Quilts and coverlets

Continuing in the theme of using up and finishing, I have returned to the Kaleidoscope quilt to start quilting.  I treated myself to having this long-arm basted by Compton Quilting who did a terrific job which has made the quilting a pleasure.  Still lots to do, but a start to the final process is always good.

Snow over at the other house meant a day to get cracking on finishing up the  “quilting by numbers” coverlet, backed with an old, sorry - vintage -  Witney blanket.  Pieced on the Singer, and quilted on the Bernina.

Then some mindless paper-piecing of triangles, using some re-discovered half-square triangle paper.  These are probably going to border the blue splash blocks made in Australia, nearly two years ago.

I really need to get back to more regular blogging as there is not even space to blog about the most recent exhibition visits to :

Artist and Empire at Tate Britain, now finished sadly, with a dramatic installation piece by Andrew Gilbert

Marian Clayden at Fashion and Textile Museum, also finished - sumptuous velvets and silks

Kurt Jackson, Bees at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, on until 29 September

Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford - what an extraordinary experience.  Two hours and I only viewed the external cabinets on the ground floor

Ikat Textiles at the Brunei Gallery, on until 25th June. Lovely curation, with vintage and contemporary ikat from several cultures.  I wish the curators had included subtitles on the films as this would have really enhanced my understanding of the process, particularly of that for double-ikat weaving.

And back to the drawing course this week, where the theme is metamorphosis.  Two objects to be chosen, ideally with several contrasts between them, and then drawings made to metamorphose one in to the other. My objects are these

and initial studies are here

onward and upward.

Featherweight delights

We’re over in the new house for this part of the holiday week, so stitching is on the Featherweight.

A forgotten Moda layer cake pack, Lush uptown, too lovely to cut up, is going to be stitched together and backed with an old Witney blanket.  Very apt, as we are now living about 10 miles from Witney.

The Featherweight pressure foot has a very narrow allowance, probably about eighth of an inch, so I am using a more modern invention of a pad of Post-its to get to a consistent, quarter inch seam allowance.  I love this little machine for so many reasons, one of which is the smell of the machine when the light is on. Bizarre, as I don’t recall it from my childhood, but it is hidden in my brain somewhere.

I am so enamoured of the colour chart dots in this pack, it is the main reason why I don’t want to cut in to these squares.

The forecast for the weekend is rain,so garden renovation will be on hold while I enjoy myself joining the squares and working out what some of the attachments are for.

 

 

Phrenorelations

It is truly becoming an obsession. This one is for my younger son, with his favourite thoughts in his head.


I hope no family psychologists are reading as there is no section in there for any thoughts about his brother or parents.

I'm running out of pieces of blanket, so I will need to go charity shop trawling soon.

Phrenolobsession

It's becoming an obesssion! This one is a partner for the first large one, so faces the other way. Sewn on the train up ( and down) to London to visit Tate Modern to see the current installation by Miroslaw Balka.

Definitely thought provoking, particularly for someone who is claustrophobic.

Phrenolobby

I have always liked china phrenology heads and have had a project bubbling in my head for a few months, combining: phrenology; hobbies of individuals; an art project my children did when at junior school where they had to draw their thoughts on to a print of an empty head.

This is the first prototype. A copyright-free phrenology head image, traced over with a Sulky iron-on transfer pen, stitched on to piece of vintage wool blanket with 50% wool thread. I started stitching this in a hoop,. but found it was easier to control the stitching, particularly of the words if I just held it. This one is for a family member ( who might be reading, hope you like it!)

Scraps +blanket+ words = cushion

When the going gets tough, the tough get stitching. Mindless strips on a calico background, embellished with a great ribbon and backed with a comforting piece of old blanket. Design feature required on the blanket due to an indelible splodge of blue ink.