Off the Wall Friday

Here we are again at another week gone by....I missed last week's Off the Wall and will make up for it today:)

 

If you go to this post, you will see the before pictures of the above earrings.  Although they didn't quite keep the shape I was hoping for, they are pretty cool if I do say so myself!!

Now time to figure out some new stuff????  I am still struggling to figure out what to do and how it may look when done.  Have I told you how much I really like my fabric!  The above photo is of a couple of small dishes...the top one being floral and the next one being abstract (NOT my strong suit!).  The bottom bits will melt into blobs like button candy....mmmmm candy:)

This photo shows the before of a small dish and some more earrings.  I am really excited about these!

 

What else have I been up to?  Well my Tropical Flags block came out in Volume 6 of Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks.  It will be out on shelves next week.  So the blog hop was this week and today I get to pick winners and tell them the good news....So Fun!!

Now we are back to quilting, where I belong:)))

A few weeks back I showed the Cathedral Windows for the Pittsburgh Steelers pillows for my younger daughter.  This is the Gerber Daisy quilt for my older daughter.  She is a math nut and opted for a more contemporary geometric background.  Her favorite flowers are Gerber Daisies though so this will go beautifully in her living room.

Lastly we have the Rose quilt.  One of our talented guild members demonstrated a method of quilt as you go for hand quilting.  I don't know why it has taken me so long to attempt this, but I finally did.  I altered her method for my machine quilting since I didn't want to have to go back and add all the strips to cover my seams on the back of the quilt.  I can definately see the benefit of this but I needed to think the borders through a bit more since I really didn't want the red inner border to go all the way to the edge that way.  This piece is very small, maybe 22" square so a larger quilt would definately be more challenging but worth the effort.

Now if I have wet your appetite for more show and tell, make sure you pop over to Off the Wall Friday and follow the links at the bottom of the post:)
Have a great weekend!

MASTERS: Art Quilts Volume 2

MASTERS: Art Quilts Volume 2-- Can I just gush for a moment about and say; Wow, Wowee, Wowzee, Wowzer!!  I had the amazing opportunity to review this new wonder published by Lark Crafts and curated by Martha Sielman and what an honor it was!  Whether or not all the art within these pages speaks to you, it is imperative to our textile/fiber art community that we are aware of what strides are being taken to further our voices as a whole.

The first thing that struck me was the choice to use cool colors on the cover vs. the warm colors used on Volume 1.  The formatting of this book is ideal due to the ability to see an artist's body of work, instead of the typical 1 or 2 photos, which allows you to really get a feel for how that artist works.

About a month or so ago on the Quilt Art list there was a discussion about how textile/fiber artists discuss their work and how we generally discuss technique vs. thoughts or how we came to create a particular piece.  I don't know that that particular thought process would have mattered to me before the discussion but it stood out to me at this point in viewing.  Each artist has a mini bio at the beginning of their section and there are quotes of how they design sprinkled throughout their section but each photo has a list of techniques accompanying it.  Since my art consists of pretty basic techniques like photo printing, painting, and thread painting; I am fascinated by the endless variety of techniques used by the artists within these pages. 

There is a wonderful mixture of realism vs.abstract, traditional vs. innovative technique and you will be intrigued even when it isn't normally something you would be interested in.  I am not an abstract art viewer so when I find some I like, it is usually difficult for me to verbalize why I like it.  The following artists made me stop and take a second and third look:
Jan Myers-Newbury for her movement, texture, and Autumn colors.  I think color always plays a big part in the viewer being drawn into a piece.
Dirkje van der Horst-Beetsma for the movement of the jagged stitch lines and I really enjoyed the assembly of her work.
Nelda Warkentin for the movement, the sheer and light aspects, the obvious nature feel, and the repetition of design that spoke to me from a traditional perspective.

I would also like to point out a few other artists' work that I was intrigued by for various reasons:
Carolyn Crump for her great use of fabrics and her use of thread work for shading and facial detail.
Paula Nadelstern's work is mesmerizing from the urban (Tree Grate) to the magical (Ice Crystals-which prompted me to buy one of her books) but I am truly blown away by her landscapes, specifically Tulips in the Courtyard....Absolutely Lovely!
Laura Wasilowski's work is not only joyful but narrative and I can't believe she hasn't been approached to illustrate a children's book--specifically Lacking Gravity, Fences and Bridges 2, and Farm.
Linda MacDonald has a wonderful ability to bring serious subjects to the viewer in an extremely accessible way as you are drawn in trying to find other motifs with significance to the piece.
Maryline Collioud-Robert's repetitive lines are soothing even when meant to evoke vibrant energy.
Tim Harding intrigued from the cover and I wanted to see how he managed to create something abstract and realistic at the same time...his rippling water effects make you want to see them close up and/or go for a swim:)
Lastly, I am in love with The Tower by Izabella Baykova and want to visit that magical and ethereal destination.

"Quilting combines the best of what the art world has to give.  It can be sculptural. It can encompass drawing and painting.  It's the ultimate mixed medium."  Thank you, Jim Smoote, I couldn't have said it any better!
   

RETREAT Spells.....

Relax, Enjoy Time with friends, Reflect on ideas, and EAT.

L-R: Susan, Beth, Me, Kathy, Susan, Chris, Lorraine

Right after my last post, I flew to St. Louis to meet up with friends in Illinois where I used to live. The year I moved away was the 1st Annual Quilt Retreat and they have had one every year since that I have not been able to attend. There is a wonderful little quilt shop in Highland, Ill. named Rosemary's where you can sew and live amongst the bolts:) and this was my Christmas present from my husband. It is so relaxing and sort of lets you feel like you are getting away with something...
Susan and I kept the secret from the others for over 2 months which is quite the feat when you consider all the ways we could have let it slip...Facebook, Twitter, Blogs, etc.We all had projects we wanted to work on. Here you can see Kathy and our other Susan and the table is still relatively neat:) There was plenty of fabric and conversation to keep us busy late into the nights.
The table is starting to get a bit more creative looking as more fabric and ideas get tossed about. Now let's talk about the food....Italian, Chinese, and Mexican- ALL OUR FAVORITES and the restaurants are all within a 2 block walking distance when the weather allows.

Above is a sneak peek at one of the 2 designs I started working on while in Ill. This particular one is very abstract and so different from how I normally work. I chose familiar colors though to help me work through this and I find I am enjoying this new piece. Stay tuned for the finished wall quilt.

Retreats don't have to cost a lot of money with a little imagination and what you receive in return is priceless!

Thank you Friends.