Peppers

I finished My "Peppers" last night!  Hooray!  I'm quite happy with how they turned out... I struggled with making the red center one laying down so you are looking down on it.  I think the key was both the shading and sewing directional-ly. By this I mean that I'm trying to capture the shape of the object, by sewing in the direction that the object naturally goes.

For instance, where there was a buldge in the pepper, I sewed around any bulbous protusion, which, combined with shading, helps give the illusion of depth. Another way of looking at directional sewing is to think of the way something grows or sewing with the grain of an item. For instance, if you want to portray an animal, it won't look very realistic if you make the hair going in an unnatural manner.  Similarly, petals, leaves, and plant stems look closer to life with a vertical grain and more cartoonish with horizontal filling.

Background before I hand appliquéd the trapunto peppers 

I also made a decision with the background of this piece.  If you're familiar with design theory, you'll recognize "repetition" and "unity" as two fundamental  design concepts. Many strong designs utilize repetition- whether they are visual art, writing or in a musical composition.  Repetition aows the viewer to feel more comfortable with the piece-as if the already know something about it, since they've seen (or heard) that part of the piece before. Repetition can also help unify a piece. Having too many loose ends that don't relate anywhere else in the work can be jarring and disquieting.

So, for my "Peppers" I used a background fabric which matches the background of my Tomatillo, but in a different color way.  I used the same pattern for the Freemotion quilting as I did on my Tomato. One of the lines of decorative stitch matches another in one of my pieces.

Why is this important? While each piece may be lovely and stand on its own, my plan is to put nine of these "Salsa" pieces together into a quilt. Although I'm doing similar techniques- Machine embroidered veges with decorative stitching and Freemotion quilting, if I'm not careful it will seem like it isn't unified.  Other ways I'm working to unify the peace and provide repetition include using the same font for the name of each of the vegetables or fruits, using an analagous color scheme (red, orange, yellow, green), and having my quilting and decorative stitching be more sharp angles rather than curves (I think of this being more like Mayan or Aztec patterning.

On to my Avocados....!

You Might Also Be Interested in:

New 5 x 7 
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5 x 7 Week 3- 
The Start of Salsa

Developing the 
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Check out these other Great Blogs!
For great ideas on freemotion quilting, check out Leah Day's FreeMotion Quilting Project

To find some wonderful quilting projects, visit Freshly Pieced

Confessions of a Fabric Addict 

Art Quilts by Nina Marie Sayre

Stitch by Stitch by Marelize Ries

Sunshine and Sand -- Design Inspiration

Our dogs playing in the water at Moclips, WA, Pacific Ocean

Is there anything as wonderful as a beautiful ocean beach?  There are so many aspects and differences between beach types and we have some truly marvelous variations on the Pacific coast.    I took these photos for design inspiration, when on a trip to Moclips, WA.  The waves carve out intricate patterns in the sand and the incredible play of light brings out fascinating textures.

As design sources, the sand has many possibilities.  Line and shape are represented with rhythm and repetition.  Due to the brightness and contrast, there is very little color, making the images great for playing with a monochromatic color scheme.  Value contrast can be studied and played upon.

When in nature, I look for these types of elements.  Pattern, shape, line, repetition and variation, symmetry, contrast, and texture all create interest in a composition

While I may never make a composition from one of these particular photo, using a camera to train my eye toward good design has become a habit for me.


 At the same time, using these photos could make an interesting series.

The process of just getting out into nature and seeing, REALLY seeing, can help infuse your creative well with more life, giving you the inspiration to bring forth new ideas in your chosen artistic endeavor.

I don't know about you, but sometimes I struggle with getting out.  I tend to get a little insular, wanting to hole up in my house (especially on cold, rainy Seattle days!)  I always have too much I want or need to do, and I can get caught up in wanting to have time making, rather than gathering more inspiration.  But the process of looking for inspiration can help keep you creating.

Perhaps getting out with my camera each week should be part of my 5 x 7 challenge....  I'll have to think on it.  What do you think?  Would you like to see design inspiration photos each week?

You might also be interested in:
Skagit Skies
Pacific Madronna
Finding Inspiration Every Day