Martha's Pumpkin Men

Martha's Pumpkin Men - 2002
30" x 39"

My friend, Molly, takes Halloween more seriously than
Christmas, I mean, she goes all out with the decorations. Several of her wall quilts inspired me to make a Halloween quilt, but I couldn't decide what to do....Until I saw this issue of Martha Stewart's Halloween Issue!! She had carved these pumpkin men and they looked so awesome! I knew this was the perfect inspiration for my quilt. I used her pumpkin men, and added the carrot skirt for the middle guy. I tea dyed the orange fabrics to make them darker towards the horizon and give depth to the piece. The pumpkins in the foreground are also of her design. I added the pieced blue sky, moon and bat, and the tree branch. It was my hope to use zig-zag to add some shading. My sewing machine was hopelessly inadequate to do satin stitching, so I settled for zig-zags to cover all the fused edges as well. I also used bleach pens to make the peas for the collars and eyebrows. I used some paint on some of the pumpkins to add depth, and I hand embroidered the original poem around the border. One of my favorite parts of this quilt was the quilting in the border because it took on such a nice graphic appeal. It has a lot of starts and stops and yes, they do show a bit, but practice will improve my skills with this. This quilt won 3rd place at the Austin Quilt Show in 2002, and went to the IQA Houston Quilt Show in 2003.

Lunar One -2003

27" x 37"

This started as a geologic quilt of the back side of the moon. I decided I could make the colors prettier than the geologists (or should I say, planetary scientists?). However, as I was working on the images of these craters, the significance of how they were created, by huge impacts began to trickle over to my subconscious. I began having images of all these people trying to raise their voices against domestic violence. Hence the back image of the quilt was born.

The quilting lines that serve as topographic information on the front become concentric targets for the faces on the back. As a survivor of domestic violence I had a huge disconnect of my head and my heart, so I decided to present just the faces here. It was my first time to try to depict human forms in fabric and I was really surprised when the first one, "orbital" came out looking like a a recognizable face. I also wanted to show that it is not just the victims who are affected by domestic violence. Whole communities are impacted, children, parents, brothers and sisters, and friends. This quilt was accepted to Quilts for Change, a fund raiser in Cincinati, OH in 2004. I was so pleased to have a venue to show it. I had hoped that it was able to hang where both sides could show, but since I didn't get to attend, I suspect only the front side was shown, with an occasional look at the back from quilt angels.

Little Leaves

Little Leaves -2005
9" x9"

 This was made from some left over scraps from a large group quilt made by my art quilt bee. Leaves won 2nd place in group at Houston last year (unfortunately, I don't have a good digital image of it yet). There are two blocks on this quilt that I heavily beaded and were my first attempts. I loved the way they came out. Unfortunately, the time I spent on them made my dog jealous....and she STOLE them. They stayed hidden for a good 6 months before I found them. The other blocks were stamped with fabric paint with a leaf stamp that I made myself. I love the way this quilt came out. It was donated to the hurricane Katrina, Open Hearts Open Hands project. Presumably someone bought it and is enjoying it!

Visions of Grandeur

Visions of Grandeur
12" x 12"

Fine Focus 2006
I was inspired to create this little quilt during a brief obsession with a celebrity. Hence, the sleeping fish dreams of a better, somehow, more glamorous life. I love the fish's beautiful dream and it has helped me appreciate everything I have during my conscious hours. The fish and the pillow are both 3D quilt pillows.

I sent 3 entries to Fine Focus. And even though I like this one the best, I was surprised that it was chosen because it took the least amount of time to make. I tend to labor under the false assumption my art needs to be the most tedious and labor intensive undertaking that I can possibly imagine. Check out www.finefocus.net to see the other artists included in this exhibit!

Little Cities

Little Cities
97" x 97"

I started this one 2 years ago and it has been redesigned quite a few times. I actually bought the fabric for it 5 years ago when my bed and bath were being remodeled. But I was stuck and couldn't decide what to do with it (probably related to my marital woes). AS soon as the husband moved out, I knew what I wanted to do with this, although it has been revealing itself to me along the way. The smallest blocks are 1 " square with small circles appliqued with satin stitch on them. There are about 1000 of those. The biggest blocks are 12" square, and there are very few of those! Don't ask how many total blocks, I don't know. And now, I would have to say that sewing the blocks together was NOT the fun part.
The quilt reminds me of a city, surrounded by water. There are roadblocks and resources and little communities. I have always been fascinated by the way people form groups, for the similarities they embrace and the differences they seek out. At what point do the differences become too much and we need to wall ourselves off?
On another level this quilt represents healing for me. I had a lot of grief when my husband left and made me a single mom. The red represents rage and passion, the orange represents changes, the pink was the love I still had, the yellow was the fear. The green is in every block and represents a growth path through time and everything I do. The center is about integrating the feelings. I unknowingly made a spiral out of the center blocks (you have to squint to see it). The blue was the sadness and isolation, and the purple was the healing (the color of healing bruises).
I finished piecing the top for my birthday on Sunday. It was my present to myself to get it off my design board so that I could move on and start some other projects. I will quilt it this summer while the kids are in camp.

Like a Fish Out of Water

Like a Fish Out of Water -
Journal Quilt 2005 - January
Private Collection

Like a Fish Out of Water is part one of a series of five describing a difficult situation at my son's school. It describes the feeling of not being in the right place. The fish here are suspended in air (not a viable option for fish); photographed on a black background. They are held in place by beaded wires representing arbitrary rules.
The quilt is made by creating the open frame with timtex, batting and fabric, and then machine quilted once the copper wires from the center were inserted. The spirals on the border were hand stamped and dotted with copper paint. The fish pillows are satin stitched, painted and embellished with copper wire. This quilt was published in the Quintessential Quilt, the commemorative catalog of the 2005 International Quilt Festival.

Swimming in a Sea of Buttons

Swimming in a Sea of Buttons
16.5" x 18.5"
Private Collection

 This little quilt also went to Small Wonders last year! It won 2nd runner up!

This quilt is about finding beauty in the mundane but necessary chores of daily life, the 'sea of buttons'. The fish on the side remind us that we are not alone in facing the challenge. The golden circles were printed with sockets from the garage, pencils, toothpicks, paintbrushes and various lids.
This quilt has about 300 buttons.

A Multicolored World

A Multicolored World
24" x 24"

This quilt went to Small Wonders last year. I didn't count, but it has about 3000 beads! It won 1st runner up! It was also juried into Beyond the Borders in Australia last summer.

This quilt was meant to show the beauty of differences among peoples. It reminds me of a saying I once heard that goes something like, "wherever I go, I wear you", which speaks to the influence we have on others we meet, even if only briefly.

 How it was made:
The center of these beaded medallions was painted with lumiere metallic acrylics and gel medium. I then stitched the round quilted pillows and embellished with seed beads, lots of them! Each block was individually machine quilted and then layered from the center out with fabric strips. There are over 500 different fabrics in this quilt! I gently laid tearable stabilizer on top of the strips and stitched a spiral shape with a simple running stitch. I then tore off the stabilizer and satin stitched the spirals. The sashing and borders were quilted separately. All the pieces were then butted up to each other and satin stitched. Then the fabric strips were laid down flat at the edges, overlapping where necessary and stay stitched in place. The center medallions were hand sewn last.

First Day of School

First Day of School
24" x 17.5"

This little quilt was inspired by some glass fish beads I bought at the Houston Quilt Show. Honestly, it wasn't my fault. My friend kept walking me by the embellishment booths. I had to buy more beads!
These fishie pillows are the fish parents as they 'walk' their babies to school on the first day of school, a day that is getting closer and closer as my daughter quickly approaches kindergarten age. This one was also accepted into Small Wonders! How great is that?!!

Long Legs and Fast Feet

Long Legs and Fast Feet
16.5" x 24"

What would the world look like if birds couldn't fly? This is one of many musings I have had with my young daughter on our long walks. The roofs of the houses have been decorated with different copper beads and designs. This quilt was accepted to Small Wonders this year!

Coming Up for Air

Coming Up for Air
13.5" x 19"

This quilt was inspired by hurricane Katrina. The image of all the people being rescued by helicopter and then dropped off at bridges without shelter or supplies still haunts me. In this quilt, the fish are coming up for air, their town submerged with polluted waters, and yet fish can't breathe air. Another version of "out of the fire and into the frying pan". The dots on the binding are hundreds of beads, people watching and unable to help.
The fish are strip pieced, 3-D fishies hand appliqued. I like to call them quilt pillows.