My Great Quilting Expedition

We've had a lot of snow here over the past couple of days, so I've had a good excuse to finish my painted whole cloth.  I am happy with it, but wish I was braver with the quilting.  It feels like a cheat when the painting only took about 10 minutes, but it took me two days to quilt it.  I have called the quilt ' Liquorice Allsorts'. I think I may have a play with the Dye-na-flow and some Markal sticks I have, which I think would act as a resist if applied first?  We'll see.

On the back of trying out Dye-no-flow paints, I thought I'd try a larger piece.  The inspiration was the big lollypop with spiral design on them (that I used to see when I was little).  I used a pipette to apply the paint to the white cotton.  It was fun.  It is so much fun to make something without much of a plan!  I also painted another piece at the same time  - this time inspired by Bassetts Licquorice Allsorts.  I am quilting it at the moment. 

Sometimes 'stuff' happens by accident.  I bought a Jacquard Dye-na-flow exciter pack at the Festival of Quilts last year.  It had sat on my shelf since then and I thought I'd see what the paints were like.  I cut  a 16 inch square of white cotton and squeezed the paint straight from the bottle diagonally in both directions.  Where the paint was still wet, it bled into paint on the crossover locations and gave an interesting effect.  It had been my intention to throw the test piece away, but I wondered if I could actually use it.  When the paint was dry, I heat set it with the iron and then appliqued on some circles.  I used ombre fabrics from my stash.  I free motion quilted in dark thread around the coloured areas but didn't worry about staying on the lines.  Lastly, I free motioned a stipple stitch using white thread on the white areas.  I cut my binding and splattered some paint onto it - again direct from the bottle....

I have done very little free motion quilting over the last year.  Most of my quilts have been too 'busy' to merit anything other than basic quilting.  I know I was very rusty and needed a project that would get me using my fmq brain. Last summer I made a feathered star mini quilt for a swap.  I was given a list of the recipient's likes and dislikes.  She liked quilts with lots of white space and modern quilting.  I kept the quilting very simple and used straight lines.  I enjoyed the process, but wondered what a large version with more traditional quilting would look like. In the end, I chickened out somewhat on the design and went for a simple orange peel design for all the outside white space.  However, just the physical process of fmq was very beneficial and therapeutic.  Maybe next time I'll be more ambitious.

I wrote a list in February of UFOs, WIPs and new projects.  What progress did I make? My list at the start of 2017 Works in Progress Carol’s friendship quilt Hearts and Flowers 2 TQS 2017 BOM Daisy’s quilt Passacaglia quilt 2015 Quiltmania Mystery Quilt Hexi wallhanging Gem quilt Phoebe quilt Rambling Ways International Miniature Quilt Exchange ...and a list of projects to start Waiting to start Etoile Rouge 2017 BOM Quiltmania 2016 Mystery quilt Amish II Nancy Rink Quilt Diamond Hill by Esther Aliu   So...what progress did I make IN 2017?   Works in Progress Carol’s friendship quilt -FINISHED Hearts and Flowers 2 - FINISHED TQS 2017 BOM - HALF COMPLETED Daisy’s quilt - FINISHED Passacaglia quilt - NO PROGRESS 2015 Quiltmania Mystery Quilt - NO PROGRESS Hexi wallhanging - NO PROGRESS Gem quilt - FINISHED Phoebe quilt - NO PROGRESS Rambling Ways - TWO BLOCKS DONE ...and my list of projects to start ...

I signed up for a Christmas postcard swap with the FB group UKQU Postcard Swaps and made two. I used my usual method of ironing the cotton to freezer paper before starting to colour.  This stops the fabric from moving while you colour or paint.  It also protects your table surface once you apply fabric medium and start to blend colours.  I trimmed and backed the pieces with Timtex and them free motioned  - I hesitate to say thread painted as I used the thread sparsely, using black thread.  Lastly I fused some white cotton to the back of the card and used a zig zag \ satin stitich around the edge.  I hope the recipients will like them. I so enjoyed making the Christmas robin postcard, I thought I'd have a go at a wren and a kingfisher.  Once they were painted, I didn't really know what to do with them.  I decided to make table mats from them.  It is such a bonus when you can find coordinating fabrics in your stash!  These were ...

I have been having fun painting on some pfd white cotton.  The designs are by Jacquelynne Steves, from her Art of Home Club.  I used Jacquard Textile Color paint in a palette limited to 5 colours.  I have always admired the traditional folk art on canal barges in the UK and chose my colours as a nod to those cheerful, happy barges. I'm thinking of adding sashing around each block and then, maybe adding an outer border painted with some of the garlands on the blocks... maybe slightly enlarged.  I'm not sure yet.