Friday, June 14, 2013

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.



16 comments:

  1. Congratulations on the Birmingham exhibit! Great that you are expanding to the wider art world.. Love all that you are working on...rat tail, must explore!

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    1. Thank you, Linda. It took some courage to start sending my work to calls for art. Once I did I wondered why hadn't tried sooner. I often get into art exhibitions one of few or even just a single fiber artist. I find it harder to get into fiber art exhibitions. Do give the rattail finishing method a try. I found it remarkably easy, especially when compared to mitered facings. It also saves a huge amount of time versus facing or binding since no hand stitching is required.

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  2. Hello Gwyned,

    I love Tree Serenade, the colours are lovely, and such a brilliant way of putting practice pieces to good use!

    Love from England,
    Muv

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    1. Thank you, Muv. It was quite liberating to cut up those practice pieces like yardage.

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  3. Tree Serenade has a very refreshing summery feel to it. By the way, I'm from Bloomfield. I haven't been back in years, but I should look into entering next year. It would be a good excuse to visit again.

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    1. Many of the practice pieces were made in the spring and summer of 2012. That is probably what influence my selecting green fabric so much of the time. I think I started assembling the quilt in August, a time when I cling to the last green leaves.

      There was a residency requirement for this exhibition. You have to live in Michigan or one of its contiguous states. I'm from Wisconsin. Close enough to enter, but to big of journey to see the show.

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  4. Congratulations, it's beautiful and deserves to be seen!

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  5. All I can say is WoW! And I love how the rattail finishing technique worked out for you.

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    1. Always good to hear from you, Stella. Thank you.

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  6. What a great idea to use your practice pieces! And it turned out to be so beautiful! Thanks for the link to the cattail binding - I needed this two days ago...next time!

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    1. Thank you, Janis. The rattail technique may be too late for your recent quilt, but it is ahead of schedule for the next one. :)

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  7. I like the rattail finishing technique, it looks nice and gives extra texture. Sometimes, when I don't have enough I use a piece of thick yarn instead.

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    1. I was debating about trying the technique with some pearl cotton I have on hand, but feared there wouldn't be enough bulk. Thick yarn could work, but do the fibers from the yarn migrated though the zigzagged thread?

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  8. It's all wonderful. The oyster shells are off scale!

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