Summer Irises

We're a long way from summer, but I've been itching to work on this piece!  It's not done yet; there is tulle to trim away and lots of top stitching to do on the flowers and leaves, but here it is in progress.  It's based on a photo from Child's Park here in Northampton from last summer, and the largest flower has some hand-coloring with Inktense pencils.    Now, if only the world around me would regain a bit more color too!

This one shows the purple color better.  The other's too blue.

my latest commission

Here's the early sketch for my next commission.  I can't wait to get started on it - back yard birds in autumn.  Woodpeckers, gold finches, etc.  I've got the perfect autumn fabrics!

A Taste of Summer...

Well, in support of our elementary school's annual auction fundraiser, I spent most of Monday making a set of simple place mats for the 4th grade's raffle basket.  (The topic was cooking.)  These aren't my usual style at all, but it gave me a chance to use up some of that free fabric that I was sure I'd never find a use for.  So, we get a taste of summer, featuring berries, sushi, martinis, BBQ, wine & cheese, with a bit of corn thrown in. 

Spring is finally just around the corner...

Finally, this Thursday we'll officially have spring.  I know we're all looking forward to warm breezes and soft green hills.  Here's the latest of my landscapes.  Like the sunflower, I've left the edges raw and stitched the entire quilt to a piece of background "canvass" which is stretched over a frame like an oil paining.  (This background is actually heavy home dec fabric, thus the pale floral print.)  You can see more of my landscapes here.

Dawn Birches #4   22" x 22"

Moon Goddess

Almost forgot!  Here's the Moon Goddess I finished this month.  She's the second in a series.

16"x22" Moon Goddess

Tired of Winter?

Tired of winter? This sunflower blooms all year long! This small art quilt differs slightly from my usual style and technique because I wanted to try more thread-painting and beading. The landscape background consists of hand-dyed and commercial fabrics, while the sun is the foil wrapper from a chocolate coin. The flower is cut from a commercial fabric and I have thread painted (stitched heavily) on top to add additional color and texture, while the 800+ beads are stitched by hand. (Yes, that took a while.)  The edges of the scene are intentionally left raw because I liked their artistic texture against the background border.

12"x14" Sunflower - available on etsy

Crow

I'm not quite caught up on my new goal of finishing one piece/week, but here's the latest.  From Edgar Allen Poe to Native American culture, crows symbolize many things to many people; knowledge, mystery, evil, curiosity and cleverness. This bird is based on a picture my son drew when he was four (and used with his permission.) This art piece is part of my series of recycled fiber collages: the Recycled Sky. It is made from a minimum of 65%-75% recycled fiber - all my leftover bits and pieces from larger projects, donated scraps from other quilters, snippets of thread, an old T-shirt. The crow is made from leftovers from one of my son's Halloween costumes, while the eye is a glass bead.

Crow 14" x 19.5"