Challenge 50 - Sunset Haiku

A splash of crimson

The fiery orb descended

Only night remains

I love watching the sunset behind the trees in my back yard… and so when this challenge came along I wrote my little poem. The lacy patterns the trees make against the sky just take my breath away, especially when we have a colorful sunset. The background is pieced in stripes of color, the trees and ground are appliqued. I used some thread painting for the sun, and some of the branches. It always seems to be a little sad, when the sun says it’s beautiful goodbye each evening.

Comments appreciated.

Geo-dino

This was a fun exercise for me. I started by looking at rock formations on the internet to get a feel for what real geo-formations are like. Then I went into my stash to find some “rock” fabric. Found this great red/orange commercial fabric that just said “stones” to me. Using a sakura graphics pen I let the fabric guide me to create fissures in the rock. I quilted with black thread along my black lines and then used a combination of throwing in a few Zentangle patterns in purple thread as well as playing with a little water color pencil to make the yellow highlights. The piece has been trimmed to 8x10 so as to fit into a standard black frame. My husband surprised me when he said he saw a dinosaur peeking out of the rock. Well Yah…it’s there to my amazement. I was thinking the agate slice would be the focus point, but I think the dinosaur has up staged it. It’s good to be back in the studio doing fast Friday quilts again. Thanks Kathy for a terrific challenge! Comments and critiques are appreciated.

Three Fishes

This week I've been camping in Asheville NC, and not able to make anything for this challenge. Upon returning today I realized that I have a quilt that I made a few years ago that fits this challenge, and hope you all will enjoy seeing it. I used fused applique and machine embroidered around each fish and around the seaweed. Fabrics from the William Morris collecton were used for the fish. It is really amazing to see the wonderful entries that have been posted for this challenge. Lots of talent in this group!

Dream Catcher

Not sure this one meets any of the challenge requirements, but this is where my nuse led me. I started with a mono print that I hand made that looked "fractured" and was hoping to just use it as the background. My intention was to but a beautiful black swan in front of the reddish background. While visiting my sister in Arizona, the challenge was announced, so I think I was influenced by the native american culture because my entry turned out resembling a dream catcher. Give your imagination a BIG stretch and think of the feathers at the bottom as wings. I'm really grasping at straws here to make this piece fit this challenge. I did accomplish the having fun part, and have really enjoyed all the creative wonderful works others have made for this challenge. Thank you Jan, I promise to do a more conventional fractured piece in the near future, it is a wonderful approach to creating an interesting piece. Comments at this late date are dreamed of.

Putting on the Ritz

What a challenge this has been! I had a hard time getting my mind around this concept, but once I saw some of the other entries it became clear. The colors used in packaging are very eye catching and pleasing so “oh Yeah” it is a great place to look for a color theme for a quilt. Since I was so late in getting started, I kept my project down to a manageable size. When going through my pantry I found that I buy a lot of products with this primary color scheme. I liked the ritz box for it’s simplicity and the flow of the crackers swirling about. My composition is an attempt to re-create the general feel of the ritz box. I enjoyed playing with this, and will try it again on a larger project, my quilt is journal size, and has not yet been bound. Any suggestions? Would love your comments as well. Thanks Rhoda for a great challenge.

FFFC-39 Sea Foam

This challenge was a joy for me. I started by painting an aged piece of fabric that had been naturally rusted. The dyes I painted with started to bleed into the fabric in a big way, but rather than get upset I decided to go with the flow. I ended up with an intriguing background fabric which lent itself to drawing with pens the design that was floating around in my head. After completing the drawing, borders were added and the whole thing was taken to the sewing machine for quilting. This was my first whole cloth quilt, but it certainly won’t be my last. I loved the process of bringing out the design with the quilting. After all the drawn elements were highlighted, I used disappearing ink to make my guide lines for the background quilting. This was really fun for me and I’m already working on my next quilt using this process. As always any comments or suggestions would be appreciated.

The Lion King

Off to a slow start, the Lion King is still a work in progress. I had planned to do tiger cubs based on a Japanese wood block print purchased in Yokohama some 30+ years ago, but alas I could not find it. During the attic search I did find this somewhat ancient batik that was purchased about the same time in the middle east. This proud lion seemed rather regal, thus the name of this entry. I wanted to frame the batik in a nontraditional way and so cut some “wonky” borders, added a little animal textures and a few wispy things to create a little more interest and this is the end result. I still need to do more quilting on the “border” and have binding to add, but wanted to post this in a timely manner. I really enjoyed working with the sharply contrasting colors and the African feel to this piece. Thank you Cynthia for this challenge. Any comments or suggestions would be appreciated.

Exploding Star

With a very full calendar this month, I only had a short time to devote to FFFC. I love the challenge, and all those wonderful Nebula Photos, but when looking through my stash to start my entry, this fabric that I had hand dyed got my attention. It seemed to say exploding star to me. Using Angelina fibers, I made a slurry of various colors and created a 8 x 10 mesh of fibers. From that I cut some strips and sewed them to my background. Next I used some set-a-color pens and drew some of the wispy lines, then used embroidery to complete my design. The quilting is intended to accent the flow of the piece. I’m not sure it looks very “starry”, but I love the colors and the sparkle. I’m pleased with its general appearance, but wish I had more time to make it special…. Maybe later. Any comments or suggestions are greatly appreciated.

A Troubled Spirit

It took a while for me to get rolling on this challenge, since I usually do abstract work which doesn’t go hand in hand with a horizon line. When I jumped in I didn’t have any particular direction, but started with a piece of fabric I had rusted. I added lines with a permanent black pen to create the center portion of the piece. Color and shading was then applied with Berol pencils. Sewing two pieces of fabric together to create the “horizon line” came next, and then the rusted fabric was trimmed and set upon the background. To add the transparency, sheer silk fabric was used. There are two layers, attempting to look like dripping paint that come down from the top and partially cover the “heart”. This part of a poem by Longfellow kind of speaks to me of what this piece is saying.

“I see the lights of the village
Gleam through the rain and the mist,
And a feeling of sadness comes o'er me,
That my soul cannot resist:

A feeling of sadness and longing,
That is not akin to pain,
And resembles sorrow only
As the mist resembles the rain.”

From Longfellow’s Poem The Day is Done

Comments and suggestions are always welcome, let me know what this piece is saying to you. I cropped this from the original and feel it works a little better.

La Mer/ Beyond the Sea

“La Mer/Beyond the Sea”

This quilt was inspired by Judy Dale’s Book Curves in Motion. Rather than make a round piece, I extended the wedges to form a square, so each wedge is a little different. Freezer paper templates were made for each element in the wedge, and then pieces were cut and fused to a background fabric. After all the wedges were joined, I top stitched the design, and then quilted the piece. Then the piece was trimmed to square up the edges. It reminds me of the ocean and the restless waves and Frank Sinatra’s song “La Mer” keeps flowing through my head. I might try this again where I mirror the design on every other wedge to make a kaleidoscope. Thank you Wendy for a terrific challenge. Comments are appreciated.

Kanji

My entry for this challenge is a basic triad color scheme, using teal, gold and red-purple. This is a very simple design, and is only 10”x12”, but it is fairly pleasing and I learned a great deal about playing with textures as well as using a triad palette. Starting with the back ground of cut-away appliqué, I found that the composition needed a focal point, so I added the Kanji. Some painted tyvek, and some fringe were added to generate a little texture and add more interest. Hopefully the letters are oriented correctly as not to offend our Asian friends. This was a quick and simple exercise, and was not intended to be a major piece, however it was a lot of fun to make. Thanks Cynthia for this challenge. As always comments are welcome.

Inner Spirit

Continuing with my “spirit” series, this month challenge entry is called “Inner Spirit”. I took a little liberty with the color theme, using a rather bright rust pretending it was neutral, and the background is actually grey not blue as the photo indicates. Starting with a sketch I attempted to show depth by using layers and decreasing shapes. The yellow veins are the only non-muted colors in the piece and I feel they give the piece a little more life that way. I will probably add some beading to this at a later date, but am not sure quite what to do right now. This was an excellent challenge and I enjoy using the neutral tones in my work. Comments and suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Sketch I started with.

Mahjong Impressions

With many different images floating through my head, I started sketching rectangular patterns in an attempt to create a grid. What started to emerge was a stacked collection of tiles that reminded me of a Mahjong game board. (I play way too many computer games). I started thinking this could be the source for a new series using the grid construction. I started this piece by selecting my analogous colors, yellow-green, yellow and yellow-orange, and adding a purple as my complementary accent. I made each tile a separate little quilt-let, and finished the edges with the pillow-case method. Then I was forced to put it the whole design into my drafting program to play with the relationship of the pieces. So much for artistic expression. I guess the word “grid” brought out the draftsman side of me. After printing out my pattern, the whole piece was carefully pinned to my design board, and I took the photo at that time (this morning). The tiles still have to become attached to each other, so any comments about my arrangement can be fixed. I like the basic result of this piece, and wish that it could be a little larger. Please note that the tan background is my design board and not part of the piece. One thing learned is that it sure is easier to quilt and embellish a small piece, however the logistics of putting it all together is quite a challenge in itself. I look forward to making some more quilts using a grid construction, and also look forward to any comments I may receive. This was a fun challenge for me.

Dawn FFFC-31

I learned a lot from this challenge. My intent was to create luminosity by contrasting a light background showing through layers of trees. The problem came with the background I chose being too grey. Forgotten was the main concept that this luminosity was to be achieved by using color saturation. Scrambling to make this work I added some pure yellow by thread painting a glow behind one of the trees. It salvaged the piece but really didn’t fully accomplish the intent of this challenge. If time permits I am hoping to do a second piece that really glows. I did learn to keep working through my mistakes to get a finished work, and believe me when I tell you that there were a lot of mistakes on this one. If you don’t make some mistakes you never learn.

Thanks Susan, this was an excellent challenge! Comments are welcome.

Reworked piece:

I added the highlights along the tree trunks and branched, and this is the result "New Dawn". I'm sorry that the color is not quite true.

While cropping my photo I decided to play with the hue and the saturation and the next photo is what I should have made... I am calling it "New Dawn on Steroids"... It really demonstrates the effect of saturated color and luminosity. What fun.

Free Spirit or Spring Fever

This was an enjoyable challenge for me. I loved the color scheme, how ever I had a hard time coming up with a design that was appropriate for the fabrics I chose. This is my third attempt and I arrived here by stacking the three fabrics, pinning them together and then proceeded to sew curvy flowing lines as the “spirit” moved me. I cut away layers and came up with this composition. It is journal size and not very intricate, but I kind of like it. With the temperature rising into the 80’s outside, it kind of gives you spring fever, so I am undecided about the name. Comments, even at this late date would be appreciated.

FFFC-29 Pipe Dreams

Every evening before going to sleep I spend a little time sketching in my sketchbook. It is relaxing for me. This sketch was chosen for this months challenge, because I thought it showed rhythm and movement. The size of the quilt is larger than I usually do, and so I have worked feverously to get this ready on time. It is still a work in progress, as more quilting needs to be done, borders and bling need to be added. It was nice to work in a larger format, but it is more demanding of one's time. This was a really fun challenge and it is great to see a sketch become a quilt. Any comments are greatly appreciated

“Spirit of Passion” - Journal size

Returning to my "spirit" series, I tried a new technique on this fast Friday, putting (3) layers of fabric down, stitching the shapes and then cutting away layers to reveal layers below. I enjoyed the process as well as the results. I then dressed up my quilt with some decorative stitches and added some quilting. My zinger is the yellow/gold fabric, however it probably would have been more effective if the other colors were more subdued. However, how subdued can passion be? Thank you Tobi for a fun Challenge. Comments are always welcome. Joni

Sea Shell Trail

Wow, this one was difficult to get off the ground. I am starting a new series, focusing on using photo’s printed on fabric in my quilt. I found this wonderful sea shell photo and decided to pull the colors from it and use it all in a composition. It is most likely a split complementary color palette . Contrast in value was attempted by using a very dark purple and a fairly light pink/peach tone. The shell is a close up, so I hope this meets the challenge guidelines. I’m not entirely pleased with my quilting on this one, as I don’t think it really helps the piece, so any suggestions on what I could have done would really be appreciated. I am happy that I was able to get some time in the studio during this already hectic holiday season. Comments are welcome.

Wandering Spirit

This is my fastest fast Friday ever…. It had to be as I leave for Vancouver B.C. first thing tomorrow am. It actually is a work in progress, and is a continuation of my “spirit” series. Using some rust printed fabric that I tried for the first time a few weeks ago, the orange color family of was my natural choice for a monochromatic color scheme. An attempt was made at a feeling of perspective, only in that some layers are clearly behind others. The perspective concept is hard to do with a “spirit” theme. Some shading may be added when I get a chance to start working on this again. I am looking forward to keeping up with this challenge from my Mom’s computer, and to finishing my piece when I return home in a week. Any ideas of how this needs to be quilted are appreciated, and of course I always welcome critiques.

Spirit Renewed

My series for this challenge – and a few of the next ones will be based on the concept of “spirit”. I like to draw abstract images, and thought I would try to capture rather abstract concepts in this series. My sketch was made before the challenge was announced, but that was a very good thing, since I just had until today to complete the piece as we are packing for a trip tomorrow. I chose to use the vertical orientation and the color scheme of yellow-orange/ purple-violet. I’ve been going broke on fusible webbing lately so I have tried to develop a method of getting what I want – free flowing designs, without fusing. I made my design on freezer paper labeled it and cut out the pieces. Then I ironed the cut pieces onto fabrics that I intended to use. Leaving a liberal seam allowance I cut out the fabric pieces. Using the batting as my background I just raw edge pieced them into place. After trimming the fabric to the stitch line I used machine embroidery to give a finished look to the piece. My piece is now partially quilted, I added the backing and proceeded to add detail quilting which is not yet finished in this piece. I hope to add the remaining quilting, some embellishment and the binding (a dark purple) to the quilt when we get back from our trip. The quilt measures 20” x 31.5”. I would love to hear any ideas on embellishments for this quilt (a weak point for me). I have been amazed at the depth of really good work coming out of this group on this challenge especially – we really ought to have a FFFC show.