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Tierney Barden

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Photograph by Tierney Barden 2015

Photograph by Tierney Barden 2015

Stir, Steep, Stitch

Settle in, as this is a place to tell stories in stitch; to share new ideas and bodies of work as they unfold; to connect with fiber enthusiasts and needle-wielding friends every where. 

A few words about using photographs on this site:

All the photographs on this website are taken by Tierney Barden, unless otherwise credited. You may use Tierney's photos, but kindly link back to this website. Thank you very much! 

Click the image to download my FREE Striped Octagon EPP template, and share what you make #tierneybarden. We'd all love to see!

Click the image to download my FREE Striped Octagon EPP template, and share what you make #tierneybarden. We'd all love to see!

Click the image to download my charm-friendly FREE Gingham for Giants quilt pattern! Share what you make #tierneybarden. We'd all love to see!

Click the image to download my charm-friendly FREE Gingham for Giants quilt pattern! Share what you make #tierneybarden. We'd all love to see!

Click the image to download my FREE "Winter Wonderland" Hexagon page from your desktop computer! You'll get 28 - 1" hexis each with an inspiring word celebrating what we love most about winter! Read this blog post for more information about printing…

Click the image to download my FREE "Winter Wonderland" Hexagon page from your desktop computer! You'll get 28 - 1" hexis each with an inspiring word or two celebrating winter! Read this blog post for more information about printing this PDF. #tierneybarden

Click the image to download my FREE "Girl Power" Hexagon page from your desktop computer! You'll get 28 - 1" hexis each with an inspiring word celebrating girl power! Read this blog post for more information about printing this PDF. #tierneybarden

Click the image to download my FREE "Girl Power" Hexagon page from your desktop computer! You'll get 28 - 1" hexis each with an inspiring word celebrating girl power! Read this blog post for more information about printing this PDF. #tierneybarden

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Project Linus
Hand quilting on my first mini quilt.

Hand quilting on my first mini quilt.

Slow Fashion October and a Mighty Mini

October 11, 2018 in organic cotton fabrics, recipes, artist spotlight

I’ve recently had an epiphany: I deserve more time to play, and with my own fabrics.

Bird’s eye view of my mini quilt and trusty tools.

Bird’s eye view of my mini quilt and trusty tools.

Silly as it sounds, since starting this beautiful dye business I’ve been of the mindset that the fabrics are for my customers, as well as for sample making and ready-made gifts for the shop, but not for me to let loose and play with. This stemmed from the fact that the substrates I purchase are organic and, therefore, more expensive. If you follow my Instagram feed you may have seen what my average dye day looks like in real time. The dye side of my business leaves little time to play, clearly an area of my work life that could use a little rebalancing.

With that said, I’m resisting no longer, and I’m ready to have the same kind of fun playing with colors and designs that you have! I want to immerse myself in stitching these incredibly beautiful fabrics like you do! Knowing that magic happens when I allow myself time to play, I’m making my first mini quilt!

Inspired by Amish and Welsh quilts, I sketched out a simple design that would allow the colors to sing. Next, I set about assembling the top using two fat quarters (one pink and one gold), a few scraps, and because I don’t dye black, some ready-made black organic sateen. This mini has one layer of wool batting. I’ll decide the binding color once the quilting is complete.

My hand-eye coordination is adjusting to making tiny stitches. I’m being brave (or ridiculous) by not drawing any quilting lines. I’ve done some big stitch quilting projects this year and I believe that’s where I developed this habit of eyeballing my quilting lines. Gosh, this is fun!

Here in the studio, there’s something special in the works, but first I really want to hear from you! In the comments below, tell me your favorite mini quilt design, your preferred way to hang mini quilts, if you exchange blocks with your quilty friends and whether you keep or give your minis! Anything you want to share about your love of mini quilts would be very much appreciated! Thank you!

Hoping to finish my Zweig sweater (pattern by Caitlin Hunter) during #slowfashionoctober

Hoping to finish my Zweig sweater (pattern by Caitlin Hunter) during #slowfashionoctober

Photo courtesy of www.fringeassociation.com

Photo courtesy of www.fringeassociation.com

Do you know about #slowfashionoctober?

Karen Templer annually hosts this thought-provoking opportunity to increase awareness of fast fashion and how we personally relate to it. Connect with a growing community, join in diverse conversations, read interviews and see inspiring projects all throughout October (and beyond). If you have an interest in your clothes, the textile industry, mindfulness about what we put on our bodies and in the earth, you’ll want to watch The True Cost , check out Karen’s website for thought-provoking prompts, interviews, inspiration and much more, and of course, follow the action on Instagram at #slowfashionoctober. Thank you Karen for creating and hosting this life-changing event!

TierneyBarden.jpg

Do you love butternut squash? I recently made this recipe and it’s so good! If you’ve never tried frying fresh sage leaves in butter, this is a perfect time to give it a go. All I can say is that I’ll be making this recipe all winter long.

While you’re over on Instagram exploring #slowfashionoctober, have a peek at my recent cochineal dye day @tierneybarden

Tags: #slowfashionoctober, Karen Templar, The True Cost, mini quilt, naturally dyed fabric, hand quilt, organic cotton, sateen, butternut squash soup, soup, fried sage
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"...there have been many times I've fallen in love with fabric, but NEVER like this." Trista R., @_trquilts, Vermont, USA                                                        

Copyright 2015 - 2024- Tierney Barden original designs. All rights reserved.