Monday, February 28, 2011

"Inspired by" - The Series

I made the most of a weekend at home. My friends were off to the Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival (the Hampton Roads Show), but I decided to stay home this time and work in my studio. My Circle Challenge for the Art Bee was due last week, but I hadn't even started it.. I hate to admit it, but I’ve known about it since December!

Why wait? Well, I wasn’t feeling inspired. :o(

Based on a piece of art by Brazilian artist Beatriz Milhazes, I drew up my design weeks ago, but I didn’t do anything with it…until this past Saturday! (If I missed the quilt show, I was going to have something to show for it!!!) The challenge deadline had come and gone. Now my mind was clear enough to begin what ended up as a series of quilts:

I began by making one the size of my drawing (done on a napkin!) and stepped it up a little bigger (and then a little bigger than that.)  My pieces measure 2" x 3", 3.5" x 5.5", and 8.5” x 11".  Basically, that's a business card, an index card, and a piece of notebook/computer paper!  They were done with fusible applique, but I’m not sure where I want to go from here. Any suggestions?

To see the inspiration piece, look for:

Beatriz Milhazes
Popeye, 2008
Acrylic on canvas
78 3/8” x 54 3/4”

Until next time...
Happy Quilting!

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

First Completed UFO of 2011!!!

Black, White and Red All Over is my first completed quilt for the Winter 2011 UFO Club. This quilt started (back in early 2010) as a result of some friends getting together to try fabric weaving. I had done weavings with straight strips and no fusible product before.(The photo is broken.  Click on the photo box and it will take you to the picture page.)

Question: What should I do???

Answer: Try something NEW!!!

After adding fusible webbing to the back of my fabric selections, I cut curved strips, and wove them together to create a background. Well, that was fun...but, what now?

Next came the curvy red border treatment. (Also applied with fusible.) However, that left the center of the piece blank. NOT good! In keeping with the artsy feel of the piece, I simply added a couple of off-kilter red X's. What do YOU think?

Well, I liked the effect and it certainly wasn't something that I had done (or seen) before! :o)

Done, but not completed. The question that remained was... how should I quilt it? It was a question that went unanswered for MONTHS. And that answer came just three days ago when my quilt buddy came over to sew with me and her answer was... Don't!

The only "quilting" ended up being the stitching lines used to hold down the red bits. Those lines go through all three layers and are, therefore, quilting. (And it's just enough!) Unfortunately, I needed the quilt to be totally finished by Monday night because my Art Bee WAS the program for the quilt guild!

There was no time to add a traditional binding AND have time to sew it down by the next night (Plus, I couldn't decide what color binding I wanted to use.) What's a quilter to do?! SERGE!!!

I took a hint from a fellow quilter on Ravelry. She mentioned that she no longer attaches a  binding to any of her quilts. She chooses to serge them because she would rather them be done this way, than have them sitting around waiting to be bound. (The binding is her least favorite part of quilting!)

So, a non-traditional finishing technique was used for a change of pace on this little 9" x 12" quilt. TIP: Don't forget to put a dab of anti-fray product on the corners so that your "binding" won't come un-sewn!

Another completed project should be right around the corner.  I'll be sure to post when I'm done with it.

Until then...
Happy Quilting!

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Zentangle


Zentangle
Originally uploaded by basketcasejoy
What IS a zentangle?  At its most basic, a zentangle is a doodle!

According to http://www.zentangle.com/index.php it is described as an "easy to learn method of creating beautiful images from repetative patterns." The website also goes on to explain that it's a meditational artform, you enter a zen-like state while working on them. My favorite statement was this, "You always succeed when creating a zentangle because you always create a pattern." (Which is a lucky thing for me because to say that art was NOT my strongest subject would be an understatement!)

Some of the zentangles are EXTREMELY complex. While, perhaps not the MOST basic designs, I did choose a relatively simple design that I thought would translate well into the quilt that I was planning.

My quilt started out as a quick sketch of a zentangle found on Google images. While zentangles are traditionally 3.5" square and can be created in about 15 minutes, my quilt stretched the original design into a 10.5" x 15" rectangle (and took about an hour to create.)  Why was my quilt rectangular? Because my "square" started out as an 8.5" x 11" sheet of paper that I folded in half and then folded it in half again. (And I apparently skipped the part about the "traditional" size!)

Oh, well...there's something to be said for "artistic license!" (So much so that this quilt is my Circle Challenge for my Art Quilt Bee, even though there was a totally different inspiration piece.)

Until next time...
Happy Quilting!

Friday, February 18, 2011

A New Look for The Joyful Quilter

Tonight I was feeling brave (and no one was here to distract me.)  So...you may notice that things look a little brighter around here.  What do you think?  Feel free to comment on the new look and the gadgets that have been added...or let me know if you have suggestions for improvement.

What happened???

My coffee shop friend Erin over at www.CreativeCountryLiving.blogspot.com was writing a post and I commented on how nice her blog looked.  (It sounded more like, "How did you GET all those things to show up over along the side of the page?)  She was kind enough to share some tips about Blogger.  Thanks, Erin!

How did I do?

Monday, February 14, 2011

4-Patch Kaleidoscope


4-Patch Kaleidoscope
Originally uploaded by basketcasejoy
Winter UFO Club Featured UFO # 7

Question: Should this, my newest UFO, become a quilt before all the others waiting in line???

Answer: No, but it might become a quilt top! :o)

Piecing is SO much more fun than the actual quilting part!

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Frog Legs and Caviar


Frog Legs and Caviar
Originally uploaded by basketcasejoy
Winter UFO Club Featured UFO # 6

Question: Will the intended recipient get this in time for his 1st birthday???

Answer: Let's HOPE so because it was supposed to be his baby quilt!

I've started working on the back for this quilt and I've got a Sew Date scheduled for this weekend. This could really happen!