Stitching Roots, 5

Making a bit of headway.




One of the fabrics is a silk or silk-like scarf so the turning can be very thin, maybe 1/16th of an inch.

Laying Out Strips

Laying out strips for a background.

Then testing out the foreground.

Looks a little blaaaaaaaaaaaah to me.

Stitching Roots, 4

I keep falling asleep with the needle in my hand in the wee hours.

As Tunisia is not on Daylight Savings Time, the sun shines very early 

so I'm up early, too.

May have to take a nap so I can keep inching along.

I Exploded

For a number of weeks I have only managed to stitch after dinner. I focused on the tasks at hand; I restrained myself, constrained myself, contained myself.

Then today, BOOM! I exploded. I felt I deserved a present for my 2nd blog anniversary over at MulticoloredPieces. And what did I really want most? To start a new piece because I've had an idea simmering for awhile, and then things seemed to just come together (or get out of hand)....I pulled out a bunch of fabrics from my stacks for the background.

However these were dictated by the foreground. Five men's shirts: a dark brown, a dusty green, a grayed purple, a white for sparkle, and a striped purple.

OK, OK! I know my To-Do-List is over 20. Do you know where this is going?

Stitching Roots, 3

Sometimes this feels like whittling wood or carving stone...well, maybe it's not quite that slow.

No, on second thought, I think it's slower...

Blogger's Quilt Festival and Revolution

Amy of Amy's Creative Side is efficiently and generously hosting the Blogger's Quilt Festival once again and there is an art quilt category. So here's my choice for this spring, a piece that is dear to my heart and one that I would like to share with a wider audience.

Revolution 2011: Order and Disorder (41.5" x 46", 105cm x 117cm, machine pieced, appliquéd and quilted; hand appliquéd) commemorates the liberation of Tripoli, Libya and the end of an ugly dictatorship. 

The outer squares (top and right) represent an order that disintigrates into disorder, yet there is a flow, there is hope. However, the black borders represent rupture and the possibility of chaos upon whose edge Libya now  teeters.

The warm colors of the central panel are stitched with "extreme" needle turn appliqué, which I worked on over the course of ten years, while the cool colors provide a contrast with machine appliqué that allows the raw edges to show. The frayed edges suggest an unraveling of society, of stability, of things we take for granted.

(My blog articles about extreme needle turn appliqué may be seen here, here, and here.)

At the Blogger's Quilt Festival, you may nominate a favorite for the Viewer's Choice Award until May 24th.  So I invite you to stop by Amy's, admire some excellent work, and, nominate a piece by entering the link of your favorite and your email address here. Voting for Viewer's Choice begins May 24th and ends May 30th. 

Testing 1, 2, 3

After several weeks of grueling physical work (house painting & gardening),

I finally found a few minutes to go into my studio.

I needed to test out the roots in order to figure out the outer cuts, that is, how far out they would extend.

Lots to go as the roots will be as wide as the tree, but now I've got the outer edges drawn in with a white colored pencil. Once the outer cut is stitched down, it will simply be a question of filling in with needle turn appliqué. Of course, the brown fabric branches will become more supple--everything is just pinned.

And while I was pinning, I looked at the pomegranates again. 

Man, I love this piece! Every inch is invested with all I've got.

Linked to Nina Marie's "Off the Wall Friday."

Stitching Roots, 2

This begins to look "root-ier", more feathery.

A side view of the section I worked on last night.

Persuading the bottom paisley to come through the brown hole.

Stitching Roots, 1

Another "inching-along-project."

It's that time of year. House painting during the day, stitching into the wee hours at night. 

So much to finish before summer heat hits us. 

Thinking vertically, 3

This piece feels finished. The 9-patch has become the lower part.

The French knots move toward the top. Hint: think tree trunks and branches.

Now I'm reflecting on how to slice it up. Very exciting...

Back to Roots

The roots for the pomegranate tree intrigue me. As the brown fabric is appliquéd one strip on top of another, the overlapping layers (which I didn't trim back) allow for cutting and reverse appliqué.

And this needle turn appliqué will have more raw edges contrasting with the smooth turned edges.

Although I've used this appliqué technique frequently, each time I discover new ways to play 

with the fabric--fortunately, or I'd die of boredom.

Thinking Vertically, 2

Possibly, just possibly, this corner is finished.

The addition of French knots has created a directional movement. I put a book underneath (after I stitched the piece to my pajamas--of course I cut a hole in the pjs rather than cut the threads of my precious French knots) and was able to work on the top, making the French knots work up faster.

Maybe because I've done so many (The Pen, yeah the pens are all French knots, took me 3 yrs), 

I still prefer French knots to thread beads.  They seem to stand out better...for me.

Thinking Vertically

An idea has been forming in my mind.

This piece may go vertical.

The French knots will doodle their way upwards.

Yes, the idea is taking shape.

Warning! I think I'm going to have to slice this.

Won't that be exciting?