Crows and feathers (for a change)

Today was the first day I've had in a couple of weeks to see the inside of my workroom for more than a few minutes. We've all been laid low with a nasty virus and have had to take turns to see who would keep the ship afloat. Whoever was less ill was it! We're all still coughing and sneezing but over the worst we hope. Why do these things have to happen at one of the busiest times of the year?

Feeling almost human this morning, it was very satisfying to make some progress with my quilt. I'm at the stage where I'm adding the motifs above and between the printed gold text. It will come as no surprise to anyone who's familiar with my work that there are crows involved. To me they are symbols of freedom, escape, aspiration and rising above difficult situations.

And for much the same reason there are feathers.

Some of the shapes are bonded and some stencilled using Markal Paintstiks. These motifs will all provide lovely shapes for the quilting which will completely ignore the grid based piecing. I want the stitch to define the appliqué and print rather than draw attention to the patchwork which, in this quilt, is simply a background. I'm concentrating all the interest at the edge of the quilt as the title "To the Brim" suggests.

I collect feathers whenever I see them so I have plenty of suspects to work from. There are probably rules about carrying such things through customs so I won't mention that the biggest ones were picked up on a beach in California! 

I'm only showing you a small area of the quilt today, not because I'm being secretive about it, the truth is I don't have a wall big enough to display it in full. It's making it difficult for me to get a true impression of how it's coming along so I think I shall have to resort to the floor as soon as I have the energy to clean it first.

Thanks for dropping by today. Talk to you again soon -  Linda x 

Well done all round

I am being creative I promise you but I'm working on stuff I have to keep to myself for the time being. Although I can't share what I'm doing, I'm really happy to show a few images kindly sent in by three of our DMTV subscribers.

Joanne's lovely panel features printed fabric sent to her by Karen Ruane as well as some vintage Japanese fabrics and is inspired by the painting of artist Kevin Appel. She made this following the 'Art as Inspiration' mini series.

Mary's panel was also inspired by 'Art as Inspiration'. She looked to the art of Ivon Hitchens who apparently always painted whilst listening to music (doesn't everybody?). I am not familiar with this artist's work so I shall have to look him up. That's one of the things I love about our subscribers - they keep us on our toes! The music influence shows though doesn't it? I think Mary's piece has a great harmony and rhythm!

Linda's sampler has turned out beautifully - no wonder she's happy to let us enjoy it too! She made this following the stencilling workshops on DMTV.

While I'm congratulating our subscribers on their creativity, I also want to say good luck and well done to our friend Stuart who has recently launched a new online perfume business. I've been buying from Stuart for years but now I don't even have to go to town - I can just relax in my cosy armchair and choose gorgeous treats to arrive by post. Sounds like a great way to handle the Christmas shopping without the hassle of crowded streets! Good on yer Stuart!

A brief post today but I'll talk again soon - bye for now, Linda