A Novel Quilt by Chris Boersma Smith -- Literally!

Chris Boersma Smith has the distinction of making a quilt that becomes an element in a novel. Her original designed quilt, Broken Hearts Mending, was featured in Marie Bostwick's contemporary novel "A Single Thread."

It is a story of a displaced Texas homemaker who moves to Connecticut and pursues her dream of opening a quilt shop. But, on the day the shop opens, the owner discovers she has breast cancer. With the help of her friends, the book has a happy ending.

Here's a scene featuring the quilt, compliments of the author.

Excerpt from A SINGLE THREAD

It was a beautiful quilt. Knowing how I love strong colors, they'd chosen a palette of bright greens and vibrant pinks with surprising accents of a white and black fabric that enhanced the depth and richness of the colors. Such happy colors. The design was bold, using a traditional theme - hearts - but giving it a fresh, modern interpretation. The theme blocks were patchworked hearts, strip pieced in varying shades and patterns of pink and then outlined, first in spring green and then again in the black fabric. There were eight complete hearts in all, scattered over the pieced green backing in an unpredictable pattern. Most interesting of all, there were several half-heart blocks, again sprinkled around the backing at irregular intervals, some isolated and lonely, floating in a field of green, others set near but not quite next to another half-heart, slightly off center, as if the broken halves were moving toward each other in varying stages of becoming whole again...

"I was thinking about us, you know, about our quilting circle and what it is we all have in common. That's how I came up with the idea. In one way or another, we've all had our hearts broken. At the same time, we've helped each other get through it. It's not like everything is better yet. We've still got problems to work through, but slowly we're helping each other heal. You know what I mean?"

"Yeah," I said quietly. "I know what you mean."

Chris comments on quilts and quilters in her life and how she came to have a quilt in a novel. "

My motto is “Reap As You Sew . . . Courage & Creativity, Wisdom & Wonder, Connection & Community.” Over the years, quilting has carried me through the rough patches (hey, I’m a 60 year old wife and mother) and allowed me to express my uniqueness in an art form that evolves as we do artistically. The rhythm of machine or hand stitching has slowed me down enough to listen and discern at the crossroads of life. Seeing the creations of “women armed with needles” never ceases to surprise and delight me. Yet, connecting with other women and building community top the list of rewards.


In my Wednesday Quilt Group, Karen Ingersoll was a quiet, steady, kindhearted soul, whom we loved and lost to breast cancer after a valiant, five-year fight. After her death, a friend of mine and now New York Times bestselling author, Marie Bostwick, asked me to design a quilt for her novel A Single Thread—which has become the first in her series of Cobbled Court Quilters’ novels. The result was the aptly named “Broken Hearts Mending” quilt.

Like the hearts quilt my friends and I made for Karen, it touched the recipient (literally and figuratively) throughout her ordeal and provided a way for the makers to focus their concern and love on doing something concrete to help a friend through her illness.

Reaching out creatively is one of the ways we "Reap As We Sew," and for me, that is a powerful act of love. I believe I'm called to help others grow spiritually through quilting, and I try to do that with my quilt art, my writing, and by putting on retreats and getaways for quilters—mostly in a beautiful ocean view setting at the tip of Mexico’s Baja Peninsula. Isn't it great that in honoring our heart’s desires, we can serve and bless one another?"

A free download of the quilt pattern is available to those who register as a reader at Marie's website.

Bobbi Huelsmann introduces wood embroidery --really!

 Bobbi mentioned embroidery on wood and I had to know more. And then when I realized what she was up to, I had to know more! And then when I saw what she had made -- I asked her to share it with everyone here. What a cool Valentine gift or better yet make one of these little wooden boxes to store your Valentine loot in! Bobbi does a great job of describing this project. I hope you'll give it a try. -- Dawn

I have been quilting and embroidering for only 2+ years but have thoroughly enjoy diving into this hobby. Imagine my surprise when Dawn emailed me to write a guest blog on “Embroidering on Wood.”

I had just posted a blog on the “TQS” website showing my first project on this subject. I am not the originator of this form of embroidering, the idea came from a “TQS” show, episode #507 with Rebecca Kemp Brent. For those of you not familiar with “TQS” it is “The Quilt Show” with Alex Anderson and Ricky Tims. In the show there was a box with a lid that had embroidery on the lid. Now that fascinated me, so I ran with the idea.

My first embroidering on wood project was taking a 4x6-inch piece of balsa wood that was 1/16-inch thick and embroidering flowers then laminating to the top of a box lid. But how to go about doing this, since you can not hoop the wood.

Light bulb came on, use self-adhesive, tear-away stabilizer, easy.

Next step, pick a design that will fit within the wood but not get close to any of the edges. Now hoop the stabilizer, center the wood on the stabilizer, and start stitching. Once the embroidering is done remove the excess stabilizer. Now you are ready to laminate the piece to the top of your box lid. (Photo: 1/16-inch wood test embroidery)

We, meaning my darling husband and I, used Loctite Spray Adhesive, Heavy Duty Permanent spray on the box lid and the back of the embroidery project. Follow the instructions on the adhesive spray for when the two pieces get put together. Allow to dry thoroughly, sand the edges and you are done. We determined using a water soluble contact cement would be much better than a spray, less mess and you get an even layer of glue.

If you want the piece of wood or box to be stained, make sure you do this stage prior to any embroidery being done. Again make sure it is thoroughly dry.

Since creating this piece, I have test embroidered on several different thicknesses of wood to see how they would hold up. (See photo tiger on 1/32-inch, note the bend in the wood above the tiger's back)

I also used different needles and thread. A very dense pattern was used for the testing. I can say the denser the design the more the wood will separate so choose your designs with this in mind.

Someone responded to my “TQS” blog that they might try free motion quilting on wood. I don’t see any reason why this could not be done but I’m not even close to being a pro on free motion quilting. All I can say is try it.

It is highly recommended using Balsa wood rather than any other type of wood. The main reason is due to the denseness of the wood. The denser the wood the harder your machine has to work to push the needle through plus a greater chance the wood will crack-- not something you want.

I’ve checked with several people in the industry and all stated balsa wood is the best option for this type of craft. Now, the thickness does make a big difference.

I’ve tested 1/16-inch, 1/20-inch and 1/32-inch thick Balsa wood. (See photos above in the 1/16-inch, and 1/32-inch thickness wood. Last photo outline stitch ) The best for holding up to the serious abuse the wood takes is the 1/16” thick wood. The 1/20” thick can handle the work as long as it is not a very intense stitching whereas the 1/32“ cracked and warped.

I imagine if you were doing only an outline type embroidery the 1/32-inch thickness may hold up but definitely not anything of intensity. In all cases make sure the stabilizer is supported with the entire hoop and make the piece of wood as big as possible. The bigger the piece of wood the more support. If you are embroidering a very dense design the wood will have separation points. This is something you will need to determine if it is acceptable to what is being done.

Once the work is done, hold the piece up to the light and see how much shines through. The lamination stage will be the final determination. You do not want any glue coming through to the top. My first pieces of Balsa wood were purchased from JoAnn’s. But to get something wider than 4-inches I had to order the wood. The place I found was “Specialized Balsa Wood, LLC out of Loveland, Colorado.

The best needle I have found for this type of embroidery is a titanium coated, size 75/11 or smaller. All other types, got through the project but became dull towards the end and ended up separating the wood more than necessary.

Several types of embroidery thread were tested, Madera Polyneon, Foriani and Isacord with using Bottom Line for the bobbin. All brands worked fine with my Baby Lock.

Once you are done embroidering make sure you tear off the excess stabilizer carefully. This step could cause a weak point in the wood to crack so please be careful. Removal of the excess stabilizer is important. The stabilizer sheet could separate from the embroidered wood after lamination, thus giving you loose sections, again not something you want.

Now you are ready to laminate the piece to your main wood piece. Follow the instructions of the glue product you choose to use. Once the glue is dry then you can sand the edges to a smooth finish.

Congratulations, you are finished.

Liz Nutter's made-with-love post cards are loaded with great ideas

Liz Nutter, one very modest woman, attributes her previous decade of quilting to a class she took at Quilt University when she was 60. In that decade Liz didn't let any grass grow under her feet. Just one of her endeavors is Art2Mail. She is one of the founding members of the original online group and has been making post cards for the group for five years. These are her first valentines. 

Liz has many successful and interesting ventures, the most recent a blog -- Seams a Bit Different -- made just so she could have a link for Subversive Stitchers. Her first blogpost is a must read! I look forward to future guest blogs from Liz. But for now -- here are her hearts! -- Dawn

The basic construction for all of my post cards is the same - a backing for address, 2-3 layers of fabric fused together for middle stiffening and a top. Where possible all decorative elements are fused in place then either zig-zagged or blind stitched around the edges. The charms were hand stitched securely for mailing.

The red and gold metallic background fabric is the same for these 3 cards, and I used left-over Christmas ribbon for the diagonal and vertical strips.

For the 3 hearts I cut one large, then simply cut out the inside for the medium and what was left became the small heart. I thought the heart charm gave it a nice little finishing touch.

For the second card {see photo), I pressed angelina onto a heart stamp then trimmed and stitched it in place.

This heart (third photo) was cut on the fold with both sides equal then one side trimmed and moved over a bit.


These next two cards (see photos) are made with one of my favorite techniques - snippets. ( Snippets are small pieces of thread or fabric cut even smaller with a rotary cutter.)

The white heart is made using snippets of Kreinik metallic threads plopped on a white background and covered with a piece of fine netting.


I cut a heart shape out of red cotton, centered the heart shaped cut-out over the snippets and blind stitched around the edges of the heart. The stitching on the vines and stem help hold it all in place. The vines are made using the longest straight stitch on my machine then using embroidery floss to whip stitch through the machine stitches.

Side note: If, like me, you could write a book called Machine stitching for the Clueless, you will draw your design on a piece of tissue paper, pin that to the background fabric and stitch over your drawing. Pull off the tissue paper. This does not work well with the zig-zag, so do the stems with a straight stitch, pull off the tissue, then zig-zag over the straight stitches. If you still don't get it right, call it 'esoteric contemporary' and keep on smiling.

Here are a few more examples of Valentines made for special people this year.

Granddaughter Elena, age 5, likes pink and purple. Enough said?? The inner rectangle has 2 layers of fuzzy yarn zig-zagged around the outer edge.

I went back to my grade school years for grandson Joshua, age 16 months. One large heart, and three little hearts become body, head and wings for a Love Bug. Commercial ribbon trim top and bottom.

I wanted something a bit more masculine for great-nephew Jacob, age 5, and decided stripes and his name would do the trick.

Kids draw, stitchers stitch, and sick kids smile in Meg Shaffer's world

Subversive Stitchers: Women Armed with Needles kicks off our celebration of the HEART with a week long offering of heart related blogs and guest blogs and special treats. Our first treat will tug at your heart strings and give you yet another way to help this needy world.

Meg Shaffer, an American living in Montevideo, Uruguay,  stitches by the sea and soaks up ideas for designs. She has a big heart and a fine touch at cross-stitching. Her blunt little needle weaves in and out of the Aida cloth creating hearts for sick children whom she has never seen and probably never will. She is one of about 60 cross-stitchers who participate in a delightful organization originating in Germany that connects kids in a most unusual way. Her story and links may require a Google translation from German to English. It works surprisingly well and definitely worth the effort.  -- Dawn


Imagine yourself a very sick child, in hospital, and possibly in a country where you don't speak the language. You'd be scared, confused, and in pain. Your life is attached to an IV drip and you are removed from all that is a normal life. This is the life of hundreds of children in hospitals across Europe and the US.

A group based in Germany started a program in early 2009, to help these children in one specific way. Hilfe fuer Kranke Kinder (Help for Sick Children) is a foundation started by Elke Reiss, a cross stitch designer in Germany. The aim of this group is to provide handmade quilts to incredibly sick children.

These are not ordinary quilts, though. See photo: A quilt made by HFKK.

They are designed by children all over the world who draw hearts. These hearts are then converted into cross stitch patterns and sent to volunteers to be brought to life. Sixteen of these hearts are put together to make a quilt. Hearts from Argentina, Spain and Germany might be in the same quilt. They may have been stitched in Germany, Luxembourg, France, the US, or even Uruguay.

Once enough stitched hearts have been gathered, Elke visits German hospitals, seeking a child who is exceedingly sick. The majority of these children receive treatment for cancer, but may be from Russia, the Ukraine, Turkey, or elsewhere.

Elke meets the parents and tells them of the quilt, and asks about favorite colors and themes. These are incorporated in the sashing and backing of the quilt, making it a one of a kind match for the child. The quilt is something a sick child can keep in hospital and draw solace from the hearts,  knowing that other children around the world thought of his scary situation.

Several quilts have already been given to sick children, but of course there's a bottleneck. Cross stitching hearts takes time. It is the rate-limiting step of the whole operation. Although the foundation has approximately sixty volunteer stitchers, that is a drop in the bucket versus the number of sick children.

The foundation also needs people willing to piece and quilt the quilts. Fabric is donated by generous patrons.

To participate you need to provide your time, a ten inch square of 14-16 count Aida cloth or 28-32 count linen, and some floss. I like to use silk or a mixture of silk and cotton. See photo of a striped heart stitched by the author from a drawing by Phillip, age 7, of Germany.
Can you do it?

I have been a part of Elke's group since it began and learned of it through this blog. I have stitched three hearts. I'm working on my fourth. It connects me to the children who draw the hearts and to the child receiving the quilt.

Would you like to participate?

There are two ways to get involved: one is the foundation's blog, and the other is via the foundation's Yahoo group. I encourage you to visit the blog and learn about the latest quilt recipient, Polina from Russia, who has metastasized kidney cancer and is in hospital in Germany. Her story is found on page four of the blog or the original news story can be read online. The news story link is a translation into English from German. All of the other sites are in German and may require a translator.

During this season of hearts and love, consider giving a Valentine every day. Stitch a heart for a child.

Photo is of a heart stitched by the author from a drawing by Julia, age 7, from Spain.

Wen Redmond changes imagination into fascinating art

New Hamspire Artist Wen Redmond has been working with fiber since the early 1970s and been establishing a contemporary style and voice that resonates through the fabric art community. Notice that one of her works is offered for sale in the right column here at Subversive Stitchers: Women Armed with Needles. I'm so pleased to welcome Wen and hope you enjoy her discussion of her art and her process and yes, her inspiration. -- Dawn


“Making art is like a meditation. I put that energy into my creations. Later, viewing them, revisit that feeling; like reading a poem or familiar story. It brings you back.”

I make art because I must.

Urges to create must be followed. I have worked in fiber in one form or another for over 35 years. I explore the edges to see what my chosen medium can do. Fiber is the medium. I create ALL of my fabric. They start out white and I dye, paint, print, digitalize and go mad with color.

My experiences in nature feed my work. I am continually inspired by my contacts with the outer world, during walks, X-country skiing, or even driving past an inspiring view. Inner enlightments often bubble up during the time I take to be in nature. These also inform, inspire, and clarify, creating the excitement I express through my art. Allowing time for these inspirations to percolate up from my unconscious is a vital part of my process.

When I work, I encourage a collaborative process with spirit or my higher self, that mind-boggling principle of the universe. This process can also be called ‘flow’. When you are in this state of mind, the intuitive is tapped and the work can become more than the sum of it’s parts.

My fascination with photography is finding expression viva printing my images directly onto a variety of natural fibers. I use my own printed fabric to create stitched textural constructions and digital collage. I created an innovative technique I call Holographic Images. This is an unusual photographic multi-level fiber art treatment. The finished work appears holographic or 3-D.These pieces move as the viewer changes positions. The art becomes interactive, a communication.

To achieve this effect, I print my original digital images twice. I print on especially treated silk organza for the top image, and sew into fabric borders. This is mounted and the second image is transferred onto a polyester and rayon stabilizer, which is used for the backing.

I use an Epson 2400 Photo Stylus. The inks are archival. These inks are water proof, and fade resistant for at least 200 years.

I published an article about this technique in Quilting Arts May 2007 and they invited me to appear on their TV Show that year. You can purchase a DVD called Holographic Memories though their website.

Most of my latest work contains digital printing. Digital Fiber! This involves using my own photographs, printed on prepared ink jet fabrics. You can purchase prepared fabrics in a variety of places on the Internet. Google to compare your options. I also create various other fiber substrates, which are treated to receive the printer inks. Ink Aid is coated on the surface and will seal the ink. Lately I have been digitally manipulating my photographs and layering images of my surfaced designed and hand painted fabrics in Photoshop. Experimentation is key.

I love to Collage! My Mixed Media Collages are 
assemblages of archival digital prints collaged with textiles, combining painting and digital media into a one of a kind art piece. Silk Organza is often worked into mixed media collages that explore transparency, an added dimension of light. Light flows through the layered sheer silk, creating different patterns. The abstract nature of this work allows the viewer to see different images within the same piece. (5,6,7)

I enjoy adding text in my work. Some times it is readable, other times it is embedded or even backwards. Parts of a poem will appear in various places. I wrote an entire poem viva free quilting on one piece. My poetry and quotes from other authors will also find their way into my work. I developed a nonsensical writing a friend dubbed ‘wens-script’. It adds a feel of writing but develops as a pattern within the work.

Fiber art is on the cusp of a wave. Fiber artists are evolving our medium to a new level of perception. Using textiles to create art is breaking the boundaries of the art world. Fiber as an art form is highly collectable right now because it is so new and affordable.

What does one do, who sees visions? Experiment. Break rules. Expose people to new ways of seeing. Art, to me, is about moving forward. Creation gives me ideas. My passion is to put them into art. I use my medium, fiber.

Note: Visit Wen's website or Etsy Shop or Artful Home site for more of her work.

Quilting a metaphor for life or the 'if it can go wrong it will' quilt block

I am obviously NO quilt artist.

I barely qualify as a quilter with only a few finished projects. I tend to write about other people's accomplishments and fabric art and quilts instead of making my own. One quilt artist referred to me as a cheerleader. I guess that's as accurate as any label.

But during a venture into paper piecing I stumbled upon a truth that too often is forgotten. No professional, artist, master quilter makes a completed work of art without some effort and yes frustration and YES -- ripping!

And I also discovered that even with all of those stumbles and do-overs, when you enjoy what you have a sense of where the project is heading or have a vision of what you want to create -- well, there's a certain determination and even joy in overcoming the problems set in your way.

I guess this could be a metaphor for life. Maybe this little 9-patch star is a metaphor for my life. Such potential here less than half completed. And yes, it is imperfect. Like me. Can you pick out the square -- the one where I cut off the seam allowance?

Yes, this definitely has been a 'if it could go wrong it did' project. And it isn't finished, yet. 

This began after watching Carol Doak's video on paper piecing at The Quilt Show, Alex Anderson's and Ricky Tim's internet show and quilting community. I searched the Internet and found a pattern for a modest little tulip square. There are tons of paper piecing patterns, free for the taking online. Here's a photo of my first little tulip. My husband says it looks more like an ice cream cone -- I have to agree. Poor choices of color, I think.

With that first attempt, I was hooked on paper piecing. I grew up among traditional quilters who judged a quilt on perfection. Perfectly aligned corners, sharp star points, teeny tiny even hand quilting stitches.... Well, you know I'm sure what I'm talking about.

It just so happened that I have a copy of Carol Doak's earlier book Simply Sensational 9-Patch Stars and decided on one star to make. Not too intricate, doable. Definitely within a beginner's realm. And the paper piecing went smoothly. Carol includes a CD with the book that allows downloading a Foundation software and from there I can print off the patterns.

Easy! No problem.

The problem came with my rusty sewing skills and absent minded senior-moment brain! I carefully worked out the fabric placement then the very first piece I sewed into place was WRONG. I precut strips to the sizes Carol suggested for the pieces and when I begn to use them I realized that I had no idea where I got some of those dimensions but they made no sense. What was I thinking?

I asked that question alot!

What was I thinking indeed when I cut the seam allowance off the side of one of the nine-patches. And what was I thinking when I put a couple of fabrics on and realized after they were sewed in place that they didn't quite cover the required area! Rip! Rip! Rip! Or as someone kindly suggested 'reverse sewing....'

Just when I thought I'd finished with the tough stuff. All squares were paper pieced and were done correctly. So I sewed them together. First two rows of three -- perfect. OK, I STARTED to place one upside down, but caught it before the first stitch.

And then I held it up -- all done. And there was the last row UPSIDE DOWN!

Rip! Rip! Rip! I don't think I have ever done as much reverse sewing and re-sewing on any project including the clothing and home decorations I have made through the years!

Finally finished.

Maybe not totally perfect. But I'm impressed. And yet I didn't want it to just be one square. I was making it to use with a couple of other 12-inch blocks I had previously made from the same fabric.

Now how does one make three 12-inch blocks and end up with a 12 inch, an 11--plus inch and a 12-plus-inch square?

I squared them up, added border and went to reach for some black to run along oneside to turn this into a wall hanging that says 'welcome.'

Did you guess? Of course I cannot find my stash of black cotton fabric. Will this project ever truly reach the 'finish' line and will it actually turn out okay? Stay tuned! :)

I've included a photo of the blocks set together. The center star is the one taken from the Carol Doak book.

Oh, and of course the photo wouldn't download on first try. Do I really trust this wallhanging to stop giving me trouble after it is completed?!

My experience is only a sample of what others have gone through to finally complete their quilt whether it is for a bed, a wall, an exhibit, or an award winner.... Everyone who sews have days like this. As with life it is not meant to be easy -- but the process, the journey, ahhh there's the fun. The challenge. Overcoming. Yes, and like childbirth no matter how ugly -- looking at the thing you've created and knowing that you've put a bit of yourself into it. Pure joy!

So as you read the guest blogs -- read between the lines and realize that each piece of fabric art that touches our hearts and gives us glimpses of breath taking beauty included pin pricks, ripping ripping ripping, and redos many many redos. But they persevered.

You can do it! We can do it! And it is all worthwhile. Ever had a day or a project like this one? Tell me more! -- Dawn

Question for the Day

When you reach for a book about quilting or fabric art, what would you like to find?

For example, do you want how-to as in how to do a new technique or how to replicate a project provided in the book?  Books like Stack n Whack or Flip Flop Piecing or Crazy Quilts etc.

Or do you prefer collections of artists and their work such as the 500 Masters series by Lark that features many of our friends and teachers?

Or perhaps a combination of how-to and eye candy? I was fond of the annual American Quilts publications that came out in the 1980s that included photos of authors, their featured quilt and some how to info.

Maybe a product discussion such as what threads to use when machine quilting or doing thread painting? Or an overall book of sewing machine use? Needle choices? Fabric discussions -- texture, color, design, even thread count and ...?
Or more internal inspiration which gets the authors/writers to explain what inspired a piece?

Or maybe various artists taking a design or technique and producing something of their own. I quickly think of the AQS book about The Ohio Star that produced an amazing assortment of quilts from Ohio Star chickens to the abstract and beyond.

Please tell me what you'd like to see in a quilt/fabric art book.

Thanks,
Dawn