My “Four Pieces Project”

Yesterday, my friend Lushorn brought me the last piece of my fern (the part on the far left) for my Pandora’s "Four Pieces Project." (The Pandoras is an art-quilt group of which I am a member.) I just love it! Thanks, Lushorn!

The pieces were made by (from left:) Lushorn Millsaps, DeLane Rosenau, me, and Grace Howes. The two on the left do not have finished edges yet; that's why they are a bit larger than the other two. Here's the photo we started with:



We each chose a 4x6" photo, blew it up to 16x24" and split it up into four equal pieces (horizontally, vertically, or criss-cross) and then gave out the pieces to the members of our group. Every two months, we have a deadline to complete one person's project. (DeLane's was due in July, and next month, Grace's pieces are due.)

Each peron's job is to recreate their section of the photo using a technique they want to try out. The color is to remain fairly close to the photo, since it would be too jarring if the colors varied widely once the photo was reconstructed. It is really fun to see how the pieces come together.

If you are interested in doing something like this, check out the brand new book by Linda Chang Teufel called Quilting Party! Group Quilting for Celebration, Commemoration & Charity, or Just for Fun! It is published by Dragon Threads. Linda shows how bigger groups used this technique for some spectacular art quilts. We started this project before I read the book. I wish I had read it before we started, as it offers some wonderful ideas, tips and planning lists.

I met Linda in a gift shop in the Portland Airport last May as I was leaving Quilt Market. My mom complimented her necklace and we started chatting. Turns out she is the publisher of Dragon Threads, which publishes beautiful art quilt and fiber art books, several of which I already owned!