what if

what if #169: recolored patchwork

...so continuing from my last post where i covered up a section of patchwork that was not fitting properly... i thought what if i use a sheer fabric just to tweek the color a bit instead. kind of how you work a painting. recently gifted silk chiffon does the trick. coloring over and existing patchwork could be quite interesting. you can even see the seams or old stitching beneath. again i am trying it ragged style because what is underneath shows a bit like a frame or a shadow, adding dimension. i'll call it watercolor applique. ragged style.

i have noticed that chiffon works well for a ragged edge because of the nature if the crimp, it keeps its threads in place.

what if # 167: an applique outline

so what if the thread used to sew down the applique doesn't match? what if only the outline of the heart is red. less stress and nice too.  white linen heart, relaxed needle turn applique on pink linen. might be nice white on white too. with red stitching of course.

what if #154: fortuny dots

i always associated fortuny with pleated fabric, not knowing much else about them. after receiving some small gifted pieces from phyllis, i was amazed by the strange and unfamiliar technique used in this print. (shown front and back) ... at first glance the design appears to be a woven damask, but looking closer it is obvious that the fabric is a solid twill and the design has been produced by layering pigment and dye perhaps in combination of screen printing and hand painting. and after some research it is apparent that the technique is not exactly known. it is indeed unique. 

 my limited experience with prints has at least left me with enough knowledge to recognize the difference in nature between the colored areas of the design, the lighter greenish part is much stiffer and the pigment lies on the front surface, probably applied over the gold hand dyed/painted ground.  on a whim i asked myself  what if (?) i draw  dots and fill them in so the colored area spans both the soft and hard surfaces of the design. i was guessing that they would absorb the color differently.  they did as the gold sucked up the ink and the pigment print ...which has a metallic nature...resisted a bit. two tone dots. very cool and just another layer of pigment. i think it fits the fortuny mood of the fabric. 

 i also tried it with other colors. and lines. a sort of resist technique using the nature of a pigment print.

what if # 148: to match or not to match

what if i don't match the thread to the fabric when it comes to seams?
.....and what if  i do match the thread to the fabric for the basting and take the tiniest stitches so it doesn't show an i can leave it in? a tiny nine patch 1 1/34" over all. rust dyed linen with very dark brown seam thread. i would like to try a whole quilt like this. basting  stabilizes and flattens seams, can be quilted right over. leave it there.
nice antiqued look. nice way to emphasize the patchwork design using only one color.

rethinking this.

discussion posted at spirit cloth

what if #146: ninepatch with spectrum dot

 what if i use greens as a base?  and the dot could be stitched as a rainbow, a full spectrum of light. green, light, growth. i let the eyelet cut the edge of the green section. i like the interruption, the breaking through. i quilted after i asked what if ? i focus on both centers. the nine patch and the circle. some kind of quilt math has generated a mandala. some shifting chart.
cotton
1 1/34" squares
hand pieced
2 strands dmc floss, split stitch

what if #135: what if black and white can be more?

.....a study in black and white, free pieced and mended and then became more.

what if #116: crazy illusion

....the original concept grew out of what if (?) there is just an illusion of seams and patchwork. i achieved the base piece by ironing scattered freezer paper shapes on a gorgeous yarn dyed ombre*** plaid. and then applying a thin layer of soft scrub with bleach, the discharged area of the plaid is a ghostly pale version of the original.
then... since the illusion was pleasing i thought what if (?) i quilt each shape with variagated thread to give the illusion of changing color. i didn't have the muted colors i wanted so i just thought what if i dip my existing colors in tan dye? so i did.

7" square, cotton discharged plaid stitched to linen twill.

***Ombre

n. A French term meaning "shaded." Usually a multicolored stripe, with colors graduating from light to dark. The color effect is woven into the fabric. Generally produced by arranging different tones in the warp.

what if#102: crazy indigo continued

....so as i recall, i was asking myself, what if the crazy block could have a single color as a theme?
what if it was indigo? what if the indigo scraps were gifted? making it a sort of memory or thank you block?
and then i asked what if i just cut holes, windows to represent the crazy shapes? and put another fabric behind the mask? and what if i focus in the intersections of the shapes.
and then what if i use kantha stitching and thread beads to hold it together? ...the feather fell from the sky.
i am so pleasantly surprised to see what everyone is doing. i am collecting all the what if questions that have been asked so i can make a list we can all work from. (part of the cqr collaborative)

what if# 80: sheer overlay

sheers can be used for see-through panels in fabric pieces but i was thinking also what if (?) they could just be used to change the tone and texture of a background. used here as  a softener and base for embroidered  motif. used here   

margaret ramsay has also done some interesting posts on sheers. here and here.

what if #73: color blankets

spring has sprung if only as a fever. and i've got it. the urge toward spring cleaning had me thinking what if i sort all my scraps by color and sew them together in color groups. it will be an easy way to see them and find what i need. ten minutes into it i knew i was going to like it. i started with red-ish. i guess i will make them as big as they become....and take it from there.
i am machine piecing because these will probably be cut up over time. it is quicker to put them together this way.