San Diego Quilt Show
Holly Sullivan
Well, if anyone wants to look me up at the show this weekend, I'll be
working from Saturday 2-6 somewhere at the show. I'm hoping to get the
wearable art section again this year. :-) There's a pic of me on my web
page (look in the personal section) if that would make it any easier. I'm
hard to miss. :-)
This is gonna be fun! :-)
-- Via DLG Pro v1.16
:)---Holly---<--<-@ * San Diego, CA * Warning: .sig ahead! :-)
FunAmigaPaganSexGoddessQuiltArtistSCACostumerAtLarge BBS (619)549-0278
San Diego Quilting Resources * http://www.geocities.com/Wellesley/4201
The Washburns
Vaiva A. Bichnevicius wrote:
> How should you judge whether a fabric 'belongs' in a quilt - looking
> at it
> up close or from a distance?
>
> I have a quilt up on my design board. (It looks fabulous, btw.) I am
> trying to combine two floral prints - one has metallic highlights and
> the other does not, but they are the same print. Up close, the
> non-metallic print stands out - the flowers are slightly more defined
> than
> the ones with metallic highlights. But from a distance they look
> great
> together. The more defined flowers really add to the 'texture' of the
> design. I've clumped the more defined flowers together, in natural
> looking clumps, and dispersed the clumps around the quilt. The overall
>
> effect is one of flowers in a field.
>
> I had my husband examine the quilt from 5 feet away and he couldn't
> find
> anything "wrong" with it. Then, at two feet he noticed that some
> flowers
> were darker than others, and maybe didn't fit. (But he didn't think
> the
> difference was glaring)
>
> So, do I make it look good from two feet, or from a distance. My gut
> feeling is that 99% of the time, the quilt will be admired from
> several
> feet away. And the other 1% of the time, I'll be more worried about
> what
> they think of my stitches than my fabric choices. :) What do you
> think?
>
> -Vaiva
> va...@vaiva.com
>
> "Some people believe the glass is half full, some
> people believe the glass is half empty. I believe
> the glass is too large." --- George Carlin
Vaiva,
I vote from a distance. If you are still not sure, leave it up on your
design wall for a while, and then decide. I still have my first
impressionist quilt on my design wall, and am currently struggling with
one section where I have the same problem. I hope that when I take a
longer break from the project that I'll be able to see clearly if there
is a problem. Another suggestion I have is to try a different fabric
there - just put the new pieces right over the ones already there, and
see if it improves the design. If it doesn't, just remove the "new"
pieces, and your original design will not be changed.
It seems that there are more metallics with those dark backgrounds than
other florals. I have some metallics in my current design, and they
seem to blend beautifully. It's a whole 'nother flower that's giving me
fits.
Good luck, and let us know what you decide!
Lisa in Texas
JOYNW
Vaiva,
Another trick for a "really far, far away" look . . . . try viewing the
quilt through the wrong end of binoculars. (Hint: This also works really
well for value questions)
Joy
Roberta wrote:
>A color photo is useful -makes it look entirely different because you can
>get the whole quilt in one view. When it's life size, you can't help
>focusing on individual areas even at a distance. But if you think it
looks
>fabulous, then it probably is fabulous.
>Roberta in Denmark
>
>Vaiva A. Bichnevicius wrote in article ...
Houghton
I think your quilt sounds gorgeous. I feel everyone probably sees
color a little differently, so different sections might stand out
to different people. It's YOUR quilt so I'd make it to suit YOU.
And on a bed or on a wall, viewers will be at some distance from
the quilt, maybe not always 5 feet but maybe more than 2, I'd think.
I'd go for what you like and let DH know you appreciate his
input!
Good luck,
Susan in Kansas
"Vaiva A. Bichnevicius" <va...@vaiva.com> wrote:
>
>
> How should you judge whether a fabric 'belongs' in a quilt - looking at it
> up close or from a distance?
>
> I have a quilt up on my design board. (It looks fabulous, btw.)
snip
Rita Denenberg
Vaiva A. Bichnevicius wrote:
>
> How should you judge whether a fabric 'belongs' in a quilt - looking at it
> up close or from a distance?
>
> trying to combine two floral prints - one has metallic highlights and
> the other does not, but they are the same print. Up close, the
> non-metallic print stands out - the flowers are slightly more defined than
> the ones with metallic highlights. But from a distance they look great
> together. The more defined flowers really add to the 'texture' of the
> design. I've clumped the more defined flowers together, in natural
> looking clumps, and dispersed the clumps around the quilt. The overall
> effect is one of flowers in a field.
>
> anything "wrong" with it. Then, at two feet he noticed that some flowers
> were darker than others, and maybe didn't fit. (But he didn't think the
> difference was glaring)
>
> So, do I make it look good from two feet, or from a distance. My gut
> feeling is that 99% of the time, the quilt will be admired from several
> feet away. And the other 1% of the time, I'll be more worried about what
> they think of my stitches than my fabric choices. :) What do you think?
>
> -Vaiva
> va...@vaiva.com
>
> people believe the glass is half empty. I believe
> the glass is too large." --- George Carlin
Hi Vaiva
It has been my experience to view a quilt at a distance to see any
flaws. As a "retired" artist, it was the way to view my paintings. It
is much easier to find anything that stands out like a sore thumb or if
it has no contrast in color. Squint as you view the quilt. You could
also use a red view finder(available in quilt shops) to pick up flaws.
Hope this helps.
Rita
Herbert and Roberta Zollner
A color photo is useful -makes it look entirely different because you can
get the whole quilt in one view. When it's life size, you can't help
focusing on individual areas even at a distance. But if you think it looks
fabulous, then it probably is fabulous.
Roberta in Denmark
Vaiva A. Bichnevicius wrote in article ...
>
Vaiva A. Bichnevicius
Holly Sullivan
> Holly, Sorry I missed you. I spent all day (and a few bucks) at the show
> with a nephew, two nieces and my mom. Bought some wonderful batiks I had
> been searching for. Come to find out the vendor (Lee Ann's Batiks) is
> even here in San Diego!
Would have been fun to have met you, Roberta!! Sure you can't come back
tomorrow (Sat) when I'm working? :-) And isn't Lee Ann's stuff
fantastic?!?!!! I got to browse her stuff one night when she was the
featured guest at a Seaside Quilters guild meeting. I'd love to get one of
her batik dragon panels.
Cathy Lowrey
Another good trick is to turn your back on the quilt, and use a mirror to
look at the quilt - it can give you a whole different perspective. I saw a
documentary on a painter who used this trick to help him compose his
pictures.
Cathy in Vancouver
JOYNW <jo...@aol.com> wrote in article
<19970808234...@ladder02.news.aol.com>...
Klimas
Holly, Sorry I missed you. I spent all day (and a few bucks) at the show
with a nephew, two nieces and my mom. Bought some wonderful batiks I had
been searching for. Come to find out the vendor (Lee Ann's Batiks) is
even here in San Diego!
The show gets better and better every year. We had a great time. I even
got to meet a quilt chat buddy in person for the first time.
If you need a break, walk down to Ben & Jerry's at Seaport Village, then
ride the carousel.
Roberta in Ramona
+++++++++++++++++
Real e-mail address is drk, not dark. We hate spam...
nanners2
Vaiva A. Bichnevicius wrote:
>
>
> I had my husband examine the quilt from 5 feet away and he couldn't find
> anything "wrong" with it. Then, at two feet he noticed that some flowers
> were darker than others, and maybe didn't fit. (But he didn't think the
> difference was glaring)
>
> So, do I make it look good from two feet, or from a distance. My gut
> feeling is that 99% of the time, the quilt will be admired from several
> feet away. And the other 1% of the time, I'll be more worried about what
> they think of my stitches than my fabric choices. :) What do you think?
> HI Vaiva...invest in a reducing glass...and a little vlue finder...between a distance view and checking out the values, you should have a pretty good idea...and if you aren't really sure you like a particular fab in your quilt...DON'T put it in..get another...or you will have to point this out everytime you show the quilt!<VBG>
My Q buddy and I have an "thing" about getting too fussed about
quilts...when you look at a picture in a mag..they all look mostly
fabulous...then when you see them up close, you wonder why they picked
a certain fab..or notices little faults in the workmanship...so we have
a saying...these are Four Block Quilts..not made of four blocks..but
that EVERY quilt looks GREAT from four blocks away...so don't sweat the
small stuff and when you are famous...or 100 yrs from now..when your
quilts get published...they also will look fabulous!<G>Nancy
PS My friend and I are both really strong on good workmanship...so I
didn't mean don't make the effort!<G>
John & Phebe Musselwhite
Thank you for all of the great suggestions about looking at your quilt
through reversed binoculars (or get a peephole at the hardware store)
or with the mirror. I think it is critical that the colors look good
from a distance, and that there is harmony and balance within the
design. I think when you look at it close up, you are looking for
details--in the stitching, in the quilting, in the little nuances of the
fabric. To answer the original question of should a quilt look good
from close up or far away, the answer is: both. I don't think a quilt
that doesn't look good from far away gets you interested enough to study
it close up. Go to a quilt show and see which quilts you spend your
time looking at.
Phebe
Vaiva A. Bichnevicius
Lisa in Texas, Roberta in Denmark, Joy, Cathy in Vancouver, Nancy, Rita,
Phebe, and anyone else that I hope I didn't forget:
Thanks for all the suggestions; I've tried most of them, and they all
work so far. The binoculars and the camera viewfinder (I haven't
developed a picture yet) really work. I haven't tried the mirror yet, but
I probably will. If I try every technique and the quilt looks good, then
it MUST be good, right?? The flowers I was concerned about have started
to 'grow' on me, no pun intended.
I'm so glad to have all of you working on my quilt with me.
-Vaiva
va...@vaiva.com
Please . . .
CONSERVE GRAVITY
Follow these simple suggestions:
(1) Walk with a light step. Carry helium balloons if possible.
(2) Use tape, magnets, or glue instead of paperweights.
(3) Give up skiing and skydiving for more horizontal sports like
curling.
(4) Avoid showers .. take baths instead.
(5) Don't hang all your clothes in the closet ... Keep them in one big
pile.
(6) Stop flipping pancakes