As I take this week to prepare for my upcoming May Live Online Class with a fresh batch of 11 students, I thought we could take a look at the work of former students—created either through my book Serendipity Quilts, through the Thursday Night in My Studio Live! presentations of 2020, or in-person classes of 2019—such as “Who Did It?” (above), by Sheila Poore. I get reenergized reflecting on the finished collage quilts, and am very proud of everyone’s accomplishments. Thank you ladies, for sharing your creativity! And readers, please click on any and all the following photos to see them larger.
Hey folks, once again we’re starting to run low of completed collage quilts for future Finish Line posts! I know that many of you were quite busy with fabric collage projects over the past year, so whatever you’ve managed to finish, please consider submitting them for sharing. Thank you!
Submit Quilt for "Finish Line"
Pat Beaudoin
I remember the class which Pat Beaudoin of Dundas, Ontario, started her lioness. It was in October, 2019, my last Harpswell, Maine retreat before the pandemic hit. In the blog post I wrote about that class, I used her in-progress lioness as an example of how novelty fabrics that you may never think to use for fabric collage, can actually turn out to be extremely useful. See how how Pat saw lioness chin hairs in the scrub brush cut from a western-themed fabric, in the class photos below.
From Pat:
I started quilting about 15 years ago. I started because it was the only way I got to see my golfing buddies in the winter. While I enjoyed the quilting and especially the time with my friends, I wanted to explore a different type of quilting. I forget when I first saw one of Susan’s quilts. One of my quilting buddies introduced me to her quilt site. I was hooked and decided that was what I wanted to learn.
Other of Pat’s finished collage quilts (pictured above)—”Under the Tuscan Sun,” “Emma,” and “Bernini,” have been featured in the linked Finish Line blog posts. As you’ll continue reading from Pat, she did her homework prior to class with the Master Class spiral exercise and her first dog portrait of Emma. (The Spiral eWorkshop is now also available separately). Pat did a great job in class and has a masterful use of the prints found in her fabrics to create the visual texture of her subjects. I love how Sheba, “Queen of the Jungle,” finished up. Be sure to click on her photos to see the details.
I immediately bought Susan’s online Master Class and did the spiral. Then I did a friend’s dog (Emma). I tried to sign up for Susan’s course—but we all know how difficult that is. Second try, I was on the computer as soon as the registration was open and I got lucky. So I needed to pick a good subject to take to the class in Maine.
My husband and I had a great adventure in Africa on a camera safari. He got a wonderful picture of a lioness, which we have hanging in our living room. I decided I would do either his lioness picture or a giant tortoise picture he took on a trip to the Galapagos. The lioness won.
I started her in the class October 2019. Having done the spiral exercise and Emma was a big help and also made it easier to follow Susan’s instructions. I did sign up for her advanced class taking place in the summer of 2020, but we all know how that went !!!!
Susan’s guidance and suggestions were so helpful. I worked on Sheba (as we named her in class) and she has hung unfinished in my sewing room while I did another friend’s dog (Bernini). I struggled with how to finish her and finally decided she looked pretty good as she was and I just added a binding.
The label on the back contains Susan’s autograph that she added to the foundation fabric while in class. I saved it to add to my label. A great teacher, I hope I get to attend another of her classes again some day. Thanks Susan.
Julie Rush
Julie Rush of Eldon, Missouri, took my advice and started her fabric collage learning with a spiral. The simplicity of a spiral promotes a playfulness with color, prints, and fabrics that Julie certainly had fun with. The complementary color scheme certainly adds a lot of energy to this piece, but check out how Julie treated the background blue spiral. I can’t remember seeing anyone use short, straight cuts of fabric like that and I love it! They move cross-wise in that area, while the yellow fabrics flow length-wise—complementary piecing!
From Julie:
I purchased ‘Serendipity Quilts’ and spirals were encouraged as a starting point for learning this method. My previous experience in collage quilting was realistic pictorial fabric art. It was actually a jump for me to put an artwork together using this method. I am now in process of completing Susan’s Sea turtle pattern.
My background is in a very different type of collage quilting, pictorial realism in fabric. I wanted to try a different approach and found you website and book. This spiral is actually the first attempt using this method. I really enjoy it.
Sandy Zube
Sandy Zube from New Jersey, did indeed attend all 24 of my online Thursday Night presentations last year—Tom’s and my answer to the cancellation of all my scheduled classes and the need to create a creative outlet accessible to all in 2020. It worked great and I continue to refer current students to those various videos for further information of the fabric collage process. Sandy often asked questions and it’s a thrill for me to see this collage of her grandson–it has an immediacy and freshness with the feel of an impressionistic painting. Just lovely—and a fun use of fabrics. Sandy, you have an exceptional grandson to express happiness while doing yard work!
From Sandy:
I started with the Serendipity Quilts book then I attended all the Thursday Night Live in my Workshop seminars. These workshops and the blog gave me the courage to attempt this particular photo. I knew what I was trying to say, I just needed to know how to say it. The inspiration I get from the workshops is like an electrical spark. I believe I took this picture of my grandson Jacob, cutting stray limbs from my tree. The light and happiness in his face spoke volumes to me. I wanted to capture the happiness and his show of strength.
Sheila Poore
Sheila Poore of Jackson, Wyoming took a class with me (photo below) in June 2019, at the Quilt Gallery in Kalispell, Montana, joined by a few of her friends. They were great encouragement to each other as they worked through the stages of the fabric collage process. Sheila’s quilt proves that fabric collage can be used to create just about texture you can imagine. The soft down of these owlets is not an easy task to recreate in fabric, and Sheila did an awesome job using the directional designs in her fabric prints.
It was fun to see those wonderful eyes emerge and it was a good choice of Sheila’s to create the eyes early on. I’ve found that when someone creates a light colored subject on the light colored foundation fabric, it can sometimes be “unrewarding” for awhile. High contrast features like the eyes, or the eventual contrast of the background—help the subject pop, as you’re working on them, and finally, at the Finish Line.
From Sheila:
Loved the class, I was just recovering from a major back surgery and really wasn’t fully present, but glad I took the opportunity.
Pat! You finished! Sheba is beautiful.
I love opening up a ‘Finish Line’ and seeing a finished piece from a class I was in. Sheila your owlets are so beautiful! Really nice job!
I admire everyone’s work and I love Pat’s idea of adding Susan’s autograph. I can cut it out of my book!
These are so beautiful and such an inspiration!
I am still hoping to take an in person class one day!
Seeing the various stages of piecing, coloring and unusual designs is an inspiration. Thank you, ladies and Susan, for another foray into what can be done with patience and commitment!
I just love everything about this photo quilting I’m going to do a money,and wish somewhere I could get a pattern of the lion