Crazy Quilt and Fabric Painting.

Idle hands are the devils instrument.

My hands are never idle, I always am doing something, and generally it is a sewing or fiber related project.

This week I have been busy painting some fun little motifs to crazy quilt upon. It started last week when I received a lovely note from a dear friend with a hand made little card. I have not written or called my friend in ages so I decided to make her a nice little post card with a UFO ( un-finished object) I had laying around for the last year.

Last year I painted this beetle and did a little patchwork quilting around it, started the embroidery then buried it in a pile of things I "would get back to."


Here is the finished postcard it is about 4"x 5" or so, and I sewed heavy paper to the back and wrote a note to send. I imagine it will be a nice surprise in the mailbox instead of a bill or a pile of junk mail.

I was so happy with my results I broke into my newest fabrics Moda Cross Weaves, very similar to Kaffe Fasset shot cottons. The warp and the weft are different colors or shades of colors and it gives the fabrics a homespun, earthy feel.





















I broke out my paints and painted up a few designs. My least favorite was the seahorse, so I figured I would take the bull by the horns and start the embroidery with that one.
I decided to try some new and more difficult stitches, this one to the left is a weave across two threads, I am doing it in segments to create coral.
In this photo you can clearly see the warp and weft of the cross woven fabric as well, I really like it.




I am really pleased with the seahorse so far, while I thought it was blah at first I found lots of inspiration and an feeling really good with the results so far. I still have a more fauna and flora I want to add, more kelp and seaweed, perhaps a sea flower or a fish.... not sure yet

For a larger view just click the pictures.




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WIP Modern Patchwork

Funky, Folksy and functional... a patchwork table topper from my leftover parts of a much larger project.

Still Working on it, I have been hand stitching and embroidering every inch of it. The texture is just what I was going for. The backside is an added bonus, because it is as interesting as the front and there are no knots or stay strings showing. So it is reversible.


My inspiration started here on The Silly Boo Dilly site. I am drawn to all her quilts and patchwork creations. Then I began to investigate the techniques that she is inspired by such as Japanese Boro and found a whole new source of ideas and things to ponder in my own future work.

I am also drawn to the quilting style of Gee's Bend, which is a utilitarian quilting style using old work clothes and used fabrics as not to waste anything. It is also visually striking, wonky, modern and to me, very interesting.