Stitch Pattern, Hand Quilting

Cobblestones II, AP # 90

| Cindy Anderson

Have you ever named an art project and then realized that you have already assigned the name to something else? Well, I have! Twice! The art piece I am showing you today, Cobblestones is the name I gave to Cobblestones, AP # 80.

Cobblestones, AP # 80

Both pieces were designed with the same photo in mind.

Cobblestones Street In Columbus, Ohio

While they both had the same inspiration their outcomes are totally different.

I am a spreadsheet person. By that I mean that I like to use spreadsheets to organize my life because they are much more reliable than scraps of paper. Of course their reliability hinges upon actually using the app.

After experiencing hurdles in maintaining a reliable list of my art pieces I decided to design a spreadsheet. The spreadsheet would be readily available because I could access it on all of my electronic devices—I almost always have one at my side. I was so proud of myself once the data was entered. While very few things are perfect I had high expectations that this would eliminate duplicate names.

In order for the spreadsheet to reach foolproof status one has to utilize it. Sometimes I’m lazy and resort back to pen and paper. In this instance that is exactly what happened. I was not aware of my dilemma until I sat down to bring my spreadsheet up to date. When I did, I had to make a decision—should I allow them both to maintain the same name or should I change one of them. In the end I chose to change one of the names ever so slightly. Today’s piece was given the modified name, Cobblestones II.

With the explanation for this project’s name revealed let’s take a look at the construction and design. I created my art piece while attending Pam Beal’s class Minimalist Design, Maximum Impact. Cobblestones II, as mentioned earlier, was inspired by a photo I took while attending QSDS.

Unlike it’s very colorful predasessor this art quilt was constructed using only three colors—a soft shade of blue, navy blue and bordeaux. Looking at the photo you will see that the cobblestones were fashioned from navy blue. The process of cutting and stitching the fabric back together created a woven texture or three dimensional appearance. I rather like that look. A border of soft blue was added to surround the cobblestones. Wrapping around all four sides is the bordeaux. The bordeaux creates a large negative space. This negative space creates a generous place for your eye to rest.

To finish my piece I added hand stitching using color coordinated threads. In the upper most bordeaux section I added three simple X’s. In the bottom area I echoed or replicated the cobblestones by stitching a grid pattern.

Cobblestones II, AP # 90

Cobblestones II has a very striking yet minimalist appearance. I think Pam Beal would be very pleased. Cobblestones II measures 14 1/2 x 8”.

Thank you for visiting.


Morning In The Garden, AP # 89

| Cindy Anderson

Who doesn’t enjoy the loveliness of a morning in the garden with the sunshine dancing on the dew drops. I know I do! It is my favorite time of day.

I have always loved flowers. In my younger days my yard was filled with gardens overflowing with their beauty. Their colorful faces added a delight to my yard that thrilled me immensely.

Now that I’ve experienced more years that I have left my huge garden days are over. I still enjoy the beauty of flowers and their wonderful scent but I have adjusted my expectations. Rather that spending hours tending to my gardens, inhaling the many fragrances, feeling the soil between my fingers, soaking in the eye-popping colors and the warmth of the sun’s rays I experience those joys through my portfolio of photos and my occasional plantings.

With my days of prolific gardening behind me I have made attempts to recreate my love of flowers through my art and my surroundings. The art piece I am about to share with you today is the second addition to my layered quilt portfolio. My most recent completion is titled Morning In The Garden, AP # 89. Let’s explore it’s beauty through photographs. Click on the photos, in each grouping, to see them in greater detail

  • Label for Morning In The Garden
  • Sun Rising Over Morning In The Garden
  • Western Corner of Morning In The Garden
  • Southwest Corner of Morning In the Garden
  • More Flowers In The Southwest Corner of The Garden
  • Northern Area of The Garden
  • Northeast Corner of the Garden
  • Another Northeast Section of the Garden
  • Southeast Corner of the Garden
  • A Three Dimensional View Of A Flower
Morning In The Garden

Photos say more than words can. I hope that you have enjoyed this tour and that you have the opportunity to click on and explore the photos in detail.

Thank you so much for visiting!

Wild Flowers, AP # 73

| Cindy Anderson

2018 was the year I first took Heidi Parke’s class Layered Quilt. What is a layered quilt you might ask?

A layered quilt has four layers

  • a bottom layer of muslin
  • batting for the second layer
  • miscellaneous fabrics for the third layer and
  • a top layer of a transparent material such as silk organza.

The two most important layers are

  • layer three because that’s where your design resides and
  • layer four because it’s degree of transparency determines how visible your design layer will be.

Once the four layers have been assembled it is time to begin stitching.

I can’t tell you how much fun I had making my first layered quilt. After sandwiching my muslin and batting I pulled out my bags of fabric scraps and discarded threads. From the bags of scraps I pulled handfuls of fabric and began dumping them on top of the batting. No special effort was made to arrange them in a particular order. Also added were leftover scraps of thread. To top that all off I added a few strategically placed floral shaped remnants. This is how my layered quilt looked when I was finished.

Wild Flowers Ready For Stitching

With my four layers all in place it was time to start stitching. I gathered together my stockpile of decorative threads, my needles and my stitchery books and began the explorative process of adding the quilting. This was a great opportunity to try stitches that I had never used before. Learning the new stitches and watching them take shape was so amazing. The more I stitched the more I enjoyed the process.

Part of the joy was documenting my daily progress through photographs and now that my art piece is finished I am so glad that I did. While I would love to share all of the photos with you I’ve decided to share just a few.

Wild Flower Stitch Beginnings
Wild Flowers, A Closeup
Wild Flowers All Finished
Wild Flowers All Finished

The journey to create and finish this art quilt was one that I will always remember. I am so pleased with the final outcome and so happy to be able to share it with you.

Thank You for spending this time with me!