Refined Samples

During Easter I had some fun making some more refined samples having done some more research on Pinterest

 http://www.pinterest.com/neongirlxxx/fair-grounds/

I decided that I quite like the colours and shapes of ferris wheels.

I thought it would be fun to make a ferris wheel out of Kantha stitching, using a vibrant, colour changing wool. I am very pleased with this sample and think this might be something I will consider using later on.

This little sample was just and experimental piece of knitting, using the wool I purchased from Liberty, to see if I could effectively recreate a ferris wheel. I was quite pleased with the result however I feel if I were to use this technique in my final piece I would be straying from the quilting skills I have learnt so far.

Quilt Museum

In the first week of Easter I went to visit the Quilt Museum in York. I really enjoyed my visit and found the work of Jannice Gunner really inspiring. I really liked her combination of techniques and colour that really made her work stad out amongst the other more traditional log cabin pieces.

I also really enjoyed the contemporary quilt exhabition which gave me lots of ideas for using different techniques to create different affects.

http://www.quiltmuseum.org.uk/exhibitions/archives/cabin-fever-log-cabin-quilts.html

London Trip

I really enjoyed our class trip to London! I found the quilt exhibition in the Somerset House not too useful as the exhibition was very denim based and so was all a bit monotone in colour for me. Although it was nice to see quilts being displayed in a gallery context instead of interior design.

However I loved visiting all the different fabric shops between Soho and China town, the variety was fantastic although a little pricey. Finally I really enjoyed having a good rummage around Liberty. I found loads of inspiring materials and it was very comforting to see the kind of job prospects the future holds.

Investigation - Samples

I have learnt a few new techniques this week which have been good fun.

I have learnt Kantha stitching, which although time consuming, I think gives a very nice effect especially when using  some of the more colourful threads. Most of the other girls in the group opted to use plain fabric to stitch into, but I felt this checkered fabric gave me a geometric advantage.

This sample is an experiment using a see through front fabric, inserting ribbons and cord and experimenting with using ribbon as thread. I love the variety of colours in this sample and the idea of using some thing a little different to sew with. 

This sample is just simple bead work, I have chosen to use a fabric that has an opaque pattern with a transparent negative pattern and decided to experiment with wadding by knitting a bright pink middle layer. The beads really remind me of the little lights that light up fairground rides and I think the two contrasting colours really work.