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Tuesday, March 31, 2015

In The Garden - Monique Kleinhans




Living in the northern part of Montana it takes a while for my garden to get into full color each spring...but when it does, it simply bursts with so much vibrant beauty that I wander around a giggle (when I'm not scowling at weeds).   My garden challenge piece is meant to capture that feeling of being surrounded by color and feeling the wind in my hair as I watch the birds and bugs fly from flower to flower.

For this piece I painted my background fabric and used a stencil to sun dye the shapes of flowers.  I added some thread work to emphasize a few of the flowers as well as number of crystals for some added bling.  The butterflies were made from a black and white fabric that I painted and then quilted with heat mold-able batting.  After heating and shaping each butterfly I then stitched them down onto the quilt. 

I had a blast with this challenge and I can't wait for my garden to wake up this year.
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16 comments:

  1. UnknownMarch 31, 2015 at 7:41 PM

    Beautiful piece Monique, it must be lovely in your garden with so much colour. Love your 3D butterfly and sun dying.

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  2. Marty MasonApril 1, 2015 at 12:47 AM

    A simply stunning work of art. I just want to spread my hand and allow your butterflies to land there. Love your garden colors.

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  3. SueApril 1, 2015 at 11:50 AM

    I love the vibrant colours that you have used for both the background and butterflies.

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  4. Christine LeeApril 1, 2015 at 4:19 PM

    Absolutely beautiful, I love those colours.

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  5. JayeApril 2, 2015 at 9:37 AM

    This is just eye candy! Love the butterflies! Now, tell me about this sun dyeing...was that done after you painted the background? How long does it take?

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  6. RobbieApril 2, 2015 at 11:48 AM

    Just a beautiful piece...colors are so vibrant!!! BEAUTIFUL!

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  7. Monique KleinhansApril 3, 2015 at 3:16 PM

    Jay, I used soft body acrylic paint that is light reactive (uses sunlight to become more vibrant). After laying down a base color (or colors..in this case), I then put my stencil over the top of the wet paint and let it dry in the sun. The areas where the sun can not hit directly become faint and the rest grows more vibrant. It is a ton of fun to do and even a project that small kids can enjoy!

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  8. RobynApril 3, 2015 at 10:35 PM

    You sure achieved a vibrant beauty. Would love to see your garden if it looks like that.

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  9. Monique KleinhansApril 4, 2015 at 12:31 PM

    It is ever stops snowing I'll I try to get a picture of the flowers when they bloom! lol

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  10. Fleur MaddernApril 6, 2015 at 10:42 AM

    Gorgeous colours! I like everything about this piece. Interesting to see another way to create 3D butterflies. I see what you mean Monique about my "Flights of Fantasy' butterflies being very much like your "In the Garden" butterflies or is that the other way around?

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    Replies
    1. Monique KleinhansApril 7, 2015 at 12:18 PM

      I'm glad you like it! When I saw your Flights of Fantasy piece I was already half way into my Garden piece so I figured I'd keep going :)

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  11. Lizz PloppertApril 7, 2015 at 1:43 AM

    This is awesome! The colors work great! I sun dye fabric, too, so I really like the background of the piece. But those butterflies are something else! Cool!

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  12. Shruti DandekarApril 8, 2015 at 12:07 PM

    I love the coluors in your quilt! Its so 'alive'!!! The technique you used is also interesting! The butterflies are almost 'real'. I had a tough time convincing my 8 YO son that they are not real. He loves to see all our quilts with me!

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    Replies
    1. Monique KleinhansApril 8, 2015 at 11:21 PM

      I love that you look through the quilts with your son Shruti! <3

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  13. Neroli HendersonApril 12, 2015 at 10:14 AM

    Love this quilt Monique, the butterflies and colours really pop!!

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