A Sunday Afternoon Walk and Bike Ride

Getting ready for a bike ride.

It was a cold afternoon for biking.

And they are off!

Rusty and I walked and he talked.

Why ... there is his Mom and Dad way down there ...

... on the park bench by the river.

And they made it back.

Weeping Willow IV

My "Weeping Willow IV" is now in the hands of The National Quilt Museum.

You see, I was invited by the PAAQT (Professional Association of Appraisers of Quilted Textiles) to participate in the Fresh Faces / New Ideas Challenge 2018-2019 exhibit. This is the first year for the annual exhibit. After traveling for a year with the AQS Shows this piece will be auctioned off for the benefit of The National Quilt Museum.

It measures 33" X 40.5" and is made with commercial cotton fabric and quilted with verigated Fantastico from Superior Threads.

I first prepared the background by fusing 952 small 1" squares to the background fabric. Then I layered the batting and backing and quilted horizontally across the quilt with a serpentine stitch. Next I fused the tree with the leaves onto the quilted background and used free-motion quilting to attach the tree to the background. It is finished with a facing that is hand stitched to the back.

Detail

Signed and dated.

This quilt reminds me of Psalm 137 in which the Israelite captives wept by the rivers of Babylon when they remembered Zion, their former home. Their captors demanded they play music and sing, but the despondent slaves hung their harps on willow trees that lined the river, unable to sing the Lord's song in a foreign land.

You can see some of my other "willow" pieces here, here, and here and here.

Linking to Nina Maria's Off the Wall Friday.

From Coloring Book to Fiber Art

I've been showing some of our grandchildren how to transpose their coloring book pages into 'fine' art.

Linking to Connie's Freemotion by the River. and Nina Maria's Off the Wall Friday.

Sunday Morning -- Fiber Art

Sunday Morning

29.5" X 17.5"

Materials & Techniques: Fused raw edge applique with commercial cotton fabrics. Quilted with Superior Thread +/- 1/8" apart on a domestic Bernina. Edge is faced and hand stitched to the back. Signed & dated.

My inspiration came from a picture I took of 5 of our grandchildren in front of Lakeland Presbyterian Church on Hwy 25 just north of Jackson, MS in Flowood.

Using a photo app "Prisma" I changed the photo using the 'composition' filter.

Sunday Morning

Detail

Weeping Willow V for SAQA

My 12"x12" benefit auction piece "Weeping Willow V" is now in the hands of SAQA.

Details

I started out by marking a 1.25" grid on the background fabric.

From the same fabric I fused 'Heat-n-Bond' to the back of another piece.

The fabric on the left has the fusible on it. The right fabric has the marked grid on it.

I cut strips at one inch intervals and then into 1" squares a few at a time. Keeping them in the proper orientation I fused the squares onto the fabric with the grid.

More squares fused to the background fabric.

Leftover squares and triangles for another project!

The background is layered with batting and a backing and ready for quilting.

Deciding which spool of thread to use and on a violet silk fabric for the silhouette of the tree.

Straight line quilting +/- 1/8" for the background using a walking foot.

Preparing the tree, branches, and leaves for the weeping willow.

Fusing the tree to the quilted background.

Deciding which thread to use for the free motion stitching on the tree.

Finished, "Weeping Willow V" with facing hand stitched to the back.

The back.

Signed and dated.

This post links to "Off the Wall Friday" and "Crazy Mom Quilts."