ETA:  some folks have been commenting that I work really fast.  I don't, actually.  I work a lot, and I work hard.  I put in 30-40 hours a week on my quilting in addition to my day job and spending time with my family. So, I don't sleep.  ;)

Today is the second birthday of my blog.  My "blog birthday" also marks my quilting experience, and though it seems hard for me to fathom, my blog is only six months older than my quilting experience.  So I have now  been quilting for 2.5 years.


In some ways, (all good ways) it feels as if I've been quilting for a much longer period of time.  And in other ways (when I look at my somewhat schizophrenic oeuvre and my lack of ability in some areas) it absolutely makes complete sense. :)

So I thought I would review what I made in 2010, and then talk about what I see for myself in 2011. If you're interested in seeing the quilting on them, click on the links to the original post.

First up:


The Invention of Pinwheels

This was a WIP from 2009 that I finally finished, so-called because in my eagerness and excitement as an entirely self-taught quilter, I "invented" the pinwheel.  Of course, I later discovered pinwheels had been around for hundreds of years, but still.  As far as I was concerned, I invented  'em! 

One of These Things (Is Not Like the Others)


Also made in January, this lap-sized quilt was based on another traditional block; the snowball block.  I called it "one of these things" because I ran out of  fabric for one block, thus making it different.  It wasn't a WIP, originally, I was making this quilt for my youngest son, and it was going to be a mix of those print blocks and solid colour blocks in a queen.  But as it came together, I realized the quilt was too juvenile for my soon to be sixteen year old, so I turned it into a lap. Which BSP is napping under as I write this. :)

Cat Nap


In February, I was experimenting with making tote bags and other small quilted items, but I did manage to start and finish one lap sized quilt, "Cat Nap" . I loved the printed cat fabric - a gift from a friend - but there was so little of it, I was hard-pressed to decide what would best show it off . In retrospect, I'm not sure this was the best use of it (in this quilt, I can certainly see why a design wall would come in handy!); but I was glad to get over my fear of using a fabric I loved, and this quilt gets a lot of use.

Puzzle



In 2010, I decided to explore this whole "textile art" thing, and try to find out if that was something I wanted to do.  In furtherance of that, I joined 3 Creative Studio's art quilt challenge group.  I thought, among other things, that it would be a way to push myself and learn.  It did do those things for me although most of the other things I hoped/expected from the group did not come to pass. 

This first foray in the group has it's own charm, but was not reflective of the work I wanted to produce. Nevertheless, I was pleased to have produced a piece on someone else's theme and to a deadline, both things I wasn't sure I would be able to do.

Passage


At the beginning of March, both of my sewing machines died.  Died deader than doornails.  And I decided that rather than pay to have the machines fixed for the umpteenth time (I had already paid for each of them twice over in repair costs!); I would save to buy a really good machine.  Of course, the fates conspired against me in the loss of my work contract, so it was literally 3 months before I could afford to buy my Juki.
The only reason I was able to show Passage (another textile art piece produced for the 3 Creative Studios Challenge) at the end of April, was because I had actually finished in February.  Passage had a great deal of emotional import for me, and I was actually grateful for the opportunity to have made it.

Last Fall in Spring


Not having had a sewing machine for nearly four months threw off my "2010 Plan" by at least that long.  And so June found me still working on the WIPS from 2009 that I had hoped to have finished by February or March at the latest.  Beginning to explore new work and ideas would have to be put off, as I had promised myself that I wouldn't start any new work until my old work was done.

Un Poco Loco



But then, something happened.  It was beyond my control!! :)  I was given a box of scraps by a friend, and amongst them were these little bits of shiny stuff.  I looked through the box, brought it to my sewing room and a day or two later came out with this quilt.  Sometimes, the Universe just grabs your hands and you make stuff without even realizing it.  (Or at least, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!)

A Sparrow In The Rain



A Sparrow In The Rain was my magnum opus.  I had started it in the late fall of 2009 when I was going through a depressive period, and it was my meditaion on depression and mental illness.  I don't know whether it was the choice of colour or the subject material, but people didn't respond to the quilt well.  Neverthless, I thought it was the most beautiful quilt I had ever made and I was, and am, immensely proud of it.

Double Helix On The Downbeat



In July, the third challenge piece for 3Creative Studios was due, and I called mine Double Helix on the Downbeat.  This was another instance where I felt that my abilities were not up to my expression.  I liked my idea, but the execution was flawed and juvenile.  So I was disappointed with it on the one hand, but pleased because such learnings were at least one reason that I joined the challenge group to begin with.

Orange You Glad I Did?



Another July finish, this was a 2009 WIP - a dreaded HST quilt.  This quilt looks great on our queen-sized bed and is light and warm.  I doubt I'll ever make a queen sized HST again, but I'm glad I did.

Little Boy Blue



Another July quilt, this queen sized number was yet another quilt that I couldn't figure out how to photograph in a way that showed its true beauty.  It's a gorgeous, luminous quilt - the blue silk glows in all lights and is a wonderful contrast to the rich chocolate brown prints in stripes and dots.

Jungle Princess



This oversized baby quilt was an early August finish and wasn't one of my scheduled WIPs - in fact, it wasn't a scheduled quilt at all - but for some reason, these fabrics just grabbed me on August 1, and I made this little quilt out of them.  I had no idea what I was going to do with it - after all, I didn't know anyone with a baby or even someone who was expecting a baby, but there it was.

Sleep, Baby



Not having a baby to make baby quilts for was apparently no detriment, because a few days later, I made another one.  "If I had a baby girl", I thought, this is the quilt I would want for her.

Mango Tango



And a few days after that, I made another one again!  What was up with the baby making *ahem*, baby quilt making phase I was in?

Daisies Sing the Blues



And then (apparently), I decided that making a baby quilt wasn't enough, I had to make a whole SET.  A baby quilt - no surprise there, but also, a diaper bag with cunning zippers and bottle holders and diaper pockets, and a vinyl lined change pad that rolled up and fit in the bag. August was baby-quilt-making month, no doubt about it. Would the streak ever end?


Once, I Was A Child



All is clear in hindsight, of course; and I realize now that making all of those baby quilts throughout August was my sub-conscious' way of fighting back against the dreadful  memories I was dredging up while making the next challenge piece due at the end of the month for 3 Creative Studios.  My mummified child-self in the piece says it all, really; but if you wish to read more about the meaning of the piece, click on the link.

Side Dish



Early in September, I got back to the work list, finishing up WIPs from 2009. On the one hand, I couldn't believe that I was still finishing WIPs from 2009, but on the other hand, this queen sized quilt has become a real favourite in our house and gets used constantly.  In trying to understand this (I've certainly made prettier quilts); we finally realized that it's the quilting that we find so charming on this quilt  - so I'm including a pic of that




Breakfast at Tiffany's



Towards the middle of September, I decided to try a whole cloth quilt out of dupioni silk.  Not only did this quilt not photograph well, there are some things I've learned since then that would improve the technique - nevertheless, this is a very pretty quilt in real life with its hand beading and three dimensional flowers; and I will some day, try it in a larger size as it was a huge favourite at the show and sale I participated in at the beginning of December.

Battaile des cerf-volantes


 
 
For a couple of weeks in the first part of September, there had been a small controversy stirring in my city about a a rather sudden, arbitrary ban on kite fighting.  I read the articles with interest and towards the middle of the month was inspired to make a quilt about kite fighting.   
 
Celtic Autumn
 
 
 
At the end of September, the falling leaves and muted gold colours all around me inspired this quilt of warm wool and bright gold satin, that I ended up calling "Celtic Autumn".
 
Of The Moment
 
 
 
 
As you may recall from my 2009 Year In Review I had an "Aha!" moment or two - and at the beginning of October, I had my 2010 "Aha!"  I made this quilt far more consciously then I usually do, and quilted it in a way I hadn't tried before and which went against my "fill up the space with lots of busyness showing off cool quilting skills" desire but seemed to fit the quilt despite myself.  And I ended up with a quilt that lit the way to the path I'm going to follow as a quilt maker and textile artist.  
 
Turtle Island
 
 
 
You may recall that October was an extremely challenging month for me.  Beloved Spouse had had major surgery on October 1, and at the end of the month I was starting a new position at a prestigious firm after doing some long-term temp work after having lost my contract in April. 
 
So, I wanted to make some quick quilts to keep you, my readers entertained, but not have to spend a lot of time in the sewing room as I had a lot to do! So I made two quilts, one of which was this one - which I showed you in the third week of October.  It was cute and simple and lightening fast (start to finish, this baby quilt took me about 2 hours to make - but of course years of learning went into it!) and I was pleased.
 
Animals on Parade
 
 
 
The following week, I showed you "Animals on Parade"   Athough this one took twice as long to make as "Turtle Island", it was still fast and easy, with a pretty result.
 
Time To Face The Music
 
 
 
At the beginning of November, our fifth challenge for 3 Creative Studios was due.  For this challenge, I decided to tackle a modern primitive style.  Although I was pleased that the message was clear, and pleased with myself for pushing forward into new-to-me territory; I decided that this style doesn't speak to me.  Another great lesson learned and on to the next challenge!
 
Islands In The Stream
 
 
This was a WIP from earlier in the year - prior to "Of The Moment".  You can see that I was feeling my way towards it, but hadn't quite gotten there.  In a way, I'm sorry I quilted this one up - I should have taken it apart and had another go at it.  After finishing "Of The Moment" I knew better what to do with this quilt, and I should have done. Live and learn! In the end, I have a lap quilt whose colours I love, and it was a lot of fun to work with parachute "silk".
 
Midas Touch
 
 
You know what quilt wasn't fun to work with?  This one! This quilt was a WIP from 2008, and the reason it took so long to finish it was because of the fabrics.  Not only were those silly lames and chiffons and silks and poly-something-or-others difficult and time-consuming to work with, I had to sew them to a base fabric (cotton muslin) for stability which made the top incredibly heavy.  And then I chose to use a heavy ultra-suede for backing and borders.  And so this quilt weighed roughly 1000 pounds and once quilted, I hated the quilting and so had to take it all out - stitch by delicate-don't-ruin-hundreds-of-dollars-worth-of-fabric stitch. 

And then, months later when that was all done, I had to quilt it AGAIN. 
 
The quilt it stunning, but wow.  I'm not convinced it was worth the work.
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
So that was 2010, my year in quilts. I averaged one quilt every two weeks even with a four month break (and that's not including nearly 30 quilted bags and a couple of table runners); so I've learned, that if nothing else, I'm prolific!
 
After experimenting with all of these styles, I also have a better sense of where I'm going - if I picked out my favourite quilts of the last two years, you'd see a definite pattern in the work as well as a developing voice.
 
And hey, speaking of a developing voice - I want to do more of that in 2011.  So expect to see more textile art pieces this year - maybe a lot more - and more quilts along the lines of Of The Moment, Zen Gardens, Passage and Once, I Was A Child.  Even Turtle Islands, that simple baby quilt, fits comfortably in the direction I'm heading.
 
Thank you dear readers for coming along with me.  I've enjoyed your company and look forward to spending more time with you in this new year and seeing what you're working on. 
 
Happy new year!
 
Kit