Quilt Show # 1,296,473

Here I go again...off to a quilt show with my mom. This was a giant international quilt show and the largest one I've ever attended. It took about 6 hours to walk the entire exhibit and look at all the vendors. And even though the quilts came from all over the world I must confess the quilts left me a little under-whelmed :(

AMAZING

First let me tell you that this quilt is HUGE! Easily 7 feet across and 7 feet high. Second it is made completely of yo-yos!! Yo-yos are little ( these are probably about 2" diameter ) circles of cloth that a gathering stitch is sewn around the edge and pulled up. Kinda like a flattened pouch.

This entire image is made of different color yo-yos but, I think I know how they accomplished such dramatic effects... they turned the image into pixels and created and assembled yo-yos in the same colors and composition.

Regardless of how it was accomplished the size and execution is truly impressive.

What I liked...

Sew ( haha ) there were LOTS of amazing quilts but, I realise I am a traditionalist and I really admire the quilts that are pieces of fabric sewn together. The fabric artist that paint on fabric are starting to creep into the quilt shows and I just think that is a completely separate art form.

The trifeca of color, composition and technique is what makes the American quilt unique. The pioneer women didn't paint quilts, they used their scraps of fabric for the practical reality of creating bedding.

It makes me sad to see fine arts skills replacing technical skills. Bring back the pieced and appliqued quilts!!!!

Ready for their Close-up

After spending $$ and endless hours I finally finished the four sets of 2 feet tall dancing flower marionettes. There are five marionettes per set for an astonishing 20 flower marionettes total.

That adds up to 4 complicated controls, 20 flower faces, 60 leaves, 80 limbs and 100 strings. OMG!

The steps I took on this flower journey are listed below

So here are my new best friends! I really, really love to sculpt faces and these were pretty fun because no ears!! Some people find my faces creepy, even ugly but, it is what it is and they make me smile.

Painting the faces is almost as much fun as sculpting them so this was definitely my favorite part of the project.

Next I assembled the twenty bodies ( after cutting, painting and inserting links between the 40 leg pieces and 40 arm pieces which only took 3 1/2 days ). Attached the flower heads and then I strung and tied 100 strings to heads, arms and knees. Added 60 leaves and that's it, I was done.

The project only consumed 2 weeks of my life longer than I had anticipated. When it wasn't driving me crazy it was pretty fun.

Delivered the marionettes 2 days before the play opened :)

Look What I Made...

Okay, who's more cool wearing their shirt dress? The model wearing the Prada shoes and shirt dress in the August edition of Vogue OR me rockin' my fabulous shiny, polyester ( I wish I was silk )Simplicity pattern 2885 shirt dress.