Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Study in Gray

 This quilt came about as a result of a class I took with Dorothy Caldwell earlier this year.  One of the exercises she had us do in class was to burn holes in organdy with an incense stick.  At the time I thought I would never use this technique, but when I was organizing the class notes recently, I thought let's give it a try.


I started with a piece of white organdy then painted it gray.  I used a piece of red/black fabric underneath and drew the lines I wanted with a fabric pencil. To get the holes, I lit some incense and held it up to the organdy.  It turns out this is quite time consuming as the end of the incense falls off repeatedly.  The piece didn't have enough contrast for me, so I added the yellow french knots.  I made a few marks I didn't intend to, and just decided, as I think Dorothy would do, to make little x's through them. The close up below shows one of the unintended areas.


I love working with gray, and I need to remember to use it more often.  Thanks for the great color choice Kirsten
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8 comments:

  1. GerrieJuly 12, 2011 at 10:03 AM

    I love how you incorporate new techniques into your work. I love the simplicity of this and how the color glows through as if there is a candle or light behind the piece.

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  2. Terry GrantJuly 12, 2011 at 11:44 AM

    Such delicacy! Such simplicity. It is just lovely, with a very peaceful feeling.

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  3. Kristin LJuly 12, 2011 at 12:03 PM

    It's almost lacy. There's a hint of melancholy as well, which seems very appropriate for "grey."

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  4. Diane PerinJuly 12, 2011 at 1:17 PM

    What an interesting technique and a wonderful exploration of gray. I too love the simplicity of this -- it has a gracefulness that is so appealing. There is something hopeful about this, too -- maybe it's that I get a suggestion of rain but the red and yellow add warmth too.

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  5. RenateJuly 12, 2011 at 1:45 PM

    This piece remindd me of raindrops and the dreary days spent indoors as a child when I would rather be outside. A very interesting technique that I will have to try one day.

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  6. Brenda Gael SmithJuly 13, 2011 at 12:23 AM

    This piece has a delicate, ethereal quality. For some reason, it reminds me of the lace pinafores worn by the schoolgirls in the classic Australian movie - Picnic at Hanging Rock. I wonder if this will be reinforced by viewing "in the real".

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  7. Terri StegmillerJuly 13, 2011 at 4:49 AM

    A very interesting technique and I rather like the little unintended areas. I wonder if a stencil burning tool would work for this technique so as not to deal with the ashes falling off.

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  8. Deborah BoschertJuly 28, 2011 at 2:55 PM

    I'd love to see this in real life! (And I will!) I love the sense of layers and the stitched knots. The x's are a genius choice, they are my favorite part of your quilt.

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