A Natural Wonder

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spidercapeOne of the advantages of having relatives living in exciting cities is the opportunity to visit local museums. The ROM or Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto is a good example with its latest special exhibit on… (and here I have to brace myself)… spiders. One display in the exhibit I found of special interest was this cape woven from the web or silk of the golden silk orbweaver spider found in Madagascar. It took Simon Peers and Nicholas Godley 3 years and the silk from over a million orbweaver spiders (yikes!) to make it. This gold color is the natural color of the spider’s silk.

Looking around I see that I’ve a vast collection of spider webs in my house. Wonder if I could make something as grand as this?

A Little Prize for a Little Quilt

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Libby's Leaves by Laura Wasilowski

Libby’s Leaves by Laura Wasilowski

A while back I made this fused art quilt for an auction for my friend, Libby Lehman. It measures about 30″ x 30″ and was inspired by one of her beautiful quilts all about leaves.

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Libby’s Leaves #2 by Laura Wasilowski

Enjoying the process of free-cutting shapes, I made a smaller version (about 20″ x 20″) using the same theme and fabric colors.  Entered it in the International Quilt Festival in Houston this year and found out it won third in the Art/Miniature division.

I’m so thankful to have inspiring friends like Libby!

How to Frame Your Stitching

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Natural Gardening by Laura Wasilowski

We all love to make art work, enjoying the process and results. But what do you do after the piece is complete? I recommend having your favorite pieces framed behind glass.

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Garden Flowers by Laura Wasilowski

And I can highly recommend custom framing by Myrna of High Desert Frameworks in Bend OR. Myrna has a great deal of experience in framing textiles from the stitching onto an acid free mat to selecting beautiful mat colors to finding the perfect frame style. If you can’t send your work to her, find a local person who understands the challenges of framing and protecting your textile art.

Here are a few quick tips for framing textile art:

  • Stitch the corners of the work to an acid free mat.
  • Use a shadow box frame so the glass does not touch the work.
  • Seal the back of the frame to keep it dry and free of insects.

Come See Me!

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Windy City #14 by Laura Wasilowski

This week you’ll find me and my latest art work hanging around the Artfabrik/Friestyle booth #1911 at the International Quilt Festival in Houston. Or as I like to call it the IQF.

There is so much to see and do at this giant quilt show. My favorite part is when friends appear in the booth (cause you know I’m trapped in the booth and don’t get out much). Hope you have time to stop on and visit us!

Packing for the Big Show

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Windy City #13 by Laura Wasilowski

It’s that time of year when I pack for the International Quilt Festival in Houston and forget something of great import. You can ask me what I forgot when visiting me in the Artfabrik/Friestyle Booth, #1911, next week.

booth2Please stop in and check out our wares. Frieda and I will have hand dyed fabric, thread, patterns, books and little quilts like the one above, Windy City #13.

A Windy City Quilt

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Windy City #12 by Laura Wasilowski

Today I’m finishing up another house quilt from the Windy City series. I have a penchant for the theme of “houses” when making improvised art work. And each year I try to come up with a different name for the series of house quilts made during that year.

Have any ideas for titles of the 2019 house series? I’d love to hear them.

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Windy City #3 (detail) by Laura Wasilowski

If you’re into making house quilts too, you make want to consider donating one to Quilting Arts Magazine new reader challenge. Jamie Fingal’s “Heart of the Home” project provides a decorative “home” themed quilt to families and individuals who are transitioning from homelessness to a permanent residence.  You can read about it here.

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Windy City #6 (detail) by Laura Wasilowski

Now if you’ll excuse me. I must go sort through my many house quilts and find one to donate to the cause.