Bee Sewcial January Block - freeform, transparency, connection

Yesterday I made this block for Karen (@capitolaquilter and she blogs at CapitolaQuilter) for my bee, Bee Sewcial. It is about 19" x 19". Karen asked us for freeform, maximalist style blocks that included transparency and connections. Also she said no pink or purple. Our blocks are always made from solids only.



I started with the transparency concept. I spent a long time looking at images of transparency quilts and transparency artwork on the internet as I have trouble imagining how use opaque fabrics to make you see a transparency. Then I got to work, using improv and no rulers.



I made a number of missteps along the way, but I pushed on, as I wanted to see if I could manage something interesting at least.



I found pinning it on my design wall (ie, a wall with a layer of batting pinned on it) helped.



There is my result. Maybe you can see the three rectangles intersecting only in the one corner in the centre. While I am sure that it is possible to improv a transparency far better than I did, I think that part of the illusion is created by the use of very well defined shapes so next time I try I will use a ruler.

I shared this on instagram and Karen said it looked aquatic an maybe the end was affected by refraction of the water. Well, that comment informed the rest of the day's work.



I definitely wanted to include curves in the overall piece as I love curves in improv. So my thoughts went to water, waves, pods, fish. And while I don't think I turn to pink and purple that often, I sure felt the limit of not including them. I tried to stick to a lot of bright, yummy shades of the colours I used.

For connections, I thought that a dark blue, the deep water so to speak, could make them.



At the top of the post you see the block oriented as I designed it, with the fish or sea life on the bottom. But it looks nice oriented this way too. Adding that bit of yellow to square off the block gives it an alternative horizon line, and we all like to see those. For me, the pods become flames, the curves become the forest, the rest feels somewhat cultural and urban. But really it is what you see it to be, its meant to be pleasing shapes, colours and composition, freeform, with transparency and connections.

It's Family Day in my province today, we are having a long weekend. Enjoy!

Best,

Leanne

Do you finish the row?

I was up early, before everyone else, so I was sitting quietly at my desk, knitting. And reading the internet. Being saddened and horrified and troubled by the news. Reading my blog reader for the first time in months, after deciding yesterday to "mark all as read" for the loads of accumulated posts. And my coffee was done. The row was not finished. So I tossed my knitting down and was about to go to get another cup of coffee.

I stopped and thought, should I knit to the end of the row before I went for more coffee?

I almost never knit to the end of the row, since my kids were babies, knitting has been a grab and do, drop and run to where I am needed activity for me. I knit in the creases of my time, in between other things that I should, need or have to do.



But lately, especially this last month, I have been knitting instead of doing other free time things. I have been sitting down to knit. There are many reasons for that, many have to do with how busy the day job has been and how tired it makes me, so other activities feel too active, too creative, too intense for my tired brain and tired body. But also because I have recently revived my love of knitting, of yarn, and of the fun of turning a string into a beautiful, soft, warm thing.

So when I choose to knit, when that is the activity, this morning I realized that I often do finish the row, finish the pattern bit. But I had not noticed until today, until I was again knitting in the creases of my time.

Finish the row, don't finish it, your knitting won't care, it will wait for you to return either way. But lately I have been looking for some creative space to quilt, and maybe if I am finishing the rows, that means that I have a bit more creative space than before.

I have to do some day job work today, but maybe there will be time to sew a bit this afternoon, and if not, my knitting will be there. You can see in the second photo, I left the row, made the coffee and then thought that it was time to share in this space too. I guess I will finish that row later, my crease in time is done, time to get moving.

Best,

Leanne