Flower Inspiration

I am so enjoying this warmer weather and try to get outside to sketch as much as I can. I've been trying to use off cuts of watercolour paper that I save (I never throw even the smallest pieces out). I've been doing small watercolour paintings of some of the flowers that are blooming right now. These are quite small for example, 2 X 3 inches or 2 X 5 inches.

Painting Fabric

I have been thinking of painting some of my own fabric for my new art quilt but I don't have enough space indoors to do that. Today was promising to be a sunny, warm day and I decided that's what I would do out on my back deck.

I spread out my plastic table cloth, got all my paint mixing stuff together and my painting for my art quilt and did a little art outside. It was a great day for it as the sun dried my fabric in no time.

I ripped sections of white cotton fabric in pieces and laid them out on the plastic table cloth. I am going to need lots of blues and greens for this art quilt so I started with those.

I was running out of base for mixing my paint so I just played with the rest of it on smaller pieces of fabric. I've put an order in for more base and pigment so when that comes I can continue to paint fabric for this project.

Garden Inspiration

I am so enjoying the warmer weather and sunshine! One of my goals for this year was to start a garden sketchbook. I started it on January 1st and have been sketching as I notice interesting things in my garden. At this time of year there are loads of interesting things happening there and I can't keep up with them! Here are a few of the pages from my Garden Sketchbook.

This last page is unfinished but I was enjoying painting these snails so much, I didn't want to stop. I had found this snail shell while working in the garden and it looked like there was no snail in it because it was clogged with dirt. So I took it to my chair in the backyard and placed it on the arm so I could sketch it. It was sitting in the sun and I guess it warmed up and it started to move! I had to keep tapping the shell to keep it still long enough to draw the top shell. After a while I just gave up and snapped some photos with my phone and painted these from the photos.  Spring is wonderful!

Planning My New Art Quilt

I have been working on the painting to be used to plan my new art quilt for a while and I feel that now I can move on to the next stage of the planning.

Next, I traced the painting and all the variations in colour and value and had the tracing enlarged.

Then I covered the the drawing with freezer paper onto which I will plan my pattern, mark the fabric I'll use and the order in which I will sew it together.

Above, I've marked out the larger sections of the quilt. Each section will be subdivided into smaller sections and then pieces. I noticed on the painting that the edge of the land where it meets the water was almost exactly in the middle of the painting. That's a real "no no" in art. It is probably why I didn't feel settled on the composition. So at the top of my pattern I sectioned off about 2 inches which I will not include. That brings the edge of land higher in the picture frame and gives the composition more interest. It will  also give the canoe more prominence.

I started to pull fabric from my "stash" and decided I would like to work with many fabrics in each of the colour families (more than I normally choose) and I would like to work with smaller pieces to give more variety in the different areas of the quilt. There is a mist rising from the water and in the background hills. I'm going to try to depict that by using a blue organza and a white organza over top once the base is completely pieced.

Above are the swatches of fabric I have already sorted out. I may still add to this. Stay tuned for regular updates on the progress.

Quilting Sisters Retreat

I have been filled and inspired once again. On the long solo drive to Markdale, I wondered how my next few days would go. I wasn't really prepared with work to do since the pattern for my next art quilt didn't get completed. I was leaving my comfort zone at home to spend a few days with women I had only met once before. I felt, however, that God was guiding me to this retreat and knowing that all the women attending were Christians did make a difference. Being an introvert concerned me.

As it turned out, God knew I needed time away from my regular day to day routine so I could hear Him speaking to me. At the retreat, I renewed the friendships I started a year ago, I heard God's word to me during devotion times and sang praises to Him. I heard the joyful laughing and joking of the women who accepted me as well as some of their stories of God's faithfulness.

As I worked on my table runner project and did some sketching I felt God's encouragement to continue honing my talents and use them to honour Him and bless others. Although I don't know exactly how I need to progress, I will wait on Him to guide me.

There was such a variety of colour and patterns in the work being done. It truly inspired me as I watched the speed and accuracy of the women piecing their quilts. A lot was accomplished in the few days of the retreat.

Our theme this year was "Dutch"

We actually had some snow while we were there!

It was a wonderful retreat and my gratitude goes out to all who planned and worked to make it the success it was. Also a huge thank you to Jane, who prepared all the meals with such love and expertise. Everything was delicious and bountiful!