Today I faced the challenging piecing, so picked some high energy music to get me moving.
If you've been following along, you know that this piece will finish out at about 12 x 16 inches. As I was drawing the design, I didn't stop to think about the width of some of the tree trunks - I hadn't realized some were just a quarter inch wide. If I make another version of this at journal quilt size, you can bet it will be fused applique, not pieced!
This was the tightest curve I pieced today. It didn't look like it would be that bad, but it was. Many many pins to match and hold the pieces in place, and slow slow stitching. I was very relieved to turn it over and find no pleats or puckers.
Then it was suck it up time as I tried several ways of sewing those deep vees. Hand-piecing crossed my mind but I'm not sure that would have been any easier. I was wishing Ruth McDowell would drop by and offer to sew these for me. They turned out well enough (although close inspection by the quilt police might land me a violation or two).
And that's my sky, as many pieces sewn together into units as possible before moving on to the next step of picking out and cutting the ground fabric. What do you think - does my sky dance? I think it does. Can you see the cubist influence of Emily Carr?
I laid these out over a mid-value green batik and thought it read too busy - there's so much movement in the top portion as to make one dizzy. So I tried a darker one and thought it calmed things down nicely. That was before I broke for lunch and leaf raking/bagging and a walk. When I returned to a studio no longer bathed in natural light, the batik looked way too dark. I've cut pieces from some green painted fabric, but it may be too light - I need to wait until tomorrow to see how it looks in daylight. It's coming, June, it's coming...
If you've been following along, you know that this piece will finish out at about 12 x 16 inches. As I was drawing the design, I didn't stop to think about the width of some of the tree trunks - I hadn't realized some were just a quarter inch wide. If I make another version of this at journal quilt size, you can bet it will be fused applique, not pieced!
This was the tightest curve I pieced today. It didn't look like it would be that bad, but it was. Many many pins to match and hold the pieces in place, and slow slow stitching. I was very relieved to turn it over and find no pleats or puckers.
Then it was suck it up time as I tried several ways of sewing those deep vees. Hand-piecing crossed my mind but I'm not sure that would have been any easier. I was wishing Ruth McDowell would drop by and offer to sew these for me. They turned out well enough (although close inspection by the quilt police might land me a violation or two).
And that's my sky, as many pieces sewn together into units as possible before moving on to the next step of picking out and cutting the ground fabric. What do you think - does my sky dance? I think it does. Can you see the cubist influence of Emily Carr?
I laid these out over a mid-value green batik and thought it read too busy - there's so much movement in the top portion as to make one dizzy. So I tried a darker one and thought it calmed things down nicely. That was before I broke for lunch and leaf raking/bagging and a walk. When I returned to a studio no longer bathed in natural light, the batik looked way too dark. I've cut pieces from some green painted fabric, but it may be too light - I need to wait until tomorrow to see how it looks in daylight. It's coming, June, it's coming...
4 comments:
Definately dancing, It's looking fabulous and well done with sticking to piecing,you get more of a 3d sense of depth than if you'd fused.
Thank you, thank you, thank you! As I continued piecing those curved seams today, my resolve was crumbling just a bit. Nice to know that you can see a worthwhile difference in the piecing because it definitely takes some effort.
I can always tell the difference, even though I generally choose to fuse because I'm lazy. But then, I'm really a painter and we're into instant gratification. That's why I keep checking your blog --snort --
June, you may have paired up with the wrong partner here - I've never been about instant gratification!
So you'd like to see it before it's quilted? I thought perhaps this piecemeal stuff might be worse than making you wait for the finished product. Ok, now that I know you're procrastinating on your own work, I'll post an update. ;-)
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