Leonardo Goes to Largs on May 1st

 

This quarter's challenge was to make a quilt illustrating Color Theory.

I am fascinated with the Fibonacci sequence of numbers. It is one of the most famous formulas in mathematics. Each number in the sequence is the sum of the two numbers that precede it. So, the sequence goes: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, and so on. 

It's been called "nature's secret code," and "nature's universal rule." It is said to govern the dimensions of everything from the the whorl of a seashell, to the Great Pyramid of Giza. Leonardo of Pisa -aka Leonardo Fibonacci- lived in the 1100s, but since it is found in nature, the sequence, obviously, predates him. (Maybe I should have entitled this Adam and Eve Go to Largs!) 

Being also fascinated by the Largs, Scotland waterfront, I decided to do another quilt featuring it. But how to include this quarter's theme "Color Theory?" I googled "Fibonacci and Color Theory" and found, to my delight, several articles citing the illustrious poet, scientist, and amateur artist, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe! 

Goethe, and Fritz Faiss after him, developed a method of selecting colors from a twenty-four-color wheel that is said to produce a pleasing palette every time. So I decided to give it a whirl. The twenty-four colors of the 24 space color wheel are as follows:

1. Cadmium Yellow Light
2. Cadmium Yellow Medium
3. Cadmium Yellow Deep
4. Cadmium Orange
5. Cadmium Red Light
6. Cadmium Red Medium
7. Cadmium Red Deep
8. Alizarin Crimson Golden
9. Rose Madder
10. Thalo Violet
11. Cobalt Violet
12. Ultramarine Violet
13. Ultramarine Blue
14. Cobalt Blue
15. Prussian Blue
16. Thalo Blue
17. Thalo Blue + Thalo Green
18. Thalo Green + Thalo Blue
19. Thalo Green
20. Viridian
21. Emerald Green
22. Permanent Green
23. Permanent Green Light
24. Permanent Green Light + Cadmium Yellow Light 

For this quilt I arbitrarily chose the first color the wheel/list to be the first position: Cadmium Yellow Light. I then selected numbers 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, and 21. These are the house colors.

(If I had chosen, for example, Thalo Blue -#16 in the list- for the number one wheel position, the next six color positions would have been 17, 18, 20, 23, 4, and 12. Remember, it's a wheel, so, 1 comes after 24.)

It is worth noting that I would not have chosen to use these particular colors if not for this exercise in Color Theory, and the promise that they would be pleasing together. As it turns out, my favorite part of the quilt is the sun. And the water is not bad, either. Hummm.... You may also notice that, in the first photo, the browns of the wharf are in the reverse Fibonacci sequence of 5, 3, 2, and 1 block(s) from left to right. And there you have it: Leonardo Goes to Largs on May 1st.

And now for something completely different! Have you heard the joke that starts, "Goethe, Fibonacci, and Becca walk into a bar?" No? Just as well. 

Largs Graffiti Moon on August 1st

How to Make an Inspired Quilt in Eight Easy Steps

1. Receive inspirational fabric scraps from the lovely Fiona. Discover from the note she sends that she lives in Largs, in Scotland. Further discover the scraps are Liberty of London lawn, Harris Tweed wool, and a length of lace that may or may not have been made by her grandmother around 1890. Resolve to make something worthy of said scraps and lace. Go have some wine.

2. Lay fabric on guest bed and stare at it a lot when the kitten isn't throwing it on the floor or carrying it off somewhere. Think to yourself that Liberty stuff reminds you of the groovy paintings of 60s-70s artist Peter Max. Google Peter Max and study his work.

3. On a whim, google Largs. Ponder the waterfront with the seawall, shops, church, and bay. Discover the graffiti capital of Largs aka Kelburn Castle. 

4. On another whim, google Scottish Artists. Discover the enchanting work of Ritchie Collins. 

(info@ritchiecollinsgallery.co.uk)

5. Mull. Mull. Mull some more. Discover the Paul McCartney song Mull of Kintyre (featuring bagpipes) is on repeat in your brain. Bagpipes on repeat. That's just wonderful. Have more wine.

6. Lay out first, second, third iteration of the quilt. Think, "Eh..." Cover layout with cardboard anyway so kitten leaves it alone. Kitten doesn't leave it alone. On second night put a chair on top of the cardboard. Listen to kitten yell all night in frustrated protest. Decide against getting out of bed to have some wine.

7. Finally get a vision at 3 AM one night to graffiti the Largs waterfront! Lay out vision. Resolve to use every last piece of gifted scraps, along with added stuff from stash. Make quilt under close supervision of kitten. And...

8. Ta-dah! Present "Largs Graffiti Moon" on August 1st.

I Wish on February 1st

How to make a quilt Endeavourer's Style.

1. Think about the theme: wishes. Look up the word Wish. Find that the meaning in English is somewhat different than in other languages. In some other languages, wish and hope can be used interchangeably. In English hope is about possibility, wish is not. "I hope I'm happy with the quilt." Here there is the possibility that I will like it. "I wish was happy with the quilt." Uh-oh. Wish is a past tense kind of thing. Yeah, we wish each other Merry Christmas, but that's a special rule. English is full of special rules.
2. Wonder why you are turning 65 soon and still can't play piano even though wanting to for twenty years. Enter "wish" in Pinterest. Discover a wry, motivational quote. Ah-ha! Decide on a fusible appliqué word quilt and dive in with the usual "only stash, only squares" rule. Find a font, print it out, transfer to fabric, blah, blah, blah. Remove the kitten about a thousand times from the middle of things. Have less fun than anticipated. 
3. Get the flu from your grandkids -even though you had the flu shot- and be sick for the better part of two weeks.
4. Look at the calendar and realize Reveal Day is less than four days away. Force yourself to just get the damn thing done (with time outs to lie down on couch). Wonder why you still have a fever.
5. Finish quilt and wish you were happier with it. (Maybe it will grow on you.)
6. Go lie back down and think about practicing piano tomorrow. 

Tornado Dreams on November 1st

The base of the vortex.

This quarter's theme of The Endeavourers quilt guild was Dreams.

I was six when I first saw The Wizard of Oz on television. I had seen nothing like it in my young life, and it filled me with wonder and delight. What appeared on the screen- the plot, the characters, the music, held me entranced. I could not look away. When the tornado appeared, I was terrified of the looming, sinuous black column of doom, yet still I sat, transfixed. The fabulous songs in that movie became part of the soundtrack of my life, sung again and again. The tornado also incorporated itself into my life, but in a very different way.

Blue skies behind and green skies before the funnel.

Shortly after seeing that movie for the first time, I found myself staring into a black and green sky as an actual tornado pelted us with hail but missed us by several miles. Shortly thereafter the dreams started. Tornado dreams. And for the next fifty years of my life they returned once or twice a year to haunt me, usually when my waking life was in some kind of turmoil.

The tighter the isobars, the stronger the winds!

In the beginning, the tornados were far off in the distance but headed my way. As the years rolled on, they came ever closer and the dreams were filled with terror as I tried to get my loved ones down into the basement to safety, but, in the way of dreams, they refused to cooperate. Then, one night, the tornado in my dreams hit the house, and, astonishingly, I lived! That was the last tornado dream I ever had. (Except, not surprisingly, for one I had last week as I worked on this quilt!)

Somewhere over the rainbow bluebirds sit.

This quilt is about 23 inches/58 centimeters square. As usual, I challenged myself to use only the fabrics in my small stash. I further challenged myself to use only the fabrics of a single jelly roll: Flow by Zen Chic for Moda; and I further further challenged myself to use only squares. I would have made other design choices if I could have used different shapes and fabrics, but I like seeing what I can do when limits are imposed. So, here it is, Tornado Dreams on November 1st.

Rain Drop Keeps Fall On My Hed on May 1st

Josephine in Spring

When I first read this quarter’s challenge I groaned, “Are you kidding me?” When I finally settled in to give it a good think, the image that kept popping up was the top part of a head at the bottom of a quilt with rain drops falling and the words: Raindrops keep falling on my head, but that doesn’t mean _____. After watching my little tortoiseshell cat, Josephine, flinch and twitch while getting rained on one day last month, I thought of putting a cat head at the bottom instead of a people head. Then I suddenly remembered a cat quilt I had made twenty years ago and the final idea sprang to mind fully formed in about sixty seconds. I made a little sketch and set to work.

The cat is a variation of a cat from the pattern “There Are Cats on My Quilt” by the late Billie Lauder. There are ninety-nine 2″ blocks plus the border. It measures about 22×19 inches or 56×48 centimeters. I tried and ripped out two attempts at quilting (while uttering a few several choice cuss words) before falling back on my usual wavy cross hatch. I like how crinkly it makes quilts once they are washed and dried. Finally, the words came from the depths of my darling, exasperated and exasperating pussycat’s soul: “Mom-mee! Rain drop keeps fall on my hed but that not meen I not want go owt! Then bak in. Then owt. Then…” And there you have it: Josephine in Spring.

Is MY quilt!

Texture on February 1st

Greetings Fellow Endeavourers!

Having been a member of this group since its inception but, due to a series of bizarre life events, having never actually finished a quilt to post, I am thrilled to have something to show you this time around.

I have always wanted to try my hand at a Cathedral Windows quilt and this seemed a good time to give it a whirl. It's made of nine blocks and measures 14 in / 35.5 cm square. The learning curve was surprisingly steep. I groused to myself that I would finish this sucker and never do another. But, I found little tricks and fixes as I went along, and things came out better as I kept sewing.

The blocks are machine zig-zagged together which is something I would not do again as it makes the intersections at the corners quite thick. The curves of the windows are hand stitched, which is something I like to do -very zen. The buttons add texture and interest and, most importantly, camouflage above referenced crappy intersections.

The background is white muslin, the windows are a fabric by Alex Anderson from a line called "Flutter," and the buttons are from an old shirt of my husband's. And, I see it is snowing softly as I look out my kitchen window.

I wish you all many blessings as we enter February!
Smiles, Maureen