I’ve talked about how much I love chickens, eggs and flowers. Then there are the roosters. What is more majestic? They strut. They crow. They’re flashy. How can they be otherwise. They’re feathers have an iridescent quality and they’re so dramatic. This quilt is named “Brainiac: He’s So Bright!”
This one is “Himself” He is so self important. Not just because he’s won awards but because he rules the roost. Everyone knows it. Well, everyone who’s lived with a rooster.
In the summer, chickens are at their best when they get to wander around in the yard. They peck around among the flowers and sometimes lay eggs there too! Their clucks are very appealing. The way they shake and ruffle up their feathers is so much fun. I even love the way they separate into their own paths and then suddenly converge on each other and fuss…..like kids in the school yard.
I love themes with chickens, roosters, eggs and flowers. I can’t resist popping them into a quilt or painting. The chicken gathering her own bouquet (above) is in the center of this quilt and the four corners have these little egg-lilly vignettes.
These two (above) are also gathering flowers. They have totally different taste though, as you can see. There is a magnetic quality, in my opinion, in flowers and eggs. They’re both fragile but contain inestimable power. They’re both mystical. They both feed the soul.
Why would anyone in their right mind cut perfectly good fabric into a million pieces and then sew them back together again. Think of the waste! Our pioneer foremothers would probably roll over in their graves at the thought.
Well, that was downright rude, I realize. I’ve recently been instagraming with Luke Haynes. He is an amazing artist and quilter. I’ve enjoyed Joe Cunningham’s articles and quilts in magazines for years. Ricky Tims is an accomplished quilter and magazine owner, writes articles and…..his Dad is a quilter. Men are huge in quilting.
I’ve seen a lot of quilts in museums made from the usable parts from worn out pants, dresses and shirts…..even from military uniforms made of wool. Some are beautiful works of art and others are obviously inventions of necessity. Some are sewn by machine and others are sewn by hand. The stories that accompany many of these quilts are fascinating.
I was inspired by several magazine articles about Anna Williams. She lives in Baton Rouge. She and her quilter friends have developed their own art in the form of scrap quilts. When I read about how they sewed strips of fabric together and then took their scissors and cut through them…..it seemed so reckless, I just had to try it. What freedom! No worries about matching seams or corners. No worries about planning out the whole quilt before construction begins. Just the adventure of seeing how the whole thing will evolve.
The two pictures are small sections of the larger quilt.
If you’re a quilter with a ton of scraps, this is a great way to make use of them. It made me feel so thrifty!