Unity from Within

I promised some time ago to tell you about the Mandala which I made.  I don't know when last I enjoyed making a quilt so much as I did for this particular piece...!

I had that feeling of "full circle" as it reminded me so much of my early years as a quilter, the entire design process.   A big sheet of paper, pencils, compass, protractor, ruler and an eraser....!   Yes, I erased many lines which did not work.   And all the way I had this excited smile on my dial, it was pure joy to create this piece and I remembered many years ago how limited my design skills were, the tentative attempts....    How difficult it was then and how easy it has become...   I feel so blessed that Willem gave me the space and means to develop my creativity as through this journey, I found the real me...

In 2013 I applied to become a member of Fibreworks, a renowned group of fibre artists in South Africa and was so excited when I was accepted into their prestigious ranks.    With it however, came added work to an already busy schedule.  I believe that when one commits to something, one has to participate.    Luckily there was  no theme or major size restrictions, so I could create a piece which would relate to where I am at the moment.   I decided to explore Mandalas...

It took me almost a week to complete the design while the eraser did daily sessions!    I find that it takes some time to design, I cannot rush the process...   I would add lines and curves, walk away and do some chores, come back, stare at it....   Any way, it was wonderful to finally choose a colour palette, fabrics and to start cutting...    Some of the pieces were really minute.   I found solid fabrics as well as hand dyed fabrics worked particularly well in this type of design, I added some Bali fabrics which I could not resist...!    I finally finished cutting and fusing and put the piece on the design wall and took a photograph.   I downloaded it onto the computer and immediately saw problems...  Quite amazing how this particular process helped sort out visual problems.   Any way, I had to re-cut certain sections, re-fused and took more photographs and this time I was satisfied...

Unity from Within 201455cm x 55cm

Unity from Within was fused onto a foundation piece, raw edges butting.  Feathered stitch, a decorative stitch on my sewing machine was used on a few areas, others were partially stitched with raw edge applique technique and other raw edges were sealed using a couching technique.   Cords were also used to add definition to certain lines.    Additional detail was quilted into the design using variegated quilting threads. Some pieces were really very small, each little piece on the mandala was cut out individually using small embroidery scissors, my main cutting tool.   It was amazing to see how the stitching transformed the piece.  

Detail Centre Section

Detail can be seen which was quilted into the design e.g. tiny leaves between the burnt orange leaves as well as additional leaves on the magenta sections.

Corner Section

Additional detail added around the lime green spots with the quilting process e.g. on the purple and blue sections.

Unity from Within was part of the Fibreworks VIII Exhibition at the IQCA in July 2014 in Johannesburg.   It will be seen at other venues as well.

I really enjoyed the process so much and decided to work on a concept for a workshop on Mandalas.  This workshop will be during the annual Spring Show of the Dias Quilters' Guild, Port Elizabeth in October 2014, date to be finalized.

Quiver

I really haven't had time to write a post as I was working on a commitment which swallowed all my free time...   Luckily for me, that is now done and dusted and I can settle down in my usual routine and already ideas for new projects are swirling around......

I did however finish two pieces for Fibreworks VIII and Major Minors V as part of the Fibreworks exhibition which opens at IQCA in Johannesburg this coming week.  

I have previously mentioned that Willem and I love travelling around our beautiful country.   Two years ago we went to Namibia on holiday and the trip also included a section of the Northern Cape.    We were so taken with the Northern Cape that we went back last year to explore more.....   I was so enthralled by the quiver trees, the first time I saw them close up was in Namibia and I took photographs where ever I saw them...  The trees are so completely different to the beautiful and lush indigenous forest of Knysna where I grew up.     As always, I was fascinated by the variety of patterns on the bark of these trees which offers endless scope for fibre art interpretations..!

A flowering Quiver Tree at Canon Road House en route to lookout area of Fish River Canyon, Namibia

When the brief came for the Fibreworks exhibitions, I immediately thought that using the quiver tree idea would be perfect for the Major Minors exhibition as the dimensions was only 25cm x 25cm.   Also, I would be able to manage with my other commitment....    I chose one photograph to work from, cropped the image and had a colour print made from which I worked....

Section of a Quiver Tree

I had bought a selection of chiffon, organza and pongee lining, but it can be rather difficult as the right colours and shades are not always available for a specific project...  You might wonder about all this synthetic fabric!   The idea was to heat treat the fabric to distort it to recreate the intricate patterns of the bark.   I tore strips off the different fabrics and singed the edges using a candle.   I prefer using this technique to a heat gun as I have more control over the burning, luckily I haven't burnt myself so far.   The smell of certain fabrics burning is rather vile and not recommended for those who are asthmatic.    Any way, I burnt a lot of strips and started to play, keeping an eye on the picture I was working from..... Burning fabric with a candle also slightly changes the colour of the fabric a bit and gives lots of dark to blackish edges which adds to the drama.    

   Quiver 2014

The first step was to place the singed strips onto the foundation fabric, after which it was stitched down with the machine.   Hand embroidery stitching was added for more texture and interest and adding a few beads finished it off.   The edge around the piece was very untidy and needed a brainwave...     I put it to the candle once more and singed the entire outer edge, sealing it this way worked rather well and it looked very effective.   The piece was machine quilted.    As the piece is so small, I decided to give it a short name, so I named it Quiver after the trees....  

Next time I'll tell about the Mandala also on show at IQCA next week....!   

Food for the soul

Why, oh why does time fly so quickly....     Symptom of modern day living I suppose...   The month of May somehow disappeared, but it was good for me...    Sometimes it is good to take a back seat and absorb everything that comes along, rest and recharge the batteries.

Firstly I was on the teaching panel at the Quilt Camp in St Francis Bay organized by the ever efficient Antoinette Kriel of the Kouga Quilters Guild where I taught two different workshops.   Once again teaching was such a rewarding experience and I also made new friends!   For me the most satisfying experience as a teacher is to take the hand of an extremely anxious student, connect with her and at the end of the day, that same lady stitches with so much potential, totally at ease.   And the smile of achievement you get goes straight into your soul...   I love the interaction teaching provides, seeing those excited smiles....

And then Willem and I took another road trip which took me off the radar as it was "our" time.   We were blessed with moderate weather and we traveled safely.    We re-visited beautiful places, drove on well maintained highways and also the most horrific roads - to Gamkaskloof (The Hell off the Swartberg Pass) and Prince Alfred Pass between Avontuur and Knysna which was badly damaged during heavy rains earlier this year.   All I can say, is that we survived the onslaught...   It was two passes on my bucket list and I really never ever need to drive there again as one needs courage and skill to drive on those roads!    But the most amazing was the scenery and the abundant flora, driving through fields of flowering proteas and other fynbos, too beautiful... And in between little buck, quite tame and patiently posing for photographs...   So very special.

I have to mention the gift shops and galleries in both Hermanus and Prince Albert....   Food for the creative soul.   I saw the most amazing art in Hermanus, I really  needed ABS breaks to curb the spending...   The most amazing ceramics I have seen to date - I could appreciate the patience, skill and creativity of each beautiful, finely crafted piece....   Seeing paintings of Pierneef, Coetzer, Bettie Cilliers Barnard etc at the Onrus Art Gallery, so very special.   I felt like my soul was in heaven, what an experience!   I left feeling my mind was filled with so much joy...

I came back with the thought that although our creative mediums are so different, for each artist the creative spirit within is so powerful.  For productive artists, it is an inner necessity to create like Bettie Cilliers Barnard who painted each day almost to the end...   What a blessing to be able to create to expose the world to beautiful art, to fill spaces with either functional or decorative objects of beauty...!   I feel so inspired to be creative after this holiday, but have mounds of paperwork to slouch through before I can settle down and be busy in my studio....

I don't really have anything to show apart some cushions which I made at the end of last year as gifts.  In March I was fortunate to visit the International Quilters Day exhibition display at the Kouga Quilters in Humansdorp and saw beautiful patchwork cushions...   We always seem to regard cushions as inferior compared to quilts, but those cushions on display were really small quilts, so lovely.  I kept on going back to where the cushions were displayed, it really appealed to me.   So, I thought I would share these cushions with you as making them, does not require much time, but it is equally rewarding to make than a bigger project.

 

2 cushions I  made in 2013 as gifts.

I often like to make small gifts like cushions as it satisfies my need to work in different colours.   I have been collecting some Bali prints as well as silk fabric and love the combination as it works so well together.   For both these projects I used a triangle shape, but the placing is different.   Both were fused and stitched with the feathered decorative stitch on my sewing machine.

I'm working on other projects, but cannot share it yet as it is for an exhibition...   So in the meantime, be creative and enjoy it...

Synergy

As quilters, we are so blessed to enjoy our creative journey at this time we are living in...    We can choose the most beautiful fabrics, threads, patterns, books and gadgets to make the process easy.   Because of modern technology, we are exposed to so much information and visual stimulation.  We share our work on blogs, websites, social media etc with people we don't know from Adam.    The common thread is that we share the same passion for fabric and stitching.   We feel we know these icons personally as we know what they look like, we see their work in our own homes with the wonderful aid of the internet and we can aspire to reach their heights or maybe one day, meet them in the flesh and touch their work.   For me the downside of this overload of information, is that one can spend so much time on the computer ogling the work of others that one tend to forget to do your own...

As a creative soul, I battle to settle down doing repetitive work.   I regularly need to change direction to maintain and feed my passion for fibre and thread.    I often explore in a series, but when I'm done with that, I need to move to the next challenge.   I might combine elements of a previous series with a new element which can take a simple idea much further.     This creates much excitement.

Some time ago I saw a TV clip about an Afrikaans singer/songwriter Lise Beekman who lost her partner under very sad circumstances.   At the time, she was so overcome with grief that she could not make music....   She found herself doodling on paper and the result was the most beautiful mandalas created with inks, crayons etc.   I was enthralled by the beauty of her creations and immediately saw the endless possibilities by creating mandalas in fabric...    As I really love symmetry and playing with my geometry tools, I was ready for this new challenge and took out pencil, eraser, paper, compass, protractor, paper scissors and a long ruler.   It reminded  me so much of the beginning of my quilting career when I designed traditional quilts for my students - it was as if the process was completed in a way, full circle!

A month ago I started doodling a mandala in my drawing book and have done a few drawings since...   I paged through this book today and was amazed at how many of the sketched ideas in my book actually became pieces...

Any way, I was invited to make an A3 quilt for a fundraising auction.    I designed a small mandala, quite simple but set on a background of small embroidered squares.    It almost gives the feeling that it was floating on the background.      Cotton fabric and mostly variegated threads were used -  all the coloured fabrics used for the mandala was repeated in the binding.    All the motifs were secured with the raw edge applique technique and the edge around the mandala was sealed by couching a commercial cotton thread.

Synergy 2014

I have subsequently designed and cut a second mandala which is for an exhibition in July.   I worked until late at night this past week, so engrossed in the excitement that sleep eluded me...   It is now ready to be stitched and I cannot wait to bring it to life....    But I can only share this one with you at the end of July, so in the meantime it will be other little things I'm dabbling with...