Painting by Paul Klee
It still feels strange to say it (since I feel so young and all!), but I'm going to be a grandparent soon! My stepson and his wife are expecting their first child, and I wanted to make something special that they'll hopefully use and keep. I decided that a quilt-like, lightweight blanket would be fun to make with felt, and I was inspired by the painting above...First I died some big pieces of silk paj in varying shades of blues and green, along with two huge pieces of hand-dyed silk chiffon that I overlapped slightly before laying on fine merino wool and tussah silk. I cut and tore the silk paj into 5 x 5" pieces (132 of them, to be exact!), and laid them out so that the colors varied randomly. I then wet it out and used the tumble-dryer method to felt it, then threw and scrunched it to full it. The turquoise tussah silk seemed to run forever, but I finally got it to rinse clear! (Turquoise always runs for a while, and my hands sure showed it!)
Silk pieces laid out on the base of chiffon, merino and tussah silk
Back of finished blanket
Close-up of finished blanket
The final product, a modern nuno baby quilt! I sewed on a little tag, and tied on one of my sheep cards. I think they liked it, and I can't wait to see that new little bundle of joy wrapped up in this!
7 comments:
It's beautiful, Lindy! You've created an heirloom for this precious baby. Being a grandmama is a wonderful thing - I found out a few weeks ago that my ninth grandbaby is on the way.
Thanks, Sara and Dianne!!! Tha's so exciting that you're going to have another grandbaby, Dianne!
Such a lucky baby! Your blanket is a work of art, really stunning. I would love to call it my own!
Thanks, Zenitude! I'd like my own as well, and may someday tackle a full-sized blanket!
That's the most beautiful baby blanket I've ever seen.
That's the most beautiful baby blanket I've ever seen.
Aww, thanks Tigerlilly! You made my day :)
Post a Comment