Murder in the Garden - part 1

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 Over the past year and a half, I learned to carve on MDF wood (medium density fiberboard). It was incredibly satisfying. I carved three 18" hexagons and then printed them on hand dyed fabric. I printed them as a whole cloth piece as well as on individual pieces of cloth. Once they were printed I decided to piece them together in to a large art quilt. It's 46" x 84". I sandwiched the printed pieces with a flannel batting, and a hand dyed cotton fabric backing, and then proceeded to hand quilt with perle cotton thread. I had the piece professional photographed and then entered it in Quilt National 2025. It was one of 600 and something entries and sadly, it did not get in. I'm hoping to find another show to enter it in so it can be shown. In the meantime, let me blog about how I made it.

Everything starts with an idea, and a drawing. Why a hexagon? Because that was the shape my friend Stefanie at Saltgrass Printmakers had cut for a community print project. 

Influenced by mandalas much???



This was my first attempt at carving in MDF. 
MDF is wonderful to carve because you don't have to worry about grain lines.


However I do have a tendency of gripping my lino cutter a little too tight.


Once carved I sealed the wood with polycrylic. (left hand side photo)

   
And in my usual obsessive style, I can't make just one.



Next post: printing!

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