Annies Crazy World

When I used the black patch for outer space I was also thinking Cyber Space…

When I stitched the spider web I was also thinking World Wide Web…

When I made this piece I couldn’t disconnect from thoughts that linked the project to the internet because Quilting Arts was started by a crazyquilt email list member, because I knew about it through the internet, because even in a few short years the internet had enabled Crazy Quilters around the world to meet, to share knowledge, to become friends and to…

to Swap fabrics, laces, threads, beads, buttons and charms…New words entered our language as a Bag of crazy quilt stash became known as Baggies or Squishies because when they arrived in the post the parcels feel squishie…Most of the fabrics and charms on this piece are from swap baggies that I received in the post which was fondly referred to as snailmail which is why the snail in tonights detail has a baggie on his back…I used the iron with paper between the iron and the plastic to seal the new side and bottom of a zip lock bag which I then filled with tiny but recognizable crazy quilt bits….and I have got to tell you that this detail is the hardest that I have ever tried to photograph, it the contents of the bag where visiable the snail was washed out, if I managed to get the coils on the snail the plastic bag would be opaque, after about 20 photos I did get one that showed both details.

The Project that I have been detailing is a 12 inch square which I made in 2001 for the first Quilting Arts Magazine Calendar Contest.

This image is a painting that I did of my first thoughts showing the rough layout of the block with a globe in the centre surrounded by sky and water.

In the details (47 to 52) of the sky and water that I have shown in the last week I used the moon in the night sky and a bright sunny day to represent time passing forward into the future…The west wind button that reminded me of old maps and the biplane are a look back into the past…and the black Patch of deep space represents time in light years…Sub Plots, in space light years are a measure of distance and the distance between one side of the world, where the sun is shining, to the other side that sees the moon, can also be thought about in terms of time and over time the aero plane has decreased the time between places that where once very distant, meaning that we have more opportunity to meet with people from around the world.

The above details look at time in the big picture To nights detail looks at the little picture, time broken down into the hours of the day….

Around the edge of the globe are Bugle Beads and Seed Beads marking the hours and in the centre the hands of the clock…the minute hand is a pair scissors for how I like to spend my time crazy quilting and the time is set to the eleventh hour because that is when I get most things done.

In this detail there is a calendar charm to mark the days and a pocket watch to mark the minutes…And a pot of tea to pass the time of day, tea time with friends being a very important part of our lives…Another Sub Plot is crazy quilting… and a part of crazy quilting to me is the friendships with crazy quilters, who are such caring, sharing, creative, wonderful people…

Note Yesterday’s spider web was not just because spider webs are traditionally found on crazy quilts but because the themes of this quilt interconnected like a web…and right now I feel like my words are getting tangled in the web so I am going to leave you with TO BE CONTINUED…

At about this point of this project I feel I need to to tell you what I made it for and explain the theme so that you can understand the relationship between the next few embellishment details…but after 4 days at the quilt Exhibition my brain is to tired to come up with the words to explain it so I have chosen this detail that hints at the theme but does still stand alone being a spider web which you would expect to find on any crazy quilt…

The seam to the right is a variation of Button Hole Stitch and the seam under the web is
Wheat Stitch.

Tonights detail is 2 bead dolls that represent crazy quilting friends around the world.

The dolls are made with beading wire that is threaded through a leg bead and a foot bead and then back through the leg bead, repeat for second leg…Thread both ends of the wire through the body beads and then do one arm with each end of the wire before threading both ends through the head bead…a hat bead/sequin is optional…Add eye with a permanent ink marking pen…twist ends of wire together, poke through the backing fabric, twist into a loop and stitch in place on the back.

This is the Winter Wonderland Cake that I made for My neices 18th Birthday…You Can see a bigger image on flicka

She had no idea that I was making it and was Gobsmacked when she saw it…

The finishing touch is that when I turned on the power the fire glowed, large image on flicka…To make the Electric fire I covered a shallow box with glad wrap and placed it upside down under the cake, I cut a small hole in the box to fit the light from a small lamp and I cut a slightly larger hole in cake so that I could place a shot glass over the globe to protect it from the icing…Once I had the structer in place, see image of naked cake below, it was simpley a matter of crinkling a small piece of red cellophane and placeing it over the light with a few twigs and flake chocolate rocks.

Below is an image of the Naked Cake that shows how I built up the shape and the hole with the shot glass covering the electric light bulb.

Cake anyone…It didn’t look so good after the party but it was the funnest cake I have ever made.

The frosty icing is made by dribbling boiling sugar syrup into beaten egg whites…It was a bit tricky to make but after 3 batches I had it mastered…It is a lovely icing to work with, very, very sticky and Ohh so yummy.

In tonights detail I have used a very loosly twisted white silk thread and Herringbone stitch done with stitches that get wider and narrower to give the fluffy look and curves of clouds.

With this detail I have come in a full circle back around to the Night Sky which you can see in the top left corner.

I have had a lovely day today…I picked Sharon up bright and early and headed out to the Canberra Quilters Exhibiton which is run in association with the Craft show…As Roster coordinator I am busy at the start and change over of shifts, other than that I am free to enjoy the show…Canberra Quilters is 30 years old and Margaret Rolfe who was a founding member of the group opened the Exhibition…This year is our first Judged exhibition and I received a runner up in the creative clothing section for my bridesmaid dress…large images of the Front and Back at flicka

At the craft show merchants mall I spent a little bit of money buying some sparkling organdy ribbon, some pail gold thread and a few beads, the pink fox is my favourite…and then I spent a lot of money buying a daylight lamp with a 7 inch magnifying glass, I havn’t been able to see so well for years…

In this detail the Sun Shines on the Ocean…The sun is a glass earing, the wire loop broke off while I was pushing it through the fabric so I attached it with a stitch over each ray…I used a white fluffy threads for the waves on the ocean…to the left I used a gold braid to represent sandy beaches.

The West Wind blows over the Ocean…The first hint of the Ocean is Shells and seaweed (Coral Stitch done with green silk Ribbon)…I pleated/crinkled the fabric to get the movement of water.

Past the seaweed is a dolphin playing in the waves. My Son used his modelling paints to convert a pink mother of pearl doplhin shaped bead into to this more realistic looking dolphin, to form the waves I used a variation of Buttonhole Wheels).

I merged the Dark space back into a blue sky by using metallic thread to do a couple of stars and a scattering of French Knots and then I placed 5 stars in the form of the Southern Cross Constellation to say that this piece was made down under in Oz Australia.

Just Below the Southern Cross is the west wind blowing a gentle breeze…a Button that reminds me of the drawings that surround old maps.