Week in Review 2013 - 03/15

Detail from Reflection

Tips, Techniques and Thoughts...

Leah Day has been sharing her fears, insecurities and disappointments this week on her blog. It got me thinking how regular practice over years and decades helps to dampen these fears, insecurities and  disappointments. Why is this so? I would conjecture because over years one begins to see personal patterns of highs, lows and plateaus. Therefore, one develops confidence that mistakes can be rectified and lows don't last forever.

When I started quilting in 1988 the World Wide Web didn't exist. That didn't come into being for another 5 years. I learned about quilting through magazines and taking classes. Magazines were also my source for where to enter quilts. The first Call for Entry I submitted was in 2000 to the American Quilter's Society. Amazingly my entry was accepted. I was so excited and assumed it was such a fluke that I actually flew half way across the country just to see my quilt at AQS. My next Call for Entry also resulted in acceptance. Maybe my work was worthy after all. Then the next was rejected. I have no idea how many calls for entry I have completed since 2000, but I have a good sense that my work is NOT accepted more often than it is accepted. Not being accepted doesn't sting the way it used to. Why? Because I have a CV with a long list of all the exhibitions and publications I have been privileged to be part of.

It is rare that I don't have at least one or two or more quilts on view somewhere in the country and even occasionally outside of the country. Currently my work can be seen in Loveland, Colorado, two venues in Appleton, WI and in an on-line catalog as a runner up for an on-line exhibition.

Does this mean I plan on sitting back and relaxing? Of course not. Here is where I focused my attention last week.

Another detail from Reflections

1) Pictorial Painting

a) Watch the next lesson. - I started to watch the lesson for the second and final project. I opted to stop a few minutes in so that I could...

b) Begin the next lesson. - I did. I printed out the 3 different blue prints for the next project. These are poster sized and require overlapping and securing pages to get the full print. I now have the templates, layout and painting guides for the canyon piece ready to go.

2) Express Your Love

Detail featuring the hair from Express Your Love.

a) Do whatever assignment Leah comes up with next. - Done

The assignment was to use the filler stitch, Cat Hairball.

I am using three different patterns and three different threads
to create the hair. Left to right they are Stacked Flame Stitch in
a pale gray cotton thread, Channels and Paths in a variegated
white through brown cotton thread and Cat Hairball using
a variegated white through pale gray nylon.

b) Finish quilting the hair.

I made some progress with this. I did another lock in Channels and Paths and tried my hand with Cat Hairball. Cat Hairball is very, VERY time consuming. That single lock took me between 5 and 6 hours and used a full bobbin of Bottomline thread.

Express Your Love as it looks today.

c) Finish the Iris Still Life by binding it and adding a sleeve. - 50% done.

The binding is done, but I still need to make and add the sleeve. Selecting a binding wasn't easy for this piece. Since I dyed the quilt and didn't have the presence of mind to dye additional fabric to use as the binding, I didn't have matching fabric. I had at least four fabrics in my stash of purples that I thought would work. I found that the light and mid value choices were dull. I went for the darkest one. My preference would have been to have dyed matching fabric at the time I dyed the quilt. 

3) Reflection (Absolute deadline April 23, 2013)

a) Finish quilting the ice and water surrounding the geese. - Done!

Reflection after the background quilting has been completed.

This is where I spent the majority of my studio time this week. It took nearly two full studio days to do this. I had underestimated the time. I thought because it was a simple all over pattern and that I was doing it in a small, but not micro scale it would go faster than it did. It was worth it though. I like the pattern I invented to give a sense of water on ice.

b) Start work on the red branches. - Done.

OK, it depends on your definition of start. I have selected the fabric. I have ordered and received the bias tube pressing bars. I have cut the fabric and sewn the first seam needed to make Mobius bias strips. If you look closely at the various images of Reflections in this post you can see pencil lines where the branches will be.

Another detail from Reflections

I've been talking about getting those red branches added for several weeks now. Next week for sure! Of course I won't stop there. Here is my game plan for the week ending March 22:

1) Pictorial Painting

a) Select the fabric for Canyon.
b) Cut the fusible backing according to the templates.
c) Use the fusible to cut the fabric.

2) Express Your Love

a) Do whatever assignment Leah comes up with next.

b) Continue quilting the hair.

c) Finish the Iris Still Life by adding a sleeve.

3) Reflection (Absolute deadline April 23, 2013)

a) Make and adhere the red branches to the quilt.

b) Make the binding.

c) Square up the quilt for finishing.