Three art quilts finished and more

Since my last post I’ve finished three projects, and worked on a couple more.

Every year I create something for the SAQA Spotlight Auction. It’s a small piece (6 by 8 inches) and will be put in a frame so the edges won’t show. I just left my edges raw.  It’s a piece of canvas I printed with wood blocks several years ago. I decided to stitch the spirals with orange thread to bring them out. I left the rest of the fabric without any stitches. I called it Spiraling. It reminds me that life will be going on fine and then some events or encounters will take over and send us spiraling in another direction. However, that’s not always a bad thing!

This is how it looks with a frame. This is a template we use to make sure our design fits right in their frame.

 

The next piece was the monthly Postcard Fabric Art – Quilt, Applique, FMQ, Paint, Facebook group’s monthly challenge. This month’s topic was anything about the beach. Since we recently returned from Hawaii, I just had to make mine about turtles. Here is Timmy.

The background is sun printed fabric with asparagus ferns as the masks. The bright colors come from Dye-na-Flow used full strength. I cut a turtle out of my ice dyed fabric and sewed him onto the background. Here I am free motion stitching a few of the ferns so they stand out.

Meanwhile Dave has been really getting into his woodworking. He also made a turtle, but out of wood. I had this piece of sunprinted fabric I had stitched up awhile ago that he wanted to use for his project. It’s the same as above with the ferns and Dye-na-Flow but I didn’t use the paint full strength. That gives a different look. He’ll be making a frame for this piece. I just love his Timmy!

Now this last piece I created for Quilting Arts Readers Challenge. It was called Farm to Table. I thought that highlighting collards from out garden would definitely be  unusual, and I’d get a space in the magazine, but that wasn’t to be. And that’s really okay. I love the piece regardless!

Here is my artistic statement I sent with the picture of this art quilt.

I don’t have to travel far to enjoy locally grown produce. In our 50′ x 50′ backyard garden, my husband grows most of the vegetables that make up our daily meals. Six years ago, he introduced collards to his crop selection. When he brought a bunch in for dinner one day, I couldn’t believe how beautiful they were. I begged him for a couple leaves to print on fabric. They turned out to be one of my favorite vegetables, but also a great leaf for my printing obsession and deserving of an art quilt. Since then, I’ve expanded my leaf printing repertoire to include broccoli, kohlrabi, and eggplant leaves. In addition to enjoying these delicious local vegetables, I’m able to take a few and add them to my art.

This is a 12 x 12 inch quilt. The background fabric is ice dyed green fabric over printed with collard leaves, and free motion quilted. The top leaves are printed with textile paint on white fabric, sewn, cut out, and attached to the top of the quilt.

Here is a closeup of the leaves.

That was so much fun to make. I’ve decided that I’m going to make a series called Garden to Wall. This one is Collards. I’ve already printed several of the other vegetable leaves. You can see them on this post. However, I’ll have to wait until summer to print others.

More to tell you about, but out of time. I did want to leave you with this first flower of Spring that bloomed last week. This is one of my Lenten Roses. I love them because they are always to first to bloom, and let me know it won’t be long until Spring.