Hello Dolly!

I haven't done this in a while...

I am off to Vancouver in a few weeks to show a wonderful group of patch-workers how to improvise a row of dolls. In my mind, I  have separated my piecing techniques into three categories: drawing, building and carving. When I "draw" in piecing, I use many strips of varying versions of a similar colour to fill in an area. It is similar to using a pencil on paper to make marks. At least it is to me! The border of this red log cabin quilt felt like drawing to me, (click on the photo to make it bigger) I felt as though I were sketching in the colour, filling it in with strokes form my red pencils. And even though the blocks are "built" from strips, or logs of fabric, because the reds are different stripes, I see them as sketched or drawn portions too.
Building, as I have eluded to, is where I use strips, or chunks, or logs of colours to create shapes by building them up together, and carving is where I take a bigger chunk of fabric (colour) and chop some of it off the make the shape I'm looking for. The dollies are made of building and carving. One makes building materials of fabric to delineate the figure's legs and arms, and carves a dress out of another piece of fabric. Create a head with a hat on it, stick 'em all together and there you have it. Its fun to make ridiculous coloured outfits and use prints that are far too gaudy for clothing to dress them in.

Above is a picture of the first row of dolls I ever did - they were simple and very fun and ended up in a quilt made by the people I worked with at the fabric store. Each of us did a row, then put it together and auctioned it as a fundraiser.

And over here is a detail of a couple of peeps in another quilt I did. I like it when their hands are joined.