SAQA Benefit Auction

Each fall, Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA) holds an art quilt auction as its main fund-raising event. Proceeds support exhibitions, publications, and educational outreach. Twelve-inch square quilts are made and donated by members and then auctioned in an online event over a period of 3 weeks in September/October.  Sue recently completed and sent in her donation.

"Filtered" was made from scraps of shibori/indigo and rusted fabrics along with a cyanotype printed on a flattened coffee filter.  Both hand and machine stitching were used to quilt and embellish.

Here is the background prior to adding the cyanotype where you can see the various fabrics used, all leftovers from previous projects.

Portions were quilted with straight line machine stitching.  Other parts were enhanced with hand stitching.

Above you can see some of the hand stitched circles and a row of fly stitches across the bottom. You can also see the machine stitching that outlines the cyanotype print and a blanket stitch used around the edge.

Here is the backing with corner triangles for hanging, or alternatively a ribbon loop in the center.

And the finished piece.  Watch this blog and our other social media for notice when the auction takes place this fall.  Bidding is open to anyone.  There are always many fabulous pieces of quilt art available.

Thermofax Screen Printing Tips

Previously posted in July 2020, worth repeating as a reminder of best practices.

We frequently get various questions about printing from customers in our Etsy shop.  Though we have FAQs on Etsy and this blog, people don't always read them.  So we thought it might be helpful to do a post of our printing tips.  There are always variables when printing, so we recommend doing test prints before starting on your project.  That way you can work out any issues without ruining the project.

First things first:
TAPE YOUR SCREEN if you did not order a pre-taped screen. See the tutorial on our blog at http://pgfiber2art.blogspot.com/p/blog-page_10.html
Find a how to print tutorial at http://pgfiber2art.blogspot.com/2014/10/how-to-print-with-thermofax-screens.html

Printing Tips:

• Thermofax printing works best on a padded surface.  On a flat surface, we use a piece of craft felt topped with a piece of canvas fabric or muslin.  The fabric serves to absorb excess paint.  (top picture below) For t-shirts, other garments, or tote bags place a piece of cardboard covered in waste fabric inside to provide cushioning and prevent paint transfer if it bleeds through; change fabric as needed; or just use a couple of layers of craft felt.  (bottom picture below)
  
  
  
  
• If you are printing on fabrics, use paints formulated for textiles.  These paints will give your finished product a softer “hand”. Some types of paint we use include: Fluid Textile Paint (artisticartifacts.com), ProChem (prochemicalanddye.com), Speedball Fabric Printing Inks, Jacquard paints, Versatex paints (DharmaTrading.com). You can also find paint at DickBlick.com and jerrysartarama.com. 

• Different paints have different viscosity; some sink into the fabric more than others. In the photo below, the white paint was thinner and sank in more and gave a raised effect to the lettering.  The blue paint was thicker and stayed on the surface keeping it flatter.
  
   
• If printing on paper, you can use acrylic craft paints. Speedball makes both textile and non-textile inks (paints). Look for the “fabric” designation when printing textiles. 
• DO A TEST PRINT.  Before tackling your project, do a test print so you know how many passes you need, how much pressure with the squeegee, and can see any spots that may need a bit more attention or may not print clearly.  Often the screen needs to be “primed” and will print better on the 2^nd or 3^rd print.  Below, the top picture shows the print after one pass with the squeegee. The bottom shows the same print after about 4 passes.  Keep lifting edges of the screen to check the print before removing the screen.
  
• Squeegees come in all types and sizes.  While a general rule of thumb is to match the size of the squeegee to the size of the print, you may not get even pressure with a large squeegee.  Our favorite squeegees to use are old credit cards and hotel keys. There are also scrapers that come in sets of 3 sizes that you can find in auto supply stores (used for detailing) or big box home stores in the paint department. If you want something larger you can find them at the art supply websites. When printing, hold the squeegee at a 90 degree angle and pull across the screen towards yourself.
  
• We do not usually secure the screen to the surface we are printing on, but if you need to, blue painters tape works well for that.  Otherwise, hold the taped edges of the screen securely while printing.
•  IMPORTANT! Before removing the screen, pick up the edges and check the print to see if you need to go over any area again.  You can carefully move your hand holding the screen to different spots to check so that the screen does not shift.  Or use tape to hold the screen in place. As stated previously, one pass across the screen is seldom enough.
• Put a line of paint across the top of the screen and pull the paint toward you.  Moving the squeegee in different directions means you are likely to shift the screen and end up with a shadow print. It is Ok to put more paint in denser areas. You are pulling the paint all the way across the screen so it may take more than you think. Dense/solid areas will require more paint and passes of the squeegee.  A smaller squeegee means you can target specific areas more easily.
  
•  Heat set (iron) the print when dry.

Clean Up:

·        As soon as you finish with a screen, drop it into a pan of room temperature water to prevent paint from drying on the screen. Paints labeled "pearlescent" that contain mica will clog a screen more quickly than those without and will need to be cleaned sooner.

·        Use an old toothbrush or fingernail brush to gently clean the screen; some paints may leave a slight stain.

·        Pat the screen dry with an old bath towel and allow to dry completely before storing.  Screens put away damp may stick to each other and cause the plastic emulsion to peel off.

We hope these tips will lead to more successful printing!

Fusible Applique Process

This is a re-post of a blog post from September 2020 on the fusible applique process we use with Thermofax printing.  This is the same process described in the "Thermofax Printing for Fusible Applique" article published in the summer 2023 issue of Quilting Arts magazine.  The issue is currently available digitally online and on newsstand June 13.  We have a number of screen designs suitable for this process available in our Etsy shop.  Feel free to contact us with any questions. (pgfiber2art@gmail.com)

Another technique we have used Thermofax screen printing for is to create raw edge fusible appliques.  Back in May, Sue shared a project where she used the "lazy daisy" screen in 3 sizes to make appliques. They were printed with black acrylic paint on yellow fabric.

After printing and heat setting, they need to be backed with a fusible product before cutting out.  Sue used MistyFuse, but you could also use Wonder Under or Steam-a-Seam2 Lite, or another favorite fusible, as long as it is fairly thin.  You don't want to add stiffness or something that might gum up on your needle when stitching. After fusing, cut them out, then you are ready to create your arrangement on the background.  Play with the arrangement until you are satisfied.  Consideration was also given to where the stems and leaves would go and what needed to go underneath what. Above right is the arrangement with stems and leaves added.  The stems & leaves were fused and stitched before the flowers were fused in place. To maintain your arrangement, take a picture for reference and you can also lay them out on another surface the same way you want them on the quilt.

The flowers were all edge stitched in black along the printing lines, and the petals have some accent stitching in yellow.  

Elizabeth made her applique sample using a zebra screen and made it into a postcard.

She cut her postcard base (fusible Timtex or Peltex can be used) to the standard 4 x 6" size and printed the zebras on a yellow fabric.  Then she fused Heat 'n Bond to the back before cutting them out.

Above shows the cut out zebra and positioning it against the background of grasses printed on the fabric to be used.

Finished postcard above.

Here are some other examples of applique projects.

Butterfly postcards - printed butterflies, cut out after fusible applied, finished postcards.

Falling leaves - pin oak leaf appliques, before and after applied to quilt.

The birds were printed on a color catcher (colored by putting in with a wash load of dyed fabric); different colors were tested to see what looked best on the piece on the right.  Color catchers are great for this technique because they are non-woven and won't fray on the edges. 

We have a number of screens in the shop that work well for this fusible applique technique, including various flowers, leaves, bird, butterflies. If you have a photo of an item, you can turn it into a screen - all of those items mentioned started out as photos we took. And like the flowers, when they are digital, you can create various sizes.  What photos do you have that would make great appliques?

Published!

 

One of Sue's bucket list items was to publish an article in Quilting Arts magazine, and she accomplished that goal with the summer 2023 issue of Quilting Arts, available now in digital format or on newsstands June 13.  Subscription copies will arrive in mailboxes by the 13th.  The article illustrates her process for using Thermofax prints to create fusible appliques.  While the idea for this article floated around in her head for a while, when finally submitted, she was pleasantly surprised to find it quickly accepted.

Without giving too much away (pick up a copy of the magazine!), it features the coneflower quilt below.  This full-size photo of the quilt does not actually appear in the issue - just smaller, partial images and step-outs.  

The issue also features a cover contest.  There were 161 entries for the contest which were winnowed down to 7 finalists before choosing Kate Themel's "As You Set Out" quilt below.

There are intriguing articles in this issue - can't wait to sit down with the paper copy when it arrives!  If you have any questions about the article or process, contact us at pgfiber2art@gmail.com.

Art is a Bridge

The spring issue of Quilting Arts Magazine included a Reader's Challenge to create a 10" x 5" work with horizontal orientation on the theme "Art is a Bridge".  This of course was open to any interpretation of the word "bridge" - literal or figurative.  Sue is always up for a challenge and decided to give it a try, with a specific literal interpretation in mind.  On her trip to Scotland last year, a stop in Queensferry provided a photo op for several bridges crossing the Firth of Forth, one being the Forth railroad bridge.  

This is the photo Sue took of the bridge, which is the world’s longest cantilever railway bridge.  It was built between 1882 and 1889 and restored in 2012.  The red of the bridge was a striking contrast to the blue of the sky and water.

It was fairly simple to recreate, with only a few elements - water, sky, a bit of land and the bridge itself. The challenge was to create the bridge in a way that would visually allow the background to show through the lines of the bridge.  It appeared the solution to that would need to be a Thermofax screen, but rather than printing directly on the background, printing on something sheer so that the background would show through.  

The first step was to crop down to just the bridge and convert it to black and white.  Then the background would have to be eliminated to get to an image suitable for a screen.

Once that was done, some test prints were made on a sheer fabric to make sure the concept would work.  Then constructing the small piece could begin.

The photo below shows the background elements.

After the bridge was printed on Extravorganza, some MistyFuse was applied to the back.  Then it was cut out close to the shape of the bridge and fused in place on the background.

The last step was adding the quilting and embellishment.  Some yarns were couched to create a wave-like effect on the water. A bit of pen and ink were used to darken and complete some of the lines of the bridge.

Finished piece.  Even though it didn't make the cut for those selected to be published in the magazine, we thought you would enjoy seeing it and the process in making it, particularly creating the Thermofax screen. It will serve as a fond reminder of the trip!

Podcast Interview for Photo Memory Quilts

Tuesday, May 23 is Sue's interview with Lesley Riley about her quilt "Blessed Are the Piecemakers" which is published in Lesley's book Photo Memory Quilts. Lesley did a series of interviews with each of the contributing artists and is sharing them in a podcast on Spotify (free). New episodes air every Tuesday. The schedule is as follows:

1. May 2 - Margaret Abramshe 

2. May 9 - Whitney Dahlberg 

3. May 16 - Judy Gula 

4. May 23 - Susan Price

5. May 30 - Lorie McCown 

6. June 6 - Anne Sonner 

7. June 13 - Bobbi Baugh 

8. June 20 - Al Krueger 

9. June 27 - Susan Brubaker Knapp 

10. July 4 - Michelle Umlauf 

11. July 11 - Wen Redmond 

12. July 18 - Christine Vinh 

13. July 25 - Beverly Smith 

14. August 1 - Lindy Trenholm 

15. August 8 - Nanette Zeller

16. August 16 - Patty Kennedy Zafred 

17. August 22 - Gina Louthing Stanley

18. August 29 - Clare Murray Adams 

19. September 5 - Katherine Wilson  

20. September 12 - TBD

All episodes (and previous episodes) are at the same show link on the scheduled date. Hope you will tune in!

https://open.spotify.com/show/3MCefngOKmw0YmPjcIU8in

Cyanotype Postcards

Sue has been part of a postcard swap group for over 15 years, maybe 17 or 18? But we have finally decided to end our exchanges; the group has decreased in size over the years down to just 5.  Elizabeth joined us for the tail end.  There was not a particular theme for this round, just whatever each person wants to create. Sue decided to see how cyanotype prints of spring flowers would work.  

She gathered some blossoms from periwinkle, money plant, and azaleas and set up the components to expose them to the sun.  The cotton fabric was previously treated with the cyanotype chemicals.  The base is foam core board topped with the fabric, plant materials, and glass held in place with binder clips.  The arrangements were spritzed with water and vinegar before covering with the glass.  Different additions can vary the results of the print.

Then they were set outside in the sun for several hours.  The picture below show the boards after sun exposure.

 

Then the glass and plant materials are removed.  Sometimes the success of the print is evident, other times it takes extensive rinsing to get to the final print.  Rinsing is always required, but some pieces that Sue treated have more solution on them and take more rinsing.

 

Above is the periwinkle piece before and after rinsing.  You can see what a difference rinsing makes.  After several water changes, the piece soaked overnight to get to the final result. Sue used the periwinkle piece to create her postcards.  The printed fabric was cut into four 4 x 6 inch pieces and fused to the postcard base (a stiff interfacing like TimTex), then the purple stitching was added.  A backing of cardstock was fused to the other side and edges satin stitched.  

 

 

Above are the 4 postcards that were sent.  Sue was happy with the results to celebrate Spring and the final exchange of the group.