Fantasy Fish continued

 Fantasy Fish is continuing to evolve. I used Shiva Paintsticks to enhance the background with ferns, bubbles and such. Kaffe Fasset flowers appear as anemones. There are stencils and other surface treatments. I particularly enjoy the addition of the black and white around the fins.

This is not ready to quilt yet as more embellishing will be done, but its's a sneak preview.

Twinnies

"Twinnies" is one of a set of quilts that I made at a quilt retreat at the fabulous Ritter Ranch in Sajuarita, AZ in the spring. I made matching small quilts for me and my dear friend Barbara to represent our close bond. We've attended many camps and classes together and always had a wonderful time.

The sunflowers in the center are 6" squares with petals stenciled onto my own hand-dyed fabrics with Shiva Paintsticks. There is a quarter inch border of yellow and then an inch of plum before the final sunflower batik border.

The quilt is currently with Ginger Daugherty of Blue Magic Quiltworks of Mesa, AZ as she quilts sunflower designs into it. I'm anxious to post the finished quilt.

The quilt first appeared in Love of Quilting magazine by Fons and Porter in the July/August 2006 issue. It was in an article by Shelley Stokes entitled "Sunflower".  I have saved the pattern and fabrics for just the right opportunity and this was it.  

Halloween Quilt

Here is a quickie shot of a Halloween spider web lap quilt that was paper-pieced. I did the web blocks ten years ago and put it away in the closet to sew together later. It's never too late to make a quilt...or too early. And voile! I added a border and piano keys that I made at Ritter Ranch (the retreat center in Sajuarita, AZ) and here it is before the quilting. Keep watching, I'll post the finished quilt. It's a birthday quilt for my daughter-in-law Stephanie in Indianapolis. Her birthday is October 2. I'll send it in late September.

Chocolate Truffle

This is a sample of a larger piece called "Chocolate Truffle" which features browns, pinks and teals. It is machine embroidered with a double-blanket stitch in brown Masterpiece thread from Superior. I love to play with decorative stitches from my Bernina 200 machine and do a multitude of projects in all sizes. This one will turn into a "mug rug" for a local quilt guild challenge when it is completed.

It will be followed up by a larger piece but for now it is a small practice piece just to study the color combinations.

My Amish Effort

I love the Amish quilts with black and here is my effort in its early stages. It is the beginning of a paper-pieced spider-web design done with black solid and my hand-dyed scraps from other projects. Here it in progress on the design wall. It will be 3 blocks across and three blocks down with a border (as yet to be determined). What a fun project to do with scraps.

Halloween Quilt B

Here is a Halloween quilt in its earliest phase. I made the Chinese Coins strip at quilt camp at Ritter Ranch in Sierra Vista in April. They are doing double duty as the original work was for borders on a spider web quilt. Apparently I was very excited about the strips and made enough for two quilts. Who doesn't love grandchildren. Now both families will get treated on this fun holiday.

Fantasy Fish

This piece, in its early stages, is called ""Fantasy Fish". I plan to add paint sticks and stamping and lots of embellishment before this piece is complete. This is only the beginning. The fabric selection has been made and some stitching has been added. The pale background was selected for its embellishment opportunities. Visit again and watch it progress.

This is the backing of the fish fabric after I added the Shiva Paintsticks. More to come however...and in this view it is portrait not landscape like it will be on the finished quilt. But its evolving.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day from Indiana. Thanks!

Candy Rings

"Candy Rings"

Back View

Paper Piecing "Candy Rings"

This quilt design is from an old magazine in which the circles were multi-colored fabrics paper-pieced together. I decided to make them with black and white prints which create a fun contemporary blend. My plan for the finished quilt would be to have 25 "rings" on solid black blocks, surrounded by piano keys of additional black and white prints. A solid black dust ruffle would accent the finished ensemble.

The prints will appear on the front of the blocks as shown above, but the photos demonstrate how the "rings" are sewn on to black fusible interfacing and then turned such that the interfacing fuses to the top of the solid blocks. Double blanket-stitching will then be used to complete the circles.

Black & White

Isn't this a cute little outfit in black and white?