Happy or Sad?

I can’t decide if I am happy or sad.

These two little quilts found new homes while I was in Norway.

Brown Sister Tress mounted on Peltex Frame.


Blowing in the Wind mounted on Peltex Frame.

I am doing the happy dance. George thinks I am silly when I do this.


But I am sad that they no longer live with me.

BUT, I know that the quilts are happy to be hanging up in someone’s studio and being loved by someone new, rather than hiding from the light in my suitcase.

Life sure is a mixed blessing of joy and sorrow.

60th Birthday–my sister

My only sibling and sister turned 60 on Saturday. It really seems like a big deal because I am not that far behind.  My husband turned 60 last year, but it didn’t seem like such a thing, only because he isn’t related to me by blood and well he is 4 years older than me and always will be. My sister however has been in my life since I began and everything that happens to her eventually happens to me. 
I am currently at my kids house grandbaby sitting.  My husband was here with me for the weekend but he has gone home now.  Our daughter-in-laws sister got married this weekend and all of her family and relatives were involved in the wedding so we HAD to come here to watch the grandboy. It is great, I get whole days alone with him. Woo woo. I am loving it. I am working on his first Halloween costume,  he is going to be a little white and black dog. He has a little french bulldog in his family, so it seems perfect. The kids live in PA and we will be driving to Boston to help my sister celebrate this coming  weekend.
I have many gifts for my only sibling, a pair  hand kit socks made from Sophie’s Toe Sock yarn in lavender, a pair of great earrings from my friend Sandy of  OF NATURE and a small wall quilt to match the colors of her bedroom. She  never reads my blog so I will post a picture for you here.

I have been walking around this little lake by my house everyday with George and there are cat tails growing along the banks, so of course I had to start making Cat Tail quilts. I am loving them and the color is perfect for my sister’s bd, her room is green and purple.

This little quilt is about 4” wide  by 12” and is trimmed with my hand dyed 4mm silk ribbon then sewn to a peltex frame that has fabric fused on both sides and then cut out with a decorative rotary blade.
It is just wonderful.

Traditional frames

Of course you can always go the traditional route and just frame your small quilts. For some reason I hate to see fiber behind glass. But it sure looks professional.

Small stretcher frames

Small stretcher frames can be covered with felt, or you can use canvas frames that have been either spray painted or covered with fabric as a base to put your fiber art on. I like to use Velcro as an alternative to sewing or gluing your art work to the frame. By using the Velcro, you can easily switch out your art if the sizes are similar.
Picture #4

This is the piece of art I made for my niece for Christmas. She told me she got new furniture that was red and blue. The stretcher frame is covered with black felt that has been backed with a stabilizer, the felt is too flimsy on its own.
Here is another version of using a stretcher frame. I layered the quilt top with batting and backing and quilted it. Once it was quilted I stretched the edges over the frame and attached it to the back with a staple gun. I think I would rather finish the piece and then stretch fabric over the frame and then attach it to the fabric on the frame. What do you think?

The back of the frame

Someone asked about the framing wire on the back of the plexi-glass frame. Here is a picture of it. I used plastic coated wire, but really any wire works fine.

Ideas for framing your small art quilts

As a fiber artist, I like touching my art. However, framing my art makes it easier to display and gives formality to the work.

Over the years I have tried different methods to frame and display my small art pieces. Lately, I have come up with a few additional new ideas.

A very simple way to display fiber art is to use a table stand and a piece of foam core to support the piece of art. Apply a little sticky double sided tape or Velcro to the back of the art attaching it to the foam core. The foam core will keep the piece propped up well. You can even buy foam core that is close in color to the art work.

Picture #1 The foam core supporting this quilt is cut exactly the same size as the quilt.

Picture #2 The foam core on this one also acts as a frame, showcasing the art quilt.

I made two quilted signs for my son’s wedding reception. I attached these both to green foam core and they were very easy to display then on the easels.