Happy Easter!

Just in time for Easter, my garden lily bloomed. I hope you are having a wonderful Easter Day.

Sunflower in a Vase Eyeglass Holder!

Sunflower in Vase Eyeglass Holder

I finished this small quilted thread painting as an eyeglass holder. I put a magnetic closure at the top to keep the glasses secure. It's so nice to finish a project! Ta-da!

Sunflowers in a Vase 1, next steps

Here is my "Sunflower in Vase 1" almost finished. I completed the thread painting and then used Tsukineko inks to negative paint the area around the subject. Once that was done I quilted the background using a swirl design. I am going to make this into an eyeglass cover. I will show that once I have it done.

Sunflower in Vase Fiber Art Piece, first in a series

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 I like to work on  things in a series. One of the watercolor paintings in my gallery is of a sunflower in a vase. I have always wanted to do this as a fiber art piece, and decided to make a series of fiber art pieces based on this painting.

My first step was to trace the primary lines from my painting and then make enlargements of this tracing so I had various sizes to choose from.

Next I trace the painting onto fabric using an iron erasable pen.

A trapunto layer of batting

This fabric has my tracing on it. I wanted to give the vase a little loft, so I put a fluffy layer of batting behind it and sewed around the edge of the image. I then trimmed all the batting outside of the sewn edge. This is a form of trapunto.

Next I layered the trapunto'd top with batting and a back and pin basted it.

starting the thread painting

Here I have started my thread painting of the image on fabric. I have a bit more to do, and I will make a new post once it is further along.

Desert Sunset 1



Desert Sunset 1

 This is a piece I am working on that I am calling "Desert Sunset 1". It may be the first in a series, who knows?

I drew a simple desert scene on black fabric, and then thread painted the scene using bright threads. Next I applied oil paint stick to many of the areas in the scene. I may add some more stitching after the oil stick dries.


Oil Stick Painting Supplies

 These are my oil stick painting supplies. I use various oil paint sticks and oil bars, stencil brushes, and of course an old T-shirt for wiping the brushes and my hands. Sometimes I apply directly from the bar, and  other times I use the stencil to get oil paint from the bar and apply it to the fabric. I like the oil paint sticks because they leave the fabric with a soft hand, and come in a variety of colors and effects (iridescent, for instance).

Once I finish it I will post a photo of this piece.

Try out new techniques on small projects...

Sometimes it is fun to do some small things and test out techniques or ideas. This is a postcard sized art quilt that I call "Light as a Feather".  I made it for the Sisters, Oregon Wish Project fundraiser. This fundraiser benefits cancer patients in Central Oregon. This will be mailed in so it can be sold  to benefit this cause. I made this quilt by negative painting feathers using oil paint sticks, machine quilting, and beading.

You can learn more about the Wish Project by clicking on the link below.

Wish Project

The link for the Reno Show

If you are interested in the QSC Expo, here is the link:   http://qscexpos.com/

Art Quilts on Display at the QSC Expo in Reno, June 30- July 2, 2011

If you are in the area the weekend of June 30th - July 2nd, try to check out the QSC (Quilting, Stitches and Craft ) Expo in Reno. Two of my art quilts will be on display at this exhibition.

The quilt shown in these photos, which I call "Shell Seekers", is part of the Quilts on the Wall  "Discovery" Exhibit. This quilt was made from photos taken of visits to Moonstone, Oso Flaco and Pismo beaches on the central coast of California. I painted the scenes in the quilt using Tsukineko Paints. This close up shows my Sister-in-law Thea and niece Shannon collecting moonstones.

My other quilt on display is called "Pheasant", and is part of the "Nobel Seasons - Fall" exhibit. This quilt is shown in my slideshow, and to the left.