Week in Review 2015 - 04/24

Tips, Thoughts and Techniques:

I played with Tsukineko Inks.  I mixed several batches
of violet and fuchsia with shaving cream which I
painted on the fabric intuitively.  

Have you noticed that when you ask a child what he most likes about school the answer is invariably recess? So why as adults don't we make it a requirement to schedule recess into our work day. When I head to my studio it is nearly always to work my current piece or practice my free motion quilting. I may experiment with a technique or product, but I usually have goal I am trying to reach, one that I hope will be the answer to my current artwork's latest issue. You would think with nearly 30 years of quilting I would no longer be sewing myself into a corner. I do. In fact I do multiple times with nearly every piece I make. Who has time to play? Perhaps the more germane question is who has time not to play? Play is a great anxiety buster. I believe that play is essential to one's well being. That is precisely why when I come to the end of one project and before I begin the next one I make sure I get some play time in. 

My week wasn't all play. In fact I accomplished 100% of the items on my weekly project  list. This just might be a first.

1) Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci - (Due May 1, 2015) - Done!!

a) Make and attach sleeve - Done! 

Marbling is another fun technique to try with Tsukineko inks.

Actually I attached a split sleeve to the top and a split sleeve to the bottom. The intense quilting and bead work of Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci has resulted in more waffling than I would like, even after washing and blocking the quilt. If weight is added at the bottom of the quilt, by inserting a rod in the lower sleeve, it helps reduce the waffling just a tad.

b) Make and attach label - Done!

c) Add to my website - Done!

d) Post progress photos to FaceBook - Done!

2) Free motion quilting practice. - Done!

I continued to work on my thread painting. One thing I've learned is that I absolutely need to stabilize my quilt sandwich if I am going to do a combination of thread painting and quilting on an actual quilt. I've been reading about various methods others have used to fuse their tops and backings to the batting. I see a lot of experimentation in my future.

The first stem is fully thread painted. You can see how
dramatically the fabric top shrinks, even when securely
pin basted, when thread work is done this intensely.

3) Post the number of days I have worked in my studio in 2015 - 34/126

4) Perform a random act of kindness - Done!

5) Night Vision - 

a) Add the label - Done! Finally :)

Will I play, procrastinate or return to pushing forward with my work next week? The question is one I have been debating much of this past week. I still haven't answered it. So, I'll hedge my bets and include play time and work projects in next week's list.

1) Design and start the next artwork

2) Free motion quilting practice.

3) Post the number of days I have worked in my studio in 2015

4) Perform a random act of kindness

5) Do some surface design experiments

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