Week in Review 2013 - 06/14

"Tree Serenade" - 48" H x 40" W

I am a member of Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA,) an international organization whose mission is to bring attention to art quilts as an art medium. This mission has helped shaped my own mission in recent years. I still enter calls for entry for art quilt shows, but now I am just as likely to enter calls for art, when fiber is listed amongst the accepted categories or is not specifically excluded. That is why I chose to the enter the “Michigan Fine Arts Competition” held at the Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center in Birmingham, MI. My piece, “Tree Serenade” made from recycled practice pieces I made while doing Leah Day’s 2012 assignments, will be in the exhibition. If you will be in the area between June 28 and August 23, 2013, please drop by and then share your experience with me.

I managed to complete both of the major non-studio obligations I referred to last week and still find time to make it into my studio for 2.5 days this week. Here are my studio accomplishments.

1) Adoration – Done!

a) Attach the label – Done!

b) Add to my website – Done! Adoration is now on the opening page of my website. If you click the image you will go directly to Adoration’s page.

2) “Oyster Shards” (deadline 8/20/2013)

a) Create the oyster shell template – Done!

These oyster shells were made off quilt to be appliquéd on later.
They range from 8" - 12" long and 4" - 6" wide. 

b) Make an oyster shell to be appliqued to the background. – Done! I made three!!! However, I am thinking of tweaking them just a tad more to add blue/purple rings of concentric ridges in the pearlescent portion. I will be testing several thread options to see what looks best.

A closer look at one of the oyster shells.  The pearlescent center
is created by layering the same tulle used in the sea foam from last
week, but only a single layer. The rims were fused in place with
Steam a Seam. This held the tulle in place during the quilting process.
Once they were quilted I cut them out so that they can be appliquéd to the quilt.

3) Leah Day

a) Express Your Love

         i) Cut facing strips. – Done!

         ii) Stitch facing strips to the quilt. – Done!

         iii) Hand stitch the facing in place. – Begun.

         iv) Attach the label. – Pinned in place.

b) Do whatever assignment Leah comes up with next. – Done!

"Foundation Puzzle" using a thread of variegated peacock colors.
Leah does this by spiraling from the outside in and then travel
stitching her way back out along the spiral. I prefer to leave a
wider channel when I spiral in and use the channel to spiral back
out again.

c) Bonus Project – I finished my sampler from last week using Carol Ann Waugh’s rattail finishing technique. This is a fast and effective way to finish a quilt, especially smaller pieces. Carol Ann Waugh, like Leah Day, is a Craftsy.com teacher.

Doesn't the rattail finishing technique work well on this piece?

4) Signature experimentation – Not this week.

a) Design a new signature motif.

5) Pictorial Painting – Not this week.

a) Watch the lesson that demos how to quilt the Canyon piece.

b) Quilt "Canyon."

Here is where I plan to focus my energy next week:

1) “Oyster Shards” (deadline 8/20/2013)

a) Find a way to add concentric, believable ridges to the pearlescent portion of the oyster shells. Possibilities include various threads and paint.

b) Create a quilt sandwich with the pieced background fabric, batting and backing.

c) Baste the sandwich.

d) Add the oyster shells.

2) Leah Day

a) Express Your Love

      i) Hand stitch the facing in place.

     ii) Attach the label.

b) Do whatever assignment Leah comes up with next.

3) Signature experimentation

a) Design a new signature motif.

4) Pictorial Painting

a) Watch the lesson that demos how to quilt the Canyon piece.

b) Quilt "Canyon."

I am now linking up to two blogs on Friday's. The first is Leah Day's Free Motion Quilting Project and the second is Nina Marie's Off the Wall Fridays.