No. 19

No. 19

27" x 33"

It is easy to get caught up in the small details, but it is increasingly vital to look at the whole field. A somewhat vague statement, but applicable to a number of scenarios. It surprises me how much the national political situation infiltrates my work subconsciously.

Design Process and 'Issues':

This one started as a sketch: (Note the orientation is different from the photo above. This one started with a vertical set of blocks).

I wanted to create depth by using different sized HSTs. Then I thought it might be interesting if they were separated by solid colors, one side darker than the other to imply shadows. And then I would quilt in the lines of perspective. 

1. I was unsure of what color values to use. So, I opted to try 4 different blocks in 4 different sets of values to see which combinations looked the best. This one was the winner! The darkest center seemed to create the most depth.

2. After finishing the quilting, the design looked very flat. The quilting lines for perspective did not show up enough. They needed to be bigger, bolder, and wider. So, I got out my handy Pfaff, and started satin stitching. It used up so much thread that I was scared I would run out before I finished. Luckily, I had enough! Yeasss!!

After finishing the black lines, it looked like this. I loved the depth that I could now see.

The individual blocks look great, but combined with each other, it created an unexpected secondary design, and a problem (for me).

 

3. Unfortunately, now I could only see the concentric diamonds in the center. They jumped out so voraciously, it was ALL that I could see. Like big EYES!!

Sorry, that is probably all you can see now too. I decided that it was a worthy experiment. It failed because of my lack of imagination and foresight. And it was okay that it failed miserably. It was worth the journey. It is how you learn, by trying something new, and then doing it, and learning along the way. And then my son walked by the studio and suggested rotating the quilt.

So, I did...

I could see the depth now in a horizontal orientation, and the 2 concentric diamonds that were now stacked vertically....well, they no longer looked like eyeballs staring back at me. 

It is still not my favorite quilt. It does not bother me that it is not my favorite quilt. I have had a number of comments on my FB post that suggest I would like it better if I turned the quilt horizontally...um, I have actually already tried that. Ha ha! And, I have already stitched the hanging tube on the back in this orientation. 

 

I guess if someone wants to purchase it, and turn it back to it's original orientation, I would be happy to change the hanging tube for them. I hope the big eyeballs won't bother them too much! Ha ha!

Here's a few closeups for you.

and another one...

No. 18

No. 18

53" x 40"

I love this one so much! The saturation of color, the shapes, the theme. It all rocks!

Making it, I encountered a lot of delays. 

1. The color palette drove me crazy. The first thought was to make the background out of the orange and pink on the left, but I didn't have enough fabric. Wanting to get started as soon as possible, I drove to a local quilt shop to search for something else I could use, or possibly they might have more of what I already had? They did not. I opted to make the background out of the 'so pink it's almost red' and another saturated but lighter pink--the two colors on the right side. However when I got home, I didn't like them as much as I thought I would. 

Then I realized it might be really good with both color sets! Yeah, let's do that!!

Then I ran out of the orange and pink on the left, got out my color swatches, and ordered some more of the same fabric. Then I had to wait for it to be shipped. Agonizing wait!! 

So, I started making the blocks, and ........eventually the new fabric arrived! And, the colors were different! Nuts!! 

Ultimately, I realized that the new colors were lighter, just barely, and would be PERFECT as the background under the light rays, right in the middle. Standing back, and looking at the journey of sourcing fabrics I wanted, the universe had other plans, and this assemblage landed in my lap. And, I believe it is so much better than what I thought I wanted.  

And, this theme played out 2 more times before I finished.

2. I thought the light rays had to be white. White in that spot looked so bad and I couldn't resolve what my head thought and what my eyes saw. My next thought was yellow. Wrong again. Then I tried something less conventional than what my brain wanted, and the light aqua blue looked amazing!!

The last one...

3. I wanted a specific shade of red for the binding. I only had a small scrap of it. The only other red I had enough of was the wrong color--too orangey. So I dug out my samples again, and ordered the red. And, I did not get the memo.  That Missouri Star sends crap damaged fabric. Which after significant effort I managed to get a refund for the fabric, but not for the shipping. I emailed 2 times, no response to either email. Then I gave them a bad review. After a week they reached out, and told me to email them for help. Um...nope, not falling for that again. I guess they wanted me to believe that if they were going to ignore me for the first 2 emails, I should trust them to do what is right for the 3rd email? Suffice to say, I will not be doing business with them again. 

The fabric they sent was faded in a grid pattern, so by definition, not a SOLID color. Very irritating.

I was so frustrated, I decided to just use the red I had, the one that was too orangey, and you guessed it, it was PERFECT. 

Lessons learned: Stop making drama for myself. Expect the unexpected. And, sometimes the wrong color is the right one!

Stitching the HST blocks.

Trimming them to size.

Repeat many many times, and stitch the blocks together. 

Then play with them before committing...because why not? oooh, fun!!

Then quilt the whole quilt. (You can see the minimal stitching below)

Then it is ready for applique!! Yeass!

I typically cut freezer paper in the shape of the finished piece to iron to the back side. With scissors, I cut out the fabric 1/4 " larger for the turned under seam. Next, fold the the seams under, using the paper as a guide, and press in place. Pull off the paper and hand baste the turned under edges. Pin to the quilt, and hand applique. 

This piece uses the last 2 humps cut out from No. 9. They were re-sized and re-shaped for this quilt. 

Next up, quilting the appliqued pieces, and marking the quilting lines. The big lamp humps were marked with 1/4" masking tape. The marking for the necks of the lamps was different. It probably would have been easier to just use a marking pencil, but I have had experiences that were difficult to get the marking pencil out...so.

I pressed freezer paper on top of the neck. And, then traced the shape with a blue pencil. Next was to draw the lines I wanted to stitch. 

I pulled the freezer paper off, and cut it to shape, and then pressed it back on. 

Then I added the 1/4" masking tape to the edges and marked the points to where the stitching would come. 

Then I removed the freezer paper again, left the masking tape in place, and started stitching straight lines to each point. Again, overly complicated...

Finishing up with the orange thread directly on the neck.  You can also see the quilting lines on the lamp shape in this photo! It looks so good!! I am happy!

The last part to show you is the overly complicated hanging sleeve. I don't know why. I cut out a bunch of different pinks and stitched them together. 

I think maybe I wasn't ready to be finished with this one yet? And now that it is finished, I am happy to have it hanging on a wall, and enjoying looking at it every day!