Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Mohns Hill Quilt



Anyone who has been a reader of my blog for any length of time, or familiar with my work, knows that I keep coming back to my neck of the woods, Lancaster County, PA for inspiration. So, it dawned on me that I just needed to do a series of Lancaster County Quilts. 

Minimalistic, abstract quilts that try to capture 
the feelings and impressions that fill me as I travel around here, 
and the deep affection that I have for it.

"Mohns Hill" is the first of these quilts.


Named after a local road, (which I plan on doing for all quilts in this series) 
the appliquéd pieces draw on the off-kilter shapes of the old worn and weathered barns, 
and the quilting reflects the beautiful landscape of rolling hills and plowed farm fields.



Made with assorted shot cottons, (including the woven selvages of some, as they were just too lovely to cut off) along with some homespuns and a pretty flower print, it also has a faced binding. 
(Never done a faced binding? See my very easy tutorial here). 

Quilt is currently for sale in my Etsy Shop.

And speaking of inspiration, I'd love to hear what inspires you all...
Do you find yourself revisiting themes or sources of inspiration?
Do you gather your inspiration from a special place close to your heart or a favorite subject matter?
Or are you more inspired by technique, fabrics, colors?
tell me what inspires you in the comment section, and how do you stay connected to it.
It's an on going source of fascination for me and I'd love to hear your thoughts!


Wednesday, May 6, 2015

Pretty Pincushions


 It's been a while since I've made any pincushions for my Etsy shop
but over the years it's something I seem to go back to time and time again.



And with good reasons! They are super fun to make and can be made in so many different ways. 
Do a search of pincushions on Pinterest or Etsy sometime, 
you will be amazed at the variety and creativity! 
(You can see some of my past ones here.)

With my newly found interest in punch needle embroidery, 
it seemed like a great time to make some new pretty pincushions featuring this technique.



As of this post I have made these two and am working on a third. 


They each feature a center flower motif done in punch needle.


The motifs were then stitched onto a wool blend felt base,


and simple traditional embroidery stitches were used around the edges.




The two pincushions shown in this post can be found in my shop here and here.
Hope to be listing more soon.
(Once listed they can be found in my shop's Pincushion Section).