In the Garden

Yesterday was the reveal day for our latest challenge, the theme was 'In the Garden'

When I placed my folded flowers onto the background it brought to mind my grandfather's garden, it always contained rows of colourful flowers around the fence line - roses, sun flowers, tiger lillies, anything tall and colourful with rows of pansies, petunias, snap dragons etc in front. He loved colour!

 The fabric for the flowers is glued together using vliesofix, cut into circles and then stitched and folded to make each petal. I used my trusty glue gun to fix the petals to the background.

Long/Short, Fat/Thin - Latest Challenge Quilt

Today was reveal day for our art quilt challenge group Art Quilts Around the World. The theme for this challenge was Opposites Attract.

After a couple of flase starts I decided to use complimentary colours, opposites on the colour wheel. I have been in an orange mood lately so the first colour I selected was orange and I found a lovely bright blue to use.

I used raw edge applique and batik fabric for this quilt.

Carnival - A challenge

Recently our group  Art Quilts Around the World published our latest challenge. The theme this time was Carnival.

Lots of bling and bright colours in all the pieces and so many different interpretations.

Our next challenge is OUT OF ASIA.

Dreaming In Colour - A Self Portrait

Our latest challenge 'A Self Portrait'  with Art Quilts Around the World was revealed on January 31st.

 I knew nearly straight away what I wanted to do, unfortunately after selecting,cutting up and sticking down what seemed like hundreds of different coloured 3/4 inch squares I didn't like the result.

The background of this picture is my design layout, I have a habit of drawing all my ideas over the previous ones, can be rather messy at times.

So with a slight design alteration here I am:

I had a brainwave (pardon the pun) and cut new 1/4 inch squares, all different fabrics (106 of them) and vliesofixed them to the silhouette.

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Methods used:

Free motion stitching, raw edge applique and a little gold paint for the stars.

 

Our next challenge is titled CARNIVAL and I've already started collecting bits and pieces of bling to use.

Time Flies

I have been keeping myself busy and doing lots of quilt top making. I now have lots of tops to be quilted. Here are some pictures of what I've been up to.

Art Quils Around the World and Challenging Ourselves challenge quilts:

Two colour challenge -

 

Doorways -

Self Portrait - I think I overdid the the lips

This was a tricky one, we had to name a colour we seldom use and then make a quilt using that colour -

 

Christmas Gifts - Emma's Trees. Made in memory of a friend's daughter who sadly passed away leaving a very young family.

Baby Quilts made as gifts, Peter Rabbit was a panel that I free motion quilted.

A Pooh Bear Quilt made for a very recent arrival.

I know that I have other completed tops but I've looked through all my photos and it looks like I will have to get busy with the camera.

Stone Soup Completed

My Stone Soup quilt is finally completed, thanks to Kathryn for thinking of the challenge and for being brave enough to cut up everyone's quilts.

The completed quilts that I've seen so far are fabulous, click  Art Quilts Around the World to see them.

Those who participated:

Return of Stone Soup

Stone Soup has returned home, all 15 pieces of it. I couldn't resist taking a photo, don't mind the white name tag/placement pieces. I will remove them before assembling the quilt.

Thanks to Kathryn for the challenge and for being brave enough to cut up all the quilts.

A Work in Progress - Bargello

Ever since I began quilting I've been fascinated by Bargello Quilts. I love the colour and the movement.

There is now enough of  my current project to show what I have been working on.

This is the first half of the quilt top, the second part will be brighter, more of the orange and yellow.

It is coming along slowly,. I'm also working on other projects at the same time of course. Two challenges, 'Doors or Doorways' for the AW20Q and the 'Four Elements' with the Challenging Ourselves.

The Elements project is nearly completed but I've drawn a blank about the Doors. I don't think that I have ever looked at so many doors, gates, entrances and exits in all my life. I'm sure something will surface eventually.

Yesterday a friend and I went on a shopping expedition. Had a lovely day out and visited six different quilt shops. Not a lot of purchases but a great day out. I bought a few black and white fat quarters, some thread and some  fabric to use as backing on one of my quilts.

Cold winter day today, I have soup on the stove and the fire going in the family room. Time to uncover my sewing machine and finish off some postcards and work on my 'Elements' quiltlets.

Stone Soup Challenge Revealed

Today is the reveal for the latest challenge from the AW20Q group. This is a 2 part challenge, firstly we were sent a still life photo to interpret into a 20 x 15" quilt.  The completed tops were to be sent to Kathryn and she will cut them into 15 pieces and then return a selection of pieces to each participant. The second part of the challenge to be completed by the end of October (I think) is to re-constitute the pieces of the different quilts. 

We will then each have a very original artwork, similar but not the same as anyone else.

This challenge wasn't as easy as it sounds and I had a lot of trouble initially. I was very pleased to get the top finished and in the mail.

March Challenge - Flora

Today was the unveiling of our first  AQAW  challenge for this year, the subject was 'Flora.'

I decided to use the 'discharge dying' method for this challenge.  A single piece of black home spun was cut, dyed, stamped and used for the front of the quilt and the binding.

I picked some different sized leaves from the ficifolia  tree (flowering gum)  in our garden and made stencils from freezer paper.

Using a spray bottle and bleach solution I discharge dyed  around the leaf templates. The pieces on the bottom left and right hand side were pleated, tied with string and then dropped into the left over bleach solution. 

The leaves have been outlined in gold thread.

The circle shapes are stamped in gold fabric paint using a gum nut as a stamp.

Latest Challenge - Mandala

Our latest challenge from Art Quilts Around theWorld was to make a Mandala. Still being in my black and white mood and because all my B&W fabrics were easily accessible I decided to use them again. I did start another mandala but wasn't happy with the design or colour.


This is my completed design, very simple but I am pleased with it.

Where the Earth Meets the Sea

The past couple of months have been a little hectic for me. My father passed away, my husband has been unwell and has had a trip to the hospital. Daughter 1 has recently moved house and is now in the Northern Territory for 5 weeks holiday, our youngest daughter has moved all her things home (including the cat) and has now gone overseas for 3 months. Middle daughter is planning on moving house at the end of this month. We already have her cat, I'm just hoping that no more furniture comes home or our house might just burst at the seams.

"Where the Earth Meets the Sea" was the title of our recently finished challenge with Art Quilts Around the World .

I'm having trouble uploading the pictures, will try again later or you can see them and the other quilts on the above link.I've managed to upload these 2 photos, I've given up counting how many time I've attempted to do this.


I've called my quilt Earth/Sea, blues for the ocean, then cream/tan for the sand and finally the browns and greens represent the earth. The glass beads are different shapes and sizes and follow the colours of the fabrics.

Connections Challenge is Finished

Words are one way we communicate and connect with each other.



I struggled with this challenge and after 5 or so false starts and thinking about the meaning of the word I decided to make a crossword puzzle.

I looked up 'Connections' in the dictionary and found many definitions and synonyms.

I printed the crossword & grid onto white fabric then attached it to the black background. The other words were printed directly onto vliesofix and then ironed onto the background fabric. I tried various bits and pieces from the hardware store but didn't find anything that I thought enhanced the quilt.

This quilt measures 20 x 15 inches (51 x 38 cm)

Brave New World

When I first read the challenge was titled Brave New World I had no idea what I wanted to do. After mulling over the theme for a few days I started thinking of depression and how it affects us and those around us. My quilt was going to be based on the blackness of depression and the gradual lightening of spirit when one gets help to overcome the struggle and face a 'bright new world.'

All those ideas went out the window when the bush fires hit our area on February 7th and we had 5 weeks of constant alerts to the fire threat.

Driving around the area after the fires it was amazing to see how quickly some of the plants and tree ferns had started to shoot. After all the destruction these little plants were forcing their way through the ash etc to face a 'brave new world.'

I based my quilt on a photo I took at Drouin West. Most of the quilt was made with scraps left from previous projects.

The construction of the quilt:

Sketch of the photo

Transferring the background design onto freezer paper.

Quilted back ground before adding the insert of the enlarged new growth. The greenery in the small rectangle was free motion machine stitched.

The insert, is double the size of the original and the greenery is made from hand dyed scraps and vliesofixed onto the quilt then stitched, again using free motion.

The final product.

On a lighter note......

Postcard received from Simone ATWI20Q End of Year Swap

Seasons Postcard made by me in the ATWI20Q 'Seasons' Swap
Thanks Lynn for the picture.

ATWI20Q 'Seasons' Swap 'Bushfire Season' made by me.

ATC's received from Chole & Fionie ATWI20Q end of year Swap

ATWI20Q End of Year Swap postcard from Marloes

ATWI20Q End of Year Swap postcard from Linda

ATWI20Q End of Year Swap postcard fromJoy

ATWI20Q Seasons Swap postcard from Marian

New Challenge

Now that the Tree challenge has finished on AW20Q
we have been given the theme for the second challenge - Stellar - lots of ideas are whirling around in my head. Tie dyeing, wool felting, beading, embroidery??? And there is more than meaning of stellar. Thinking busily here.

Trees

My tree challenge quilt is finally finished and before the deadline too!!

The fabrics are all hand dyed, the trees are decorated with sequins, beads, angelina fibres and buttons.

I wanted to make something bright and cheerful and I think this works.



Close-ups of the trees.

Tree Challenge cont'd....

My trees are slowly growing. There have been comments from a certain member of the household.....he thinks they look like balloons, lol.
Some people have no sense of imagination!

Hopefully tomorrow I will get time to finish off the last little tree and I can post a picture of them all 'dressed up'

Trees

I started my tree quilt yesterday. As usual the hardest part was finally deciding what to do.

It's a pretty rough sketch but gives me something to work from.

I want this to be a bright, nonsensical little quilt so have picked some of my hand dyed fabrics for this project.

The trees have been cut out and fixed to the background. Today when I finish being a builders assistant I will start the background quilting and with luck be ready start stitching the embellishments on tonight.

Where do the hours go??

I have been busily working on my Four Seasons summer quilt, it hard to tell from the picture but the background is a very pale green. I'm thinking lovely cool refreshing colours to take the sting out of a hot day. This is the centre block, I've since put it on point and added the borders.

Also making ATCs to swap and quilting a quilt for a friend. It is to be a 25th wedding anniversary gift for her sister & brother-in-law.


I have been trying to get up to date with all my commitments so I can think about the challenge with the online group Around the World in 20 Quilts . The first challenge is 'Trees' I have some ideas about what I'd like to do and will try to get started next week. The fabrics have all been selected and they are crying out to be used.