Author Archives: karlakrafts

Jul2

Dyeing in the Basement

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Dyeing in the Basement

This is my first experiment in over dyeing white on white fabric.

I saw Joanne Sharpe demonstrate the technique on episode 1813 of Quilting Arts. She used dye paints and water-soluble crayons. I’ve  been dyeing satin cords for Kumihimo, so I used some leftover Rit dyes from that.  I gathered up newspaper and whatever clean paint brushes I could find. I did mix up a fresh little batch of Petal Pink and started with that and a broad sponge brush. I started painting circles on my prewashed, printed cotton fat quarter of fabric. I decided the pink was so pale, I’d just paint the whole piece. Ricë Freeman Zachery always gets fantastic results combining hot pinks and bright orange, so I popped a container of leftover Tangarine dye in the microwave. I loosened the lid and heated it on high until it started to bubble, about 4 minutes. I used a 1 inch trim brush and added alternating dabs of the dye. I had mixed some red-violet #532 dye using Judy Coates Perez’s formula:

1 cup boiling water, 1 tsp Purple, 1/2 tsp Wine Rit liquid dye. I add 1/4 cup of vinegar to the dye bath.

Judy’s formulas can be found at The RIT Studio.

I heated and added diagonal dabs of red-violet using a different kind of trim brush.Next, I heated and and added Fuchsia to the remaining light spaces. This time, I used another 1 inch trim brush.  I gave it another all over coat of Petal Pink. The fabric was drenched in dye at this point and smelled like a pickle factory! I flipped it over to see how the back looked and realized it was the front!Afraid that the dye hadn’t saturated the front of the fabric, I wadded it up in a ball, wrapped it in plastic wrap, and squished it around to ditribute the dye. I popped it in the microwave and gave it 5 minutes on high.When the fabric was cool enough to handle, I carefully removed the plastic wrap and spread it out. This is it, and I’ll have to say I’m pretty proud!When it dries, I plan to iron it, rinse it, and iron it again to further heat set the dye. How I’ll use it, I do not know, but I sure like looking at it! I am a happy crafter!

Jun2

Playing with Jewelry

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Playing with Jewelry

I got some itty bitty Czech glass button cabochons in the mail, today.I tried them with some settings,and I am pretty pleased.

I finished a couple of necklaces. One is a diffuser/locket.Because it is a fairly heavy piece, I hung it from a heavy chain. I finished it with one of my favorite antique looking toggle clasps.The other has a piece of Asian fabric captured under glass in a bamboo frame. I wove a black and gold Kumihimo cord to match and finished it with a magnetic clasp.

May31

Patterns in the Sand

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Patterns in the Sand

I am NOT a morning person, but I try to be at the beach. I love to go walking barefoot in the surf in the morning before the sun gets out its frying rays. (I still slap some moisturizing sunscreen on this old face. I’ve had two Moh’s surgeries to remove basal cell carcinomas from my face. Ow.)

I take my phone (camera) and look for patterns in the sand. Quilting lines?

One morning, I went stalking these little clams: When the tide recedes, just for a second, the ripples left behind look like little v’s. They make me think of the “flying geese” quilting pattern, and there’s got to be an idea in there somewhere!I also have an idea for those little clusters of bubbles that float in the surf.Of course, there are treasures to be found.    Laura had bought some, “rusty bits,” mixed media embellishments when we were in Saluda, and I found her another:

I’m glad I found it with my eyes and not my feet!

And there’re always critters!This is a cannonball jelly. It’s more disgusting than inspiring, but it reminds me that I’ve got a jellyfish inspired art quilt to finish.

May31

The Seashore, 2 Shops, and Splendid Seafood!

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The Seashore, 2 Shops, and Splendid Seafood!

After returning from Flat Rock, and a very wonderful, quilt-filled weekend with Laura, the hubby and I headed for Charlotte to help with the grandkids. Then, it was on to Pawley’s Island and that oceanfront screened porch I posted about earlier.It was a wonderful, relaxing trip and one day was especially memorable. I found a quilt shop in nearby Murrell’s Inlet that I didn’t know about. It wasn’t easy to find. It was in a secluded side alley in a strip mall. It was worth the hunt, though! Here are some photos from Accent Sewing:ALL of their fabric was 25% off! This was just one small portion.

‘like a candy store with no calories!

I was strong, and didn’t buy any fabric. I did pick up a copy of the #3 Cake Mix and an 8″ square in a square ruler.After that visit, I was starving, so we headed on up to Myrtle Beach to our favorite hole in the wall eatery!
This is another place that’s hard to find, but WELL worth the effort! I love the BBQ grilled shrimp and Kent likes the blackened grouper. Look for it on Broadway behind the Methodist Church. Tell Steven, Andrew and Agnes we sent you!
Then, it was straight out Hwy 501 to revisit Quilting at the Beach!This shop has the friendliest folks! 

I didn’t resist the fabric selection this time.

We have a timeshare at what is probably the oldest and smallest condominium complex in Myrtle Beach. We paid it a quick visit to check on the progress of the elevator that has been 27 years in coming:At last, it was back to Pawley’s for dinner, which, after a late lunch, I think was a milkshake!

May30

The WNCQG Show

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The WNCQG Show

Back on May 6, my friend, Laura Sheaffer, and I attended the Western North Carolina Quilt Guild Show in Flat Rock, NC. It was held at Bonclarken Conference Center  where we also attended the NC Quilt Symposium in 2015. The following photographs are of quilts I admired, there. NONE OF THESE ARE MY WORK. The quilter will be identified.This is the first one that took my breath.Its’s no secret that I love crazy quilts.I love that this one is just one block, beautifully embellished! i love the quotes ,buttons, and butterflies! It is called Bloom, and the creator is Barbara Ruff.

This is another by Barbara Ruff. Again, I love the handwork and embellishments. I like the linear layering and how the black and white inner border mimics the monarch’s wings. I love that it celebrates a place. (Mountain and seashore ideas!

I love this one because, well, it’s a volcano! It’s by Trish Hendershot and looks like it was done with Cynthia England’s picture piecing method. I just barely caught the way the lava pours off the edge! Awesome!!!

Here’s another one by Trish Hendershot (How cool to be Ms. Hendershot from Hendersonville) I love the wonkyness of the piecing and the asymmetrical edge. I like the wire embellishment, too. It looks like she did this quilt in a workshop by Didi Salvatierra, who took first place in the category. Her entry is below:

Once again, I love the lace and embellishments! This one has a feather! The edge is either pillow cased or faced. (I hate binding!) This one is called, “Remnants and Relics.”

This one was absolutely stunning, and beyond anything I could ever achieve. It’s called, “Symphony of Colors,” by Natalie Rockley (another great name!) I prefer quilts done by mere mortals, but I couldn’t leave it out! It’s paper-pieced and has embroidered applique. Did I say, “Wow?”This is a smaller stunner by the same artist. Amazing! Note the African mask button and the tree silhouette!

I was tickled pink to find a ribbon on this one! The quilter is Margaret Wills, but the pattern is by my friend, Ellen Guerrant! I have that pattern. It’s called, “Happy Houses,” and I have one picked out, along with the fabric, for a mini-quilt.

These butterflies are brilliant batiks on beige batik backgrounds. The bodies are batiks, too, but the antennae are hand stitched. this looks like a good project for my ScanNCut. It was made by Margaret Wills and is simply called, “Butterflies.”

These last two are very similar, I admit, but I’d like to try my hand at both techniques:

The top one is, “Carnival” by Jane G. Kennedy. It’s a stack, whack and swap kind of quilt like I’ve seen Ricky Tims do. I think the butterflies above it could be done that way, swapping out the bottom wings.The bottom  Quilt, “Out of Africa,” by Mary Hinkle, is a favorite because of the colors, the sashiko stitching, and the use of African buttons as embellishments.

Other quilts from this show can be seen at the Western North Carolina Quilters Guild website, as soon as they post their 2017 show gallery.

it was good to see quilting icon, Georgia Bonesteel, working the ticket table for her guild. (I told my son-in-law, it was like going to Comi-con and seeing Stan Lee working the door!)