The animals represented in these Finish Line quilts have a reputation, deserved or not, for ferocity. They are often depicted as remorseless killers, examples of “nature, red in tooth and claw.” The artists of these quilts, however, have found the beauty within the beasts.
Look into the soulful eyes of Judy Bilardello’s and Eva Brown’s magnificent lions (a pre-quilted detail of Judy’s appears above). Feel the sun as Jean White’s crocodile basks on the banks of the Nile River and I dare you not to smile as you gaze at his resplendence.
There is beauty everywhere, as these quilts remind us. No matter what subject your choose, there is the opportunity to use fabric collage to capture the beauty that you see and to share it with others.
Do you have a finished fabric collage quilt (and story?) you’d like to share in a future Finish Line post? Click on submission button below.
Submit Quilt for "Finish Line"
Click on any of the smaller images below, to see them larger and to scroll through each photo gallery.
Further Susan Carlson Learning Resources include: Fly on the Wall: Susan Carlson Fabric Collage Studio Watch, Facial Features eWorkshop, website, Serendipity Quilts, patterns, blog (in general), blog “Teaching” category, YouTube videos, Spiral eWorkshop, Sea Turtle eWorkshop, Fabric Collage Online Master Class, and Patreon.
Judy Bilardello
See more of Judy’s fantastic collage artwork in these posts.
From Judy Bilardello of Santa Cruz, CA:
I heard of Susan’s 20 foot croc in 2017 and said to myself, “This is a woman I’ve got to meet”. So I signed up for her in-person class at Art Quilt Tahoe in 2019 and was swept into the world of fabric collage. I have since joined Susan’s on-line classes on two separate occasions as well as her Thursday Night in my Studio presentations and Fly on the Wall demos. I also own her books. And here is where I say that Susan and her husband Tom have designed classes that are seamless and personalized to student learning needs.
I call this beautiful lion Amani—a word that means peace and tranquility in Swahili. Amani’s penetrating gaze tells us to seek out and work toward these ideals. He’s a wise cat! I began this collage in January 2024 during one of Susan’s on-line classes.
Because of Susan’s suggestions, advice, and encouragement, as well as her ability to see details that needed attention, (ie ‘Where are his ears?’) Amani began to take shape. Because of Susan’s technique of drawing on the photo I sent her as she gave instructions, I was able to continue working when she moved on to help someone else and after the conclusion of the week long class.
My collage work continued throughout 2024 until it was finally completed (including the quilting done by Sara Roche) in January 2025. After a weekend stint at a local quilt show, Amani now has a prominent place in my living room. He makes me happy.
Eva Brown
Eva picked up her fabric collage skills on her own but mentioned that for her lion’s eyes, she was helped by my teaching. What a nice thing to hear as those eyes draw you right into that beautiful face. I’m not sure which instructions inspired her but there’s a quite involved post on eyes titled, “An Eye For an Eye,” that I usually refer folks to.
From Eva Brown of Park City, Utah:
My first eyes! Susan was invaluable!
Jean White
See more of Jean’s beautiful collage artwork in On the Road: Fabric Collage at Woodland Ridge Retreat, Downsville, WI—September 2022, and NOT on the Road: November 2024 Live Online Fabric Collage Class—Part 1.
From Jean White of Kingston, Ontario, Canada:
I started by watching hours and hours of Susan’s You Tube videos but never got up enough nerve to start on my own. When Susan said that she was not going to teach in person in 2023 and there was one space left at the Woodland Ridge in-person class in 2022, I signed up and then chatted with my husband about taking a road trip with me. Luckily he agreed. He took landscape pictures for a week while I had such fun days with Susan and 11 fabulous classmates, all of whom were generous with their critiques and suggestions.
I attended the course with specific objectives in mind – to learn about colour and how to blend as well as how to create art with fabric. However, I learned so much more from Susan as she zoned in quickly on shaping and changes in fabric order that could improve the artistic impression of the anatomy of a crocodile. She was an overall wonderful teacher and I use her suggestions every day in my quilting.
Niles spoke to me because of past associations with Egypt and the Nile River. My military husband had been posted to Egypt and my business partner is Egyptian. Niles is a fully sated crocodile, just having eaten and is lying on the bank of the river basking in the sun. He went through several iterations, particularly his teeth and his hind foot.
The only material I could find that looked like teeth had shells that were too small. So, I took a picture of the shells, enlarged it and then printed it on fabric. The foot was an evolution. After remaking it three times I realized I had been looking at the reference picture but not seeing it. The reason my foot did not look right was I had his toes crossing in the wrong direction!
FABULOUS collages this morning!! Thank you for sharing.
Thanks Lizzie! And Happy Summertime in Maine!
Great work ladies! I really enjoyed your pictures and commentaries! Your beasts are truly beautiful. Thanks for sharing!
Wow wow wow…these are absolutely gorgeous and that doesn’t even describe it enough!!!
Like Jean White, I am almost compulsively interested in Susan Carlson’s collages and have made some progress. What blocks me is my tiny stash, so loved Jean’s idea of printing fabric for special needs. ! All of the samples in this post are interesting, and really like Eva Brown’s collage.