I belong to SAQA (Studio Art Quilt Associates) which has an auction each fall as a fund raiser. Members are asked to donate 12″ x 12″ quilts which are auctioned off online. I wanted to participate but was a little pressed for time. Therefore, I decided to revisit an earlier quilt idea.
I decided to loosely mimic this quilt, When Crotons Cut Loose.
The quilt above came about quite easily. I had some fused scraps and I wondered if they could be used for croton leaves. When I placed them along an imaginary stem line, I loved their wacky shapes, so I decided to use them “as is,” with very little modification. I did something very similar as I put together my new composition.
I really like the irregular edges. Don’t they have lots of energy?
Once the composition was fused in place, I quilted the background in a grid (made easy by the background fabric.) Then, I pondered adding some hand stitching and decided to do so.
I’m very happy with this little quilt. These crotons really do look like they have some sassy attitudes, don’t they?
There will be hundreds of awesome quilts in the upcoming auction. Check out the early ones and learn more about the auction process here. I’ll let you know when it actually starts.
Ellen Lindner
So that’s why we save all those pieces! Love your crotons and will have to make some for me….in my clean up, organize and prioritize I threw most of these prized scraps away! I’ll have fun making new scraps and really saving them.
Good job as always Ellen
Ingrid
Great plan, Ingrid!
Nice quilt – I like the irregular leaves!
Yes, Kristin, I think the irregular shapes give it a lot of interest. (And “attitude.”)
The late Larraine Scouler, from the Blue Mountains of Australia, published a book in 1997 with Quilters Resource, that is long out of print. I can’t remember the name of the book nor can I find it anywhere. The book included ideas for quilting the background first before adding the applique. It eliminates all those pesky stops and starts around the applique motifs. I think it’s a great idea, even if her book has somewhat vanished.
Good luck with the auction, and as a fellow SAQA member, thank you for taking the time to make an auction quilt. I need to start now for next year—-
Great idea, Wendy. I frequently quilt the background first, but sometimes I get ahead of myself! (As in this case.)
Great idea! I love your colour choices!
I love vibrant colors, MaryAnn!
Love your work.
Thanks, Carol!
Can clear fabric glue be used for this type of project; if so which type or brand? I being a beginner am trying to experiment with this type art medium. Also; once lightly glued in place ; can regular quilt machine stitching be applied?
Hi Diane,
You could definitely use glue, rather than fusible web. I like Roxane’s Glue-Baste-It, which you can easily stitch through. Actually, regular school glue works, too, but is a little harder to control. If you put it in a tube with a fine tip it would be easier.