notice I'm totally ignoring the suggestion that I take this a step farther and use the technique to come up with a new design encompassing praise ladies.  I mean that teacher of mine - give her an inch and she'll push you a mile!

hmmmm that is what I love about her!

See more great design walls at Judy's Patchwork Times.

I've Got Rhythm - Design Wall Monday

Well, just under the wire I completed my July assignment from Elizabeth Barton's Masterclass.  At the beginning of the month I was relieved to find that Rhythm was the topic of the month.  All Rhythm is a repeating element  in your work - What can be easier?  As I studied it though, I found (like a  lot of things) that it wasn't as easy as it looked.

What I struggled with the most is how to add rhythm without adding boredom.  After much sketching I handed in two that I thought were the strongest.  Elizabeth approved.

With those in hand, I blocked out my piece but somehow got lost along the way.  Notice how this isn't as strong as the sketches.  I started playing with a secondary rhythm in this one and it wasn't successful.  Which of course, Elizabeth pointed out.

I went back to the original sketch and finally got a piece that was much stronger.  I think she said it worked, "Stupendously well" .  Finally success.

Rhthym - fused on muslin fondation - 28" by 28

Although I did learn things about rhythm, I also learned something about construction.  This piece was collaged together using fused fabrics.  I used steam-a-seam light 2 and heat and bond light. I liked the steam a seam better since you could position them on the foundation but the heat and bond held better.  BUT I really hated fusing all together.  The piece ended up flat - stiff and not at all like soft pretty fabric.  I know its faster to fuse but I hated working with all that glue and paper.  It was a huge mess in my studio and as well as on my iron (even though I have an fusing sheet).  But for a quick assignment I'm glad I used it.

I really like this piece with the color palette (which is one of my favorites) and the play on value as well as rhythm.  I think I'm going to quilt it without batting (since its so stiff and flat already) and use it for a mock up for a future much larger piece.

See more great design walls on Design Wall Monday at Judy's Patchwork Times.

Catch the Beat - Rhythm - Off the Wall Friday

Rhythm created by Line and Shape  (this is Pittsburgh's Children's Museum)

Is anybody wondering where June went?  I lost most the month to being sick but it seems like finally I'm on the mend.  Elizabeth is helping me get back into the routine of things with giving us our new assignment of the month - Rhythm.  Now that's a topic close to my heart.

If there is anything I love as much as needle and thread, its music.  I never go anywhere without it and its essential in my studio.  Not to mention I've been known to play an instrument or two.  AND there is nothing I love more than a song with a thick, fat beat!

So that all said I did spend some time today researching rhythm.  One thing I noticed is that with my roots in quilting firmly on the traditional side, I already have been designing with rhythm for literally 20 years.  I mean I'm quite sure my full size quilt with over 4,200 of the same shape  over and over and well - over - would fall under "Rhythm".

But it rhythm is created through the use of repeating shape.  You can also use gradations of shapes (going bigger to smaller or visa versa) as well as using rhythm by radiation (shapes coming off of one central point).

It seems that  the rhythm of a design allows the viewers eye  to see a recognizable pattern which in turn leads to a better understanding of the over all piece.  Not to mention its a great way to give movement  and balance to a piece.
(Who knew?  grin)

Now with the basics down, I can start creating a  sketches and get my homework in!  

So what have you been up to creatively?

The Curves - Design Wall Monday

Well, a week - 6 bobbins - and a LOT of scraps later - I'm home from Quilt Surface and Design Symposium in Columbus, Ohio.  Sue Benner's Masterclass was as great as I expected.  As you remember, last Monday I went in with no idea for the class.  My one goal was to go from inspiration to a top.  And I achieved that.  Almost.

My complete design wall

At least I would have if I hadn't decided to go so dang big with this piece.  I mean - what was I thinking??  It must be the excited and adrenaline you feel when you first walk into class with 7 full days ahead of you just waiting to be filled with creativity, fabric, and thread.  I mean bigger is better right??  Besides with the design I created  - it will make much more of an impact in a bigger scale.

Still doing improvisational piecing is a bit daunting on a piece this size.  One thing, I learned over the week is that I had to come up with a better system of doing it.  Cutting the pieces, sewing the seam, ironing and repeating over and over again would take forever.  You probably didn't realize this, but in my former life I have an industrial engineering degree.  With that came lessons in the economy of movement.  The concept is easy enough - each movement we make should be as  efficient as possible.   Efficient movements should achieve the most efficient outcome.

So with that thought, I made a paper pattern of the large area I needed to piece.  Cut a bunch of mid-size scraps of the colors I wanted to use.  Sewed them together in pairs or tri's.  Ironed and trimmed them all.  Recut and sewed them together again.  Then laid them on the pattern, arranging to make sure it fit the best.  And sew them all together from there.  The left overs I just set aside for the next time I needed to do that color.

On the smaller strips, I used an improve paper piecing method just because it was faster that way.  I took all my little scraps and sewed them onto the tracing paper which stabilized them nicely.  I promise  - I'll do a tutorial on improve piecing in the near future.

Did you know that there is a big movement among quilters who aren't piecing at all?  In my whole class of 18 all except one other person (who was traditionally piecing) was fusing either in a collage method or applique.  I got comments from people that couldn't believe I actually pieced a quilt this size.  It is a lot of work, but the seams add a lot more texture to the piece rather than fusing.  Not to mention with a collage piece usually that means it needs a ton of quilting in it which flattens the piece even more.  With my work I like a little bit more of the puffs of fabric to show between the quilting.

Anyways - this is as far as I got before I had to pack it all up and head home.  I'm so involved in this piece that I'm going to continue in my studio.   I still might redo a few pieces because I'm thinking of gradated the values in a couple of the lighter teal lines.  Plus I need to develop an efficient method of stabilizing all those crazy pieces before I rough edge applique them down.

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Finding Inspiration for QSDS - Design Wall Monday

One of the many, many possibilities

For me, going to quilt conference takes nearly a year of planning.  I first have to decide what class I want to take.  Then the logistics of the week - saving the money, getting the time off, making sure home life is covered.  I look over the supply list and make sure that's filled.

With all that, usually what I don't have to worry about is what I'm going to do during the week.  I mean that's why I pay the teacher right?



Well, not this year.  Apparently, when you graduate to a master's class you are suppose to know what you want to work on that week.  Also apparently, I'm not a true master yet.  grin.

You see, the last six months, my friend and classmate has been asking me, "What ja gonna work on that week?"   My answer is. . . . hmmmm I don't know.. . . . I'll have to see where I am in my creative process by then.

Very mature,  artsy answer right? As much in the art world - all bull!  Here I sit in my modern Columbus Ohio college suite, looking over the lovely rainy cityscape and still am quite clueless on what I want to do in class.  Which of course is today.
 At 9 am.  In 2 hours.

I do know I want to do something abstract.  Elizabeth Barton has given me tons of ways to develop ideas over the years, so I guess I'll start there.  My pinterest board on Abstract Inspiration is a great help too.

So what's on my design board this morning??  Your guess is as good as mine!

See more great design boards at Judy's Patchworks!

Design Wall Monday - April's Assignment

With me feeling back to my normal self, I did manage to get some quilting in this weekend.  My April assignment  - which was a mystery tour - is almost complete.  Its funny how the assignment started out with a set of directions from our teacher which was suppose to end with a "Mystery" piece.  And guess what?  It was!  I had no idea that my simple geometric shapes would morph into a abstracted celestial scene.  How did that happen?  Well - you know what they say

The Art Wants What the Art Wants

The problem I'm having with quilting is that I was at the end of my basting spray and I apparently didn't use enough of it on the batting.  I'm getting puckering!!  Sighhhh - luckily - I think this was just a learning exercise and this piece won't go farther than my house but still - it reminds me not to skimp on the spray.  I was using June Tailor which I've never had a problem with before so it must be the amount I used.  Since Joann's have their notions on sale for 50% off - I did order more!

Kali even kept me company!

 

Anyways - gotta finish this up before May 1 and on to the next assignment!  

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Arches & Lines - Design Wall Monday

 

Finally, I had a good productive studio day.  Its amazing what a little sun will do!  I'm having fun with this lesson on line.  I've been meaning to do this design forever and to see it materialize on my wall is great. (See first post on this project here)

Now for you that didn't realize - for my Master Class with Elizabeth Barton - I have to come up with three designs for each month's lesson by the 10th of the month.  Then we have to block out our design in the next 10 days and finish the piece by the end.  Now that doesn't sound too bad if you're doing something  little - but doing a 50" by 50"   - it gets a bit hairy!

With no time for vacillating - I gotta figure out where I'm going from here.  I mean I could -

1. Make the bricks blue and green and the lines between dark brown
2. Make the bricks shades of brown  - the lines between dark brown
3. Make the bricks shades of brown, blue, green - the lines between dark brown
4. Make the bricks shades of brown  - the lines between dark blue and green

Really, don't they know I'm menopausal???  How's a girl suppose to make up her mind?!?

One thing I do know is that I do need more solid dark brown fabric  - its a huge waste to dye up dark brown like that when you can't tell the difference between a commercial solid (although my dyed fabric is a lot better quality!)

Anyways - I'll have to make the decision by Thursday which will be my next solid studio time.

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Adding Some Texture with Pinterest - Design Wall Monday

I have a confession.  I'm a bit of a Pinterest junkie.   Now, I'd love to tell you that I use Pinterest to help research projects and collect inspirational images - which I do - buttttttttt - its way more that.  I love Pinterest as a place to play with pretty pictures.    Yes, I was one of those little girls that liked to cut out pictures from magazines and then glue them all back together as "collages".  And now Pinterest
lets my adult myself do that - virtually.

Still that  said, I do use it for research and its proven quite handy.  This weekend, I finally started a  board where I can pin images for Elizabeth Barton's Master Class.  If this month is any indication, I'll going to have to do a lot of research for class and its time I get organized.  I started with pinning images of slab rocks. 

Slab rocks are so interesting  - the veins create so much texture  - just begging to be replicated onto fabric with thread.  So who am I to argue with a rock?  I all of Sunday quilting up my slab rocks for January's assignment.  At first I had no idea really what I was doing so that's where Pinterest came to the rescue.  Its amazing how quick and easily you can find just the right images you need to get yourself rolling. 

Anyways, the quilt is coming along nicely and hopefully - fingers crossed! - I'll finish by the 31st deadline.!  Thank God this isn't a month with only 30 days.  (Oh my, what am I going to do in Feburary?)

See other great design boards at Judy's Patchwork Times.

Sunday in the Studio - Design Wall Monday

 

Crosses II

37" by 24"

hand dyed cotton by the artist

machine pieced, machine quilted

So I managed to keep the promise I made to myself to be  more productive on Sunday.  Not only did I manage to get  4 - count them - 4 loads of laundry done (which means clean underwear for tomorrow - yay!) but I also spent hours and hours in the studio painting and quilting.

Yep - you read that right - painting!  If you've been paying attention you know that I'm not this big lover of the surface design end of art quilting.  I mean - yeah - I resent  understand  that I need to dye my own fabric and occasionally add some kind of design on it for my work - but I'm not this big fan.  It all seems a bit messy - a bit expensive and well - okay - a bit scary (even after a 5 day class with Jane Dunnewold!) So I don't often get out my paints.  That said, this week I got my order from C&T's publishing's warehouse sale.  Included was Mikey Lawler's  SkyQuilts book.  She makes it look so easy and reminded me that - Paint is my friend.

So after reading her book - twice - I pulled out the supplies - searched out some nice Kona Cotton pieces and mixed up some sunset colors.  Why sunsets?  Well, all summer, I've been meaning to play with the some small quilt ideas centered around the Lake Erie  and its gorgeous beaches.  Now here was my chance!

Really, it wasn't too hard either.  Basically, you just wet down the fabric (just damp  - not to wet where it puddles your hands when you pat it), use a natural bristle brush and do horizontal movements of the different colors.  I chose to mix up red, red orange, orange and purple using Setacolor transparent paints.  They worked fabulously well and were super easy.  I mixed half paint - half water testing out the colors to make sure they were the shades I wanted.  Then just painted them on  - Easy- Peasy!!

 

Then while they were drying, I spent the afternoon free motion quilting the second in my Cross series.  I finished the quilt top last summer but never got around to quilting it.  I swear - I think my hatred of basting a quilt made me put off the actual finishing of it!  Now with spray basting, I can get it done in a long afternoon.

So I can face this one as well as Fall for our Open Studio next month!  Gosh if I keep up this kind of work - I might just start getting things done around here!

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& the Quilting Goes On - Design Wall Monday

 

Hours later, I'm almost done with quilting up the Fall quilt.  Its been fun since the the quilt lines went in so easily.  Actually its been really fun - so fun that I think I'll pop right into the next one in the series.  You see  - way back when - I originally thought that I wanted to design two wallhangings to flank the back door of my familyroom.  I thought it would be nice to make them sister quilts relating to each other but not exactly the same.  So I came up with  4 sets of 2 and just picked a set to start. 

Well - now looking at the original designs, I'm thinking that maybe sister quilts wasn't too hot an idea.  I think I'd much prefer kissin' cousins quilts.  So I picked one of the more complex quilts to do up next.  I love the idea that the original elements of the design is there but that the composition is

getting more complex. 

Also one thing I noticed when I was quilting, was that originally when I started the quilt I had used a yo-yo technique to turn under the edges of the circles. You know - you use a freezer paper template for the circle - cut the fabric out a bit bigger than the circle - stitch a quick running stitch around the edge and just pull until the edges gather underneath the template. . . .well I do like that finish.  That way I didn't have to add any other stitching around the circles and they had a nice crisp edge.  Gotta remember to do that one the next one!

Ohhh and another thing I learned with this quilt.  Have you all ever heard of a thread sock??  Well I got a few with my spool stand but really never knew what it was for.  My new friend Valerie clued me into the fact that you use it to make sure your thread comes off nice and even.  But I never had trouble with my thread coming off evenly - well - until now!  A few years back, I bought these nice large spools of  Polyneon varigated thread.  Their are gorgeous - but I could never get the big spools to thread into my

machine nicely.  So there they sat - until I remembered what Valerie had told me - put the sockies on and Wow - what a difference.  Worked like a charm.  Who knew???  (Well Valerie obviously - grin)

I'm thinking the rest of the week will have me finishing this piece, starting the next and doing some more hand dyeing.  My order from Pro Chem came in and I want to try some of my new colors!

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Just JoAnne Fabrics - Design Wall Monday

Test Fabric 419M - Scoured Kona Cotton

One thing I've learned after 20 years of quilting, is that you never know what you're going to find at JoAnn's Fabrics.  Friday, I had an hour to kill so I started exploring their red tagged clearance rack.  With all the bolts at 50% off - I thought - What the Heck!  And gosh - I wasn't disappointed!  I found  a nice linen  cotton blend,a white cotton with a light texture to it,  a bolt of light yellow cotton, a cool textured rayon with a nice hand and this really great burnt knit.  Now I know what you're saying -
"Nina - what are you going to do with all of that?"  Well dye it of course!

With PFD (prepared for dyeing) getting more and more expensive (plus shipping since I can't get it locally), I thought I would scour these fabrics and see how well they take dye.  I ran them through two hot wash cycles of the wash using a non additive detergent and Soda Ash. Then I mixed up some pretty purplish magenta dye concentrate (Grape/with a bit of fushia) and dyed fat quarters in my red solo cups.  I also added a piece of Test Fabrics 419M (mercerized) fabric and scoured Kona cotton (also from Joann's) to see how they compared. 

Here are the results:

 

1. Test Fabric 419M
2. Kona Cotton Scoured by Me
3. Rayon
4. Linen/ cotton 
5. Cotton 
6. Yellow Cotton ($2/yd!)

So as you can see - there wasn't a difference between the Kona and the Test Fabrics - the Rayon dyed up wonderfully.  Just a shade lighter were the linens and cottons.  With that yellow cotton being only $2  - I'm going back for the rest of the bolt.  For an overdyed it came out really nice!  I mean unless you need really saturated blocks of color - it would work well for anything!

Also, I found this  wonderful grey burnt knit.  It has this wonderful textured and layers to it.  Isn't this full of possibilities??

So you're never quite sure what you're going to find at Joann's.  They also had a 15% off your entire order - so I did get a real bargain on all the fabrics.  

And yes - while I was doing all this fun experimenting I did manage to start quilting my fall piece.  I first started doing it with my regular presser foot but soon changed to free motion.  This is the first time I've used Metro's poly thread which worked well as long as I lowered the speed of the needle just a bit.  I used a top stitch needle with sewer's aid.  The spray basting is holding well!

I hope you all are having a wonderful Labor Day - here its raining (big surprise!)

See more great design boards at Judy's Patchwork Times!

Back in the Studio Design Wall Monday

Well, I'm sure glad unpacking is a lot easier than packing!  My studio once again looks like itself again with everything in its rightful place.  Boy, is my design board full!!  Not only do I have the in progress fall piece, but joining it from Arrowmont is my latest Abstract just waiting to be sewn down.  I guess there's no rest for the quilter! 

My new friend Cathy

Did I tell you my latest discovery??  Spray Starch.  Now I hear you all out there saying to me - OMG Nina - didn't you know about spray starch?  Well no not really.  You see, my discovery came from an early morning chat over breakfast.  I was having a lot of trouble with my abstract pieces stretching all out since they are crazy piece.  They wouldn't hold their form so I could get them pinned up properly.  My new friend Linda, looked at me like I was crazy and said. "Give them a good press".  So since she's a very smart lady, I did just that.  And since my other new smart friend Cathy had left her spray starch on the ironing board, I tried some of that.  Gosh - what a difference that made!!  Wow!  perfect - the piece now had more body and would stay all in place.  Who knew??  probably everybody except me!!!

I still have a bit of editing on this abstract piece and then it will can be sewn down and quilted.  My circles piece I spray basted with June Taylor spray basting from Joann's and it worked great.  (yeah I was surprised too - I really didn't think it would would) .  So I'm anxious to give it a try on a larger piece.  Its sure would be nice not having to deal with all those pins!

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Improvisational Curve Piecing Tutorial

 

Settling back into my fall piece (which I started in October, 2011) has been fun and relaxing.  Its a quiet, easy piece to play with on my design board.  And ya wanna know why???  'Cause - I'm the Queen of my Studio.  Its fun being queen!  You get to make all the decisions and there isn't anybody to over rule you.  You can do whatever you want without any rules to follow.

With that in mind, the next block was a circle which included some improvisational curve piecing.  Now, once again, I can hear you all      -"OMG, I totally don't get how to curve piece!!"  So I thought I would show you how easy it is (since 16 yrs ago, my friend Sandy showed me!)

Improvisational Curve Piecing Tutorial

• Cut two pieces of fabric  - one for the background - one for the curve - bigger than what you want the finish piece to be.  Place them on top of each other  - right sides facing up.
• Using a rotary cutter - cut a gentle curve - nothing curving too high or two low (you might want to just start off with a really simple curve - rather than a "S" curve to start)

• Take the upper half of the curve fabric  - flip it down over the lower half of the background fabric with right sides face to face now.  Put aside the other halves of each fabric for later use.  The resulting piece should look where the hills and the valleys are not matching each other - so it will look wrong - but its really right!
• Match up the ends of the curve pieces of fabric and slowly sew the sides together using a 1/4" seam - just keep matching the edges as you go - no need to pin.  Your feed dogs will move the fabric - your fingers should guide the edges together.  You won't end with the end points matching - that's okay!

• Press carefully with a lot - and than more steam.  You might get bulges and buckles depending on how curvey your curve is.  Just press and press some more till it lays flat (or nearly flat - LOL)

• Now you have a curve seam - and you can stop there cutting the block into proper size but if you feel adventurous - you can can keep going like I did
• Take the upper half of the original background fabric (which had been set aside) - place it on your curve pieced block - right sides facing up.
• Following the original curve outline on the background fabric, rotary cut the curved block. Pick a width that you want the curve fabric to be - thin or thick or whatever
• Now repeat Steps 3-6.

• Ta-Da!!  Don't you feel smart?!  Its good to be Queen!!

As you can see I went on to repeat the whole process again - using another diagonal  curve in the other direction.   Then I cut out the circle from the block using an embroidery hoop as a template (handy suckers they are!)  I had to steam the heck out of this  one - don't know if its 'cause I cut an "S" curve or its the batik fabrics I used but boy they didn't have a lot of give to them.  I wouldn't doubt that the curves will stretch easier if you cut the initial fabric pieces on the bias (that means cut the blocks on a diagonal across the fabric rather than straight up and down) - but since these were Hoffman fat quarters I won at a give-away (nice huh?!) I didn't have that option .

Email me with any questions - hope you have as much fun with curve piecing as I do!

See more great design boards at Judy's Patchworks Times!!