Orange Blossom Special

I'm calling this a finish!
Here are 3 postcards that I created using the original background piece. I decided to cut it up, & make 3 parts... thinking that at least 1 of them would work. The middle card is actually the 1st one I worked on, but when I finished the top & the bottom photo, It wanted to be in the center...too bad I don't have any photo collage skills, but then I'd have to re-name this to "Blue Highways".
They all measure 4x6, & are made from batik scraps. One is discharged, & the flowers are outlined in variegated emb. floss (6 strands) The scrappy strips of blue,orange,purple, & the floral, are raw edge appliqued. The flowers are buttons, & the glass bead in the middle pic is also variegated, & kinda looks like a bean...
One of the cards will be entered in my postcard group's lotto drawing, (wish me luck), another will be traded with a mixed media cardmaker, (so I can learn something new), & another will be sold to benefit the RAK fund on another group of traditonal quilters.
I'm finding that I should continue to do my challenges in this size, as I have more opportunities to share, learn, & benefit others, instead of my work sitting in a drawer, all but forgotten.
As always, comments are not only welcome, but appreciated.

Orange Blossom Special

This is the 15 minute background that I have created for the challenge. I'm not sure where I'm going with this one yet, but I'm setting a time limit of no more than 3 hrs of actual sewing.

Challenge 6

The Sea of We

Green Grow the Rushes, Oh!

Being well supplied with green fabrics, many of them suitable for foliage, I chose the Celtic song "Green Grow the Rushes, Oh!" to illustrate. This is actually one of the most quilt-like pictures I've done, since I have not mounted it on foam core like most of them. I used raw edge applique, varying the stitch patterns for different elements. I used Angelina fiber for the clouds, and it turned out more gold than white, but since the sky isn't blue, gold clouds seemed acceptable! I picked up a dark green piece of upholstery remnant for the binding -- very much surprising the saleswoman cutting the piece, people usually don't buy just half a yard!

It's easy being green

I chose this song title, It's not Easy Being Green because it's the only one that sort of fit with my piece! The subject matter doesn't fit go with "it's not easy", so I changed the title to be It's easy being green. This piece is 10 x 12", wholecloth hand dyed fabric, and based on a scene from a Mayan temple wall and their carved relief jade pieces. It doesn't photograph well, but here it is!

Pink Houses

14 1/8"w x 16"l

The song Pink Houses spoke to me. (I should have listened more closely.) The finished quilt reminds me (except for the color) of small high mountain houses (huts) and storage buildings that are used by farmers in the summer when tending their herds in Switzerland.

This was a miserable quilt for me to do. As some of you know, I announced that I was tossing it. Got talked into continuing. This is a testament to how many problems a person can overcome in arriving at a finish point.
1) My pinks didn't want to play nicely together.
2) Some of my threads were quarrelsome---one of them got tossed in the "round file" when I finished its section.
3) I think my worst problem was finding a suitable background. That is what my problem was in the first place. I am now happy with what I did.
4) I changed tensions on my machine more for this quilt than any other one piece I've ever done.
and--finally--
5) In the very first section quilted, I quilted two or three stitches into the corner of my little cutting board that was on the machine extension table. It had slid under the quilt---and there was quite a noise associated with it. I'm not sure if the cutting board or the machine was screaming. However, it did not break the needle!

Can anyone top that?

Itsy bitsy teeny weeny

This is a postcard, just a tiny exercise for the monochromatic challenge. Instead of using the color in the song title as the main color, I used the yellow polka dot bikini as the accent color, 10% or less of the total area.

Rhapsody in Blue

My piece is Rhapsody in Blue - I was working a background and it transformed itself into this. I didn't add what I had intended to add since I felt it kind of stood on it's own.

Measures about 22x25 inches.

Lisa - in Seattle

Its Not Easy Being Green

This is my entry for Challenge #6. It is quilt #2 in a series of leaf quilts. It measures 12 x 9 inches. The first one that I made was all in shades of blues and greens, and I wondered what it would look like with a pop of red. So this challenge was the perfect excuse to try. I am going to play around with this idea a little more in some series quilts.

Any comments are welcome. Thanks for looking, Elizabeth in NM

Tangled Up in Blue- Bob Dylan

The left side is cut off a bit because I had to scan this in due to a broken camera . My second entry to this challenge. This one is all blue except for the couple who are done in black satin, and the little flowers in the border which are white.
When I hear this song and read the lyrics, I feel it is about a couple that keep trying to get together but something keeps them apart, they become tangled up in blue...that is why I have several blue strips across and around them and the one going right down the middle, blocking what might have been the kiss that finally allowed them to get together. I used various cotton fabrics, satins, thin blue ribbon, and across the man is a piece of dark blue velvet.
The couple is outlined in a zigzag stitch with blue variegated thread.

Allons Danser - South of I-10

Cotton fabrics with thread painting.

The shading looks more purple on the picture than it does in real life. Of course, that might be a function of me working on it at 4:00 in the morning, too.

South of I-10

Sonny Landreth

Woke up in Mississippi in '51

Migrated next door became a native step-son

Grew up on the rhythm of Clifton and Cleveland

And the Red Hot Louisiana Band.

Red Roses for a Blue Lady

I finished the lady today. The reason: the entire area is closed due to a wild blizzard which is to continue through tomorrow. I didn't have to teach so had the entire day to work on her. She didn't turn out as I'd hoped but at least I tried a couple of different things that I've not tried before and I learned from them. I tried to give highlights to her face using light and dark fabrics. I have too much contrast in some areas and not enough in others. Then I tried thread painting over this. So areas worked and some didn't. Suggestions???

Thanks! Jan

Lady in Red

Here is my Lady In Red. I had fun with this challenge and it shows me that I need additional work in the "value" area, which I have known for some time. I like how her dress came out, but am disappointed over the lack of definition between the walls and the floor. Initially there was not enough value difference between the woman and the background, so to solve that problem, I added a layer of sheer to the background (walls, ceiling and floor). Unfortunately, that made the floor sort of fade into the walls and not have enough definition of it's own. This has been a great exercise for me and one I will revisit again because using the monochromatics forces me to concentrate on value.......an area of weakness for me. Comments are always welcome. Thanks for any feedback.

It's Not Easy Being Green

(from Kermit the Frog)
11 3/4" X 9 1/4"

I took some artistic license and stretched the green all the way from chartreuse to turquoise, then the accent color, orange, drifted from nearly red to yellow (the eye, below), plus the black and white to cover the extreme value on both ends. So in the end, I know the quilt is not truly monocromatic with a single accent color, but I really wanted that frog to have his turquoise belly and red-orange eye.



It was a challenge to find the right greens in my stash. Then consider that the label fabric (photo below) was actually from my stash, and you'll have some idea of how I'm lacking when it comes to useful fabrics. If I want to continue in this style, I now have a better idea of what to buy when I'm fabric shopping.




I'm still learning how to assemble these. I had similar problems with the threads quilt last month: the fusible pieces not quite lining up/fitting exactly like in the pattern, how much/little overlap to include, etc. I'm learning though, and will work it out one of these days.
The quilting/appliqué was done in one step with smoke invisible thread, and a small bit of black. The sparkle in the eye is a hot-fix crystal.

I'm not sure how I got away from my black and white prints. I used to put them in every quilt I made. You're sure to see more of them in my work in the months to come.

Blue Moon

A challenge that I managed to get done on time. I am so thrilled. As soon as I I started reading the challenge I knew what I wanted to do. I have been planning a moon (in fact several) for over a year, and this seemed the perfect time to get started. I feel my choice of song might be a little cheesy but who cares. I have really enjoyed working on this.

I used to be an Astrophysicist so images of moons and planets are pretty inspiring. They are all so different and beautiful. This has 4 shades of blue fabric to make the moon and a very dark blue as the background. My accent colour, if you can call it that, is the black binding. It doesn't show up too well in the picture but in real life it sets it off nicely. The quilting is done with three shades of thread. I love using the very fine thread on the longarm as I can change colour just by tying on and pulling the thread through, even through the needle!

There are bigger pictures on my blog if you want to see more detail.

Blue Moon

14" x 10"

"Blue moon,
You saw me standing alone
Without a dream in my heart
Without a love on my own. . ."

My initial thought was to do branches across a full moon. I have tossed that idea in favor of continuing the vases series. I think this will also be more interesting as it’s not the first image that comes to mind with the song. I began with a sketch, and tried to keep the spontaneous look that I achieved with Vases III. The table seemed the wrong color, so I added transparent fabric paint to the table and shadow.

Blue Swans of winter

I did this from the Goldenboy Blue Swans Orchestra.

I only used blue....
very small complementary.
Not sure I got the shading of the reflection in the water quilte the right hue. Worked on paper, but now that it is finished it looks a little too strong. Also the stream behing the moving bird is quite definite. I may use some paint to lighten it up.
Critiques and suggestions alays welcome. It is how I learn.
Carole

Deep Purple

When the deep purple falls over sleepy garden walls

And the stars begin to twinkle in the sky...

I had such fun making this little quilt. I really only had a vague idea of what direction I was going, but the quilt took over and dictated to me as we went along...LOL

As always, I welcome your comments and critiques. I always learn so much from all of you...

Cherie

Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree

If you read the messages you know I'm not happy about the way the picture washed out most of the yellows. Also I feel there should be something more but I don't know what.

Blue Christmas

My song is by Elvis..
Satin for the curtains, gold lame for the tree garland and gift ribbon, navy flannel for window panes. Not sure if I am happy with this yet, so haven't "fine tuned" or quilted it yet. The gold would be my accent color but I took a little "poetic license" and added the wreath over the window.