Studio Updates (Photo Heavy)

It's all about the little things.

Starting in the design studio . . . 

I've spent quite a bit of time this month clearing away clutter that has built up over the past few months, including moving my pin basting pool noodles off this counter top to make the space more functional.

The noodles have dowel rods inside to keep them straight when in use and I realized (at long last) that if I used painters tape over the ends, I could stand those noodles in a corner of the closet instead of needing to store them flat on the counter.

I also updated my storage system for the various paper types I use in my journals - again, more space efficient and far easier to access.  

There's a fourth wire mesh file box on order that will go in the corner (where the rolodex is now) that I'll use to keep notes and papers for active and pending projects.  I'm tired of keeping all those details in my head - they're much too noisy. 

(and through all of this, I tossed a lot of stuff I saved thinking I would use it -- as I've learned more about how I prefer to work with papers/books, I've realized I don't need nearly as much "raw paper" as I thought back at the beginning)

Another splurge was this - a poster reproduction of mixed media collage artwork by illustrator Eulalia Mejia purchased through Etsy seller Happy Chinchilla.

The  colors just make me happy.

DH Christmas-gifted me this new light for my art table - it is amazing.  

I especially like that I can rotate/pivot the whole arm/light out of the way when I'm draping fabric or taming a newly-finished quilt over the drafting table.

(light is turned off in this photo)

Can you see/feel the difference when it is turned on at full power?  

From the other side of the room -- looking at the design wall across the top of the drafting/cutting table, you can see the top of the lamp and the back of my art table chair.

You can also see the new tassel garlands I've added along the top of my design wall (I can't reach that high to pin anything so I decided to fill that boring void with some happy colors).

I also framed and hung this greeting card by artist Jennifer Lambein who sells her work via Textured Home on Etsy.  

Moving from the design studio to the sewing studio . . . 

I spent a morning and cleaned up my "waiting to be quilted" closet.

If you locate the wood rod hanging down amongst the hanging fabric -- the hangers on the left hold tops and backs ready for FMQ action.  The hangers on the right are holding backing fabrics for quilt tops that are waiting in the wings.  (and yes, go ahead and laugh, I have tags on each one to remind me what belongs to which project -- but no, Lynne, they are not in alphabetical order)

Turning to the right in the closet, these are the top two shelves. 

Again, I've arranged things that make me happy on the top shelf (watercolor done by elder son in high school).

On the other side of the room, I added this "door hanging" much like those often found next to the doors in homes in India.

It adds just a flash of color between the edge of Someday is Now and the window by my sewing machine.  

And finally, here are photos of two finished projects.

Who doesn't like a finish?!

I added this wrap tie to my January Journal and the book is now on the bookshelf instead of my work table.

I've also finished my December journal, added its wrap tie (two pieces of silk sari yarn), and put it away in the Christmas closet.

Done and dusted.

* * *

Schools here are still closed due to the bitter cold (particularly for those who walk, bike, or stand and wait for the bus) so LM has spent a little time late afternoons sledding in the big park along the Mississippi.  

They've been there at sunset the past two days -- and you can tell by the number of footprints, they haven't been the only ones.

Our temps will stay very cold through the weekend but by the middle of next week, they'll be in the sixties.

(talk about sinus whiplash!!)

Quiltdivajulie

-----------------------------------------------

"It's impossible to make your eyes twinkle if you aren't feeling twinkly yourself."

Roald Dahl

Dumpster Diving 7 - Respite - the Quilt

Dumpster Diving 7 - Respite 

51" x 63"

Made with bits and pieces leftover after 

making two previous quilts:

Dumpster Diving 5 - Catharsis

and

Dumpster Diving 6 - Lagniappe

The top was completed in December 2019.

Quilted with my liberated all over fans

using Glide thread in Lilac.

This is the gloriously scrappy back . . . 

These colors have been such a joy to work with

which is a good thing since there are THREE quilts 

made from too many over-enthusiastically cut 1.5" strips.

The wind was not very helpful . . .

especially since it blew the quilt off the fence

onto the soggy ground right after I took this photo. 

You can read more about my Dumpster Diving quilt series HERE.

* * *

Some of you might remember the challenges I made to myself

back in January with regard to free motion quilting.

Nearly three months later, I have a major update to share.

I've done a lot of doodling, reading, and 

watching of video tutorials since January 

and completed seven quilts during that same time period.

Something I read along the way really resonated with me -- 

I wish I had written down where I found the article, but I didn't.

In short, in order to reduce the "how should I quilt it" stress

one longarm quilter decided to simply 

choose one of her five favorite motifs 

rather than trying to find or develop something new 

for each of her waiting quilt tops.

Wow.

I absolutely love my all-over fans with their many variations

and the marvelous texture they create.

I have several other favorite all-over designs 

documented in Max's Stitch Library .

So I'm going to stop worrying with 

feathers and swirl hooks, meandering, vines, 

and those pesky leaves that refuse to cooperate.

Decision made - keep it simple (and fun).

* * *

I won't be posting again until Monday so

I'll share this "studio upgrade/update" photo now.

DH helped me recover my pressing table - SO much better.

And I hung Someday is Now on the wall.

(the pink and green quilt was made by Wanda Hanson)

Here's a closer look at the framed item in the corner.

When I saw it on Etsy, I just couldn't resist . . . 

* * *

Finally - a question for you.

I have been posting using Blogger's MEDIUM font size.

This post is done with the LARGE font size.

Is one easier for y'all to read than the other?

 

Quiltdivajulie

-----------------------------------------------

“Whether the flower or the color is the focus I do not know.  I do know the flower is painted large to convey my experience with the flower – and what is my experience if it is not the color.”

Georgia O’Keefe

Someday is Now - the Quilt

After thinking about it for what seemed like years

I finally bought Sujata's Organized Chaos pattern in mid-2016.

One test block told me my wildly eclectic assortment of scraps was all wrong.

Those scraps were returned to their boxes 

and the pattern sat unattended for another year.

THIS POST tells the next part of the story.

(for more on Chihuly's glass on glass technique,

click here and scroll down)

* * *

Someday is Now's finished quilt top was finally shared

on February 1, 2019.

And since then the top and back have hung in the

waiting-to-be-quilted closet until I figured out a FMQ plan.

Sometime last month I came up with this idea.

Enhancing the secondary circles had been my sticking-point

but this approach made that happen.

(fine-point Sharpie on a black and white draft photo -

not to scale but enough to work out a plan)

I made these rough notes to remind me of the continuous line's quilting path.

After then it was time to sit and stitch.

Max doesn't particularly like heavy seam intersections

but there was no avoiding them this time.

Two needle changes (heavy seams and lots of batiks)

made things go more smoothly.

Glide thread in Nickel blended beautifully across all the colors.

I'm thrilled with the results

and grateful that my liberated unmarked FMQ skill set has

grown enough to be able to give this quilt what it has waited for. 

Taken with only side light from my window to show the textures.

If you look closely, you can see how I extended the arcs into the borders.

(I quilted the center first and then worked my way around the borders)

At long last this particular five-year-plus journey has reached fruition.

Finished quilt 49" x 63"

Quiltdivajulie

-----------------------------------------------

“I don’t know If something can be too colorful.  Color is one of the great properties of glass and is more intense in glass than any other material.  Imagine entering Chartres Cathedral and looking up at the rose window; you can see a one-inch square of ruby red glass from 300 feet away.”

Dale Chihuly

Ready to FMQ

Someday is Now has been pin basted . . . 

( earlier posts are HERE and HERE )

I've worked out a light-custom continuous line FMQ design

and I really want to get started on it yet this week.

I also decided to make some whole cloth utility mats for March.

The scattered floral will be the "top side"

while the sprinkles fabric will serve as the back.

I'll bind these with the scattered floral when the time comes.

This one will be a runner for the top of my grandfather's cedar chest

which is now used as our "coffee" table in the living/family room.

The batik fabric at the top of the photo will be the backing.

The middle fabric is a linen weave (Warehouse District line) 

and it will be the "top" of the runner.

I plan to use the Bella solid as binding.

*

Time to wind some bobbins, fire up Max, and start stitching.

Quiltdivajulie

-----------------------------------------------

“Green is the prime color of the world, and that from which its loveliness arises.”

Pedro Calderon de la Barca

January Wrap Up and Goals for February

I quilted and finished three quilts in January --

Haimish, Sukoon, and Winsome.

I have pulled and prepped three more long-waiting projects

for quilting during February --

Sea of HSTs, Heliophilia, and Someday is Now

have their tops and backs rolled onto pool noodles

ready for batting and pin basting.

(and for the record, that broken window shown in Heliophilia's post

was at long last replaced with a complete new installation just last week)

I moved one project to quilt top status in January --

Dumpster Diving 10 - Do Tell

And I finally settled on the design I want to use

for my twelfth and final Dumpster Diving quilt.

There's lots of prep work needed before

any stitches will be taken on DD 12 -  Journey's End

so please don't expect an update any time soon.

February's quilt top/back goal is Lagoon,

the kitchen table quilt planned for June.

The blocks are sewn and the borders are cut

making these one ready for layout and assembly.

(plus a pieced backing to design and sew)

I've chosen and started two longer-term projects that will help me 

use up many of the leftover Dumpster Diving strips and segments -- 

Nubilous and Hoppipolla

There are others still in the gestation phase.

I'll share more on those if and when they actually happen.

I finished at least one of each of the differently sized

lined drawstring gift bags.

These quickly became my "tomorrow" project

which needs to change if I'm going to have the stockpile

I've planned by year end.

(truly, they don't take that long once fabric choices are made

and the cutting out is done, especially since the biggest part 

of my learning curve has already happened,

so I"m not sure why they fell victim to such procrastination)

Beginning with February, I plan to choose fabrics and cut out 

all of the bags during the first week of the month

 AND I'll make all of the drawstring ties first 

so they're ready to insert as each bag is ready.

I also want to try some of the 

paracord for ties in the smaller bags.

The largest bag (upper right above) is huge.

In the photo it is filled with FOUR of our couch pillows.

The other bags in these photos are filled with an assortment

of Little Man's building blocks, hot wheels cars, and a couple of books

making those sizes more likely to be used more often.

I do think that some sort of assembly line process

will work better than this month's start-to-finish with each individual bag.

We'll see how things go with the next batch.

And unexpectedly, I completed a Do-Over

for Trick or Treat, October's kitchen table quilt top.

* * *

Away from the machines, I rearranged the closet where I keep my project boxes

so that the ones slated for attention in 2021 are front and center

with the others moved off to the side.

Here's to the month ahead . . . 

Quiltdivajulie

-----------------------------------------------

“Listen to the colour of your dreams.”

The Beatles

Sea of HSTs - From the Beginning

This is the quilt that inspired Sea of HSTs . . . 

that and the fact that I was left with 

a large stack of leftover batik triangles

after making Someday is Now.

"Triangles in Squares"

Maker Unknown - Gee's Bend, Alabama - 1970s

76-3/8" x 76-1/2"

Part of the Ella King Torrey Collection 

of African American Quilts

at the Philadelphia Museum of Art

Accession No. 2006-163-4

I've posted about the background work for this project

HERE and HERE and HERE.

This past week it was finally time

to start laying out parts on the design wall.

LOTS of experimentation was involved

including raiding the project box

for Lagniappe to swap out several fabrics.

By Friday the layout was settled

and a plan for the extra pieces devised.

Clearly this one is a challenge to take photos indoors.

(my design wall is NOT that pink)

The sewn-together center measured 

33" wide by 45" long.

Once the borders were sewn in place

the quilt top measured

45" x 57"

And then it was time to work with 

the leftover HST blocks.

I created two 67" long insert strips

to use in the quilt's back.

From the Outside In by Malka Dubrowsky 

and Typewriter Keys by Julia Rothman.

Both of these have been in the stash

waiting patiently for a long time.

The colors in the top in this outdoor photo

are closer to reality but now they look faded out.

The neatly folded top and back are headed

to the closet of waiting-to-be-quilted projects.

I hope they don't wait there too long

because I really like this one's quirky nature.

(I'm thinking August needs to be a month

for quilting and finishing . . . )

* * *

There were nine extra sets of 4 HTSs plus one single

left behind after making inserts for the back.

I'll share their fate next week -

and it did not involve the trash can.

Quiltdivajulie

----------------------------------

"You need to let little things that would ordinarily bore you suddenly thrill you."

Andy Warhol