Thursday, September 1, 2011

Short Summer


Now, this is the flower garden I wanted but didn't have this year!  Summer didn't arrive in the Northwest until about  three weeks ago and the garden never quite did anything.  I don't even have much research for dandelion this year.  I can't blame it all on the weather though since I didn't get out there to help it along. 

Once again, I was behind on time and inspiration (I think I need to go back and read the sidebar in our book about creating time and space for art! and that was in my chapter) and didn't really get started until last week.  Luckily, Terry and Gerrie invited me to meet them at the Pacific West Quilt Show where I was reminded about how much I love playing with color and embellishment.  Seeing Gerrie's quilts in person especially helped.

I decided to do an embellished flower garden.  We had warm, sunny days last weekend so I was able to get outside on the deck to create some bright orange fabric paper.  I had to add a few hints of pink ever since  Terri introduced me to the color combination of pink and orange.  I did take pictures for a blog post but before I could get it done hubby had us off for a late afternoon sail and the rest of my time was dedicated to getting her done.  I thought about going all orange for the quilt and using soft orange for the background, but I was worried it would all blend together.  I didn't have time to start over if it didn't work, so I went with the same color scheme as my chartreuse quilt: orange, purple and green. After sewing down the fabric paper flowers, I started adding embellishments.  That was when I discovered that I have used up most of my orange beads--either that or I didn't have many to begin with.  I looked for orange yarn, wire, miscellaneous fibers--nothing but a couple vintage buttons.  So here is about my entire stash of orange embellishments.  I had to turn to copper a bit, so I hope that isn't too brown.  I really like how the quilt turned out.  I really need to create a whole series of embellished gardens.  Maybe now that all the kids are going back to school full time.

14 comments:

donna!ee said...

beautiful beautiful...orange makes me happy! :)

Vicki Miller said...

Since I am working on a pile of fabric paper for leaves at the moment, I think I will have to give your piece a vote. I love your orange embellishments, especially the oranged tinged mother of pearl buttons.

What Comes Next? said...

beautiful! The embellishments are perfect. I completely relate to the lack of summer here in the west, and also the lack of motivation to help the garden along!

Terri Stegmiller said...

Oh my, those embellishments look so great on this, adding so much interest and texture. Of course the background is full of texture as well so what a great way to fill my eyes.

Karen said...

This is eye candy Nikki, it's so colorful and summery.

Gerrie said...

I loved this the minute it popped up on my screen. How perfect to use the purple complement to make the orange pop. It was so much fun to see you last week and I am glad that Terry and I could inspire you to jump in and create this.

Diane Perin said...

If you hadn't explained your time issues, I'd never have been able to tell that this was something you made under such conditions. I love how it looks like a night garden in summer, with the orange flowers glowing out from the darkness. And the embellishments add such great texture and interest (and now, having seen your others in person, I have a glimmer of how great this will look in person). I actually think the coppery color of the beads might work better because they show up well.

I admire you for all you juggle, Nikki -- and think abandoning it to go for an afternoon sail with your husband is exactly the right priority!

Unknown said...

Once again you have created someting instantly recognisable as yours. I envy how clear your voice is. I am interested in the texture of the background. Is it is printed fabtric or is is it quilted and then painted?

Kristin L said...

Like Diane said, you have to have your priorities, and even if that doesn't leave much time for art making, it still looks like you had great fun with the time you did have! As I was working on mine, the Lorikeet palette kept creeping in -- purple, green, and orange definitely play nice together! A series of colorful embellished floral quilts like this one would be wonderful! Enjoy your (fabric) gardening!

Françoise said...

I like the purple background behind all these bright and happy orange flowers. We didn't have any summer here this year. We had a lovely spring, and now it's already autumn. Too late for bright flowers.
I must tell you that I really enjoyed seeing your quilts in Birmingham. They look even more beautiful and happy in person.

Nikki said...

Thank you everyone. Helen, the background is quilted then painted.

I really need to take another picture of the quilt. The sun was too bright yesterday when I was taking the picture. I tried to tone down the glare, but lost something in the process. I'm using my daughter's inexpensive camera since mine died on a hiking trip earlier this summer. One of these days I will have to invest in something nice, but for now I have to make due.

Nikki said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Terry Grant said...

I think we were on the same wavelength! I was so happy to finally see some summer flowers this year that they filled me with joy. Your embellishments are just the right touch to a whimsical, joyful composition! Beautiful.

Deborah Boschert said...

So fun! I love the way the embellishments are so thoughtfully placed. They really look completely incorporated. (Sometimes embellishments can look like an after thought, you know?) The buttons are especially great. All those circular bits really tie your work together!