This one's Jammin'. Made from a whole range of hand-dyed cottons I'd done at various times using different methods. Pieced very freely, based on chevron log cabin. Began by cutting four-inch squares from some of my favourite fabrics. Cut other fabrics into varying widths. Added these onto two sides of the squares until each block measured the right size or larger, cutting back to the right size. Then joined into blocks of four to make larger blocks, joined to make the centre, bordered, machine-quilted and bound (also by machine).
And - yes - it was as quick as that sounds.
The inspiration was Leeds West Indian Carnival with its clashes of sounds and colours.
The quilt was exhibited at the GBQF (the last one, under the auspices of The Knitting and Stitching Show) where it won a special prize for use of hand-dyed fabric. A lot of quilters, including traditionalists, enjoy it even though it breaks rules left right and centre! (A friend of mine overheard someone saying: " The pieces don't match. And everyone knows you can't put green and purple together. But I love it!"
Which is quite possibly the best accolade I've ever had!
The second quilt won Best Use of Colour at GBQF and second best in the bed-quilt category and for use of colour at Quilts UK. It's very large (over 100 inches square) and unfortunately I haven't yet been able to photograph it flat on. I tried it on the bed and this is what happened.
Hello Pepper!
Here's alarger picture that shows a little more quilt and a bit less cat.
The quilt's called Caging the Moment adapted from a line in a poem by Lous McNeice. It contains fabrics in 25 different shades of Blue-Violet 7RX, all flat-dyed in jars (adapt quantities from dyeing in a bucket, put dye and salt and soda into the jar. add wetted out fabric, put on the lid, wrap some old fabric and a plastic bag round in case it leaks and "churn" for ten minutes and then intermittently for an hour before rinsing and washing). It also contains a whole lot of different greens (the whole thing was inspired by the colours of spring) which were blast-dyed in small pieces using different techniques and various combinations of blues, yellows and golds with some black. The blue-violet grid goes from light at the edges to dark at the centre. The triangles (green plus yellows blues and purples go from dark at the edges to light in the centre (I bleached some fabric to get it really pale). The colours partially merge in the middle where you have values meeting, which is an effect I really like. I think the original inspiration was Deirdre Amsden's colourwash quilts, the ones with blue triangles on top, but it has come some way from there. It reminds me of Wytham Woods, the bluebells and the dappled colour through trees (see postcard below).
Anyway off now to do some more sewing - no more resting on laurels!
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