Posts Tagged ‘exhibition’
Whenever I have uncontrollable stash of fabric in small bits and pieces, I know I have to start another logcabin, whether it is a sofa cushion set, floor cushion or the end; a bedcover. My sons used to say it won’t finish in cushions; you will have to make a quilt to eat all up.
It pays as I relieve stress and am left with a beautiful project.
And if I have a real problem at hand of even shortage of space for tiny cut pieces of fabric, I start a pineapple logcabin, and it sweeps the whole stash, be it medium, small or large pieces, as in end triangles all vanishes.
Patchwork is my hobby, and it gives me a great pleasure to cut and sew and create a colourful piece of work , which is useful and lovely, and in this whenever I am to relax, I start a logcabin. It takes all the heaviness from my heart and converts it into something I cherish to see.
In fact the moment I start one such project, I know it is already sold, no matter what colour, fabric or size of the strip. It has a charismatic pull.
I put it on the wall when I do exhibitions and clients come mesmerized and say how much this for is and without arguing they buy it and ask for more, whatever the project is. No other design has a chance against one such piece. It seems that all old time classic are in the heart of the people, they are pulled to it .When I make some modern design, computer generated, or from some new designer’s modern style, I have to struggle to sell it. They need effort to sell, or sometimes don’t sell at all. I keep them as samples or stall fill but these have little attractions to most of the clients, even in huge walk in exhibitions. But logcabin actually must be attended, by all walks of life, general, or artistic minded people. The most amazing thing about this design is that it is not from my region. I live in Pakistan where there are no huts, no logcabins, no nothing. We mostly live on plains, have severe hot weather. There is a joke that for 9 months we have severe hot weather and for the rest of the 3 months we have hot weather.
What I think is that it’s simplicity and range of colours is the main attraction, and secondly it has light and shadow effect.
May be it depicts our lives, all time under one spot, either happiness or stress. I am still researching on it and joyfully making it. Right now I have 12 small boxes of charming silk pieces, in plain and print. These are all from the projects I have made at different time and for different clients. They gave me their old clothes to match and make bed quilts, so the range of colour, design and fabric is huge and I believe the key to make a heirloom piece of logcabin.
Mostly I make simple logcabin, but at times I try ideas of me and of other quilters. I have a full file of innovative designs; thanks to the net and all the people who have the big heart to share it with others.
Pineapple logcabin is bit stressy to me although I love the intricate end result, and the imagination of my clients who look in wonder at the block setting and stitching and can’t make it out. How I made it? It is simple in making, but very complicated in appearance. The only stress in it is that I at times lose the angle, so in the end the block is either lopsided or moves out of the backing.
At times end triangles don’t match the neighbouring block triangles. Secondly I find it very fabric wasting as I make and cut straigt strips and when the next strip overlaps most of the fabric hides under the next one. Now I have started cutting it in to strips with slant ends to match the angles of the block. It gives me a lot of relief to see that now I can use fabric more wisely and whatever I use, it shows.
So another problem solved. Still remember the day I first saw it in a magazine and was amazed to see the quilt in such vibrant colours and still so composed and elegant to look at. I am still in the same condition, learned it all by myself from some quilt magazine, and still remember the first block. It was a classic piece of modern abstract art, and believe me it was sold for its ingenuity to one art lover. I hope she still has it.
So the day I saw it till today, I myself am hooked to it. I cannot wait to start another logcabin design, modern or old fashion. They both have the same pull. When ever I conduct patchwork classes or workshops, I start with this designs as it has minimal cutting, no template, no special colours, and most of all it is stitched, quilted and finished by the time it comes off the sewing machine and the student loves the effect and end result. But I teach the pineapple logcabin in the end of the class, as its angles and double strip setting is stressful and takes time and is difficult to understand.
No matter what both the designs are all time favourite by all or I can say the whole world.
PAMBONO: Yes Yes, No No
Posted on: June 13, 2010
- In: Patchwork | Women
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I always wanted to make beautiful Pambono designs. I don’t have access to any of the books here in Pakistan. I tried to get some free patterns from the net but I could not make any presentable pattern. Once I tried to print a design from a website (I am actually the subscriber of that site). I took the print, enlarged it, made templates of the pattern and tried to make it my way! Some good was done. I made a quilt from that design. It was beautiful and I liked it.
One day searching in the old book shop in Vancouver, Canada I saw what I could never believed what I was seeing there. One no 2 books of Pambono, right before my eyes on the quilt books shelf. I picked them like a loving new born, felt them, cherished them, took a stool, sat down and opened the book and went through the whole like a journey long desired. Then I bought both in less than 7 dollars, old book shop, shrine of love.
I selected one design, read all the instructions of how to use the book then selected the fabric and set to cut the pieces.
I am a template lover that I can’t do without one. That’s why I find paper piecing very difficult although I do make templates for that method as well. But for this I was determined to do as told. It’s my habit to follow the book first and then change any if I can’t adapt the original method.
So I tried to cut all the pieces in the way the book mentioned, but right from the first cut I was unable to follow. I couldn’t understand 3/8 or 7/8. I found for the first time that I don’t have the ruler with 8 margins, I have a collection of rulers including rotary, so I tried approximate method such as ½ inch or ¾ inch, but I had to make enormous calculations, and in general the piece cut was not accurate, then I found one ruler with 8 sections in an inch, and tried to cut again, but there were so many pieces of the same size that I could not make out which one for what. I cut small pieces of paper and with tiny clips put details on each. Sometimes the piece was so small that I had to wrap the paper around it. But anyways I did cut some. Then as old habit dies hard, I thought if I have to cut one size in different colours, why not make a template of that number. I took out my stock of old X-rays and made a lot of templates for that design, and tried to write the details with marker, but again the 3/8 piece was too small to write.
I tried that method along with the books method, but in the end I had very out of size pieces cut and stacked in the trays, like candies in the basket.
Next I sat down for sewing. I am very fabric conscious. I can’t stand any wastage, whenever I cut with templates I try hard to set them in the manner that least fabric is wasted. At-times I keep squares and triangles templates handy to cut from the sides’ leftover fabric, such as lone star sides cut triangles. So when I sewed one small side square to the sides of main piece, on four sides, and cut the square along with the main piece, I had a pool of cut triangles under my feet. I was deviated. I can’t stand so much wastage: its murder! But since I wanted to follow the book I carried on, next was cutting each piece separately. I am used to cutting 8 layers at a time, saving a lot of time, but now had to cut each square from 4 sides individually. It put a lot of pressure on my fingers and time was another factor of waste feelings.
I still thought that I was new to this method, so don’t worry. I will learn with the passage of time and will learn the tricks of the trade, and these problems will reduce as well.
But I was wrong! Through out the project I had to follow the same rules and time and again I was up to abandoning the project. On the other hand this long time patch-working had planted some patience in my habit, so I carried on. I could not take the piece in exact size, so the next was out of setting. I had to cut and re-size all the time, but didn’t give up. Sewing was pathetic and backside miserable sewing room was a mess with wastage and all that. Emergency was declared and nobody was allowed to enter. Fans were shut and in this summer heat I kept on working.
To add salt to my injuries, not knowing the true number of pieces for each block, I had cut 28 flowers, and now I was determined to sew all, for the guilt of wasting the left over, as I knew I will never be able to distinguish the pieces form the cut wastage. I made 28 flowers, and don’t ask how many discarded and out of size were left to mourn. I will make some thing out of them some time.
Now to my delight I have 28 complete set of patterns to use any where I wanted. I made pillows, some bed runners and some complete bed set out of them, for my upcoming exhibition at the Expo Centre. It is the inaugural exhibition of this centre, so I thought the design was real set for the occasion.
Apart form all the pain; I am happy with the lopsided end result. I will soon make some more as I can’t resist the beauty of the patterns. It’s a must have, only if I can reduce the wastage and convert the design to templates; fools paradise, but all is well if the ends well! I love the drawbacks as much as the correct ones, as my life time wish had fulfilled.
I will find some new rulers and practice it time and again, as the tininess is the beauty. I will choose some more free time and better season to stitch.
Piece n Patch 