Stitching Childhood Memories
I have really great memories from my childhood. Growing up on a dairy farm, my experience was a little different than most. (Example: my first word was moo!) My three siblings, the three neighbor kids, and I built forts in the hay loft, played in the creek, and learned to run barefoot on hot gravel.
Recently, I decided to depict some of these memories as small quilts. I started with a silly one about me singing to the cows when I was seven. (I “knew” they liked it!)
I decided on a rather cartoon look. In part because I thought it was appropriate, but mostly so it would be easier. Not being very proficient at drawing people, I spent A LOT of time sketching! And I drew a bunch of variations on sheets of tracing paper. Like this.
Click any image for a larger view
I planned my little quilt to be only 9 x 12 (inches,) and set about creating a composition. This is what I decided upon. (Click for better view.)
Did you notice that the cows don’t have bodies? I decided they weren’t necessary to tell the story and that the composition was better without them.
I put quite a bit of thought into the way the fabrics would work together. For instance, the skin fabric had to show up against a tan road and a green pasture. And the blonde hair had to show up against a pale blue sky.
Once my selections were made, I stitched the background.
And then I began to work on the “doll.” Actually, she’s me, but the stylized shape reminded me of a paper doll. I flipped her to the mirror image so her outstretched arm wouldn’t be pointing off the edge of the quilt.
She sure didn’t look like much at this stage. However, I knew the stitching would add a lot of definition. And I was happy with the narrative quality the piece was developing.
Ellen Lindner
P.S. The idea for making people cartoons was inspired by an article in the November 2013 issue of American Quilter magazine. It’s called Creative Girl Art Quilts, by Carrie Payne.
