If I haven’t made it clear before, fabric collage is not a particularly fast process. For example, students are not going to finish a collage quilt in a week-long class—unless maybe it’s a spiral or fish. The idea is to get a good start in class, where they learn and get coached on the technique, then finish the quilts later on their own.
Sometimes these in-progress collages come back for a visit via a future class or fabric collage coaching or a Patreon meeting where the student gets more feedback to continue the work. But probably most often I don’t see the quilt again until it’s (hopefully) sent in to share for a Fabric Collage Finish Line post.
Last month, as part of our Live Online Class week (see Part 1—The Zoophies), we included an independent study option called Loose Ends, where students could bring back quilts they had begun in any previous online class—such as “Bob” (photo above) by Marie Wood. Those previous students could chose to attend either Monday and Wednesday or Tuesday and Thursday. They received feedback on their chosen days and worked independently in between.
This was something new we tried—independent study days within a 5-day week—and it worked out really well. Of the eight folks in the Loose Ends, three were in the early to mid stages (first and second drafts) of their projects—Sandy Low, Carol Allen-Mollgaard, and Nancy Hayes. Four were in the mid to final stages (second and third drafts) of their subject images (backgrounds yet to come)— Jackie Dalley, Marie Wood, LeahGrace Kayler, and Kelly Stafford. Mary McKay however, brought one project to absolutely and totally finish in order to send off for quilting, and a second to continue working on.
The progress the Loose Ends Ladies made ranged from wow-inducing first drafts to more subtle but telling third draft details, adding depth and definition to their pieces. Have fun viewing their progress, below, as they delve into the nitty gritty of fabric collage.
Warning: this post has lots of bright and colorful stuff to look at—don your solar eclipse sunglasses, kick back, and enjoy with a refill of your cuppa. Be sure to click on any smaller photos to see them larger.
Carol Allen-Mollgaard
Carol started this collage of a mama and baby buffalo in my September 2021 Live Online Class. Below are images from the end of that class.
In the time between Carol’s 2021 class to this September’s class, she got quite a bit more work done, below, on this pair. Her Independent Study goals: Continue melding purples/green. Rework Mavis’s nose. Is it too soon to start her back hump?
Mama Mavis was coming along beautifully, though needed to have the bottom of her head better defined. Carol liked the greens and purples she had worked into the mama, but wasn’t sure about the lighter green on her snout. My thought is usually “when in doubt, add more.” More of the lighter values would bring out her jawline, so why not add more lighter green, and more lighter purples as well, and see what happens?
From Carol:
I began working on Norman and Mavis two years ago while taking an online class from Susan. Norman, the calf, came together quite quickly but Mavis and I “butted” heads. I knew what I wanted, I just didn’t know how to accomplish it. When Susan offered a “Loose Ends” workshop, I grabbed the opportunity. Not only did I have her expertise, I had my classmates’ help as well. We were all able to watch each other’s tutoring sessions and pick up tidbits to apply to our own collages. Working with such talented people was my favorite time. Thanks to Susan, Mavis and I are on the same mindset now.
In the course of the week, Mavis not only got some nice highlights in her face, but an upgrade to a light green nose. Now she has her own set of colors to separate her from her calf, Norman. Before class ended, Carol and I discussed where to go next to finish this second draft of Mavis’s head, annotated “notes” are in the screenshot below.
Jackie Dalley
Jackie started this quilt in my June 2023 Portraits Only Live Online Class. Below, is a screen shot from the end of that class. Jackie had concentrated her time on her husband Will’s portrait, but gotten a start on her grandson, Roan.
When Jackie returned in September, she had made fantastic progress on her grandson’s face, below. Her Independent Study goals: Get the faces of her husband and grandson fine-tuned (third draft stage). Get ideas for shirts and background.
The detailed adjustments that Jackie made—twinkle in eyes, angle of mouth, curve of jaw—are almost imperceptible, but put together bring out the specific qualities of the individuals in these two portraits.
From Jackie:
For this stage in my collage it was really helpful to get just a couple of days of feedback. I didn’t feel like I needed constant check-ins at this point, but on a portrait collage, where there are many important details to capture a likeness, having the opportunity to work in a concentrated period of time with Susan’s keen eye helping me along the way was invaluable. I found it particularly valuable to have a day to work between feedback days. With the nit-picky details I was focusing on, it took more time to make changes that made a visible difference in the collage as a whole.
Nancy Hayes
Nancy has now been in a few of my online classes (the last being in January 2023), and in each one, she takes in my comments and feedback, then returns to the next consult with amazing progress. So it’s no surprise that she got as far as she did in a few concentrated days.
About Nancy’s subjects:
I have been blessed to have Orioles at our feeders for the last few years. Every year we get more and they stay longer. I wanted to create this quilt using my photos to keep spring in my heart all winter long.
Nancy’s Independent Study goals: To combine and interpret two photos she had taken and get far enough along to think about background ideas. Nancy achieved those goals, including the beginning of a background begun in the collage, below right. Nancy is an avid photographer and her thought is to create a fabric collage version of a photography technique that blurs and creates circles in the background of a photo, as seen below left. She has a vision for it and we discussed the use of sheer layers for blurring and blending. I look forward to seeing how she ends up creating the background.
One by one, feather grouping by feather grouping, these birds came to life. They aren’t very big—eight to ten inches each—with just the right amount of detail and color variation—allowing the prints and values in the fabrics to combine and create the winged forms.
From Nancy:
I think these online events have been improved and fine tuned as you have done them. It is awesome to enjoy the use of my full stash, not have to travel and board my furry kids, and still meet people for all over the world. Susan does a fabulous job giving positive and helpful feedback and Tom is brilliant with the technical issues.
LeahGrace Kayler
LeahGrace also began this quilt in my June 2023 Portraits Only Live Online Class. By the end of that class, she had finished the first draft of her granddaughter Ella’s face and had fabrics selected for her hair. In the screenshot below, are the annotated ideas for adding fancifulness to Ella’s hair, which is what LeahGrace was hoping to do.
Before returning to the Independent Study class, LeahGrace had already progressed with a lovely layered head of hair, photo below.
From LeahGrace:
It’s my first “human” quilt and I chose my granddaughter. I wanted to continue to work on values and dare to make a non-flesh-colored face. I wanted to continue to be looser and more playful in my work. And during this recent session, I wanted to put real depth into my piece, learning how to do that.
This is another piece that you have to flip back and forth between above and below photos to see the beautifully subtle progress made. Focus on how Ella’s eyes, end of nose, and left corner of mouth changes, and you’ll see what I mean.
Sandy Low
Sandy was in my very first Live Online class in March 2021—along with LeahGrace (above) and Mary McKay, Kelly Stafford, and Marie Wood (still to come).
From Sandy:
My first collage quilt was a penguin entitled Tipping Point One, featured a penguin floating on a melting iceberg. It was the bring attention to the grim reality of climate change. My tree kangaroo is Tipping Point Two, and will hopefully illustrate the dangers of fire and habitat loss. Both the penguin and the tree kangaroo are based on photos that my daughter Karen took at the Kansas City Zoo.
Sandy is another student who entered this Independent Study class with a new project to work on. The photo below, shows where she was at the start of the week. Sandy’s goal: Tree kangaroo eyes and nose!
One of the absolute benefits of working online is my ability to annotate the progress photos that students send in, see screenshot below. I could re-draw and even “re-arrange” and accentuate parts of this guy’s head and face to give Sandy a guide to work from when she was on her own.
Sometimes you just have to work with the photo you have. This one was taken by Sandy’s daughter and it’s good enough until you try to see details in the shadowed side of the face. But Sandy persevered and now has a very nice collage on its way—somewhere between first and second drafts—of a downward gazing tree kangaroo.
Mary McKay
Mary began this wonderfully colorful portrait of her husband Frank, in my May 2022 Class in Santa Fe. Her Independent Study goal for this week: Final mustache and mouth check. Work on glasses, eyes, nose.
From Mary:
Frank is my partner and dearest friend. He is a life long birder. I took the photo in El Valle de Anton, Panama, where we were both surrounded by birds he had only seen in pictures. He was so happy and so relaxed.
“Frank” already had his appointment with a long-arm quilter scheduled as Mary gave him his final touches. A few are annotated in the screenshot above, plus a little adjustment made to his glasses… and he’s done and off to be quilted. Congrats, Mary! It just occurred to me that Frank must be glowing in the reflection of the amazing birds that surrounded you in Panama.
Mary’s second day of Independent study was dedicated to Oliver the Galapagos turtle who was begun in my January 2023 Live Online Class.
As it turned out, wrinkled turtle skin is not easy to interpret in fabric—at least not in bold and colorful fabric—and a Galapagos turtle seen from this angle has a lot of baggy, wrinkled skin. But as we took the day to figure this out, once and for all, Mary had a great question. “Can we just crop it out?” And as you see below, yes we can. It was a brilliant thought and lets the two important parts of this image stand out, literally—his head and foot. It looks like Oliver may, finally, be moving closer to getting quilted himself.
Kelly Stafford
Kelly began this portrait in a series of fabric collage coaching sessions she shared with two fabric collage friends beginning in February of this year.
When asked why Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Kelly replied:
I had recently read Nina Totenberg’s book, “Dinners with Ruth,” which I highly recommend, especially the audiobook. Though I had never wanted to do a portrait before, I was inspired to attempt my own tribute to this amazing woman.
Portraits, especially when bold color choices are made, can be daunting and even discouraging. Kelly shared:
I had put Ruth in the closet and, without this class, she would probably have stayed there. The class got me going again and excited about the project.
Before class began, Kelly made some nice adjustments on her own (below left). Her Independent Study goals: Add to and take a close look at RBG’s ears. Get her lips and smile right. Assess fabric choices. Check her jaw line, especially on her right.
The two photos below are set up as a gallery—if you click on one, you can flip back and forth from “before” to “after” to see the subtle changes Kelly made to RBG’s face and neck. What a difference to her expression those little adjustments make.
At the end of class, I sent Kelly off with some “homework” (below), until next time.
From Kelly:
Because of health issues, I doubt I will ever be able to attend an in-person class. The online classes, consulting sessions, and the Patreon meetings, have allowed me to benefit from Susan’s 1 on 1 coaching. I have really enjoyed this journey. I’m even learning more drawing techniques in other classes that I may incorporate into other projects, or dare I say, art!
Marie Wood
Marie also began this quilt in my June 2023 Portraits Only Live Online Class. She has such a sweet reason for choosing Bob as her subject:
The portrait that I wanted to do is of my husband, Bob. I choose him because he deserved to have a portrait quilt! I have done other quilts for my daughters and granddaughter and wanted to make an extra special quilt for Bob. This one captured his smile while enjoying being out on the boat on Upper Saranac Lake in the Adirondacks.
The screenshot above, is from the end of the portraits class in June. Between then and September’s class, Marie got a lot done on Bob, below—including that great mouthful of teeth. It was nice to hear that she made them by following the “teeth video” demo in my Facial Features eWorkshop. Marie’s Independent Study goals: Fine tune her husband’s face. Background. Everything!
Marie met her goals, and more, below. There’s final details added to Bob’s face and neck, his shirt and vest were upgraded (including a darn good zipper cut from a perfect fabric print), PLUS the background—just about everything! I love that the background is as joyful as the portrait is. Bob looks like someone who would be fun to be around.
Wow! Having shared a class or two with several of these ladies it is great to see the progress they have made! I envy them that follow-uptime together. Sounds like a fantastic idea to me. Congratulations to all the participants and to Susan and Tom for creating Loose Ends.
Grace! It was fabulous. Hopefully we will have a chance again in the future!