Indigo Moon
Susan Emory
Moseley, Virginia, USA
Artist Statement
I am an artist and a quilter, but not necessarily an “art quilter.” Though this project was outside my box, I embraced this challenge as the next step in my quilting journey. I knew from the moment I received the “Indigo Moon” category that I would create a very large moon in a dark blue sky. I had in mind the moon that makes you pull the car over and stare in wonder while driving at night.
I thought about this project a lot and finally I pulled all of the blue batiks from my stash and the striped batik was a natural choice as the water for my moon to rise above. After piecing the background with free form curves, I made the shape of the moon by creating a halo with bleach and paint (yes, it was scary!). To give the image some depth, I added a few rocks in the water and embellished them with ruched ribbon. After quilting the piece, I added hot-fix crystal stars.
Being new to this medium, I wasn’t sure when to call it “done”. I walked away and came back the next day to add some more crystals. I hung the quilt on my design wall, stepped back and knew THIS was the moon that would make me pull over and stare. I’m proud of my journey and that I persevered, even when inspiration stalled.
Please stop, look to the sky and wonder at our beautiful moon – it is worth it!
Techniques
Free form piecing, bleaching, painting, machine quilting, Angelina fibers, hot fix crystals.
Materials
Cotton fabric, silk ribbon, Angelina fibers, hot fix crystals.