Ta Da!!!!!

It is finished !!!!

...and yes, there is another one on the drawing board.

Happy Day !

Thread Painting

To call it thread painting is to use the theory very loosely.  I still haven't master the art of free hand machine quilting so I go back to what I am comfortable with.  Good old straight stitching with lots of curves!  

 

90% is done with straight stitching but the stems and the small shadow between the pears are free handed.

Moving right along with the stitching.  I have three layers that are being sewed through: top, batting, and stabilizer.  I would have put a backing on this but I am thinking of going with an envelope back because I have never did a backing this way.  

 

I still wanted to add some red to the pear on the left.  Even though it is hard to see in the picture there is just enough to balance with the dark green.  And it made me happy :-)  You can see in this photo some of the shadow stitching.

Now this could open up a whole new quilt project.  I've seen it done in large quilts where the design is totally stitched using colored thread.  But for now we will flip it over and finish it tomorrow.


Happy quilting!


 

Audition Time !

It only took one time to remember that patterns have to be cut in a reverse image if you want them to match your picture and the same holds true with cutting out your fusible appliques.

I've found using a light box helps but if you do not have a light box then a window works the same.  

Now comes the fun part (and also the frustrating part).  Finding just the right fabric to use. I did want to match the rosie red of the pear on the left but I didn't have quite the right material so after many trips to the red bin, I decided to then go with a darker green.  

 

 Not liking the pink/red at all.

Not exactly thrilled with the dark green either.

But this is only going to be a sample, test art quilt so we will see if adding stitching and embellishments helps.

At least they still look like a pair of pears!

Being lost in the excitement of doing this project I jumped ahead a step.  I find it easier to do the free hand stitching on the top layer before ironing down the fusible pieces.  OOP's. 

Back to the quilt books....I know there are a few of them on the shelf with "How to free hand machine quilt"  information.

Hey Keith - loved your pink birthday cake!!!  Is this going to be a new fad for the men in the Davidson family??

 
Happy birthday to Keith.... and happy stitching to others.

 

If You Can Read....

I've always been of the mind that if a person can read then they can learn to do anything they have an interest in.  Now that being said... for years I've been collecting quilt books and found the pictures interesting and sometimes inspirational.  Notice the word 'pictures'.  I would very seldom take the time to sit and read the content but now that endless time has been presented it was time to do some reading and use some of the quilting tools I've accumulated through time.

So this will be the start and finish (hopefully) of an art quilt.  We will make this journey together and hope the product ends up as a satisfaction and not something that gets folded and put away. 

I found this book at The Fabric Depot in Portland on my way to my mom's.  It is not that I don't have other books on the subject!  But this book has a really easy, clear explanation of the start-to-finish process of a photo art quilt (and I had time at my mom's to get past the pictures).

If you are comfortable using a digital camera and have a photo editing program on your computer then you are ready to start.  I use Photo Shop Elements as it is a trimmed down version of Photo Shop and is simple enough for even me to get around in.

What to take a picture of?  Big decision as the world is filled with the most interesting subjects.  But I wanted to start simple and fruit works very well for simple.  

This wasn't the only pear picture.  But after bringing into the photo editing program I really liked part of it so that was what was cropped and printed.

I will be using the fusible applique process with raw edges.  The outlined fruit will be the pattern.  Next big step will be going through fabric and finding just the right colors/patterns.  No matter how much fabric you have in your stash, you will never have just the right piece.  I can see already that this will mean a trip or two to the local quilt store.

Off to the loft and the fabric stash.


Happy quilting.

A Visit With Mom!

This lady is amazing!  How many women do you know that are 92 years old, lives on their own, can play a mean game of Scrabble, can argue politics, and can out-shop you any day of the year?

That's her - Mom/Grandma/Great Grandma!

Upon arrival on Thursday it was out to an early dinner.  That is after shopping at Kohl's and Target.  Put her anywhere close to a car and she is ready to go.

Friday was a doctor's appointment in the morning with one of her favorite doctors.  Dr. Weller and her have the cutest relationship between them.  Of course, they have been seeing each other for years.  

Can you tell she is happy to be seeing Dr. Weller!

After her doctor's visit we went, of course, shopping!  Today's shopping was at Wal-mart, Freddies, out to lunch at Anthony's, the farmers market, and back to Kohl's.  Maybe not exactly in that order but close.  

Another day and another happy smile!

Thanks Mom for a wonderful time!