Well I finally finished my Flower Power Challenge, and ended up with 2 quilts. In my previous post, I showed a couple photos of flowers and what I had done with them so far. Labor Day Monday, I got into the quilting groove and stayed there for a few days, and ended up finishing both quilts. The first one used the layout of flower photos from the previous post. I had originally wanted to use my sunprints with the photos, but they didn't look right together, so I ended up doing one quilt with the photos, and one quilt with sunprints. I decided to use fused crazy patch in both, so I started the day by making new fabric from scraps and bits from past year's projects.
Above are photos of the process of making my crazy patch fabric. I have been fusing directly to batting in the past, and satin stitch seaming the pieces, but did not want to do the seaming that way, so I fused the pieces to a piece of Wonder Under backing paper. When I apply the fusible to large pieces of fabric, I keep the backing paper after I remove it, it has many uses. Here I am using leftover pieces of different fabrics in whites, creams, beiges, and pale colors. All fabrics have the Wonder Under fusible on them. I cut the pieces into random slices, and start fusing them to the backing paper. (be sure to only use teflon sheet, parchment, or fusible backing paper, so it will peel off when done) I used my new Clover Mini Iron II this time. It worked quite well, it fused enough to keep things where I wanted them, while saving electricity and not heating up the room like my 1500 watt regular iron does (not what you want to do for hours on a hot summer day). I overlapped each piece over it's neighbors for a secure "seam", and layed them down randomly, trying not to have the same fabric side by side, until the paper was covered (it takes a long time). When done, I used my regular iron to be sure all the pieces were fused very well to each other.
The center detail shot shows the quilting done in the crazy patch areas, using a variegated thread in pastel colors that are found in the photos. The flowers in the photos are outline quilted with clear thread.
The whole quilt. "Echinacea Collage" it measures 23" x 26 1/2". I took it outdoors to photograph, and just as I got all set up, the wind picked up, but I did manage to get the photos.
The second piece I ended up doing, used a large sunprinted panel, and a smaller piece of another. The above photo is the initial layout and trial on the design wall.
Here is the full view of the finished "Echinaceas and Butterflies" This one is 20 1/2"x30 1/2" in size. Both pieces are finished with "binding" on the edges with the yarn used for the couching. Two rows are couched on, one to the very edge, and the second, over the stitching of the first.
It's amazing how fast some pieces come out, after months of ideas floating in my head. I still have ideas to use sunprints with the coloring book looking prints I put on fabric last week (shown in the previous post). Not sure what is to come?
Hmmmm… I just realised that the quilt I have used for my photo at the top of the blog is another that will be travelling to Houston for the quilt show. It's name is "Summer Rainbow", and it will be in the IN FULL BLOOM exhibition along with my "Iris Vases" pair.
I am a former textile artist and new pattern designer with a degree in horticulture, wishing to share my love of nature, flowers and gardens with everyone through my photos, sunprinted fabrics, and now pattern designs. Chronic Lyme Disease has caused major changes to the direction my life. I have to limit the amount of time spent digging in my gardens, and quilting has become more difficult. I discovered pattern design as a way to get art back into my life. I now use my gardens and photos to inspire designs that can be used on fabrics and print on demand items.
