Landscape Quilt Completed

I finished my Gloria Loughman landscape quilt, which was started in a workshop 2 weeks ago. I don't 'do' landscapes because I want them to be realistic, so this was an exercise in dealing with something almost abstract.  I didn't have an actual picture of my landscape, so I think it helped me be less perfect in the design. I took photos of some of the aspects, but overall it was a memory picture.
Also, I had wanted to use what I learned in class in another of my ANZAC banners (as boring as it is to many people it may not be every one's cup of tea, but to me, there are many stories to be told).
When I attended this year's ANZAC dawn service at our local military camp, Linton (and also my workplace), I watched the sunrise through one of the Camp's many huge palm trees. There was also a very tall soldier standing in front of me, so I got his silhouette and the tree with the sun lightening the sky over the Tararua Ranges.
Here we have it:

Here is a close-up of the soldier - to ensure that the lightness of his face didn't distract too much, I covered the fabric with fine tulle.

Most of the green fabric has been painted with fabric paint - I needed to get a variation for depth of field.
All I need now is a title.
Any one have any ideas?

Some Purchases and Painting

As much as I have sworn to NOT buy any more fabric, sometimes you see a piece that you have been wanting for a while. At Tote & Gloat on Saturday, I found just such a piece.

This is the fabric I have used as the background to In Flanders' Fields. I haven't been able to get anymore since the original purchase - I even wanted some more when making that quilt! It was also a special price, so it was bought!
Now, I always enjoy looking at the dyed fabric and Dye-It are closing down :( very, very sad face. I bought 3 small pieces that I know will be used in future ANZAC quilts:

Finally, I bought some yummy threads to use in the current project (well that's the plan!):

The big green bundle are silk threads - these are so great to use either couched down, needle punched, or laid on top of the fabric under tulle. The smaller green/rusty bundle, I'm going to try using as bobbin work.
I have been preparing for my next ANZAC quilt, which will be Vietnam. So here is the background fabric:

It was initially orange - bright orange! I have tried doing a discharge with this and very little colour is removed. Never mind! Washed with HOT water, dyed with Dylon tulip red in a bucket (I scrunched up the fabric like it was a shibori) and then spray painted with various greens of fabric paint I mixed up. It looks very blotchy, I know - but I have a plan (in my head anyway)!
Here is some lovely sprayed green background for another part:

I'm on a roll now, got the plans, got the fabric, now for the drawing and cutting and gluing and ironing - then the sewing!
Hope you are making something that is fun!

Another ANZAC Quilt Finished

I have been quite remiss in posting lately, but I have been busy creating! First up was a quilt I had to quilt for a raffle for Tote & Gloat on Saturday and as someone else was going to bind it, I needed to get it done smartly! It was nursery rhyme blocks, so each I quilted according to the rhyme - unfortunately I did not take any photos of my work :(
The next thing, was to stop procrastinating and work on another ANZAC quilt as I am exhibiting them at Tote & Gloat. I had been slowly working on one called An Everyday Soldier : the Unsung Hero.
So here it is:

The bottom image is one from the National Collection of War Art and I have permission to use it so long as I display the following information:

·      Stretcher party November 1918 by George Edmund Butler [Archives Reference : AAAC 898 304 NCWA 473] Archives New Zealand The Department of Internal Affairs Te Tari Taiwhenua

I wanted to make a quilt that acknowledged all the service men and women who served, who did their job, perhaps didn't have any great stories to tell, but were heroic in doing their duty to King and Country. My Grandpop was in the New Zealand Medical Corps, so was working in triage, on the front line and in hospitals. I did heaps of research into his military history and have tried to give a precis with the pictures/letters in the form of Field Medical Tags on the right of the quilt.
The sashings represent bandages. He was also a collector of bits and pieces (a magpie), so I have some odd things stitched on that he would have found useful! The label is a huge story, but I think it needs to be told, especially when the information is fresh and it does pertain to the quilt.
So here are some close-ups:

a textured heading which was painted, the wording stitched around and simply quilted

outline quilting on the uniform - a little bit of colour on the sepia - and densely quilted background

telling his story on Field Medical Tags (body tags)

I struggled with framing the photo. Initially it was going to part of the whole quilt, but with some advise from my friend Carol, I opted for making the photo a separate piece. Then of course, how to do it? Fortunately Carol had just made something very similar so was able to write the instructions for me to do it. The frame has 2 layers of batting (cotton/bamboo) to give it some depth.
I now have 8 pieces in my ANZAC collection.
BUT! no challenge quilt for Tote & Gloat - it just wasn't happening!
Late breaking news!!
I have to tell you that I managed to purchase (in time, fortuitously!) a NZMC brass shoulder flash. So I have now shifted the collar badge to above the medal ribbons and stitched the shoulder flash where the badge was. So pleased it arrived in time before hanging at Tote & Gloat.

It's Not Just About The Numbers

Number 7 of my ANZAC series of quilts is now finished. I ended up painting, with brush and Tsukineko ink, the words and numbers. I did try stamping but it was too fiddly and not clean enough. The biggest worry was spilling or dropping ink into unwanted areas, but I was patient and careful and am pleased with the result.
I also painted the background fabric and over-painted the backing (I also used it as the binding).
This banner is very simply quilted so that your eye follows across the lines to the numbers.

On the right hand side I have quilted a Maori motif over the words (this is the backing which shows the quilting better):

 Here is what I wrote for the label:

"The statistics for this Roll of Honour for the 1^st New Zealand Expeditionary Force (1914 – 1918) came from the book Some records of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force, by Lt. Col. J Studholme (Wellington, Govt. Printer, 1928).

The numbers are of deaths only of N.Z.E.F. while on active service.

They include:   Officers

                        Other Ranks

                        Those killed in action

                        Those who died of wounds

                        Those who died of sickness

                        Those who died from other causes

Total: 16,697

Those who died after discharge (up to 31^st December 1923):  964

Those who died while under training in New Zealand: 505

Let us never forget. May they rest in peace."

It measures  105cm x 56cm.

The Western Front Quilt

I feel kind of whacked, drained, or washed up. But I know that it is because I have spent A LOT of energy in making this quilt. The basic plan is still the same, but really, just as well I'm not an engineer - it's kinda made itself up as I went along!
So here we have it.
It is named: The Western Front - a Snapshot of Our Darkest Days, measures 590mm x 1005mm
There are two options for viewing. I think I like the first one the best - what do you think?

showing all the postcards

 

 

with the postcards folded up (r.h.s.)

Check out the statistical data.

 I still have to sew on an old button above the right hand 'waterfall' of postcards.
The label is bigger than I usually make, but I decided that I needed to write some explanation to the piece of work. There is a play on the word snapshot - I have used photos and made them into postcards to depict what I learned.
This has been created to honour all those New Zealanders who fought in Europe during World War 1.