Straight Stitching on Red Swirls

Another of my ideas is to cover the piece with straight (or almost straight) stitching.  I am not sure what I want to do here, and maybe I won't actually make a decision until the snow starts flying, because it is time to get into the mountains!

Black Swirl on Red?

One of my ideas is to emphasize the swirls by using black thread to add more quilted swirls. 

Quilting Thread Audition

Another Deconstructed 12" Composition

This 12" square also has the same 3 deconstructed print fabrics as the one I showed yesterday.  I feel like these are working on some level. 

Deconstructed Composition 12"

I am playing around a bit more with several deconstructed print fabrics.  This small 12" square has three different fabrics that I think work together.  This is a good exercise in composition.

Deconstructed 12" Squares

This is another whole cloth piece.  I am not sure this one needs anything......some stitching, perhaps.  This one is going to wait for further inspiration.

Red Planets is Finished!

I've finished binding "Red Planets".  It measures 14 x 25"

I am very satisfied with this use of the deconstructed screen printed fabric.  The unusual patterning creates striking visual interest, but doesn't overwhelm.  I would like to further explore this approach to using my vast collection of deconstructed screen prints.   I am not sure whether this is successful because of the color - or if the results could be replicated in another color scheme. 

Winter Walk #1

Here is the piece after I have colored in the white areas on the border deconstructed screen print.  I tweeked things a bit before the final fusing.  I realized the border was a little wonky, so I fixed that.  I gave up on the floating blocks and went with just adding fused screen printed cheesecloth and silk organza.  

After I finished this composition and stepped back to look at it - I realized it evoked winter on the open range in Montana.  I have long wanted to do a piece expressing the stark beauty of the winter grasses and bare branches that grace the landscape.  I have always enjoyed the very subtle color variation among the various types of native grasses in the winter.  I feel this piece successfully expresses that - and furthermore - it is a fitting outlet for my angst as I transition from summer activities into winter studio time.  The development of this (winter in Montana) composition was somewhat unconscious - I had something very different in mind as I began working on this piece.  I am really happy with the way it has turned out!

Coloring the white

I spent some time experimenting with different ways of changing the color of the white areas in the deconstructed print along the border.    This picture shows a scrap of fabric I used for experimentation. I tried using watercolor pencils, watercolor crayons, fluid acrylics, and watercolor paint.  In the end I decided to paint directly on the quilt border with heavily diluted fluid acrylics.

Screen Printing Organza

 Ok, so now I have decided to try adding some screen printed organza and cheesecloth to this piece, feeling that it might help with the composition.  I am printing a lot of this stuff - finding interesting effects when I layer several pieces for the printing - each layer turned out a bit more faint - which seemed good.

Here it is with a few pieces of the screen printed organza added.  Hmmmm.....I think the white resisted areas on the breakdown printed fabric are too glaring.  Gonna have to do something about that.

Mixing Processes

I have spent quite a bit of time auditioning various placements for some larger patches of the deconstructed print.  I am finding the contrast between the two fabrics in the background to be somewhat distracting.  I think maybe some block printing is called for at this point.

Mixing Techniqes - Continued

My idea for the printed fabric I showed yesterday was to collage them.  And that's what I did!  Better than expected - huh? 

Mixing Styles

 Moving on with my attempts to use the deconstructed screen printed fabric, 

I decide to try mixing my other printing techniques in.  I am going to use the 

brownish piece above (looks sort of treelike to me) to mix in with two 

hand dyed fabrics,which I have screen printed ( below).

I know this looks kind of crazy right now, but I actually have a tentative plan for this one!

Deconstructed Challenge Piece Quilting Done

 Well, the quilting is finished and I have done a bit of touching up with paint sticks.

I still do not like this piece - I have really worked at it, but it has been quite a challenge.  I have trimmed it to 16" high by 24" wide.  I originally planned to cut it down to 20 width so I could mount it on a canvas I have in the 20 x 16" size.  Right now I am thinking of cutting it in two pieces - and making two 12" squares out of it instead.  I am going to give myself some time to think about it before I do anything further with it. 

Quilting the Challenge Piece

 I am going to find out whether or not I can turn this piece into something interesting by adding quilting lines......?  Auditioning thread above and below is a detail of the finished quilting.

By this time - I am calling this piece all kinds of names - "Quandary", "Challenge" - and "Torture" are a few of the names I have for it so far.

Adding Printed Organza

 I am not sure what to do with this - I've added a line of screen printed text - I believe this is Blackfoot writing.  I got it on there a little wonky, so that doesn't help things much.  I decide to audition a strip of Thermofax screen printed silk organza placed across it, but this does nothing for me (I am really kind of bothered by the pink circle near the top - where I accidentally left a ring of dye during the printing process.

 

The darker lines on the deconstructed print do remind me somewhat of tree branches.  This Thermofax screen is converted from my photo of our chokecherry bushes in winter.  I like it better in the vertical position. (below).

I eventually realize the bushes look better right side up - and I feel this brings out the branch like composition on the deconstructed print.  I finally start to feel a little hope for this piece.  (notice I was able to make the annoying pink circle disappear, also!)

Adding a Strip

This piece of decconstructed screen printed fabric is kind of funky and I know it is a good workout for me.  I decide to block print some hand dyed pink fabric and add a strip of it on the edge.  Hmmm......don't really know where I am going with this!

More Combinations

 Here is another deconstructed print selection - very challenging range of colors in this one with that pink.  I try to figure out if I can do anything with the pink.......

Design Wall Auditions

 I am playing around with the deconstructed prints.

Putting them up on the design wall - combining them with hand dyed fabrics that coordinate or blend or contrast.

 I don't really know how promising these are, but this is a good exercise for me.

Overprinting Again

 Continuing on with the same ideas - I try overprinting a couple pieces of chartreuse deconstructed prints.  I am using the same ideas of adding text and tree images - all Thermofax screens.  The trees and bushes are from my own photos.  The text is the handwriting of my maternal and paternal grandmothers.  I have printed the trees onto silk organza which is fused in place.  For the one above - I actually overpainted it with green silk paint so it would blend a bit more.  For the one below, I did not paint the organza so it looks white, but also slightly transparent - revealing some of the underlying print. I stitched around the edges with a big stitch in red pearl cotton.

I have these up on the design wall for a while but I can't get very excited about them.  Not excited enough to quilt them.  I have folded and refolded the edges to see if cropping helps.  But I am going to set them aside for a while.  Maybe I will come back to them later on.