March 24, 2009

Spirit Journey




"Spirit Journey" Acrylic on Canvas. 24" x 30"

March 23, 2009

Quilts

I have been quilting for about 4 years, now, and have become totally hooked on this creative outlet. I have always loved colour , design and fabric so combining them made a lot of sense.

Most of these quilts have appeared on my other blog. Unfortunately, the photos aren't the greatest, but they will have to do. I wasn't really into taking photos of my quilts at the time, and some of them were taken after several washes.
I do have photos of other quilts to share later, although some will not appear here as they were never photographed.

None of these were from patterns, they just developed depending on the fabric and what I felt like doing. I have only ever done a one day class in quilting, so what I have learnt has come from books, blogs and other Scquilters (an online quilting group), and of course, from my numerous mistakes!

Not one of my quilts is perfect, or even near perfect. They are riddled with flaws. But I love them all, probably more so because of their errors. They are a reminder of my progression in this wonderful art form.




"Shirley's Garden"

An early (very!) lap "quilt" I made for a friend. Not much quilting as I only knew stitch in the ditch, and it was only 2 layers - the pieced top and polar fleece backing.

At this point, I had had no lessons, knew no-one who quilted, and had absolutely no idea!!! But I did have lots of enthusiasm. :)



"Sunset Passion"

This one was made not long after. It did have 3 layers, but still not much quilting. I'm amazed it has held together as well as it has!




"B's Quilt"

I knew a lot more by the time I made this one! Quilt in the Ditch for all the squares, and parallel wavy lines along the borders. I still had quite a bit to learn (still do!) but I was extremely pleased with this one.



"Angels to Watch Over You"
This was a labour of love. I made this for my Mum when she was diagnosed with metastasis (return of her breast cancer under her mastectomy and in her bones). The fabric was from a range called Angel Garden (or something like that) and I added the beautiful blue minke in the centre square and for the borders. I wanted something that would feel beautiful to the touch, as though she was being stroked.
I was going to add minke to the other squares but it was a b*r to work with. It kept slipping and sliding everywhere, even though i followed all the hints to work with it.
Quilted in the ditch.
Detail:



"Orange Pot"


Acrylic on canvas. 24" x 30"

March 22, 2009

"Across the Valley"


Oil on board. Miniature. 4" x 4" (unframed size)
Memories of Glennifer, NSW

Boat on the Lily Pond


Pastel on black glass paper. Miniature. 4" x 4"

Pastel pencil drawing


My interpretation of a drawing by Rembrandt. Copying the Masters is a time honoured exercise by art students. You learn so much when doing this - technique, proportion, balance, and so much more!