In the studio this week I have mostly piles of works-in-progress. Little is far enough along to show or explain.
BUT – I did have one little re-discovery that I’m happy to share. And then a story.
THE RE-DISCVOVERY: This is a lesson in fabric painting: light over dark, and paint over machine stitching.
Here’s the work-in-progress on my easel:
Some details: In this quilt-in-progress, I decided‑- AFTER most of the quilting and construction were done—that I wanted a big light-colored swoosh in the composition (This is actually not the smartest point in production to make such a decision.) But it can work if you go about it right.
Re-discovered lesson #1: Go easy easy easy easy on the paint. Use a foam roller and work most of the paint off it before you put it on the fabric. (You can always add more color. But if you start off too heavy, it’s really hard to undo.)
Re-discovered lesson#2: The opacity of white. Normally, if you paint a light color over a dark color you get mud. Only white paint (well, also metallics, sometimes) is opaque. So, mix just a tad of white into your color mix to get the opacity.
Here I’ve put a pale yellow (cadmium yellow + a tad of raw umber + a smidge of white) over dark blue.
I just love how the underlying quilting stitches POP as a new and interesting design element.
AND NOW A STORY
This is not in any way related to the paint discussion above. It’s just something I remembered this weekend, inspired by some poetry reading on a cool morning porch, reading about snow.
Several years ago, I volunteered in an afternoon program for kids K-6. Sometimes I’d help with homework. Sometimes I’d read to them. And, generally, they were tired out after a day at school with lots of energy to burn, and not all that eager to pay attention.
Every now and then, however, we would have some magic moments.
One afternoon I was in the grandma rocking chair, with a small group of boys and girls in a circle at my feet.
I was reading an exceptionally beautiful book about flying squirrels. The plot was simple: The adorable little squirrels are curled up together in a hole in the tree, then the mom takes them out for a moonlit flight over snow, and then they fly home and snuggle up again inside the tree.
Few of these kids had ever seen snow. None had ever seen a flying squirrel. On any other day, they might not have related to this story at all.
But this day, the more-than beautiful illustrations worked their magic.
Every scene was created in wonderful washes of watercolor. The moonlight scenes showed dark indigo skies against the white snow, with deep violet shadows over the landscape. The children and I became entranced at the magic of this simple tale.
So, I remembered: art matters. Words and stories and beautiful images can open the ideas and the imaginations of even tired, sometimes tough little kids.
Art can change lives. Art can change the world.
I think that sweet memory has stayed with me for several days because I needed to remember it.
. . . . . .
Just a reminder:
Through October 30… I have work showing in the Butterfield Garage Gallery in St. Augustine, FL
Through October 28… I have work showing in the Artburst Boutique at Artburst.com
Through December 2… I have a work showing in the SAQA Global Exhibit, Primal Forces: Fire at the national Quilt Museum in Paducah, KY
Through January 31, 2026… I have work showing in the Interpretations 2025 exhibit at Visions Museum of Textile art in San Diego, CA
For all of us: focus each day
on the good that needs to be done in the world.
Be part of doing it.
Thank you for reading. I always enjoy questions and comments.
--Bobbi
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