Quick Draw a Fun Event!

To complete a piece in an hour, yes, it is most important to have a plan. First you need to locate a frame the size you want to use and be sure the art can just be set into it without any tools required. For the previous Quick Draws, I have usually done something with thread-painting, but this year I thought I'd create a background by some strip piecing in the sew and flip method, using a variety of black and white prints in 1" to 2" widths. Of course, these strips were precut and ready, as well as a backing and batting, with several 45-degree lines to keep the angles true.

I started near the middle on one of the longest rows and sewed to the bottom right edge, then turned the piece upside down to add strips toward the top left edge. Next I heated my tiny Clover iron and fused the precut sunflower to the corner and added several shades of yellow and green stitches to enhance the large flower. I also added a rust-colored butterfly and stitched it. (Looking at the picture makes me realize I must wash those Machingers!)

 

I taped the piece to the mat and called it finished. Since there were a few minutes left before the bell for the 15-minute "framing" period, I decided to try fusing some of the green leaves onto the mat. The Steam-a-Seam had a good sticky back and I could position the leaves, then apply the iron. I love extending the picture off into the border, so this helped carry out this idea.

 

The afternoon was full of excitement and fun, visiting with guests who walked around asking questions and commenting. I didn't have time to circulate but enjoyed seeing all the finished pieces during the live auction. Proceeds benefitted the South Mississippi Children's Center.

Quick Draw for Kids

Usually nothing about quilting or creating art is quick! When my local art association (South Mississippi Art Association) in Hattiesburg announced plans for a Quick Draw at Brewsky's to benefit South Mississippi Children's Center, it sounded like a fun activity.

     The plan was this: artists would bring their supplies (in my case, sewing machine, table, threads, etc.)—and set up at the venue, where they would have one hour to create their piece, and 15 minutes to frame it. Then the pieces would all be sold through a live auction. A very loud and lively band was playing while patrons were enjoying hors d’oeuvres and drinks and circulating among the artists to watch the pieces take shape.

     Being the only one of the 25 participating artists with a sewing machine makes my station a must-see, so this is quite fun! This is the fourth year I have participated, and I have done landscapes, ghost quilting, and this year did thread-painting on a large floral print, adding polyester and rayon threads to enhance the design. I had lightly adhered the print to a stabilizer with a glue-stick on the edges. The fabric I chose had two major flowers in orange and pink, so my thread choices were fairly limited to shades of these plus a green stem. My frame was 11x14 with a white mat, and I knew batting would make it too thick to pop into the frame. That meant the stabilizer was essential for keeping the work flat.

The band, Bobby Walters, Sherry Kuespert, Scottie Whigham, me in background

Fitting the mat over the thread-painting

    

     There were many positive comments, even this one: “I love your work, and can you fix my favorite pair of jeans?”

Quick Draw

No guns involved, just lots of paint with one sewing machine added. Fiber art can compete with oil and watercolor and acrylic!
The South Mississippi Art Association co-sponsored a Quick Draw fund raiser with the AIDS Services Coalition in Hattiesburg, MS. About 25 artists created their works in a variety of mediums during a one-hour session, with patrons and customers milling around watching. At the end of the hour, we had 15 minutes to frame or finish up the piece before the live auction.

In my case, I took my sewing machine, fabric, threads, batting, and a planned design of the landscape I thought I could create in an hour's time. Just to be sure, I did a trial run of another piece the day before, which I learned nearly all the others had done. We cleared over $3,000 after expenses, and other artwork sold for the artists at the silent auction.

It was a fun afternoon with food and drink and music by a steel drum artist and lots of visiting. This event was so well received that it is planned to be the first of many annual ones.