Showing posts with label the quilt. Show all posts
Showing posts with label the quilt. Show all posts

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Back To School Skirt

Oh boy, am I tired.  I've been back to school for a few days now.  I love the beginning of the year.  Everyone is so excited (including me!) and the year is a blank slate, totally fresh and new.  But let me say this again-- man, am I tired.  You fellow teachers out there know what I'm talking about.


I used my self-drafted a-line skirt pattern block extraordinaire to make this back to school skirt.  But it's not an a-line.  I straightened the side seams to make a pencil skirt.  In fact, it's slightly pegged.  The hem circumference is just a tiny bit smaller than the hip circumference.  I usually avoid pencil skirts because I'm bigger on the bottom.  I've always heard that a-line skirts are more flattering for pear shaped gals.  But this skirt may have changed my mind.  I actually think it's one of the more flattering skirts I have in my closet now.  Maybe the print helps masquerade, but I think the back view looks pretty good.  Proof that great fit is worth it.  Makes all the difference.  I've had such great results with my self drafted skirt pattern that I'm convinced making my own trouser pattern is the way to go.  That will be a project for this fall.  I desperately need some pants.


 Had to put my glasses on for the teacher photos.  I used a leftover bit of quilting cotton from the quilt of doom. I blogged about my unfinished quilt almost a year ago---  it's still just quilt top.  Still unfinished.  (Hold me accountable, people!  Make me finish it.)
Not much else to say about it.  It was quick and easy.   I underlined the quilting cotton with a layer of cotton broadcloth.  I like the way the extra layer of cotton makes the whole skirt feel like a heavier twill.   I used a grosgrain ribbon as a waist facing.   Great skirt.  All there is to it.


Wishing everyone a fabulous school year!
It's nine o'clock and I'm going to bed.


Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Quilted Landscape


Have you ever seen an image that just stops you in your tracks? That is one of the things that I love about art. A single image can be completely absorbing and inspiring at the same time. A former art teacher sent out a link to a NY Times article about Wayne Thiebaud's recent painting River Intersection. It is a distorted aerial view of the Sacramento River Delta. I was drawn in by the saturated colors, the "vibrations" in color and the unusual use of perspective. I'm sorry to say that I didn't realize Thiebaud painted these beautiful landscapes. I should have. I actually recently taught a lesson about his more famous depictions of cakes and pies and a student asked me if Thiebaud was still painting today. My reply was, "Probably." Anyway, looking at these quilt-like landscapes got me thinking....


My quilt! My unfinished quilt. Wayne Thiebaud had inspired me to finish my quilt. The one I started back in March. I completed the patchwork part a long time ago but now I'm supposed to make the "quilt sandwich" and do the actual quilting. I'm not sure where to begin. And for some reason, I'm not very excited about this part of the process. It doesn't seem as fun as doing the patchwork. I made my own template for this quilt. I was thinking about the way certain tile patterns and stone patios fit together using squares and rectangles. From the little bit I know about quilt patterns, this is a variation of a nine patch (?). I've put a lot of time in to this so far and I'm not sure why I just gave up on it. I must not be a quilter at heart. Does anyone know of any good web resources on quilting? I know that I want to machine quilt, not do it by hand. I made this quilt large- big enough for a queen size bed. Is it even possible to machine quilt this on my little cheapo Singer? I'd like to use the different thread colors pictured and just quilt a wavy horizontal pattern across but don't quite know how to go about it. This post is a little self-serving. I figured if I wrote about the quilt it would force me to finish it. :)



For more on Wayne Thiebaud and his beautiful landscapes, check out this slideshow or the article about River Intersection. On a side note: Wouldn't this be a great idea for an expert quilter? To make quilts based on works of art? I would love to have a Thiebaud quilt.