You could have heard a pin drop…that’s how this blog feels today! It’s been such a long while since I’ve posted and that’s really due to increased use of Instagram, life changes, and burn out. Welcome to any readers out there who are still checking in on blogs! Yay for you!!!

I decided to write a post today because I wanted to share a project I started last year and finally finished this year and I thought I’d share changes that I’ve made in my creative life.

Let’s start with the project! It’s not a secret that I love combining fabric collage and photography. It truly is the form of quilting that makes me feel alive with joyful, creative passion. Last summer I went to one of my favorite places with my daughters and new camera. Rockport, MA has special meaning to me as it’s a place where I have spent time with those who mean the world to me. It’s beautiful, serene, and never fails to impress artistically. I decided to start a series of art quilts created from those Rockport photos. I selected the first photo and got to work. Life and the business of owning a quilting business precluded me from finishing the piece last year. Jump forward to this past month and I decided to finish it…with a twist. After suffering some quilt burn out, I made the executive decision to finish the piece not by traditional free motion quilting or binding, but instead by sealing the quilt top over a canvas and pouring epoxy resin over the top to create to a flawless, shiny, glass-looking finish! It was terrifying and exhilarating all at once!! Can you tell I love it? I really do! Here are some of the photos of the process I used.

I started by outlining the major lines in the photo onto freezer paper using a lightbox.

I cut up the freezer paper into templates that I ironed onto the fabric that would be used to create the quilt. I fused the fabric pieces to a white piece of muslin.

I kept building the scene until it was complete then I added some shading and detail with watercolor pencils.

I attached fabric borders and then I used Mod Podge to seal the quilt top to a canvas.

After it dried for a day, I poured Art Resin over the whole piece. I was amazed at how much I loved it! I wasn’t sure it was going to turn out as I envisioned but it did and even better than what I had pictured. I had to grapple with thoughts that I was not in fact making a quilt, but more of a piece of art…and ultimately that was satisfying. I’ve made enough traditional art quilts to last a lifetime and this was super free-ing and fun!

I’m ready to start the next piece in the Rockport series! I can’t wait to get started on it which is exactly the mood I need to feel rejuvenated in my craft.

Burn out is real. Even when you are doing something in which you are very passionate. I found that out this past spring and it forced me to re-evaluate my whole quilting business. I was working hard everyday teaching classes and long arming customer quilts while also tending to the needs of my family as well as planning a bridal shower and wedding for my daughter, and renovating the first floor of my home. All of those are tasks which I had been enjoying…up until I wasn’t. Enter overwhelm and burn out. Adding a second person to my team and renting commercial space would have been helpful, but at the end of the day the business doesn’t make enough money to do that successfully. In other words, there was no way to scale my business. Rather than go on with the business as it was which was draining me, I made the decision to retire it after 13 years. It felt totally bittersweet and also disappointing for my loyal customers, but I knew they would all understand completely and they were all so gracious and supportive. Quilt Cabana Patterns had a great run and it was a dream come true for me.

So now what…I am still working on a shower and a wedding! Lol, I’m also slowly finding my way back to quilting in the way of art quilts like the one I’ve just walked you through. I have kept my podcast hosting plan so I can return to that in a while and maybe with a different theme. I’m also writing which has been a passion of mine since I was in second grade. For now, I’m sitting quietly and waiting. I’m waiting to see what comes out of stillness. I’ll keep you posted. Thanks for reading! I’ve missed you.

Sandi