Over the RainbowAs I’ve mentioned previously, I have three shows coming up in September and October, in addition to several exhibits I’d like to apply to enter. Getting ready for shows and exhibits means working backward. Let me explain. If I know I want to mount a piece on stretcher bars, like Over the Rainbow, at right, then I have to create it and finish it in enough time to give the framer at least two weeks to do her work. If it needs to be photographed to be entered into an exhibit, then I need to factor in another couple of weeks to set up an appointment with the photographer to take the photos, process them and get them back to me.

I spent the last two weeks working on the pieces that need to be sent to the framer’s and I got them in to her, so she’s working on them. I’ll spend the next two weeks working on the larger pieces that won’t be mounted. I have an appointment with the photographer on Aug. 31, so hopefully the mounted pieces will be finished and the larger quilts will be completed so everything comes together at the end! I’ll keep you posted.

If you’re interested, my framer is and my photographer is Greg Staley . I highly recommend them both!

My shows are the Artsfest 2010 at Annmarie Gardens and Sculpture Park in Solomons, MD on September 18-19, the McLean Project for the Arts MPAartfest in McLean, VA on October 3, and the Great Falls Studios 7th Annual Studio Tour on October 16-17.  In addition, I’ll be having a solo show at Maison du Vin in Great Falls October 19-December 15. Mark your calendars!

Over the Rainbow is a new piece that I had a lot of fun with. I made a fairly large improvisational block for the center using bits and pieces of fabrics that I rearranged until I had a composition I liked. Then I framed the brightly colored center with tilted black and white framing borders. I auditioned quite a few black and white fabrics for the outer border and nothing worked quite right until I came upon that leafy print. It’s almost like a light bulb goes on when I hit the right fabric combination and I just have to be patient until it happens! This piece is mounted on stretcher bars with a solid red background that brings out the brights from the center. It’s 27″h x 24″w.

On a personal note, another quilt that’s been occupying me for much of the summer is this one for my son to take to college. It’s a simple abstract design based on a traditional nine patch. I wasn’t expecting him to want to be involved in the process, but to my surprise he was very interested and wanted to participate in every aspect of the design, from the color choice to the backing fabric to the quilting design. It was like accepting a commission from my son and it was a lot of fun to work with him to design exactly what he wanted. His favorite colors are black and red, and we threw in a little grey and dark blue for contrast. The biggest issue with this quilt was the fact that he wanted it to be quilted with one large red spiral. The quilt was too big for me to be able to do that accurately on my home sewing machine and I wanted very much to do it all myself, so I ended up taking most of the summer to hand quilt the spiral. It was a labor of love and it looks fantastic on the back! The picture isn’t the best, but if you right click on the image you’ll be able to see the stitching lines. He goes to college this weekend and I’m proud to say I finished it last week with over a week to spare! Even the binding is sewn down and it’s ready to go.

4 Comments

  1. Dorry on August 20, 2010 at 5:18 pm

    Oh wow Cindy! All that hand quilting – what an amazing project you have completed. That will be one proud son going off to college. I wish you well on the trip to take your “baby” away to school.



    • Cindy on August 22, 2010 at 7:53 pm

      Thanks Dorry. He was really happy with it and it’s now on his dorm bed in Richmond!



  2. quilting for dummies on August 27, 2010 at 8:45 am

    Can I copy some of this post, if a put a link back to your blog?



    • Cindy on August 29, 2010 at 2:10 pm

      Yes, thanks.