The end of Quilt Camp 2021

Sue left this morning so it is the official end of Quilt Camp 2021.  Oh, we will still create; just not together and there is a lot to be said for working creatively in a pair or group.  Luckily, we will be back together in Pennsylvania for a Red Thread Retreat at the end of September.

Often after someone leaves it feels empty and quiet and so a walk is a good way to get over that feeling.  Here are a few photos from Elizabeth's walk after Sue left.

A nearby pond is covered with water lilies.

A small island is a canoe ride away but today the lake was a bit choppy for canoeing.

We don't stay empty here for long and a new friend arrives for dinner and the long weekend.

On the creative front, Molly has another new shirt.  She likes how the white polyester thread didn't dye and is left white on the bodice and around the hem.

Quilt Camp Day 8

We are winding down and not starting anything that can't be finished in a day as Sue is preparing to leave on Friday.  :(

Today we did more washing out of fabric batching in dye, a bit more cyanotype, and worked on some PGFiber2Art "business" stuff.  Also, we have some pictures to share that didn't make it into yesterday's post.  Sue did a re-dip of some of her "ugly" fabrics in the indigo pot.  Both of the pieces below were originally a gold/brown fabric that Sue posted a few days ago.  The first indigo treatment helped, but they still needed more, so this is what they look like after the second dip in the indigo pot.

The piece below is one that originally looked like a cow - brown with white spots!  If you go back to Day 6, you can see the original fabric and what it looked like after the first dip in indigo.  In the piece below, the circles along the edges came out clearly the first time, but the rest was still blah.  So Sue cut off the circles and refolded the center for another dip.  Below you can see what it looks like now.  Much improved!  And how it would look with the circle strips placed beside it.

 

Another technique tried today was cyanotype printing on notecards.  The chemical solution was applied to notecards with a bristle brush, allowed to dry, and then printed with plant material.  Even though it was a cloudy day, the process worked well.

Elizabeth printed two small cyanotypes on fabric, a dill blossom and another with goldenrod and broccoli seed pods.

A new screen soon to be in the Etsy shop is birch bark.  Here it is, printed with Color Magnet and then dyed in avocado green and black (which was old dye and turned purplish).  It will be a nice addition for those who need a screen to add texture to your fabrics and designs.  It could also be printed with paint, it doesn't have to be Color Magnet. If you have a photo you think would make a good textural screen, contact us at pgfiber2art.gmail.com or through the Etsy shop. 

The day ended with rain and an amazing sunset, even while it was raining!

Quilt Camp Day 6

We were saying to each other today that it doesn't seem like we get as much done these days as we once did!  What's up with that?

If our math is right, this is the tenth time we have had quilt camp.  The number of years is higher  because we had a few years when we couldn't get together.  Probably somewhere around 14 years we have come to the garage here at Merrymount on the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee to stir our creative juices and work on our business selling Thermofax screens through Etsy and promoting them on social media.

Today Elizabeth rinsed out the excess dye from this lovely vine flower Thermofax screen done with Color Magnet and Coral MX dye.

And her pole dyed piece.  Not sure why this year the white lines from the string isn't as prominent.  Perhaps oversoaked, not wound and scrunched tightly enough or too few layers on the pole.  It is still ok, just a faint glimpse of texture.

You saw a sneak peek at Molly's new shirt the other day on the blog but not the vine flower around the hemline.  The t-shirt was first screened with the design using Color Magnet, left to dry and then ice dyed.

Elizabeth also screened this hand drawn ginkgo leaf, onto a long piece of previously dyed fabric, using a blue acrylic fabric paint which sparkles just the slightest amount.

And this green piece was screened with a new screen made from a photo of birch bark.

Sue has some pieces that didn't get included in yesterday's post.  One is this piece of rusted fabric that was folded and dipped in the indigo pot.

In an effort to make some ugly fabrics more palatable, they were also dipped in the indigo pot.  The left photo is "before", the right photo is "after".  A small step in the right direction.  Looks like another dip in the indigo pot is called for!

We didn't have much sun today, but there was enough to put out a quick sun print with some stencils.

The best ending to the day was that Bob drove us to Wolfeboro and treated us to an ice cream at Bailey's Bubble.

Quilt Camp Day 2

Day two of our Quilt Camp arrived on a Sunday and found us still enjoying the state of Maine.  We had decided to stay over night since Sue had been on the road three days straight and we wanted to check out the town of Freeport, home of LL Bean, many outlets, and Cotton Weeds Quilt Shop. Elizabeth sure is glad that she doesn't wear shoes or a backpack this big and she sure would like to win this circular Yurt that LL Bean is giving away.

Two years ago we had stopped in Freeport at Cotton Weeds when we were Row by Row shopping and decided to pay it another visit.  They have changed locations and are now located very close to the downtown area.

Sunday hours at Cotton Weeds are 11-4 so we had some time to walk around town and shop before stopping by the quilt store.  It is a pleasant space with parking located adjacent to the building and worth the visit if you are planning to be in Freeport.  They are participating in Row by Row On the Go this summer and here is a photo of their license plate.

One nice part of travel is that we can look with a eye towards finding new textures to turn into new screens.  These may have some possibilities.  They must first be manipulated in PhotoShop to be certain they are pure black and white images. Sometimes it is an interesting shape we would like to remember and create a hand drawn image based on the photo such as these "comfy" stone lounge chairs!

We were back to New Hampshire for dinner and to enjoy some time on the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee.