Journal quilt Dec 2009

This is my December Journal quilt for 2009 - that would be number 12 for 2009 on my journey from quilter to nearly a quilt artist!  I think I have learnt a lot over the last 12 months about quilting, art and me!

The theme for December was "December".  I've decided that I would do a reflection and introspection of the year.  This little quilt represents all I have learnt in 2009.  It is a start, I still have a long way to travel!

This is a gelatine monoprint background, lino printed feathers and then handpainted and heavily free motion quilted.  I'm really happy with it - I'd love to know what you think!

Hugz

Up Stream or Down Finished!

I did say, in the last post, that I have finished two quilts this weekend! A photo of the second one finished would be a really good idea.

The colours still aren't right and I have no idea why!

October Journal

Now this is getting a bit silly. Nothing happens for nearly two weeks and then I finish two journals in two days!





This is my interpretation of the October theme "The Other Side".

Two answers!


1. Positive / negative The leaves are presented in both positive and negative form.

2. Autumn/Spring On one side of the quilt are autumn leaves, very orangy brown and looking very brittle.  This is another lino print.  The same lino I used in Deco Leaves. I've heavily quilted the back ground of the leaves.






On the back of the quilt are the Spring leaves, bright green and soft. I have achieved this using Inktense pencils, to lightly colour the quilt lines from "the other side".


This little quilt is the first time I have publicly used my artists monogram.

Friday Flaunt

My goodness. I haven't blogged for nearly 2 weeks! How bad is that?

Truth is I haven't been doing anything much. Earlier this week I did do some gelatine plate printing. I really had to push myself to do it because I made the plate over a week before and I hadn't used it! My creative impulse seemed to have disappeared!

Any way, doing the printing got me going again. The photo (a very bad one) is the start of my September journal quilt. The theme is "whimsey"! I think that is where I got bogged down. What an incredibly hard word to define. One of the monoprints I did was this one - the butterflies on a green back ground. In real life the green is quite bright and a lot more yellow than the photo. I'll try to fix the photo later.

The frog on the leaf is a little lino print I did a few weeks ago.

He seems to me to be floating down stream on his little leaf, hanging on for dear life, while the butterflies are blissfully, fluttering up stream!

When I finish the binding I'll add some hand embroidery and beading.

August Journal and New Challenge!

My Goodness. I have had a very challenging weekend!

Yesterday I finished my August Journal - I added a few more beads and then my head started to think about September, so I guess I have added enough beads!

The Forensics Camps are finally over, the 2 Grandbabies (who came to the 2nd camp with me), have gone home to their respective, other homes and I have had some sleep!

These are the tyres the campers had to use to make castings!  Very messy, very physical and a lot of fun!

I took the photo after the "bits" were in my Prep room.  The plaster is there and the "Blood Splatter" equipment.  I didn't take any photos of the 'Blood Splatter" because I can do al sorts of things but I don't "do" disembodied blood, sorry!

The Physics Lab!  The 4 hot plates set along the bench are for Refractive index of glass!  The campers had to use this apparatus to work out which piece of glass they had!  

Can you see the Tamanian Tiger outside the window?

This is another photo of the same thing just because I love the art work on the walls out side the lab!

This s the "Soil and Paintchip" Lab.  The Campers also did paper chromatography in this lab.




I think we all had fun and learnt heaps

Basil, Barrie and Bill!
Basil - the fox on the shelf

Barrie - the Deputy Principal

Bill - the brains of the outfit!  Thanks Bill for 2 great camps.  The next one will be even better!



Two good sleeps later and.............

How lazy am I?

Had a shower and dressed at 2pm! I loved it! Then we(sweetpea (DH) and I) went to 2nd daughter's place to help keep her babies company! Sara (DD), Morgan (DGS) and Lucy (DGD) are wonderful but very exhausting! I loved it! We played in the veggie patch, we played in the bath and we giggled as we got ready for bed - then Poppy and Wally came home for dinner and a big sit down!

Before we left, DD gave me a challenge!

Sara tells me that Lucy needs a new quilt (Lucy is about to graduate from a cot to a bed). Sara has painted little persons room antique white and then painted a tree with owls and birds on the walls!  It's very cute really because she is a very good artist!!  She has even painted the cutest little ants running around the door frame! (Note to self - take a few photos next time you are there!).

Anyway - these are the templates and swatches that she used for the walls ( forgot to say that the dark red swatch is the feature wall in Lucy's room!).  Now to design the quilt!

Morgan's room is next and that is going to be a castle (Help!)

Wave - Work in Progress

So far so good! I think not much more is required. I think my August journal is almost complete.

I'm not sure whether to do anymore beading or not.  I really am in a dilemma!

Any advise would be greatly appreciated!

August journal in progress and a great learning experience.

I think I've go some motion in here! The beads are on the table and waiting!

I think Camp might get in the way of a Friday Flaunt but what the heck.

From tomorrow I have 2 grand babies with me 24/7 till Saturday morning! At work, from Wednesday morning, I have the Grand Babies plus another 58 other peoples' Grand Babies! And they all will be learning so much fun stuff!

I really do love these camps! It is so much fun watching the kids get confused, work out what they have to do and then just get on with it! The pride they show when they work out the whole problem (read crime) and that they can do it, is awesome!

Gelatine Plate Prints

I have just discovered that a gelatine plate that has frozen on one side makes very interesting prints but will only last for about an hour, then it just collapses in a very messy heap!

Before it fell to bits I did manage to get some good prints (blue and white only)

Even the cloth I cleaned my brushes and roller on came up looking good.  I'll have to wait and see what the clothes I cleaned the gelatine with look like - they are out side dripping and drying!

But the one I like the best is this one!

I was trying hard to create a wave breaking and, thanks to the frozen gelatine, I think I did it!!!!

This might end up my August journal!

July Journal

Flora - No Green

Or

Plum blossum in a Gale

I seem to be on a roll with my journal quilts! Two in 2 weekends!

This is the finished product. The description of how I did it is in my post of Friday (in amongst the Flaunting!)








This a close up. I think you can see how I achieved it! It does look better from a distance but I thought I add this anyway.














Here it is hanging on the wall. The colour is the closest to real life. The mauve to blue graduation in the back ground is more obvious. For some reason my camera doesn't like reproducing a true purple. It wants to make it a deep blue! Grrr

More Fairies and Dragons, Plum Blossum and a Flaunt!

All my little fairies,dragons and unicorns on the bench.















They were in the fruit bowl!
















Watching my every move.

























He is a very handsome animal.

















This is my July journal in progress. I drew the branches with my watercolour pencils and fabric medium. I then thread painted over that. Finally I hand painted the petals with fabric paint!

I'm trying to decided whether I add a little bird or not. The theme is Flora.

Post cards for 1200th visitors

These two little postcards are about to wing their way all the way to Perth WA. Marion and Bettine arrived on my blog at pretty much the same time and one of them was my 1200th visitor. I couldn't work out who was who so they both get one. I do hope you like them.

The fans are foundation pieced and are based on a quilt made by Lisa Walton, called Spiked Fans, from memory. I bought the kit from Lisa years ago (at the Sydney Scquilter's Retreat I think). I didn't get around to making the whole quilt but I have played with some elements of it. Sorry Lisa, I discovered that I can't make quilts from patterns - I get too bored and want to do my own thing. The fabric from the kit is being put to good use though. I'm using some for my Lisa Jane (Dear Jane) quilt and the border my June Journal Quilt is some of it as well - the yummiest pale green!

June Journal Quilt - Off Centre

The June theme is Centre. I have called the quilt "Off Centre"

I've finally finished my June journal for Aus/NZ Art Quilters. I've taken myself a long way away from my normal zone of comfort.


I racked my brains, to no avail. I couldn't think of anything. Then, last week I did some mono prints using a gelatin plate and this piece of painted fabric jumped out of the pile I made and said "pick me!"

The photo above and below are detail s of the stitching! I'm still having lots of fun with Susan Briscoe's books. I now own 3 of them. This week I bought "The Ultimate Sashiko Sourcebook".






Techniques:

Gelatin mono print, over printed with the mask I used.

Sashiko, Hitomezashi stitches.










And here is the finished product, hanging on the wall in our family room. I think I might leave it there. It looks right at home!














I mentioned in my last post about this little quilt that I was going to have to cut it! Well I did and I just couldn't bear to throw the off cuts out so I included them in the backing!