From Edge 2 Edge Art Quilts - From Edge 2 Edge Blog

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New Project Fabric!

2/26/2021

I have been working on ideas and sketches for a new project. What I at first thought would be one piece is turning out to be telling me it wants to be five pieces. I guess this means I will be starting a new series.

I am excited about this new work and even had some fabrics from my stash pulled for it but for some reason just wasn't ready to start on it yet. Found out the reason was that I needed to add a few more fabrics for the range of color that I was thinking about.

An errand run and a stop at Turquoise Threads during the errands was the perfect solution. Some of the new line from Free Spirit fabrics by Tim Holtz (and a few batiks for good measure) was just the extra texture and color I was needing. I also like that I will have some text on the piece when finished as that adds another layer of texture. I love that graffiti look and texture on pieces that I want to have an aged look.

If you want to see all the fabrics that Free Spirit has right now you can go to their Free Spirit website.

What have you been working on and are you excited or stuck in the design process?

New Software! Affinity Creative Software

1/23/2021

I found some new software that looks very promising. It is Affinity graphics software and has a Designer, Photo and Publisher package. They all work together across the platforms so you can jump from one to the other.

They work with all the standard graphics formats so you can take your PhotoShop files and bring them into these packages. Right now they are on sale for 50% off, and NO monthly/yearly subscription fees. You buy it, you own it and you are allowed to install across all your computers.

If you are in need of something like this and are considering purchasing one of the more expensive softwares, check it out. There are lots of YouTube videos and tutorials on using their programs. Free trial version if you want to check it out OR 14 day refund if you just want to jump in. I jumped because I don't want to pay for a subscription when I am not in the software all the time.

I was going to post this later but I think the sale only goes to the end of January 2021. You get an extra bonus post today!

Reconnecting With My Muse

1/23/2021

David and I have had a tough month and a half. We are trying to settle back into our creative mode. There are still things on the 'have to do' list, but at least it is getting shorter.

While dealing with these outside influences I have taken to doing a lot more reading. I have been reading and enjoying my YouVersion Bible app (there are studies you can do on creativity!) and also a book called '100 Days of Solitude' by Daphne Kapsali. It is a very good book about Muses and the inner voice Anti-Muse that tries to dissuade you of your creative possibilities. It's available in different formats and on Kindle if you want the check it out. I am really loving it and I am only on day 24.

I haven't been doing ANY sewing during this time but I have been working on ideas in my sketchbook and taking a lot of reference photographs. These photos are mostly of of areas around us as well as sunrises (few) and sunsets (more). Sunrises seem like a good idea until around 5:30 in the morning and the outside temperatures are in the 30's or less.

Most of my photos will be used more for color combinations and proportions than actual landscape based artwork. Here is an example of what I am talking about:

Approximately 2/5 of the photo is a medium neutral gray
A 1/5 portion is a very dark neutral
A 1/5 portion is a very light neutral
The last 1/5 portion is vivid color (oranges and yellows)

I like this photo because of the balance of colors. While planning a design based on this photograph, I will look to keep the proportions in my piece as close to the photograph as I can with maybe a few tweaks. The design I am working on is a vertical composition but I may use some horizontal elements to create some tension.

Do you use photography in your work? Do you use them for your actual design inspiration or just as a jumping off point?

What Have We Been Up To?

12/19/2020

Not much. We have both been enjoying some down time, reading, baking and just enjoying the stillness of the season. At first I was feeling a little guilty that I wasn't working on a new project but then I realized that maybe this was my Sabbath season. A season to refresh, refuel and regenerate. Now I am thinking I may go back to basics for a winter project.

I went into my fabrics and picked some pieces that I call my 'ancient of days' fabrics. These are fabrics that probably date back to the mid 80's and 90's. I have a tons of plaids so that might help place them in the timeline.

I decided that I am just going to free piece some of these together and see what comes out of it. I may even wind up using an actual historical pattern, nine-patch, flying geese or something that is inspired by my grandmother and a quilt I have of hers.

What have you been doing with your time as we are fast approaching the Christmas holidays?

Ancient of Days - full range

Ancient of Days - small sample

Vision Gallery Artist Reception via Zoom

11/21/2020

David and I both have pieces in the juried Vision Gallery 'Fleeting Moments' show in Chandler, Az. Join us to see some great fiber art from a variety of artists using various techniques.

If you don't already have a Zoom account It is easy to sign up and then just click on the webinar link to join the meeting.
Sign up for free Zoom account:
https://zoom.us/signup

From the gallery:
Art Quilts XXV: Fleeting Moments is on the walls and ready for viewers! The show looks great, and we're so happy to have all of you contributing. This is a reminder that the virtual reception is:
Saturday, Nov 21 at 3 pm MST. (Arizona)

Link for the public invite (goes directly to the webinar): https://zoom.us/j/93759566038

Arizona Understated II Done!

10/26/2020

I use Misty Fuse for my applique so I always have a non-stick sheet under my work. I mark the edges that will be under the piece in front with arrows so I don't forget to add a little bit for the overlap. That also gives me a little leeway when doing the final placement for adjustments.

I generally work from the top down but it really just depends on the design.

If you have any questions or comments about my workflow, I will try to answer them.

A Dry Spell - Arizona Understated II

10/8/2020

I hadn't realized I had skipped so many weeks of blogging. I guess if anyone had really been concerned about it, they would have commented or said 'where are you?' I have been having fun finishing up projects, getting out on the bicycle and trying to get more fit.

SAQA Arizona extended the deadline (November 10th, 2020) for Arizona Understated (12W x 16L) and also said that artists are now allowed to submit more than one. I have decided to create another one and am actually going to do two based on my sketch and see which one I will be submitting as my second piece.

I will be sharing a bit of my process over the next few posts and if you reside in Arizona and are a SAQA member I hope it will inspire you to participate.

Just One of Those Days...

8/26/2020

Yesterday I went into the studio to work on a project that has a deadline. I have been contemplating a design decision for a bit and decided on a course of action. I could not delay any longer so I made my cut and sewed my first seam.

You know the old adage, 'Measure twice, cut once'? Well I should have 'pinned and flipped twice' and then maybe I would have cut once. My first cut was in the wrong place. Get out the seam ripper and reverse sew what I just sewed. Re-cut, sew, figure out how to fix the first bad cut, repeat. I think I had to reverse sew every seam I put in at least once. Some twice. Not my finest hour or two.

I don't know if this was a case of my subconscious saying 'I didn't like the original design so I am going to change it without telling you' or just one of those days when I should have picked up a book and just read all day. I did get to a point where I left in what I had sewn.

I will be back in the studio today to continue on. This piece is an original design. I have my design sketch and my basic color palette. I have tweaked some of the design areas and will be using some unconventional materials so there is a fair amount of problem solving that still needs to be done. I am hopeful that my problem solving switch is in the ON position today. It was definitely OFF yesterday.

What sort of trials or successes are you experiencing during our national indoor recess?

Work in progress...most of the time.

My New Background for Photos

8/15/2020

I currently have a gray flannel design wall that I attach my quilts to take photos. The only problem with that color is that I have been working with fabric that is similar in value around the edges of my quilts. When using software to remove the background it would invariably remove part of my quilt. I would then have to manually try to remove around the edge of the quilt. Not fun. (I used to have white but that didn't work all that well either. Mostly because of white fabric in the quilt, threads, lint, etc attaching to the flannel, and then it was hard to edit out in the photo edit software.)

So I decided to pick a color that neither David nor I have used on the edge of any of our quilts to use for my photo wall when I needed to do a shoot. I went online and selected sheets in a size that would also fit our guest bed (kill two birds with one stone). Walmart had a great deal on these 1500 thread count sheets and I am excited to try them out the next time I need to shoot photos that I will be editing to put on the website.

What do you think? Will guests be able to sleep with my photo sheet?

Work, Work, Work

8/10/2020

I spent yesterday and today updating both of David's and my gallery area. That means I took pictures of our most recent quilts, put them into Photoshop to crop and clean the background out and do the write-ups.

I got to measure them, do all the calculations for pricing, and put all the information into Artwork Tracker. That was the easy part. Once I had all the work done it was just cut and paste the text, link the photos, and fill out the form. Most of the options are already in drop down boxes since I tend to use similar fabrics and supplies.

Remind me not to wait so long, (and this is a big one), DON'T put in lace or netting that doesn't have a quilt background behind it. It was a pain in Photoshop to remove the one in Talisman II. I was also reminded that I need a few different colored backgrounds for shooting the pictures. It will be much easier to select something that doesn't blend in with the edge of the quilt. Lesson learned. Hopefully, I will remember it the next time I start shooting the next quilts.

Let me know what you think of the new pieces. You can find them on our main gallery pages. Click on the one you want to see and 'as if by magic' you will be whisked to the page.