In Which I Remember I Have a Blog and Finish Some Quilted Pieces

I'm attempting to spend less time on the internets and more time stitching, at least 15 minutes a day (except Tuesdays when I have a printmaking class). I'm starting with some things that have been laying around unfinished, but I have a queue of new things as well.

First one is an interrobang, which I began in spring 2012 when I had a short fascination with obsolete typeset characters. It's comprised of two quilted layers--the background and the symbol are quilted and edged separately. They just had to be attached and beaded (the pins are not part of the quilt, it's too big to fit in my scanner so it's photographed on a wall).

The character was made using the technique of fusing tiny (less than 1") scraps, layering chiffon over them, and stitching the layers together to create a new fabric. I'm still looking for a snappy name for this technique so I can sell a book about it--but you can't copyright technique so please use it your own work and show me the results. :)

I also beaded this bit of bottle-cap shisha:

Mailed it to a dear friend last week. After 3.5 years here, I finally found a post office Friday before work. It wasn't open at 8 a.m. (who does business on a weekday during normal business hours, amirite?), but there was a self-serve kiosk, so in theory no problem...but the postage for the envelope was $0.98 and the minimum purchase was $1. I had a second envelope (an EBE going off to Minnesota), which would have made a total of $1.98, but the kiosk wouldn't let me weigh it for postage until the first envelope was paid for. I had to buy a 49¢ stamp that I did not want and have no need for to mail my envelope. Twice. Yay, government.

In other news, I'm thinking about my personal branding for future projects. "Still Life" is a great name for living alone in Indiana and working interminable overtime, but I'm starting to believe I won't be here forever (beer and cats? I'm keeping those!).