Lament

This is how the scene plays out: the host welcomes the guest and begins making excuses for their appearance, explaining the messy room, offering reasons (justification) for decor choices, etc.

I have often played the part of the host, overly concerned with the opinion of others. Even as I write this I struggle with worrying about what a reader will think of me. So, I spend an inordinate amount of time trying to find just the right words, stringing them in just the right phrases, hoping nobody misunderstands and thinks badly of me. Of course, that's a "catch 22" because while one wants to be understood, understanding doesn't guarantee a favorable opinion.

This post is an exercise in opening the door to me, without excuse or justification; without attempts to influence opinion. After all, your opinion is yours.

Last year it was suggested that my sister, Susan, and I put together an art quilt exhibit to be displayed at the Greenbean Coffeehouse in Greenwood, WA. (Our pieces were up during the month of May.)

The timing couldn't have been better. Depression was taking hold of me and it was very helpful to have a goal to work towards. I was able to complete about ten pieces. Most of them were just for fun but three ended up coming together as a triptych, loaded with meaning and symbolism. I was even inspired to name them; something which I rarely do.

Let me share with you the briefest glimpse of:

Lament

A passionate expression of grief, often in music, poetry, or song form.

Part 1

Subito

Suddenly, at once

The camel's back was broken; the scales tipped; the saturation point was reached.
Pick your idiom.
While these all suggest accumulation, progression or gradation, there's still that moment,
 when it feels like everything changes. 

In the blink of an eye. 

Suddenly.

Part 2

Dissonance

A tension or clash resulting from the combination of two disharmonious or unsuitable elements.

Trying to figure out how to accept the clash
of grief against hope, sorrow next to joy, fear while trusting.
The list could go on and on.

Part 3

Cadence

A harmonic progression that suggests a conclusion, if only a temporary one.

Finding a new normal.
Only a vestige remains of the old normal. Collecting the fragments into a new arrangement, attempting to create a sense of order out of chaos.

At least, for now.

So much more could be said or explained. Maybe in a future post.

Snow Crystal Quilt

Yes, I know it's the middle of March.

No, this post isn't about snow.

Well, not exactly.

I recently posted to FB a picture of this quilt I did several years ago. 

Someone asked about the pattern and I decided it would make a good blog post.  

So, here goes.

I love snowflakes! 

(Did you know that the ones you see falling from the sky are actually little clumps of snow crystals stuck together?  I learned a lot from this site:  http://snowflakebentley.com/) 

And I like decorating according to the seasons.

So, of course, a snow crystal quilt just made sense.

These three books provided inspiration.
Snowflakes by Paula Nadelstern is a gorgeous book. Her intricate work is amazing.
More Biblical Quilt Blocks by Rosemary Makhan gives directions for thirty two different blocks and shows various settings. I used one of these blocks as the starting point.
Kaleidoscope ABCs by Marti Michell features tools and techniques that give interesting results.

One of those tools is called Magic Mirrors. You can buy it from a store, or, if you're cheap you can make your own! All you need is two pieces of mirror with at least two straight sides each and some tape. Make sure to leave a gap at the join so there's room for it to bend.

The mirrors are placed on a picture or fabric to preview what it will look like repeated in the round. By changing the angle of the mirrors, you can get different effects.

I think auditioning the different blocks was the funnest part of the entire project. However, it also proved to be the most challenging because eventually one must make a choice. How does one decide when the possibilities are endless?

I finally decided Garden Walk would work nicely.

Here it is with the mirrors. Nice and pointy.

The next step was fabric choice. Using the mirrors again, I played around with little pieces until I got the lights and darks just right.

Looks a little strange, doesn't it?

It's going to get worse before it gets better.

I have to admit, it was kind of weird cutting into newly constructed blocks like this, but I needed 60 degree wedges, not squares.

Precision at this point is essential. Seams need to line up, and the wedge has to be the right size for the quilt to lay flat.

Let's take another look at the finished product. Can you see the wedges?

I used the same dark blue from the blocks to fill it out to a rectangle and then added borders.

The quilting was done with three different kinds of thread - regular, rayon and metallic.

Most was done free-motion, the exception being the skinny border on which I used one of my machine's decorative stitches.

I must confess, I feel proud.

I think this is as close as I've come to an original idea. 

Now, maybe I should try for a flower?

A Little Privacy Please!

Yes, it's been a while.  Yes, a lot of progress has been made.  Yes, I'm skipping over a lot.  GASP! 

 I couldn't resist.  If you've been following the posts on the renovation you may remember this post.  Today's post is a follow-up, specifically about my bathroom door.

First, a little background.

Having limited space to work with, I really liked the idea of a sliding door.  This picture also got me thinking about the darkness of a room without windows.   

Okay, a slider with glass it is.  (click link above for more information about the door I found)

Now to find a creative and affordable solution for making it bathroom friendly.  And, I might add, no longer the subject of  much teasing!  If I had a dollar for every time I heard the comment, "It's not very private!". . . 

Most of the time, I just look at the pictures on Pinterest, but this one warranted further investigation.  Turns out it's just clear contact paper and paint pens.  That simple!

After testing, I decided the contact paper wasn't quite opaque enough.  At least, not on its own.

So while I was trying modify the above plan, I was also trying to think of some design options.  This picture of curtains made out of old hankies started the wheels in my head turning until -FLASH- the light bulb came on!  

Actually, it was more like, DUH! 

I'm a quilter! 

Quilt blocks!  

DUH!!!

Next step - implementation!  

Oh wait.  One more test. I needed to see if my medium of choice would work.

I had decided on tissue paper applied to the contact paper with an old standby . . .

Did you know that this stuff has been around since 1967?  I remember using it back in the 70s.  We were on kind of a Mod Podge kick for a while there.

With a successful test completed, I turned to my EQ6 computer software for the design process.  It has a gazillion blocks in its library and lots of different ways to modify them.

I picked out a bunch, colored them and recolored them.

Then I arranged them and rearranged them.

When I was pleased with the layout (for a while) I printed out each block as a template.

Here's my work station all set up.  

Here's my assistant.

Here's my method:  After using the template to cut the pieces of tissue paper needed,  I layered a square of contact paper over it and taped it all down to the desk.

Since the Mod Podge dries fairly quickly, I spread only enough for one piece at a time.

Placing the paper in position was a little fiddly.

Once all the pieces were in place, I covered it all with a layer of Mod Podge.

When the first block was finished and placed on the door, it seemed to lack something.  So I decided to try outlining each patch with a black Sharpie.

Exactly what was needed!

Fini!

This is with lights on outside only.

Lights on inside only.

Lights on both sides.

I am well pleased!

A Review

In the previous post, I shared about our quilt group's field trip to La Conner's Quilt Museum.  Today, I'd like to share my thoughts about the exhibit itself.

Daniel's Quilt

Meet my son.
Whether he's just hanging out at home . . .

collaborating with family or friends . . .

leading worship at church . . .

or on stage with the band . . .

Daniel's world is filled with guitars and music.

Sometimes, as in this photo op with his best friends, it's not about the music . . .

And sometimes, an actual guitar is optional.

So, when I saw this quilt by Robbi Joy Eklow, I knew I had to make one for Daniel.

What Would You Do For A . . .

. . .  quilt?   You thought I was going to say Klondike Bar, didn't you?

No, I have a little story about a quilt.  And it's true!  Hmm.  Let's see - should I give you the full story or a shortened version?  Well, since my last two posts were more pictures than words, I'm going to risk being word heavy on this one.

First, a little background.  Sometime last year, my sister, Pamela, and I were looking through the fabrics on the sale table at Pacific Fabrics.  She likes to look for ugly weird unusual fabrics and imagine what someone could do with it.

This one caught our eyes.  Yes - those are green and brown fern fronds on a background of purple with little blue dots.  The challenge was on!

We scouted out some coordinating pieces, only guessing how much to get because, of course, we had no plan or pattern in mind.

Then Pam ordered me to take it home and make something beautiful suggested that I take it and see what I could come up with.

What do you think?  Did I succeed?

Well, I didn't need anybody else's approval (this time) because I loved the way it turned out!  I've always liked the kaleidoscope block - there are infinite possibilities just with color placement.

Okay.  So, finished quilt = end of story?  Nope.

When I took it to quilting group for show-n-tell, one of the young ladies really, REALLY liked it.  Unfortunately, we had already decided that it would be a Made With Love* donation.  We started joking about how she needed to be old, sick, pregnant, or to break a leg in order to get it.  Can you guess what happened next in this quilt story?  Thankfully, she didn't break any bones.  But she did become pregnant!  With major morning sickness!!  With TWINS!!!  No, she didn't do this to get it but there was no doubt about it - she deserved this quilt!

Okay, let's all sing:   What would you do-oo-oo for a Klondike Bar?!

*Made With Love is an outreach group associated with First Free Methodist Church in Seattle.