That Cat!

I think I'm finally finished (maybe) with That Cat! It was begun in Pam Holland's Thread Painting class at Houston's 2016 International Quilt Festival. I keep thinking I should add more stitching to the fur but I have so many projects with deadlines that for now, I need to move on.

That Cat! resembles several of the cats who have been our companions over the years - Mary Jane, Buster, and one of our current cats, Clyde. He is definitely a "That Cat!!!"

I added the mostly vintage buttons from my mom's button jar to the border simply because I didn't want to machine quilt it. Ready to move on and finish another quilting project.

 

Until next time, Mayleen

Fireworks over Dresden

Someone requested closeup photos of my Prairie Quilt Guild challenge quilt, "Fireworks over Dresden", so here they are!

This is what it is finished but not what I envisioned when I started. I will have an idea where I want to go with a project but it usually will take a few twists and turns along the way. This time, I wasn't going to buy any new fabric, thread, etc, ha. It didn't take too long and I was at the quilt shop. If I were doing this over again, I probably wouldn't use the white with gray streaks fabric. I think it just stands out too much.

 The challenge required us to make a Dresden Plate and use some of this fabric. Its actually a panel of strips but my photo shows them cut apart. We could add additional fabrics and design elements but needed to also stay within size limits.

 I decided to make fireworks because I thought it would be unique and because July 4th is my birthday! Here are a few photos of the fireworks which I stitched over and added crystals. Some of the threads are metallic which was a new skill to learn. I had some issues with tension.

 The name, "Fireworks over Dresden" doesn't just refer to the fireworks over Dresden Plates. There is a bridge in Dresden, Germany which looks somewhat like this. Its the Loschwitz Bridge and is sometimes called "das Blaues Wunder".

I created the reflection of the fireworks in the water below the bridge by cutting small snippets of the fabrics and fusing them down. I also included small snipped pieces of the metallic threads to create even more depth. The water is covered with black netting and machine quilted to keep everything in place.

Here's the back of the "Fireworks over Dresden" wall hanging. I like the back almost as much as the front! 

Until next time, Mayleen

I've been getting a few reminders that I haven't been keeping up my blog. It has been a long time and I don't know where to start again except to post a few photos of quilts I've finished. 

The next photos are "I Spy" quilts I made as 2016 Christmas presents for our grandchildren.

 The three boys received similar quilts with a navy blue border.

Our only granddaughter received this quilt with a red print border.

 This thread painted cat is my project from the class I took with Pam Holland at Houston's International Quilt Festival in November, 2016. I only get to work on him when I don't have a quilting project with a deadline. Still have quite a bit of stitching to do on him!

"Fireworks Over Dresden"

My local quilt guild, Prairie Quilt Guild in Wichita, KS, has a challenge every other year. We buy a small amount of required fabric to use in a required way. This year it was the Dresden Plate quilt block and a mix of fabrics in colors I probably wouldn't normally have chosen. 

I made my Dresden Plate blocks out of the required fabrics and added several fabrics of my own to make a fireworks exploding over a bridge scene. Several firsts for me on this project: a new sewing machine, learning to use metallic threads, and gluing on hundreds of crystals.

Guild members voted on their favorite quilts and winners were announced at our last guild meeting. "Fireworks Over Dresden" won 1st place in its category and Viewer's Choice!

I'm also working on a Kaffe Artisan Fabric challenge quilt but I won't be able to share it until June. 

I hope to blog again before then though!

Until later, Mayleen