Author Archive | Ellen Lindner

Dancing In the Wind

By Ellen Lindner on November 4, 2017 in Uncategorized

This was originally posted May 19, 2015. I thought you’d enjoy seeing it again.

Standing on the bridge, with sunlit tropical foliage all around, the wind kicks up and the flags overhead begin to flutter wildly. It’s at once both exciting and serene. A joyful moment!

This was my experience as I took in an installation of art flags.

They went up a few days ago, on the campus of Florida Tech, in Melbourne, FL. The effect is wonderful! The 20+ flags are suspended from the cross beams of this charming walking bridge. Approaching from the parking lot, you’re greeted with a peaceful message on the east end.

Click any image for a larger view.

Flags stretch the full length of the bridge.

Many artists chose bright colors, like my own orange ones, below.

Patterns and prints were also popular.

And a few critters.

The whole thing lifts your spirits.

These flags were made and installed in support and celebration of the Southern Accents art quilt exhibit, which just opened in the adjacent building. They were loosely inspired by similar flags found in Tibet. It is thought that the good wishes of each flag come true, as the flags fray and wear. Isn’t that lovely sentiment?

I LOVE these flags! I hope you get to see them.

Ellen Lindner
P.S. This post is on my old blog. There’s tons of good stuff on it, if you haven’t looked at it before.
P.P.S. Here’s another post about the art flag installation.

Getting Close

By Ellen Lindner on October 31, 2017 in Uncategorized

I’m FINALLY winding down on the quilt featuring my brothers. It’s not ready for a full photograph yet, but here are the two faces. I spent A LOT of time on these and I’m happy with them.

Close detail of facial features. Ellen Lindner, AdventureQuilter.com/blog

My brother Todd

My brother Ricky

I plan to show the quilt to some of my family members this week. I know they’ll love it.

Ellen Lindner

Making Gun Barrels

By Ellen Lindner on October 25, 2017 in Uncategorized

Woohoo, the background of my current quilt is finally complete! Composed and glued and ready for stitching, (but without the green hexie in the center of the photo.)

In the photo above, I was considering adding some hexies to the background. Just because I’ve been making a lot of them and to give a nod to traditional quilts. Here’s a better look at them in the sky.

They were kinda interesting, but I eventually decided that they drew attention to the background, making it look overly chunky. I didn’t think either aspect would help the quilt, so I left them out.

On to making guns. Here’s Ricky’s finished.

Actually, I had to tweak it a little. The grey on the barrel was too high contrast, so I went over it with a little light grey pastel. Also, I decided that the barrel was not properly aligned with the stock, so I straightened that out. (See the improvements below.)

On to Todd’s gun. Due to the angle at which they’re holding their guns, the barrel of his appears longer than Ricky’s.

I composed the guns onto muslin, with glue. I think I should have fused them, since some of the pieces are pretty small and could ravel. Next time.

Don’t they look handsome? Just like themselves, I think: relaxed and at ease. Next, I’ll get to place them on the background. I think their orientation is about right above, but I know I’ll need to do some tweaking.

I’m getting excited with these results!

Ellen Lindner

Double Reverse Applique Available for Immediate Download

By Ellen Lindner on October 22, 2017 in Uncategorized

Have you seen the awesome results that can be achieved with Double Reverse Appliqué?

Like very accurate portraits.

Made using Ellen Lindner's Double Reverse Applique technique. AdventureQuilter.com

March Journal: Ellen, by Ellen Lindner

Ellen Lindner. AdventureQuilter.com

The portrait above was the FIRST thing I ever did with this technique! That’s how easy it is.

Ellen portrait - detail. AdventureQuilter.com

Now, I have an eBook about this technique, which uses this awesome apple to teach you the concepts.

My students and readers have had really good results with this technique. See what I mean:

Baxter, by Diane Hamburg

by Marge Lehrer

by Barbara Bilbo

The download is only $9.95. Find full details here.

Enjoy,
Ellen Lindner

750 Pins Later

By Ellen Lindner on October 16, 2017 in Uncategorized

I own 750 pins: 3 boxes of 250 each. But, that wasn’t enough to compose my current quilt!

I use A LOT of smallish pieces of fabrics, so that’s why I use so many pins.

See what I mean?

Still, I’m very happy with the barns and trees I recently created.

I’m especially pleased with the two trees on the left. A clean up cloth provided lots of little smudged lines that I was able to manipulate. I think it works.

How will I complete my composition without more pins? Well, I’ll eventually buy more. But in the meantime, I started gluing things in place in order to free up pins. I still need to create the grass that’s needed in the foreground.

It seems like this quilt is taking longer than usual, but I should be stitching on it soon.

Ellen Lindner
P.S. This page lists some of my favorite products, including my favorite pins.

Corn Fields and Such

By Ellen Lindner on October 12, 2017 in Uncategorized

After separately creating the two men for my “brothers quilt,” it was time to work on the background.

I finished up the rough draft of the sky and added the far tree line, (with a piece of blue fabric marking a future silo.).

Next it was on to the corn field in the foreground. Since the reference photo was taken in November, the corn had already been harvested and the short golden stalks were all that was left.

I wanted to create the texture of the messy corn stalks, but not too exactly. So, I used lots of print fabrics to convey the vegetation. My plan was to use large scale prints in the foreground, like those shown below, and smaller scaled ones in the background. I hoped this would add a sense of depth.

It worked, but required a good bit of tweaking. (And a lot of pins!) Here is what I think will be the final corn field, below.

Distant fields had much more subtle texture, so I auditioned near-solid fabrics for them.

Here they are, complete. I’m happy with the sense of depth. That will be enhanced when I add the small buildings in the distance.

Next it was time to start adding the green fields and grasses. Here it is, in-progress.

I’m getting close to completing the design of this background. I still need to add the foreground grass and the buildings. Then, I’ll have to glue it all in place.

FYI, here’s another quilt where I used the scale of fabrics to add to the sense of depth.

Ellen Lindner

My Brothers: Clothing

By Ellen Lindner on October 6, 2017 in Uncategorized

I’m happy with the way the quilt featuring my two brothers is developing. Here’s my brother Ricky almost complete.

After making the face of my other brother, Todd, it was time to work on his jacket. First, auditioning fabric.

Here it is, in-progress.

All these little pieces were eventually glued to the muslin base and to each other.

Selecting fabrics for Todd’s pants was more challenging. They were sort of Army green; not a color I tend to stock. My first attempt:

No. I decided the color was too bright. This was my solution. Much better, I think.

Now that I’ve completed the two men I’m just getting started on the background. I’ll make it much looser, which I’m looking forward to.

So far, I’ve just worked on the sky. Some of it looks a little strong to me, but I’ve learned not to cast judgement until I can see everything together.

As you can see in the photo above, I’ve drawn the background fields and barns onto the muslin base. I’ll reference these as I continue.

Ellen Lindner

Heading to the Asheville Quilt Show

By Ellen Lindner on September 29, 2017 in Uncategorized

Although I’ve never been to the Asheville Quilt Show, my quilts have. And this year I get to go too!

I’m really looking forward to stopping in on Sunday to see my two quilts on display.

Stitched: Embracing the Quilt as Fine Art. Ellen Lindner, AdventureQuilter.com/blog

Vine Ripened, by Ellen Lindner

Second Thoughts, by Ellen Lindner

(And maybe I’ll do some shopping at the vendors too! Hah, “maybe.” I crack myself up!) Maybe I’ll see you there. Here’s the info.

Ellen Lindner

Floral Improv on the Coast of South Carolina

By Ellen Lindner on September 27, 2017 in Uncategorized

I was really impressed with the gals in my recent “Floral Improv” class, in Hilton Head Island, SC. They caught on quickly and were not intimidated by new concepts. AND, best of all, they made some GREAT quilts!

Why oh why do I always forget to take in-progress photos? I guess it’s because I’m staying too busy. But, I did get a few shots of finished (and nearly finished) quilts as we were cleaning up.

Peg’s quilt is completely finished except for being faced. Don’t you love the contrast?

Donna still has some stitching to do. That will really bring her poppies to life.

Although I like to use low contrast leaves and stems for this project, Rosalyn preferred the high contrast of these green stems. They really add a lot of interest.

Judy also finished the stitching on her piece and it’s all ready for facing. I’m just now noticing the dark centers she added to some of her “daisies.” I love the way everyone interprets these floral landscapes in their own unique ways. Improv indeed!

Maxine sent me a photo of her finished quilt about two days after the class. Can you see the bird she added in the lower left corner? It’s made from what used to be two flowers. (What was that I was saying about improv?)

I think these ladies had a great time and I did, too. And we all loved each other’s results!
L-R: Rosalyn, Peg, Donna, and Judy

Maybe your guild would also enjoy this “Floral Improv” class. Or one of my other classes.

Ellen Lindner

My Brothers

By Ellen Lindner on September 21, 2017 in Uncategorized

I’ve been thinking about making a quilt inspired by this photo (composite) of my two brothers.

I took quite a few photos that day and loosely merged 3 to get this composite. In the quilt I’ll leave out the extra arm and the clay pigeon thrower.

This will be a special quilt for several reasons.
– My brother Ricky, on the left, is no longer alive.
– It depicts a family tradition: target shooting on the farm after Thanksgiving dinner.
– In shows both brothers relaxed, and in their element. They are/were both excellent marksmen.
– It will complement an earlier family quilt I made. I’ve sized it accordingly.
– It relates well to a current call for art titled “Guns: Loaded Conversations.”

For this project I knew I’d need something I seldom use: a pattern. At least for the two men. I created it with a combination of computer editing and good old tracing.

Next came fabric selection for the faces. Maybe something like this. (Or do I need a darker one?)

I used the “cutout” filter in Photoshop Elements to help me finalize the pattern for Ricky’s face.

My process was to fuse fabrics for the features, cut out pattern shapes, and fuse/assemble them on parchment paper. That latter part was new for me and more than once I fused fabric to my pattern instead!

Here’s his finished face and I’m extremely happy with it.

This looks just like him. So much so that both my sister and mother were startled when they stumbled upon it on Facebook. Yay! I think I’m on track. What do you think?

Ellen Lindner

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Author Archive | Ellen Lindner

Dancing In the Wind

Getting Close

Making Gun Barrels

Double Reverse Applique Available for Immediate Download

750 Pins Later

Corn Fields and Such

My Brothers: Clothing

Heading to the Asheville Quilt Show

Floral Improv on the Coast of South Carolina

My Brothers

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