Tuesday, 23 September 2014

Ok, holidays are over so. I have no more excuses about updating this blog. I've been really busy with workshops......
City lit weekend workshop with Dawn Dupree on screen printing with procian dyes
A one day workshop with Clive Barnett at Art Van Go again, on screen printing using various techniques
A one day workshop at Art Van Go with Edwina MacKinnon which focused on how to develop a design using one image.
I found all these workshops interesting and challenging enough to add some skills to my "repetoire".....oh, I really sound as if I know what I'm talking about don't I?? Lol!

Anyway, in my previous post I talked a little about a stencil quilt I had started and it's one of the projects I've been focusing on this summer and comes from based on a stencil suggested in a Linda Kemshall video. I made a stencil from mylar plastic and then applied the image to hand dyed fabrics using various techniques.
I made several panels before piecing them together.


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These two panels were made using markal oil sticks and spray paint.

Pieced together with varying shades of blue strips - the large strip on the right will become the border.

A final touch was to add text around the edge using painted bondaweb. The border now needs quilting before adding a binding. I'm quite pleased with the outcome particularly as I've tried out several new techniques here.

In addition to this I've been making the biggest quilt I've attempted so far which was a commission from a friend - dear God, it has knackered me this week as I've pushed myself to finish it before i go off on my painting holiday in France. I've taken some photos to show the stages need to make and complete a quilt:

1. The fabric needs to be cut up and sorted into their colours - in this case dark blue,  medium blue, dark olive, medium olive.

 The strips are sewed together and then cut into rectangular shapes.

 The shapes are then pieced together into larger strips which are again pieced together to make the quilt.

You can see the pattern emerging with an interplay of dark and light fabrics.


The final quilt - this was hard but I'm pretty pleased with it now. Hope she is!!!