Wednesday, April 13

camo commission

a good friend of mine recently wanted a quilt for his nephew's first birthday, but informed me that the quilts i had available were nowhere tough enough for the little guy....

so, we came up with a different plan. my friend donated some of his camo from his first days as an outfitter. there's lots of sentimental value and memories attached to the garments that will now be immortalized in the form of a quilt for the next generation.


i used my typical design style but with radically different prints than i typically use. i had a great time and enjoyed the break from my usual brights and the challenge of working with prints that are designed to blend in.

the back of the quilt was designed around a flannel shirt. again, it holds special memories for my friend. it was a shirt from his high school days, and it's possible it was worn almost every day for several years. it has now been retired.


i finished this quilt right before it left for texas, so it wasn't completely dry for the picture taking. the variation in the solid fabrics is actually water....

one of the garments used on the front was a pair of cargo pants, and i loved the pocket on the side of the pant leg. instead of working around it or deconstructing it, i just cut it out and used it for a big block on the quilt. i'm sure the little guy receiving the quilt will find lots of fun toys to store in the pocket of his quilt.

i put the nerdy bert label inside the pocket.


i also used t-shirts in the quilt and included the t-shirt pockets as well. i machine quilted the layers to give it durability, and then i hand quilted for fun. i used hunter's safety orange (or as close as i could find). it looked really great. it's visible in the next picture outlining the pocket.


this was a great idea and a very generous gift on the part of my friend. his nephew is lucky to have such love in his corner. happy 1st birthday, bronc!

Monday, April 11

turning 30 project - vol. V

the latest 'turning 30' quilt....




ranetta, my cousin, was in town this weekend so i seized the opportunity to send her home with her quilt. the wind was blowing when we finally decided to take pictures, so our posing was quite entertaining. stephanie, ranetta's younger sister, took the photos. it was a family affair....


each time i have presented a quilt to one of the girls, i'm amazed at how different each quilt is from the others and how appropriate each one is in representing it's owner. this one is no exception. this quilt is sweet and bright, energetic and cheery....kind of like ranetta.


i'm so happy with how this turned out, and once again was thrilled to give it away. i feel blessed to have awesome people in my life and the means to express and share my love with them. my cousin is ridiculously special to me and she is the spirit of love. and her quilt was named accordingly.


the label reads:

Turning 30 Project

'Spirit'

3 of 7

Made for: Ranetta Blank Kinney
June 6

Designed and Quilted by: Shawna Doering
Littleton CO USA

2011

Tuesday, April 5

new warp

this is the warp for my next project. it's waiting to go on the loom....


yes, it does look like a jumble of yarn, but there really is a pattern and an order to it. i am going to make a scarf and this warp will create a stripped pattern on the length of the scarf.

p.s. the posting of this is a bit late because i have the project almost fully woven. next post will be the finished result...

Saturday, April 2

another peek....

another peek at a new creation from nerdy bert.....


i promise i won't drag this out for too much longer. stay tuned.