Just don't do it while driving

I love you, The Onion.

Just a crappy little quilt

This is one of the first quilts I made a few years ago. At the time, I wanted to make something cute, simple and original....but every subject I wanted to do (video games, heavy metal, tattoos etc) had been quilted before. Then I thought of the one thing I was SURE no one had done yet! (so far I have not been proven wrong on this.) I also like the idea of something being simultaneously cute and repulsive. And thus was born what you see before you. It was done in fused applique (or should I say, crapplique?), machine pieced and quilted.

I entered this in the 2010 Austin quilt show, where it won 3rd place in the novice category. I was feeling pretty good about this....until I realized there were only 3 entries in the category! LOL. At least I can now say I'm an "award-winning quilter"! 

Apocalypse Wow!

A UK quilter by the name of Ferret makes some amazing art quilts, some of them based on photographs- like this one of Perttu Kivilaakso, cello player for the great Finnish symphonic metal band Apocalyptica.
You can see more of her work on her website, Ferret Fabrications.

I'm dreaming....of a BLACK CHRISTMAS!!!

So last year after Christmas, I happened to find this black pre-lit tree on sale super cheap, and couldn't pass it up. I haven't had a tree of my own since I moved away from home 20+ years ago, so I've had lots of fun all year coming up with ideas for the 1st annual BLACK CHRISTMAS!

My first idea was to take a few heavy metal patches I have been collecting, and turn them into quilted ornaments! (I figure I'm kind of past the age where I can get away with wearing them on a grungy denim vest....) They turned out pretty cool! I am working on a tutorial for these, so stay tuned.

Then around Halloween, I happened to see a big plastic chain decoration, and realized it would make a great "metal" garland for the tree! Can't wait for next fall to roll around and see what other cool items can be found.

Finally, this weekend I put it all together while listening to a playlist I made of metal covers of Christmas songs! It's fairly poppy with Twisted Sister etc, but super fun. Here's a link in case you want to check it out (may contain a bit of NSFW language ;)

This is something I'll keep adding to every year. Next I need to make a black tree skirt!

Oh my Goth!

This is a potholder I made a while back for a friend who loves zombies, monsters and other ghoulish things. I  got the awesome pink hearse fabric at equilter.com, but it's out of print now. (there are a few cuts for sale on etsy.)

I just quilted a rectangle with a black backing, and cut it out in the shape of a coffin. Then I machine stitched a narrow black binding with a hanging loop. My friend loved it!

And now, a kitten sewing!

I need to train an army of them to do my quilting while I'm at work!

Merry Krampus!

This weekend I took a break from the complicated block-of-the-month quilt I'm working on to get started on my holiday projects- they will be here before you know it!
First up was this oversized Krampus Christmas stocking. The Krampus is a devil-like creature from Bavarian folklore who accompanies St. Nicholas on Christmas. But while St. Nick brings presents to good children, if they have been naughty the Krampus is said to put them in his basket and carry them off!
One of my friends at work is fascinated with the Krampus legend, so when I saw this fabric on Spoonflower.com, I knew I had to make this for him! (I changed it up a little by adding fake fur trim around the top.) Gotta love the removable crying kid in the basket on the back!

another Metal quilter

San Franciso-based quilter Ben Venom makes spectacular quilts from old heavy metal t-shirts- including the biggest quilt I have ever seen! It measures 13 X 15 FEET and is made from over 125 shirts. His work has appeared in art shows and magazines around the world. You can see more on his site here!

Power quilting!

The animation studio I work for, Powerhouse Animation, has just released POWERLINES, a comic book-style collection of original work by our staff artists. Rather than drawing something, I made a small appliqued quilt using our company logo and colors! The book will premiere at Austin's Wizard Con this weekend with a limited number of signed copies, and will also be available on our website soon. For more details, please see this post about it on our blog.

New York knitter Karabouts has made some grim and frostbitten amigurumi dolls! Check out the adorable corpsepainted black metal guitarist, bearded Viking and more at her website!

what I've been up to

So I've been working on this insane block-of-the-month quilt since the beginning of the year...it's not my usual style, but before starting  this I realized I had not done anything very impressive over the previous year....mostly just lap and baby quilts that I made as gifts. When I saw this BOM pattern on the Quilt Show website, I was drawn in by the unusual design and brilliant colors. I decided to make it to level up my quilting skills, and have a show-worthy piece. (I did add my own touch by changing the background to black.)
It's all paper-pieced with a lot of fused applique. I have been learning a lot; mostly that any mistake that requires me to redo something will not happen again :)
I'm currently a month behind on it, but considering I was in cancer treatment till May and I had to get ready for the Austin quilt show last month, I would say I'm not doing too bad!

This is all the blocks through August. Finished quilt will be about 88" square.

VIKING METAL QUILT

this is a small (17 X 20") piece I made last year. it's based on a 30-foot tall sculpture of Viking swords in Stavanger, Norway that comemmorates the battle of Hafrsfjord in the year 872.

The black part is fused applique, and I used the "escape hatch" technique for the self-binding irregular edge. I slit the back to turn it, and covered up the cut with the hanging sleeve :)

In retrospect, the swords look a bit puny....should have cropped in closer. I may revisit this theme again in the future.

THE MOST EPIC AND BRUTAL OF WAR QUILTS

I made this quilt as a gift for another one of my favorite bands, SABATON. They're a metal band from Sweden and their songs are about war and history. I found some really great fabrics for this: a panel with combat silhouettes, bordered with camouflage guitar necks and a backing of camo pinup girls! I gave it to them when they played Emo's in Austin last year. Props to Jude Hubbard for the "bus blankies" idea!

and in related news.....

this bit of awesomeness has been brought to my attention: quilter Chawne of Completely Cauchy has stirred up a bit of controversy herself, with her text-based quilts that incorporate "offensive" words.
As a result, she started the "give a f*ck" project, inviting quilters around the world to submit their own "f*ck" blocks. read more about it here!

a "controversial" quilt

Last year when I was diagnosed with cancer, the gals in my Modern Quilt Guild bee secretly made this for me as a surprise....I took it along to my weekly chemo treatments for months. (and yes, I did succeed in giving the middle finger to cancer!)

This weekend was the Austin quilt show, and when I entered it I didn't anticipate any problems. However I was contacted by the show's  organizers, who were concerned about possible issues with the City/ venue finding it offensive (and possibly removing the quilt and/or not renewing the show's permit.)

At first they suggested putting up some sort of screen in front of the quilt with a warning/ age statement sign, but I suggested I could make a matching block with an asterisk to strategically cover up one letter. We agreed this was probably the least hassle-y solution.

When I dropped off the quilt for the show, I had the asterisk safety pinned in place at all 4 corners...but when I saw it hanging, the cover was only pinned at the top edge like a flap, so the truly curious could have a peek at what was underneath.

Despite all the hassle, I got quite a few compliments from people who were glad it was submitted. I was also told that it received a number of write-in votes for the "viewer's choice" award :)

Below is a group shot at the show with myself and some of the people who worked on it, followed by a glamour shot on Town Lake (photo by Bobbi Brekke).

BAGNAROK!

Welcome to the Quiltocalypse!!
Here I will present the best in alternative quilting and crafts, interspersed with random cuteness.

Let's start with a heavy metal tote bag I made using 2 backpatches of one of my favorite bands, Finntroll (Scandinavian folk metal). I used black cotton duck canvas to match the weight of the patches. It has a lining and studded black pleather handles, which I was amased to find by the yard at Joann Fabrics. I was pretty happy with how it came out, considering it was my first bag and I was kind of making it up as I went. If I make any more I will be sure to post a tutorial!