Quilt - Days 2 & 3

Day - 2... Making the patterns.  Running a bookstore in the summer can be a bit boring. Just about everyone is away on vacation (except me)... so business is extremely s-l-o-w.  Not to mention that we are in a heat wave here on the east coast and if customers are not at their shore home, then they are holed up in their air-conditioned house. I can't blame them... if I didn't have to come out to work I would have stayed home and sewed. So... I brought my project along to keep me from falling asleep at the front counter. Wouldn't THAT be embarrassing?

In true stashbuster fashion I grabbed whatever paper I had on hand and began to draw my major elements like the fish, lilly pads and flowers. BTW stashbuster's yahoo group is really cool. For those of you that don't know about them... check it out. Their main theme is to NOT PURCHASE ANY MORE FABRIC! Since I don't have any funds for this project this is a rule I strictly adhere to!!

Day - 3... cutting the fabric and positioning the major elements.  I have to admit, I didn't give ANY thought at all to the size and proportion of things. My paper was 8 1/2 x 11, so that was the fish size I drew.  I drew the lilly pads and flowers using the same size paper. That didn't really work out when it came time to position the items on the background fabric. A lot of trimming was needed to make things look more in proportion. The whole piece turned out much larger than I imagined it would be... but all in all I like it.

Here is the piece with the major pieces ironed on in place using Heat and Bond Lite. The blue gap above the fish to the right is for a turtle. Two lilly pads get frogs on them.  I will still have to trim the background fabric once the appliques and quilting are finished which will cut off some of the flower edges and lilly pads... by design.

Originally I thought about adding more interest to the water by using 5 different colors and creating a patchwork... but I thought that would take away from the original picture that I so loved. Maybe I'll do that to a small piece or two and make little hanging in the future. Hmmm... I'll see. In the meantime... remember that I am kind of new to this whole process. If anyone has any comments or suggestions please let me know!!

My plan of attack is to machine applique around all of the pieces. Then add the turtle. Trim to size and add border/s. Layer and quilt... add the frogs... embellish... make a label... and hang. If I am doing things out of order, or you see a flaw in my plan don't wait to tell me. Please tell me NOW!

And now... to bed!

Inspiration...

Fishes, Flowers, and Frogs, Oh My!

This painting titled 'Fishes, Flowers, and Frogs, Oh My! is by Pierre H. Matisse... grandson of the famous painter Henri Matisse. I am a HUGE Henri Matisse fan and was THRILLED to see his grandson inherited some of his talent and sense of color. When I saw this picture about 7 years ago I knew IMMEDIATELY that I wanted to make a quilt like this... someday. I was drawn to the clear, bright color combination and the fluid movement of the fish. It reminds me of 2 of my favorite vacation spots... Hawaii and Maine. I downloaded and printed a copy of it as a subtle reminder that one day when things calm down I intend to make a wall-hanging quilt using this picture as my inspiration.

Two years ago the crinkled paper copy surfaced in my craft pile... OK, craft mess. I had forgotten all about it. I was so excited I went right out that very day to select fabrics for the background, fish and lily pads. One day turned into another, the bookstores needed my full attention and so the fabric and picture were pushed aside and eventually lost in a pile in my bedroom closet. Until.... my whole house sale!!! This morning I was mucking out my closet and EUREKA... the most fabulous orange fabric with metallic gold splotches and dots peeked out from the top of a bag. I thought to myself... gee... that would be the perfect choice for a goldfish in that quilt I want to make. Duh!!!! It slowly dawned on me those were the exact words I said when I spied the fabric bolt in Pennington Quiltworks 2 years earlier.  I gleefully plucked the rest of the fabric out of the bag as the picture floated to the floor. Ah.... it was like seeing an old friend. My heart warmed as I broke out in a gigantic smile.

I did a little research on this painting before I started blogging today. I was totally surprised to learn that this painting is offered as a 'limited edition' giclee print, signed and numbered from many sites including... wait for it.... are your ready? Amazon! Of course, I should have known. At least all the sites are listing it for the same price... $800.00! Like we all have that kind of money in our back pockets... geesh! AND... most of the sites are pushing it as a picture to hang in a child's room!! Naturally, MY quilt will be priceless and will hang in a place of honor :-)

Can't you just see it in your mind? With so many new embellishing techniques out there it will be hard to choose which ones to try. Right now I envision machine applique for most of it... maybe with a tulle overlay to make the water more realistic. Embroidery on the flowers and shiny beads... lots of shiny beads. Meandering machine quilting on the water and more leaf like stitching on the lily pads. Oh... I can't wait to get started!!! I'll keep you updated as the project moves along. At least I already own everything I need to get the job done... so there is no reason to delay.

IT'S TIME TO MAKE THIS QUILT!!!

Take THAT Kindle!!!!!

One of my favorite blogs on the web is called Just Something I Made. Her entry on July 15th was about her favorite books as a child and how seeing them brought back such warm and soothing memories of being little. Check it out at Just Something I Made.

What would happen to the world if kids were taught to read at an early age and were given an electronic e-reader to read before bedtime instead sitting in mom or dad's lap? As yet this is not a reality... but it COULD happen. Wouldn't that be sad?

So far I have never heard anyone utter while reading an electronic reader that the story brought tears to their eyes. To date I have never seen a person lovingly stoke the cover of an e-reader fondly remembering the 'good old days'. Nor have I seen a heart felt inscription on the front page of an e-book hoping the reader enjoys the story as much as the sender had.

Don't get me wrong... I don't HATE the Kindle or e-readers in general... I just think it has it's own place in our world. Personally I think the Apple iPad is a better device as there is so much more you can do with it when NOT reading a book. I think e-readers are wonderful tools for the trade. As a bookstore owner I would love to be able to read ARCs (Advanced Reader's Copies) electronically before deciding to purchase for my stores. Publishers could provide book buyers with one... they would then go to the publisher's website, enter a secret spidey code to prove they were a legitimate buyer... and download their current reads. No more printing copies on 'spec'.

So take THAT all of you e-readers!!! You will never be fondled lovingly. No one will purchase you on eBay in a whim of nostalgia. In the future you will be sitting on a dusty table at a flea market, right next to the 8-track player and a manual typewriter.

What do YOU think of e-readers?

In Lieu of Flowers...

A friend suggested that this blog should be named "In Lieu Of Flowers". It took me a moment to understand but when I 'got it' I burst out laughing!!! Yes!!! In Lieu Of Flowers please send donations to the following charity... ME!

Have you read the memoir Save Karyn: One Shopaholic's Journey to Debt and Back
? Karyn was a shopaholic and found herself in $20,000 worth of credit card debt. She had an ingenious idea to set up a website and ask strangers for money. This book was written in 2003... and here I am seven years later blogging for bucks... although I'm not in debt... just trying to keep my head above water. The real co-inky dink is that Save Karyn was released on September 2nd... my birthday. Read it if you get a chance. It is perfect summer reading.

Did you notice that the title of the book is a link to Amazon? I became an Amazon Affiliate yesterday. For those of you who know me you must think I have gone crazy. No, I didn't. Go to the Chicklet Book website and read why I decided to do it. While there sign up and become a member. I will be making book recommendations, running virtual book clubs, sell FABULOUS gifts, and give prizes for silly contests.

I'll be looking for you!