Innholdsfortegnelse for December/January 2020 i Quilting Arts Magazine

I WELCOME DECEMBER … cold and crisp afternoons and the creep of elongated shadows at dusk remind me that while one year may be ending, another is about to begin. Soon, the days will lengthen and the eternal cycle will start all over again. December marks the month when we take time to review our personal and professional goals before we set new intentions for the year to come. Every year when it comes time to evaluate, I seem to focus on the negative. In 2019 I had a number of “arty” goals—most of them good intentions—but fell short accomplishing them. Did I make time for art every day? Master free-motion quilting? Keep my studio organized? Learn how to (fill in the blank)? No … but I did try. I…

Jean Wells Sisters, Oregon it started out with a simple idea: show off a dozen or so quilts and draw attention to her new store, Stitchin’ Post. Jean Wells opened the store in 1975 in Sisters, Oregon, using the entire contents of her teacher’s retirement fund—about $3,200. “It was probably one of the first quilt shops in the country,” she says. “I felt like I might get a good return on it.” And she did. This year marked the 44th Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show, now the world’s largest outdoor quilt show venue. Set against the spectacular backdrop of the Cascades mountain range in central Oregon, the 2019 show featured about 1,300 quilts and was attended by approximately 12,000 people. The exact attendance is unknown, notes Jean, because you don’t have…

The key to acceptance in any exhibition is to enter! Here are some tips for success. • Practice good recordkeeping. Keep records of the work you create, including the month and year you complete a piece, title, dimensions, inspiration notes, etc. Most exhibitions have a ‘made by’ date requirement; for example, within two years, made after January 1 of 20XX, etc. Keep a log or folder on your computer of each entry, including everything you submit. Keep a list of work that is out of your hands, where it is, and when you expect it back, e.g., it may be part of a traveling exhibition.• Start a list or spreadsheet with the calls for entry to exhibits and shows that interest you. Make sure to note the final date for…

january is the traditional month for setting resolutions to improve your life in the new year. While many people opt for resolutions focused on physical health or fiscal responsibility, why not consider setting them for your own creative development? For the past eight years, I have kick started each new year by assigning myself five resolutions centered on quilting and creativity. This annual tradition has prompted me to learn free-motion quilting and fabric dyeing; exhibit my quilts in large venues such as International Quilt Festival, Houston; start a blog documenting my quilting adventures; and join the traveling teaching circuit. Moreover, each goal is designed to stretch me outside my comfort zone as both as an artist and a professional. Here are some suggestions for making—and meeting—your own artistic goals heading…

quilts that need a certain pop of something might be the perfect candidate for Heat Transfer Vinyl embellishment and appliqué. I set out to use these elements in my own comic book-themed quilt series and saw just how easy they were to use. I liked them so much that I created “a comic book sound effect” challenge for my friends. The quilts all came out amazing with the addition of glitters and foils that really make them pop! If you’re looking to add glitter and glitz to an art quilt, consider the possibilities. Heat Transfer Vinyl (HTV) is a material that is meant to be ironed onto a fabric. HTV comes in a variety of colors in solids, glitters, foils, and even flocked finishes. An adhesive backing is already on…

• To set the blade depth, test the digital cutter with a scrap piece of the HTV using. By setting the blade to cut through the vinyl—and not the pressing sheet—will be able to pull away the parts vinyl that you do not want to transfer the project and all of the remaining stay in place on the pressing sheet. called “weeding” the vinyl.• Choose the digital design to be cut and layer the vinyl with the pressing sheet and the adhesive side up onto the cutting mat. You may need to reverse design as it will be cut from the backside.• Cut the design and carefully weed the vinyl for any interior cut pieces that need removed before placement.• Use the pressing sheet to place the design onto the…

Paper folding and similar techniques are found around the world. Here are a few I find especially inspiring. Papel Picado: A Mexican folk art in which elaborate designs are made by cutting into colored tissue paper. The finished items are used for display in a variety of celebrations. Kirigami: A Japanese art form that is a variation of origami and includes cutting folded paper typically into symmetrical designs. As in origami, no glue is typically used in the final creation. Hawaiian Appliqué: A quilting style of the Hawaiian Islands that uses large radially symmetric appliqué designs often of stylized botanical themes in bold colors on a white background.…

I recently received a call from a local tattoo artist who was looking for someone to create Masonic Lodge-type satin banners for upcoming tattoo conventions for him and a co-worker. Although I’d never done anything like that before, I have an adventurous soul and will typically try anything once. They gave me their conceptual drawings and I quickly realized that the 3’x6’ size that they envisioned was going to be too much for my regular embroidery machine (with a maximum hoop size of 10”x10”). A light bulb went off, and suddenly I had a great reason to add the Grand Format Embroidery module to my line-up! I was able to digitize their drawings, create cut files for the different colors of fabrics and the GFE appliquéd them beautifully! The GFE…

1. Document your goals and progress. Once you’ve refined your artistic goals, be sure to record them. Help increase accountability by sharing your goals with family and friends or raise the stakes by sharing them publicly via your blog and social media.2. Identify resources to help you achieve each goal. If you are looking to learn a particular technique, seek out experts and take a workshop. Check your local library for books on design or a particular technique. Register for a conference to get a creative boost and find networking opportunities. Join organizations that will help connect you with other fiber artists such as Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA), a local quilt guild, art and quilt museums, and art critique groups.3. Designate time to work toward your goals. Schedule time…

• Paint up to (but not touching) the stitch lines. The holes where the stitches perforate the fabric may pull the paint in and cause the paint to migrate. • Leave some areas of white, unpainted fabric to mimic the look of a watercolor painting. • Using the light pencil lines as a guide, apply the first layer of color (such as yellow) over a small area. While the paint is still wet, come back in with another color (such as a few drops of red) and pull it through the paint. This will allow the two colors to mix just as watercolors do on a paper substrate.…

In the June/July 2019 issue we asked our readers to create a 9" x 9" quilt based on the theme, ‘Choose Your Own Palette.’ Everyone has personal preferences for color—and we received a rainbow of entries, each more colorful than the last. From coordinated neutrals, to tonal masterpieces, to neon perfection, we had a huge selection to choose from! We are pleased and proud to present this gallery of our readers’ work. “Oops, Wrong Pallets” SUSAN MATTSON • EVERETT, WASHINGTON “I enjoy using bright, saturated colors in my quilts. A black background makes them pop. Since the word ‘palette’ has several homophones, I smiled when I thought of using this play-on-words featuring pallets. This piece uses fusible appliqué, machine quilting, and big-stitch hand quilting.” “Sea Creature” FRANCES HOLLIDAY ALFORD •…

• I learned to embroider as a kid but it had been a long time so I dug up an old embroidery stitch book of my grandmother’s. I also found myriad tutorials online—there is even a handy, free, printable guide to basic stitches that I found at museofthemorning.com/embroidery.• I used wheatear stitch in green, cretan stitch in deep magenta, and French knots coupled with straight stitch in orange in the test piece (figure 5) and final sample (figure 6).• I cut a notch in the top and bottom of a wine cork and wound my thread around it to keep it tangle free.…

• Instead of storing markers upright, store them on their sides; nearly every manufacturer advises this as a way to keep the tips from drying out. I’ve always stored my pens upright, so this was a revelation to me. • Don’t leave any pens open without their caps on or they will dry out. • Some markers (Montana Markers, Posca) have a little silver ball inside; make sure to shake these markers well before you use them. The ball helps mix the binder with the pigments. Only shake the markers with the caps on. (I forgot this once and sprayed ink everywhere.) • On pump-valve system markers like the Montana Markers and Poscas, you need to prime the tips, allowing the ink to permeate the felt tips before you use…

Susan Brubaker Knapp is a fiber artist, author, teacher, and host of “Quilting Arts TV.” Most of her work is realistic and is made primarily using the techniques of wholecloth painting, thread sketching, and fusible appliqué. She lives near Charlotte, North Carolina, and teaches internationally. bluemoonriver.com Diane L. Murtha is a quilter, fiber artist, lecturer, and instructor. Her quilts are included in three published books and multiple juried exhibits and international shows traveling the country. She loves to challenge herself and others through quilting and thinking out of the box. After many years in Germany and Northern Virginia, she currently resides in Iowa. dianelmurtha.com Mel Beach is a San Jose, California-based quilt artist, teacher, and lecturer. She stretches her creativity through photography, comedy improv studies, and the completion of 70+…

AWESOME ARMOR SNIPS Who wants to dull the blades of their fabric shears by using them for heavy-duty cutting? Not us! Every studio needs a versatile pair of strong scissors that can be used for thick fabrics, leather, denim, and even plastic. Although they are marketed for making clean and precise cuts into the structural foam and heat transfer products used in cosplay (see page 56), these spring-loaded snips with extra-long blades are a “must have” for the well-stocked fiber artist’s toolbox. An added safety feature? They latch securely when not in use. $45.99 • sewmuchcosplay.com PROFAB TRANSPARENT PAINT SAMPLER As a burgeoning surface design enthusiast, you may want to “try before you commit” and pick up a few sampler kits of paint before you invest in large quantities or…

humankind has always dreamed of flying. From Icarus’ fateful journey toward the sun in Greek mythology to the advent of modern airline and commercial space travel, we’ve attempted to explore our world from above. Because of technology, the perspective of our planet has changed with the introduction of satellite images and even drone photography. We are now able to imagine the world below our feet in new ways because we’ve seen it from a bird’s eye view. This exhibition, coordinated by Donna Deaver and juried by Mary Edna Frazer, provides new perspectives through which to see our world. The 39 quilts, with a small selection printed on the following pages, explore the theme of what it means to be “aloft.” Representational depictions of birds, insects, and even some mammals soaring…

at QUILTING ARTS, we celebrate contemporary art quilting, surface design, mixed media, fiber art trends, and more. We are always looking for new techniques, innovative processes, and creative approaches to the art of quilting. We’d love to hear from you! What are we looking for? • Artists with inspiring portfolios of work to be featured in our In The Spotlight, Artist Profile, Open Studio, and Q&A articles. Show us your work and tell us your story.• Unique techniques, new ways to use existing tools and supplies, and ideas we’ve never featured before.• Projects and techniques featuring mixedmedia, collage, and fabric book art. How to submit • Write a brief description of your idea and email it to qasubmissions@peakmediaproperties.com. Your submission should give us an overview of what you are proposing…

CHALLENGE ON! My creative legacy is a rallying cry—the shout out at the end of a speech to cheer on your comrades. Challenge on—challenge yourself endlessly, never stop learning and growing in your abilities. My quilting has been reinvigorated after more than 30 years. I am learning, growing, and creatively expanding my skills. I’m so excited I can hardly step away from my machine to write this piece, but I do want to share this enthusiasm—and it’s all because I’m challenging myself to learn. My quilting adventure has been long and varied, including delusions of grandeur, some epic fails, a few triumphs, many ‘good enoughs’ but, most importantly, increasingly satisfying results. My grandmother helped me make my first quilt at age eight, but I started quilting in earnest in the…