Susan Schrott

Virginia Spiegel's Good Deeds

2009-08-04T19:23:00.001-07:00

I am always so grateful to Virginia Spiegel (www.virginiaspiegel.com) for bringing important news to my attention, and to all the quilt art world for that matter. Recently she blogged about Artful Home ’s Hearts For Anna which is an online fundraiser to be held Augst 12-16. All funds raised with go to Anna Millea an artist who is fighting breast cancer. Anna has been denied insurance, having been deemed uninsurable due to her "pre-existing condition."

This beautiful bird is Virginia's piece that she so graciously donated to Hearts for Anna.

To learn more go to : www.www.artfulhome.com/heartsforanna

"Morning Song"

Women in the Family series: Julie NB

2009-08-04T18:47:00.000-07:00

Making Julie N B has been an absolute joy. I still have the original quilt to go back to and work on. This piece is a phototransfer of my own original quilt. Finished, it measures 10" x 14". I free motion quilted the piece and satin stitched the inner border. I used Japanese seed beads for most of the beadwork and a few larger beads for the outer border and in the headdress. The necklaces are Swarovski crytals which I heat set. My cousin Julie N B has not seen the piece as of today. She longed for her own when she saw the gifts I made for my new sister-in-law Julie B V! I actually have another cousin Julie in my family! That is why the initials after the first name. I have included several details of the piece below to better see the bead and thread work.

beaded petals with inner and outer borders

free motion quilted background

beaded headdress and Swarovski crystal necklaces

Beaded dress and birds

Full Image

Adagio will be shown at Boltax Gallery

2009-08-02T10:59:00.000-07:00

I am very happy to share the good news that ADAGIO III has been juried into the Boltax Gallery's Small Works Exhibition. ADAGIO III is part of a series: ADAGIO, ADAGIO I, ADAGIO II and ADAGIO III. To see more about the exhibition go to www.boltaxgallery.com

I am especially excited because this gallery is located on Shelter Island which is my true home.

Crossed the finish line

2009-07-31T13:14:00.001-07:00

I called my client this afternoon as I was stitching down this label to tell him that I am so excited about the Tree of Life he commissioned. I wish I could see his face this Monday when he will unroll it, but I am working all day at my office and my husband will be handing it over to him. I can't wait to speak to him and find out how he likes it! BACK TO MY WOMEN IN MY FAMILY SERIES....

A handsome quilt

2009-07-31T09:39:00.000-07:00

I am on the homestretch! What a surprise I had this morning when I was looking through my thread boxes. I was searching for just the right thread for the inner border. I knew I wanted something that would frame the piece, and so I sought out something that would contain the colors in the boats. I found a spool of variegated thread that had just the right shade of red and it looked to my eye, like it contained a nice blend of colors that I was seeking. I tried it out on a sample piece of fabric and was thrilled to see that it is a pattern of red, off white and blue! How perfect. Then I removed the original lighthouse I had in the center of the tree and replaced it with one that had the blue and white stripes. Viola. I nailed it (so-to-speak)...I sewed it place. The only thing I have left to do today is the backing, which I am pillow casing and making a personalized label. My husband will be delivering the quilt to my client on Monday. I am insisting that he take some photos of his reaction when he unrolls the quilt which by the way, is titled: Tree of Life with Boats and Lighthouses.

great weather for the studio

2009-07-31T06:50:00.000-07:00

Aren't rainy days the best for studio time..

I just love working on rainy days...I enjoy the cozy feeling of working in my bright studio with my house filled with family, my pets and my work..doesn't get much better.

I got up early today and printed 30 fabric labels for my 4" x 4" quilts for the Fiberartny exchange coming up this September. I originally made 29 squares with my women and decided I just couldn't part with them. They were too close to me and my new Women In My Family series. But I loved the process of making them. I then made 29 new ones using my Tree of Life images. I completed them this morning by fusing the labels to the back. I am looking forward to seeing what the other artists have submitted for our exchange.

Today I will be completing my commission. Yesterday I free motion quilted the center of the quilt and appliqued the boats to the outer border. Today, I will be free motion quilting the outer border. Yesterday I tried three times to quilt the outer border and nothing worked. There is nothing like a new day and a fresh start for me to find the right design. I took one look at the border and knew immediately that I would quilt it with a wavy design....These photos are from yesterday's work:

Hearts for Anna Event

2009-07-29T04:47:00.001-07:00

Once again Virginia Speigel http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/blog/ has shared this very meaningful event for all the world to see. Thank you Virginia for always inspiring us to do good deeds.

Hearts for Anna is a fundraiser for an artist with cancer who has been denied insurance coverage due to a pre-exisiting condition

If you are interested in participating either as a donor or a patron for this fundraiser just click on the link below. Artwork has to be no larger that 5" x 7"...

Hearts for Anna Event

Beautiful Woman I

Original images by the artist, Susan Schrott which have been photo-transferred to 100% cotton fabric. Fused to artist hand dyed fabrics and machine quilted. Embellished with heat set Swarovski crystals. 4" x 4"

Beautiful Woman II

Beautiful Woman III

Tree of Life is in progress

2009-07-26T17:05:00.000-07:00

Ok I know I said this entry was about my new Tree of Life Commission but I couldn't resist this adorable photo of my two (out of three) dogs. My daughter said I look like Pebbles in this picture. I dare say, she is right!!

Now, on to business....

My client asked me to design a Tree of Life for his client using a nautical theme. I thought about it for a while and ventured out of my normal method of working. This typically means using exclusively my own handdyed/painted fabrics. I visited my local fabric store

and found a lovely fabric with handsome boats and lighthouses (www.pinsandneedlesny.com) Originally I thought I would just use the fabric and create large outer borders with it. However, the pattern bothered me. It went all over the place. The images go in all directions and that was definitely not what I had in mind. I decided to create the Tree of Life first. However, I selected my fabrics from my stash matching them to the colors in the commerical boat fabric. The only other commercial fabric I used was the center background piece which I cut into a 20" x 20" square.

Using my own Tree of Life Pattern, I created all the leaves using my rotary blade and after designing the entire layout with all the leaves, I fused everything in place.

From there, I ironed fusible web to my boat fabric and began to cut out the images that I liked. With that all done, I added them to the outer boarder. That is where I am at now. I will begin the quilting tomorrow.

Beading

2009-07-21T19:00:00.000-07:00

This is my original drawing on cotton fabric that I did about two weeks ago. Since then, I transfered my own image to an 8 x 10 inch piece of 100 % cotton and added borders and quilted it. It is so cool to think that my own image can become yet another piece of artwork to use as a springboard.

Today, I got back into the studio, perfect for this rainy day. I have started to embellish and bead Julie NB and she is just shimmering. I think my cousin will be so surprised when she sees what I have been up to.

From new work comes new work

2009-07-16T15:03:00.000-07:00

I transfered my own photograph of a quilt I am working on, to phototransfer fabric today and made a new quilt from my own quilt. Does that make sense. What a fantastic process I did minimal quilting and am embellishing the piece with beads and crystals. The border fabrics are my own hand dyed fabrics. This piece is Julie NB

THEY JUST KEEP COMING

2009-07-11T07:00:00.000-07:00

I have this inexplicable energy lately which is allowing me to bring this women to life. I took some small pieces of white cotton fabric with me on the plane to LA last weekend along with my pigma pens and I did this two smaller pieces. They are Hallie and Julie NB. I am just going to keep doing this series as it has taken on a life of it's own.

ELIZABETH BERNI, JULIE NB (ON THE CENTER) HALLIE (BOTTOM CENTER) ROSE SABRINA

DETAILS JULIE NB

JULIE NB

new works in progress

2009-07-09T18:49:00.000-07:00

Here comes another Woman In My Family...Hallie F

Who might she be?

Who is She

2009-07-01T19:58:00.000-07:00

I didn't have a lot of time today, so before I left home for work today, I did some small sketches on fabric and before I knew it, this lovely woman came to life for my Women In My Family Series. We have a lot of green eyed women so now I need to look into her eyes and see which of my relatives speaks to me. I am going to add an outer pieced border and am thinking about yellow. purple and green...I think..

Evening in the Studio

2009-06-28T16:38:00.001-07:00

I added the borders today to Rose Sabrina. The border strips, before I attached them to the inner fabric, are1 1/2 inchs wide. The final border after I add the facing, will be one inch wide. I selected border fabrics that pick up the colors of the inside of the drawn image.

I think that it gives the piece a nice strong frame.

building borders

2009-06-28T06:03:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I had a lovely time relaxing while I did some good old fashioned straight stitch sewing. I am creating the outer border for my new piece and sewed one inch strips together which I will eventually cut up to repiece together to build the border. I am using my own hand dyed fabrics AND some raw silk I bought when I visited a silk warehouse in Italy at Lake Como. I think I bought this fabric over 10 years ago and yet, I keep finding ways to use it. I am getting down to the last few pieces and so I am careful not to waste a bit of it. Here is a photo of the strips but what I really love about this picture is that you can see the flowers outside in my window boxes. I sit and sew just by these windows and I love working in my new studio and the beautiful views of the outdoors and sky I am always able to enjoy...rain or shine.

Rose Sabrina

2009-06-27T06:02:00.000-07:00

I decided to use pebeo seta color, transparent paint to complete the background. I added Jacquard pearl Ex Pigments ( 674 interference gold) to the paints to add a beautiful shimmer to the fabric. I love this product as it just brings the piece to life. I will be adding my own hand dyed fabrics later today to the inner borders and may indeed, continue using the same technique to the outer border that I used on Elizabeth Berni. I think as a series, it will make a strong connection between the pieces.

Rose Sabrina

2009-06-26T11:32:00.000-07:00

I am happy to introduce Rose Sabrina as she progresses. Below you can see the figure as I begin to add color, using fabric markers, prisma colored pencils and ultra fine pigma markers.

Here I have colored the birds and flowers

The next step that I am considering is how I want to fill in the background: paint or pencils or both? I will let you know.

I kept at it

2009-06-21T15:18:00.000-07:00

Well, the rain hasn't stopped, so neither did I. Took a break though to do some reading, and came back into the studio to try my hand at a new piece. I am happy with this new woman in my series: Rose Sabrina. I am going to continue working on her this week and see what evolves....with or without the rain!

more rain, more drawing

2009-06-21T13:25:00.000-07:00

Spent a few hours in the studio today since it began to rain... again. I just love that Biscuit keeps me company. I didn't really end up with anything I can use. I wasn't satisfied with anything I drew. It is just wasn't happening.

SAQA Benefit Auction 2009

2009-06-19T07:59:00.000-07:00

I am donating Dawn of A New Day to the :

SAQA Benefit Auction 2009

One Foot Squares

The Auction will begin Thursday, September 10th, 2009

I love this 12" x 12" piece and hope it finds a loving home.

Completed new work

2009-06-18T16:10:00.001-07:00

Click on the image to see the quilting and beading up close.

Elizabeth Berni

Elizabeth Berni nearly completed

2009-06-18T07:27:00.000-07:00

The rain here is relentless! But, the good news is, that I feel cozy in my studio and get lots done on rainy days. I am also in the process of having my website professionally designed, freeing me to have more time for my artwork!

I have the initial drawing started for my next piece: JULIE NB

Elizabeth Berni is completely quilted and beaded and all I have left to do is finish sewing down the facing. Enjoy the photos below.

JULIE NB

birds are beaded

Almost done....the facing is pinned down and I have started sewing it in place.

the vines are beaded

the torso is completely beaded

I love the beading

2009-06-14T17:52:00.000-07:00

I think I was possessed by a spirit today, unlike any other...I COOKED all day. Woke up, went for a walk, did some morning yoga and decided to bake a banana bread. Ok that's pretty simple. My daughters woke up wondering, what's that yummy smell, and at about 11 am (yes I said 11 AM) they wandered into kitchen and proceeded to cut right into the loaf with big smiles. Then I decided I would make a nice lunch. So after three different stops to three different stores...the fish monger, the vegetable market, and then the dreaded supermarket, got home and made an enormous fresh salad for the family. My older daughter's college roommate was here and we had delicious salad. I used fresh baby spinach, fresh arugala, black olives, feta cheese, chopped red onion, pan roasted walnuts and flaxseeds and sliced red peppers all tossed together. I mixed up a traditional dressing of balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper and it was just perfect. Got a freshly baked loaf of seven grain bread and we had a feast. But it didn't stop there. I decided I was going to make a nice dinner too. So I found a recipe that looked just like something I would love: salmon over a pea/mint puree...well I made this beautiful dish that had three layers to it: the broth base of lemon, shallot and stock, then the pea puree made with fresh mint from my garden and finally the fresh salmon cooked right on the stovetop. All three parts are then layered and presented in a shallow dish. I can't believe I am actually writing about this. In between the cooking and eating, I did go into my studio to do some more beading work and my husband snuck a few photos...of course, Biscuit is always there to keep me company, either in his bed or literally on my lap when I am working. That's the benefit of a three pound dog.

Night in the Studio

2009-06-11T20:15:00.000-07:00

Got into my studio this evening and finished quilting the outer border. I worked each square carefully and mindfully. After this was completed I began to bead the flowers on the dress, the headdress and I am in the middle of beading the torso. I find the beading sooo relaxing. The pace is slower than the machine quilting. I especially like the change from machine work to hand work...the threading of the needle, choosing the beads, touching the beads, and actually sewing by hand.

Border quilting

2009-06-10T05:44:00.000-07:00

I spent several hours yesterday finishing the quilting around the hair and on the borders. Each little square takes a lot of time as I am not free motion quilting the border. So, I have to turn the quilt each and every time I create the quilt design for each border square. I tried free motion quilting the squares but the result just wasnt' what I wanted. I wanted a very clean, precise and neat quilting line and I achieved this much more effectively with simple straight line quilting. I am almost finished and once the entire piece is quilted I will begin beading the dress, birds, and vines.

Elizabeth Berni gets quilted

2009-06-08T05:53:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I began to quilt. I often feel a mixture of excitement and mild anxiety when I begin to quilt these new pieces. I think it is because the fine outline quilting with the black thread is challenging and I am afraid I am going to "ruin" everything. With that said, I put needle and thread to fabric and just dove in. Below is the full image of the piece with the pieced border and the quilting in progress. I quilted heavily around the birds and vines. This gave the birds a fuller look similar to trapunto. I think it worked out very well. These photos show all aspects of the quilting including the outer pieced border. I am using a combination of solid cotton threads and veriagated threads for the border. I created a continuous vine pattern for the two inner borders repeating the drawn images in thread. After all the quilting is completed I will add the beading!

combining two styles

2009-06-02T19:04:00.000-07:00

I have been out of the studio this week because I have been focused on my daughter's American Cancer Society's Relay for Life. They raised over $107,000! I finally spent a wee bit of time in my studio tonight and added this border to Elizabeth Berni. I love the combination of the freehand drawing and the pieced border. I look forward now, to the quilting and beading.

Check Out Vivien Zepf's Blog

2009-05-29T07:30:00.001-07:00

Great news from dear friend Vivien Zepf. But, let her tell you all about it on her blog.

Posters

2009-05-24T17:33:00.000-07:00

I am very excited about my new posters. They are approximately 30" wide by 40 inches high. Each will be created upon the completion of the new Women In My Family Series.

A Perfect Day to Garden

2009-05-23T09:45:00.000-07:00

It is a perfectly cool and shady day today to work in my gardens. I have had so much fun this year putting in my annuals and moving my perennials around as things grow. My husband gave our red shutters a fresh coat of paint this year and they look great. I finished my window boxes and filled them with petunias and a couple of bright yellow marigolds.

There are lots of places to sit, relax, read,

Meditate....

have a cup of coffee or a glass of wine...

The basil, tomatoes, rosemary, parsley and of course the catnip for my husbands cat are planted. I added a rock border to finish it nicely

Peonies are coming up beautifully

my astilbe garden in ready to bloom

yellow coreopsis will be blooming later this summer

and the echinacea is ready to blossom!!! I am so excited

Aren't these minature petunias lovely

I couldn't resist these bright red pots...they look awesome with the red shutters

and now, I get to enjoy watching everything grow...as long as I keep spraying everything so the deer don't have a bountiful feast!!

Garden Day

2009-05-17T16:29:00.000-07:00

I look forward to this week every year. The second week in May when I can safely put my flowers in the ground and hopefully not have to worry about a frost. Spent the day making several rounds back and forth from home depot where in my neck of the woods, you can get the best selection of flowers at a reasonable price. I got to the parking lot and literally ran to the flower section just in case someone took that one special plant that had my name on. Of course that's totally irrational because there is plenty to go around. I have two gardens in the front of my house and one fenced in one in the back. Also, my husband picked up a whole bunch of tomato, basil and herb plants that we are thinking about putting in pots this year.

So, here we go...some basil....smells sooo good

This is something new...I got three of these broom plants...they are just gorgeous and if everything goes well...they should be about 5 feet high. Yes!

These are my peonies. Every year, for many, many years, I have told myself I would put the proper round peony stakes around my peonies. And each June, I watch them as they topple over and berate myself for not staking them. So, this year.... I was right on it...Got these babies supported early on and they are growing up straight and beautifully.
We live in deer country..so this year I focused on lots of bright marigolds, my favorite being the red and yellow toned...and lots of red salvia...of course pink, coral and fushia inpatients. My Black Eyed Susies are back too and lots and lots of Hosta.
Of course there are Astilbe and Coreopsis ...
And pots all around. Now I spray regularly so that all my plants don't become DEER FOOD....and tend to the plants all Spring and Summer and watch them grow and take on a life of their own. I will begin work on my fenced in garden tuesday and thursday this week when I am not in my office seeing patients. And of course I need to get back to my studio.

Flags

2009-05-16T19:57:00.000-07:00

My father's 79th birthday is this Tuesday. In honor of this birthday I made him a small art quilt. I specifically used this silk reproduction I found recently of a woman holding a flag, because he is having a major book published of his photographs this year. Penguin Press is publishing the book and it is called Flags. Every photo in the book has a flag in it. We are all so thrilled and happy for him. I hope he likes this small gift I made for him.

http://www.victorfriedman.com

Leah Rachel

2009-05-14T20:46:00.000-07:00

It is nearly midnight but I couldn't pass my studio without beginning a new woman in my series. This is Leah Rachel.

Hand made card

2009-05-14T06:49:00.000-07:00

I made this card for a friend of mine who is hugely supportive of both of my professional lives.

I plan on seeing her tomorrow at a conference and giving it to her there. I hope she likes it.

I used a photo transfer of one of my own images and fused three borders. The outer border consists of some stripped piecing I had leftover from some current work. I added heart shaped sequins and put pink beads in the center which when stitched keeps everything in place. The inner and outer borders are satin stitched.

I used fabric I stamped and embellished with heat set Swarovski crystals for the back of the front page

The second page has a personal handwritten note, is free motion quilted and again embellished with the heat set crystals

the back is a piece of fabric I created last summer. It is a mixture of paints, stamping and one crystal.

Back into the studio PM

2009-05-13T18:31:00.000-07:00

Back from work, nice dinner and a glass of wine...added two borders to the piece and tomorrow I will begin the thread work.

Elizabeth Berni

2009-05-13T05:44:00.000-07:00

I didn't have a lot of time today to work in my studio, just had too many errands that needed to be taken care of, silly things like having the horn fixed on my car! You don't realize how important that darn thing is until you need it and it doesn't work. Kinda scary. But, at about 4PM I grabbed an hour and found that delicious feeling I get when I set foot through the door into my studio. I really do notice a change in myself. It is a combination of calm and excitement but a wonderful blend of the two feelings.

Anyway, I picked up the newest piece in my Women In My Family Series: Elizabeth Berni and began to add color to the background.. I started doing what I have done with the two previous pieces by sketching in the background with prisma colored pencils. But my eyes kept moving to the paints on my shelves and before I knew it I was gathering water, brushes and paints out. I choice jacquard seta color lemon yellow transparent paint and heavily diluted it. That's what I used to paint over the pencil work. Because I diluted it a lot, and it is transparent paint, I got just what I was looking for. The background has a soft yet delicious outdoor feel to it and the pencil sketches add texture to the overall effect. This was especially important to me since Elizabeth Berni loves to be in the sunshine, especially on a swing if there is one to be found. She has beautiful hair, which I know she adores, so I added some metallic gold paint and blended that in to the existing original pencil work. Finally, I added some pearl Ex Pigment (interference gold) to the diluted lemon yellow and made a wash. This went over the first coat of yellow paint and made the entire piece shimmer. Perfect.

With just a few seconds left to work, I found three pieces of my hand dyed fabric and am now auditioning them for the borders. Today, I see patients so the studio will wait until tomorrow or perhaps late tonight.

drawing

2009-05-07T06:06:00.000-07:00

Getting an early start today in the studio

Piecing and Drawing

2009-05-06T19:06:00.001-07:00

I am not even going to try to understand where my inspiration is coming from. What matters is that it is oozing out of me. I spent the last four days working from sunup to sundown in my studio. What has been unusual for me is the way I am moving effortlessly between two different styles of my work: images of women, and using my delicious handdyed fabrics. These new images of woman are hand drawn on 100% cotton fabric and bordered with my handdyed fabrics, beaded and free motion quilted. The new long piece in my abstract series uses all of my handdyed fabrics. I learned to do this after spending a day with Elizabeth Rosenberg (www.elizabethrosenberg.blogspot.com) last fall. She taught me how to do these gentle curved piecing. It has been a wonderful way for me to create images that are metaphorical and abstract unlike my women. Both bring me great personal satisfaction and allow me to express myself fully.

So, below is Elizabeth, which I began tonight after working on my abstract piece below.

Creating the hair and headdress

My supplies

gorgeous colors

couldn't resist sharing this photo of one of MANY woodpeckers at our birdfeeder. Just look at the magnificent color of his head and the line of his beak

This is my abstract piece to date. it measures about 48 long x 24 wide. It is still a work in progress

I realized I needed more contrasting colors as I began to work on this piece so I headed for my dye studio and whipped up these three colors.

Gently curved piecing before I begin to create the strips

more to come

Two ribbons

2009-05-03T09:28:00.000-07:00

I was very surprised and happy to learn this weekend two of my quilts received awards at the Northern Star Quilter's Guild World of Quilts XXX, in Somers NY. There were so many beautiful and exciting quilts this year, and I feel very fortunate to have received this recognition.

Fiddler on the Couch Received an Honorable Mention in the Figures Category

and

Adagio received Second Place in the Abstract Category

Women in the Family series

2009-05-02T04:21:00.000-07:00

My younger brother Paul Benvictor (www.paulbenvictor.com) is getting married this July 4th weekend in Los Angeles! It is a thrilling time for our family. The woman he is engaged to is truly an angel and I absolutely adore her. She is beautiful both inside and out, intelligent, creative and loving. Julie has a mane of gorgeous hair and the greenest eyes imaginable. So, with the happy event soon upon us, I thought this second completed piece in my Women in the Family series should be called Julie BV.

New Work Is Completed

2009-04-30T15:29:00.000-07:00

Susan Beth

I spent several hours today beading my new work. I believe it is done. I have spent many months, and had several conversations with friends and family about what to name these pieces. Many have suggested Goddess names, mythical names and biblical names, but that just didn't ring true to me. What does ring true, are the names of the incredibly wonderful women in my very large family, both past and present and so without hesitating, I knew that was the answer to my quest. Without meaning to be narcissistic, I have decided to name this second piece: Susan Beth. Yes, a self portrait as there is just no way around it. So I am happy to introduce, Susan Beth.

the flowers and vine get beaded

the center of the flowers and vines are beaded

the center of the bird, blue flowers and vines are beaded

the outer border and inner piece if free motion quilted. I used my handdyed fabrics for the oute borders

beaded headdress

Full face

Susan Beth

fiberart for a cause

2009-04-29T04:24:00.000-07:00

Please take the time to visit Virginia Spiegel's Collage Mania Fundraiser. All funds raised go to the American Cancer Society. Virginia is a powerhouse whose commitment and talent have inspired so many of us to donate and create in the hopes of finding a cure for cancer!

http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/CM2009Collages1.html
Collage Mania, a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society, opens May 5
with a minimum donation of $80 for each artwork and continues May 6 and 7
when the donation minimum drops to $40.

Please read over the directions on how to participate in Collage Mania. NOW
is the time to send me a note if you need special accommodations in any way.
Once Collage Mania starts it will be wild and crazy as all artwork is
available on a first-come/first-serve basis.

All donations for artwork are made directly to the ACS through Fiberart For
A Cause. Patrons receive an immediate electronic receipt from the ACS.

New Work Continues

2009-04-28T14:11:00.000-07:00

I spent the afternoon today moving forward with my new piece. I added two borders using my own hand dyed fabrics. I also did some additional coloring with prisma pencils to darken some of the original drawing I did.

I added a lot more color to the bodice and brought in more pink tones

Here is the piece with both borders attached

Next I used a beautiful yellow toned veriagated thread to free motion the open spaces around the figure and lines. I used a fine rayon black thread to stitch over my own black line drawing as well as the outer drawing lines of the hair, bird and headdress.

I changed to a Superior Rainbow thread to free motion on the outer green border.

Here is a closeup of the inner quilt and the two outer borders

It was tedious but worth the effort and time to outline her eyes, lips and nose in black thread too

The next step will be to add beads and perhaps Swarovski Crystals

Late afternoon in the studio

2009-04-25T17:48:00.000-07:00

After working in the garden on this spectacular day, I spent a few hours in the studio working on another piece in my new series. I have yet to name these pieces. Unlike the first in this series which I scanned and then printed onto fabric, I created this piece by drawing directly onto 100% cotton fabric. I used extra fine markers and prisma colored pencils. As of now it measures 12" x 12", but that will probably change once I add the borders.

This is different for me

2009-04-17T04:19:00.000-07:00

I have been doing a series of drawings these past few months and really loving the process involved in drawing them. After meeting with several good friends who are fantastic artists: Elizabeth Rosenberg(www.elizabethrosenberg.blogspot.com) Jeri Riggs (www.Jeririggs.com) Georgia Heller (www.georgiaheller.com) Linda Schoenfeld and Benedicte Caneill I was encouraged to take a leap off the diving board and quilt the piece. So with the support of these terrific women, I went home and scanned the original drawing on to fabric and voila, below is the transferred image.

I created the piece after scanning it, by

adding a half inch inner border and a two inch outer border. All of the fabrics I used are my own handdyed, 100 % cotton fabrics.

Here is the quilt ready to be quilted.

I use cotton batting.

At last, You can see the quilting. It was slow going and tedious. I followed my own black drawing lines and quilted over them using a very fine black thread. Then I free motion quilted the white background using a veriagated subtle thread that has hues from the overall colors of the piece, only very, very faint hints of color. After the quilting on center piece, I began to bead the torso, yellow ribbons in the hair and the headpiece. I used seed beads to do this.

Here is a detail of the headpiece and yellow beads on the ribbons.

My new commission is finished

2009-04-15T16:44:00.000-07:00

I am so happy that my client is happy! Helen came by today and I could tell by her smile that she was very thrilled with the quilt. She really took her time going over all the quilting details and taking it all in. I did make the last few changes I wrote about in my last post and you can see them in the photos below.

Helen's smile made spoke volumes.

Taking it all in

The tent, quilted

I used prisma pencils to adjust the blues in the tent and soccer ball. I am happy with the softer blues with a subtle hint of green so that it relates to the other colors in the overall piece

Here is the tree trunk which I did decide to quilt

The three fish, quilted

Relay for Life

2009-04-13T19:50:00.000-07:00

Once again, my younger daughter Rose is the Chairwoman of the Relay for Life which will take place this year at the end of May. In one of my efforts to support her I am sharing the link to her webpage at the American Cancer Society with all of you should you be interested in her story. ~ Thank you.

Susan

http://main.acsevents.org/goto/rose.schrott

Rose with her dear friend Dana

(Below, with her Mentors Hilary Lucidamo and Sarah Hess)

Just a few last details

2009-04-12T17:23:00.000-07:00

I am so excited with the nearly finished quilt I have been commissioned to do for a client in honor of her grandson's Bar Mitzvah. As you can see, with the exception of a few details the piece is nearly complete.

My client's daughter (the mother of the Bar Mitzvah boy) asked me to add a Torah to the quilt. I intend to thank her for suggesting this as it embodies much of the knowledge of the Jewish religion.

I satin stitched the edges of the Torah and tree, and used a decorative stitch to create the birds' wings. The background of the entire quilt is free motion/stipple quilted.

Below, you can see that the leaves have been free motion quilted but the three little fish have not been quilted yet.

I used a beautiful veriagated thread to outline the Star of David as well as the Jewish letters which spell out the Bar Mitvah boy's Torah portion which he will read from the Torah during his ceremony.

I created a fused binding by fusing a one inch piece to all four sides, 1/2 an inch fused to the back and 1/2 inch fused to the front. I then free motioned the entire border with a leaf motif to continue the flow of the design in the center of the quilt

Here is a close-up of the thread workings: satin stitching with veriagated threads, free motion stipple quilting and the decorative stitching on the bird. I am still thinking about free motion quilting the interior of the tree trunk.

My first quilted dog ever and I adore him, a little yellow lab.

another peek at the quilting

New Camera Lens

2009-04-07T18:28:00.001-07:00

My husband got a new lens for my camera ostensibly for himself (to take close ups of the birds outside our window at the birdfeeder). I couldn't wait to get my hands on it to give it a try and wowie, check out the great details I can get with this new lens. I am sooo excited.

What's next

2009-04-05T17:04:00.000-07:00

It has been an absolutely gorgeous day, at last! Started the day with a long and vigorous walk which always gets me feeling terrific. Then, I headed up to my studio and before I knew it, it was dinner time. Spent the day drawing and drawing and drawing while listening to great jazz from Preservation Hall in New Orleans. Just keeps me going. I think I have arrived at the finish line. I ended up using fabric markers for all the drawings The birds were drawn separately and then fused as was the smaller figure. I have heat set the piece and now am thinking very seriously about how to proceed with the quilting.......

The inspiration continues

2009-04-03T07:08:00.000-07:00

I am not sure where from within me this woman and child and the images are coming from, but I am not questioning it for a second. I am loving this process and the absolute joy I am experiencing as these delicate women come to life. I am using very, very fine pointed ink to draw the woman and the designs onto white cotton fabric. Although I feel totally uninhibited about what is coming out of me, it is balanced by the tiny designs and my knowledge that what comes out onto the fabric is permanent! There is no erasing ink, at least not the ink I am using. So, there is a tension that I also feel that keeps me immensely focused. I continuously think about how I will quilt this eventually and for now my thoughts are that the quilting with be very simple. The first image below is the full view to date and I have included lots of details. Also, my husband got a picture of me working up close and you can see just how small the nib is on the pen and how close I get to the actual work.

New work on fabric

2009-03-29T16:07:00.000-07:00

I decided today to move from paper to fabric. This is one of the original drawings I did earlier this month using permanent ink.

I spent a few hours this afternoon recreating the image I originally drew on paper, onto fabric. I ironed freezer paper to the back of the piece to stabilize it so I could draw on it. I am very excited about this new departure for me. What I am wondering about is what direction the quilting will ultimately take. These woman are so exciting to me and represent my absolute joy in creating them. I don't hold back on anything and allow my hands to express what comes from my heart and my unconscious mind. Here is the fabric version, above is the drawing I did on paper. In this version below, I am using permanent ink, fabric markers and prisma colored pencils.

New Work in Progress

2009-03-24T18:19:00.000-07:00

I decided it was time to try my new drawing technique on fabric and so here is my first piece in progress. I I stabilized the white 100% cotton fabric by ironing some freezer paper to the back. Then I just did what I have been doing these past few months and started drawing my figure. I used pigma ink and extremely fine pen points.

Here is a closeup of her face, hair and torso. I am thinking of calling he Bathsheba!

I drew her arms separately, cut them out and then added them to the figure. I also added her boots.

Finally, I have placed Bathsheba for the time being on a luscious piece of my hand dyed fabric

Collage Mania

2009-03-20T15:26:00.000-07:00

Here is the piece I created for Virginia Spiegel's Collage Mania on-line fundraiser. Collage mania is a fiberart for a cause on -line fundraiser for the American Cancer Society and can be viewed at: http://www.virginiaspiegel.com

New Commission

2009-03-15T09:08:00.000-07:00

I have spent this lovely morning in my sunny studio working on a commission.

I am having such a good time working on this piece, especially because it presented me with challenges. This quilt was commissioned by a women, who has bought my work in the past for her grandchildren for special events in their lives.

She asked me to create a piece this time, for her grandson who has a bar mitzvah coming up this Spring. We discussed his hobbies and interests and I learned that he adores his golden retriever, enjoys boating, scuba diving,

camping, soccer and skiing.

With that in mind, I designed a tree of life, with a Torah scroll at the bottom and two doves centered on the scroll. It was especially challenging for me to do the golden retriever as I don't typically do animals, but I have to say I love this little puppy.

I decided to just create it by the seat of my pants and to not worry about the results and I actually think the dog is a cutie pie. I used a solid image to present the scuba diver. I created the entire piece using my own hand dyed fabrics and now it is all fused and ready to be quilted. Taking a break now to go for a run and enjoy this warmer weather.

Sacred Threads!

2009-03-09T06:01:00.000-07:00

I am very happy to say that two of my pieces have been juried intro the Sacred Threads 2009 Exhibition: A Quilt Exhibition Connecting Quilting and the Spiritual Life.

This is a truly wonderful exhibition. Visit the website!

Been very busy in my studio

2009-02-20T19:35:00.000-08:00

I have been gone for months. Work has consumed so much of my time and energy and when I did have free time I used it to work in my studio. I have finally completed Fiddler on the Couch. Much to my surprise, I have been spending the month working in archival markers and paper and have discovered a whole new world of woman that are coming through my fingers and onto the paper in such a joyful and surprising way.

Back on Board

2009-01-17T17:14:00.001-08:00

Back up and running in the blog world. It will take me a few days to get things looking right, so thanks for your patience friends.