A Ribbon Always Makes Life Better

If you are one of my regular readers, you will remember my blog series on designing and sewing Garden of the Sun God. After a bit of time without receiving any significant awards for my work, I was beginning to doubt my abilities. Over the years, I have learned that there are many ups and downs to working for yourself and as an artist.  This is just one of those things. All of my thoughts, dreams and life are stitched into this quilt, it took longer than many I have designed.  Today I am thrilled and am basking in the glow!

Garden of the Sun God, original quilt by Ann Fahl

This weekend the judges at Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival in VA, awarded the piece "best machine workmanship" in the Innovative category. I am sending them a big thank you for the award.

Ann Fahl

Crisis in Orange

Here we are, Christmas is almost here. Everything should be red and green and sparkly.  So what's the problem?

You know I love the color orange.  It used to be my least loved color, but today it has become part of my repertoire. When I look back at my childhood, how could I have left that orange crayon in the box unused? Below, you will find an anatomically correct, Oreo, walking under some giant coneflowers on a warm background. Actually this was made of leftovers, but it is a really successful quilt.

Under the Giant Coneflowers, (c) quilt by Ann Fahl

Years back, before "Under" was created, the members of the quilt/art list helped me extend my selection of orange fabrics by sending me orange squares to create this colorful piece. I was hoping for 100 squares, but I actually received more than 300.  Wow, That's Orange is one of my top 10 favorite quilts in my career. There is more of the story on my website.

Wow that's Orange, (c) quilt by Ann Fahl

So what's the problem?  I'm wearing an orange top and jacket today; and I needed to wear my only pair of orange socks; my friend Sally gave them to me a few years ago. When I put them on, I realized there were holes in each heel, but I wore them anyhow! It's about time for these socks to go, sooooo sad, because I love them.  I guess I know what I'll put on my list for Santa!

Ann's favorite orange socks

 It is a sad day, but I will recover!

Merry Orange Holidays to everyone.
Ann Fahl

Machine Quilting Fresh Salsa!

It has been awhile since I've done any machine quilting. When this happens a person becomes a little rusty, so I've decided to quilt an old top that has been lying around my studio for about 10 years. This project should get me back in the swing of things.

Fresh Salsa, top only, © by Ann Fahl 51.5 x 51.5 inches

A long time ago this quilt was to be an entry for the special Viking showcase gallery at the IQA show in Houston. To qualify, it needed to be 51 x 51 inches. My sons suggested that I make a quilt about salsa.  I love good fresh chopped tomatoes and pepper as salsa, I could eat gallons of it. Selecting half square triangles in red, green and yellow, I arranged a centrally oriented design, then overlaid a drawing of a tomato cut in half, lined up red iridescent bugle beads on the pencil lines, sewed them all on using NYMO thread, folded the top up and tucked it away in my closet!  I'm sorry, but I never took a photo of the beaded top. You'll just have to believe me that the beads really didn't enhance the over all look of the top.

The red bugle beads that I removed from the quilt top.

Years later, I pulled it out, hung up the beaded top in my studio and decided that the superimposed beaded design didn't enhance the central idea of the quilt, and removed the thousands of beads. Several weeks ago, I got the top out of the closet again; pressed it, blocked it, and pin basted it together. Now I'm machine quilting it.

This is the first time, I have ever quilted a pieced top. Just a pieced top, no beads, embroidery or applique over the surface. For me, this presented a big new challenge. I've thought and thought about how I would quilt it. So I flipped through my recent book on machine quilting, and came up with a plan.

I took a photo of the quilt, and printed 3 copies on 8.5 x 11 paper. I spent an evening doodling on the photo with a black gel pen, and came up with some very specific ideas on how to quilt each defined little area.

Doodling on a paper photo of a quilt, helps me decide what would look best as a quilting design.

Most of the ideas I used, just as is, others have been changed to some extent. Now I'm getting excited, it was time to begin the real quilting.  It has been a long time since I've quilted anything!  But before I can begin I have to select the thread.

We'll talk about thread and quilting next time.  It feels good to be working.

Ann Fahl

Garden of the Sun God--The End

The last challenge is to find the right fabric for the binding. At first I thought perhaps it would work best to piece a variety of red fabrics together. But then I realized there was a lot of stuff going on in the border already, perhaps one or two fabrics cut on the bias would be a better solution.

It's wonderful when I go digging in my stash and can find a number of possible fabrics for the binding. I chose a red batik with lights, mediums and darks marbled through it.  Perfect. Always cut binding on the bias, the corners will turn flatter, and the long sides will lay flatter. For a thorough discussion on binding your quilt see my booklet on bias binding.

Announcing the completed quilt, Garden of the Sun God, by Ann Fahl, this quilt is now included in my Ancient Artisans gallery on my website.

The completed quilt, Garden of the Sun God, 52.5 x 63 by Ann Fahl © 2012

Ann

The Quilting: Garden of the Sun God

By now, you may all hope I am done talking about this quilt. To an artist, the piece they have just finished is always the best work they have ever done.  In time, this may change, as it's success or lack of changes my opinion of the work! But for now, it is one of my best.

Detail of quilting at the base of papyrus

Now the quilting has begun. This is the most exciting for me, because all the time and effort I have put into the fabric selection and embroidery pays off. First, I detail all the pieces using monofilament thread in the top and bobbin. Don't cringe.  I have been doing this since the 1980's and it has been successful for me. When monofilament thread is used in the correct way, it will be your best friend. Outlining and stitching in the ditch are two of the best uses no one will ever see it!

Quilting detail of the pond

Next I pull out all my decorative threads and quilt all the empty or negative spaces.  This is what I'm doing when I feel that I am dancing on the quilt. The texture in the quilting brings the subjects to life. This has become an intuitive process for me, because I have been a machine quilter since 1988. This is why I wrote a book on machine quilting--my variety of course.  It is spontaneous, unstructured and informal.  There is too much stippling and feather making on quilts today, and that doesn't work for me. So I wrote Dancing with Thread so others might feel free to experiment with my ideas and techniques.

Quilting detail on the fish and border

I love quilting little scales on fish.  Using a pastel variegated thread, I detail the face and fins first, then use a little clamshell stitch to create the scales.  Without doing lots of detailed fusing, I just use a hand painted fabric, quilt it up, and it becomes a rather life like fish.

Once the quilting on the interior of the quilt is complete, I work on the outer border. After some looking in my notebook of quilting ideas, and looking at earlier quilts I decided to use half a coneflower on the inside edge. They are evenly spaced out along the seam. I used a silver or a white pencil to mark the outlines of each one. The flower has a spiral in the center, and there is random stitching filling the rest of the border. A bright red variegated thread #832 Rainbow, worked beautifully on the various reds in the pieced border.

Allow me to express an opinion here. One of the sad things I am finding in the quilt world is that more and more people are handing over their quilt tops to someone else to quilt.  By doing this, the quilt is no longer the work of one artist! And.....they are missing the most satisfying part of the quilt making process.  LEARN TO QUILT SO YOU CAN COMPLETE YOUR OWN QUILTS.  It's more fun!

Ann Fahl

Embroidery on The Sun God's Garden

After spending so much time and thought on the composition of a quilt, it's fun to actually begin the machine work. For me, the embroidery is what adds rich texture, and holds all the pieces in position.  I do this in a hoop so I don't need any stabilizer underneath the pieces.  This creates a softer quilt top and allows the quilting (over wool batting) to add more dimension to the finished product. For more information on how Ann handles her embroidery refer to her book, Coloring with Thread.

Detail of Scraps of a Different Color showing rejected embroidery pattern

Being a coneflower fan, I wanted to begin with them.  I had already decided how I wanted to embroider my angular flowers. First I had experimented on another quilt where I discovered that I didn't like my first idea. This is why it is so important to test out ideas first, so problems can be avoided on major pieces of work. So I had to rethink my ideas and this is what I came up with.

Embroidery and quilting detail of coneflowers with honey bee

Each petal was detailed in the opposite direction with a variegated pink thread. This was a simple plan which I could easily accomplish, yet different than anything I had done before.

The papyrus was another challenge.  How will I embroider them?  I chose to use metallic blue and green thread to detail the heads, and gold thread for the sepals. This was lots of fun and a challenge to work with metallics.  I had finished writing my Mastering Metallics booklet by this time, so I tested out some of my suggestions! The detail on the curved edge is really pleasing and adds richness of texture.  I also love the little circles that hold the seeds in the papyrus head.

Harry becomes the focal point using Superior Thread's Midnight Rainbow #844

 And then there is Harry. I knew all the embroidery on the bird was going to make him come to life. I didn't worry too much about individual feathers, I just wanted texture.  Midnight Rainbow add the color I wanted over the double dyed blue/purple fabric. Notice that the grass behind the bird adds more depth to the quilt.

Now that the embroidery is complete, all that remains is the quilting.

Time to put the Sun in the Garden

The sun rests above the garden.

The black "bowl" above the heron's panel is actually a cow horn headdress.  It holds a flaming sun that I created from a commercial fiery red fabric. One of the earliest symbols in ancient drawings and art is the sun disk.  In early Egypt is was shown as a headdress worn by the goddess Hathor, or seen as simply a round disk in the sky.  Now the flaming red sun fabric can warm my quilted garden.

It is now time to permanently fuse all the pieces in position.  I do this on my design wall, after painstakingly removing the paper backing from the Wonder-Under.

I thought I was done. After reviewing a photo of the "finished" piece, I realized that the panel behind Harry needed a little something.

Addition of grass in center panel

I cut out some little grass like shapes and they seemed to fill the soil area behind Harry. Yes, this is a small thing, but the empty field now has what it needs.

Now it is time to begin the embroidery.

Garden of the Sun God-or-Harry the Heron comes back

Harry the Heron has been fabricated and fused onto baking parchment.

Needing to concentrate on the heron, I removed the papyrus and coneflowers that had been floating on the background. Doesn't he look great standing in front of his new home?  This is such an exciting part of the design process when everything is flowing well.

I wanted to make the coneflowers, one of my favorite images to use in quilts; look Egyptian.  So I drew them to fit in a diamond shape to become more angular.

A left-over Egyptian coneflower.

 I cut out more coneflowers than I needed, but that always leaves some to use for embroidery practice. If you look at my quilt Scraps of a Different Color you will see an extra one that has been inserted into a collage.  By doing this, I learned how I didn't want to embroider the flower in my Sun God quilt!  If you look at the close up images you will see how it was embroidered. Allowing yourself to play with your images and experiment with ideas is important because it helps you make better decisions when it comes to your more important work.

Here is Harry now standing among the papyrus and coneflowers.

The coneflowers have been pinned in place, with long graceful curving stems and a few green leaves to anchor the plant.  The papyrus are back in position, with a warm brown fabric that was eventually used for the stems. Things are looking good.

Why is Harry still pressed on baking parchment?  Because at this point in the design phase I want to be free to move the all elements around until I am completely sure everything is in the right spot. His beak, feathers and legs are too long and narrow to be able to shift around; so he stayed on paper until it was time to fuse everything on permanently.

Tune in next time, to see if Harry gets glued on!

Ann Fahl

Garden of the Sun God

It is time to introduce to you my latest quilt, completed this past spring.  You can visit it at Houston if you go to the big show in October.

At the time of its creation, my teaching schedule had slowed down considerably, so I had more relaxed embroidery and quilting time with this large quilt. It was a joy to make.  I did envision how this quilt to should go together, the background is 4 basic pieces, a little different from my usual style, but similar in feel to Egyptian Garden II.

The working title for this new quilt was Egyptian Water Garden III. The plan was to paint a large panel of fabric which would be divided into 3 thin strips for the background. I always cut the white base fabric a little larger than needed, to give myself some options in how to trim it up for the quilt. So I used about 1.5 yards of "prepared for dying" white cotton.  I poured and dribbled lots of sky blue stuff on the top and browns, greens and yellows for the lower edge.  I twist up the fabric into a long log so the Setacolor paints intermix in interesting patterns.

This is the hand painted panel, pressed, sliced into 3 sections, auditioning a sashing strip.

I envisioned a water garden, with papyrus, pink coneflowers, and a blue heron fishing in a lily pond. So above you see the very beginning! Remember, this will have an ancient Egyptian feel to it, but I created most of symbols to make it mine!

The sashing strips were cut from a rich hand dyed fabric by Dagmar Plenk of Milwaukee. It was a luscious fabric blending red, gold and rust dyes. It made me think of very hot desert when I saw it for the first time. Above the shorter center panel I will place the symbol of the Egyptian sun god.

The strips are pieced with the red sashing. The lower dark blue strip is being auditioned for the water.

The heron is supposed to be fishing in the pond, and I have decided that the special water fabric I have purchased is too heavy and dark.

Auditioning another lighter turquoise for the strip to become the pond.

This lighter fabric blends and subtly contrasts with the upper section, so I'm much happier with this selection.  Good thing I had it left over from my Orange Coneflower Quilt.

Auditioning red fabrics for outer border.

Now the inner section is complete. All the while I have been working on the background, I have been unsure about what to use for the outer border.  It must harmonize with the inside, yet be heavy enough to hold all the sections together. I'm not there yet.

More border auditions.

It seems that I'm getting closer to a border.  I like the fabric on the lower left that changes from bright red to dark red. This creates an interesting border with some movement; this works well with the water idea.

Tune in next time to view the exciting conclusion.......What will be chosen for the border!

Have a good weekend.

Ann Fahl

Where is the Art? My Opinion...............

White Coneflowers, by Ann Fahl, my first "big" prize winner!

So I've been home from the big show in Paducah for awhile, and have been re-evaluating what I've seen and where my quilts should be displayed in the future.  As I walked through the show this time, instead of being overwhelmed by all the amazing work; I realized that my work no longer belonged there. Why? This is my same old song.  I am troubled by the lack of good design in so many quilts at so many shows. Oh yes, there were some wonderful pieces in the AQS show, but there were some that were not. AQS has been very supportive of me and my work, so I'd like to make it clear that this is about my opinion on what I see in all competitions, not just in Paducah.

What direction is the quilting world headed? I've been asking myself this for some time now, and my answer is: I don't understand where it's going and I don't want to follow along; I need to take my own path. It is  important that my quilts are uncluttered in design with strong visual impact.

A Brighter Day, by Ann Fahl, the most prize winning quilt I have ever made

I love thread work, of all kinds, but quilter's have gotten all tied up with doing too much thread work and heavy heavy machine quilting--to the extreme!  We have forgotten that the original design of the quilt is the most important element, the thread work in whatever form, just adds texture and surface interest.  As we have gone overboard on the heavy quilting, so have the quilt judges.  They are impressed by the quantity and quality of the thread work and they seem to have forgotten to consider the overall impact of the color and design of the quilt FIRST.

In my opinion, the overall design should be the first consideration when judging, then the workmanship should be considered next. In other words, only those quilts with good design should be selected from the category, then the workmanship should be evaluated to determine which ones are winners.  It appears to me that the quilting/thread work is evaluated first and wins the judges consideration so the design qualities are overlooked. This would account for so many quilts with poor design winning at shows. Yes the quilting is totally amazing on so many of the quilts today, but it isn't the only part of the art form. Great quilting cannot make a poorly designed and conceived quilt-- a good one!

George's Garden, by Ann Fahl

Whether one makes traditional quilts or original designs, quilting is a visual art form. We must step back from our work, and examine its visual impact.  Does it have a focal point? Does something draw the viewer in? Is there balance in the composition? Is there contrast between the colors and elements of the design?  Is there something that unifies the design (ties the quilt together,) such as repetition of shape or color?

Orange Coneflowers By Ann Fahl

What can you do to improve the visual impact of your work?  Take photos of your work in progress or look at the quilt with binoculars backwards. Always use a design wall to design and view the progress of your composition.  Read books on design or take a class. Look through books, magazines and websites and see what you like best, and what is most appealing to your eye. We need to take a step or two back from heavy quilting and spend more time on the initial design, this is what should "sell" your quilt to your viewer or a judge.

A prize winning or a successful quilt should have both a well designed top and great quilting!

Amen.

Ann Fahl

Enjoy a Quilt Every Day!

Do you have a personalized Google page?  I have a gadget that you can add to your iGoogle page, that shows you a different quilt each day.  The quilt that pops up today is my Egyptian Water Garden II.

Egyptian Water Garden II, quilt by Ann Fahl

This is one of my favorite quilts.  The quilts appear in random patterns so you can't predict what quilt will be shown next.  If you keep the gadget long enough you will be able to see almost every quilt I have ever made.

You need to sign up for an iGoogle page, click on "add gadgets" icon, and type in "art quilt of the day."  Click on the "add it now" button, and a quilt will appear.  This is a little visual treat for each day. Have fun with it.

Hope to see you at Paducah.  I will have copies of my Metallic booklet and my Black and White Tale with me, so you can see them first hand. Come up and introduce yourself.

Ann Fahl

Quilts in France!

Right now, as I am contemplating my age, career and life's goals; an opportunity to exhibit my work in France came along. It is such an honor to be one of the artists exhibiting.  Eight of my quilts will be included in:

Quilt Expo Beaujolais

ParcExpo

9400 Villefranche sur Saone

near Lyon - France

April 12-15, 2012

Wow That's Orange (c) Ann Fahl

There will be quilts from Europe, but there will be special exhibitions from Japan, Australia and USA.  I will be included in the American portion. Of course I had to send my two brilliant orange quilts for them, they are such attention grabbers.  And by the way, UPS sent my quilts from Racine to France, and it only took two days.

Orange Coneflowers (c) Ann Fahl

So if you will not be attending this Quilt Expo, you can at least see my 8 quilts, right here, in the comfort of your very own home.  The rest of my quilts included are:

Really Purple Coneflowers

On the Nile

Egyptian Garden

Egyptian Water Garden II

Ginkgoes Galore

Landscape Ginkgo

If I could speak French, I would put all this in a different language, for you to peruse. But I can't, so you will have to read this in English!  So, go get yourself a beautiful stemmed crystal glass, and put some French red wine in it, get comfy in your chair and visit all of my quilts online. 

My thanks to Margo Bimler and Monique Bonnet Imbaud for arranging this exhibit!

Ann Fahl

Pulling from the Past

The new issue of The Quilt Life, April 2012 is out on news stands now.  What a great magazine!  I admit that when I first heard, last year, that there was going to be a new Quilt magazine coming out, I was less than enthused. I am so tired of pattern magazines!

The April 2012 issue of The Quilt Life magazine

The Quilt Life is different. It is published by the good people at AQS; Ricky Tims and Alex Anderson are the executive directors; Jan Magee is the editor-in-chief.  They have put together a magazine that is artful, well designed and includes a plethora of topics. When my issue came in the mail today I sat down and decided to read it cover to cover.  The articles include a very wide range of subjects by authors that you will recognize and some you will not.  Each is tied in to the subject of quilting in some manner.  Each author was so inspired by some story, experience or subject, that it became a part of their work.  No matter what level of quilter you may be:  beginner or experienced; you will find the magazine colorful and fascinating. I would also like to mention that the subjects are equally divided between traditional and artful quilts. Whatever type of quilts you prefer, you will find something of interest.

The article I wrote is on pages 50-53; it is titled Yesterday and Beyond.  I have to say, that I am pleased with how the editor, Jan, took my mishmash of photos and made a beautiful article out of everything.  Look closely at the first page, and you will find a ginkgo tree from Winona Lake. Suzanne Marshall is featured and one of her hand appliqued pieces is printed on the centerfold.  Yes, quilters can have centerfolds too. On the very last page, p. 86, there is a lovely soft landscape designed by Sarah Ann Smith. This quilt took my breath away.  Go find a copy and check this out!

Take a moment to celebrate this day, March 18:  National Quilting Day.  Go start a new quilt!

Ann Fahl

Quilts in Color, part 5

Rhonda Rodero is featured today. She has no website, but in the Racine Area, quilter's are aware of her wonderful talents.  She is my neighbor:  meet Rhonda.

The Anderson Art Center

January 29-March 25, 2012

6501 Third Ave.

Kenosha, WI  53143

262-653-0481

hours 1-4:00 Tuesday through Sunday

Wisterias Bloom, quilt by Rhonda Rodero

Haiku  by Marisa Rodero
Wisterias bloom--
Laced with a golden breeze stay
Untouched in glory

Rhonda Rodero comes from a family rich with artistic talent; poets, painters and dancers to name a few. She also has had the advantage of a colorful cultural heritage. She grew up in Arizona and studied in El Salvador, Madrid, Arizona State University, and the University of Southern Florida. Her background provides her with a wide range of subjects from which to draw and a sunny palatte of colors to combine in her quilts. Rhonda found her passion when her husband gave her a sewing machine for their first wedding anniversary.  (He thought she could do the mending!)

Detail, Wisterias Bloom by Rhonda Rodero

Quilting became a serious occupation by the time her two daughters were almost grown. She currently lives in Mount Pleasant, Racine County which is rich with quilters at all levels.  

 Photography and drawing are two of her hobbies which serve her well when it comes to designing her quilts.  She chooses subjects from nature; landscapes, birds and plant life. She uses rich fabrics and covers them with lifelike embroidery and quilts them with close attention to detail to create a sculptured look to her subjects. 

¡Pura Vida!, quilt by Rhonda Rodero

Zenith of Color, quilt by Rhonda Rodero

Combined with her artistic eye, her attention to detail has brought her success in shows and competitions. She has been awarded many prestigious prizes in area and national exhibits.

Night Blooming Cereus,  Jasper? Cleo? Is That You?,  and Profusion of Color, quilts by Rhonda Rodero

Quilt detail Profusion of Color

As you can see her ability to draw is very important in her work.  Her sense of color is amazing.

Flight of Fancy, quilt by Rhonda Rodero,  her most recent piece

Even though I don't have a detail photo of this quilt, you can see more of  the attention to detail that I've been telling you about.  Rhonda's heavy quilting makes this quilt come to life with texture. 

Many years ago, Rhonda asked me to come into her house to look at a quilt that she was working on.  I didn't know her well at the time.  She had some questions about some sewing or piecing, I don't remember the exact nature of the difficulty she was experiencing.  I said, "Pull out your thread, and let's see what you might use."  She opened a drawer, pulled out a small box with about five spools of thread in it.  So I said, "Where's the rest of your thread?"  Well those 5 spools were all she had collected!  As you can see, Rhonda's collection of both thread and fabric now includes a broad palette of colors.

Thank you Rhonda for your wonderful work.

Ann Fahl

Quilts in Color, part 4

This blog features Barbara J. Schneider from Northern IL.

The Anderson Art Center

January 29-March 25, 2012

6501 Third Ave.

Kenosha, WI  53143

262-653-0481

hours 1-4:00 Tuesday through Sunday

All the artists have gotten a "fireplace" shot.  This one features 2 of Barbara Schneider's pieces from her "Reflections series.

Barbara J. Schneider  says  “I began quilting in 1996 and rediscovered the pleasure of working with cloth, paint, dye, and thread. My background is in visual design and I worked for many years as a designer in the publishing industry. I take lots of photos of found objects, nature, shadows and tactile details. These as well as my underlying interest in the Japanese concept of Wabi-Sabi have had a strong influence on the direction of my work.  I have an extensive background in surface design and teach as well as exhibit my work nationally and internationally. My artwork is in both private and public collections.”

 

Her Reflections series explores the concept of reflection and how to capture the essence of images that are not physically there, images made of light and movement, images that change. Her depiction of water is what draws me to her work.  She also uses other images, but in this exhibit she featured her water pieces. 

Quilt by Barbara J. Schneider,  from the Reflections Var. 1

Her work is an exploration and interpretation of natural images by enlarging and reshaping them. She collects leaves, pods, flowers, grasses and look closely at their structure and shape. In particular, Barbara likes to collect these natural objects at the end of summer when they have begun to wither and fragment. Looking at them closely and then enlarging them allows her to see them as sculptural objects. She captures the play of light upon surfaces, and shaping the pieces introduces a new element – light and shadow interacting with the undulating surfaces. 

A corner of Barbara J. Schneider's gallery, quilts from the Reflections series

Quilt by Barbara J. Schneider, Reflections Var 11

Even removing the color and designing in black and white her work is fascinating.  This quilt is very wide, but not tall, and completely filled a wall in her upstairs gallery with a Lake Michigan view. 

One other thing, Barbara included some of her 3 yard pieces, which she has printed and manipulated in many ways.  In the gift shop at the Anderson, there are several beautiful wall pieces for sale.

Barbara is from Northern Illinois. She teaches, lectures and exhibits her work extensively. http://www.barbaraschneider-artist.com

Come and visit the Anderson before this exhibit changes. 

My next artist featured will be someone without a web presence:  Rhonda Rodero.  Her work is wonderful.

Ann Fahl