About this quilt
Materials: Cotton fabric, cotton batting, invisible thread, embroidery thread, and a few hot fix crystals.
Technique: Using graph paper I designed one 45 degree wedge. I then made plastic templates for each design unit in the wedge. I fussy cut the units using the templates and made 8 identical wedges. There are a total 72 pieces of fabric in the kaleidoscope design, not including the background, sashing, and border. I quilted it with invisible thread on my home sewing machine.
Size: 23” x 23”
The making of Kaleidoscope V - Kaleidoscope Therapy
It happened the day after move in day to my new studio! Ouch!! I hit my head on the corner of the fireplace mantel while bending over to pick up something from the hearth. Down I went, giving myself a concussion. It would be a few weeks before I could complete a sentence, find the right word, do simple math, spell correctly, read a book, look at a computer screen, watch television, or even work in my new studio. About the only thing I could do was listen to music and organize my fabric.
After a few months, I was able to get in to the studio, but my brain was not ready for the thought process that goes into creating an art quilt. I could no longer visual what I wanted to create. My brain and hand would not work together to draw out what I wanted. I was having some serious “quilter’s block” -- pun intended!
I then tried to work with symmetry and simple structured quilt blocks like the traditional Sawtooth Star. I discovered that my brain needed structure and my first attempts at making the ordinary Sawtooth Star extraordinary were successful. I tried more complicated blocks, with even greater success.
Finally, I tackled this complicated kaleidoscope. During the whole recovery process, listening to music played an important part. Together, making art and listening to music, provided me the means for a full recovery. This quilt is proof of it!
This quilt was a turning point in my quilting. Now, many of my quilts use ordinary quilt blocks, to which I applied the mirroring technique, and make the ordinary, extra ordinary!
Exhibited at
- SAQA: Regional juried exhibit at the Miami University Voice of America Center, West Chester, Ohio, 2015
- Oxford Art In Bloom flower show. A juried mixed media show in which the selected artists' works were used as floral arrangement inspiration for the members of Oxford Des Fluers Garden Club, 2014