WW Day #7
WW Day #6
WW Day #5
WW Day #4
Creative Prompt #77: Flutter
Wordless Week goes on hiatus to continue the CPP. More inspiration tomorrow.
See the Creative Prompt page if you have questions about this project.
Post the direct URL (link) where your drawing, doodle, artwork is posted (e.g. your blog, Flickr) in the comments area of this post. I would really like to keep all the artwork together and provide a way for others to see your work and/or your blog.
The Creative Prompt Project, also, has a Flickr group, which you can join to post your responses. I created this spot so those of you without blogs and websites would have a place to post your responses.
fluttering bird wings
iPhone app
flutter your eyelashes
heart fluttered
heart valve flutter
wordpress plugin
hearts all a flutter
WW Day #3
WW Day #2
WW Day #1
Wordless Week Starts
I am a word person.
I like to find words that fit the situation and use them. I try not to use ‘thing’ when a more descriptive word will do. I try not to use ‘goes’ when ‘says’ or ‘exclaimed’ or ‘shouted’ excites the reader more.
I love to read books with excellent descriptions. Nevil Shute and Rosamunde Pilcher come to mind.
I love to write. I have kept a journal for years and I never really need any prompts. I can write and write and write most days.
I often have to make sure I look at the visual part of art and don’t just read the description. This is especially the case at quilt shows where the artist statement can be quite interesting.
You have been reading a lot of my words lately. I have had a lot to say lately. Tomorrow I will start posting a series of pictures – with no words. I will probably caption the photos, however. This week of photos is inspired by Quiltin Jenny‘s Wordless Wednesdays. You can make up stories about the pictures or just look.
Hope you enjoy it!
Sunday Work
I felt a bit of freedom in my sewing today. I finished the Blue Janus back yesterday (have to write about that, yes) and didn’t have anything pressing to work on. That left me to see how I felt and work on what I felt like.
I sewed two more test blocks for the Frosted Star pattern. My pattern is much easier to follow and trimming the segments before sewing the block together works really well. I used a mostly monochromatic color scheme for these latest blocks so I can also donate them to the Rainbow project. I couldn’t resist using a bit of one of my Philip Jacob prints.
I think I need to test the 9″ pattern rather than the 12″, because the 12″ is just too big and the 9″ is what I would use in the quilt. I am thinking that I won’t make this quilt even though I like it a lot.
I felt compelled to make a back, so now the back for It’s a Merry & Bright Wrap is finished. This back was less arduous than the one for the Blue Janus quilt. Quite simply, it was much smaller. I also made a big effort to use very large pieces of fabric. Rather than days, it was only a few hours in progress. I am happy that it is done, though I don’t have plans to quilt it yet. I’ll have to see about that.
Making the above back gets me farther along in the various finishing tasks I have to do. I still need to make the sleeves for FOTY 2009 and the Chocolate Box as well as the facing for the Chocolate Box.
I don’t know what is next on the list, but am thinking a tote bag is in order. I have this new black and white fabric that is demanding my attention. Half Moon by Moda will be the bag body with possibly a pink inside.
The Kaffe Fassett dot attracted my attention for handles (I think I may be in a monochromatic phase right now). GAQF only had a fat quarter, but I found a half yard in my fabric closet, which will be enough for the handles. I like the combination of big and small dots.
I am thinking I will use the AMH Multi-tasker tote pattern again even though it isn’t exactly the bag I want. I’ll peruse my other bag patterns first. I do know how to make the AMH MTT and it is a pretty good bag pattern.
Book Review: Journal Bliss
Journal Bliss: Creative Prompts to Unleash Your Inner Eccentric by Violette
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Violette’s book has been in my to read stack for awhile. I was finally able to read this book when I took it with me on a trip. I found that it was a quick read. It might have been a quick read, but it was a powerful read as well. Violette, in this book, is a cheerleader, life coach, therapist and art teacher. She mixes in the right amount of words with pictures, the right amount of encouragement and support.
She dives in with a discussion about the reader’s inner critic. I was a little surprised that she would start out with this, but it was the right way to organize the book and she didn’t go on and on in that chapter.
She clearly describes a lot of techniques and a lot of different ways to do small but effective bits of embellishment. Her writing style makes the reader think that s/he can create borders, backgrounds and any of the techniques described. The one part that really intrigued me was the part about faces. Reading this section and looking at the pictures gave me confidence She makes drawing faces seem simple. I don’t mean simple as in stupid looking, but simple as in with a little practice everyone can do faces as well as she can.
Violette provides lots of examples of her artwork. The book is mostly drawings and examples of her written creativity. The majority of the book is not typeset, but embellished, drawn and colored. This style provides lots of examples of her. She shows it is simple. The drawings are not simple, but if the reader breaks them down and looks carefully at the lines, there is nothing tricky going on and the style is quite do-able.
One great suggestion Violette gives is to do a Gratitude journal page using a list rather than prose. I think that is a great idea for any kind of journal page, not only a gratitude page.
I really liked this book and think that it is one that will be a great reference book. I would like to try the various drawing techniques to spice up my journal pages, especially the border ideas. I also want to try making the faces.
Frosted Stars Test
Since I am thinking about going out and actually buying special fabric for a project, I thought it might be a good idea to test the pattern to see if I liked it. Since I finished the top and back of the Blue Janus quilt this morning, I thought it was something that I could manage.
I dug out the directions and went to work. I can’t say I was enamored with the directions from the Moda Bakeshop. It really too me a long time to make one block and I had to follow the directions step by step, because there weren’t cutting directions for one whole block at the beginning of the section where the star starts.
I redrew the block in EQ7 just to see what it would take to make some straightforward cutting directions. I can see why Charlie Scott used some fancy triangle tricks. I created rotary cutting directions in 12″ and 9″ (both finished) sizes. These blocks use quarter square triangles and the triangles need to be cut weird sizes, which I know nobody likes. Still, my directions are a lot more straightforward than those on the Moda Bakeshop page. You can cut the quarter square triangles slightly larger and then cut them down to the normal size. I hope you will be able to click on the numbers above and download the rotary cutting directions.
I am going to make another one using my directions and let you know what happens. I am not knocking Charlie Scott. I love the free patterns out there and have a really difficult time following them. I will probably put some borders on the one above and send it to Anna Maria Horner for the Rainbow project.
Corner Store Project
I have written a lot about the Corner Store pattern from Pretty Little Mini Quilts. This block is very appealing especially since I have been thinking about my scrap pile lately. I bought a large piece of Kona Snow and finally cut into it for the Zig Zaggy quilt and for this Corner Store project. I didn’t cut a multitude of pieces in advance (always a recipe for disaster for me), but I did cut some.
You are probably wondering why in the world I am starting this quilt at the same time I started the Zig Zaggy quilt and am still working on the Blue Janus quilt. Insanity? Perhaps.
The true reason is that the box in which I store the triangles for this project is getting full. Also, I thought I would make a few blocks and see how they looked.
My first step was to ask TFQ for the dimensions. She has the Pretty Little Mini Quilts book at the moment. She emailed me back right away with a 3.5″ size. When I cut a few of the squares I thought that looked terribly small. When I put one triangle on, the block did not look at all like the version I saw in Pretty Little Mini Quilts or on Flickr. I must have misunderstood the size. Again, something that should have been a quick chain piecing and trimming start to a project has turned difficult.
Difficult is a strong word. I have to test different squares sizes to see which one will suit the look I am trying to achieve. I wanted to focus on the Blue Janus quilt, so this was put to the side.
Stay tuned!
Anna Maria Horner Rainbow Project
AMH has made a movie of the recent blocks she has received. I didn’t recognize mine until I saw the little label I attached with a pin before I sent the blocks off. My block is shown at time marker :50.
The next deadline for blocks is August 1st. Send one in. The directions are posted on her site.
Creative Prompt #76: Night
nightclub
nightlife
nightmare
at night
dark of the night
into the night
It was a dark and stormy night….
Night by Elie Wiesel
Go to bed
Night of the Living Dead
Post the direct URL (link) where your drawing, doodle, artwork is posted (e.g. your blog, Flickr) in the comments area of this post. I would really like to keep all the artwork together and provide a way for others to see your work and/or your blog.
The Creative Prompt Project, also, has a Flickr group, which you can join to post your responses. I created this spot so those of you without blogs and websites would have a place to post your responses.
Saturday Night Live
night sky
Night sky
last night
First Night
Fashion’s Night Out
Night terrors