Floral Challenge

Floral Art Sketch

The Project Quilting Quarantine Challenge this week is Floral.

I've been meaning to try this technique for awhile so this was a great week to try it. I used A light colored Cherrywood fat quarter as my top fabric. It's a fabulous fabric to sew with and to paint on. I looked at several photos I took of a messy garden and sketched several elements from those photos into a composition. I used a frixion pen on the fabric. I sandwiched it with some black batting pieces I had and black backing fabric. I used black thread and free motion quilted the sketch onto the fabric. I ended up with this.

I used fabric medium and watercolor paint to color the piece. It got very intense and bled quite a bit. I liked the effect but I wasn't sure how to control the edges. I sprayed some water to encourage the spread. Then I added salt to the whole piece and let it dry. I used pink Himalayan Salt, cause I had a bag of it handy, but you can use any salt. It pulls the water towards it and thus, the paint, so the end result is a mottled look I really like. 

 After it dried and I brushed all the salt off,(Outside and with a good brush) I realized I wanted a few more flowers but lighter, so I used a lighter thread, instead of black, to sketch in a few more. I used Inktense pencils with fabric medium to bring out some more spots of color that I lost from bleeding before. I've never actually made a quilt with a rounded top , but always wanted to try it. It's roughly 13 x 20.  

Overall, I liked this project. I got to do some techniques I had wanted to try and I like the overall feel of the piece, like it's a watercolor sketch. I'd forgotten just how much I like the effects of salt. I really liked the whole piece as a great little project. 

Small escapes during Coronavirus-19

Social Distancing

It's been a bit more than 3 weeks of social distancing for me. At first, the days were moving so slowly and I kept thinking I needed to be highly productive every day. Now, I'm settling into a pattern of life and I'm not quite as driven. I can spend a week at a time indoors but then I need to step out a bit. I am sheltering in a rural area and can easily spend some outdoor time without encountering anyone. I celebrated the super moon by spending quite a bit of time at the lake. 

 I've been waking up very early  and taking pictures of the dawn. I don't know why I am waking up so early every day. 

 I enjoy watching dawn every day. 

 Just for variety, I went to the lake for sunset. The sky was mostly cloudless, but also fewer contrails. It's Spring, which means lots of rain and the lake is flooded. I miss being able to walk along the shore. 

I've been enjoying the wild life out my window. Some are quicker than others. I've missed photos of the groundhog and fox, but this little guy is a frequent visitor.

 I am not sure how long we'll be social distancing and unable to go to work. It sounds bleak. I understand the social distancing means we don't overwhelm the hospitals, but at some point, are we supposed to get it? Are we just delaying the day? Can we really survive like this long enough to get a vaccine?That's over a year. If we do get it, and survive, are we immune? The jury is still out on that. Not sure if our government even knows or has some sort of overall plan. 

Life after Project Quilting- Think Big

Social Distancing

   I sit at home, day after day, listening to the news from New York which is so far away from my location. I hear it's bad there and here cases are slowly creeping up, one here and there in towns nearby and finally, one in our county. I'm trying to do my best by staying home and keeping away from anyone but my husband and son. 

  All three of us are out of work and have applied for unemployment. For many people who are trying to navigate unemployment for the first time, it's maddening. There is a disconnect between what the news is saying is coming and reality. No money is coming. We are all just waiting through the filing week, the waiting week, the week we should be getting money (but it could be 10 days?) and none of it shows the increased amount the congress spoke about. No big cash amount, no unemployment and no paychecks. None of it reflects the years of loyalty to a company and how often the job came first. It's been shockingly easy for employers to just drop you to save themselves. The lifeline for small businesses is just as chaotic and will be weeks before it all shakes out, if ever. The wheels are turning very slowly, folks. 

  Our state hasn't even declared a state-wide emergency, despite a marked increase in cases. While my family is  social distancing, we do have to shop occasionally and no one is distancing themselves there. I don't feel like enough people are taking it seriously and ever time we go out to shop, we are in danger. 

 

I have been trying to keep myself occupied with quilting. I have been making one small house block a day. My husband likens it to a prisoner making hash marks on the wall. He's not wrong. It's a diary entry of sorts. 

I've been finishing some ongoing quilts and quilt tops. Finished the Cherrywood Challenge, finished a quilt about bees. I made this one for the challenge, "Big". I do not have any batting or backing fabrics, nor do I have a longarm, so I'm not in a position to finish this one.  Even though the "rules" are to finish it, that's my concession to the Social distancing of the moment. This was a layer cake I won last year from PQ. I added a lot of white (and a few darker pieces) to make it more modern, which is not the sort of quilting I normally do. 

I just don't feel up to my normal quilting. Mindlessly sewing pieces is the best I can do right now. I'm just trying to keep going without adding to my husband's feelings and I'm sure he's doing the same for me. 

 I've been trying to just keep busy and upbeat, but it's getting harder. Be well, people. 

Project Quilting 11-6

Vibrant and Vivacious

This is the last challenge for Project Quilting this year and I'm going to miss it. Things have gotten so scary in the world since even our last challenge because of the Corona Virus that has become a global epidemic. The United States has become so complacent about other epidemics that have not quite reached our shores that, now that one has, it is just rippling through our country with dire warnings and one cold stark reality after another. 

  My husband's job is threatened. My job is threatened and we are not even in a risky area. We do, however, depend on the tourist dollar and while his job can withstand a disaster in one or another part of the country, this all encompassing nation-wide shut down does threaten it. My job depends heavily on the tourists coming. We all have so much fear, because of the uncertainty of getting sick, meeting our bills and feeding ourselves. Luckily, I don't have school age children. 

  Being an introvert, I would be fine staying at home. I feel like I have plenty of projects I could do while I sheltered at home. Speaking of Projects...

 It's been a year since I made this top. I have a quilt guild friend who has a long arm and, since I wasn't in a hurry to get it back, she could take her time and do it when she was in the mood. She has finished it and we need to make arrangements for me to get it from her. I'm excited to see what she did, since she had fun doing her own thing. I used years worth of scraps on this quilt top and I was really sick and tired of seeing them all here hanging around so, after I finished this quilt, I donated all the scraps I had left to the guild. OOPS!
I thought maybe for this challenge, I could make a pillow to go along with that quilt, but I had already gotten rid of any similar fabrics. Not to say I don't have other choices of fabrics that are just as bright. So, I made a Dresden Plate flower pillow from other bright fabrics. Some of it came from PQ and some from my husband buying me fabric as he drove by Handcock's in Paducah without really knowing what he was doing. (He did great!) and some pieces I bought in Houston.   I did have the same background fabric  I used on the quilt and the same center, so it should work ok with the Quilt when I get it back. I have a lot of binding in my future if I have to shelter in place ever.

Listening to the news is so scary and yet, so many of us just aren't getting clear answers. Things are changing every day and it's hard to make plans when things are changing so swiftly. For now, I continue to go to work and clean the stores in anticipation for opening (last we heard) March 28. After that, we are unclear if we are unable to open. 

 I am a quilter and an artist and I have many, many more ideas than I can ever do with the time I have. I can keep myself occupied easily with all my projects. I know you can too. As long as we have a sense of wonder and exploration to try new things, to wonder, "what if".. to experiment and plan and dream. We will get through this and be wiser for it. Good Luck!

    

Project Quilting 11-5

Give it Away

This in National Quilting Month and so many quilting groups around the country are celebrating the event in many different ways. Quilters, as a whole, are such generous people. My own small guild have groups who focus on Quilts of Valor and My Very Own. Then, of course, we have people who do so many quilts for family and friends, and many sew for Quilt Day boutique, which benefits the guild. I have done a bit for Quilt day, but many of mine got to friends and family. I especially love making baby quilts. BUT...

This week, I am back to work and I am exhausted every night. I knew I couldn't make a bigger project. I've been playing around with making these bags made with the ruler closings. I've made a larger one for the last challenge, but I wanted to try a smaller one. 

 I had this interesting fabric I picked up from Market several years ago with the alarm clocks. I liked the gear fabrics to go with the clocks. I've been holding onto some iron on vinyl coating for some time and I thought it would be a good time to try using that. 

 

I felt like it really didn't adhere to the fabric as well as I thought it would. I applied it with my iron, but I wonder if using a heat press would have been a better choice. I'll try that another time. 

I forgot to put the small triangle of fabric for a pull handle, so I added these decorative buttons instead. One says , "Sun rise" the other says, "sun set". 

Because I've been waking up early, I have been enjoying the sunrise from my home. Every morning it's been a beautiful show, but some more brilliant than others. This one had such soft pinks and a brilliant yellow on a cloudless morning where the colors just blended from one to the next. 

I like giving gifts randomly. In that vein, I gave my little bag to a co-worker. She was funny. Her first comment was, "you're so crafty". She has a great laugh and loves little gifts like this. It's fun to work with her. I am the second youngest person in my shop at 59. It's been a real blessing to work with a variety of older people every day. 

Project Quilting 11-4

Birds in Flight

Last week, I had stumbled across a video about making snap bags. 

snap bag tutorial

I thought it would make a good project for Project Quilting but, when the theme was announced, I wasn't so sure. 

I don't tend to do patchwork quilts so I wasn't very excited about the old patchwork pattern by the same name. I DO like birds, however and I have enjoyed seeing so many birds at my feeder this winter. I also knew I wanted to force a print in each one , because I'm often literal in my fabric choices.  

 I drew up patterns for many birds on Sunday night. Finches, Cardinals, Robins, Chickadees, Blue Jays and Black Birds. I thought about making a bigger piece with a feeder and all of these birds coming in for a taste, but time started getting away from me.

 Quilt Guild meeting and workshop pretty much took Monday. Eye Exam and lunch with a dear friend took Tuesday. Tuesday evening had me ask, "Why not make a bigger travel bag using the snap bag idea after all?" 

I appliqued the birds onto the background fabric. I added Puns on each side, having to do with birds and travel, using my cricut and iron on vinyl. Then I basically followed all the directions in the tutorial but clipped the bottom corners So it can sit up when filled. 

One side features a cardinal and the saying" On the Fly".

The other side features a Robin and the saying, "Just Wing it".

Sitting inside this Bag for the Photo is two full sized hairspray cans, which fits easily in this bag that is roughly 12" square. (Not that I use Hairspray, they were just handy and left here by my daughter) 

What I will use it for is some bigger items I do need to travel with (like my hairbrush) that doesn't fit in other travel bags I own. 

While the snap bag does work on this larger format, I imagine it would be tighter and snappier on a smaller bag. 

 So all in all, a good project to try for PQ and Something I would try again. Maybe try iron on Vinyl for the lining. Maybe try a beautiful Print combo. I still have all the other Bird Patterns I worked up so eventually, I could have a bird Quilt in the future. 

project quilting 11-3

Hearts!!!

It's February, Valentine's Day is coming, and the theme is Hearts. 

Sunday was when the Challenge dropped and it was Super Bowl Sunday. 

I'm not a fan (see the prior challenge) but I think the entire State of MISSOURI (not Kansas, although I'm sure they were excited too) practically HAD to watch the game. (Kansas City Chiefs were playing.)  

 I watched some while I was cooking/ eating and then left the room, although my house is small enough that I could still hear it. 

 Hey, did you see the Facebook commercial about the groups that ROCK? The first group they featured was Tablerock Lake Group- my LAKE! Just remember the lake is in MISSOURI, not Kansas! 

Super Bowl Sunday morning

Since I've been off work, I've been cleaning and sorting and finding stuff I've had for years. So, I found a pile of squares of vintage fabrics. Then I looked at all my Valentine fabrics, Which might be considered vintage, but I see them as older, probably late 90's. 

 Hearts

 approx 40"x40"

This is a generally good size for a baby quilt (in my experience)
It works great for naps, tucking into strollers, tucking around a car seat, not too big for them to drag around themselves later, still use for naps, still use for dolls, stuffed animals and real pets. My kids wore theirs out people!

Close-up view of some of the smaller vintage squares. 

This is not that creative, but it's a solid utilitarian baby quilt and I'm very excited to have found a home for these vintage and old fabrics. 

 I also got more experience using a walking foot for the basic quilting. I used a pretty lofty batting, something I rarely use, (I don't even know how I got this, honestly.) SO, I did not quilt it heavily, so it could be very soft and fluffy after it's washed.