DIFFERENT ACRYLIC PLATE

I finally started printing my Year of the Goat (Sheep) print from last year, well this year - 2015.  It's time to start thinking about next year's Year of the Monkey print, so I thought I'd better do this year's first.

I had already had the image scratched onto an acrylic plate.  I'd used some thinner acrylic then I'd ever used before.  If I remember right, it was all they had at the hardware store at the time.

Before I wiped the ink off - don't want to spoil the surprise!

It seemed to be okay, until I started running it through the press.

Sorry for the blurry image.

Sorry this one is blurry too.

As you can see in the pictures, after about only 25 prints, the edges are starting to deteriorate and break up.

I stopped for the day.  I hope it still prints next time I start up again.

BINDING DONE

ON OTHELLO STREET

Here's an ink and watercolor sketch I did of a neighborhood house.

QUILTING DONE - BINDING ON

Finished the quilting on this little quilt today.  [72" by 48"]

Here's a picture with the binding on, but not turned to the back yet.

Quilting close-up

FREE MOTION QUILTING

I had to break down and buy some new fabric for the backing.

I got it pinned on Monday and started free-motion quilting it on Tuesday.

On the front side I'm using a bright varigated mult-colored thread and on the back it will just be gray,

Here we go...

STARTED A NEW QUILT

It's not like I don't have a dozen or more unfinished projects I could work on....

But I've had this group of fat quarters for the last 15 years or so and I finally got inspired to do something with them.  Maybe I could consider the collection of fabric an unfinished project.

I made one block.  I'm thinking there will be 30.  There are 64 fat quarters and I'll pair them up to make one block.  It may be a long time project, too.

Here's the first one.  Easy-peasy to sew, but it's a lot of sewing.  1-1/2" finished squares.  

100 little squares per block.

Here's the pile of fat quarters, on the selvedge is written:

Moda Fabrics 1999 "Floral Trails".

QUILT TOP TOGETHER

With the papers gone, it went together very quickly.

I bought some fabric for the backing already.  Now I don't think I like it with the top.  Does that give me permission to go fabric shopping?

I made the binding since I ran out of things to do.  So I better get a back and get it quilted before I misplace the binding.

PAPER-PIECING IS MESSY

I got the last part of the block finished and sewed to it's mate.  I sewed one whole block together.

I realized it would be easier if the paper was gone.  So, I stopped and removed all of the paper from the back of the blocks.

What a mess.  I love being able to make a big mess in my studio and walking away....

But...I'll have to clean it up eventually.

ANOTHER BLOCK DONE

I sewed them together and then called it a day.

PAPERPIECING

I made a little progress today.

I cut out all of the pieces that I will need (I was worried I wasn't going to have enough gray).  I still have enough of the gray left to make the binding from - so that worked out good.

And I made the extra parts to replace the two blocks that got damaged and made them.  So, I'm all caught up.

I also changed my mind about the order of the colors.

This is how it was originally planned.

This is what I changed it to.

ME AND CEZANNE

Darrell and I went to Seattle Art Museum today to see the "Intimate Impressionism" exhibit.  It features quite a few smaller paintings from the collection of the Mellon Family on loan from the National Gallery of Art.  
I got up close and got a very good look at Cezanne's "Still Life with Milk Jug"  that I had recently painted from a very bad newspaper image.  The actually painting was much darker and richer in color than I had expected (aren't they almost always?!).  I enjoyed looking at the way he laid down the paint and trying to figure out exactly the process he used as opposed to how I did it.  I'm jealous of the folks that can sit in the Louvre and gaze at the masterpiece as they try to replicate it.  And I understand now how much one can learn by doing so.

Me and Cezanne's "Still Life with Milk Jug"

My painting 

HALF DONE

I worked on another of the paper-pieced parts of this block.  

I realized this means I'm half way done with the block parts...

That's encouraging.

OIL ON CANVAS

So here is my attempt at the same painting, Cezanne's "Still Life with Milk Jug" using oil paints on canvas:

After the first day

Finished on the next day.

I think the painting I did on the fabric is nicer than this one on canvas.  The fabric seemed to take the paint better; there is no gesso on the fabric.  On the canvas you can see the texture quite obviously.

STARTED A PAPER-PIECED QUILT

I saw this pattern in a magazine and couldn't resist making it.

I ordered the gray fabric and the backing from Fabric.com.  I had the other colors needed already.

I think I'll make it as a Christmas gift for someone.

Here we go:

The first quarter done.

Half of the second quarter

Lots of waste with paper piecing.

OKAY, FINISHED IT

Here's the finished product. 

This was painted on masonite covered with commercial cotton fabric which had metallic outlines on it.  If you look really closely you can see those lines.

So I decided to paint another one on canvas.

FIRST OIL PAINTING

I recently acquired some old tubes of oil paint that someone was tossing out.  They were still soft, so I hoped they'd still be viable.

I've never painted with oils.  I've always wondered about it, but didn't see the point in investing a lot of money into purchasing a whole new medium.  Geez, I've got enough art supplies!

But these were free.  I thought I'd just check it out.

So, I saw this Cezanne on the front of the Arts section of the Seattle Times.  There's an article inside about the opening of the "Intimate Impressionism" exhibit at Seattle Art Museum, in which it will be on display.  I love Cezanne's still lifes.

I need to do a little touch up tomorrow.

LAST DAY OF SUMMER

An etegami I sent to my friend on this beautiful last day of summer.

CULLING MY PINS

I have quite the collection of safety pins for pinning quilts together.  I use brass because I've heard that the silver ones can leave black marks on your fabric, especially if left in too long.

I noticed while pinning yesterday, that there seemed to be quite a few silver pins in my collection.  So, I took them out.  I also noticed that a few of the brass ones had turned a bit dark, so I culled them out, too.

LEXINGTON PINNED

Finally got around to pinning together the three layers of the Lexington quilt today.

The back taped to the floor with the batting on top.

The batting is smoothed over the back and the top is piled on top

The quilt top smoothed over the top of everything.

My jar of pins

Trimming the excess off after it's all quilted.  This is one of the few things I use my original pair of Ginghers for.

SETBACK ON THE BACKING

I thought I might take on the big project of pinning my Lexington quilt together today since the rains are coming (so they say).

I cleaned the floor in the studio and taped the back down.  I spread the huge kingsize batting down over it and smoothed it out.  Next, I started to put the top on and realized that the back was too small.

Aaargh!  I hate when that happens.

I stewed for a little while, then got out my box of leftovers from the quilt top and started cutting and piecing together little pieces.  This is so annoying because the rest of the back is made from large-sized pieces.  Adding these smaller pieces is going to look like exactly what it is:  trying to make it bigger because I didn't plan it very well.

Adding a pieced border to one side.

So, I added six inches to one side, laid it back down on the floor then put the top over it, just to be sure and it still wasn't big enough.  Actually I noticed that it was really close going the other direction, too.

I'm all out of usable fabrics leftover from the top...

So, the best thing to do is put a border all the way across both sides.  I didn't think I had any pieces big enough left of the solid greens I had hand dyed. So...

I looked through my stash and found a big piece of green print.  It's actually one of my favorite fabrics.  I've had it for a long time...now that I stop and think about it, I probably bought it in 1999 or 2000 and used a little bit for a project I remember making about that time.  This fabric is perfect.  The greens match great and the print is of small circular markings and that will mimic the pattern on the front of the quilt.

Cutting six inch strips to add to two of the sides.

I had to move Bentley off the ironing board onto my chair and then back again.

Ironing the newly added border.

Here it is with the two added borders - looks great.

BINDING FOR 'MARCH INTO MAY' QUILT

After I finished up the quilting on the border and trimming it I started in on the binding.  Making binding is one of the funnest things to do, even though it's sort of a pain.  For a better how-to go to this post.

First, I iron then cut about 3/4 of a yard of my hand dyed purple leftovers.  Then I cut a 45 degree angle across it and sew the square sides together, then iron the seam open and mark 2-1/4" lines all across it.

Then I pin every line together, offset by one.  You end up with a big skewed tube when you sew it together.

Then I press open that seam, which is difficult, because it's a tube.

Then I cut along the line...

And you end up with a very long strip of bias tape.

Iron in half right sides together...

Then I throw the binding into the center of the quilt, line up the raw edges with the edge of the quilt I sew it down using a walking foot.  

 Now the binding's all sewn on, it's ready to be hand sewn down on the back and it will be considered completely finished!