The bonus quilts
It's always intriguing looking at a years Journal Quilts combined and to see how interesting they look in different combinations. This year the JQ challenge for Contemporary Quilt was 8 x 8 inches( 20x 20cm) with a line across the quilt from one edge to another. I initially thought it was too small a format to be worthwhile - in past years I enjoyed the 12 x 12 inch format most. But having decided to mainly use scraps and leftovers I've had a ball, given myself permission to just play, producing 'bonus' ones and also using some mounted on 8 inch canvases for sale. I still have lots of ideas and may well continue using this size in addition to whatever next years challenge is. It's made no impression on my scrap stash!
Several of them have been composed and stitched on train journeys - the perfect travel project and the majority reflect my interests and concerns at the time, in many cases using bits leftover from larger quilts and projects or memories of particular times and places. Some people plan the whole 12 months in one go so that it's a cohesive piece. Not my way - I'm fascinated to see links between pieces (all those wavy shibori -like lines!) and also the shift in colour palette from vibrant reds to subtle neutrals, no coincidence that while starting my year with optimism it is ending on a sombre note.
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