Ginger in Progress - Update 3

I finished the quilting and removed the basting on “Ginger” this weekend.  It looks radiant! The top is made entirely from Indian silks, with a cyanotype on silk for the center image, and it just glows:


The back is looking very cool as well, you can see all the patterning from my free-motion quilting:


For the uninitiated, free-motion quilting means using the sewing machine as a drawing tool, and the thread becomes the line.  I disengage the feed dogs, the mechanism that normally moves fabric through the machine, and move the fabric with my hands.  It’s a learned skill that becomes becomes honed with practice, a bit like riding a bike or any other activity that requires hand/eye coordination.  The trick is to get the right speed and “flow” so the the design seems natural.  I find it helps to look a bit ahead of where I’m at and to stay focused on where I’m going.  This patterning, which I use a lot in my work,  involves creating a box, sewing into it, then stitching back out.  It’s very meditative, and I make it all up as I go along.

Next up is rinsing  and drying the work, which will create even more texture and sheen, and then a binding to finish off the edges.  I am working like a madwoman on multiple projects and deadlines right now, so I will fit this in where I can.  I’m very happy with how it’s turned out thus far.

You can see the previous posts on this work here and here, or click on Ginger under updates in the right sidebar. Many thanks for reading and commenting!