Sunday, May 11, 2014

Odds & Ends (& beginnings)



In the three weeks since finishing The Visit, the Kentucky Derby has come and gone, my sister came to visit, and the studio got cleaned. Everything but this in-progress lighthouse project was tidied up and put away, a process that also helps clean out the cobwebs in my brain and get the creativity flowing better.







While my sister was here, we stopped in at the antique/consignment/thrift shop just around the corner from my neighborhood, and found this pretty wooden wine rack with a drawer. Obviously, I had another use for it (although it's been pointed out to me that there are still a couple of spaces available for wine ;). All of the things stored here get used at various times during designing landscape quilts, and were originally stored upright in a tacky corrugated box with dividers (that kept collapsing). This drawer is the perfect size to hold marking pens and chalk, as well as gluesticks and masking tape.





Speaking of great finds, after finding those 5 beautiful yards of cotton/poly blend (mostly cotton) in the basement a few weeks back, I used it for joining-strips and binding on the quilt-as-you-go blocks. The color could not have been more perfect, and running across this fabric after having stashed and forgotten it years ago was surely no coincidence.





The backs of the blocks aren't arranged exactly the way I'd like, but after two hours of switching them around, the front of the quilt started getting out of balance--too much orange in one area, or all the purples in one corner, etc. So I went with this. It's just for us, anyway. I wouldn't give this to anyone else, with all the wonkiness in it (which I like). Plus, two seams already popped during washing and had to be appliqued over. Apparently I didn't always pay close enough attention to the underneath seam allowances when I was laying down the strips. Yikes! I'll be watching for more. Lesson learned.


Another project, just begun, involves these two fabrics...

1980s abstract upholstery fabric, by Dupont Teflon (!!)
Lewis & Clark journals print cotton


















...and this image, first enlarged on 1-inch graph paper and then traced on tear-away stabilizer.


The original plan for the upholstery fabric was to make it a stormy sky in a landscape (turned sideways, it looks like rain is coming down). But when I turned it the way it's shown in the photo, something entirely different popped out at me. Eh, we'll see how it goes....

Hope all you moms are having a wonderful Mother's Day! I received these two stunning gifts. I don't normally blog about my gifts, but these are original works of art and deserve a shout-out.




This hand-blown wine glass from my son Alex and his wife Shannon, made in Hebron from recycled glass, came from Just Creations, a shop here in town that is a "not-for-profit international crafts marketplace." They "provide marketing assistance to low-income craftspeople in more than 30 developing nations."  How cool is that? The glass is opaque in the shadows, translucent in the light. If you put it in a window, you can see the sunlight glowing through it. Just gorgeous!
And this incredibly beautiful piece on the right, a resin pyramid encasing recycled metals, rose petals and crystals, among other things, was made by my younger son, Aaron. The base is about 5 inches square. He has just begun working with resin (can you believe it?), and has several other ideas on the burner for more pieces. This one changes appearance depending upon the light it's in and what it's sitting on. Every time you examine it, you see something different. I'm fascinated by it, and can't wait to see the other pieces he crafts.



That's it for now, except to say, for those of you who asked me, I've decided to enter The Visit in the next AQS show, which happens to be in Chattanooga (the deadline was extended to this Wednesday, May 14.) I won't know until late June or early July whether it's accepted. Please cross your fingers for the girl (no longer) in the drawer.  :)  A lot depends on the quality of the photos I submit, which is a little nerve-wracking. Oddly enough, the photo that started this whole project was taken in Chattanooga, at Point Park on Lookout Mountain. Think any of the locals would recognize it in the quilt? I wonder...

Linking up with Leah Day's FMQ Project blog. She's binding her 365 quilt, AND she and husband Josh are heading to Pittsburg PA for Spring Quilt Market next week.

Have a great week!

Linda

9 comments:

  1. Good luck with your entry to AQS. I think The Visit is a fantastic piece and well-suited for contest entry. I hope the powers that be see it that way too. Though I don't drink, I'm beginning to think I need a wine rack. I also saw one on a blog that was being used to store threads quite beautifully.

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    1. Thank you so much, Afton. Hopefully the photos I send will get the texture across somehow. Haven't had much luck with that indoors, but will take some shots outdoors and see what happens. Threads in a wine rack...I'd like to see that. If you remember what blog, and have a moment, please let me know. My e-mail is on here somewhere, but it's lwkoenig at bellsouth dot net. Thanks again!

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  2. Your gifts are stunning! I would love to see in person. Just amazing, and I can imagine it is wonderful in a new way each time you look at it. Thanks for sharing these photos. Your quilt is awesome as well.

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    1. Thank you, Celia, I agree...some of the most beautiful things I've ever received. And thank you regarding the quilt. I doubt I'll ever do one this large again, but would still love to do another 'story quilt.'

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    2. Oh, wait, I had the garrison quilt on my brain, but just realized you were probably talking about the quilt in THIS blog post--LOL. It was a fun project, my first q-a-y-g, but I'll be more careful about the seams on the next one!

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  3. Yes, we recognize it! I have lived in Chattanooga for about 35 years and definite know exactly where you took the picture! I showed your blog to a friend of mine and she recognized it without any prompting from me. Hope it makes it into the show coming up this fall. Don't see how it wouldn't - it's gorgeous! Good luck!

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    1. Thank you so much. I just found your comment in the 'spam' section of Blogger, which I didn't even know existed!!! I'm so very sorry. It is so good to know that someone recognized it! No one else has told me that. Gee, looking at the date here, I realize that my reply is "only" two years late....ridiculous. Again, I'm so sorry. Thank you so much.

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  4. Hello Linda,

    Your QAYG quilt has turned out wonderful - I love it. Spotted my favourite block straight away, and the back looks perfect. Isn't it nice to fling together an easy project after working hard on the landscape quilt, and to make something just for yourselves too?

    Love, Muv

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    1. Hey, Muv,
      Thank you! It turned out to be pretty cozy on the bed, and now I'm in the mood to make another one. Definitely needed to downshift after The Visit! Have hibernated while working on the lighthouse landscape, but will probably get back to blogging soon. Hope all is well across the pond!

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