Technique of the Week #1 - "Soft Circuitry"

Project hours: about 7
2 hours design + research
5 hours execution


I got a fabric circuitry kit for Christmas, and I had been dying to try some of the things from Craft/Make magazine about fashion technology. I thought this could be adapted to a quilt, and I was pretty ecstatic with the results.

First off, this is an interpretation of a taningia danae squid.  I say "interpretation" because not only is it a cartoon version, but the tentacles that exhibit the bioluminescence are exaggeratedly long.  Oh well!  I was researching cephalopods for my themes and came across bioluminescence and thought this was a great connection for my LED circuit project!

Here is a photo of the back of the quilt so you can see my "circuitry".  Basically, I took 2 blue LEDs and connected the positives to the back side of my coin cell battery holder, and the negatives to the front. The battery does have to be inserted correctly.  The "holder" is just a folded over piece of cloth, sewn to the back after I connected the conductive threads to the right poles.  It's nice and tight, and the battery has a good connection inside.  This holder has a benefit of being flat against a wall if I were to hang the quilt. 

A great start to my goal for a "technique a week"! I plan to provide the hours each one takes me to execute so you get a good idea of how intricate some of the methods are.

Weekly Quilts in 2010

I will be doing weekly quilts in 2010, however, I have opted to do something a bit different (again) this year.

The last two years took themes and expanded them out over the 4 weeks of a month (sometimes 5). This worked great in some instances, and less so in others.  The hard part was the travelling for work.  It was hard to take some of these themes "mobile". Sometimes the themes left me uninspired after I got the original idea out of my head.  Some would have worked better as a larger piece, so I left detail out that I would have preferred to have tried.


One of the things I liked about the first year of weeklies is that they were often technique based. The whole reason I did some of those pieces was to work with a new material or try a technique out.  So I have decided to go back that way, and use the weekly pieces as an educational exercise.  


I have two other concepts I'd like to incorporate somehow this year, either in monthly works or something to that effect.  First, like 2008 was the "Year of the Pomegranate", 2010 is the year of the "cephalopod".  I am not joking that I have seen squid and octopuses EVERYWHERE.  They are a dominant theme lately, and I think it's kinda cool.  So that's one concept.  

The second is that I am voracious researcher.  I love to learn something new, and the things I learn are so very eclectic that there has to be some theme that can be taken away from the learning.  

So, expect to see works in new techniques, often with themes based on something new I have learned recently or cephalopods.. ha ha!  Happy 2010!

Starting off with something new in 2010

One of my goals for 2010 is to blog more often.  I wasn't very good at this in '09 and I can be better in '10.  

To that end, and to try my hand at something art-y, I decided to try a little cartoon.  

I warn you, I CANNOT draw.  Really, I have no perception of depth or balance in this arena.  So these aren't going to be the best, but I can try.  I do work in the comic industry and have spent 2/3 of my adult life reading them, so I should be able to get some strips going.  I can do cutesy little faces and blobs, but real items and backgrounds are NOT my thing. 

My plan is to do one a week.  We will see how this goes!  

One of my next posts will be about my weekly quilt series in 2010.  I hope you'll stay tuned for my adventures.

Have a Great Holiday!

If the world were flat, I would have sailed off the edge of it.  I'm getting my mojo back, and have made my list of goals for 2010, and am raring to go.

I hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday and I will be back shortly with some fabulous things for 2010!  

Sewing and Quilt Expo

Went this weekend to the Sewing & Quilt Expo in Shaumburg, IL, and was easily separated from my money at the show...  I had a good time with my quilt friends Steff and Catherine.In this picture you can see my take from the show.  Some of the things i was happy to find here, like the discharge paste, the ruffling foot, and the "magic fabric" that texturizes.  It's that kind of weird stuff that I look for at a show like this; stuff you can't get in the average quilt shop.  I also was taken in by a booth with some antique textiles, and got the lace and beaded motif in the lower left. It was a fun trip!


Not much quilty has gone on lately as I have been cleaning my sewing studio and getting ready for the next project.  I have a design, it's been blown up to the size I need, and now I just need to work on it. Some long weekends are in order to really get it done.