Most organized
groups of quilters pose challenges for their members. These are generally fun and always optional,
designed to get your creative juices and motivation beefed up. You don’t
necessarily have to twist yourself into a knot to come up with your own
challenge quilt, you can pass and no one will mind. However, some of the most strenuous challenges come from completely innocuous places. Under Way, was just that. It was a self-challenge. No group, just me. There was nowhere to hide, no chair
in which I could bask while others took the lead and wowed me with their beautiful
creations.
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| Beneath the Waves Panel |
This quilt was made from the Hoffman Fabrics panel, Beneath the Waves. A panel may have a scene that stretches across the whole 40 inch width of the fabric, or, as in the case of Beneath the Waves, there may be two identical panels printed across the width. So, I received not one but two copies of this stunning fabric. Stunning to the eye…and the brain. It had tremendous colours and appeal, but I could not see how I might use it.
After I’ve used or auditioned each fabric for a quilt, I place it in a basket, and when the depth of fabric in the basket is sufficient to become dangerous, I put all the fabrics away. New fabrics also get placed in this basket, to remind me of what I’ve been up to. Beneath the Waves stayed in this basket for about five years – never being put away in case I forgot about it…but never being cooperative enough to suggest what I might do with it.
During “COVID times” I had to resort to shopping in my own stash, and I kept pulling out this panel, pondering it, and returning it to the basket. I even went so far as to cut the two identical panels apart. That was scary, so I folded them up and returned them to the basket, pretending I hadn’t done it. As we dragged on into the second summer of the pandemic, I was running short of ideas, fabric inspirations, and, at times, chocolate. These were desperate days.
The Waves panel had SO much going on at the bottom…and SO little going on at the top. Combatting all that negative space at the top seemed impossible, so I cropped it off. I felt hopeful. I added batting and a fabric backing and began dutifully quilting it around the various fish and marine creatures.
Soon enough I had a certified dog’s breakfast. That shapes looked more jumbled, not less. It belatedly became clear to me that this piece was never intended to be quilted (Note to self: Not everything in the world can be quilted) (How sad) Quilting around the objects had made a super busy piece even busier, less harmonious. Could I throw in the towel on the self challenge? The whole thing would be a failure! As I continued to try to see where things had gone off the rails, I focused on how eye-bogglingly busy it was. A cushion made from this unquilted fabric would be spectacular - a quilt, not so much.
I began to select areas that could be “cancelled” out by overpainting using Inktense Pencils. These are dye-pencils that are capable of covering up small areas by changing the colour or covering the print of the fabric. I was able to create calmer areas where my weary eyes could rest. Some elements on the original panel were out of scale and I covered them as well. I cut pieces from the second panel to add as stuffed appliques to make the turtle and a few of the fish into three dimensional shapes. I extended areas of coral by quilting over wool roving, modified other areas with hairy yarn or lace or thread painting. I finished it off by adding a black inner border and a wide outer border.
Hopefully, I’d met the self-challenge, and my goals were met. The fish were now swimming, instead of my eyes!
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| Close up of turtle |
