A Path to Creative Results….Organic Appliqué
Posted by Kathy Doughty on Jun 2nd 2023
I have been a patchwork quilt shop owner for 20 years.Since opening the doors in 2003 it has been my obsession to keep on top of the next best fashion in fabrics, what new tools are making the process easier and how to inspire quilters to be as obsessed as I am! Enter Wash Away Appliqué Paper! This product changed my quilting path drastically, so much so I wrote a book about it called Organic Appliqué. While experimenting with the product I realized that I could prepare my appliqué by tracing a pattern, drawing my own or even printing out a design from the computer. That was the beginning but where are we now?
Making quilts and working with textiles is in our DNA. If I only had a dime for every time someone told me, “I just love fabric!” Making quilts or other textile products is a way for us to express our individuality while making a useful or simply decorative object. The shapes and colors we choose say something about us and the environment in which we live. For some, making choices is a difficult process but it can be easy when there are few simple guidelines to follow. Understanding how to create lines in our quilts by contrasting or blending is the basis of success.
We can be drawn to quilts either by the color used or by the structure. Either way taking control of the creative process is an exciting path. Over the years I practiced appliqué exploring other designer’s patterns. I loved how I could change the look of a quilt simply by adjusting the color palette. Once I learned to think organically in the process and to be guided by what is happening before my eyes I was able to take control of my creativity. I fell in love with the idea that quilts are but structures for us to find places to add shapes for decoration. Medallions, blocks, borders and sashing became the canvas for personalizing my projects.
It is one of the joys of my life to be able to share the language that I have developed over the years with people in my classes and workshops. Years and years of working objectively with customers in my shop has taught me to be objective and clear about what I see. More importantly it helped me to learn to explain how to see. I didn’t get here alone but rather have been guided here by the masters of technique and color/pattern that I have encountered along the way. From Kaffe Fassett to Gwen Marston…I have studied them all! In the end it is about the fact that all intentions are welcome in the creative process. It is easy to be intimidated or even fearful when making decisions but if we have a plan for understanding how fabric will perform in combination with other fabrics we can approach the choices clearly.
Organic Appliqué has grown into a concept for making quilts. The techniques that I use are simple to master. Once we are in control of the how we can move into the why…to hear our imagination talking to us about what to do next! I have been teaching Organic Appliqué workshops for years now and it is always the same. We start with a bit of confusion, desire and anticipation but soon the room buzzes with happy chatter as each participant realizes that it is possible to do appliqué and even more importantly, to love it!
Join me for one of my classes to explore how you too can take control of creativity! I’ll be teaching this September 17-24 for Madeline Island School of the Arts (MISA) but have more workshops planned for 2024!
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Kathy Doughty is a self-taught quilter, author, fabric designer and obsessive quilter. Since 2003, Kathy has been the owner of Material Obsession, a patchwork shop in Sydney, Australia that is known for innovation in contemporary fabrics and designs.
https://www.materialobsession.com.au/
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