Finally Finished

Finally Finished

This one has been with me for a long time as a work in progress, but it ‘s been a pretty continuous companion.  I’ve written before about how it started, in a workshop with Carolina Oneto on Curves and Transparencies as a single little block.  Then it grew to a sashed twelve block grid.  Then some machine stitching in the sashes.  Then the big stitch/slow stitch urge just cam eover me.  Each color has a different stitch pattern, so now that I’m finished, the design on the backside is pretty interesting too.  Emma Freeman introduced me to the term “contemplation cloth”, and I think that’s what this has turned out to be.  Amazing to think about all of the places I’ve stitched it, all the feelings I was feeling as I did.  The technique is far from perfect, but the hand of the maker is certainly evident.  Very satisfying finish.

Last WIP of 2021

Last WIP of 2021

One of my personal themes for 2021 was “do it or drop it”, so I was particularly mindful of Works in Progress.  At the same time, I had the chance to start a lot of new things, and learn a lot of new techniques from teachers I have never had access to before (yes, a COVID silver-ish lining).

Several months a go I took a class in curved piecing from Carolina Oneto, and left with a pieced square that was my first experience with this modern adaptation of English Paper Piecing.  At the same time, it was a chance to experiment with transparency – something I’ve done a lot with paint, not so much with fabric.

After the class I got a little ambitious and finished another 11 squares (rectangles, actually), then puzzled a little over what to do with them.  Finally, just before the end of the year, the setting strategy fell into place.  I ran out of time and batting to get the quilting and binding done before the end of the year, but the batting is arriving this week, so hopefully the momentum will carry me forward.

Curves and  Transparencies

Curves and Transparencies

I recently spent a delightful afternoon taking a class from Carolina Oneto (#carolina_oneto) learning this modern version of the English Paper Piecing technique applied to creating tranparent effects.  I’ve worked with transparencies with paper and fiber, but this was my first time in fabric, and also my first time with EPP.  I’d mostly seen it used with hexie projects, which impress me but don’t tempt me to try.

Carolina is from Chile, living now in Brazil, and the students were from around the world.  Just one of the silver linings to the pandemic – putting teachers like her within reach of students around the world.  I’m so grateful so many of them made the effort to amp up their on-line presence.