Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Wild Mustang - Part 9

I finally finished the quilting on the background portion of the Wild Mustang quilt.  Yes it has taken some time for a wall hanging but then it took some time to finally make a decision as to what I was going to quilt in this area.  Initially I was planning on an all over pattern but as I was testing out various options on paper I started to think that they were all going to be too busy for what I was envisioning for this wall hanging and would likely compete with the main focus the horse.

So I left it for a few days when my friend and quilt buddy Sue from Long Island suggested why don't I just keep it simple and do stitch in the ditch.  Well that would be easy and it wouldn't complete with the horse so I started my stitch in the ditch work. While I was working on the quilt I realized that these fabrics really reminded me of Arizona, the desert and red rock country.


With that it came to me what I needed to quilt on the background.  In the top and bottom row of the background I did a desert scene with cacti and rock formations. If you click on the picture you will be able to see the details better.


Then scattered throughout the rest of the background I did an assortment of petroglyphs and native symbols such as the sun, bear, kokopelli, turtle, medicine man, pots, horse, thunderbird, feathers, etc.  Here are a few samples that I was able to photograph where the images came out.  I quilted these with a variegated thread called natural stone so it really does blend into the background fabric and doesn't complete with the horse.





So now I'm started to work on the border quilting which will be a series of horses heads with flowing manes going around the quilt.

The fall leaves are just starting to turn here and they are looking really beautiful.  This is a really beautiful time of year and this past week we have had amazing weather. I wish it  could stay like this for several more months.  Here is a picture of the trees from my balcony.

3 comments:

Needled Mom said...

We've been away on vacation and I was thrilled to see the mustang piece when I checked in today. It really looks gorgeous and I do love the quilting you have done. It is absolutely perfect with the piece!!!

Sand and Sunshine said...

Your quilting is more breathtaking every time I see it, truly amazing work. The details in your quilting add a depth to this quilt that makes it more than a simple wall hanging.

What a view you have, perhaps come winter time before the weather gets hateful we can see your snowy view too.

hetty said...

I love the quilting! It's perfect and adds so much to your piece. Beautiful view. Yes wasn't it a great Thanksgiving weekend? We actually sat outside until after dark. Sometimes we don't have such nice weather in August.