Hearts and Flowers....paints, fabric and thread

 

 

Hearts and flowers...a while back I painted a heart onto muslin. Recently my local art quilt group met by zoom to discuss color from art quilting point of views.  

 

I love color, and feel colors... love to see how they react to each other in art. I am not paralyzed by the white page, or starting projects. I often enjoy the use of opposites on the color wheel because it is dynamic. 

 

I'll share some close ups while talking about how fun and easy this is... first off, I use a variety of  acrylic paints made for fabric with the medium already mixed in, like Seta, Jacquard, and some sparkly ones no longer sold here from England. I start with a plastic covered cardboard sheet, wet the fabric so the first layers will blend and migrate. I use big brushes. I often dilute the ones to blend with a bit of water, and often mix them to make my own colors

 

I love Seta shimmers consistency for stencils which I layer on after the first bits dry. Sometimes I use subtle darker tones of the same color, mix colors, enjoy a higher contrast and make sure to have dark and light. Yellow green contrasts with the pinks. I let colors dry before over stenciling more. Sometimes I turn the stencil over to rub the paint onto a piece in a reverse stencil!

In quilting, I repeat the shapes with free motion in different threads because repetition of a line or curve is pleasing.

I quilted in some vines, grasses and flowers, as well as outlining some painted flowers. 

When it was quilted I mounded some beads in flower centers, meaning I bring the needle out on one side, string some beads, and go back into the top shorter than the line of beads so they pop up when I pull the thread taut, over and over. 

I have long enjoyed 3-d elements on my quilts and added in a big pieced, and quilted leaf by rouching it to the finished quilt.

it was first quilted, then cut into a big leaf shape and as I hand stitched it to the quilt, I bunched it up, folded bits and gathered them, pushed it so that it would look somewhat like a real leaf might. Note the quilt was finished, and bound before adding this. Beads went on after to catch the light as highlights would on a dewy leaf. 

when I do that I don't go all the way to the backing, I trail thread thru the batting. Note a use of metallic threads and some 2 ply cotton threads to create texture without being attention getting. 

beads along the edge of the leaf were done like a blanket stitch

So, paint play is fun... layering color is fun... stencils and stamps and inks are fun... 

are you ready to play??? 

this one is on the mantel easel to enjoy during February!

and for Spirit Sunday

from http://www.planetofsuccess.com/blog/

  

and this quote by Buddha

your purpose in life is to find your purpose and give your whole heart and soul to it 

Linking to

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

https://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/

can I get a whoop whoop Fridays   

oh Scrap Sundays 
 slow stitching Sundays

lovelaughquilt.mondays