Quilt Fun Beginning With Paper and Scissors

Saturday March 16th was National Quilting Day, and I was fortunate to have been invited to teach an abbreviated version of my paper cutting workshop to members of the Thumbstall Quilt Guild in Marcellus, NY. Being a member of this guild made sharing my love of paper, scissors and fabric even more special. We had three hours together and these quilters played hard! Let’s have a look over some of the students’ shoulders as the day unfolded:

Denise Bell invited me to teach my workshop, and I have to say that I could make an entire post on solely her paper cuttings and fabric pieces! She took the ball and ran so far with it that she might still be running! Denise recently returned from Mobile, Alabama and used the lush vegetation as her inspiration. Of the many layouts and ideas Denise explored, each and every one of them had such a painterly quality and an undeniable liveliness. For me, her work inspires jubilation and celebration. Keep going, Denise!

Denise Bell smiling through the entire workshop!

Denise made this piece inspired by her recent trip to Mobile, Alabama.

Carol Armstrong used her class time to take one basic motif and apply it to each of the folded papers we reviewed at the top of the class. So industrious, and so inspired! She took a bold step out of the box and began layering her paper cuttings and coming up with compositions for really intriguing pieces. I, for one, will be anxious to see what comes of her paper play!

Carol wisely cut several variations on a theme.

Pam Mueller tracing one of her unique designs.

Pam Mueller (right) had a small mountain of paper cuts to choose from and decided on this one for fabric. During class, she pulled a turquoise watercolor batik from her stash, which will make for spectacular results! I can’t wait to see Pam’s finished piece!

Marion Lutz (below) wowed the room with her gorgeous leaf and stem design! Back at her home studio, Marion continues to make progress. She has big plans for this piece, and all I’ll say is that I already put in my request for a pre-order! It’s going to be so good!! You can find Marion @fauxsister.

Marion Lutz tracing her lovely design.

Marion Lutz’s original design. Stunning!

Camille DiSanza took one of my Flower templates and enlarged it free hand, then cut the original template from the light green fabric and her enlargement from the dark green. She set out to create a shadow effect and nailed it! She’s a shining example of giving oneself permission to play and letting the magic happen!

Camille DiSanza with her fabric panel destined to become a pillow cover.

Sue Hopkins traced and fused my Tulips template onto an asian print before fusing it to her table runner. The original table runner pattern had a different flower appliqué, but Sue decided to venture out on her own! Using only the fabric she brought, she cut a total of seven Tulips. She decided to place four Tulips across one end of the runner and three across the other end. I can’t wait to see your finished table runner, Sue!

Sue’s fabric choice gave added movement to her Tulips!

Sue Hopkins fusing Tulips to one end of her table runner.

Four Tulips down, three to go!

Typically, I offer this workshop as a full day, so I can attest to how hard these women worked in three short hours! When I see the progress and the fun people have, I often feel this should be a multiple day workshop. It would allow for a comprehensive exploration of the process, as well as allow students the space and time to really develop their own ideas and get valuable feeedback from the group.

If your guild or quilt group is interested in this paper cutting and fused appliqué workshop, for one day or two days, please email me. It’s a lot of fun, very inspiring and the results around the room are as unique and beautiful as the people creating them. See more of my work on Instagram @tierneybarden.

I’d like to thank the Thumbstall Quilt Guild and all of the students shown above for their permission to share their unique work with all of you. As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts and questions below in the comments!

Gallery Talk: Resplendent

At last, we've reached the final post about the making of my art quilts recently shown at Squam Art Workshops. 

While the previous five quilts focused largely on their story telling element, this quilt's story is in its making. Enjoy a closer look at Resplendent's inception, techniques and artistry. For the complete view of "My Enchanted Wonderland" installation, please click here.

Resplendent, 2018

Title: Resplendent, 44.5" x 46.5"

Materials: Naturally dyed organic cotton sateens, commercial cottons, metallic and cotton threads; two layers wool batting

Techniques: English Paper Piecing, hand and machine piecing, fused applique, hand quilting

Date: June 2017 - May 2018

re-splend-ent, adjective

attractive and impressive through being richly colorful or sumptuous

Looking back over the months that this quilt was being made, I can honestly say that resplendent is the best word to adequately convey how I felt through the entire process, including how I felt when I saw it finished for the first time. From the initial design idea, to fabric choices, exploring paper shape combinations, cutting paper for the center medallion, and hand piecing and quilting - at every stage, I felt a sort of inner radiance mixed with thrill and eagerness to keep going. 

1" hexis cut from paper and wrapped with fabric. I'm a fan of glue basting.

In the beginning, this quilt was intended as an attempt to satisfy my curiosity about medallion quilts (their history, variety of quilt components and assembly methods). At the same time, I had been anxious to start an English Paper Piecing (EPP) project using my naturally dyed fabrics. Just at the early stages of designing this quilt, Elizabeth Duvivier invited me to teach at the June '18 session of Squam Art Workshops. We had discussed paper cutting being a large part of the class, and then with a little more play time and sample making, I bridged paper cutting to fabric by way of fused applique - more on that a little later in this post - but it's important to note this time of play was a key moment in the planning of the workshop, as well as the evolution of this quilt. Lesson: make more time to play. 

First things first, I began the process of making Resplendent by cutting piles and piles of 1" paper hexagons. I also pulled a stack of my naturally dyed silks and cottons in colors that I see around me every day during summer months. I laid them out to create a transition from light to dark and noticed darker greens were needed, but because they aren't in my standard dye palette, I turned to Nancy Rink's New Aged Muslins by Marcus Fabrics. Feeling the need for a little bit of visual texture, I brought in just a few batiks, and a stripe by Moda and stars by Andover. 

EPP hexis being sewn into units before being sewn together to create the center panel of the quilt. 

Making the most of every piece of fabric, especially my hand dyed indigo.

A few of the jewel shape paper pieces used in the outer border being wrapped and glue basted. 

One unit of many forming the outermost border. The center diamonds are all lovely, soft shades of peaches and pinks from my dye pots.

A tray made transporting the English Paper Piecing units much easier!

I chuckle when I recall how I used to think sewing by hand must take ages! Having done a bit of hand sewing before embarking on this quilt, I knew that with an efficient set up (tools, posture, support, etc.), hand work actually moves right along. Stitching one color and shape to the next is satisfying, relaxing and enjoyable. I'll even admit to finding it slightly addicting. Sewing EPP is like solving a puzzle - as soon as you put two pieces together you can't wait to see the next piece put in place, and the next! 

Speaking of puzzle pieces, once the center panel and outer borders pieces were stitched together, the four outermost corners were in need of a solution. They presented a fun design challenge, for example, I knew I wanted the colors to flow around each corner, keep the eye moving and maintain a coherent design, but I also had to keep in mind that a paper cut design would be applied over this space, so how not to compete with that design? Below are photos of my solution, and with that portion completed, I moved on to the paper cut motifs. 

A corner in need of a solution. 

One half of the corner unit.

One half of the corner unit meeting up with the border.

Two corner units sewn together, inner border added.

In the quilt world, there exist a few applique methods. I tend to do a lot of needle turn applique, of which you can see an example here, here and here, but when it comes to my paper cut designs I find fused applique to be the most appropriate method. Generally, if it can be drawn and cut, it can be fused. It's a fairly simple process, and any one can use this technique with beautiful results. I enjoy sharing the technique with fellow creatives, not just quilters, and you can see the work of talented Squam students in my Instagram feed here.

On the left is a paper cut that didn't quite hit the mark for Resplendent's center medallion. I must have cut four or five different designs, fine tuning each time, getting closer to what I felt was just right. 

The final paper cut design ready for transfer to fusible web, which had already been adhered to fabric. When cutting, I first get my head in the right place: patience, steadiness and staying in the flow. 

The paper cut design is cut and turned over to the right side. 

Fusing the center medallion onto the quilt top. Tiny, sharp scissors trim any stray threads before fusing. 

Once the quilt top is completely assembled, at last, all of the paper pieces can be removed! Aa a mountain of paper pieces grows, one can see the wisdom in reusing papers.

The assembled quilt top, paper pieces removed, and the entire top pressed. The next steps include layering the batting and backing, basting, machine quilting the paper cut motifs, hand quilting the rest, and then binding. 

The day to begin Resplendent's hand quilting was memorable. It was 7:00AM on Saturday May 19th, 2018, and I was in my Nest with fresh hot coffee to my left and my small wooden tool bowl on my right, and the TV was airing Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding. There was one specific moment after the ceremony when a reporter commented that this wedding was "resplendent". I could hardly believe my ears. Of all the adjectives to describe the wedding, he chose the word I had named the very quilt I was stitching. Without slowing, my needle simply continued to weave glinting gold metallic thread through all the layers, holding them together for a lifetime.   

Big stitch hand quilting, detail. Metallic thread and Aurifil cotton thread.

A view of the back of the quilt. Topography comes to mind.

One last look, Resplendent surrounded by Specimen (L) and New York Beauty (R)

How's that for a fairytale ending? Thank you all for the time you have taken to read my posts about this special body of work. I value your interest and your feedback. Many of you have been so kind to share your own reactions and thoughts with me, and I've sincerely enjoyed those conversations. 

A heartfelt thank you goes out once again to Elizabeth Duvivier @elizabethduvivier and Meg Fussell @squamlove for the opportunity to produce and show this body of work, as well as their support. This has been an epic stitched journey and I've enjoyed every single moment. I remain open to traveling with this show, and would appreciate any potential locations/events you may know of.  

Please continue to share your questions and comments below or by email: tierneybarden@gmail.com. I read them all. You can also follow my natural dye works and daily life on Instagram @tierneybarden.

Gallery Talk: Self Portrait

Welcome to the fourth installment of posts that explore the making of my art quilts recently shown at Squam Art Workshops. 

During the four days this show was up, I was genuinely touched by visitors' reactions and questions. Spontaneous, often dynamic conversations with small intimate groups or individuals helped shape this unique experience. Hands down, Metamorphosis and Self Portrait received the most inquiries and "likes", as it were. For the complete story about Metamorphosis, please click here. Read on to discover how Self Portrait came into being. For the complete view of "My Enchanted Wonderland" installation, please click here.

Self Portrait, 2015

Title: Self Portrait, 30.5" x 33.5"

Materials: A variety of silks and velvets, some hand dyed; cotton batting

Techniques: Needle-turn applique, fused applique, embroidery, machine quilting

Date: July-August 2015

Metamorphosis, 2014

To talk about Self Portrait without first acknowledging it's precursor, Metamorphosis, would be leaving out one half of the story. Metamorphosis was made in 2014 shortly after I decided to start a whole new chapter in my life. I was in my mid-forties and had recently faced a health scare (that thankfully came to nothing), during which time I found myself asking the big questions, primarily, have I done the things I want to do? My answer ultimately led me to the decision to put my financial affairs in order and allow myself the freedom to explore options for what could be next. Metamorphosis is about dreaming the dream and protecting that fragile, vulnerable space. You can read more about it in this post.

About a year after Metamorphosis was completed, I felt compelled to stitch an update to that story. Four months had passed exploring possibilities, trying on various business ideas and adjusting to an evolving lifestyle, after which another six months were invested in getting my natural dye and quilt business up and running. All the while, I was gaining clarity and confidence about who I was becoming and the direction I was heading in.

Going back to my college days earning my BFA at Alfred University, Joseph Scheer was a professor in the printmaking department. For a delightful trip down the rabbit hole, please visit his website here. His incredibly beautiful book, Night Visions: The Secret Designs of Moths, is highly coveted in my own art book collection, and it contains the moth I was drawn to for this quilt, Apantesis phalerata. Have you ever felt that inexplicable connection to something outside of yourself? Every time I opened Joseph's book to this moth, I felt a physical response - a sort of burning in my solar plexis - a connection. I had only felt that one other time, when I would stand before a particular painting by Lori Ellis, so I knew not to ignore this feeling. Click here to see Lori's incredible paintings.

Early stages, drawing the cartoon for Self Portrait

You know how moths hang on a screen with their wings spread wide, unmoving for long periods of time? Well, I thought if I were to hang in one place for such a large portion of my life, I'd want to hang on exquisitely patterned silk.

So, moving ahead with a vision, I drew the moth on paper and cut it out. On a larger piece of paper, I drew a cartoon, a full scale ink drawing of the background damask pattern. I moved the moth around the cartoon until it landed where it looked most at home. Next, I traced the entire damask pattern onto clear plastic.

Cutting the damask pattern.

Tracing shapes onto paper-backed fusible web.

Next, I hand cut the pieces of just one damask unit. These became individual templates that I used to trace as many as were needed onto the paper side of fusible web already adhered to the back of hand dyed silk. These two steps are shown in the photos above.

I cut each silk shape and referred to the cartoon as I arranged them on the shot silk background. Once the entire design was in place, I peeled the paper backing from each piece and fused them all into place with a dry hot iron.  Essentially, by this point, I've handled each shape four to five times.

With the background in place, I hand appliqued the moth. The forewings are reverse applique, silk on velvet. The hindwings are reverse applique, velvet on velvet, with hand dyed pink and red silk crepe de chine appliqued closer to the body. Two thin black velvet strips were cut for antennae. They were heavily machine stitched, which frayed the edges and created an ideal texture. The final step for the moth was to lightly stuff the body from the back before hand embroidering hair to resemble her real life Lepidoptera specimen.

Needing a little life breathed into it, the moth's head, thorax and abdomen received light stuffing before hand embroidery.

The next stage in the making of this art quilt was the free-motion quilting that covers the entire background. I didn't have a design planned out, instead, I brought the quilt to the machine and simply decided to start by outlining the damask pattern with red thread, defining shapes and filling in details like individual leaves and small flowers. Next, I moved on to stitching groups of small and large circles with a variegated thread in warm earth tones. The circles were also a way to connect to the moth eye spots in Metamorphosis.

Metamorphosis and Self Portrait side by side in the cozy Deephaven Library, 2018.

While Metamorphosis is about creating a safe place to dream the dream, Self Portrait is a celebration of shedding the cocoon. When this piece was finished I felt like I was looking in the mirror and this is what was looking back.

As always, please share your questions and comments below or by email: tierneybarden@gmail.com. I'm grateful, and I read them all. You can also follow my natural dye works and daily life on Instagram @tierneybarden.

Gallery Talk: Dark Night

Welcome to the third of four posts that look deeper into the making of my art quilts recently shown at Squam Art Workshops. 

Dark Night has many layers, both physical and metaphorical, so enjoy this rare peek behind the curtain. For the complete view of "My Enchanted Wonderland" installation, please click here.

Dark Night, 2018

Title: Dark Night, 33.5" x 39"

Materials: Shot silk, my father's silk ties, men's cotton dress shirts, silk shantung, Japanese wovens, shot cottons, commercial cottons; wool batting

Techniques: Needle-turn applique, machine piecing, machine quilting

Date: January-February, April 2018

American Folk Art quilt, artist unknown, 1825-1845. Wool, silk, cotton, applique, beading and embroidery. Photo by Gavin Ashworth for the American Folk Art Museum.

Smitten with American Folk Art quilts, like the example shown at left, I've long wanted to make my own quilt that tells a story with hand applique figures sprinkled all over the surface. Antique folk art quilts commonly illustrated daily life on the farm, politics of the day or biblical stories; however, my quilt tells a tale that transcends time and place. The title of this quilt is a nod to a specific step of the Hero's Journey as defined by Joseph Campbell: the dark night of the soul. Making this quilt provided plenty of time to really consider what it is to be on a quest through our own dark night - the battles we fight, the choices we make along the way, whether we hold fast to our values and beliefs or perhaps discover things about ourselves that change how we see the world and ourselves. My quilt's overall design became a treasure hunt, a search for meaning, sign posts and messages that help light the way through the darkness. 

As my stitched quest grew richer and more meaningful, these words eventually made their way to the surface:

Dark Night

In the depths of that dark night

Every minute of every hour

Choose love.

Shine your light. Breathe.

Trust in yourself. Believe.

One day, you'll look back

Stronger. Wiser. Softer.  

        -T.B.

As I mentioned, this quilt has many layers, one of which is the actual making of it. Imagine that it's February in upstate NY. Cold winds whip around the house, the days are more dark than light and temperatures hover in the teens. I'm safe in my Nest, burrowed beneath layers of downy softness, warmth and comfort, busily stitching by hand. On my right is an aged wooden bowl that holds my favorite tools and threads. Hot coffee on my night stand at 6:00AM, and by 7:00PM a fresh cup of fennel tea and a small piece of chocolate. I tell myself I've earned it, stitching by hand for 12 hours. The next day, wake up and repeat, and still with a happy heart. I realize this is the work I was meant to do. These are the stories I was meant to tell. 

The background of this quilt is the traditional Flowering Snowball block. I chose that block because, like life, everything is connected. I also like how the geometry of the pattern blends both feminine and masculine energies. From around the studio I thoughtfully pulled a wide variety of fabrics, including men's dress shirts, Japanese wovens and some commercial cottons. The fabrics had to relate to the story being told, for example, a bit of black lace suggests grieving, loss, pain, sorrow, feminine energy, etc.. Where there's shadow there is light, so fabrics that brought in light were equally important, hence the gorgeous rose-gold shot silk.  Including some of my dad's ties made this quilt very personal. My dad passed away of a heart attack at age 59. I was 29. This sudden and tragic loss was my first quest into my own dark night.

As rough as they are, I made my Flowering Snowball templates by hand and they worked like a charm. The test block shown here later became part of a pillow I made for Terri Dautcher who was indispensable helping me hang this show.

The background all laid out before machine piecing it together. At this stage, I had only a basic idea of what the rose-gold silk applique might look. 

Scattered on the floor of My Enchanted Wonderland installation were some of the actual cut paper rose stems used in the making of Dark Night. 

For this quilt, loose paper cut shapes helped determine the composition before the final shapes were cut from silk.

Hand stitching silk shantung is an indulgence I'd afford again and again. Stitching shantung into a garment is one thing, needle turn applique is another. Once I understood this fabric's tendency to fray, the nature of the weave upon turning under, and the presence of slubs, the process actually became enjoyable and I found myself drawing somewhat intricate shapes like the key, the ladder and the swan. The entire composition actually evolved over weeks of stitching, adding more paper shapes, then more stitching and more paper shapes. As I stitched, I'd connect a few more dots about dark versus light, or fighting the good fight, and another symbol would appear in my mind's eye. Gradually, all of the quilt's symbols revealed themselves. Looking back on the process, it was a good lesson in staying open and in the flow.  

One of the reasons I'm partial to antique folk art quilts is their inherent wonkiness. Confronting my Type-A personality, I intentionally made myself loosen up when drawing and cutting each and every paper shape. I stopped myself from "fixing" this curve or that petal. I have to say that those wonky shapes were a joy to applique. It's funny to me that when I teach, I readily encourage students to embrace imperfection, to celebrate it, and there I was, reminding myself to do as I say. For me, those mis-shapen, odd-looking shapes breathe life into the piece. They add character and personality. The way I see it, evidence of the human hand is a gift, a little piece of the maker left behind for the viewer to discover, to take delight in and even to bond with the maker - to say, "Yes, I'm human, too." I'll have more of that, please. 

I hand basted this quilt before taking it to the machine for free motion quilting. 

First day of machine quilting. Two full days, total.

This handsome piece of Jo Morton fabric was perfect for the quilt backing and binding. One layer of wool batting was enough to create a sculptural quality on the back.

Dark Night is suspended over my Nest in the cozy Deephaven Library, 2018.

Artists are often asked, "How do you know when a piece is finished?" For me, there simply comes a moment when I notice a silence in me, a stillness that says, "No more is needed. I've said all I need to say."  

As always, please share your questions and comments below or by email: tierneybarden@gmail.com. I'm grateful, and I read them all. You can also follow my natural dye works and daily life on Instagram @tierneybarden.

Gallery Talk: New York Beauty

Welcome to the second installment of posts that look deeper into the making of my art quilts recently shown at Squam Art Workshops. 

This quilt is titled New York Beauty and is a dynamic example of what can happen when curiosity and spontaneity collide. For the complete view of "My Enchanted Wonderland" installation, please click here.

Title: New York Beauty, 34" x 32.5"

Materials: Batiks and quilting cottons; wool and poly blend batting

Techniques: Hand and machine piecing, needle-turn applique, ink-jet printing, machine quilting

Date: February-April 2018

All our love, Grandma and Parpar

One wintry afternoon, diligently stitching along on some of the other quilts in this collection, I went into the studio in search of something and found myself rifling through a drawer only to come across a stack of envelopes with my grandfather's hand writing. Perhaps I should have left those letters for another day and gotten back to my stitching, but instead I chose to stand in silence and open each envelope, unfold each letter and read all of my grandfather's words. The memories! My heart was both happy and aching at the same time. Missing them all. The bottom of every letter was signed, "All our love, Grandma and Parpar". I knew then and there that a quilt had to be made to celebrate these letters.

I do a lot of looking at antique quilts and the ones that always hold my attention are wonky with a clear presence of the human hand. 

Early stages of building NYB, nestled in the Nest. 

New York Beauty (NYB) is a classic quilt block that dates back to the early 1900's, and was a way of using up very small fabric scraps that would otherwise be considered unusable. Because of its construction, the block earned quilters ample bragging rights. When I began quilting, I remember seeing NYB quilts and thinking, "If I could make that some day...." In February, I sat down and taught myself how this block works. All of the triangles in my quilt are hand pieced, and thanks to my friend Marion's guidance, I was able to advance from straight rows to curves. Steadily stitching peaches and pinks to lovely grays and deep blues became a soothing way to sail through several days of winter in upstate NY. At this same time, I was looking at an older drawing I had made of a plant out in the yard. Its spiky nature seemed to mimic the traditional NYB block, so I used it for the needle turn applique design in the center panel. I may never learn the plant's name, but we've both been growing alongside each other in our natural habitat. 

Like so many of us, much of the joy I experience with each art quilt is selecting fabrics and colors. Quite often, the core palette presents itself to me, I see it in my mind's eye, and then my job is to make sure all of the supporting players do exactly that. If I had to choose, I'd say that's my favorite way to build a quilt because I can get to the rest of the process much sooner than if I'm deciding on the entire palette (so many choices!). I often marvel at other quilters' color choices, and I know I'm not alone with my affinity for antique quilt palettes! For me, the study of color is a lifelong pursuit, and this I truly believe: color is a language unique to each of us and spoken by all of us.

Leave me your questions and comments. I'm grateful, and I read them all. You can also find me on Instagram @tierneybarden and email: tierneybarden@gmail.com. If you haven't seen my Pinterest boards, there's bound to be something there that will suck a few hours out of your day.... :)

Enchanted Squam. A Fairytale In the Woods.

Welcome to "My Enchanted Wonderland", an installation of art quilts that I had the honor of sharing this past week at Squam Art Workshops in NH.

Housed in the Deephaven Library at Rockywold-Deephaven Camps, an inherent coziness and intimacy infused the space surrounding my Nest and art quilts. As soon as the quilts were hung, I stood back with my amazing helper Terri Dautcher (@tldautcher) and we took it all in. It was the first time I saw my work all together and, as Terri can attest, I got a little choked up. I've spent the past eight months creating this installation, with most of it being made within the last six months. As a quilter, this has been a physically intense period of time, completely self-induced, with every art quilt featuring hand applique, and some also incorporating hand piecing or hand quilting. As a story teller, the intensity only continued to build because each story is so personal, and at the same time, universal. It's a lot to carry, which I see as a privilege because they are our stories. Sharing this little world of stitched stories with 200 like-minded people, nestled in the woods along the edge of Squam Lake, was truly a gift, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. 

The view to the left of my Nest (the bed, the sacred space that fosters stitched stories.)

The view to the right of my Nest.

This installation was companion to the workshop I taught for two days, also titled Enchanted Wonderland. 28 incredibly gifted, generous, kind women gathered around work tables and cut what I'm calling botanical paper cuts, and then translated their favorite piece in fabric. (The blue and white pillow below is one I made as a class sample.) Some students even took their fabric pieces to the next level by adding hand or machine stitching outside of class. To be surrounded by people so open to adventure, and to see their eyes light up with excitement about what they've just created - well, it's my favorite part about teaching. I believe this workshop is worth offering to a wider audience, so stay tuned for a workshop update. You can see a group shot of each class holding some of their work on my instagram feed, @tierneybarden.

Close-up of the heart of my Nest. The pink and black Antique Stars is in the process of being hand pieced and will be hand quilted, some day.

Back to the installation, over the next few weeks I'm going to share each quilt right here, one at a time, as a way to talk more in-depth about my design process, how I choose quilting techniques in relation to the story being told and other topics. Send me your questions here in the comments, by email, or DM @tierneybarden on Instagram and I'll do my best to answer in the upcoming posts. That would be fun!

On my Nest is a Welsh-inspired quilt top that I made entirely with my naturally dyed organic sateens, and will be hand quilting this summer. There's also a small black and white paper cut featuring a mouse friend (background) that has then been hand appliqued also in black and white (foreground). More on this and other little pieces coming soon, too.

While at Squam, I was frequently asked what's in store for the quilts. I'd like them to travel to other unique, intimate spaces, and to share these stories with more people. I see the installation changing to fit the space, a welcome challenge. I'm open to location suggestions, and you can email me here.

Paper cuts used in Dark Night, 2018.

To every person at Squam Art Workshops who experienced the show and shared their thoughts and questions with me, thank you! For every person who held their experience more privately, thank you! To Elizabeth Duvivier (@elizabethduvivier) who flung the door wide open to such an incredible journey, thank you! To Meg Fussell (@squamlove), thank you for keeping Squam Love alive!  

For a generous dose of magical, woodsy, love-filled Squam Art Workshops eye-candy:

#squamlove  #squamlove2018  #squamwardbound and follow @squamlove to be the first to know about future Squam workshop offerings, have an inside look at all things Squam, and more! 

Printing on Fabric, an Easy Tutorial

Meaningful stitches...

This post finds me deeply, happily immersed in very personal, very storybook-like stitching for a new art quilt; however, earlier this week, I posted this photo on Instagram and it received lovely feedback (thank you all!), as well as a few requests to explain how I printed my grandparents' letters onto fabric. So, below is a quick tutorial for your creative pursuits! Enjoy, and please share how you decide to use this technique: #tierneybarden. We'd all love to see!

PRINTING ON FABRIC, A TUTORIAL

STEP 1: Cut an 8.5" x 11" piece of freezer paper and with a dry hot iron, press it well, shiny side down, to the back of a piece of fabric cut to the same size. 

STEP 2: Place your image that will be printed onto the fabric on your scanner bed and close the lid. Carefully load your fused fabric sheet* into your INK JET printer and print. (I've always read this technique only works with ink jet printers. I haven't tried it with other types.) *It's helpful to know which way to load your fabric sheet in order to print on the correct side.

This is how my fabric looked coming out of the printer.

STEP 3: To set the ink, press your newly printed fabric very well with a dry hot iron. Now, your fabric is ready for use by peeling off the freezer paper and proceeding as you would with any other fabrics in your stash! Have FUN with this technique, and please share what you make! #tierneybarden 

This delicious powerhouse seed mixture is now a staple at our house!

Seedy Nut Crumble

This smart, gluten-free snack (or topping) is so tasty and easy to whip up that you'll want to sprinkle it over salads, cottage cheese (above), applesauce, oatmeal, or eat straight out of the jar! I came across the recipe in Bon Apetite (Seedy Oat Crackers), and while the original calls for making crackers, I've found that treating it as a crumble is more my style, so that's how I'm writing the instructions:

Preheat oven to 375 F

Line a jelly roll pan with foil.

In a large bowl, combine 1 cup old-fashioned oats, 3/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds, 2/3 cup sunflower seeds, 3 Tbsp. chia seeds, 3 Tbsp poppy seeds and 1 tsp. kosher salt with 4 tsp. vegetable oil, 1 Tbsp. pure maple syrup, and 3/4 cup room-temp. water and mix well. Let sit and thicken for 10 minutes. Spread mixture evenly onto the prepared pan, pressing with your hands to an even layer about 1/4" thick. 

Bake for 15 minutes. Gently stir the mixture and bake for another 15-20 minutes, until light brown and smelling toasty. Let cool in pan, then transfer the mixture to a glass jar or other air tight container. 

* Feel free to substitute chopped nuts of your choosing; chopped sturdy herbs like rosemary or thyme; chopped dried fruits like raisins, apricots or cherries.