A Fun Project

In 2005 our Guild launched a fundraising project for CANSA and the project was co-ordinated by Brenda Dickeos.   The members were challenged to make a embellished bra which would be auctioned off at a gala dinner to raise funds for cancer research....    Natal Quilters' Guild heard about our project and asked to join in the fun and eventually lovely entries were received from their Guild.    Some people chose to make their own bras, but I took a shortcut and bought an underwired bra ....    This project had the makings of great fun.  
As the deadline approached, I was getting rather anxious as I had no idea how to embellish my bra entry....     One day as I was pottering around, the idea for a protea bra started stewing in my mind....    The shape of a protea would lend itself to some sculpture moulding around a breast, ideal for a bra!   From there onwards it was rather easy.   The flowers had to be made using 3D machine applique techniques and the centres had to be hand embroidered with silk ribbon to recreate the lustre and texture of the inner flower.       I made each protea in 3 segments, the back (top) section with pointed petals which rested on the breasts which I stitched to the top of the bra, then the hand embroidered sections were inserted and moulded around the breast.    The bottom section of the bra was added last - the flowers fitted perfectly around the bra cup!     I made lots of separate leaves to cover the side and back sections of the bra with beaded ruffled strips to cover the straps.

On 8 October 2005 the bras were modelled and auctioned at a gala dinner at St Georges Cricket Stadium.    Great fun was had by all and entertainment included a bellydancer going through her paces....     As always, I battled to name my project!    As I was working, a title came to me...     In Afrikaans, the old people used to call Proteas suikerkanne and growing up, the youngsters would often call breasts in a crude way, kanne....!    So, my bra entry had a name - SUIKERKANNE!     The MC for the evening, Selwyn Morris from Radio Algoa was in hysterics everytime he had to refer to my bra and the crowd just loved the joke!    Suikerkanne was one of the winners of the evening and was bought by Keith Swan.   The bras were also displayed at the local quilt shop, Pied Piper.

Suikerkanne modelled at the Gala Dinner for CANSA 8 October 2005

This project really caused quite a stir and was repeated by some designers in Port Elizabeth after our Guild effort.   It really was a priviledge and great fun to be part of this project.

New inspiration....

I'm back.....     I am sorry for the long silence, but last time I did mention that I had internet problems which resulted in picking up a foul virus with the result that I could not access this blog...   Well, at least that problem is now solved, but I wish life's obstacles were so relatively easy to get rid of....    I was also very involved in organizing our 40th school reunion which was so very special.

At the moment I am working on various projects which I have to complete and I am also preparing for a long holiday in Namibia with my Willem....   I promised you that I would show & tell my studio, BUT it is such a mess at the moment that I just cannot take photographs to show on this forum.....    I have lots of cupboards and drawers in the studio for storage, but when I am really engrossed in a project, all this stuff seems to land on my worktable, the floor, the couch, ironing board, strewn across the computer station etc....     All the cottons jump out of the containers and clutter the area between the sewing machines...    I somehow don't feel the need to put things away, bobbins, thread, presser feet, unpickers, a variety of scissors, machine needles, pins....   Working in a frenzy.....  And the mystery of it all is that somehow I know exactly where everything is within this chaos...    Yes, I am amazed that some quilt artists have this uncanny ability to work in such perfect tidy conditions.    Not me, the greater the mess, the more inspired I get and the better I perform.     So, I would love to show you my studio, but I don't think today is a good idea....   But I promise, very soon....

I ended the previous blog in 2004 in Durban.    As the 2006 National Quilt Festival was held in Port Elizabeth and presented by my home Guild, I decided that I could not stand for another term of office as SAQG President.     I felt that my loyalties had to be at home as our Guild is relatively small and all help and skills were needed to present a wonderful Festival.    Organizing such an event is very hard work, but such a wonderful opportunity for many reasons....   It builds so  much spirit in the hosting Guild and one always learns so many new skills and meet the most amazing people.      The Festival Chairlady unexpectedly left town and I had to step into her shoes, but with the support of a wonderful Committee, we pulled it off and hosted a wonderful event.     But due to all the Committee obligations, I had no time to finish my quilt entry of historical buildings of Port Elizabeth.   I rolled it up for one day when I wasn't tired anymore...   I did however prepare a new workshop, Sunset over Africa  for the Festival which I taught.  

Sunset over Africa Teaching Sample 2006

After the Festival, I was dog tired and decided that I really needed to do some hand sewing, just to relax...   As I really like hand stitching, I decided to make an embellished cushion which I took to the Guild meetings to keep my hands busy and I just played with threads, beads, shisha mirrors and sequins....    I used variations of chain stitch for the embroidery and as I was stitching at Guild meetings, I had many peeping toms looking at what I was doing and requesting a workshop....    So, I turned this cushion into a workshop and eventually into kits.   Unfortunately this cushion got lost in transit from Johannesburg to Port Elizabeth in 2008.  

          

                                                     Fun with Chain Stitch Cushion 2006

                                    made primarily of brush rags hand painted fat quarters.

I actually regard this cushion as the start of an exciting new era in my quilting.    I stitched it for the pure joy of stitching and creating some texture with threads and beads...

Another festival..

I am extremely sorry for being so quiet, but our broadband data cap was hacked into and our access to the internet limited...

I find it a good thing to constantly evaluate my work as I am extremely critical of my efforts...    With the progress which I made with Avian Grace (bird quilt) and Cape Peninsula - Floral Kingdom, I decided to revisit the animal kingdom for an improved version of Woodville made in 1998.    I really loved the layout of Avian Grace and actually designed an animal version of it before I started work on the 2002 Cape Peninsula quilt, but left the designs untouched for maybe, one day.....  

In 2004 I decided that it was time to make this quilt, partly because of time restraints as I was nearing the end of my term of office as SAQG President and I really did not have time to wonder off in my creative space to design something fresh....  It made good sense to tackle the new version of the animal quilt as all the mental preparation was done, I could just dive in with cutting and stitching...    I really loved working on this quilt and I was so satisfied with the blocks as I completed it, BUT I got stuck with the Zebra block....   The river scene with reflections was just so difficult and soon I could not thing straight....    I  unpicked it so many times....    My idea was to create a scene with zebra drinking water at the river with their reflections in the water....   

I made mirror image zebras which worked very well, but somehow I could not get the water right....    I layered chiffon fabric and organzas over the zebra images, but stupidly, had too many layers of fabric over the zebras .....    I was in a total panic and the clock was ticking.....   In the end I just gave up and finished the quilt, but was immensely disappointed with this section.....!    I again spent lots of thought on the quilting designs.   I found footprint images of the different animals depicted in the quilt in a field guide which I used  as quilt designs and combined it with some geometric quilting and very fine stipple quilting.   I free motion embroidered the spots on the leopard and the stripes of the zebras without using a presser foot on the sewing machine.....     For the lions I made little wigs of unraveled fabric for the manes, the elephant ears were made using 3-D techniques with Italian quilting....   The trees and bushes were made using the needlelace technique on wash-away substance.

Spots, Stripes, Ivory and Afro - Bush Style 2004
Part of Exhibition of South African Quilts at 10th European Patchwork Meeting, Val d'Argent, France

I actually love this quilt and somehow don't really notice the failed attempt of the reflections in the water.....    I subsequently tried a similar setting in a smaller quilt and got it right....

Zebra's - Donkeys in Striped PJ's 2008

This small quilt was kindly taken to England by my friend Wendy Singer and exhibited at the Festival of Quilts, Birmingham UK in 2007.

Next time, setting up my dream studio .....

Little bits of everything....

In 2002, I was approached by one of our Guild members, Jacqui Hattingh (a librarian in the city) to assist with making a quilt which would be displayed at all the libraries in Port Elizabeth on a rotational basis.    The libraries in Port Elizabeth received a grant from the Carnegie Institute in New York to be used for an upgrade and the quilt would be made to commemorate this.   
Jacqui had a good idea of what she wanted to do, but was feeling a bit overwhelmed to initiate the project and she needed somebody to hold her hand....    I designed the basic layout for the quilt and we decided to make 4 blocks depicting the different roles of libraries in the communities with the International logo as the focal point in the centre of the quilt.   As it was a South African quilt, I designed geometric borders in the colours of our National flag to give it a distinctive South African flavour.     Jacqui organized some volunteers to help sew and we started work.    I stitched the logo and the others started on the 4 panels - in the end Jacqui did the bulk of the work......    It was really lovely to see the quilt finished and displayed in the historical main library in the city centre for the first showing..... 

 
I was also fortunate to teach some workshops at the Outeniqua Quilters' Guild in George towards the end of 2002 which was really a lovely experience.    I taught Protea Workshop #2 to a small, but very dedicated group of quilters.     Sadly, I have since stopped teaching Protea workshops as it is too intense....    

Protea Workshop #2 in George 2002

From left to right:  Nancy Swanepoel, Jenny Hurter, Fiona Barnwell, Diana Bezuidenhout, Annette Zondagh, me holding the workshop sample and Margaret Horn in front of Cape Peninsula - Floral Kingdom

This was an extremely busy period for me as I had lots of administrative duties as SAQG President, teaching trips and the Kariega Project.    I had very little time to do experimental work....    I was asked by the Threads magazine to design a cushion to launch A Rose is a Rose competition.     The Rose Trellis cushion, made of my handpainted brush rags fabrics, was the result of this.   I subsequently turned the idea into a workshop which I also taught in Hermanus and East London.....    

Rose Trellis Cushion designed for Threads magazine

Although it seemed that I did a lot of work, it was a bit frustrating as I felt that I did not really have enough time to experiment and play.......