My friend Penny came to visit. Penny is oh-so-talented. With a sewing machine, and with a paintbrush. Usually, she paints furniture and stitches with fabric – but this day she brought fabric she had painted.
Serendipity again…she was using a pattern developed by Meg Hawley of Crabapple Hill. That’s serendipity because I had recently watched Meg on an episode of The Quilt Show, so I had a better understanding of her technique. Meg uses crayons on fabric, then embellishes with some embroidery. Penny is using Derwent Inktense pencils which yield a very vibrant color. I love it, don’t you?
The details in this group of witches is amazing. Every time I looked at the piece, I saw more fun surprises hidden. Penny has personalized hers, of course, making it even more special. I can’t wait to see the final result
Here is a photo of another panel in progress. Look how much control she has with the shading and contour. Coloring books moved to fabric!
I know Penny is like me, she juggles several projects at once. So whether these witches will be marching across a finished quilt by this Halloween or not, I’m not sure. But she’s promised to share with me as it goes, and I’ll be sure to post final pictures, too.
In the meantime, she brought some of these pencils to share with me, so I’m off to play now.
Note: These photos were taken with my phone, but you can click to enlarge an image and see more and more of Penny’s details. Do that in the parade, and be enchanted (or maybe under a spell).
I just recently bought the 72 pencil collection and have been searching or other quilters use of the pencils. I love the vibrancy on Penny’s work. I would appreciate if she or you could cover the how’s and why’s of your use of Inktense. Are you using a medium before you color and paint with water brushes? Any thoughts would be appreciated. Jane
Penny chose the Intense pencils because they deliver a more vibrant color than crayons. And, pencils are easier to manage in those tight places than are crayons. She did not need the textile medium, but I find that my colors run on fabric with just water…maybe I used too much water. YouTube videos are abundant and they advise all textile medium, or half and half with water.