The Quilting Line on Off the Wall Friday

I am traveling this week so it gives me a good chance to procrastinate on finishing Tessa's face.  I'm so close to getting that piece done that it has me thinking about the quilting.  I tend to do three kinds of quilting on an art piece...lines that are essential for the composition....lines that are essential for the texture...lines that hold together the three layers.  

Lines that are Essential for the Composition

After much trial and error, I usually will add these lines with just the top and batting layered (no backing).  This way I can really do as much stitching as I want and not have to worry about the nosey people who look at the back of my quilts.  (Okay, I 'fess up.  I'm a nosey netty who does that to pretty much every quilt that I can get my hands on!)  I create the lines through free-motion stitches usually with a small back and forth motion of my hands.  Not too much forward ... not too much back but moving progressively forward.  Don't even ask me how I started doing this.  It just gave me the little bit of texture and line I wanted on the quilt without too much uniformity.  Lots of times I'll use it to give a somewhat finished edge to rough edge applique.  I never use a statin stitch ... hmmmm I'm not even sure how my machine creates a statin stitch.

You can see it here ...all the elements are stitched on the outside with a scribble kind of effect

Lines that create Texture and Definition

For my work, these are the most common.  I'll look at a piece and think about what lines are needed to support the shape.  Normally, I do this with free-motion stitching but once in a while, I'll do it with a regular foot if the lines are gentle enough.  Also, I have to be careful with these types of lines.  Too many and the piece starts looking scribbled on and too flat.  Too few and the piece looks like a coloring book rendering.  Plus I need to leave off lines so I can add them in on the quilting stage.  Like I said ... tricky!!  Honestly, out of all the steps in an art quilt, I feel like this is the most important.  Let's face it!  The reason we use fabric, thread, and batting is the allure of texture.  If not we would all be painting..and ya'll know how I feel about painting.  

Here the lines transform the organic shapes into a lily and leaves

You can also catch a bit of that scribbling around the lily which I wanted to stand out more than the leaves.  Also, see how I don't stitch in the grey background of the wall.  I want that to recede.

Lines that Hold it Together

Finally, it's time to add the backing.  Most of the time, I'll layer it with safety pins.  For smaller pieces, I've used a light layer of adhesive spray (which surprisingly works better than I would have thought!).  I know that lots of quilters plan out their quilt lines.  I might do a loose line drawing but normally I follow the lines of the elements of the quilt.  This step  I pretty much always do with a regular foot on.  I do have a walking foot that "flips" into place easily on my Janome Horizon, but I never seem to need it.  One thing I never - ever - do is introduce a new element into a piece through the quilting.  So if the quilt is all curves, the quilting will reflect curves.  If the quilt is all angles and lines, the quilting will reflect that.  Now don't get me wrong, I've seen great curvey quilting done over a straight quilt top.  I just can't get myself to do it.  Not to mention, I'm not one for cutesy motifs in my quilting either.  (I don't think I've drawn a quilt line in my life!) For me, it's all about the composition which dictates the line. For once, I mostly quilt innately. 

 My favorite is the echo line which creates movement  and texture

There are simple lines that hold it together and give a nod to the composition.  It's a "less is more" approach.  

Ironically, by the time I get to this stage of a quilt, I feel like I know the piece so intimately that the quilt line comes naturally.  I seem to sweat blood and tears over the other stages of creation, but the quilting comes much easier.  I'm already itching to stitching Tessa's Mosiac ... if I could only finish her face!

So What Have You've Been Up to Creatively?

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Embellishing @ John C. Campbell on Off the Wall Friday

 

Jennifer Reis stitching her latest piece

First of all, I want to apologize for taking a break from blogging.  I've have been having some health issues this summer which I think are finally behind me!  Still they didn't stop me from making the 11 hour trip to John C. Campbell Folk School.  After getting cancelled out of two - YES TWO! - classes in 2020, I wasn't going to miss this year.

This time, I was lucky enough to snag a spot in Jennifer Reis' Embellishment class.  We spent the week first learning (or refreshing) all sorts of hand stitched embroidery skills and embellishments.  In fact, we learned so much that first day, my head was spinning!  After that we could work on our piece.  Luckily I had brought a piece I had made in Emily Richardson's class in 2019 which was perfect to embellish and stitch down.  Little did I know that I would only get about 20% of it done in 3 days!  Handwork is inherently slow, but me feeling not my best made it even slower.

Not to mention, I spent the week whiny, which is NOT my norm.  Normally, John C. Campbell is my happy spot.  This year...not so much.  Due to on-going blight on our life, we had to wear masks in all buildings including class.  Our class was limited to 7 people, all of which  had to social distance at least 6-10 ft apart behind ... plexiglass!  So here we are hand stitching all week in this big beautiful studio masked up, behind plexiglass and too far to talk comfortably.  It led to a week of silence.

 

 

You thought I was exaggerating right?!?

Meal times which normally are a time to socialize and get to know your fellow artisans were also socially distanced behind plexi glass.   People were scattered across campus to eat.  The food was great
though but it wasn't nearly as good as it would be  with some good company.  

See I'm whining again just thinking of it.  Jennifer's class was great and I would highly recommend it if you would like to learn a new twist on hand work.  She's a great teacher but really one of the few highlights of the week  is that she's a great lady.  She always brightened my day.  

 

Also the campus was as beautiful as ever.  In August, it wasn't unbearably hot with plenty of seats in the shade.  We stayed at the Rock House which was treat!  Our room was spacious and really, really comfy.  

Detail of Jennifer Reis work in progress

Maybe it's because I work from home but I wasn't used to wearing my mask for such long periods of time.  Nor was I ready for Covid to dominate so many conversations.  As we left for the week, you could see how hard North Carolina had been hit with restaurants closed for Covid cleanings.  Sad.

Anyways, I am feeling better everyday and ready to get back after my piece.  Jenn managed to spark my love of handwork.  But the biggest thing I learned from the experience is that although I go to John C. Campbell's to learn, the real draw for me is the socialization.  I mean I can work in silence at home as well as eat dinner every night with my husband.  I go there to be with people who understand what I do and why I do it.  That was really what I was missing this trip.  Hopefully next time we'll be back to normal!

So What Have You've Been Up to Creatively?

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Let's Talk Texture - Off the Wall Friday

Texture is defined as the tactile quality of a surface.   Most of us being fiber artists and quilters are tactile people.  We love to touch.  I mean really, have you ever walked into a fabric shop and not spent the whole time touching?  But in relation to our art, it's so much more than how things feel.

So let's break it down.

REAL TEXTURE

Real texture is how the piece actually feels.  Working with fiber and quilting you can easily achieve by 

Stitching, Thread painting, Quilting

Seam placement

Applique/Reverse Applique

Different Types of Fabric

Fabric Folding, Layering

Painting /Surface Design

IMPLIED TEXTURE 

Implied Texture is a bit more tricky.  This is the type of texture that the viewer sees with their eyes rather than feels with their hands.  Some different ways the artist can achieve this is 

Use of line, marks

Clever use of value

Repetition of shape
Patterns

Okay, so I know you're saying to me "Nina with everything else I have going with making my own art you want me to worry about texture too?"  And the answer is YES!!  It's so important!!

USE TEXTURE TO

Create visual interest or focal points

Create contrast within your composition

Help maintain balance in your piece

Convey Emotion and Set Moods

So next time sit down to your own original work, take some extra time for texture.  You'll be glad you did.

So What Have Been Up to Creatively?

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.