I have been wanting to create an image using scraps of fabric as my 'paint' for some time. I have seen some marvelous examples at the AQS (American Quilting Society) International Quilt show every year in Paducah. Just recently the AQS came out with a quilt kit featuring this technique with barn yard animals. It is a very cute quilt and what I like about it is that they are not selling the fabric with the kit, rather they are selling the instructions and there is an option for background fabrics.
My favorite part of making a quilt is selecting the fabric, so quilt kits are not my favorite unless I am buying the pattern only. However, as with everything, I am not much of a "follow-the-directions" kind of person, so I didn't think I would wait for the kit to give this technique a try.
Part of my assignment for the self promotion class in my Master's curriculum is to create and post my portrait. This meant either paying for a professional photo in a photo studio, or creating artwork of my own. I chose the latter, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity to give this technique a try.
I had a photo of me that I didn't hate, the first requirement. I don't do too well drawing from a mirror. The first thing I did was draw a picture of me based on the photograph on my backing fabric. I used a piece of muslin for my backing. The next thing I did was begin glueing down pieces of fabric. I chose fabric based on its tonal qualities instead of its color which helps create the vibrancy of the image. The the last step will be adding a covering of tulle and quilting the entire image.
My favorite part of making a quilt is selecting the fabric, so quilt kits are not my favorite unless I am buying the pattern only. However, as with everything, I am not much of a "follow-the-directions" kind of person, so I didn't think I would wait for the kit to give this technique a try.
Part of my assignment for the self promotion class in my Master's curriculum is to create and post my portrait. This meant either paying for a professional photo in a photo studio, or creating artwork of my own. I chose the latter, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity to give this technique a try.
I had a photo of me that I didn't hate, the first requirement. I don't do too well drawing from a mirror. The first thing I did was draw a picture of me based on the photograph on my backing fabric. I used a piece of muslin for my backing. The next thing I did was begin glueing down pieces of fabric. I chose fabric based on its tonal qualities instead of its color which helps create the vibrancy of the image. The the last step will be adding a covering of tulle and quilting the entire image.
As you can see, upon close inspection, the process looks sloppy and incomplete. Only by looking at it from a distance do the shapes and colors blend. Quilting and adding the tulle will further clean up the loose threads around the edges.
There are still several spots I can see that need a bit of tweaking. My next step will be to fix a few spots that are bothering me and then add the tulle and quilt.