The May Island Batik Challenge is Quilt Modern Blog Hop. It’s a month for Island Batik Ambassadors to create a modern project with a new Winter 2020 fabric line. I’m delighted to have received the twenty fabrics included in the Poetic License line by Bella Nonna Quilt Designs. These fabrics will be in shops this month.

Island Batik along with their industry partners, Hobbs Batting, Schmetz Needles and Aurifil Thread provided the batik fabric, batting, sewing machine needles and thread used in this project for my role as an Island Batik Ambassador.

I’ve elected to use poetic license with this modern assignment by incorporating a wide range of both vintage and modern techniques. Look for the use of bold colors, improvisational quilting, interesting negative space while achieving lots of texture.

A. Non-woven Pattern Tracing Material loaded on Annabelle, my Handi Quilter Amara, topped with Hobbs Thermore Batting then flower vines quilted on with Aurifil Threads.

B. Traditional hand ruching stitched by hand.

C. Ruching materials prepared with Clover Bias Tape Tools.

D. Auditioning flowers on the background fabric.

E. One completed layered flower using three Poetic License fabrics and both machine and hand stitching.

Several of the fabrics in this Poetic License collection had natural elements in the design. There were two leaf and three butterfly/dragon fly variations. A. Some of each form was quilted with outline quilting then with additional quilting to define shape and add texture. B & C. Both leaves and butterfly/dragonfly were fussy cut. D. These will be used later after final quilting as shown here.

“You purchased the entire yard, so use every tiny fiber.” is one of my favorite sayings. A. This flower has a center using 1/16 to 1/8 inch strips of Island Batiks. I’m cutting from yardage but this works well with tiny scraps too. They are then wrapped around the Flower Template (available in my Etsy Shop). B. & C. With lots of layers completed, the center is stitched to secure all the fibers. D. After a quick snip with scissors, it’s ready to be stitched to the pedals. A second smaller flower template and gold cording were used to highlight the center.

Textures and colors continue to add interest to this art quilt with a variety of techniques and fibers. A. Clover Yo-Yo Makers in two sizes are created with the blues from Poetic License Island Batik by Bella Nonna Quilt Designs. They were topped with a tiny bead. B. More teeny tiny fabric strips were coupled with novelty threads and the flower templates from the above post. C. Layering of A & B creates additional flowers. D. Fabric is ruched to create a bottom flower layer before being topped with another flower template piece.

Really, there must be a flower like this somewhere! I might be really pushing artistic interpretation here. A. The couching foot is attached to Annabelle, my Handi Quilter Amara, to use with torn strips of batik. B. An oval of couched strips are stitched on a background that will partially show through when completed. C. Oval is cut out of background fabric while I consider adding beads to the center.

It’s time to start assembling some parts! A. Variety of flowers are auditioning on light batik background. B. Paper vase becomes a placeholder as decisions about vase size and shape are made. C. Paper pattern is placed on the right side of fabric then pounced with chalk to mark. D. MistyFuse© is bonded to edges of the wrong side of vase fabric before quilting. E. Fabric auditioned for the table to add a bit more depth to the background.

Time to quilt the negative space in the background. A. Aurifil thread is auditioned. B. Soft yellow thread selected. C. I selected Handi Quilter Designs/Continuous Line, Vines & Leaves to use with Pro-Stitcher for background quilting. D Hobbs Heirloom Natural Cotton Batting with Scrim shows off quilting design perfectly. D. Auditioning placement of vase, flowers, leaves, vines and butterfly/dragonflies on the quilted background.

With all the design and construction decisions made throughout the construction of this modern art quilt, selecting the binding might have been the hardest. The final decision was the one that included the most colors. Stitching was completed with Auriful Thread and Schmetz Needles. This wall quilt is ready for hanging with an attached sleeve and finished at 35 by 48 inches.

Hats off to Island Batik for the generous supply of fabrics supplied for the ambassador monthly challenges along with professional yet warm support. Thank you as well to their industry partners.

Published by Sally Manke, Fiber Artist

Sally Manke's mission is to delight others with textile art that exemplifies her passion for joyful, creative expression through color and texture. She is a speaker, teacher, pattern designer, Island Batik Ambassador, and fiber artist. Contact her to book a workshop or trunk show here.

Island Batik Blog Hop Giveaways

Every Friday Island Batik will be posting round-ups of the projects featured during that week and give away bundles of the new Island Batik collections, highlighted during the hop. Be sure to visit all the Ambassadors’ blogs to discover their inspiring creations, read the stories behind each project and participate in their bonus giveaways! Here’s the link to the ISLAND BATIK BLOG to enter.

The fabrics, featured in this Blog Hop, are from the stunning Winter 2020 Collections, that will start appearing in your favorite fabric stores in May! To find your local Island Batik shop, visit the Store Locator on our website, plug in your zip code, and your local shop will appear on the map! Super easy and helpful!

Check the Island Batik Blog regularly so you do not miss a thing! The full list of Ambassadors’ names and their postdates are as follows:

May 3: