Did You Think I Wasn't Doing Anything?

I thought I had better post something since I hadn’t for a few days. I actually have been working on a few things—my Beth/Lyric Project exercise, sorting and organizing my fabric stash, and a table runner.

First, I have been working on my Beth/Lyric Project exercise. I have really had fun drawing and painting these pieces. I thought I’d give you a peak at them “in progress.”

Second, I have been folding and organizing my fabric stash and putting it into my fabric cabinets in my studio. I just LOVE looking at the colors. Do you notice what I notice? Obviously, I like dark fabrics. It is especially noticeable in my green and brown fabrics. I have lots of green and brown fabrics, but I have VERY little lights in either of those colorways. I guess I’ll just have to go fabric shopping to fill up on the colors I’m lacking!

Third, I have been working on a table runner for a gift. I have had this pattern for a long time but had never gotten around to making it. The pattern is called "Pumpkin Promenade" by Artful Offerings. The machine appliqué done, but I have to get it layered, basted, and quilted. The background looks white in this picture; actually it is a soft yellow fabric with a little print in it. I’m going to hand blanket-stitch (with dark brown thread) around the swirls on the little pumpkins. I think it will look cheery all through October and November. Hopefully, I’ll get it done by then!

Beth/Lyric Project Week 11 (Illusion of Depth through Overlap, Size, Placement, Color, and Value)

As a reminder to those of you that don’t normally keep up with my blog (if you do, skip to the next paragraph), I have started a project that I’m calling the Beth/Lyric Project. In the spirit of the movie “Julie/Julia,” (i.e. Julie working through Julia Child’s cookbook) I have decided to work through the exercises in Lyric Kinard’s “Art + Quilt, Design Principles and Creativity Exercises” book. My goal is to get at least one of the exercises done each week. I’ll be posting my progress on Sundays. I’d love for you to work along with me. If you decide to do that, please post and let me know how you’re doing—send pictures too! If you have trouble leaving a comment on my blog, email me at bschnellenberger@gmail.com.

This week’s topic is “Illusion of Depth through Overlap, Size, Placement, Color, and Value.” According to the reading I have done, there are five basic ways to create a sense of depth.

• Size—This is the easiest way to create an illusion of space or distance. As objects get further away, they appear to become smaller.
• Overlapping—If one shape hides parts of another, our brain reads it as on top of or in front of the other establishing a sense of depth.
• Vertical location or placement—The higher an object on a page or format, the farther back it is assumed to be.
• Value (dark and light)—The value contrast between distant objects gradually lessens, and contours become less distinct. Greater contrast advances, diminished contrast retreats.
• Color--Objects that are far away appear more neutral in color and take on a bluish character.

For this exercise, the instructions said to “choose several fabrics to work with. Cut out one shape in a variety of sizes, overlap the shapes to achieve the maximum illusion of depth placing shapes near the lower portion of your work, then add more, moving toward the top to imply distance.” Here is what I came up with.

I think this does illustrate the concept of depth by using size, overlapping, and placement; however, I should have used a darker color for the third circle from the top. If I had it to do over again, I'd also switch the last two little circles. I think the illusion of depth would have been more successful had the objects continued from light to dark. Also, I think the reddish brown circle is too dominant.

Ask Yourself…

1. “Which colors and sizes look the farthest away?”
2. “What happens when you use bright colors in your foreground?”
3. “What happens if you change the value of the colors in the background.”
4. “What happens if none of the shapes are overlapping each other?”
5. “What stitching lines could add to the illusion of depth in this piece?”
6. “Can embellishments add to the illusion of depth? (Sometimes the answer is no.)”

Next week's exercise topic is "Open Form vs Closed Form." It is on Page 72 in the "Art + Quilt" book by Lyric Kinard. Come on join me...you'll learn something you can use.

New Review on Two Books/Handwriting Project Update

If you happened to read my blog post about the "handwriting project" Jeanne Beck is working on (http://quilterbeth.blogspot.com/2010/05/call-for-help-handwriting-project-by.html), you might be interested in her new post at http://artbyjeannebeck.blogspot.com/2010/05/handwriting-part-2.html. She explains how she is using the handwriting samples and what it means to her. I'll be very interested to see how she uses these pieces. Check it out.

Also, I just purchased two books that I'm excited about. One is Jane Davila's "Surface Design Essentials;" the other is "Fabric Embellishing, The Basics and Beyond" by Ruth Chandler, Liz Kettle, Heather Thomas, and Lauren Vlcek. If you are real experienced in surface design, these books are probably not for you. However, if you are new to these processes or would like to update or expand your skills, these are great books. They can be used for reference and/or for practice exercises.

I have been working on projects in Lyric Kinard's "Art + Quilt" book and realized that I don't have that many exercises to go to finish my Beth/Lyric Project. That means I will have worked through all the exercises in her book and will be ready to add some more tools to my art quilt tool belt. I've never studied art or design, so Lyric's book has helped me gain some insight into design. I think these two new books will help me with new ways to express myself through surface design (hopefully, using the design tools I learned from Lyric's book).

"Surface Design Essentials"

Jane's book explores paints, mediums, inks, and pencils. Basic techniques, projects, and a gallery are included in this book. It is spiral bound which makes it much easier to use when actually working on these projects. I started reading and found out right away that I could learn a lot from this book. Her section on color mixing is one of the most straight-forward easily understandable approaches to color I have ever read. It really made sense to me. It is a small book, and it is very reasonably priced.

"Fabric Embellishing, The Basics and Beyond"

Ruth Chandler, Liz kettle, Heather Thomas, Lauren Vlcek

This book covers lots and lots of material. Over 50 techniques are covered...from stitching to burning to beading. Lots of different materials are covered--cocoons and rods, Angelina, Tyvek, metal, Lutradur, etc. It, too, is a spiral bound book (which I love). This book suggests that one way you could use it would be to tackle one technique a week. They say that "in a year's time you will have practiced all techniques in this book and own a workbook to refer to time and time again for inspiration." They even give you instructions for making a fabric workbook--a way to keep your samples all together. You are given a section on equipment and supplies needed, embellishing techniques, foundations, soft embellishments, and hard embellishments. There are lots of great pictures illustrating the steps explaining the techniques and of finished projects. I can't wait to get started! 

Antique Quilts from the 2010 Chicago International Quilt Festival

I LOVE contemporary quilts, but I have a lot of love and respect for the antique quilts out there. Some of those quilts, if done in modern fabrics, would be considered “contemporary” or maybe even “art” quilts. Some patterns are traditional; others are very creative and artistic in nature. Chicago had a great variety of antique quilts this year. I took pictures of some of them.

“19th Century Folk Art” by Unknown Maker, c. 1800, 81” X 84 ½”. This quilt is hand pieced and appliquéd using a huge variety of natural dyed fabrics.

I took a closeup so you could get a better look at the pieces and colors. It was really something!

“Tree of Life Variation” by Unknown Quiltmaker, c. 1860, 74 ¾” X 73”. This quilt is hand pieced, appliquéd, and quilted. There is a lot of quilting on this quilt.

The “Princess Feather Variation with Star Medallion” by Unknown Quiltmaker was FABULOUS! It is a HUGE quilt (especially for its age—but the year it was made was not listed); it is 115” X 129”. That is even big by today’s standards. The quilt is hand pieced, appliquéd, and quilted. The quilt was hung from its left side rather than from the top. It was hard to get the entire quilt in one picture because of its size and the positioning of the light pole. I did the best I could.

Now, take a look at this close up. The quilting is spectacular. It is very organized and planned in the blocks of the quilt but very spontaneous in the border. If you look closely, you can make out a star/snowflake-looking quilting pattern towards the bottom left of the border. I didn't see another one like it on the quilt. You can also make out leaf shapes closer to the border top. It was just so interesting.

This is a close up of the center medallion of this same quilt. I wanted you to check out the quilting in the appliqué pieces themselves. Also, take a look at how skinny the medallion points are.

“Sunburst” by Unknown Quiltmaker, c. 1850, 77” X 80 ¾”. This quilt is hand pieced and hand quilted.

“Flower Garden Star” by Unknown Quiltmaker, c. 1900, 80” X 94 ¼”. The medallion portion of this quilt contains fabrics c. 1830-1880. This possibly indicates a multi-generational quilt. The piecing of this quilt is by hand, and it is not quilted. Just try to imagine piecing all those hexagons by hand!

“Birds and Grapes Applique” by Unknown Quiltmaker, 77” X 82”. This quilt is hand pieced, appliquéd, and quilted. I couldn’t get a full picture of this quilt because of the crowd, so I took a picture of a piece of it. I loved the birds the most anyway!

These are the last of my pictures from this year’s Chicago International Quilt Festival. I have enjoyed sharing them with you. I hope you enjoyed seeing these antique quilts. Seeing them sure makes me appreciate all the tools and gadgets we have to use these days. Please leave me a comment and let me know if you liked seeing these quilts.

Call for Help--Handwriting Project by Jeanne Beck

Check out the new project I found at http://artbyjeannebeck.blogspot.com/2010/04/handwritten-writing-project.html


Jeanne Beck is calling for some handwriting samples to use in her future art pieces. She gives the details in the blog post above. Those of you that know me know how much I love writing in art. This is a chance to have something of yours in a piece of art (even if you don't make it).

Beth/Lyric Project Week 11 (Scale)

As a reminder to those of you that don’t normally keep up with my blog (if you do, skip to the next paragraph), I have started a project that I’m calling the Beth/Lyric Project. In the spirit of the movie “Julie/Julia,” (i.e. Julie working through Julia Child’s cookbook) I have decided to work through the exercises in Lyric Kinard’s “Art + Quilt, Design Principles and Creativity Exercises” book. My goal is to get at least one of the exercises done each week. I’ll be posting my progress on Sundays. I’d love for you to work along with me. If you decide to do that, please post and let me know how you’re doing—send pictures too! If you have trouble leaving a comment on my blog, email me at bschnellenberger@gmail.com.

The week’s exercise was all about “scale.” I was instructed to “go on a treasure hunt and find an interesting object no larger than my thumbnail.” Well, much to my surprise, I didn’t have many thumbnail-sized objects in my house. I also went outside and looked in my yard and landscaping. I ended up finding more interesting things in the house and drawing them in an 8” X 10” format. I was supposed to “observe the tiny details” of the object. I did find this exercise very interesting. I noticed things that I hadn’t noticed before—and I noticed that most of the objects I found didn’t have very interesting lines. I ended up using a zipper pull on my luggage.

The “Ask Yourself” portion of the exercise…

• Is there anything surprising about this tiny thing that you don’t normally notice? (I hadn’t paid any attention to it at all, so EVERYTHING about it was surprising.)
• How does exaggerating the scale of this subject change its importance? (Of course, when something is enlarged, the importance of the object is increased.)
• Does this subject mean more to you than it did before this exercise? (I realize that by enlarging something, the design of the element becomes much more exciting. This has opened my eyes to other ideas for design elements.)
• What would happen if you portrayed it in other colors? (I think it would be fun to try this in different colors. I actually used the colors of the zipper pull, although I did add a little black.)
• How do you want a viewer to react to your piece? (At this point, I am just excited with what I’M learning with each exercise.)

The topic for next week’s exercise is “Illusion of Depth through Overlap, Size, Placement, Color, and Value.” Whew…that sure sounds like there will be a lot at work all at once doesn’t it? Join me in the exercise. I’m sure you’ll learn something. We will be working from instructions on Page 71 from Lyric Kinard’s “Art + Quilt” book.

Fat Quarter Bundle from Shiisa Quilts

I received my fat quarter bundle from Shiisa Quilts (a quilt shop in Bloomington, Indiana) yesterday. I won it by posting a review of Shiisa Quilts. Now, how did she know my favorite color these days is orange? I LOVE the fabrics. (Thanks Janet.) Check them out...

Shiisa Quilts is located in Bloomington, Indiana, at State Road 37 and Vernal Pike. If you are anywhere close, check it out. You can take a "virtual" trip by checking out their website at http://www.shiisaquilts.com/aboutus.html.

It is a really nice shop.

More from the Chicago International Quilt Festival 2010…

I still have pictures to share from the Chicago show. Here are a few more. Remember that you can click on the quilt to see a bigger (more detailed) picture.

“Units 1” by Benedicte Caneill from Larchmont, New York, is monoprinted, pieced, and machine quilted. Design Source: Rail Fence block. She says, “The Units series explores the construction of a whole piece using elemental geometric units which, when joined, create an abstract cityscape composition exploring line, color, and movement. As a resident of New York City for many years, I was influenced by the many lines and windows that define the cityscape. Those lines sometimes continuous, often interrupted, created a fascinating interplay. As I create marks on fabric through the monoprinting process, cut those fabrics and reassemble them, an imaginary abstract cityscape emerges reflecting my vision of this fascinating city.”

In an earlier post, I had a similar quilt done by the same artist. That quilt had more blues. I like the effect the monoprinted fabric has on an otherwise very traditional quilt. I think it makes it very contemporary.

Jessica Abraham’s quilt “Facades VI” is painted, printed, and machine quilted. She says, “The facades of apartment blocks conceal secrets behind their cellular and bland exteriors but upon demolition or decay these secrets are exposed. The usual delicate balance of what is concealed and what is revealed has been shattered. The detailing in the printed cloths contains layers of imagery from urban architecture, maps, and my writings.” Jessica is from Manchester, United Kingdom.

I liked the layers of this cloth. I LOVE writing on fabric, so (of course) I was drawn to this one.

“Beyond” was made by Kathryn Botsford from Campbell River, British Columbia, Canada. Techniques: Hand appliquéd, machine pieced, machine embellished, and machine quilted. Design Source: Inspired by the Lonni Rossi “Typospheres” fabric collection. She says, “This quilt was created to draw the viewers beyond what they know about their world and/or themselves. When we look beyond what we know, personal transformation can take place, and that has no borders.”

I really liked the movement in this quilt. The colors and textures also made this quilt exciting.

“Laurentian Foothills, inspired by Anne Savage’s Saint-Sauveur” is a group quilt made by Deborah Bates, Cathy Breedyk-Law, Mary Cope, Rebekah Crown, Margaret Dunsmore, Robin Field, Meredith Fillshire, Bethany Garner, Sandra Garner, Jean Gerster, Maggie Hannigan, Cynthia McNair, Carol Moore, Lynne Morin, Margaret Morris, Mary Pal, Judith Popiel, Elaine Quehl, Shirley White, Mitzi Zohar—all from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Techniques: Felted, machine pieced, machine appliquéd, hand and machine embroidered, hand and free-motion machine quilted. Design Source: The inspiration for this quit was the painting entitled Saint-Sauveur. “We were interested in celebrating the work of a female Canadian artist. We admired the beauty of this work and especially the rich colours used by the artist. A photograph of the painting was enlarged and cut into twenty pieces. Each quilter worked alone and when the pieces were assembled, we were excited by the result.”

I find it very interesting that even though they each did their "own thing" that these pieces go together so well. I think the "split" effect is even more eye catching than the piece would be had it all been done by one person.

Pat Doyle Mikrut created “Do You Like My Hat?” She is from Palos Park, Illinois. She says, “At our house, the first sign of spring was not a robin, but a new (or refurbished) hat.” Techniques: Machine appliqué, free-motion quilting, and paintstix. Materials: Cotton, satin, tulle, velvet, hand dyes, beads, lamé, silk pieces from friends and neighbors. Design Source: Original design.

This quilt made me smile. I hope it does the same for you.

Check back for more pictures from the show.

Machine Applique Class--Great Students!

I was a high school teacher for 28 years; I retired 3 years ago. Every time I teach a quilting class I remember why I loved teaching so much (and that I miss the teaching part--NOT the grading part). I had a machine applique class tonight at my house. The students worked on a pattern I came up with. It is really fun to see the different fabrics students choose for their pieces; even thought the pattern is the same, each piece is unique.

 Hopefully, they had as much fun as I did (and learned something too). If you'd like to see a close-up picture of the finished project they worked on, you can do that here http://quilterbeth.blogspot.com/2009/05/messy-house-and-paducah-quilts.html.

Here is a photo of the students and their works in progress. (Remember, you can click on the photo to get a better look at them and their work!)

Vicky, Geri, and Debbie were great students! 

Playing with "Paper-Cloth" in the Studio--Oh the Sights You'll See

I just got back from my Florida vacation. Now, it is "catch up" time. I just thought I'd update you on what I've been doing (and seeing).

Yesterday, a friend and I worked in my studio making "paper-cloth." Well, we didn't actually "work;" we had fun! It was just SO much fun to put these pieces together. We used instructions from Kelli Perkins' book called "Stitch Alchemy, Combining Fabric + Paper for Mixed-Media Art." It was really easy and did I say FUN. We have the first step finished--which is making the base fabric. It has to dry before we can do anything else to it. We will be painting, stamping, inking, writing, and whatever else we might decide to do to the cloth once it is fully dry. These are my base pieces.

This piece was "spritzed" with blue and orange paint with some places on the original cloth masked off. I used an unbleached muslin as the base. The other pieces are tissue paper patterns, tissue paper, and old crossword puzzles.

This next piece was made from a fabric that was "antique." It was a really ugly left-over fabric with chickens and a chicken coop background pattern that I had used for a backing a LONG time ago. I thought, "What the heck; I can't ruin this one!" I think it will be interesting when I'm finished with it. (At least I won't be worried about "wasting" this fabric!) I used a little of everything on this piece--old maps, magazine cut outs, pictures, old crossword puzzles, old dryer sheets, tissue paper, stickers, and old invitations.

For this last fabric, I started with unbleached muslin. First, it was spritzed with blue and green paint. Next I added tissue paper, old crossword puzzles, pieces from an old AAA trip pack, and tissue paper pattern pieces.

...and now for the "Oh the Sights You'll See" part of the blog. This "sight" was captured at Deerfield Beach in Florida. I guess you'll see everything on a public beach, but...

Can you say, "Let's leave a little to the imagination!"

These girls actually do have on thong bathing suits. (I know that is hard to believe looking at this photo!)

I have some really cool photos I took for inspiration while I was in Florida too. I'll share those later. Stay tuned.

2010 Chicago International Quilt Festival--More Pictures

More from the Chicago International Quilt Festival (2010)…


“Derevnya/Russian Fairytale Village 3,” was made by Natalya Aikens from Pleasantville, New York. Techniques: Layered, torn, hand-painted, free-hand machine embroidered, and hand stitched. She says, “My art is an exploration of my heritage. Russian fairytales, folklore and decorative traditions infuse my work with their fanciful spirit. The imagery of a traditional Russian village inspired this work.” This quilt was light and airy. The materials used made me want to get closer to the work to check it out. Much of the material was virtually transparent creating a ethereal effect.

“Magic Box,” by Diane Nunez from Southfield, Michigan, made this quilt using strip piecing and assemblage. She says, “Look at the quilt from different vantage points—top, bottom, right, and left. Every perspective gives a distinct illusion. The colors blend differently and the separate panels form the illusion of a two-dimensional quilt.” This quilt was three-dimensional. The “pieces” sat above the background by about two to three inches. This was a very interesting quilt that was VERY hard to photograph. The look of the piece totally changed depending on the viewer's vantage point.

I took this picture of “Magic Box” from the side of the piece. You can see how different it looks from various angles.

“Units 9,” was made by Benedicte Caneill from Larchmont, New York. Techniques: Monoprinted, pieced, machine quilted. Design Source: Rail Fence block. She says, “The Units series explores the construction of a whole piece using elemental geometric units which, when joined, create an abstract cityscape composition exploring line, color, and movement. As a resident of New York City for many years I was influenced by the many lines and windows that define the cityscape. Those lines, sometimes continuous often interrupted, created a fascinating interplay. As I create marks on fabric through the monoprinting process, cut those fabrics and reassemble them, an imaginary abstract cityscape emerges reflecting my vision of this fascinating city.” I liked the colors of this quilt and the way the lines draw your eye from place to place.

Carol J. Moore, from Toronto, Canada, made “Redwood.” Techniques: Cut strips, free motion quilted. “Before moving from San Francisco to Toronto I took a road trip north along the coastal highway, and on a magnificent sun-drenched afternoon I drove through the Redwoods. I have never forgotten the majesty of those trees, the coolness of their dark under-sides, nor the play of golden sunlight streaming through the upper boughs of these giant wonders that grow only in a few groves on the west coast.” I am really partial to string piecing, so I was drawn to this quilt. I liked the play of light she portrayed with the use of the lighter greens—nice quilt.

Margie Davidson’s “Circle of Friendship” was machine pieced, appliquéd, reverse appliquéd and machine quilted. The quilt was the result of a challenge to incorporate fabrics from each member of her quilting bee in an original design. She says, “By incorporating fabrics from each member of my quilting group as well as their hand prints, I have created a physical representation of our circle of friendship. Each month we gather to share our lives and our passion for quilting. Quilting is the thread that brings us together as we grow through the seasons of each year.” Margie is from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

The light emanating from the center of this quilt, along with the tree/hand imagery draws me in to this quilt.

I think I have a few more pictures from this show to share with you. I'll be posting those when I get back home from vacation.

Breaking "Out of the Box"--Thanks for the Encouragement Lyric

Venturing out of your comfort zone to do something totally foreign is very scary. I come from a totally traditional quilting background. I have always loved the art quilt arena, but I've been afraid to "go there." I guess I needed a little push. I always tell my friends that, "I'm SO far in the box that I can't get out." Thinking "out of the box" has never been my forte. I needed some help, and I got it from Lyric Kinard and her book "Art + Quilt." I was fortunate enough to take a class with Lyric at the AQS Show in Paducah this year. Also, she has been SO encouraging with kind comments on my blog. She has continued to boost my confidence as I work through her book by sharing some of my posts with others. She has made this journey a bit less scary for me.

I know it is silly, but I really didn't want to "experiment" too much. I had many fears...one of them was that I would "waste" fabric. Now if you could see my stash, you would know how truly silly and irrational that is. I had always been used to cutting nice even pieces from my yardage. When I started the exercises in this book, I had to cut big chunks or little pieces out of some of my fabrics. At first, it was almost "painful" for me to do. Now, I'm rather enjoying it!

I have also come to realize that everyone's idea of "art"  is very different. Not everyone will like my work (or consider it art), and I have come to the point where that is alright with me. I know that what really matters is making art that pleases me.

Check out what Lyric has to say about my progress in her new post http://lyrickinard.blogspot.com/2010_05_01_archive.html#4514610818518637735
Thanks Lyric!

Shibori Jacket Pictures--One of My Paducah Purchases/"Color Mastery" Nominated

I got a comment that asked for a better picture of the shibori jacket I purchased while at the AQS Quilt Show in Paducah this year (2010). I love the jacket and the shibori work is wonderful. Take a look.

Jacket Front

Jacket Back

Close Up Pictures

Oh, I also wanted to give a "shout out" to Maria Peagler on the nomination of her book ("Color Mastery:  10 Principles for Creating Stunning Quilts") as a finalist for Best Craft Book of 2009 in the Benjamin Franklin awards hosted by the Independent Book Publishers Association. Congratulations Maria. I mentioned her book in a couple of my earlier blog posts. If you'd care to take a look, it is here... http://quilterbeth.blogspot.com/2009/09/i-won-i-won-check-out-color-mastery-10.html and http://quilterbeth.blogspot.com/2009/11/maria-peagler-fabric-and-works-in.html

Beth/Lyric Project Week 11 (Balance); I Actually Got It Finished

As a reminder to those of you that don’t normally keep up with my blog (if you do, skip to the next paragraph), I have started a project that I’m calling the Beth/Lyric Project. In the spirit of the movie “Julie/Julia,” (i.e. Julie working through Julia Child’s cookbook) I have decided to work through the exercises in Lyric Kinard’s “Art + Quilt, Design Principles and Creativity Exercises” book. My goal is to get at least one of the exercises done each week. I’ll be posting my progress on Sundays. I’d love for you to work along with me. If you decide to do that, please post and let me know how you’re doing—send pictures too! If you have trouble leaving a comment on my blog, email me at bschnellenberger@gmail.com.

Well, I had a little bit of time to work on my Beth/Lyric Project and got it finished for this week. I even surprised myself (that I got it done)! It is raining outside, though, and the picture is rather dark. I had to take it in my studio instead of outside with natural light.

This week's exercise was all about "balance." When looking at a composition...for the piece to have balance...there is should be equal distribution of visual weight. There is room, though, for imbalance in a composition. Imbalance creates a sense of tension for the viewer. Anyway...the instructions said to "choose two fabrics, one dull and neutral, the other bright and lively." I had to create a balanced composition by cutting shapes from each fabric and placing them on a background piece. This is my composition...

In this piece, I placed the heaviest object at the bottom of the composition. I like the sense of movement I get when looking at this one. I think it sort of looks like a person; I can also see a road. I think I like the road concept better, because the orange pieces look (to me) like paths...as in not knowing which path to take. Hmmmm, I'm reading a lot into this exercise don't you think?

We were supposed to ask ourselves...

• 
  
  How much of each color do you need to use?
• 
  
  What would happen if you varied the size of the shapes?
• 
  
  What would happen if you added one more color to the mix?
• 
  
  What would happen if you changed the color values?
• 
  
  Can you create a work that is deliberately unbalanced?

Again, I didn't have time to add any embellishments or stitching to the work, but I would like to.

Next week the exercise is about "Scale." Come on...join me. I REALLY won't get that one finished in time to post on the Sunday it is "due." I WILL get it finished and posted ASAP.

More from the Chicago Quilt Show (2010)...with still more to come

More from the Chicago International Quilt Festival…

The quilt below (Red Dahlia Reflections) was made by Barbara Barrick McKie from Lyme, Connecticut. Techniques used: Machine appliquéd and quilted. Barbara says, “These showy red dahlias were in several places in my garden. This is the sixth in a series combining reflections of flowers in glass with the same flowers realistically portrayed. I used Crazy Love dahlia on this piece.” This quilt was stunning.

I loved the colors of this quilt. “Alternating Arches” was made by Jane Lloyd from Antrim, Northern Ireland. Techniques: Machine stitched, layered, cut work. Design Source: Ideas from one quilt to the next, working on a quilt always sparks other ideas. She says this about the piece, “Working with line and colour is my passion. It’s based on layering and cutting and layering again. It gives me so many possibilities. Nothing is planned; it just develops along the way. I travel to Nepal twice a year and buy beautiful cotton there."

This quilt made me wonder if my Australian friend saw the bushfires in 2009. (I guess I’ll have to ask her.) Fenella Davies from Bath, United Kingdom created “Australian Bushfires.” Techniques: Reverse appliqué, appliqué. Design Source: Bushfires in Australia early in 2009. She says, “I was in Australia early in 2009 when the news was continually showing the terrible bushfires. The speed and ferocity was frightening. The scenes were of flames soaring into the air, charred and blackened trees and houses. This quilt also shows a small green shoot of regeneration and hope." I thought the little piece of green really added a lot to this quilt; I liked the idea of it.

I loved the “flow” of this quilt; the quilt made me feel peaceful. “Five Pebbles” was made by Dianne Firth from Turner Canberra, Australia. Techniques: Whole quilt, machine quilted. She says, “The character and quality of flowing water has been the inspiration for many of my quilts. Here the flow of water over black rock is interrupted by 5 pebbles—two of which are below the surface."

This quilt was very interesting. Up close, it was almost hard to tell what it was. Far away, the cheetah came to life. “Cheetah” was made by Stacy Hurt from Orange, California. “Celebrating San Diego’s Wild Cheetah Conservation programs and the Cheetah Run Exhibit!”

Please check back. There will be more pictures from the Chicago International Quilt Festival.

No Beth/Lyric Project This Week or Next

Between the quilt shows (Chicago and Paducah), my sister's visit, a family wedding, and two trips (Arkansas and Florida), my projects for these two weeks will not be done on time. I will try to get them done and posted as soon as possible.

Hey...this will give you time to catch up! Come on...do some of these with me. The projects I'm working on are on "Balance and Color" and "Scale" in Lyric Kinard's book, "Art + Quilt." You know you want to...