Back to the grid sketched for the More-Abstract-Art-for-Quilters class (sketch here among other things). After the line sketch, I did several value sketches and then several color sketches of the best value sketch. I decided to make a very small version of my two favorite color combinations.
So yesterday morning I pulled all the shades I had of red, blue, yellow, and green.
I had no intention of using all of them, but didn’t yet know which I’d want. Notice the top green one–at least it looks like a light yellow-green to me. When I ended up using it, it looked yellow in context.
So I started cutting from the first color sketch.
You can see already that the look of real fabric will be quite different from the look of the sketch. And as I worked with actual fabric, I made a couple adjustments to the colors on the sketch–a couple things worked in pencil but not in my selection of fabric.
Sewing took longer than I allowed for it–I’d planned to make them both yesterday. Instead I finished one and cut out the second. Usually I can chop any design into all straight seams. Not this one. There were several partial seam construction spots. I started sewing what could be completely sewn together, then calculated the order of partial seams. By supper time I had this.
10 x 15 inches
I figured I’d better cut out the second before putting the fabric away. It was a good thing I had. It was much easier to work on it today having it already cut. I should do that more often. So here is version 2:
(You can rotate it once to the right if you want to see it in the same orientation as the first one.) This one is the same size.
I will face them both and do a little stitch-in-the-ditch quilting. I had thought I might do matchstick since the piece is so small, but I don’t think I want the haze of color that would produce. The “stripes” don’t work out evenly even if I did change thread color.
Now the question is whether I want to make either (or both) and what size. For one thing, it will have to wait till I find that bright green. I haven’t seen that color in shops for years and I have only 6 inches or so left.
I have plenty of sketches from the class to keep me busy for a while. Plus ideas from the improv class. And I am now signed up for Elizabeth Barton’s class on color. She had one exercise in the More Abstract Art class that was so helpful, I’m hoping for more like that in the color class.
I’ll try to remember to link up with the Clever Chameleon on Tuesday. (Link in sidebar)
knitNkwilt 
I really like both of these, perhaps the first more than the second because of the extra depth of the darker colours. I’d be useless at this kind of work because I simply can’t resist some pattern!
I especially like the progression of color in the second one. Glad to see you’re making up your sketches from class. I have far more sketches than sewn fabrics.
I like how the second one has larger blocks of color. That extra bit of order calms the chaos for me.
It’s interesting to see how different they look, even though the basic idea was similar. Changing the color orders really made a difference, I think. Neither one of them looks quite like the sketch, which I do like as you drew it.
I like these–they are lively! I would be tempted to work directly with the fabric rather than coloring a sketch, but I guess that was part of the exercise and sounds like you learned from it.
Wow, I like these! So graphic. And quite different moods, even though the underlying structure is the same. Today I prefer the second one.
Oh my goodness I love the color grid pieces!!!! The class More-Abstract-Art-for-Quilter – sounds wonderful!