Fly Merel Fly :: A Community Quilt for Merel van Looi

Posted on March 28, 2016March 30, 2016 Posted in QuiltingTagged charity quilt, modern quilt guild, Quilt15 Comments

Merel van Looi is a quilter and fabric shop owner from the Netherlands I have gotten to know online. Unfortunately we did not connect at the last Quiltcon but the picture above on the right shows her working as a volunteer. Tragically earlier this month, she suffered some bleeding around her spinal cord and for the moment has limited movement of her legs. When I heard of her recent health crisis I was so saddened and reached out to her asking if she would be open to me organizing a community quilt project for her and she said YES!

I have often said that those are discouraged about the state of the world need to start sewing and become involved in their local and online sewing communities. Sewists and quilters are some of the most generous and creative people I know. This fact was made even more evident as I was plotting and planning this group project. Krista Hennebury (Poppyprint) if you don’t already know is a master quilter and teacher, an all around wonderful person and friend. Merel said online that Krista’s amazing “Blackbird Fly” quilt (an award winner at Quiltcon 2015) meant a lot to her as she hoped to “fly” again someday even if it was in a wheelchair. I mentioned that I was going to plan a quilt for Merel and Krista brought up the work of Kajsa Wikman (home – Syko Design). Kajsa’s style, raw edge appliqué with black thread at this point is fairly iconic and has been much copied and repeated. She published the book Scandinavian Stitches which I quickly ordered online. Krista contacted her friend and Kajsa not only gave me permission to use her sweet wonky birds as inspiration (Merel in dutch means blackbird and her IG handle is @merel_birdblocks) but hopes to contribute a block too (she also knows Merel- I love how small this quilting community is and did I mention how generous quilters are?) These sweet birds are so cheerful and I hope will encourage Merel in her recovery.

Knowing I would need additional help I reached out to my friend Rachael Dorr (www.quiltingamemory.org) who agreed to long arm quilt this quilt I have planned. Her work is AMAZING and this quilt will be extra special because of it.

HOW CAN YOU HELPT?

I am looking for as many people who are interested to make 8 1/2 x 8 1/2 inch appliquéd blocks inspired by Kajsa’s birds and get them to me by May 23rd (that gives 8 weeks for blocks to be made and delivered to my doorstep). My hope is to assemble them and get them then to Rachael to quilt by June 1st.

DETAILS and HINTS:

-8 1/2 x 8 1/2 inch blocks (be sure to leave a quarter inch appliqué free around all sides to allow for seam allowance) The blocks will be 8 x 8 inches finished.

-White fabric background (Kona white if possible)

-Cheery prints to be used for the appliquéd birds (this is a perfect project for scraps). I would love to have birds that are simple and FLYING like Kajsa’s but I am also happy for you to make them your own, and even add encouraging stitched words for Merel if you like. An example of Kajsa’s birds is below and they also can be found at her flickr page (https://www.flickr.com/photos/sykossa/4567924620/in/album-72157601967630500/)

-Use black thread for your appliqué and shorten your stitch length

-Use fusible webbing like steam a seam to initially attach your appliqué bits before stitching

-if you feel compelled to use stabilizer on the back, please use tear away or cut away so that it is only around the appliqué

-so as to prevent stray black threads from appearing in the back, please tie off and bury loose ends in the appliqué (see pic)

-I have a suspicion that there may be more then enough blocks for one quilt and I will not turn anyone down who is interested. If that is the case I may be looking for someone to help me quilt up a second quilt (longarmers keep this project in mind)

If you are interested in contributing, please email me at entropyalwayswinshg@gmail.com and I will send you my address and add you to the list. Tag your pieces with the hashtag #flymerelfly on IG so everyone can see what you are up to

If you feel like you want to do more for this sweet girl, I am sure she would love cards or small gifts of encouragement. The address at the rehab hospital she is at is:

Reade locatie Overtoom / Merel van Looi /113-B1 / Postbus 58271 /1040HG Amsterdam

Thank you so much everyone!!

“Fly Merel Fly”

Hillary

Layers :: Bee Sewcial Theme for March

Posted on February 29, 2016February 29, 2016 Posted in QuiltingTagged Bee Sewcial, design, modern quilt, quilting bee1 Comment

As a novice photographer, I have discovered that some of my favorite captured images have both an interesting foreground and background. Over the last several months I have been playing with the same concept in quilting and am anxious to see where other people take it.

In March I would like my Bee Mates (#beesewcial on IG) and any other interested folks (#inspiredbybeesewcial on IG) to make the equivalent of two 12×12 inch blocks (loosely defined as I am good with wonky shapes and strange sizes) exploring the idea of layers (components that appear to be in the foreground and components that appear to be in the background) in your block design using the colors of this peeling paint image by Richman as a guide. There are several ways to do this and you are welcome to look at my feed on IG to see what I have done but honestly I am most interested to see where YOU take it. Please bring at least two “layers” to your design but you may add more. For consistency in a quilt, I ask that you use specific colors in the foreground and others in the background. With the Kona Color Card as a guide and following the Richman picture:

Background: (Turquoise/Blues) Cyan, Breakers, Capri, Robin Egg or similar with or without traces of black

Foreground/Middleground: (Oranges/Greys/White) School Bus, Carrot, Flame, Ash, Medium Grey or similar and traces of Papaya, White

If you choose a Medium layer/layers use the foreground colors leaving the blues and turquoise colors only for the “back”

Note: If you have studied Albers, you will know that the cool blues will “want” to read background and the warm oranges foreground. Color choices themselves help us define layers. Because of this I am setting the color layer choices opposite of what they physically are on the picture.

Feel Free to check my Pinterest Board for image ideas that inspire me:Pinterest: Discover and save creative ideas

Don’t forget to tag your makes with the #beesewcial tag for my bee mates and #inspiredbybeesewcial for anyone else who wants to play along

Hillary

Opioids and Y-Seams

Posted on January 15, 2016January 15, 2016 Posted in Medicine, QuiltingTagged 5/325, California Opioid Safety Commission, modern quilt, opioids, quilting, textile art19 Comments

Last Year our county was awarded one of twelve grants by the California Opioid Safety Commission to help educate the public and medical community on the increasing use and danger of both prescription and street narcotics. The Commission got wind of my 5/325 quilt and invited me for an interview. The results of that interview can be found here (you can find the link below my picture): Placer Nevada County Medical Society – Just another WordPress site

The fact that this statement piece is getting recognition in the medical community is pretty satisfying. Even more exciting is the fact that it is getting the word out about the narcotic dependence and addiction issues in the general community. (It was on display in Houston at the International Quilt Festival, will be shown next month at Quiltcon in LA and will be featured in the Quiltcon Magazine). I am scheduled to speak (with my quilt if it is available) in April at our hospital medical staff meeting and there are some other venues pending. Who knew that my crazy idea would get so much play?

Hillary

2016 :: Care More/Care Less

Posted on January 1, 2016January 2, 2016 Posted in Everything Else, QuiltingTagged goals, New year, quilting, reflection31 Comments

2015 has come to a screeching close leaving me breathless and a little bewildered. In effort to spend some concentrated time with my family I always work Dayjob a lot over the holidays. Now with some precious time off and much needed sleep under my belt I feel like I can reflect and make plans.

In some respects on my creative journey, 2015 was fairly momentous. I participated in my first quilting bee (Bee Sewcial). The monthly prompts expanded my maker’s bag of tricks exponentially and forced me out of my creative comfort zone-so good. I have no clue how these talented people picked me to join them but I am forever grateful and look forward to another year of the same.

I both visited and participated in my first Quilt shows. My quilts were featured in a magazine for the first time. With the help of my friend Robin, we won our first sewing contest with Umbrella Prints Trimmings and my quilts were featured for the first time in a gallery. To my amazement some fabric designers/companies sent me fabric without expectation to play and create (I hope to find some time soon to show more the results of those gifts). I was involved in some meaningful collaborative work with talented people. And of course I made a gazillion bags and several quilts.

In other respects however the year was similar to most, making and exploring. In 2016 there is important work to be done. Most notably my “Nude is Not a Dress Color Project” which was set back by collaborative side steps is calling to me.

In looking toward the new year a common theme comes up for me: Care More :: Care Less.

:: Care more about the process and less about the end result.

:: Care more about the message in my makes and less about whether other people understand it.

:: Care more about the art and less about the shows. (As a side note I was fortunate to have 4 quilts chosen to show at Quiltcon 2016 and am part of one Bee Sewcial quilt that will be showing-yay Debbie. Even with this I struggle to see myself as a Quiltshow person. Despite the fact that everyone I have met participating in the process is talented and worthy and that these show are gorgeous displays of art, I can’t shake the “beauty queen” image in my mind. Does that make any sense?)

:: Care more about the whole community and less about the stars. I love this sewing community and hope to give more back in the way of some free blocks/patterns I have planned. It is nice to get attention and adulation from the “superstars” of the industry but we are all worthy and on the same journey. I hope to concentrate more on that. I know I am remiss in responding to comments here (did I mention my Dayjob and momjob?) but I hope to be better.

Thank you for being part of my 2015 and I look forward to traveling the road together in 2016.

P.S. The block featured at top is a new design concept I am exploring. More to come.

Happy New Year

Hillary

Minimalism and Maximalism

Posted on November 22, 2015November 22, 2015 Posted in Everything Else, QuiltingTagged glue basting, improv, modern quilt, Quilt, quilting bee, y seams5 Comments

What I have been up to of late:

-“Queuing Theory” quilt. Quilted by Christine Perrigo (@ccpquilt on IG). It was inspired by a series of paintings by Mark Grotjahn called Dancing Butterflies.

-Crazy striped piecing in stripes inspired by a puzzle I saw on Pinterest (thank you glue basting)

-Hand painted linen flowers for Blair Stoker (Wise Craft Handmade) because it is super fun to trade with other makers especially when they are from my previous Seattle home city.

-More Slow Stitch Embroidery in the works. This improv embroidery is the bomb people. Try it!!

-A minimini quilt for Stephanie Ruyle ( Spontaneous Threads) that mimics a Rothko painting she pointed out in Houston. It represents me (mustard) and her (orange) with some more hand stitching and Stephanie’s old suede coat as binding.

-My last quilt blocks of the year for the Bee Sewcial Bee for Leanne (she can quilt). It was a total kick in the pants to play with color and improv. The green block also helped me perfect my Y seam skills.

Happy Thanksgiving friends!

Hillary

One Month

Posted on October 29, 2015November 10, 2015 Posted in Bags, QuiltingTagged art, Bag, design, modern quilt, Quilt7 Comments

In two days I start back to work again after a month off. I have logged many hours doing continuing education for Dayjob, baked almost every variety of pumpkin muffin/scone/cookie you can imagine and of course have been creating.

In a month:

Pattern Play (I replicated the Tate Museum flooring pattern using a modification of Latifah Saafir’s Glam Clam Pattern in bag form. For fun I added a knit pillow of my design to match my previously finished quilt top with buttons covered with treasured Umbrella Prints fabric):

Bag Design (repurposing photos I had taken on canvas)

Block Making (for my Bee Sewcial group and shown with a minimini quilt made by Stephanie Ruyle).

Minimalist Design Play with Leather Scraps

Anatomical Stitch Sketching

Fabric Making

Quilt Finishing (with amazing quilting by Jessie Ziegler)

Self Portrait Work In Process (with my first bias strip quilt using scrubs on hospital sheets)

My creative and family life are feeling extra rich after this sweet time. Grateful

Hillary

An Invitation To Be Creative

Posted on September 23, 2015September 23, 2015 Posted in Everything Else, QuiltingTagged anatomical drawins, art, fiberart, modern quilt, Quilt, stitch sketch, stitch sketching6 Comments

What if someone told you that this month it was especially important to pull out all the stops and be really creative? Would you do things differently? Would this mission paralyze or feed you?

Last month as I have mentioned I was invited to make some small quilts in a tight time frame for an art show in Seattle. As I pondered making, I let my mind open a bit and found myself wandering new creative roads-so fun.

Repurposing is a mission for me, so I decided to incorporate leather or suede I had collected from clothing into the pieces. My first work above is an image that has been percolating in my brain for a bit and means to show the contrast of light and dark, happy and sad, new and used. The black leather from an old coat I hope adds a whole new tone to the brightly pieced diamond.

Wanting to continue the contrast theme and the color mission I was given, I did dense quilting on the back in colors to match the front with the hope that they bring light and color to the dark. With help from an Instagram friend, my make adopted a name, “The Great Recession”. I think the dark creeping overlay on the overly bright, too perfect front image fits the description well.

On my second piece, I decided to play with an improv method I experimented with in a block for my first Bee Sewcial month led by Stephanie Ruyle. Striped Ikea canvas made a fun matte dense surface to play with and I went with some of my favorite mustard linen (side note: If I had to pick a fabric that is me, this is it. I have included it in about a third of my quilts). To tie my used/new theme, I incorporated some beautiful electric blue suede from a skirt donated to me again by Stephanie. Our friendship and journey together as makers is meaningful and it feels so appropriate to include this in my quilt. (Plus Stephanie’s has some amazing pieces that will be at the show too. Go check she and her pieces out: Spontaneous Threads)

Of the new roads I traveled on this piece was the use of purple fabric on the backing. I NEVER use this color in my makes and now I am quite smitten. An unintended extra meaning is that purple and gold are the colors of my alma mater, The University of Washington in Seattle where this piece will be shown.

I called on my good friend and Umbrella Prints collaborator Robin King to help me with labels ( A Collaboration On Friendship and Motherhood – Umbrella Prints Trimmings Challenge Entry 2015 | Entropy Always Wins). These hand printed pieces are awesome and it makes me happy to have another important friend incorporated in my makes.

Tripping on this creative spree, I started sketch stitching anatomical pictures. The combination of clinical pieces of anatomy onto used, discarded antique linens tickles me to no end. They represent well the strange dichotomy of my everyday life: delivering horrible news to a patient followed by helping my kids with homework, helping an addict through an oxycontin addiction followed by stitching up a pretty purse, doing a complicated life saving procedure followed by a yoga date with my girlfriends . . . There is more of this series to come.

If you get a chance and are in the area, check out my mini quilts and the work of others at the Seattle Pacific Art Center on display from October 5th-November 27th.

Hillary

Sew Mama Sew and Art Show Details

Posted on September 8, 2015September 24, 2017 Posted in Quilting, TutorialsTagged art, art show, quilting, sewmamasew, Tutorial5 Comments

Last month Kristin and Beth of Sew Mama Sew sweetly asked me to share details of a tile block I made up while creating this quilt top as a commission for one of my oldest friend’s. Go see their intro about me here: Introducing Hillary Goodwin from Entropy Always Wins | Sew Mama Sew | Outstanding sewing, quilting, and needlework tutorials since 2005 and my Tile Block tutorial here: Tile Blocks Tutorial | Sew Mama Sew | Outstanding sewing, quilting, and needlework tutorials since 2005. I’m thrilled to get this quilt finished and enlisted the help of long arm quilter Jessie Ziegler (threaded quilting studio) for a quilt collaboration. That negative white space is going to look yummy with her quilting.

In other news, some mini quilts for an art show in Seattle beginning next month are in process. I am honored and excited to be sharing space with many gifted artists. A big bonus is that Seattle is where i went to undergrad and Medical School and many friends and family still are Seattle residents. It will be fun to share my work there. For details of the show (and an introduction to an inspiring maker) see Anna’s post here: It’s Official! I Left My Job to Become a Quiltmaker | Quilting Queerly.

Hillary

Design Play

Posted on August 30, 2015August 30, 2015 Posted in Bags, Everything Else, QuiltingTagged baby quilt, Bag, design, inspiration, modern quilt, Quilt, stitch sketch2 Comments

I’ve been perfecting my skills lately at the game “How Can I Make That Into A Bag/Quilt/Mini Art Piece.” Are you familiar with my favorite game?

My Pieces and their sources of inspiration in picture order:

-The Doctor is In Second Edition: A new bag design I made up out of cotton, wool and leather inspired by one of the quilts featured in soon to be release book by Heather Jones. (Quilt Local: Finding Inspiration in the Everyday (with 40 Projects): Heather Jones: 9781617691768: Amazon.com: Books)

-Stitch Sketching everything I can imagine including a drawing of feet by the Louise Bourgeoise. Uneven tension never looked so good.

-A Baby Quilt Top using the Glam Clam pattern ( Glam Clam Quilt (8″) by Latifah Saafir – Crafts ) I adapted to look like flooring in the Tate Museum.

I am also really enjoying the black and white #beesewcial and #inspiredbybeesewcial blocks following the guidelines set out in my last blog post many of you are displaying on Instagram. Keep them coming!!

Lastly, although I was quite looking forward to a deadline-free September, a wonderful opportunity came up this week and it looks like I will be designing a piece for an art exhibit in Seattle. My mind is swimming with ideas. Time to focus and make.

Hillary

I’ve

Some Things Are Better Left Unsaid – Bee Sewcial Theme for September

Posted on August 23, 2015September 24, 2017 Posted in QuiltingTagged Bee Sewcial, making with meaning, minimalism, modern quilt, Quilt, quilting bee5 Comments

As many of you know I am in a unique Quilting Bee with some uber talented ladies. Each month, one of the ten members picks a color palette and a loose theme from which we all create blocks for a quilt. September is my month as Leader/Queen. Since we have had August off and this last week is crazy busy for me, I am posting my mission a little early.

As background for my theme, I adore modern minimalist design, the effect of negative space and making with meaning so I have decided to combine all these things into one grand mission for the month of September. Note that from this month forward, we have decided to invite everyone to join us in sewing. We don’t have room to add other blocks to our quilts but would love anyone to sew right along with us and share what you are making on Instagram by including the Hashtag #inspiredbybeesewcial. We will be checking in on this companion group and commenting as we go so if you are up for the challenge join us (and this month tag me as well @entropyalwayswins so I don’t miss what you are making).

What I ask of my Beemates is to make two distinct quilt blocks no bigger then 10.5 x 10.5 inches (I need even more negative space for this quilt I envision). I want each of you to use black and white fabric (and I use those terms a little loosely because there are obviously many versions of black and white. Adding variety adds some depth in my opinion). Make a design that highlights the importance of negative space (some things are better left unsaid) and lastly make each design mean something. Perhaps the design is a reflection of your place in the world, your child, family, recent notable event, favorite joke . . . The meaning doesn’t have to be serious and you don’t need to share it (though I would love it if you did). In my opinion infusing our makes with meaning steps our making up a notch so spend a little time pondering why and what your block means about YOU.

Pictures tell a thousand words so please feel free to check my pinterest board for designs that inspire me in this way: Pinterest: Discover and save creative ideas . Leannes’s Echoes quilt in my opinion is a perfect example of minimalism and the use of negative space in design.

Other modern quilters who do this very well include Alexis Diese (materials and method / alexis seise), Lindsay Stead (Lindsay Stead) and S.D. Evans (SDE Quilts). Although I am including some of my own modern minimalist quilts in this post I intentionally am excluding my own blocks because I don’t want them to influence what you make.

Recap:

-Palette: black and white (any variety)

-Block size: two blocks 10.5 x 10.5 or less

-original minimalist design highlighting the use of negative space

-infuse your block with meaning and share (or not) what it means

-pieced or paper pieced methods are preferred but if you have to use appliqué to get across your meaning, go for it

-Everyone is invited to join us in making these blocks during the month of September. Bee Sewcial folks only tag theirs with #beesewcial and all others tag with #inspiredbybeesewcial on instagram and we will be following along

I can’t wait to see what you all make!!!

Hillary