Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Rainbows, flowers and poltergeists

The rainbow strings blocks are done! I think they're wonderful!


I would never have been able to make this from my own fabrics since I don't have much of a stash (yet!), but because this is for Project Linus, I used fabrics donated to the guild for charity quilts. I did raid my own stash a few times, especially for orange and purple. The blocks are so heavy that I had to pin them to my design wall. I think I'll leave them there a few days just to look at them!

My sample origami flower is also done. There are some raw edges from cutting out the back that are a bit troublesome at the petal tips. I hope I can deal with it when I applique the flower. Right now it's just lying on a piece of fabric, and the button is one that -- oops! -- fell off my shirt. I'll find something a little more appropriate for the final project.


And now for something completely different ...

Good photos make good blogs. Well, that's not all there is to it, but some blogs are just gorgeous to look at. Lisa Boyer at That Dorky Homemade Look recently posted a photo tutorial that sounded pretty simple, so I thought I'd give it a try. She calls for two pieces of foam core, but I could only find one stashed behind the recycling in the garage, so I thought for the time being I'd use a white afghan for the backdrop. Bad idea. I chose origami as my subject, since I think my last origami photo (a couple posts ago) may be in contention for the Worst Photo Ever prize. I put a few pieces down and looked through the lens expecting to see this:

Instead I saw this:

The poltergeists that made me cut the rainbow blocks the wrong size and finished the carrots when I wasn't looking must have pushed a button somewhere on my camera. I can't find that button (and I can't find my camera book, which I think they also hid), but I finally was able to locate a reset button and return to the default settings. Actually, I am very glad to discover this feature and once I figure out how to control it, it could be quite useful. By then I'll have bought a second piece of foam core.

And finally, more on the Chicago Quilt Show. Many of you seemed to think the batik blocks in my other post were all I bought. Oh my, thank you for crediting me with such restraint! But do you think I'm nuts? How could I leave my little town and go to the Big Quilt Show in the Big City and not come home with bags of scrumptious fabrics? Here's a fat quarter pack of African fabrics I picked up.

I love African fabrics but I don't know how to use them. One of my first quilts was an African Coins quilt for Jocelyn (my older DD), but I used batiks.

And here's another photo from the show. My poltergeist seems to be working at Blogger for the moment because I cannot get this photo to load right side up, so tilt your head to the left when you look.

This quilt is Floral Fortitude by Pat Doyle Mikrut. It's such a happy quilt!

18 comments:

Belvie said...

I love those bright string blocks. Whoever gets the quilt will be a lucky person....and it should add a little cheer to their day.

Your origami flower looks nice too. It looks like you should be able to tuck those edges under with the needle as you stitch it down.

stitch1776 said...

Cheri, Great Blog, I love the pictures. The rainbow quilt was a great idea for scraps. This will be my first swap, I hope all goes well.

Bronwyn said...

Hi Cheri, thanks for saying Hi on my blog; swaps are a great way of meeting new and interesting bloggers! I would keep the rainbow quilt up on the wall for as long as you can; it really is fascinating! You have chosen a really interesting style of applique and I look forward to seeing it finished. Check out my giveaway too if you have time.

jillytacy said...

Cheri,
Thanks for stopping by my blog. Your comment was very nice and greatly appreciated.
Your quilts are beautiful! I'm new to quilting but I've joined the local quilting guild and hope to learn more.
I agree that beautiful photos along with interesting content are what make a blog great. I'm jealous of the photo ability of many other bloggers and aspire to get better at taking photos for my blog. At this point I'm happy that I'm taking lots of pictures and even have photos to put up. Hopefully better quality photos are in my future.

Vicki W said...

The rainbow blocks are fantastic - they will be great for a Linus quilt.

Exuberantcolor/Wanda S Hanson said...

The rainbow stripes are....well...exuberant!

Norma said...

That rainbow quilt is talking to me..........and I am really listening to it now that you have it all there.

Clare said...

The rainbow strings are gorgeous. The recipient, whoever it is, is going to love it.

I like the photo the poltergeists took. The middle "ball" is very Tonya'ish don't you think?

Helen in the UK said...

Those string blocks are WONDERFUL!! No wonder you want to hang on to them longer to admire :)

Pattie said...

Love it, love it, love it -- ALL of it! Your origami flower is lovely. Make sure to post a photo after you appliqué it, will you?

Thanks for sharing so many great pictures. I think I'm going to check out the tutorial you mentioned. Foam core, eh?

Mrs. Goodneedle said...

The strings are beautiful and the origami flower is great. I need to skip on over to Lisa's blog to see about the photo tutorial and the foam core, not sure I understand... you completely crack me up... poltergeists!

meggie said...

Those bright strings look wonderful. So do your other pics. So many learning curves!!

Thank you for your kind words on my loss.

Cathi said...

The rainbow quilt is fantastic! The origami fabric flower is super.

Libby said...

I have so many African fabrics from the Chicago show! Why is that?? I bought some the one time I went, and then my mom bought me some another year when she went. They are so delicious, but I've yet to use them in a meaningful way...

Like everyone, I adore the rainbow strings. You might just have to make another one to keep...

jillytacy said...

Thanks for checking out my sling bag tutorial. My daughter has already claimed an owl stitchery I did this week and wants it made into a sling bag. That's my project for this week. She's only four and thinks she can't have enough bags...this may be a future problem. She's also requesting a Flamingo bag. I drew a pattern for a flamingo purse but haven't tried to make it yet. One at a time I guess, the owl sling bag will be first.

Anonymous said...

Hi Cheri, thanks for the nice comment on my blog. Your rainbow quilt is beautiful! I'm sure it'll make some little person extremely happy!

laura west kong said...

Wow I love all those colors!

Shelina said...

I've been trying to follow Lisa's tips as well - cause her blog is always gorgeous. I haven't accomplished much, but did take some pictures. I guess I have to add foam core to my list.