Detail from "Rain Dance," an original quilt by Sherrie Spangler

Monday, August 31, 2015

What I can't show you

 

I can't show you my current project because it's for a contest that prohibits entries from having been published or exhibited before, even on blogs.


But I CAN show you some of the luscious colors I'm auditioning for the quilt. It would be more fun if I could show pictures of my progress, but rules are rules.


Have a colorful day

Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Australian fish bag


I finished the tote that I cut out upside down. Tie-dye Judy pointed out that the fish wouldn't be upside down if they were in Australia, so I'm calling it my Australian fish bag. So there.

Also, fresh marine air blew in yesterday and pushed the smoke from the wildfires away. That's a relief for us, but I feel so sorry for the thousands affected directly by the fires east of here.

Have a colorful day

Monday, August 24, 2015

Smoke from wildfires


Smoke from the wildfires in central Washington moved over the Puget Sound in the western part of the state over the weekend, creating very hazy conditions in our neighborhood.


Portland's air quality was actually worse than in Beijing, according to Cliff Mass's weather blog: http://cliffmass.blogspot.com/2015/08/air-quality-is-worse-in-portland-oregon.htmlPortland is about two hours south of us.


I love color, but not this kind. Here's to hoping the firefighters, who have come from as far away as Australia, stay safe.



 

Sunday, August 23, 2015

I accidentally killed the fish


I bought this fabulous Brandon Mabley fish fabric and coordinating Kaffe Fassett polka dot print to make a reversible tote bag. I was so eager to get started today that I forgot about the fish being a directional print.


After I cut it out, I realized that the fish were upside down! Nothing to do but sew on and have a sense of humor about it. Maybe it'll drape enough when I wear it that no one will notice. Lesson learned.


Have a colorful day

Saturday, August 15, 2015

Using painted fabric


I'm almost done with a quilt that I'm making with the fabric I painted last week. Still working on the quilting.


Have a colorful day

Monday, August 10, 2015

Wool sunflower cushion


I finished my first little wool embroidery project. It's a sunflower cushion from a pattern by The Cottage at Cardiff Farms. The kit included everything I needed except the thread.

I see more wool applique in my future!

Have a colorful day

Friday, August 7, 2015

Sew day outside



Last weekend was a scorcher in the Northwest, but a lot of homes don't have air conditioning because our summers are usually cool. So when it was Nancy's turn to have Sew Day last Sunday she had it in a cool, shady alcove of her garden. It was perfect!


There were five of us, but I forgot about getting photos until after one of the Linda's had gone. We all did hand work except for Carolynn, who set up her machine with a long extension cord.

 
Here are some of the projects we were working on (mine is the sunflower wool applique):






Have a colorful day

Monday, August 3, 2015

Fabric painting


I haven't painted fabric in ages. (I'm not talking about dying, but painting with fabric paints, specifically Pebeo Setacolor.) Last week I decided to paint a few pieces just to get back into the swing of things. The piece above is supposed to be sand, water and sky. I'm letting it dry fairly flat with just a few folds for texture.


I also painted two smaller pieces and scrunched them to dry in pie tins. This gives a three-dimensional effect from the folds:



Into the stash they go!
 
Have a colorful day