New Work October 2013

I'm into frames.  Love the finished look of putting my fabric art in wood frames.  I'm having fun finding old frames at local thrift stores and letting them dictate what gets made for them.  Upcycling beats custom sized prices.  Here's a look at some new pieces.

Bright Hope Farm, 33" x 34"

Kaffe Fassett is a brilliant English fabric designer. I continue to look through his books for inspiration. He takes simple quilt patterns and makes them stunning with his fabric combinations.

Bright Hope Farm is created using many of his fabrics and is one of a series of Dartmoor, England farmhouses that I have done. The patchwork of fields is so quilt-like, and the sentinel trees(painted) are a favorite element.

BJ's Quilt Studio

I'm thinking a blog is a better way to share my quilt art than a website because I can add comments and pieces one at a time. Sort of the same process I go through in building a quilt. My goal is to archive most of my pieces, especially those rolled under a bed that don't see the light of day (daylight being an enemy of fabric).

SAILING BEFORE LUNCH, 37"x 40" shows the brighter colors I've been attracted to recently (made 2011). The idea sprung from seeing the sailboats on the Fowey river in Cornwall, and the holiday feel. I had a fabric with these charming plates and ended up appliqueing several items cut from chintz fabrics. The water is stripped blues and painted. The table cloth is also painted, a copy of the one I like so much in my studio. There's a gold silk fabric in the curtains, a gift brought by Joe back from India.

Here's some pictures from our recent May 2011 trip to England. All are from Devon and Cornwall. We stayed in two favorite places, Fowey and Beer, with visits to Dunster and St. Ives.