Fall 2012 Bloggers' Quilt Festival :: Off to the Pumpkin Patch

Off to the Pumpkin Patch Stats

Finished quilt measures : 16″x 32″

Special techniques used : whole cloth quilting, fabric painting

Quilted by : myself on my home sewing machine

Best Category : Art Quilt, Wall Hanging, Home Machine Quilted

I love this time of year, the cold weather is starting to settle in.  We wrap ourselves in warm sweaters or snuggle under quilts.  And I finally return to my sewing in earnest.  I am also excited that today is the start of the Fall Bloggers' Quilt Festival!!

These are put on twice a year by the amazing Amy from AmysCreativeSide and it's a fantastic reason to pour a cup of tea and read until you are so inspired you run off to start another quilt (or finish one!!) -- just click the button for all the other inspiring entries!

Today I'd like to share a new art quilt with you.  I'm calling it "Off to the Pumpkin Patch."  This quilt is a lot of firsts for me, but let's see how the idea for it came together. 

It all started with a call for entry for fall themed art display we will be putting together at work.  I have had a pumpkin quilt in my head for a long time, so it seemed like the perfect fall theme.  I started by sketching, first on a smaller scale in my sketch pads, and then larger right on fabric.

You see, I've been really smitten with painting on fabric since the start of the summer.  You can see how that's taken shape in my Sammy Quilt.  But, for this quilt, I wanted to try the whole cloth quilted technique that you do the quilting first and then add color through painting.  So, I attached my free motion foot and set out to quilt my sketch.

I quilted the normal three layer quilt sandwich using cream thread and more or less traced the pumpkin farm I sketched on the fabric.  And even though I will admit I was so very scared... this was so much fun! 

I found myself loose and the quilting stitches better than I've ever accomplished.  It really had a drawing with thread type of feel.  And as the farm emerged with all that fabric texture I was beaming ear to ear!  The next time I try this I think I'll try different thread colors.  The cream became challenging to later cover with paint. 

Has a lovely feel to it, doesn't it?  A part of me really wanted to leave it just like this and call it a success.  And I did leave it like this for days.  But, as the time passed I knew I had to try and paint it.

I started from the top not knowing where else to dig in.  Colored the sky, mountains, and roofs.  In case your wondering the fabric paint I used is called PROfab transparent which I sourced from Pro Chemical & Dye.  And I am painting on white cotton that is prepared for dye (PFD).

The paint has a fun quality to it once you mix it with water.  And I'm beginning to get the feel for how it will act when applied to a dry vs. wet quilt.  As you can see my fear melted quickly and I was happily lost in painting!  Once the painting was complete, I heat set it with the iron.

I wanted to give the finished quilt an art like finish, so went with an invisible binding method I found well described in this tutorial from Simply Robin.  I love the way the painting and quilting falls right off the edge. 

I'm still waiting for better daylight to take a picture that has more true colors and shows the quilting texture more prominently, but here you go.  "Off to the Pumpkin Patch!"  What I'm sure will be the first of many painted art quilts to come.

Thank you so much for stopping by and I'd love to have you leave me a link to your entry in comments!!  Happy festival!

Fall 2011 Quilt Festival :: Big Blue
Spring 2011 Quilt Festival :: Tribal