My last thread sketching article

This month, I am a little bit sad, because this issue (Quilting Arts December 2010/January 2011) has my last thread sketching column in it. I have loved writing these columns throughout 2010, and I have loved being part of such a fabulous magazine. Quilting Arts has really changed my life. 

Did you know that with the current issue, the magazine is 10 years old? I’ve been a subscriber for most of that time. I’ve learned a lot of techniques, and made a lot of projects after reading the articles in it. It has encouraged the Pandoras, my local fiber arts group, to try many new things we would not have ventured into without reading about it in Quilting Arts first. 

I’ve also loved the challenge of creating a project on a specific theme for the Quilting Arts Calendar competitions. (There is a lot to be said for the deadline pressure provided by competitions like this; it can really bring out the best in you, and it can also teach you how to brainstorm and stretch yourself.)

My last thread sketching column focuses on creating movement with thread. One of the pieces I did for this column is Windswept (below). It is only 13-1/2" x 10-1/4".

The piece is based on a photo I took this summer at Bald Head Island, a spectacular barrier island at the south-eastern edge of North Carolina: 

This is an island I feel so fortunate to have visited many summers with my extended family. It is almost pristine, protected by conservationists from excessive development, and is a prime nesting spot for loggerhead sea turtles. 

Here is a detail shot of Windswept:

In a future post, I’ll share the other piece I created for this issue. It also deals with something in motion because of wind, but it is wintery, rather than summery! Can you guess what it is?