Quilt show news to report–

“Snow Buddies” which is currently showing at Mid Atlantic Quilt Festival in VA has received an Honorable Mention Award.

“Splash”, which was rejected by Quilt National,  has been juried in to the AQS show in Paducah in April.

I spent yesterday afternoon checking it over for loose threads ends and adding it’s documentation tag and re-blocking it to get rid of the facing marks so it would be ready to go when the time comes.

Then I prepared the backing fabric for the prairie fire quilt. I am using a piece of home dec fabric which I like because it has good body and should hang well. However, it is treated to repel water, which could be problem when I try to block the finished wall hanging. I soaked it and scrubbed it in really hot water but it still may be a problem. I hope to get it layered today and maybe even start on the quilting.

The snow is really coming down and we are in for significant accumulation this time so it’s good to have a project!

The top is finally finished. After putting it up on the design wall and living with it for a bit, I saw things I wanted to tweak. That second swirl especially needed to flow better, so I divided the upper reddish piece and made it join into the yellow/red heading off toward the edge. This piece has had a lot of changes from the original sketch as I work improvisationaly , making changes as needed, even if, as in this case I have to spend a day un-sewing what I have previously done!

The upper right corner was getting pretty dark and I really wanted to get some of that lighter sky fabric in there to add a little sparkle to the piece, but also to set the time. Originally I had planned a night scene, but you would not see this much detail at night.

I’m anxious to get started on the quilting because I know that will only make it better!

Linking to “Off  The Wall Friday”

It’s been a busy busy week! I got “Snow Buddies” shipped off to MAQF and several more entries made, thank goodness the books are caught up, but I do need to finish getting everything pulled together for taxes. My two twice weekly classes (Art History and Yoga) are going well but they do cut into my time, taking me away Tuesday and Thursday afternoons!

In spite of all that, there is progress to report. The foreground is finished (I think) and I was able to use quite a bit of the special grass fabric, by sub-dividing the larger original pieces to accommodate the scraps that I found.  A few more rocks add to the composition.  I took away the dark sky I was considering and laid up a piece of lighter sky, but I’m thinking it is too light, maybe it needs something more “dusk”.  I’m not quite sure yet.  One has to listen to the fabric, the composition and the subject matter!

It is so fun to see it change and develop and I see some other little bits to change, and pieces to sub-divide.

While I usually do straight seam piecing, it has been fun to do this one in curved seam piecing which I think compliments the scene and really isn’t all that hard.  I’m liking that lighter tree and thinking ahead, will probably give it more branches in the quilting. In addition to the hand dyed main tree fabric there is a batik in the smaller branches. The success of this technique is so dependent on fabric choices!

My workshop at Hudson River Valley Art Workshops is only a couple of months away and I am getting excited to share all of this fun with my students. We will be exploring all aspects of creating a work of art that is original to them!  Want to learn about designing, color and composition as well as sewing those seams (straight or curved)?  Hope to see YOU there!

I have linked this post to Off The Wall Friday — go there to see lots of good stuff!

I guess it’s been about a week since I’ve posted progress, and there has been quite a bit even though I have not had much time to work. I have finished the fire, worked in some of that grass and added to the tree. Also sewed together a lot of pieces that have been up on the design wall long enough to feel comfortable. It is so important to live with the choices for a while, before sewing them, to avoid having to un-sew them!

Because my bits of available grass fabrics are small, it was necessary to add a rock to fill in a void. I tried four different fabrics before settling on this one; too dark and it didn’t show, too gray and it didn’t blend. There will be more on the other side so this one will not be “lonely” Rocks are common jutting out of the ground here on the prairie. It was not in the original plan, but I work intuitively and add or take away as needed. That grass behind the tree is only laid in there right now because the dark spot on the tree blended into the background too much. I will probably sew it in.

I was working to a deadline at the end of February for this piece, but on re-reading the call for entry I discovered that it will be too big. I can’t cut it down without ruining it so I will have to find something else for that call, darn it. I might be on information overload.

News came yesterday that “Snow Buddies” has been juried in and will be going to the MidAtlantic Quilt Festival in VA. Feb 26-Mar 1.

“Who Me?” is currently showing at the Topeka Art Guild Gallery.

I will be there tonight for the First Friday opening of this new show. Looks like Feb is going to the dogs!

I KNEW there was more of that grass somewhere, so I went through the stacks piece by piece and found this:

Just some pieces, but I will work with them. It’s one of those fabrics that I hate to see the end of – any shops out there with yardage? Hey, it COULD happen…..

I got quite a lot done yesterday. I think that light tree is going to work. The weather has turned cold again so it’s great sewing weather!

With the amazing weather we have been having it is easy to get distracted. I know it is not a good thing to get 78 degrees in Kansas in January, but when you do, you might as well enjoy it, right?  We did some tree trimming and watering.

I want some of that great grass fabric that I used in some of the other prairie fire quilts, but so far I haven’t found it and I didn’t think I had used it all up. The fabrics I am auditioning are just not quite doing it for me. The dark tree fabric I tried just disappeared against the dark background and this lighter piece for the tree isn’t working either.

Driving to town, I noticed the Sycamore trees are almost white; perhaps we will have a Sycamore tree. It’s a challenge, but thankfully one that I enjoy, to find the right balance of fabrics to make a piece work.

In the meantime I am sewing some fire sections that I am happy with, and continuing to audition fabrics.

When I found this fabric in the stash, I thought it would be perfect for the horizon. There was not much of it left but just enough! I liked the illusion of distant flames and glow that was printed in the fabric.

But from a distance, it just didn’t give the contrast from land to sky that I needed.

I tried this one that has the right colors for night sky and reflected glow that I had already cut for a spot in the previous photo.

Still not right.

This one gives me the contrast that I need and it may be the right choice.

Finally. It feels good to be creating again! Last week I finished the sketch

and started to pull some fabrics from the stash. We have thousands of different fabrics; isn’t it amazing that our brains have logged it all and we know what is there, and pretty much where it should be! So I spent extra time looking for the one that I could not find, and finally it turned up, hidden inside a stack of similar color – right where it should be!

There are lots more fabrics here than I will actually use and probably more still on the shelf that haven’t called to me yet.

The next day I transferred the design to the freezer paper in the reverse so that when the pieces are ironed to the backside of the fabric they will be in the proper orientation.

This step has to be followed by marking the pattern to aid in matching the pieces for sewing.

Before quitting for the day, I had to cut just one piece!

This is going to be another prairie fire quilt, to replace the one that sold after winning one of the top awards at Houston a few years ago. It will be of similar orientation, but with curved seams instead of straight, and perhaps a night scene instead of daytime. Stay tuned for progress reports……..

Robin finished her Yellowstone scene! I think she did a great job, adding just enough to make it real, but leaving out enough to keep it from being too busy. I love how the lines of the sky and the hills oppose each other adding interest and how the clouds reflect in the water. Her quilting adds the finishing touch to this memory of her trip to Yellowstone.

Posting this brings back memories for me, too, of the wonderful week spent at Asilomar for Empty Spools and the fun times we had in the workshop. I’m looking forward to doing it over again at the Hudson River Valley Art workshops in April – join me?

I’ve been working on a few small items to enter in the Topeka Art Guild’s annual Holiday sale. This year they asked that nothing be over $100, so I didn’t do the usual piecing, but rather machine quilted commercially printed fabrics.

“Parrot”, 12 x 12″ has already sold! It is framed without glass because I think it is important to let the tactile qualities of the work be a focal point, and this one has lots of quilting and texture.

There are also two musical jewelry boxes with quilted inserts under glass for practicality. The first one is from the same fabric as the parrot.  They both play “These are a Few Of My Favorite Things”.

Two related abandoned farm scenes in matching frames round out my offerings this year; “Farm For Sale” and “Old Blue Car”. Only $30 each!

I will be working the reception this evening for First Friday and I hope to get a good crowd and lots of sales because there are some really wonderful pieces there this year. Do come, if you are in the area!