Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Wool Applique + Thread Embroidery + Beads = Happy Quilts!!!

Margaret & Scott, a wall quilt by Robin Atkins
Oh dear, busy me, four months since I've posted here. Lots of quilting, a little beading, some travels, and recently several sets of house guests have made "retirement" a bit of a joke. For now, since the La Conner Quilt Festival is just around the corner (October 2-4), my subject is one small exhibition on the first floor at the Museum, which is currently up, and will remain through the Festival.

Last year at the Festival (and again this year!) Sue Spargo taught workshops on her wool applique embroidery methods. Those of us who were lucky enough to get in were invited by the Museum to exhibit our finished pieces. These marvelous creations are the subject of this post. Uneven lighting makes it difficult to get good photos, so please forgive poor color or tone on some of these photos.

In case you are unfamiliar with Sue's work, below is an example of her work. Students in her class could choose to make chicks, circles, or flowers. Most chose the chicks. Eight of her students are showing their work in the current exhibit.

Chicks, a wall quilt by Sue Spargo, embroidery on wool applique
My vote for the most awesome-creative piece goes to Bunny Starbuck for She Has Flown the Coop! Here it is:

She Has Flown the Coop, a wall quilt by Bunny Starbuck, embroidery on wool applique
Having put my chicks all in neat rows similar to Sue's example, I find it amazing that Bunny's mind took the idea and made a whole different story of it... a coop full of chicks, with two in line on the roof ready to follow the one already in the air. Don't you just love the way the lines divide the space?!

She Has Flown the Coop, a wall quilt by Bunny Starbuck, detail

She Has Flown the Coop, a wall quilt by Bunny Starbuck, detail

She Has Flown the Coop, a wall quilt by Bunny Starbuck, detail

She Has Flown the Coop, a wall quilt by Bunny Starbuck, detail
Note Bunny's use of whispy yarn to suggest little chick feathers, her use of snaps for eyes, the one chick turned full front, the one with a bead-tassled braid and glasses, and the one with beaded loop fringe and a gathered yellow ribbon (?) yo-yo. I love them! I'm in awe, Bunny!

Below is Chicks on Parade by Dorie Benson. It's so fun the way they are so close together, with two of them going in a different direction, just as you might see in a little cluster of chicks. If you click the photo to enlarge it, you can see some of Dorie's excellent stitching and hand quilting!

The next one is Chicks by Glenys Baker, who not only did all 36 chicks but also made a second quilt featuring circles (shown further down). Awesome work, Glenys!

Chicks, a wall quilt by Glenys Baker, embroidery on wool applique
And next is Birds of a Feather Can Dance Together by Lorraine Jones. The fun of the title is matched by the fun of Lorraine's embellishments, including her border treatment. (You'll have to see this one in person, because the light from a table lamp, made the lower corner of the photo look terrible.)

Birds of a Feather Can Dance Together, a wall quilt by Lorraine Jones, embroidery on wool applique
I guess most of us like to "swim the other way," as you can see in the next piece, Chickadees, by Carrie Unick. I thought many of Corrie's embellishments were especially fun and creative, so I've also included a couple of detail photos.

Chickadees, a wall quilt by Carrie Unick, embroidery on wool applique

Chickadees, a wall quilt by Carrie Unick, detail

Chickadees, a wall quilt by Carrie Unick, detail

Last of the chicks is my piece, simply named Chicks. It was so much fun, that I made another small piece (also in the exhibition), shown at the top of this post. Both are displayed in shadow-box type frames to protect them from dust and moth damage.

Chicks, a wall quilt by Robin Atkins, embroidery on wool applique
Glenys Baker, in one year, made not only a 36-chicks quilt (shown above), but also a 48-circles quilt, Circles. How she keeps thinking of new embellishment variations I can't imagine. Yet each of her circles is completely unique! Her choice of border fabrics is perfect for the quilt, complimenting the flow of color among the circles.

Circles, a wall quilt by Glenys Baker, embroidery on wool applique

I love the fun color combinations and the way the beads enhance her embroidery on Nancy Anders' Bodacious Blooms, a joyful wall quilt if ever there was one! (Again, I couldn't quite get the color right in the photo, so you'll just have to go to the Museum to see it in person.)

Bodacious Blooms, a wall quilt by Nancy Anders, embroidery on wool applique

The name of Roberta Roberts' flower quilt, Memories, invites us to look closely at the flower with three ladybugs. I don't know the story, but I can tell there is one here... and I love that. Her embellishments are varied and fun as well.

Memories, a wall quilt by Roberta Roberts, embroidery on wool applique

Memories, a wall quilt by Roberta Roberts, detail

Memories, a wall quilt by Roberta Roberts, detail
There you have it... 10 quilts by 8 students who learned some methods of wool applique and embroidery from Sue Spargo, last year at the La Conner Quilt Festival. I'm so grateful to be one of them!

9 comments:

  1. These quilts are wonderful!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes... it makes me happy to look at them (both photos and even more the real deal)!

      Delete
  2. What happy pieces! So colorful and wonderful.

    FlowerLady

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Full of fun and creative energy, aren't they?!

      Delete
  3. Thanks for the preview of this show, I may have to drive down from New Westminster and take a closer look. I've taken two workshops with Sue and she is amazing. I worked on my leaves each time and also got her Bird Dance BOM and having fun with it.

    Love the out of the coop piece, that chick with the pink glasses and tousled hair is too cute!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh do, Sandi! The other exhibits are also really fun. The tousled-hair chick is my favorite!

      Delete
  4. Thank you for this most delightful blog post, Robin! And welcome back to the foreground after having been super-busy in the background. I love everything contained in your post, which is no surprise. The detail I find most endearing is the posture of the feet of the flying, plump little bumble-bee chick. One look at those legs clearly shows that the chick is in flight mode. I will certainly take tram no. 10 from Bremen to go to the museum and have a close look at the exhibits in person.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. How I dearly wish tram no. 10 would get you hear, Sabine... I'd love to share our enthusiasm over these creations! Yes, I noticed the feet of the flying chick right away... Obviously Bunny knows her birds! Thanks for your comment :)

      Delete
  5. This post was such a visual treat! I just adore those little festive chicks. My favorite one of the whole page is the dark pink chick of yours on your last panel of them, in the upper right. Something about that variegated thread trim that attracts me. I was smiling the whole time I looked and looked. :-)

    ReplyDelete

Thanks you for joining the discussion on this post today!