"Family" Quilt

Okay...so I've been dibbling and dabbling in quilting and now one of my co-workers asked me to make a quilt that she could give to her sister.  In my head I'm like...for real....I don't even think I'm that good yet!  So we take a trip to the local Hancock Fabrics Store and I tell her to pick a fabric she likes and I will create something using that.  So she picks this batik type fabric and my brain says..."what the..."!  Not knowing what to do with the fabric as I have not really even worked with batiks before...I decided to take a simplistic approach and go modern with it.  So after putting it off and putting it off...I spent about 2 weekends putting this quilt together.  Here are some of the specs:

Machine(s) used:  Juki Exceed F-400 for pieceing & Singer Quantum 9960 for quilting
Thread(s) used:  Superior Bottomline Silver in the bobbin and Superior Masterpiece White for top thread for and quilting.
Fabrics:  print-batik from Hancocks; white-quilter's showcase from Joanns; navy blue-broadcloth from Joann's.
Quilting method: using decorative stitch #71 in continuous line across quilt (except where panel is) with the walking foot on the Singer Quantum 9960.

 

I cut out irregular tumble sized shapes from the batik and fused them onto the white print fabric.

 

I framed the panel with the batick fabric.

Then I worked around the panel to add the sides, top, and bottom.

 

Here it is all pieced together.

 

HERE IS THE REVEAL...

AS YOU CAN SEE MY CO-WORKER AND HER HUSBAND LOVED IT!

 

 

 

Finishing Great Granny Along Blocks...to become my first Great Granny Quilt!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Diego Rivera Gallery Quilt Blocks

Thanks to Mary Jo Pereti from my Cindy Neeham class, she offered me an opportunity to create and display quilt blocks at the Diega Rivera Gallery http://diegoriveragallery.com/visitor-information in San Francisco back in September 2012.  Being the fearless novice that I am I decided to give fusible applique a try for this assignment.    Here is the "back story" of how this all got started from Mary Jo's perspective...

My son Evan Moring is a student there. AS an art project for a class he
designed a wiki (like wikipedia) about a fictitious country; the Principality
of Darren. He coerced the whole family into adding pages to the wiki (I'm
getting graded tomorrow, please add more pages tonight mom!):) Well I wrote
about a fictitious machine quilting workshop done every year to commemorate the
victims of the (fictitious) Alice Disaster. I had a dinner conversation with
Marianna at the workshop and I wove her and Wendy's story into the wiki. Take a
look at the Wiki http://nuclearfamily.wikia.com/wiki/Nuclear_Family_Wiki
especially the following pages: Alice Disaster Quilting society
Pastor Wilhemena Baxter
The wiki was selected to be displayed in the Diega Rivera gallery in September.
Evan also has a lot of wall space and asked us each to contribute. I would
like to put together quilt squares from my 'real' friends from the quilting
workshop and then it will be displayed. This will represent the quilt
commemorating the 'Alice Disaster' victims. I'm looking for about 8 people to
put together a 12"x12" completed block (including machine quilting). I will
then sew them together and they will go on display. Don't start this yet, as
I'll need to give you more specific instructions.

So the following photos include my process and outcomes...I sent two quilt art blocks.  I used fat quarter and scrap pieces.  She loved them.  Unfortunately I could not get my camera to do them justice..it's time for a new camera that will capture the detail and beauty of my quilts...(any suggestions?).

Mary Jo then took my blocks and added to another she received...