Creative weekend.

I've been so busy I haven't had time to post, sorry folks. Being the last Friday of the month, meant the new fast fabric challenge was issued. This month the theme is Jabberwock, abstract and texture. For me this is a fantastic theme, right up my street. Interestingly the idea appeared almost fully formed, I've only made some very subtle changes to my initial concept. I've made the background and I have a lot of the details well underway. As before I don't feel I can show anything here until it is finished, but given the deadline is Friday you don't have too long to wait.

I also had my first drawing lesson on Friday. It was an interesting experience. My teacher thinks that my problem is confidence or a lack there of. Apparently I am very hesitant when I need to draw anything. I wondered at the time if it was just having someone watching, but it seems to be true even when I am working on my own. It's very odd, but hopefully by knowing there is a problem I can try to fix it. I also tend to work quite small with drawing, quite the opposite to my quilting, so I am trying to use charcoal for drawing. It forces me to not only draw larger but also make more confident strokes. I have to admit I don't really like it but it does seem to help so I will try to stick with it.

I seem to have spent the whole weekend alternating between trying to draw and preparing the challenge quilt. Another fun aspect of the challenge is that I am using the same fabrics as last month which has saved me making more mess, and in fact helped me tidy up.

To get the week off to a good start, our two person quilt entry at the NEC is in Popular Patchwork. I guess it will be on sale in the shops in about a week, as a subscriber I get mine early. It is a nice little piece, showing both of the quilts, but they are upside down. Fortunately they are just geometeric patterns so it doesn't really matter. I was also pleased to see the magazine photographer found them quite tricky to photograph. It does seem that my preferred designs and colours are about the worst things to reproduce. Black and white both hide your quilting and white never looks white once you take a picture. Still it is exciting to see another quilt in the magazine, and very nice to have it pointed out that ours was a true joint effort. We both worked on everything.

Che design.

A friend recently moved house, and I thought I would make him a wall quilt to make it feel more like home. I was planning on making a motorcycle. It helps he rides my ideal bike. Unfortunately it didn't want to play. It is very fussy and needs lots of detail. There isn't room to hang a really big wall quilt. So when he mentioned to someone else that Che would make a great quilt, I had my solution. This is the design I have produced from the iconic photograph. I was concerned that the design should be what my friends wants, as he is an artist and this is an important image to him. He pointed out that this is one image that however badly it is drawn it is still recognizable. Indeed it does seem to be. It is always hard to judge a pattern full size, this one is 26"x32", but now I have it on the screen I am pretty pleased with it. Now I just need to trace it onto freezer paper and get to work.

So about this drawing thing...

I've been thinking about this for a while and I think it probably will motivate me to keep working so here are a few pages from one of my sketch books. I am using several books and the web site drawspace.com to try and improve my skills. I am also lucky enough to have a couple of friends who can draw who can offer suggestions. I think this multi pronged approach is good for me. I get bored and frustrated very easily but this way I always have something else I could try. When something isn't working I can give up and do something else.

The first picture is the kind of sketch I usually use. It is enough to remind me of an idea of something simple I have seen. At the moment it I see something more complex I have to find a camera, and that is something I would like to reduce. I would live to be able to capture the essence of what I see with just a pencil and a piece of paper. This sketch will probably become a quilt at some point, but it hasn't entirely settled as an idea yet.

The second picture is the result of someone (or something) telling me to just draw what I have to hand. I always have plenty of spools of thread to hand so that is what I chose. It also didn't look too scary. I enjoyed actually looking at how the thread was wound onto it and I think that was the crucial feature of it. Piles of fabric had also been suggested as a good thing to draw, so while I was in bed with a cold I drew the dressing gown hung on the door. I see now how fabric does have very clear light and dark areas but I am not too sure about drawing the light places. I suppose I have to leave the light bits but draw the medium and dark?

Finally the face is from the drawing lessons at drawingspace.com. If you are interested bug me and I will dig out the proper URL. You have to join up (free) to access the lessons and you can only view them online unless you pay money, but I think they are pretty good. There are some I don't really get but I seem to be finding harder lessons easier than the easy ones so I guess I must be learning something. I am hoping that having put these up I will be encouraged to practice some more and draw better things so I can show you how it goes, so feel free to bug me if I don't put anything up for a while. I would also appreciate any feedback and tips from those out there who can draw or are in the process of learning.

Oh, and of course I got round to it today to avoid clearing up my desk. It is all a case of what you are not doing.

Linus quilt done.

I really love doing these Linus quilts. They do have their challenges, this on the back is almost bigger than the top :) and I have had to wait a while to know I was going to be able to make it work. But no matter how tricky they are, they are great to do. I can play and do fun work on them. I can use threads that I wouldn't normally and at the end of it I know it will end up with someone who needs it and will love it (probably to destruction). It's just a win win situation. On this one I tried a new to me pattern, I wanted to come up with a couple of quick all over patterns that are fairly dense. Something good for utility quilts. I think is has worked rather well. I guess all these things come with practice and as I have one more Linus quilt left to do I may try and work on another all over design. I think the quilting shows better on the front of this quilt, so I haven't bothered to put in a picture of the back. The backing could be described as loud. It is lime green with wavy patterns on it. It would have hidden a multitude of sins, so ofcourse my tension was perfect throughout the quilt. I bet the next thing I do where I need good tension turns out to be a nightmare. That just seems to be how these things work. Hmm now what to do next. Do I work on some designs? Prepare the patterns for my next nude? Quilt the other Linus quilt? Maybe tidying my desk would be a good start :) I don't think I will ever be a tidy worker.

Online Quilt contest.

If you haven't yet been to the AQS online quilt show there is still time. Although it may have got trickier to vote. You now must have Flash 8 (or higher) installed to see the quilts. On the other hand if you know the number you want to vote for I guess you could still manage.

I finished a quilt yesterday and dutifully delivered it, without taking a photograph. Doh! On the bright side I am pretty certain I will see it again so I will ask if I can take a picture then. It was a really interesting quilt to work on for me. It was so different to anything I would make. It was made with a range of delicate floral fabrics, in a sort of Irish chain pattern. In each of the of the spaces between the chain I put in a patterns of four loopy hearts interlocking. Delicate and pretty but not really girly. The chains were just a single line of squares which I stitched through the middle of to outline the spaces between. There were three borders, two quite narrow, which I just stitched in the ditch, and one wide. In the wide border I used the ruler to put in a trellis. The border is full of roses, so to me it clearly asked for a trellis. The best bit, it's owner loves it. Even better there are more to come. I am quite excited about the next one. It is the one that is talking to me most. It wants lots of swirly suns/flowers depending on how you see it. Next time I will remember to take a picture straight away so I can show you all as soon as the customer has seen it, assuming the customer will let me.

Today I am planning on doing a Linus quilt. I want to do something fun and easy, and these really fit the bill. Knowing that the end user will love pretty much whatever you do is very liberating. I also have a couple that will nicely use up big offcuts of wadding, it's a win all round.

Art Quilt Class - Patchwork Corner

The art quilt class is the Saturday 18th of November form 10am to 4pm. I am not certain of the price, but I would guess it will be in the region of 22 GBP. If you would like a place in the class you can book by telephone on 01442 25900. Hope that covers everything. If not I am sure you will let me know. Hope to see some of you there.

Research, thought planning and design

I wish I had more pictures for you but this weekend has been another planning and thinking session. I've been giving a lot of thought to the next class coming up, which will all be done using the Square in a square ruler. It looks to me that we will end up with quite a lot of blocks by the end of the day and I need to think of a way to make those into one finished item. This has meant trying to fit many different sizes of block together into a design. It is surprisingly difficult. I think if I was just doing it for myself I would make the blocks and then lay them out on the bed in a design. This would show up some areas where I need filler which I would then just cut on the fly. This probably wouldn't please other people as a solution though so I will have to some up with a fixed design. I am also a little concerned by my fabric choice. I really want to make the sample in the Ginko fantasy fabrics I have, in black red and gold. They look great but will it put people off?

The other design problem I have been kicking around is the Transformations challenge. It is very good timing, I have been looking at transformers recently and saying I wanted to make a quilt based on the idea. Now I get the perfect opportunity do you think I can come up with anything, of course I can't. I think the problem is I want the transformer design to move of do something, maybe even be three dimensional. The challenge requires something more two dimensional. I guess I will have to keep thinking. At least I have some fairly simple quilting to work on today so my brain can work on these problems while I do something else.

Class samples - Art quilts

As promised here are the samples for my Art quilts - Quilting by numbers. These designs will be what the students will make during the class. Hopefully they will be pretty much completed during the day. They were very interesting designs for me to work on. The rose is technically easier. It only needs three colours and most of the areas are quite large. However my lack of knowledge of flowers meant I had to really think how the petals would look. It was particularly obvious when I was quilting it. It took me far longer than the swan even though it has less stitching on it. Who would have thought it? On the other hand the swan was really easy. I know where the feathers are and so for me it was a lot easier even though it should be the trickier design. Just goes to show you can never really predict these things. Still they look great hanging in the shop, and hopefully they will encourage people to fill the class. Oh yes, the rose has indeed run. All the fabrics were pre-washed but still they ran. I used run remover and got it clean again. I pressed it to nearly dry and blocked it overnight. There was just enough moisture for it to run again! Red really is a menace.

The 'Nude Triptych' is now hanging in the workshop at Patchwork Corner. So if you are in the area (Hemel Hempstead) and want to have a look it will be there until the 18th of November.

Online contest or getting to know your friends.

Now please don't take this the wrong way, but I've realized that the outcome of the online quilt show is fairly unimportant. It would be great to win, but the prize won't be as good as what it has already given me. I have had so many emails from friends who have offered their support, I've had comments on this blog, and I can't begin to tell you how great that is. Not one person I've talked to about this has been anything but incredibly supportive, I am really overwhelmed by you all. As well people have sent me notes about what they are doing and what is happening in their lives, they probably wouldn't have done otherwise. I can't reach you all, so please give yourselves a hug or a pat on the back from me, whatever you feel comfortable with. You're great.

I have been working recently, even though I have been rather quiet. I am getting the samples finished for my class at Patchwork Corner next month. It is based on the technique I used for the red nude in the triptych. I am hoping to cover some design ideas and techniques for converting a photograph into a pattern for a quilt. It's tricky in a one day class but I will see what I can fit in. I've decided to stick to just two design options to make on the day, a rose and a swan. I was going to offer a third but the requirements list was getting too complicated. I am hoping by keeping it fairly simple everyone will get a mostly complete art quilt by the end of the day. In the next day or two I will have the pictures up. Also for those in the area who wanted to see the nudes again, they will be at Patchwork Corner as of next week publicizing the class. If you are interested in taking this class I believe there are still a couple of places left.

Innovative Imagery - Digital Rainbow

Well I am going to assume that silence means my quilt didn't make it into the C&T book on digital images on quilts. Bah Humbug. On the other hand this does mean I can photograph it in detail so you guys can try to guess what the pictures are. Yay. My biggest concern is did the entry pack arrive, and on time. It should have done according to the post office but when I tried to track it it never showed up as delivered. I think I might look into it, after all if it didn't even get there I would quite like my postage costs back. They can't compensate for it not making it into the competition but at least I wouldn't be out of pocket.

On the flip side I had another booking today for talking about my quilts, so I don't think I can really explain. Although it is amusing that as I child I said there was one thing I would never want as part of my job, public speaking. I hated it. Funny how talking about something you love make it OK. At the last regional day, one lady doing show and tell said how nervous she was and that she didn't think she could talk. She did and she was great, really animated and enthusiastic, at the end she commented on how surprised she was. You never know until you try.

Nude in Online Competition.

I've entered my blue nude into the AQS online quilt contest. I would have like to enter the whole triptych but they don't allow multiple parts or frames. Still at least I put something in. The contest is judged but online viewers, so if you feel like voting for me I would very much appreciate it. If you live in the US I think there are prizes for the people voting too. The quilts can be seen here, mine is entry number 1352. I think they are shuffling the quilts to make it more fair, which is something that had worried me when I first looked at entering. I found it really interesting looking at the range of styles represented in the competition. I suspect there is inspiration for most people there.

Yay, back in the workroom

Finally I've managed to get something creative done. This is a sample for a class I am teaching next month. The class is based on the technique I used for the red nude in my triptych. I don't want to do that in the class, it needs too many shades and will take longer than one lesson to complete. I am hoping the rose will be quicker, especially as I have it in two sizes. Tomorrow I will get it onto a background fabric, layer it up and quilt it. I really enjoy quilting pictures now, especially on the longarm. It feels so good having done this today. I am really not happy when I am not making things. Having finished the rose I think the gold flecks in the darkest red make it read lighter than it is. I think I will leave it as something to talk about with the class, so if any of you are taking the class you will be able to pre-empt me. I am planning on making two other designs so there is a choice, but I don't think there will be room to display them all in the shop, guess those will be a surprise on the day. Now to bed and to think about how I will quilt it.

Too much Tuesday

You know there really is just too much of some days. Tuesday was one of them. The day started very well. I met up with some other UK longarm quilters., great fun and very informative. I've bought some new to me pantographs, including meeses. It is a fun design and I will use it for project Linus quilts. It is also very much how I want to remember Fran, who's studio it came from. Leaving a little early even meant I got home before the rain.

The evening was pretty good too. A friend came round and told me more about art which is great fun, but then the late night phone call. Robin had been out at a nearby friends playing boardgames and was calling to say he had been delayed on the way home having witnessed a road traffic accident, key phrase being biker down. It had been raining on an off all evening so the roads were slick, not good weather for bikers. As a lot of our friends ride I wasn't surprised they had stop. Time passed, and nothing. Then after a couple of hours, another call, the accident was a fatality, there was a huge police investigation underway and they had to wait to have statements taken. It was gone 3am before Robin and the friends he had gone out with made it back here. Minus the car they had left in. The police wanted it to check that it hadn't been involved. When Robin had said they were witnesses, what he meant was there was a miracle, that saved the pillion from being run over by the car they were in. The bike lost control in front of them and the pillion rolled in front of the car. They have no idea how they missed him, except the car just wasn't in the wrong place. Understandably they were all shocked by the accident. They were first on scene and were the ones who checked the rider and his pillion. The pillion escaped with just broken bones, he was beyond lucky. Sweet tea all round, especially as they had all been standing outside for hours in the cold.

Please folks, take it easy out there. Death isn't far away, you aren't invunerable, and I really don't want to be dealing with any more tragedy right now. Look after yourselves, and where you can others.

October Gallery Visit

See I am sticking with this. This month I had the chance to drag along someone who studies art and having a mobile reference book is really handy when you know very little about the subject. We met at Green Park, as that is where our tube lines meet, and while I was waiting I heard that the Royal Acadamy is really close to there. So that became our first port of call. When we arrived there was a choice of two exhibitions, but whilst I have read both the names I couldn't think what either did. This is one of the problems with not recalling names. So handy expert says, "paintings or sculpture?". It had to be sculpture given that the classes that really appealed to me were all about three dimensional quilts, so the first artist of the day was Rodin. Wow what a good choice for knowing nothing. Turns out I really like his work. He sculpted so many women in so many great poses. I think he has pretty much got the set. My 'I wish I could take it home' piece for today is Ovid's Metamorphoses. Sadly even if you find a picture of it online I don't think you will get to see what I most liked about it. It is a plaster of two female nudes embracing. From the back of the piece (how do they know it is the back?) you can see a woman kneeling with her back to you. The shape of her back if fantastic, but for me what makes it so amazing are her feet, just poking out from beneath her bottom. It is an image I really want to make as a quilt, I am sure I won't do such a good job, but the pose is so beautiful I might get away with it.

After lunch we had time for a second gallery so went back to plan A, the Hayward Gallery. They are currently showing, How to Improve the World - 60 Years of British Art. Oh and Mondays is half price, if you feel like going. This was a huge contrast to the Rodin, I am finding it hard to get to grips with how diverse art is, especially when quilting isn't. I really don't understand how Bridget Riley's Movement in Squares is art yet very similar things in fabric aren't. It just doesn't make sense. Maybe I need to try and find a way to get the Arts Council interested in my work to help the cause. (Sounds impossible but that has never stopped me before). Most of the works here left me cold but as ever there were exceptions. They had two pieces on display by Barbara Hepworth, both of which I liked very much. I love the organic smoothness of her work, they seem very calm and soothing. I was pleased to see two BMW engines being used for something useful, covered in copper sulphate crystals by Roger Hiorns. When I first looked up the Hayward Gallery online I got a picture of Tim Head's State of the Art. I quite liked it online but in person it is really cool. I loved trying to spot things I had owned in the 1980's just fantastic. I would have happily had a poster of it had they had one for sale. Interestingly there was on that I don't think I would have liked only a couple of months ago. It is Tony Cragg's New Stones, Newton's Tones. It is broken pieces of plastic objects laid out on the floor in colour groups. It is very much like 'Digital Rainbow'. I don't think it would have leapt out at me in the same what had I not done something similar. It was also interesting to note he had had the same problem with blue, indigo, violet. He seems to have tried for all three and to me that section read much less distinctly that the other stripes. I think I made the right decision for me when I left out indigo.

All in all it was a very informative day. I didn't really expect to get much from going to galleries, but I accepted that people felt I should know more about art. I am finding it very inspiring, and in some cases it reassures me that what I am planning is going to work. I would really recommend anyone going along and having a look. I won't say you will like everything you see, in fact I am sure you won't, but I do think it will give you a new perspective on art, and possibly the world in general.

Quilters Guild Regional Day - Region 7

Yesterday I went to the Region Seven regional day. Unfortunately it clashed with the Region One day, which I would otherwise have gone along to. On the other hand the weather was great and the event was held in Roade, very close to Santa Pod where the guys were playing with the Camero. I even got lucky with the traffic, and arrived just before 9am ready to set up the bring and buy stall (now just a buy stall :) The traders were all in a small room off to the side of the main hall. It was cozy and being out of the way meant I could occasionally abandon my post to fetch refreshments and mingle.

Our first speaker Dawn Cameron Dick, brought along lots of real working quilts. You know the sort you put on the bed or curl up with on the sofa when you feel ill. It was lovely to hear and artist talking about their work being used and loved. Of course, me being hopeless with remembering names I didn't realize I had one of her books until she held up the quilt that was on the cover. Doh! The talk was very funny and it felt like we were being given a great deal of insight into her family. The stories of how people had been involved with the design phase of the quilts were especially interesting to me. One of the nicest parts of these days and the talks is that you get to touch the quilts. I do love shows, but my fingers really do give me information my eyes don't. For example the great softness of these well used quilts and how well integrated the invisible machine applique becomes. Definitely a speaker worth seeing if you get a chance.

This first talk was followed by lunch and spending frenzy. Thanks to everyone who bought things from my stand, we sold about half the stock and raised a good amount for guild funds. Yes I am being vague, I don't believe what my maths told me :) To get us back into the listening frame of mind we had a show and tell. As ever there was a fantastic range of work to see. I was very lucky to be in the queue just behind the lady with several very small and details pieces. As ever my memory is failing me on her name or that of the tutor where she had learned about adding texture through shrinking. I think it is something I will have to look up. It was a fantastic effect. Naoko brought along two pieces to show, a stained glass wallhanging in European colours, with a border that looked like it was catching the light, and a landscape from a class. The landscape was striking as it moved it changed so much. I am really looking forward to seeing it finished I think it will be a very special piece. Another special quilt was 'Sixty Five Roses', if you say it out loud it sounds rather Cystic Fibrosis, which is what the quilt is about. The top is 64 roses in shades of red pink and cream, the final rose will be on the back of the quilt and be made from white fabrics in different textures to represent the faulty gene which causes the problem. The quilt was made using Pat Deacons techniques which is why the maker had brought it along. I hope she will being it back finished.

Just before starting her talk Pat Deacon was called upon to draw the raffle and choose the recipient of the Margaret Bright Bursary. I couldn't believe it when my name came up. I didn't know what to do. Was I supposed to go and say something? I settled for standing up then sitting down again. It was a nice shock, but still a shock. I was very late applying as I felt it should go to someone Margaret had known. I guess now I really have to do her justice with it. It is 50GBP to be used for a course. We then have to bring the finished item along to the next regional day. I've been looking online today for a course worthy of this money, and I think I will go for something at Missenden Abbey. These are courses I would never consider without the bursary and I think they will really expand my knowledge. I will let everyone know which course I finally choose.

..... Sorry folks the review of Pat's talk will have to be added later visitors have just arrived.

Yes, our afternoon speaker was Pat Deacon, hers was the championship quilt at Sandown this year. Having taken a class with her I was looking forward to the talk, and I wasn't disappointed. She had brought along many of her quilts and talked a lot about how they came to be. I was especially interested in the 'View from the quilt' mini series. It is two quilts showing what a quilt sees when it is at a show. I loved her use of colour to show whether people likes the quilt or not, and having seen how simple a shape will still read as a human figure I think it is something I might try at some point.

The strangest part of the day was being invited to join the committee. Yup the guild is prepared to have someone like me helping to run it. I am very surprised, but thrilled. Now I suppose I have to work harder at getting more people to some to the regional days. So if this sounded like fun (and it really was) and you fancy coming along to see if you like it let me know and I will keep you posted about future events. The events are open to non members but it will cost you a little more to get in (I think it is two quid extra so twelve instead of ten). If you live locally I might even be able to give you a lift.

Challenge quilt - things I forgot.

The quilt is about 11"x15" I say about because I haven't trimmed it yet. I think it will be pretty close to that size though. The scraps I used for the leaves were cut several colours at a time. This meant that they scattered and mixed really nicely with very little intervention from me. The branches I put down first, and did position with a bit more care. I did make sure I had leaves covering the bottom of the trunks, but that only needed a little herding, not careful positioning. I don;t think it would have looked as natural if I had tried to position each piece. It would also have taken forever, the leaves are all significantly smaller that quarter inch square. The only thing holding the leaves in place is the quilting.

The first idea I had was to make the path and sky from mesh, some sort of netting. I was going to cut the wadding to the shape of the tree trunks then stitch black netting into the space for the path and white into the sky. Then piece the trunks exactly as I ended up doing it. After that I was thinking I would add the little bits of fabric and another layer of net. I decided against doing it this way because I wanted the sky to be definitely blue, I wanted the path to be solid, and I wasn't sure I would like the look of the net over the branches and leaves.

Fast Friday Fabric Challenge - 1 - revealed.

I have got as far as I am going to for the moment on the challenge quilt. The theme was fall colours and a three dimensional feel / element. It is a shame that I had already made 'Golden Storm'. That is really my interpretation of this theme. Still no point crying over it. I had to come up with another idea. I was thinking about dense forests in Autumn. The way the trees tower over you and the leaves everywhere. I decided I would make this on the longarm, including the piecing and that to add another level of depth I would allow the wadding to show in some areas. So I started by painting the wadding. Just in the sky and the path as the closely packed trees would cover the rest. The first picture shows the wadding just after I loaded it onto the frame. It was about this point I started to worry. I really do think about quilts for a long time before I start them normally so this is where the challenge really hit me. I did press on and put in the trees. If I were doing this again I think I would want a wider range of values for the tree trunks and I would make them narrower. As I got to the nearest trees I added extra wadding. Unfortunately it doesn't show in the picture but the outermost trunk on the right as you look at it, is very rounded. Once all the trunks were on I used the offcuts from 'Golden Storm' to make leaves, and scraps from the tree trunks for branches. The leaves on the trees are held on with quilting made to look like twigs and branches. The leaves on the ground have a more pebbly quilting, which does look pretty path like in real life. As you can tell the camera didn't do a great job of capturing the colour but I think it is close enough to give you the idea.

I haven't trimmed the quilt yet. When I first though of the idea I was going to add some cylindrical stuffed tree trunks in the foreground. I don't know if I will but I want to keep my options open right now. I figure that when I decide how I want to bind it I will make the final call on adding tree trunks. Also I might try some more quilting on the existing trunks to make them look less blocky, but I am not sure about that either.

First ever squishy

I got my first squishy today. Thanks Wittering Rainbow. She has sent me three shades of green that work well together, so now I am looking for a design I can make in three shades. It all very exciting. I guess I nee to pick something fairly simple, and ideally quite organic, hmmm maybe a green man? Guess what I will be thinking about today.

National TV interest in quilts

I had such a strange day yesterday, today it seems like a dream. I was working on my challenge quilt when the phone rang. It was a man calling from the BBC Newsnight program. They were planning a piece on global warming. Focusing on the fact that scientist say it will cost less to fix things now than if we wait longer. So a stitch in time... To illustrate it they wanted to use my quilted globe 'Tread Lightly'! What a surprise. I explained that it had been stolen and I would have to contact the owner and see what she thought about it. She was very nice about it and happy for them to film the globe. As it turned out they used the image of an inflatable globe instead, but I am still very flattered to have been asked. I hope that they will remember me and find a use for one of my quilts in the future. If nothing else the idea of a quilt illustrating the news is just fantastic.

Pet and humans sleeping under supplies

Wittering Rainbow has issued a challenge to show quilting related things piled up on pets and humans. Here is one of my cats. He fell asleep on my desk while I was trimming blocks for the two person quilt we had in the Festival of quilts. He did end up with even more on him but I didn't get the picture of that. This is the trimmings from about a quarter of the blocks. Fortunately this cat doesn't move too much when he sleeps as I was trimming with a rotary cutter very close to him. I am hoping I can balance things on another of my cats before the end of the day, but you know how contrary they can be.