Stetching the brain again

I need to stretch myself, as I have become complacent and predictable (who would have thought, maybe it’s my age) so l I have joined the Yahoo internet group dedicated to NZ and Australian art quilts. I know I will learn a lot from these talented artists, and looking forward to sharing my knowledge with them.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Aus_NZartquilters

The group has a monthly A4 sized challenge around a theme and technique, and I am going to try to do these challenges around a series of dragonflies. I have always admired these insects and their zest for life, and have always wanted to do a quilt with dragonflies – here is my chance!

My first challenge is around the theme “Seasons”, and the technique is Embellishment, so I want to try more free motion embroidery on the machine.

I think Angelina fibres will be perfect for the wings, and I feel a Summer theme with a dragonfly flying though the tall rushes and grasses towards water.

The wings were created using sliver, gold purple Angelina, and the body using yellow and red Angelina.
Water was made by collaging a dark, medium, and light blue fabrics, and then laying different novelty threads on the top. I held these down with Press n Seal, and couched the threads down in a loose grid. I used a small stitch, as I found it perforates the Press n Seal and makes it easier to rip off, instead of a longer stitch. It looks like a stormy sea or sky, I love stroking the yarns.
Found some left over “bird of paradise” fabric, and ragged cut the top to look like grass. Sewed the fabric to the sky, and reinforced with small stitches, where the dragonfly would be cut out of the sky. A sharp knife around a freezer paper pattern of a dragon fly made quick work of the sky and grass.
After a bit of fiddling laid a scrap of yellow fabric under the body of the dragonfly, and gluestik the wings and body into place under the sky and grass, sort of a reverse appliqué, but cut out the dragonfly shape first, then laid the Angelina underneath. I am not sure if white fabric was a good choice under the wings, maybe grey or red would have been better?
Dark purple thread zigzagged outlined the dragonfly, and variegated orange / brown topstitched the grass. Only a small amount of quilting around the wings and where the sky/grass met.
Decided the dragonfly needed a bit more “oomph”, so zigzagged freely with mustard thread to create depth in the body and rudder, and then brown around the outside.
Perhaps I need to put some beads to give the body more definition?