Tutorial: What to do with practice cloths? Part 2

On Monday I wrote a post about how to use those quilted practice cloths. (see link below for the post)

http://catherineparkinson.blogspot.co.nz/2013/10/what-to-do-with-quilting-practice-cloths.html

Today I am going to show you how to make those cloths become something usable and beautiful.  This piece of cloth I am going to make into a pouch.

The quilted practice cloth.

1. Take the cloth and print one colour on it.  I have chose yellow and used a Jandal/thong base to print lines on the fabric.

2,  Choose another colour and using another texture print it on the fabric.  I have used red and some bubble wrap

Bubble wrap makes a great texture

3. Taking another colour and texture print on the fabric. For this layer I have used burgundy paint though some sequin waste

4. Tip:  Put all the stencils and tools that are painted in a tray to take to clean later.  Doing it all at once saves a lot of time and water.

5. Blot the fabric dry with an old towel

6. Uron until dry if you are impatient like me or leave till tomorrow to dry.

Ironed fabric.

7.  Add another layer of texture.  I have used an old plastic doily and white paint.

8. Use a stencil to add more texture and another layer of interest. use a darker or lighter paint so it stands out.

9. Iron dry again or leave to dry.

10. Brush a metallic paint over the whole quilt to add some shimmer.

11. Choose another stencil to place along the top edge of the fabric.  This will be the edge that will be the flap at the top of the pouch.

12. Use Shiva paint sticks on the stencil with a stencil brush.

13.  The completed painting and texture.  Leave to dry and cure for 24 hours. This process could be shortened by only adding a couple of layers of paint or lengthened by adding more layers.  Go to where you are happy with the the look of the cloth.  I like quite a few layers as it gives more depth and shimmer to the fabric. 

14. Trim up the cloth with a rotary blade and ruler

Trimmed quilt

15. Stitch around the edge of the motif on the pouch flap.

16. Add further stitching if needed to the cloth.  I have added some circles.

17.  Fold over the cloth and check to see if all the stitching and motifs all line up then make into a pouch following these instructions 

http://catherineparkinson.blogspot.co.nz/2013/09/how-to-make-quilted-pouches.html

Finished inside of the pouch

The finished pouch.  

What to do with quilting Practice cloths?

When I start to quilt I always do a practice session first.  Sometimes I get the groove really quickly and I only spend a few minutes on my practice fabric.  Other times I need a lot more time to get the feel for the design or to get the tension adjusted properly.  Even though this work isn't my best work or work that will wow audiences it is a valuable time for me to get the hang of quilting.

I have ended up with quite a few practice cloths with wonderful textures and colour on them.  I really have been hesitant about throwing them out so I have come up with a few ideas of what t do with them.

• Make a pouch- A few of my pouches started off as painted fabric that I used for practicing on

• Make an art journal cover. The fabric is made up of such great textures it is ideal for book covers.  If the thread colours don't really work repaint the fabric or use shiva paint sticks for added colour and uniformity. This cover had shiva paint stick added and a few dark green stitched oblongs for a focal point.

• 

• Make a little mini quilt- This rose quiltlet was just a scrap of practice cloth drawn on with shiva paint sticks and then edged.

• Paint and print on the fabric and then cut up to make into a wee quiltlet.  This was a practice for layering different textures and colours.

• Practice the quilting with a purpose- Know what design that is being practiced and stick to that design. This piece is a practice piece that evolved into a workable piece of art.  I added the same motifs every time I practiced.

•  It is great being able to use just about everything that get stitched on.  It is great for the land fill and for creativity.  What can you make from your practice cloths ??

Photography this week

Tui

We had a visit to our yard this week.  A gorgeous tui eating from our waratah flowers.  The tui was a little camera shy so trying to snap the perfect shot was quite hard.  Every time I got myself in the right position it flew away.  So these are the best of the bunch

All my photos are subject to copyright but feel free to use any photos as inspiration for your own artwork.  But please can you acknowledge my part in your work. :)

Using layers of Paint on quilts

Art journalling or sketch booking is so much fun and great way to experiment before committing expensive products and time consuming techniques to an art work. I find it therapeutic and feel free working in a smaller scale.

I like to use the same motifs over and over again using different colour ways and composition.  Not only does it help to see new possibilities in design but also colour.  

These three journal pages have reused a leaf stencil as the main focal point.  They also have many layers in them to create more depth and interest.

Each of these pages are quite different but yet contain similar design elements.  By repeating similar design I find I can work more freely and intuitively.  

Although I had been working with technique for quite a period of time on paper I had not tried it on cloth.  I was worried about using layers of paint and what that would do to the hand of the fabric.  I could have tried thickened dye but my studio isn't set up for that process at the moment. 

My thinking cap went on.  How could I get a lovely layered piece of work and still be able to comfortably quilt through it?  

1. I could thin the paint.  This can cause bleeding and dilution of colour so I would need to work with this or find a way to control this.
2. I could paint with a slightly thinned paint and then blot the paint to remove any excess.  I could try blotting with a wet or dry cloth.
3. I could try ironing any excess paint from the cloth
4. I could try to use less paint on each layer and build up the layers to get full coverage of the cloth and have no white showing on the last layer.

I tried each of these ideas on this piece of work.  Each I think has its place and is helpful in keeping a softer hand of the fabric.  Although the hand of the fabric was completely different to a dyed fabric it was still quite soft and very easy to sew into to.  

I used the thinned paint on the base of the layers as a foundation of colour. It didn't matter whether it bled or not and the colour could be built up.  I used an old credit card to pull off the cloth any extra excess.

I blotted between each layer with a dry cloth and a slightly damp cloth.  I found that a wet cloth didn't work too well as it make area bleed.   

Layered leaf

38 cm x 24 cm

By Catherine Parkinson

I used thicker paint when I stencilled to give a cleaner crisper finish.  The last paint I applied was the metallic as this dries very hard and thick.  I applied a very thin layer of this just to add a little sheen. 

When I had finished the quilting I added more metallic paint and colour.  Because this work is a art piece for the wall it doesn't matter how much more paint is added at this time.  

I really enjoyed this process and the end result.  I can see so many more possibilities painting on fabric.

Procrastinating finishing art quilts

I am slowly progressing through a few unfinished pieces of work.  Most of them didn't have much left to do but I just was procrastinating finishing them.  When I have them done I wonder why I put them off for so long.

Why do we procrastinate?  I mostly do it because I get stuck and don't know quite what to do to work through the problem, so I just don't do it. Instead of problem solving and moving forwards I stay stuck in the same place completely petrified of making a wrong move or making an irreversible mistake.

When we stay stuck in the same place we may be safe and secure but we don't get any better with our art.  We stay stagnant, we don't progress and we don't learn anything.

4 things I have to ask myself when I get into this place is

1. What am I scared of?
2. What is the worst that can happen if I work on this art piece?
3. What can I do to work through this issue?
4. What can I learn from this experience?

When I ask myself these questions I find almost always the problem is manageable and can be worked through quite easily and the problems wasn't as hard as I first thought.

Untitled

60cm x 43 cm

By Catherine Parkinson

I made the top of this quilt in one day. I loved how my creativity just flowed and everything just came out right.  But when I started quilting I just couldn't get it to work.  The quilt top was made 2 years ago and then it just sat there.  I started the quilting 1 year ago by quilting the squares in the top right hand corner and the 2 flowers.  Then I just got completely stuck on what to do next.  I wanted the pattern to come through but additional texture and line was needed.  I put it to the side and just couldn't finish it.  A few months ago I picked it up again and quilted horizontal lines in the top left hand corner and still I couldn't get any further.

It wasn't till I asked myself those 4 questions that I could figure out how to move on with this work and how to complete the quilting.

1. What am I scared of?  Failing and getting it wrong or ruining the top I made.  I realised that none of these things really mattered.  There was no such thing as failing or getting it 'wrong' as it is my art work and I can give myself permission to do whatever I want on it.  The top only took one day to make so it wasn't really a major investment of time.
2. What is the worst that can happen if I work on this art piece?  I might not like it,  I may have to make it into a pouch or I may need to throw it out.  All of these things I could live with.
3. What can I do to work through this issue? Jump in and try to quilt it.  I can give myself permission for it not to be perfect and to just enjoy the moment.
4. What can I learn from this experience? To learn about line and shape and how they all interact with each other.  That my art work is never a failure it is a learning experience.

After answering these questions I was able to see the work more clearly. I was able to stand back and view the piece with different eyes. I unpicked all of the horizontal stitches and went vertical and it instantly looked better. I went ahead and I chose some quilting lines and I tried them.  I was really pleased with the outcome and I learnt so much.  

Your feedback

I have been writing my blog for a few years now.  I have been faithfully posting them to Facebook and pinterest.  I have spent quite a bit of time planning them and considering what to write or give visually in each of my posts.

I am now after feedback from my readers.  Please could you give me some feedback on my blog.....the good and the bad :)

• How often do you read my posts?
• Do you get something out of them?
• What can I do to improve my posts?
• What can I do to improve my blog?

I would really love to hear from you!! Please could you comment below or e-mail me what you think.  

Thank you :) 

Teaching kids to be creative

I love to be creative and make life more beautiful.  I think it so important to teach kids to be creative too.  So much time is spent watching square screens in our day and age so therefore it is fair to say many children are losing valuable play time being creative. My children have all gone to playcentre; a early childhood centre with the main focus on play. This has been wonderful for their growth and learning.  I have adopted many Playcentre philosophies in my own home environment. I have also adopted the philosophy the more mess the more fun. So how do I get my kids to be more creative.......

• Provide good quality equipment.  They better the quality the better work the can produce.  
• Have a mud pit.  Even if you have a small section buckets can be filled with mud.  I have a Mud area in my yard which my kids love.
• Have playdough, clay, and other sculpting materials available for use
• Provide books that inspire creativity.  
• Limit screen time.  We have a 20 mins on the computer and 30 mins rule for screen time each day.
• Play games.  Games provide a rich time for vocab learning
• Have fun together
• Model creativity yourself.
• Have play clothes so kids can play and not worry about getting dirty.
• Give them open ended questions so they can think about other possibilities to their creations
• Let them problem solve for themselves.  Teach them how to find answers and solutions to the creative dilemmas
• Give presents that encourage creativity. IE paint, pens, paper
• Read, Read, read.  reading fosters great imagination
• Encourage kids to make and send their own birthday cards and thank you cards
• Leave out equipment in a prominent place and see what happens.  I love to see what happens with a cardboard box, and some tape.  The last time I did this we had 2 tanks made and lots of wars for a couple of days.  
• Let them cook.  Cooking is a great way to create especially since they get to eat it too.
• Encourage them to have their own garden.  

Most importantly be creative yourself  so your kids can see how much fun it can be