Adventure Quilter

After completing the flowers in my poppy project, it was time to audition fabrics for stems and buds.

I also played around with how to best achieve the back lighting on the stems.  My plan was to use a white paint pen, in a sort of dotted (fuzzy) effect.

That seems to be the right direction, but I’ll probably need to kick it up a notch.

(Did you notice that most of the background pins have disappeared?  That’s because I quilted the background before adding the flowers.  Much easier stitching that way.)

To represent the back lighting on the buds I backed each of them with white fabric, trimming it closely to give a skinny halo effect.

On to the stems. They didn’t show up that well, but I knew they’d show up more once I added the back lighting effect. But wait, are they too skinny?

I made one (left) stem fatter, above, to test stem widths.  Yep, I needed to bulk them up. Below, they’ve been reworked.

Next, came the white paint.  Slightly intimidating. I started with just a little, but it didn’t show up that well, so I kept adding.  I ended up here. It looks kinda heavy and messy up close, but I think it works correctly from a distance.

Next comes flower stitching.

*I just started an online version of this class last week.  We’re just finishing lesson one so  it’s easy to catch up, if you’re interested.  Full details here.

Ellen Lindner

As I told you in a previous post, I’ve been needing a new sample for my class “Design Your Own Nature Quilt.”  After selecting an inspiration photo and drawing a sketch, I got started.

First I selected fabrics.

And then got started on the background.

I typically use a lot of different fabrics for the background. That works especially well here.

I “jagged cut” everything, which works perfectly for foliage.  I included some stripes, grids, circles, and even a little color. I love the added interest! Notice, too, that I made the background lighter at the bottom, just as it is in my inspiration photo.

(Did you notice that I did this flat on a table, rather than on my design wall?  That’s because I was visiting a friend.  But, it’s also the way my students work in this class.)

On to the flowers.  I had a beautiful bit of hand dyed fabric that I thought I could use for the first flower. Yes, perfect!

Once home, I set up things on the design wall in my conventional fashion. And I began to audition flower fabric combinations.

Next, I tackled the largest flower and was quite happy with the results.

Perhaps you can make out the center marks on the background above.  This helped me with placement since I added a  similar mark to my sketch.

With just a little more effort the remaining two flowers were completed and it was on to auditioning fabrics to use for stems.

I’ll show you more in the next post.

*I just started an online version of this class a few days ago.  There’s plenty of time to join in, if you’re interested.  Full details here.

Ellen Lindner

Remember this quilt, which I completed recently?

Initial Response

It sold almost right away to an artist friend of mine. She says it “nagged” at her for several weeks after first seeing it, so she knew she had to have it.  And also that it would fit their new home very well.

And boy does it.

Isn’t it perfect with the lively pops of color?

I love their eclectic and colorful decor, including the lively chameleon painting to the left of the quilt.  (It was done by the home owner.)  Isn’t this room joyful and fun?

I’m so delighted to see this quilt in its new home!  I feel like this sale is a win-win for everyone.  As any sale should be.

Ellen Lindner
P.S. Would you like to see more quilts in their final environments?