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June 29, 2025
Sunday Stash June 29, 2025 from Quilt Paint Create

We are half way through the year already. Are you happy with your fabric usage to date?

I’m pleased with how much went out this year. I haven’t added fabric since August 2024. I’ve made an effort to buy less this year, and I feel a lot better about creating in general because of it. It may not work for everyone, but it works for me.

I finished the Laundry Day Tee last Sunday.

I’m happy with how it turned out. It fits well through the shoulders and bust, which is usually a problem area for ...

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June 27, 2025
Art Lessons from the Beyond (and the Louvre): Homage to Eustache LeSueur from Gefilte Quilt

Do you take loads of photos of museum art? And then they sit forever in your computer?
They make wonderful palette cleansers -- fast projects, low on stress, high on learning, as you study the art, figure out what the artist was doing, and what makes the piece so compelling. 

In a December blog post I showed a bejeweled tribute to a 1763 painting by Fragonard that I photographed in the Louvre five years ago. (Find that article here.) 

Here's the next piece of art I tackled, from the same Louvre visit, and more than 100 years older. It's ...

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June 15, 2025
Sunday Stash June 15, 2025 from Quilt Paint Create

No change in the numbers.

It was one of those weeks. For my own sanity I retreated to the sewing room. A lot. That led me to start a small test project before the larger quilt project I had planned.

I’ve seen comments by artists that it’s a good idea to make small studies when trying new ideas or techniques, or using new materials. It makes sense. I figure they ought to know.

Here’s the beginning of the next collage project, which I intend to stich like I did the boro bag.

I’m not sure I ...

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April 20, 2025
Sunday Stash April 20, 2025 from Quilt Paint Create

No change in the numbers.

I finished stitching the boro piece.

I used both #12 pearl cotton and DMC embroidery floss for the stitching. I found I preferred the pearl cotton for the look and texture. Although I don’t mind raw edges, I didn’t like the really frayed ones. In hindsight, I wish I’d trimmed them before layering. I also found the hand basting a distraction when stitching. Next time I’ll do something else, either glue or misty fuse.

I see more projects like this in my future.

Fabric In: 0

Fabric Out: 16.75 yards ...

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April 1, 2025
progress from Karen Ann Ruane

surface design, progress

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January 22, 2025
Homage to Fragonard, or, Fun & Learning with your Favorite Museum Snapshots from Gefilte Quilt

Need a fast holiday gift? How about turning your favorite museum art photos into mini-quilts?

 Before:

After: 

UPDATE!


Backstory:

Do you take a ton of photos at art museums? I sure do, because I see so many art lessons, about color, composition, creativity, and courage.

These photos are fun to revisit from time to time, but not much happens with them. 

Until a couple of  weeks ago, when the Notre Dame Cathedral was reopened, five years after the horrific fire. 

Days before that fire, we were visiting Paris, including Notre Dame. (I blogged about it here.)  

We also went to ...

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December 23, 2024
Mastering Collage Quilting Techniques from Sew French

This Christmas 2020 wallhanging quilt for our youngest granddaughter, Amelia, the unicorn loving one. This Laura Heine collage was a winner! Even after quilting for well over 40 years there was still so much color value to be learned! This … Continue reading

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September 21, 2024
Lost and found! from Crazy Quilter on a Bike!

And now I'm off to something else today! I've got some classes at the Hobby Horse, and I'm packed!!

Poor Murphy—she hasn't been happy with all the toing and froing these last weeks. But I bet she's confused because there is no big black suitcase at the door—just a bunch of tote bags! But she's not budging from the front door because they did not get a walk yesterday, and I think she's mad!


MOM - you can't leave without me! 


We finished the training early yesterday, so I was home ...

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April 8, 2024
Four Windmills, 55 Years from Gefilte Quilt

Ever since moving to Southern California 30 years ago, I have marveled at the region's windmills, especially the miles of them between my Los Angeles home, and the "Road to California" quilt show in Ontario, CA, that I visit annually. They look like this:

Sometimes they spin in unison, sometimes out of sync, but they always make me happy, a majestic miracle of alternative energy. 
In February, when I was playing with a raw-edge fabric-covered-with-tulle technique to make Valentines, I thought of those windmills and decided to make some. I pulled all the pieces from my batik scrap bag ...

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December 1, 2023
November 2023 OMG Finish from Quilt Paint Create

My November OMG was to finish the challenge quilt, which I named Love Inspired. This was my inspiration for the quilt, just a small portion of the quilt passed to me.

And here is my finished quilt.

I had a lot of fun tucking fabric motifs in the letter collage.

I think the santa is my favorite.

To see all the other OMG projects, visit Stories From the Sewing Room.

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August 16, 2023
more collage, new design sheet. from Karen Ann Ruane

surface design, design for embroidery,

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August 14, 2023
with added cloth from Karen Ann Ruane

surface design, embroidery, design sheet,

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August 10, 2023
hand made books, two in progress from Karen Ann Ruane

embroidered books, two in progress

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August 8, 2023
collage pages from Karen Ann Ruane

hand stitched pages

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August 4, 2023
pages from Karen Ann Ruane

hand stitched pages

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A Drawer of Postcards from The Snarky Quilter

Despite many moves over the years I have held onto a three inch pile of postcards from art museums around the world. Some I bought and some were sent to me by an early art mentor. Finally, after rediscovering the collection for the umpteenth time, I decided to use them.

Given that the subjects ranged from Byzantine icons to modern art, I decided to detach figures from their settings and recombine them with other papers to create unexpected narratives. I pasted them all in a children’s board book, where I look at them more often now.

Front and back ...

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August 1, 2023
Floating Around from Celtic Thistle Stitches

 This quarter's theme for the Endeavourers Challege was Collage and, I must admit that I really struggled to come up with something to fit the theme for most of the quarter :( 


 I finally finished "Floating Around", above, on the day of the deadline! 

At a Textile Printing Summer School last year, I had put together these pieces of printed fabric but not progressed further with them so they lay in a cupboard for a year. The theme for the summer school had been leaves and grasses and, at the time, I felt that, although I really liked the colours ...

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July 24, 2023
embellished, design sheet from Karen Ann Ruane

embellished, design sheet

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July 22, 2023
yesterday from Karen Ann Ruane

collage, cloth, surface design.

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July 20, 2023
pages, soft papers and collage from Karen Ann Ruane

pages, soft papers and collage

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  • collage
  • Page 1 of 5 ( 99 posts )