sewing saturday

welcome to this week's sewing round up! Lots of finishing going on this week and some RSC lime green scraps used too. The picture above is the Purple Mountains finish.. 

I'll show some close ups while telling you about it. I started it a few months ago and got inspired to quilt and finish it this week. Lots of metallic sparkling threads, free motion quilting and some flowers...

I combined two fabrics for the binding, sewing the one color along the bottom, a special batik with green and purple on lime... love it... and leaving long tails to join the blue done on the top, later with diagonal seams.

I came up with a way to do speedy improv flying geese with this quilt... should I do a tutorial? 

I'm showing closeups so you can point and say, "I have that fabric!" like I do when I see your scrap quilts, lol

look at the flower scrap... love that, and the little free motion flowers. When approaching something like this I started with strips of geese, then decided how I wanted them in the composition, and filled in with free form curves. 

Color and line are equally important, as well as pressing after each seam

i like that the little low contrast mountain top showed up...

 

 

I learned a few things with this...

there are many paths up a mountain... choose one and commit to it. 

more is better 

make the geese stand out with color changes

consider lines when adding in scraps

opposites on the color wheel are dynamic, purple and green

don't sweat the small stuff... keep sewing... straighten it up now and then

now on to the RSC lime project for this week... some blocks done last year, the hand sewn star blocks, and the improv log cabins... what fun to combine them!

first I sort of figured out how many were sort of the same size, then started moving them around the stars... I did this with two other colors so far, and have sections done. I know this puzzle making process now!! I started sewing one block to another, then seeing what fit to that, adding in when needed, cutting off when less is needed... 

thanks Deb for the star pattern!!!!(https://vtquilter.blogspot.com/)

I'd estimate about half of these are sewn together now... while I've been listening to the book on audio in my studio space. 

Do you do chores in between sewing sessions? our washer is upstairs next to the studio so I do laundry, I stop for walks, have lunch with dh, come down the wicked stairs for water refills to keep moving, go out to throw the ball for Milo 

There's a cool show on Prime called making the cut... with Tim Gunn and Heidi Klum about designing clothing, I've really been enjoying the second season on now. 

 did you know you can watch Marianne Fons show on youtube? I really enjoyed watching how McKenna Ryan does her fusible applique technique here...

 so that's about it for now... leave a comment to say Hi...

Linking to

 scrap happy Saturdays

patchwork Sunday                    
oh Scrap Sundays 

paint party Friday

 Welcome to paint party Friday where we celebrate liquid color!

this is a view one morning on our walk... the sun was just right, and I liked the composition. I had to use dh's phone to take the photo because I didn't expect to see such an inspirational sight on a routine walk.

I really wanted to try to paint the feathery texture, the see through stems and the gold tipped fronds at the bottom... how to do that with watercolor?? I started with this one...

I didn't have the photo in my computer yet, so I painted it from memory. I used KOI paint, waterbrush, staedtler pens, pitt marker and white gel signo pen. Cheap paper torn in half. 

some close ups...

then I painted one onto my calendar to try to capture the feel of the fronds...

I really liked it more than the first one. DH and I discussed what we'd seen and he said it was like a solid wall of white fronds. I said but a painting is best when you relate to it, and there is poetic license.

I got the photos, that you saw above transferred to my computer after this, and really looked at them. We walked over there again and I studied the scene from several angles, really trying to see what was there in detail. 

This is the third iteration while looking at the photo

 Well, the proportions are off... but the exercise of painting the same inspiration view three times was good to do

there are aspects I like, and some I do not when I compare it to the other two

 While doing a free online 8 day workshop with Amber Kuileimailani Bonnici, here are two items from the first day

done on sketchbook paper, inspired by the mental meditation

she had us fold a sheet of watercolor paper into accordion fold and paint anything on the first page that was inspired by the meditation, 

I felt like exploring pink and purple, then some golden yellow

I thought it looked like a sunset when viewed sideways

then just a little painting one morning on my calendar pages

I hope so... 

linking to https://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/

I Like #267

 welcome to this week's list of likes... My mums were very pretty this week and the weather was cool enough to sleep for the most part. We have had record heat for a record length of time this year and this is the forecast for next Monday, which means our bedroom will be even hotter as opening windows in the evenings doesn't seem to make up for the sun's heat during the day

every day I check the forecast, and Monday's temp started at 77, then went to 79 now is 82, so it might be even worse by Monday. I like cool consistent weather, but we go from 27 F Wed. morning to mid 80's on Monday....

I liked that our grocery delivery through Amazon and Whole Foods came on time this week, meaning all our frozen food wasn't thawed... a rare occurrence

I liked painting this week, a scene I saw while walking and will show those paintings tomorrow, sneak peek... I did three versions of the same scene

 

I liked finishing up the mountain abstract this week... only binding left to sew to backing, story on Saturday's sewing round up

the moon was pretty this week

 

I signed up for a free workshop this weekend through Kelly Blaser on 9  breathwork techniques

I've begun watching Making the Cut on Prime, a very interesting competition between clothing designers. Speaking of that Project Runway returned last week on Bravo. The shows are quite different but both good. Bachelorette returned this week as well as the dramas I have mentioned before. 

listening to on audio

I started to read this on ebooks but when the audio book became available I switched and it's really wonderful on audio. A story of a woman returning to the family vineyard and what she discovers about family history. 

I'm reading on ebook, love Ellie Alexander stories...

awe, who needs carved pumpkins?

Milo's Moments

yes I want to go for a walk!

Milo: don't you hate it when little bits of food stick to your nose while eating, so when you think you're done you still smell the food and wonder why? That happened to me with scrambled eggs and cheese this week, but eventually it fell off and I ate it from the floor, heh heh 

Mama: Milo tell them about the bunny we saw on a walk...

Milo: what bunny??

Mama: oh, well, never mind....

Milo: I'm still shocked at getting groomed this weekend, not only a bath but mama is doing away with me little by little. 

She pulls hair out of my ears, cuts my hair and throws it away, grinds my feet off, 

Mama: oh my gosh... I'm trimming your long toenails! 

Milo: well, they're mine, keep your paws off! 

Mama: I love you Milo...

Milo: heh heh, I love you too. I also love cheese...

now please visit these people who have a list of likes to share too

grammajudyb.blogspot.com

http://littlepenguinquilts

craftscaviescontras  

http://imworkingonaproject.blogspot.com/

https://100sweets.blogspot.com/ 

https://canadianneedlenana.blogspot.com/  

https://whataboutrheema.blogspot.com/   

http://3poodlesandanana.blogspot.com  

https://www.homesewnbyus.com/ 

 

https://100sweets.blogspot.com/

 https://scrapatches.blogspot.com/

https://knittingquilter.blogspot.com/    

 the knitty quilter

 http://www.piecefulthoughts.com

https://quiltschmilt.wordpress.com/blog-posts/    

https://lavenderdreamstoo.blogspot.com/

LINKING WITH

https://brianshomeblog.com/ 

http://itsasmalltownlife.blogspot.com/   

http://goodrandomfun.blogspot.com 

https://www.knitbygodshand.com/

http://floralfridayfoto.blogspot.com/

http://goodrandomfun.blogspot.com

rosie and the boys nature pics 

friday smiles at a stitch in time   

friday bliss

http://floralfridayfoto.blogspot.com/ 

sewing Saturday

 

blue flowers 15" X 18.5"

for this week's sewing round up, I'm sharing a finish and some wine bottle blocks for RSC

The challenge of the month at RSC is to use our light/lime green scraps... this top was made a couple months ago, and I finished it this week. If you don't remember this one, I started with some blue scraps from a flowering snowball block series way back. They had curves I liked, so I sewed the halves together and improv curvy pieced them with light greens into a blue flower abstract.

pin basted layers, sparkly threads, and ready to quilt!

then I added in an applique flower, to lead the eye to seeing the petals, some applique stems and leaves, a pretty blue scrap to base it, and turquoise scrap along the sides. Squared it up, basted top, warm and natural (pre washed) and backing and quilted.

lots of fun pieced work, and some applique

we hope for bees in a garden right?

quilted lines feel organic, look like growing things

I finished this time with a turquoise strip binding, sewn on top and hand sewn to the reverse

don't you like to look at the backs? I do!

And it's a lovely finish. I might even sew on some beads, don't know yet.

I had some wine this week too...the bottles are light or lime scraps

now let's think of wine names for them...chicken dance chardonnay, and what? 

I liked using the little words scrap for the one on the left, and some needed bees always found at a winery for the  one on the right. The wine cellar up to date...

I'm also finishing up another improv, the one with the mountain. And for this month's table scraps I'm working on the fall scraps 60 degree diamond piece. Lots of fun in studio. While working this week I listened to a book via audio

and when not painting sewing or writing, I watched this awesome video

do you like shiny sparkly ??? I do and this fashion show of dresses that are lovely, exciting and sculptural on a woman's body. Worth seeing... how would you interpret this style in a quilt??

Linking to

http://www.inquiringquilter.com/ Wednesday wait loss

Midweek makers wednesdays  

http://frombolttobeauty.blogspot.com/
off the wall Fridays
can I get a whoop whoop Fridays  

finished or not 

  scrap happy Saturdays 

patchwork Sunday                    

oh Scrap Sundays 

design wall Mondays at smallquiltsanddollquilts
lovelaughquilt.mondays

paint party Friday ... trees of gold

 Welcome to paint party Friday where we celebrate all things painterly!

this week, I set myself a challenge to paint a portrait of the same tree in my yard, three days running and see how different they came out. Above was the first painting, done outside while looking at the actual tree

I wanted to learn how to create depth, and show leaves in front of the trunk, and this pic doesn't do it justice as it looked gilded with yellow on all leaf tips! This is how all three started... rough sketch with pitt black fine point pen on a torn mixed media paper

sketch, then dabs of colors...

the final picture

and then how do pens add shadows? how do dots of color affect it? I actually might like this one best in person, but then I've always been better at painting a real object. As you might tell from the photo, I took artistic license to remove the trees behind this one and other distracting items. 

On the back of paintings I put my little symbol in a sort of cartouche of paint used

the following day I painted at my inside spot, while looking at the painting instead of the tree

this is the finished painting... different from day one but in series. I like the addition of leaves on the ground, the dark pen and white gel pen on the tree and the weeds. It's small and only we know there is a trunk in there in real life because we had to severely cut it back when it looked dying. 

on the third day I had two paintings to go by, and wanted to change it a bit while keeping the gist

by this day the real tree had become more orange than yellow, but I got the paint mix a bit wrong. I made the best of it, trying to amend it as one does, with more paint and more ink! I liked the general painting, especially the fence shadows. 

what did I learn? 

>I like painting outside looking at the true object and light, really observing it

>each painting was good on it's own, without comparing it to the others

> each one was unique, allowing me to try different techniques while keeping others

> I need to stop saying my work looks like a 5 year old did it. Even if it does, it's apparently my style

> paintings have an element of magic to them, they show up

> I will overwork something if I'm not careful and aware... walk by and add more ink... 

The other color work, besides sewing which will be covered in tomorrow's post, was coloring in my calendar

Joanna Basford weekly calendar has given me a wonderful reason to play with how colors blend, look together, how water affects them, what I like... etc. I keep it by the computer and add color as the days go by

the start to coloring

I enjoy using watercolors and brush, tombow markers, prismacolor watercolor pencils, staedtler fineliners, and all are water soluble. 

sometimes I enjoy doing backgrounds by putting a wet brush on the edge of a painted thing, and pulling the color into the background. This means the background may end up different colors. 

Okay

 

Now for fun...

Look what I found... a show with artist portrait challenges! Here's the finale... 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oFaxdZ5YrR0

linking to

https://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/