Another show quilt almost done.... Winter's End

My RAFA (Rochester Area Fiber Artists) group is getting ready to hang another show in Honeoye Falls.   The theme for this show is "Winter's End".  I have had a poem by Lilje Rogers that I have always wanted to interpret into fabric.....

"First the howling blizzard woke us,
Then the rain will come to soak us,
And now before the eye can focus....
Crocus!

This is it so far (you can tell it isn't done by the batting on the edges and the pins at the bottom.  This is pretty true to my original concept - all snow and just a "pop" to indicate the crocus!!   The poem is printed on organza overlay at the bottom - with appropriate credit given to the author.  

Almost done.....................  some more beading, a crystal or two, facing, sleeve and label.   Really - it is almost done!!!

Museum Quilt Guild Literature Challenge - My Big Reveal

So, our guild meeting has come and gone, all the challenge quilts have been turned in and I can now reveal mine. 

 

Butterflies and Bottle Caps

from the book by the same name!

Our challenge was to pick something from literature - it could be a book title, a scene from a book, a picture, an idea.........anything.   On the very night our challenge was announced, a friend of mine on Facebook posted about this book.   Since I love anything "butterfly" - an idea immediately took hold.  The premise of the book is that the main character has "butterflies for hair".   She feels she is different and strange and wishes she were like everyone else.  

Her mother is constantly reassuring her that she is beautiful and someday she will know it!!!



She tells her that "One day you will see how beautiful you are - one day everything about you will be free to dazzle".

Then she meets a girl who has "bottlecaps for hair".  

That girl wishes she had butterflies instead and the girl with butterflies likes the sound of bottlecaps - the sound they make in the wind.   They become instant friends and realize they are beautiful in their own way.

Some other detail shots -

The hair is all butterflies, individually cut from fabric, fused down, stitched with metallic thread - and some metallic butterfly beads are hiding there also.



 This is a butterfly button (actually 2 buttons) I made from clay, formed in a mold and baked.

 There are several dimensional butterflies on the quilt - this one flew out into the border.

 A butterfly bead landed on a bottlecap.

The bottlecaps were a long process of finding the right kind of cap - available only on beer bottles now apparently.   My husband was my very willing supporter in that venture!!!!   :)    Then they were painted, holes drilled, attached with perle cotton, anchored top and bottom with beads.   Some bottlecaps do dangle while others are more secure.   The circles for her hair are cut from silk fabric and fused, some are inked around the edge.

These quilts will hang in the local Richmond Library in the month of February.   Once they are all up and hanging I will get pictures of the rest and have them here to share!!!!  

Creating - not Revealing yet....

I have been working and creating on my quilts, just can't reveal any of them here.   I have 3 challenges underway - none can be shown yet.   Saturday we finally reveal our guild Literary Challenge.   Can't wait to see what book everyone has chosen for their inspiration and how they interpret it.

Meanwhile, my beautiful amaryllis - with 9 flowers, is no more.   But I have lots of photos of just how beautiful it was.   I've never been successful at keeping them to bloom a second time, but I'm going to try again with this one.

 This one looks like a tree, for goodness sake!

 I love close up shots.......right into the center of the flower!!!

Amaryllis & Challenges

I mentioned yesterday I was working on my guild literature challenge.   Here are 2 teaser pictures!



 

You had to guess butterflies would be involved!

Circles?    In the same quilt as butterflies????

Finally - nothing to do with my guild challenge quilt - just a picture of my Amaryllis plant - 2 stalks, 6 of the 8 blossoms are opened!   I've never had one with this many flowers.   The box said it was "Candy Apple" pink - not so much!   But, it still is pretty I think!



Blog Posting Frustration

For whatever reason, my blog site will not seem to let me upload pictures from my photo album.   No clue as to why......the usual buttons are not there to access.

I have no pictures really, because although I have been working very intently on a quilting piece, I can't show it until the guild challenge is due on the 19th of this month.   I'm all but done (sleeve & label) which is really early for me to be done 2 weeks ahead of time.

The title of the challenge is "literature" - we can use anything from a book - cover, photo, scene, title, printed passage - pretty wide open challenge.   The evening of the day it was announced, a friend of mine posted about a book on Facebook - I had never heard of.   But, I liked the title and I set out to find it - which was no small feat since it is out of print.   But, I did find it, and I have pretty much been able to accomplish what I envisioned!!!!!

Now, if I can ever get this Blog (or perhaps my computer) to cooperate.......you will someday see pictures.