Quilt

In keeping with my using leftovers this year, I found the floral print that was left after making a Wearable Art garment. The leaves had the machining on them, but the rest I did in making the quilt. I rather like the print and am glad to not waste any of it. Blogger, of course, put it on its side.

The wild border seemed to belong with it. I tried carrying out the design into the background with the quilting. It's subtle but was fun to do.

Happy New Year to everyone. Let's hope it's a good one.

When I started the Journal Quilt challenge at www.3creativestudios.com I said I would do l a month which wasn't much of a challenge, since that was also what I was doing for the Bead Journal Project. Next thing I know, I'm pulling out samples from things I've tried over the years and putting them in Journal quilts. It's the perfect solution for saving the samples and organized some of them( I like to try things and experiment).

It's still hard to believe that this is number 52! It was a fun trip. Quilt group is today, so I'm bringing them, so everyone can choose one for their Christmas gift. We exchange hand crafted things---or candy. What could be better?

Gifts

These are the gifts I received from Vicki at www.3creativestudios.com for being in the Technique of the Month Challenge. I've enjoyed all the challenges and will miss them when she and Terri close the site at the end of the year. Thank you so much not only for the gifts, but for all the hard work you've both put in.

The pressing sheet will get lots of use, the book looks interesting and is one I don't have( a bookaholic), Misty fuse is my favorite fusible. The fabrics beautiful. The journal from Sue B stunning, and a handmade card.

Quilt

Here's my motif again. I had the striped fabric from another project and wondered how it would work as patchwork sections. I like the effect and need to do more exploring. Again, I quilted it to echo the design lines.

Happy Holidays to everyone.

Painted fabric

I managed to do a couple more small pieces of fabric with the Sharpie Permanent Markers and alcohol. It pleases me to think that something that is "permanent" is so easy to manipulate.

Now I have a few pieces that relate and need to do something with them.

Journal Quilt

I cut a stencil from freezer paper and ironed it on turquoise fabric. Then I used small round labels and page reinforcers also as resists. Next came green paint. I hand stitched around the resulting shapes using hand dyed perle cotton and the back stitch and buttonhole stitch.

The result was the right size as a base for another journal quilt by adding the gold painted strips. It is machine quilted in those areas and edged with Chenille yarn using the zigzag stitch.

Quilt

I finally quilted the piece that uses the motif I work with and batik fabrics. I do love batiks. Sometimes it takes a while before the piece tells me how it wants to be quilted. Two are waiting in the studio right now. For this one I followed along the shapes of the dark areas and then added a few lines where they seemed to need to go. I mark with a soap sliver which comes out easily with a shot of steam when I block the piece after the quilting. Be sure to test though, as I've known people who were sorry with their marking method.

Lace Purse

When we were in California, a friend and I used to go to a special antique store. I always look for purse frames. Since this one isn't antique, the nice lady gave it to me.

It has sat around here for a long time but the painted lace seemed like it needed to go with it. I painted the lace with acrylic paints then bonded it to lining fabric. To make a pattern I traced just inside the frame then flipped it to create the bottom shape. I cut it out after adding seam allowances.  Once the fabrics were seamed and the lining attached leaving the bottom of the lining open, I beaded the flower centers.

Attaching it to the frame was a challenge, since it is hard to sew that close to the metal and is done by hand. To cover the stitching, I put 4 beads on each section then hand stitched lace on the inside to cover that stitching. It's the way the antique ones were done.  It's not my favorite but was a good learning experience.

Journal Quilt

In a box of samples, I found this painted flower that I did sometime in the past. Machine embroidery brought out the colors more and added definition. It is machine echo quilted with a variegated rayon thread and edged with a fuzzy pink yarn.

Quilt

Years ago I played around with Shiva Paint sticks using masking tape as a resist. I put the paint on the tape and used an old tooth brush to pull it onto the black fabric. I like the way it shades out using that method.

In this time that I've been pulling old samples out and seeing if I can do something with them, I found this and decided to hand stitch along the edges of the paint using Chain Stitch.

All the things I considered for finishing the piece were too complicated and detracted from it, so I went with a simple black border. To stop the lines from taking the eye off the center, I hand stitched a small border using Back Stitch.

The hand stitching is done in a cotton thread that I dyed. The quilting is straight line in black thread.

Woven papers

I have so many papers that I decided to see what would happen if I wove them.

It's not the traditional weaving.

I made slits in a paper and wove strips through the slits.

This makes them 2 sided. Now I need to use them for something.

Journal Quilt

The final Journal quilt for www.beadjournalproject.com It's hard to believe that another year is gone. This also works for the journal quilt a week for www.3creativestudios.com  I'll miss them now that they are going on to other things. The Bead group is going for another year at least. It's a lot of work to do this for people, and I appreciate the efforts of both groups.

Somehow December seems gray and silvery to me, so that's why I picked this color palette. I had the silver leaf trim in my stash having bought it on a trip with my friend. The beads are clear, so they are hard to see.

Quilt

As usual blogger put it sideways, but I like it this way. It's a machine quilted hanging that's  about 18" by 28". The Batik was my starting point. I wanted to hand stitch with back stitch to highlight some of the print then wondered what would happen if I extended it into the blue surrounding fabric and changed the color to the red.

I think it's a good way to "marry" the batik with the background. Here's a detail. Batiks are some of my favorite fabrics.