Noriko Endo's Confetti Quilts

I met Noriko Endo at an ASQ quilt week class in Phoenix AZ in 2014. The result of that class was a small wall hanging I called Autumn Path. I blogged about that quilt early last year. I sold Autumn Path and I have been missing my baby. So I decided to make another one. Oh, and I'm also talking about the technique at Sassy Sewists at Mea tomorrow - so gotta have a sample!


For several months I have been saving photos on Pinterest to my board called confetti quilt. The best photos (IMHO) for this technique are impressionistic looking landscapes - scenes that don't have a lot of sharp, crisp edges. After our trip through Colorado, Idaho and Montana last fall, I had been thinking about doing an aspen quilt. So while looking for aspens, I found this picture of this birch which I thought was beautiful. It had all the right aspects - good lines, multiple colors, some details to thread paint. Perfect!

I dug through my stash and found some batting that would do. To tell the truth, I hadn't labeled this piece, so I have not idea what brand it is. Then I found some batiks that would work for the basic background - light blue for the top third, and dark green for the bottom 2 thirds. As you can see, I didn't even press the fabrics. There is going to be so many layers on top of this that a few wrinkles don't matter.

A few days ago, at my guild small group meeting, I whacked some batiks strips into little pieces - confetti, and saved them - first in a muffin tin, and then I found a perfect storage bin at JoAnn. I felt like I had a palette of paints ready to use to make a masterpiece!

I imagine layering the fabric like a painter would layer paints - starting with the farthest bake layer and then moving forward. I sprinkled my "paint" down on the background using the picture as my guide.  Then I added the tree trunks that stand "in front" of some of the leaves. Next came the first layer of tulle. 

I found the tulle at Hobby Lobby. They had probably over 20 colors. I was tempted to try a dark red or green, but settled on my standby black. It doesn't add color, but tones down colors that are too bright. So now I have a layer of tulle over all the little pieces of confetti. I pinned it together and brought it carefully to the machine. Even though I was careful, I still spilled bits of fabric all over my studio. 

Using the Bernina Stitch Regulator, I stitched down the tulle/confetti/background/batting/backing sandwich to keep most of the confetti in place. Now I added the top layer of confetti - the leaves that are in front of the tree trunks.  


Now comes the fun part - the thread painting. I used Isacord thread in several colors and stitched bubbles, leaves, and squiggles over the leaves. I added the highlights on the tree trunks with a light grey. 

I have a few more highlights and shadows to add and then I get to figure out how to finish it - binding? facing? staple to an art canvas?

Check out Noriko's book and try your hand at painting a confetti quilt. It's fun, uses scraps, and lets you practice your free motion quilting. Just a note of caution - put something over it or keep the cat out of the studio while you are working on it - also don't leave the windows open. Ask me how I know!

Reverse Applique Version 2 - Rob Appell

I've already written about Reverse Applique a while back - I took a great class from The Singing Quilter Cathy Miller based on the Panamanian Mola. Cathy calls it Mock Mola. 

Come to find out, Cathy is not the only quilter teaching Reverse Applique. Rob Appell, of Man Sewing, visited the Kaw Valley Quilters Guild and did a fantastic workshop on a Reverse Applique workshop. Imagine! Two great Reverse Applique teachers!

There are a few differences in the techniques offered by the two teachers. Cathy had us draw the design on Golden Threads quilting paper. Then we sewed through the paper onto the back side of fabric. Rob had us draw the design on the front of the fabric with a chalk or washable marking pen.

Cathy asked us to pay close attention to the grain of the fabric and make sure to use a zigzag stitch on the seams that were in danger of raveling. Rob just had us sew the entire design with a free motion technique (straight stitch).

As I described in my previous post, I took inspiration from the Panamanian traditional Mola for Cathy's Mock Mola class.  For this design I followed Mola inspiration and added in multiple colors.






For Rob's class I wanted to do a peacock and use Kaffe Fassett fabric. I'm not much of a sketch artist, so I relied on free clip art drawings from the internet. Stencil designs work well. I nipped over to Kinkos and had my 8.5x11 inch peacock blown up to 24x36 inches - a great size for a wall hanging. I used tracing paper to transfer the design to the fabric - my main fabric is black, so I couldn't use a lightbox.

I used a turqoise blue millifiori by Kaffe Fassett sandwiched with batting in between two layers of black batik. I like the look so far. 



I'll do an update when I've finished. 

Curious about Reverse Applique?
Check out Rob and Cathy.

KVQG Opportunity Quilt for 2017

Every year members of the Kaw Valley Quilters Guild make a quilt to raise money to help support guild programs. A small group usually makes the quilt and then one of our talented longarmers quilts it. The drawing for the quilt is usually held at our Fall mini retreat, at which time the new quilt is unveiled. This year, the drawing will be at the guild's 40th Anniversary Jubilee Celebration in September.

The punnily named Sew Whatever's (I love their name) group: Karla Menaugh, Georgann Eglinski, Carol Jones, Sarah Fayman, Roseanne Smith, Kathe Dougherty, Wendy Turnbull and Beth Stella - have been together quite a while.  They meet weekly at Sarah's Fabrics to sew and visit.

Last year, the Sew Whatevers, along with friends Linda Frost and Kathy Supernant, decided to take on the task of the opportunity quilt. Since 2017 is the 40th - Ruby Anniversary of our guild, they chose to make the quilt ruby and white. And IT IS STUNNING!

The unusual blocks come from the book Nearly Insane by Liz Lois. As soon as Wendy told me about the book, I ordered it. Can't wait for it to get here.

They knew they wanted blocks around a center medallion. They looked up pictures of the ruby nasturtium (40th Anniversary Flower) to design the center applique. Wendy Turnbull expertly did the applique and Kathy Supernant stitched the green stems and curlies.

The incomparable longarmer Lori Kukuk quilted this lovely with circles of feathers, grids, and some echo quilting around the applique wreath. 

The Kaw Valley Quilters Guild is selling tickets for opportunities to win this gorgeous quilt. I've had it out at several venues so far and will have it at (hopefully) the July Sidewalk Sale, the Douglas County Fair, and other venues around town from now until September, The tickets are $1 each or 6 for $5. If you would like to own this quilt, or support the KVQG, buy a ticket or five. Just let me know.

Curious about the KVQG? Check us out!

Autumn Path - A Confetti Project

Every time I sit down to write about a quilt or project, I think its my favorite! Yes, they are all my favorites - like your kids, you really can't choose. They are each special for different reasons.

Autumn Path is special for several reasons. First, it is my first confetti quilt. Second I learned this technique from Japanese quilter Noriko Endo. Third is that it is the first quilt that I actually sold! My baby is going out into the world!

OK, let's start at the beginning - I was visiting my Mom in Glendale, Arizona in 2014. At that time there happened to be an AQS show in Phoenix. Ohhhh two birds, one stone. 

In our materials list, Noriko asked that we bring a picture that we wanted to recreate in fabric. I found a photo on the internet of a path through a wood in beautiful autumn colors. 

First she had us lay down large blocks of color for the background. Then we sliced up fabric into matchstick size pieces. I used mostly batiks so that no matter what side was up it was the right side. 
After laying down the confetti pieces for the leaves and the path, I covered it all with a layer of black tule. We could have used any color, but I think black worked well. Some free motion quilting on the tule ensured that all the little confetti pieces were trapped under the tule. 

Next came more confetti to give depth and perspective. Finally, before a second layer of tule, Noriko went around the class and added little bits of turquoise, pink, and purple confetti. She said it was the secret ingredient to make our landscapes "pop". A final layer of tule and then some thread painting to highlight some areas and lowlight other areas. I finished it off with deep red piping and black binding.


Autumn Path was hanging at my mini-show at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Founders Hall, and really grabbed the interest of the membership there. It's new home is with E. Jay Hilty. I'm glad he will be enjoying it.

If you ever get the chance to take a workshop with Noriko, run, do not walk, to sign up. She is a great teacher and a beautiful artist. Her book is a good reference, but nothing beats the real thing!

Curious About Confetti?

Houston Class #4 - Bent Star with Gyleen X Fitzgerald

I first became acquainted with Gyleen Fitzgerald through a sew along on Facebook.  She was guiding us through a mystery stash buster called Bricks, Cobblestones and Pebbles, which she subsequently published in book form. It is a really cool pattern and is a great way to use up some of your scraps.  
So when I saw her on the class program at Houston, I jumped at the chance to meet her in person. I wasn't disappointed. She is a dynamo!

Her class, Bent Star, was a class in which we learned some piecing techniques including how to handle set in seams. My first challenge was fabric choice - I loved her colors and wanted the same bold impact without being a copy cat. I was able to find darker and lighter tone on tone fabrics in 4 different colors - fuscia, teal, green, and brick.  I chose two shades of brown for the small kite shapes. I think it looks sort of 3-D because of the light/dark values of the same colors.
I started with a dark blue for the background, but the teal blocks just faded away. Since I really wanted the star to pop, I tried several light greys before finally settling on this very light grey.


Gyleen quilted hers with straight lines and angles. Not feeling quite up to so many absolutely STRAIGHT lines, I decided to do come gentle curves - all going horizontally across the quilt.  I'm pretty pleased with the results. It makes a very stunning wallhanging.
Check out Gyleen's stuff!

Finally - A Finished Project!

I've started lots of new projects this year and today I am happy to say that I finished a long-time UFO.  Last year (or was it 2013? or 2012?)  I took a class with a great teacher and friend Kathy Pflaum at Stitchin' Traditions in Topeka. We made a wall hanging from the book 3-D Folded Blocks  by Geesje Baron and Esther Vermeer.  And today I finally finished it - quilting, binding, hanging sleeve and all.






The blocks look like regular traditional quilt blocks. But they aren't! Each of the shapes in the block is achieved by folding fabric into squares, rectangles or triangles and layering them.  It was really fun and a very unique way to make blocks. The shapes are layered and sewn together around the outside edge of the block. 

For example, in this block, the shapes would be sewn together about where the cream border is. Then the borders (cream and green) were added, and then they were set with the red background.  One very important tip for the folded blocks is to really get a good, sharp crease. I used Faultless Extra Crisp Magic Sizing and I really like the result. It's a bit hard to find here in Lawrence, so I order it by the case. 


I decided to quilt this myself. One of my favorite quilting motifs is pebbles (are pebbles?). I started quilting this at a Stitch On retreat last year (or the year before? I see a pattern emerging here - I can't remember stuff!). Pebbles take a lot of time for me, as well as a lot of thread. Luckily I kept the thread with the project so I could complete it with the same thread - at least on the top! One would think after doing this many pebbles that I would be good at it. No such luck. My pebbles are still irregular and my "sew-overs" aren't exact. I'm not good yet, but I'm better than I was!
I really enjoyed these blocks and I imagine that some day I might make a sampler from all 71 different folded blocks in the book. 
Keeping Curious!