Update on Taos

I can't believe how long it has been since I did any work on my Taos art quilt! Time has a way of flying! But now that all the shows are done for the year, and I have finished the Christmas shopping/mailing, sent out the Christmas cards, and caught up with some household chores, I finally found time to get some more work done on it:

Here is the top next to a copy of the photo I am working from

Here is a close-up of the grassy area I just got some work done on. My biggest challenge has been to find a good selection of thread colors to use on this project! I used hand-dyed fabrics, but I don't (yet!) dye my own thread... that may change soon! In the meantime, I haven't decided if I am going to finish this as a quilted wall hanging, or perhaps mount it in a frame. All the stitching is being done to just the foundation piece. I hope to have the stitching done before the end of the year. I love how it's coming along, and I'm anxious to see the finished piece!

Other than that, I have been building up my wholesale shop and looking for retailers to contact... if you know anyplace in your neck of the woods that might want to buy hand-dyed clothing and accessories, let me know, okay? Meanwhile, you can check out my new shop at www.tiedyejudy.trunkt.com. Let me know what you think of it, okay? Feedback is always welcome! Happy holidays to all!

Foundation for new landscape quilt

I finished the first layer on my new landscape quilt today:

To begin with, I transferred the line drawing shown in my previous post to a piece of unbleached muslin by laying the fabric over the line drawingt and tracing over the lines with permanent marker. Then I traced each section onto the rough side of a piece of wonder under fusible interfacing. I should mention that I had already pulled fabrics from my stash for the different sections, all but the piece on the bottom. I hand dyed that piece today... all other pieces are hand-dyed as well.
Starting from the top of the design, I fused the interfacing to the back of each piece, then cut out the design using the lines drawn on the interfacing. Then I scored across the paper backing of the interfacing and peeled off the paper. Then I placed the fabric in the proper section and used a damp pressing cloth to press over the fabric to fuse it to the muslin. In cases where I had pieces that were going to be placed on another piece, such as the tree or shrub pieces, I went ahead and cut out all the pieces for an area first before fusing any of the larger pieces that would cover my lines, then I made sure the pieces would cover the muslin completely. Once I had verified that, I removed all but the next layer to be fused, and continued to fuse in the proper order. That sounds confusing, but I go by the design I'm using as a reference to determine which piece goes down before the other pieces. For instance, sky comes first, then mountain, then background trees, then foreground trees, shrubs, grass, etc.
My next step will be to do some free-motion decorative stitching to create tree branches, grass, shadows, etc. Then I will make my 'quilt sandwich' which is the quilt top, batting, and backing, and then I will quilt through the three layers. I may need to go back and add some more decorative stitching after that, but if not, the final step will be to add the quilt sleeve and binding. I would love to have this piece done by the end of the month so I can include it in my exhibit at the Artists' Coalition Gallery, but I don't want to rush it. I'll post again when I have made more progress.

New Batik

I just finished a new Autumn Leaves batik, similar to the first one I did last year which just sold. I love this design, and batik is the ideal technique to create the varigated colors that are so typical of leaves that turn colors in the fall:

This one is a little smaller than the first one I did, only 10 1/2 X 23 1/4 inches, but it doesn't need to be very large to be noticed! I could do these from now until the cows come home, and not grow tired of the colors, the theme or the feeling I get when I look at them! I have always had a passionate love of autumn leaves, so to find a way to create art that represents them is a real joy for me!

Anatomy of a Landscape Quilt

I have mentioned in previous posts that I like to work from photographs - usually my own - to create my landscape quilts. Recently, I paid a visit to the blog of a very talented photographer, Chris Schutz, and fell in love with a photograph she had taken outside of Taos, NM, a place I have wanted to visit for awhile, but haven't made it yet. I contacted Chris to see if she would allow me to use her image as inspiration for a landscape quilt, and she very graciously granted me permission to do so! Well, I'm just in the design stage now, but thought I would try to document my process as I go, so here is the first shot:

I printed a copy of the image and used it to help me plot out the different areas of the design. I plan to fuse hand-dyed fabric onto a foundation piece where I trace out the design elements, then I will make the 'quilt sandwich' with lightweight batting and a backing piece, then finish up with free-motion quilting and embellishing. I really love this composition... the lights and darks, the colors and the organic shapes should lend themselves well to quilting! Stay tuned...

The struggle continues...

Since my last post I decided to remove the hand stitching and go with free-motion embroidery. I have to say that I am finding the process to be very tedious on this piece, as I am attempting to add shadows and highlights with the stitching. Here is my update:



Below is a detail of some of the stitching I have added:

So far, the highlights are working better than the shadows. I am thinking of adding a darker thread to 'cross-hatch' some of the darker shadow areas in the hopes that will make the shadows more realistic...

Fusing is done

I just completed the fusing step on my Alabama Hills Rock piece... now it's time to start the detail work with machine quilting. I am excited about this next step, but it's also a little scary. I'm still getting used to free-motion quilting, and although I have been pleased with the results I have achieved with previous pieces, it's still very new to me and my confidence level is not where I would like it to be. So we'll just have to see how things progress from here. I hope to have another progress report to share soon! Here is the latest picture:

Spring is in the air!

Finally, we have some warm, sunny days to enjoy! My friend Linda and I are going to have a play-date today, so I needed to do a little cleaning in the studio to make room for batik work and stamping. We also hope to do some discharging of darker fabric pieces using bleach water sprayed over areas not blocked by resist materials.

While I was cleaning up the studio, I hung my Rock piece, currently in progress, and thought I would post an update. I haven't had as much studio time this week as I would have liked, but I am close to being done with the fusing step.

Yesterday, I went to the library to see the local Quilting Guild's exhibit, which by the way I am now a member of! The quilts were fabulous, and I look forward to getting to know the other members of the Guild at their monthly meetings. Linda and I went to the meeting on Thursday as guests, and wouldn't you know? I have met several of the women who were there for the meeting! Small world, small town... I love it!