Monday 31 January 2011

Houses, Rust n Holes in Hearts

This week on my design wall floor:

village on design floor

Now that I have finished Gman's quilt top, it's time to turn to Waif's. The planned layout is a strip of wonky fences, then house blocks, then more wonky fences, more houses, lastly a strip of wonky fences. So I can see from laying it out that I need to make a load more fences. Then I can sew the middle together and see what I need in the way of borders.

I've made a start on my next Christmas present for Allie's Christmas Through the Year. It's going to be made into a name panel for my nephew Ewan. I am just loving this crazy swirly orange fabric:

Ewan

I have also had some fun rust dyeing a few bits and pieces for my next journal quilt. I collected together some random fabrics - white patterned quilting cotton, wadding, open weave cotton, ricrac and lace - laid them in an old washing up bowl and covered with random rusty stuff - old washers, nails, a toy car, plus some steel wool:

2 artefacts added

Next, five year old Waif enjoyed spraying them with a mixture of vinegar and water:

3 spraying with vinegar mix

Then we placed the tray in a bin bag, weighted down with some books and left overnight.

Next day, we had an assortment of rust dyed fabrics to play with:

4 after
5 after close up lace
6 rusty stuff on the line (1)

To set the dye, we soaked in a salt water mix, then washed as usual.

I was disappointed with the quilting cotton, this didn't really take on much of the rust but just LOVE the effect on the open weave cotton, the wadding and the lace.

I am going to integrate some of these pieces into my next journal quilt, which I have made a start on:
february wip

You might also notice the holey burnt hearts. Yes, I have a new toy - a heat gun :-). Be afraid. Be very afraid.

9 comments:

  1. Love the orange fabric too.

    Can I come over and play please?

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  2. Love how your village is progressing. The dye experiments looked fun. Did you wash the quilting cotton first? It maybe that the manufacturing paste stopped the 'rust' taking?

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  3. May I join the play date? This is great stuff. Aren't the toys that art quilters use just getting better and better!

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  4. Very cute quilt!

    Your journaling fabric is very cool. Have not been brave enough to try something like that yet...

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  5. I love the colours in your house quilt. Looks like you had fun with the rusting as well. Angela

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  6. I love orange fabric also! Your quilt top is so fun!!

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  7. These house rock! Love the colors Love the shapes and you are inspiring me to start USING my heat gun I bought this summer. LOL
    Thanks for joining my blog today! Come often!

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  8. That village quilt has left me speechless, from the choice of colours to the actual blocks (WOW), you are one talented lady. I love your blog, the colour, oh the colour! Thanks for sharing <3

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  9. Love the houses!!
    Isn't it wonderful what rust can do?It is always a surprise :)

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