It’s all finished – the quilt is all bound, sleeved, signed and photographed, and with a little luck and a fair wind it will be on its way up to the US client in a couple of days, in the safe hands of a trusted friend. I am refraining from putting up the final pic until I hear from the client that it is in her hands – I feel she needs to see the final effect first, but I am very happy with it, and the worst she could do is dislike it in the flesh, return the quilt along with most of the deposit and we’d be square. I am sure she won’t though. Anyway when I have word from her, I will post the pic showing the final choice of binding.
Now I will head upstairs and do what I always do at the end of a piece – put all the fabrics back in their particular clear placcy (pillow and blanket)bags based on broad colour groupings, throw out the rubbish of offcuts and bits too small to use or save, clear up the threads off the floor, and get out what I am planning to use for the next work. Attention turns again to something new for my July exhibition with Petra, in addition to finishing off the mustard and grey leather quilt which still needs quite a bit of hand quilting. And some ideas have begun percolating to use the frog leather I was given last year…. almost hate to cut into the skins, but need to test the idea now, it works in principle on paper.
Anatomy of a Commission- Finale, almost
March 20th, 2007
Anatomy of a Commission – Day 12 – Binding – Auditions in Progress
March 17th, 2007
At the beginning, in the planning stages and initial working stages of a wall quilt, I never make any hard and fast decision on binding (a) whether to do it or not, and (b) which fabric I will use if I do. The growth of the piece during construction can change the final outcome to the point where what you envisaged at the start somehow doesn’t really apply so strongly any more – all the colours, shapes and their ratios to each other being part of that, I guess.
This is the first of several pics I have taken over the past hour or so, in order to come to a final decision about which fabric to use – my client prefers a binding, and I agree this piece will be enhanced by one.
The following couple of pics show some of the choices I am considering, although what ever I do it will be a narrow, about 1/2 inch binding, not a great swag of fabric that appears of some along some of the sides. Interestingly, the one I have always favoured, with a lot of black but all of the quilt’s other main colours in the rather wild stripey design, has gone in and out of favour as I try other possibles. In this photo, one I thought would be great, on the left hand side as you look, somehow has a deadening effect on all the colours. The one on the right which I love is totally wrong, too pink. The stripe, lower right hand edge is a serious contender, but the one along the top edge, a spot with varicoloured background, is also very seriously in the running.
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March 17th, 2007
In this pic, the varigated spot shows favourably along the top, the purple a bit boringly down the right side, the hot tomato colour interestingly along the left. A couple of different strips just visible along the bottom – on the left lower edge is the stripe with lots of black and other main colours from the quilt in it (one of the 3 original ones I was considering), and I am still thinking about this one. The one on the other side isn’t at all suitable, although sometimes one of those wild cards come up trumps.
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March 17th, 2007
In this pic, the varigated spot shows favourably along the top, the purple a bit boringly down the right side, the hot tomato colour interestingly along the left. A couple of different strips just visible along the bottom – on the left lower edge is the stripe with lots of black and other main colours from the quilt in it (one of the 3 original ones I was considering), and I am still thinking about this one. The one on the other side isn’t at all suitable, although sometimes one of those wild cards come up trumps.
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March 17th, 2007
This pic shows some of the same fabrics in different positions on the quilt, since the colours vary som much from the top to the bottom it is as important for it to be compatible up top as doqwn on the lower part.
It is possible, and in at least one quilt,”Western Desert” 1991, I did actually bind it in such a way that the binding that changes colour according to which part of the quilt it is binding (in the case of Western Desert it was every 4″) but this is not appropriate in this case – the client requested a binding. and I am interpreting this as some kind of linear definition which would not be as pronounced with one that changes colours as it goes around the edge…. so that possibility is dismissed.
In this pic, the spotty one along the lower edge shows strongly positive, it is emerging as a favourite. Although the purple on the right is a match to a sliver in the quilt, I think it is just too predictable, a little boring, but very safe. Interestingly the hot tomato pink I had previously dismissed out of hand ( how could I have so much left over? etc ) is still in there, IMHO.
And the fine strip along the top right edge is looking OK, but when compared with the spot with varigated background, I don’t think ‘does enough’ .