Commentary about works in progress, design & creativity
Use for posts written in 2009
It is really sad when I just can’t get inspired to do my own creative prompt. I thought house would be a good one. Quilt Rat certainly came up with a fantastic response! I’ll have to keep this one percolating a little bit and, hopefully, come up with another response down the road. On to the next prompt!
Slowly, but surely the FOTY 2009 blocks are stacking up. I doubt that FOTY 2009 will be as large as FOTY 2008, however I consider it to be more complex so smaller is better. I know I know, sewing in addition to cutting is part of the quiltmaking process and doesn’t necessarily constitute ‘complex.’
😉 I just like to see if you are paying attention sometimes.
As I said before, these blocks make great warm up blocks before a serious bout of sewing, so that is what I did on Saturday after getting the 9K set up again. If you look at the photo in Sunday’s post, you can see one of the green blocks under the feed dogs.
I decided not to combine the two Ginger Blossom prints that I used in the Striped Tote with Flowers and the Flowered Tote with Stripes. They already had enough cavorting and will get some more time to do so when I make the quilt for which I have been collecting fabric. I really like the effect of the dots with the flowers.
I had some hot pink dots that I hadn’t yet made into a block, so I used that with the flower print. Haven’t done anything with the stripes. I need to press some more fabric and then we’ll see what transpires.
I do really like that pink Gigner Blossom flower print for some reason. It makes me feel happy.
A Single Thread by Marie Bostwick
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Evelyn is having a rough year and this book doesn’t sugar coat her problems. The book is about how Evelyn gets help getting over that rough year, which includes opening her quilt shop. The difficulties she encounters seem like real difficulties that any normal person could encounter. The way she resolves the issues seem like real resolutions as well.
I really enjoyed this book and I think it may be a book that I would want to read again. I enjoyed the sections about the Quilt Pink project, because I think it gets a great project out to people who may not know much about the quilt world. I also thought the book incorporated the quilt aspect very well without shoving it down the readers’ throat. I think this tactic wold make this book appeal to people who are not quiltmakers.
It is a typical feel good chick-lit book, but is written with depth and doesn’t seem to include any affectations. I like books about real people where the things that happen to them seem like they could have really happened. There is a scene or two which made me raise my eyebrow, but this is still a great page turner and doesn’t dwell too much on the medical aspects. I enjoyed the way the characters learned from and helped each other. I want to read about these characters again. I hope Marie Bostwick doesn’t make the mistake that Jennifer Chiaverinni makes when she recounts the previous 3,4 or 5 books to catch readers up with the story. That tactic makes the books seem repetitive.
The Infinity blocks had been languishing for a little while. I needed some test subjects for the tuned up machine, so I sewed a couple. The middle one is of the ones I made on Saturday and the others have been hanging around for awhile waiting for me to photograph them.
The fabric I used for the middle blocks is an old Jinny Beyer fabric and it is really crisp to press and sew. Lovely!
I have only a little bit of the white left, so the block portion of this project is nearing completion. I will have to see how many blocks we end up with, however. It needs to be some kind of normal number and not one that won’t work in putting a quilt together.
Yes, your eyes do not deceive you. All the bits and pieces that I have wanted to change are done and I can start sewing the whole piece together. I don’t really think that it is nearing completion, because I have lot of ideas for handwork and embellishment in my mind. I just have to figure out the order of the next steps.
After I determined that the 9K was behaving admirably yesterday, I didn’t listen to anyone’s 2 cents about this space and made the stack of cups the way I wanted. I am pretty pleased with how they came out, though I think the pink I chose is a little bit darker than the flying geese background. It works, so it is fine.
Confession time: After I put the stack of cups up next to the curly pot, I started not to like the yellow print cup very much. I started to think how nicely a slice of cake would work in that area. I even had a fleeting thought that a scone or chocolate chip cookie would work. (SherriD: stop laughing!)
Really, I am trying to stop fiddling, but I may not be able to finish the piece with that cup on the front. I started to sew the sections together, but I have stayed away from this section until I can decide if I can live with this cup. The other issue is that I don’t have a replacement design in mind. I really want to get this top off the design wall in one piece and do something easy.
I am shocked to admit that quilting this myself actually entered my mind last night, as I worked on Beach Town. This piece is pretty large, so I’ll have to really think about that. Beach Town is small and I am still working on the last bits. The last quilt I tried to quilt was Seeing Red. I densely quilted about a 14″ square, then ripped all the quilting out and took it to my machine quilter. I don’t want a repeat of that.
I stayed away from the computer all day yesterday and sewed.
The 9000 is back and better than it has been in a long time. It is quieter. I can punch any button I want and the machine reacts instantly. It was a pleasure to sew.
I did a lot:
Normally, I sew early in the morning and stop in the evening. I am a morning person and I have learned the hard way that when I sew tired I make mistakes. Last night, however, I stayed up late and sewed. It was wonderful.
A shelter, building or structure that is a dwelling designed for habitation by human beings (Wikipedia definition).
What does your house look like?
House of Blues.
House plans.
Dollhouse
House of Cards
House of Pain
Madhouse
House, M.D., a TV show.
Mouse house.
See the Creative Prompt page if you have questions about this project.
Post the direct URL where your drawing, doodle, artwork is posted (e.g. your blog, Flickr) in the comments area of this post. It will keep all the artwork together.
There is more information on the recently updated Creative Prompt Page.
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Remember Saturday when I talked about picking out paint? Here is a miniscule part of of one of the paint chip displays for two lines of paint. The perfect red, Red Statement is smack in the middle. Poppy and Rapture are on a different display, so no picture, sorry. There is now a second coat of paint on both test areas and Rapture looks like it is winning. At this point I am almost willing to go with anything that is not hideous. Did I tell you we bought some glaze to try out a steel-wool faux finishing technique in out bedroom?
Remember after Christmas when I started making the Hop, Skip & Jump pattern from the Denyse Schmidt book, then quickly abandoned it pretty quickly? Here is a stroller quilt by Erica Sage. I saw it on Flickr. This is a really nice version of the pattern. I still like the pattern; just don’t want to make it.
I saw these great dishes at Cliff’s Variety yesterday. I noticed they are by Jackie Shapiro. I don’t know if it is the same Jackie Shapiro that designed the Botanical Pop fabric by Baum Textiles/Windham Hill Fabrics. BTW, I still want some of that turquoise dot that was part of the collection! Anyone who finds 4-6 yards of this fabric will get, at least, a tote bag. Of course, I will pay your costs and shipping for the fabric as well.
I don’t want a whole set of these dishes, but some bowls might be nice.
Yesterday, I went to CreateIt Studio for a glass fusing session. CreateIt is a place that does pottery painting, but you can also create mosaics and fused glass pieces. They won’t be doing the mosaics in their new location, so go now if you want to make one. I am sorely tempted, let me tell you. I have wanted to make a mosaic for years.
I have been to the pottery painting places and they are really fun. When I saw the glass fusing that Bonnie, the granddaughter of one of the CQFAers, did, I HAD to try it. A group of us from CQFA went and tried it, thanks to Dolores who pinned me down for a date. Thanks, Dolores!
True to form, I didn’t hem and haw, just got down to work. I really did the project quickly and simply, so I was done way before anyone else.
The fused glass technique is really easy. Basically, you place bits of colored glass down on another piece of glass in a pleasing manner and are done. I think part of the reason I was done so fast is because I already had an idea in mind. The others didn’t and had to play around a bit. I think I feel more comfortable and successful if I have an idea in mind when trying something new. I think I might loosen up a bit if I tried this more than once.
My first job was in a stained glass store, where I learned to make leaded glass windows. As a result I am not afraid of glass, but have a healthy respect for the sharp edges. As with quiltmaking, the glass cutting tools have GREATLY improved, so I just nipped and cut quickly and was done. The gluing down of the pieces, which was done to keep them in place until the firing process, was the most time consuming.
After finishing the trivet, I wasn’t really ready to leave. I decided to add to my casual serveware collection by painting a piece of pottery as well. You might remember the pieces I made in January at Color Me Mine.
I am thinking salsa and guacamole would work well in this piece.
I wanted those long, red, roundish pieces but Dolores took them all. I am not bitter, don’t worry. There weren’t enough of them anyway. I love the small bits that Dolores put in between the squares on the border.
Reva was the first one to use the cut outs. I followed her lead when I found the spiral and it was the right color.
Diane’s piece looks like her silk paintings.
We all know, now, that not all wizards look like the wizard in Fantasia. Wizards look as much like Cornelius Fudge as they do like Harry Potter and Hermione Granger. Witches and wizards look normal. Still this wizards looks like he is spreading the magic up and down the street.
My brain is full, so this is going to be another catch up kind of post.
1. Bonnie McCaffrey – Bonnie did an vidcast interview with Paula Nadelstern around Paula’s exhibit at the American Folk Art Museum in New York City. The devil part of my brain is plotting ways to get to see that exhibit before it closes on September 13. A visit doesn’t seem likely from where I am sitting, though you never know and hopes springs eternal, but there is a catalog, Paula Nadelstern’s Kaleidoscope Quilts, which is a must have on my list. I like Paula’s two previous books. They spoke to the smart quiltmaker in me.
2. Kelly Rae Roberts – Kelly Rae Roberts wrote a book called Taking Flight, which I reserved at the Library, but hasn’t come in yet. You can read about the book on her website in the book section. She is more of a painter and collage artist than quiltmaker. I took some time with her site this week (minutes here and there) and love the fresh feeling. I am trying to find the right look/feeling for ArtQuiltmaker.com so looking at the colors and embellishments on blogs is a continuing task. One of the things I like about her blog is the house tour. She shows all the nooks and crannies of her Seattle home. My mind boggles at the cleaning that must have gone on beforehand!
3. Picking out Paint – I am famous for picking out the most expensive and hardest to get item in any category regardless of how much I know about the topic or category. We have been trying to find the right shade of red for our dining room. Currently we have Lowe’s Valspar Cherry Divine, and Tibetan Red from Lowe’s Waverly Collection. The Cherry Divine is ok, but very pink and the Tibetan Red was absolutely a deal breaker, because it was much too brown. My friend Jessica talks about the ‘taupefication of America.’ My general principles of advocating cheerfulness, and Jessica’s comments make me refuse to participate in anything smacking of brown in my house. This place in the process meant a trip to Benjamin Moore yesterday where we found the perfect red, Red Statement from Pratt & Lambert. Perfect. Absolutely the right red and $60 a gallon AND it comes in only one product. No samples and you have to order the gallon from the Benjamin Moore store in the sky or somewhere and no returns. Sigh. My knack strikes, and burns, again. We checked out several other reds, most of which were in the same category as the Red Statement. We finally ended up with B.M.’s Poppy and Rapture. We’ll see. You never know, we may end up with paint that costs $60/gallon on one corner of our dining room. Doubtful, but it could happen.
4. Beefing up the CPP – I really want more people to participate in the Creative Prompt Project (CPP). I love the artwork that comes every week from the current participants, but I want more!!! I thought that some people may not have a place to post their work, so I created a Flickr group where members of the group can upload their drawings. I hope you will take the time to join and upload your photos. I have also heard that publishers troll Flickr for emerging artists.
5. Good News on the Tarts – Finally some progress on the last bit of the Tarts. As you know, I have been toying with replacing the Flying Geese with something. I have drawing some larger cups, a stack of small cups, tried some mini-cupcakes, a whole variety of things. Nothing was quite right. I felt stumped.
I lean my rulers up against the wall and rest them in the hinged area of my sewing table. This isn’t a great location when I am sewing something that pushes against them. They tend to fall behind the sewing cabinet, which means I have to haul the thing away from the wall and hope that I haven’t broken a ruler. When I was working on the latest tote bag, I had moved them to prevent this situation.
This plus the 9K being on vacation allowed me to have a virtually unobstructed view of the lower right hand corner of the Tarts.
Those cups jumped out at me. I pulled the block off the wall and traced the cup. The pattern is long gone. I also flipped it so the handle will be pointing right instead of left. After a bit of fiddling with lines, I put the preliminary drawing up on the wall. Perfect. It is perfect in tracing paper, so I will need to audition some fabrics. I finally feel like I am back in business with this piece.
6. Vicki Welsh’s Field Trips in Fiber – I made her latest FFiF list again with the latest tote bag! What a thrill. The great thing about Vicki’s list is that it is a great pointer to other fabulous quilts and fiber projects. It showcases a lot of work that I might not otherwise see. Thanks, Vicki.
7. Glass Fusing – I am a big fan of those pottery places where you can paint the cup or plate of your choice. You might remember that such an outing was what I did for my birthday. A visitor at the recent CQFA meeting talked about a place, Create It where you could not only paint pottery, but also fuse glass. A small group of us are going there tomorrow to try it out.
