Center Panel Progress

I’ve made progress on my center panel! For the center I did a little bit of a different approach. I’m looking for a wild garden. Lots of stems and leaves in the background. I started with a pile of bias tube stems.

To make the stems, I chose 2 different green fabrics and cut strips at a 45° angle to the selvage edge. I cut different sizes, from 3/4” to 1 1/2” wide. I like the skinnier ones better, but they are harder to turn. Having variety makes the composition more interesting.

Once the tubes were ready, it became a take-along project. This panel has now traveled to New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York. Hmm. I should really be incorporating that information into the quilt somehow.

I laid down the stems on the background, pinning to make curvy shapes. I decided they needed to tangle together, like my favorite kind of wild garden.

I freehand cut out an assortment of leaves from a few different greens. On this last flight I became bored with the leaves, so I added a leftover flower. I think I’ll be doing flowers for a couple of weeks.

I spent this morning wandering through the Cornell Botanical Gardens in Ithaca, NY. So gorgeous and peaceful. I feel so at home in nature in the Northeast. In Florida I get the twitches when we’re out in nature. The inspiration I get is so strong it’s hard for me to do computer work. I just want to stitch! And maybe paint. I did a little drawing that needs some paint to bring it to life. My drawing is still disappointing to me, but it’s way better than it used to be.

Thank you to Windham Fabrics for supporting this project! All of the fabric was sent to me to make something beautiful. It isn’t in all stores yet. Make sure your local quilt shop knows you NEED this fabric. And then buy it when they get some in.

Have you worked with bias tubes? They are very satisfying. Let me know if you would like a video on how I make them. It’s not a new technique, but I always forget that everyone has a different level of exposure to techniques.