January is half over already!

Wow, time is flying by.  Classes started this week at the university where I work, and it's been a little busier than it has been.  Plus two friends and fellow fiber artists (Jenny Williams and Eileen Kane) and I have a gallery exhibit going here on campus, with a real opening yesterday afternoon and everything!  Check this link if you're interested in seeing some of our work on display: Elliout University Center Gallery 

Enough of that "fame", now back to real life.  Jane Sassaman is a famous fabric designer and quilter, and I've had some of her fabric for a while now (you can find it on sale in your LQS frequently because some people feel it's a little difficult to work with or sometimes even consider it to be UGLY fabric).  I used three fabrics to make this quilt top up, the blue leaves down the middle and the side panels were all cut from the same length of fabric, and were broken up a little with a fussy cut piece of the green tile fabric (also Sassaman I think).  Then the borders were done with another Sassaman print, and I used up every little bit I had of that, piecing little scraps of it just to keep the design of the "grass" pattern intact.

And of course, Leo had to be in the picture, plus the wind picked up just as I tried to take it.  The center portion actually looks pieced to me in these photos, even though it's not, which I guess is the intent of using big prints in the first place.

Here's another WIP using some Sassaman fabrics mixed with others.  I'm not sure if I like this, but since I'm so far along, it will be finished!



I can't decide yet if I like fussy cutting of fabrics.  But I have more Sassaman fabric to use up so I better learn to like it.

And now, another craft has taken over some of my free time-- rug hooking --a craft that's almost nonexistent here in North Carolina.  Since there is hardly ever any wool fabric at the thrift stores, and the price of new 100% wool fabric is outrageous, I decided to try to hook with 100% wool yarn instead, which is available at yarn stores around here. 

This style of hooking is called Nantucket style, and is actually pretty easy.  I got some burlap at Joann's and drew a design on it with a sharpie marker.  Then I figured out how to hook by watching some you-tube videos and reading some tutorials on blogs about rug hooking.

I've since read that you shouldn't use burlap, as it's not as long-lived as the linen produced specifically for rug hooking.  But I'm going to finish the hooking part since I'm about 90% done already.  But I have absolutely no idea how to finish the edges, so have to find some tutorials about that when the time comes.
What did we ever do without the internet??

Linking up with Nina Marie's Off The Wall Friday today, I forgot all about it last week.

Tiny Sunset quilt

Last summer my daughter sent me this picture of a sunset on Martha's Vineyard:

I've been thinking of ways to use some of my shibori fabric (and tons of other fabric that I have dyed) and came up with this little picture (about 10" x 15").  It doesn't quite look like the photograph, however...

I got a thread-painting lesson over the weekend (thanks, Jenny!) and added a bit of it to this picture.  She showed me how to use 2 layers of a water-soluble solvy material, with tulle in the middle, and build up lots of layers.   

So, while it really doesn't look anything like the original picture, it was fun, fast, and easy (except for the thread sketching, which took a while to do).   Lots of people make smaller sample pieces before committing to a larger piece, and I think I'll start doing that, too. 

Another topic--totally different.  Jane Sassaman has a new book out, Patchwork Sassman Style, and there have been about 100 giveaways this month on blogs, but I gave up trying to win and actually bought the book last week.  For the past 2 years or so, I've been buying her fabric on clearance on-line and in stores, wherever I saw it.  

Her fabric is kind of unusual, and I think it doesn't appeal to everyone.  Large prints are kind of hard to work with sometimes, so her book is full of patterns and suggestions for using these prints--one is by finding other patterns using the two-mirror technique, as shown in the next two pictures.

Another with the fabric alone:

 And with the mirrors:

I'm not sure I'm up to this, as it looks pretty complicated.  According to Jane, it really isn't, so maybe I'll give it a shot.  I'll just have to decide on one of the patterns in the book and try it out.