From Remnants a Story Grows

A few months ago I "gifted" two large bags of fabric remnants to a local group and decided to try to emulate Eleanor Burns by tossing out small remnants but, try as I might, I just couldn't bring myself to throw beautiful snippets into the trash.  Oh, woe, within the year I had two more bags of remnants but this time, I rolled each leftover piece of fabric, tied it with string, and once again started to save these little treasures.  A couple of weeks ago I pulled out the bags, sorted the remnants, cut them into swatches with parallel sides and started stitching them to 6" blocks of cut newspaper.

Here is what is developing.

In the second row from the left, 2nd block down, I inserted netting instead of a block of strips and then stitched a mini quilt onto the netting...and here it is :-)

What is seen through the netting is the end of two storage shelves that sit behind the block so this picture does not adequately show the transparent quality of the netting.  When I make the quilting sandwich with batting and backing, 6" holes will be cut in those layers, also.  How I will finish the edges, I am not quite certain yet, but I'm sure that a refined finish can be accomplished.  Ah, the challenges.  They just keep coming and I relish them--well, most of the time I relish them.  At other times I pull my hair.

When I hung the piece to see how it was developing, I liked it but it lacked a story and I knew there was a one hidden in it that need to be told so...

Out of my hand dyed fabric stash I selected a piece that might suggest a sunset sky, drafted a circle from brown craft paper to use as a pattern and then cut a circle from the hand dyed fabric.  I then fused it to Heat-n-Bond Fusible Iron On Non- Woven Stabilizer* to give it stability.  Next I cut a smaller circle from the quilt top so that it would overlap the edges of the hand dyed fabric circle and affixed the circle with satin stitching.  And now, dah-dah, here is that element...

The story is beginning to develop--at least in my story telling mind.  I plan on creating either an appliqued or a free motion embroidered element into the circle and linking it somehow into the mini-quilt that is set on netting, but that will be in the near future.  As it develops, I will add pictures, but at the moment I have three other projects on the work table that are crying for my attention.  Isn't that just the way it goes with artists--especially those who are also quilters?
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*  It might be worthwhile to note that the Heat-n-Bond Iron On Non-Woven Stabilizer is very soft and does not, even slightly, alter the hand of the fabric.
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Egyptian Figure with Column

Dover Royalty Free Clip Art

Recently my friend loaned me a copy of a Dover publication with royalty free Egyptian images.

Full Figure Fabric Translation of Image.

A couple of days later another friend gave me strips of painter's canvas that were left over from a canvas stretching project. She said she was sure I would do something with the strips. Serendipitously, the rolled canvas strips lay next to the Dover publication on my coffee table. It seemed as if an image wanted to be translated from the book to the canvas. An elongated female figure seemed as if it could be adapted rather easily. I enlarged the figure by sketching it directly on the canvas with pencil and then set about zig zag stitching decorative yarn around the outline of the figure's apparel. I used a rather close satin stitch with heavy duty cotton thread to outline the arms, head and feet, as well as used a straight stitch to define the column. I free motion stitched scallop shapes into the garment and then filled in the face, arms, feet and column with Tsukineko sand colored fabric inks. How the piece will be finished has not yet been determined. I may use batting and backing and quilt it. I may fuse it to a complementary backing and add a hanging sleeve. All that will develop another day--perhaps tomorrow.

Closeup of head, torso, skirt top and part of column.

Closeup of Head

Closeup of Torso

Closeup of Skirt.

Closeup of Feet