quilt, print

This year is maybe the worst ever for our family falling prey to whatever stupid supergerm is going around, also I have recently had the irritating & totally unsurprisingly revelation that if you are up to your neck in being the auction design lead as well as being the kindergarten class project lead AS WELL AS having committed to a variety of handmade donations, well, not only are you someone who maybe needs to learn to say "no" a little bit better, but you should probably try to avoid being laid flat out with a fever for four days in the middle of several converging deadlines.  And that it's a good thing you are in no way involved in writing the catalog copy, as your life has become one huge blur of a run-on sentence.

But!  I am finally feeling human again (just in time for my son to be wiped out by whatever stupid supergerm caused nine kids to be absent yesterday (nine!  Although my husband pointed out that his class - nine actually makes for a very pleasant teacher-student ratio, so maybe it was very enriching for the healthy kids.), & I have finished the auction quilt!  Hurrah!

I love this one.  I started with "garden" as my concept, struggled through a number of sketches & color stories that weren't quite making it happen, & eventually solved it through the time-honored "less is more" method.  (I also used my own personal time-honored rule of "when in doubt, see if some Kona Cotton in Sage helps."  So far, the answer is usually yes.)

Things probably would have been easier if I'd started with "door" as my concept instead. 

The slightly mismatched strips you see there are different dyelots of the same fabrics that I had hanging around in my scrap boxes (the darker linen/cotton is actually left over from the preschool auction quilt), randomly inserted into the piecing.  Including the darker aqua was a deliberate plan; including the darker "natural" was just a way to get the length I needed without cutting into more yardage, but I think it worked out really well (&, probably, better than it would have if I'd planned it out).

This is my absolute favorite part of the quilt:  a big rectangle of featherweight corduroy in a mossy olive green.  (Along with evidence of the teeth-gnashing struggles I was having with the tension settings on my newly tuned-up machine.  I eventually got in the groove, but not before a lot of tedious unpicking.)

 

But then the tedious unpicking is always worth it when the quilt comes out of the dryer all rumpled & squashy.  Just like last year, I wouldn't mind bringing it back home (though last year's went to a friend of mine, so I get to visit it sometimes.)

Meanwhile, class projects have to get done too:

 

I did a block printing project with my daughter's kindergarten class earlier this year, so we decided to have the kids do a set of city-themed prints.  (The entire project was inspired by pixiegenne's beautiful block prints from a while back.)

 

A few kids are doing Seattle landmarks, the rest are doing houses, buildings, & a few trees.  We're about halfway done, & -- even though I think it's going to look terrific -- the very best thing about this project is watching the kids light up when they peel back the foam & see the prints they've made.  I think they'll feel some real connection to the piece when it's finished, which is a nice change from last year's GIANT DECOUPAGE BENCH.

(I'll still be relieved when it's done, though.)

Comments

[amyehodge]

The quilt really is gorgeous. I'm curious as to whether you make any guides for you rows of loops or if you just go for it. If I didn't mark some guide lines mine would be totally all over the place! And I love the block prints -- is there a tutorial on how to do that?? If it's easy enough for kids, I might be able to manage it! :)

[jen j-m]

hey daria,
everything you make is always gorgeous, but that quilt is spectacular. i hope it brings lots of money!! i love the cityscape blocks, too.
meg and i chaired decorations for our auction (which is tonight - i am currently trying to adequately caffeinate myself and remove glitter from at least a few surfaces around the house before i head over to get started on set up) and i was in charge of both kids class projects too. haha. next year i'm hiding!
xoxo

[Mama Urchin]

The quilt is beautiful and I want to hear more about those block prints. Are they being turned into a quilt too?

[Courtney]

It all looks so lovely. Your school is so lucky that you are so generous with your time!

[abcgirl]

love the quilt as always. love the idea of city drawings for the block prints--the bus and the space needle are especially charming.

[Dara]

I think this one is my favorite ever. It is stunning.

[erin]

i need to learn to say no, too. i was in charge of all auction art projects, K-8...never again!
your quilt is absolutely stunning. i hope you bring it home.

[Jane]

This is such a beautiful quilt. I'm inspired to try my first quilt for my baby daughter. Would love to konw if you have any quilt books that inspire and teach the style you use?
Thanks,
Jane

[Sara]

I could not love this quilt more. Man, I wish I had thought of it! I would definitely bid on this quilt - it's genius - from the corduroy, to the peek-a-boos in the white border, to the black binding. Fabulous!

[Mal*]

Oh my. I usually either like extreme close-ups OR far-aways. However, this quilt looks amazing on all levels! Thanks for sharing.

[Kirsten]

Love the quilt! The class project turned out great, looks like they listened to you :)

[Janel]

I love love love love this!!!

[Sharla]

These look so great. Can you share how you did this?