Friday, January 21, 2011

Ferris Wheel Quilt . . . Squeal!

I've said before how I live in the sticks.  I do. I really do.  But the weirdest thing. 

On my street, on someones private property, is a Ferris wheel.  Just sitting there. 

I pass it each and every time I leave my house.  And I look at it each of those times.  And always end up wondering why it's there and creating little scenes in my head of it spinning round and round and balloons and cotton candy and tents and flags and . . .  you get the idea.

Well, Round 9 of the Old Red Barn Co. Quilt Along over on Flickr is the ticker tape quilt made famous by Amanda Jean of Crazy Mom QuiltsDee had been planning on teaching us how to make a ticker tape quilt for several months now and for all this time an idea of a Ferris wheel ticker tape quilt has been percolating in my brain.



Squeal!!



I used free motion quilting to attach each fabric scrap.




And  even used quilting to make the wheel and spokes of the Ferris wheel itself.



The black spokes aren't so pretty on the back side of the quilt but I can live with that since this is more of a wall hanging type quilt than a lay-on-the-couch-and-try-to-snuggle-under-it kind of quilt.  So, no one will see the back anyway.



Ah.  I love it when something in my mind turns out just as I'd imagined it in fabric.

-dana

95 comments:

Rene' said...

Squeal is right!!! Love love love this!!! So totally cool!

Salem Stitcher said...

That is the coolest thing ever!

jabeybaby said...

This is awesome!

April (Polkadot Sparrow) said...

What a work of art! This is so beautiful and whimsical.

And isn't part of the fun of living in the sticks is seeing strange things like a ferris wheel in someone's yard and thinking, "just another day in my neighborhood"? :)

Elaine said...

Absolutely amazing - this is sooo awesome!

Amy said...

OMG! This is awesomeness personified...that doesn't really make sense, but you get my drift. right? love love love times a million!! You are so creative!!!

stacke1 said...

WOW!! This is incredible!!! I love it.

Katie B said...

I love this! Incredible!!!

suzi said...

oh my...that might be the neatest thing i've ever seen! i love it...and i think that "squeal" might be an understatement!! your work is amazing and truly inspiring!

karen @ badlandsquilts said...

Super cute!

Emily said...

Yep, awesome!!

Terriaw said...

This is so darn adorable! I love it! I love the colors and the whimsy quilting and the little castle houses, well, I love everything about it. I bet you will smile everytime you walk past it hanging on the wall!

Jacque. said...

oh, that is darn cute!

Jodi Nelson said...

Fantabulous! This is just awesome! Love the fabrics and colors and everything.

Kimberly said...

fan.
stinkin'.
tastic.

but you already knew that.

{Leila}Where the Orchids Grow said...

sigh, this is just soooo pretty!!

momawake said...

That is fantastic! I love it!

Stephanie said...

It is absolutely amazing! I love love love it!!!!

Anonymous said...

This came out so great! I love the whole thing, but I especially love the house with the stripe-y roof and the castle peeps fabric.

Mom IsAmagpie said...

That is the most fabulous thing I've seen in a while. I don't know why but it reminds me of the old Beatles Cartoon. My dad collected all things Beatles and when I was little I loved watching those on VHS such awesome colors and fun drawings.
I can see this as a background in it.

Mary on Lake Pulaski said...

What a happy, beautiful quilt Dana!! I love everything about it!

Amy said...

Dana! This is the freakin cutest thing! I absolutely adore it!
Great job!

Needled Mom said...

I LOVE it!!!!! That is so cute.

Cheryl Arkison said...

That is so much fun!

Anonymous said...

oh wow....this is one of my favorite things I've seen...ever! I love country fairs, so it's even cooler to me.

beth said...

wonderful!

Unknown said...

Simply stunning!!!!! (jaw dropped to the floor)

AnnieO said...

I totally love this! Fantastic that your brain, fingers, fabric and thread all worked together to make this happy Ferris Wheel. Excellent!

Jen said...

DANA!! This is awesome! So creative, so beautiful, so unique, so....perfect!

Carla said...

Very clever and creative.....fabulous dahhhling!!

Tina Craig said...

Love it! I love the perspective created by the trees in front.

Kim said...

Nice Dana....has a Peter Max kind of flow.......so everything is raw edge?
Did you prepare a quilt sandwich and just sew everything on top?
It is a delightful little quilt....your own little county fair everyday......smell the cotton candy being made? mmmmmmmm

Happy sewing

grendelskin said...

Wowee wow WOW! You've bowled me over, this is fantabulous Dana!

Megan said...

Oh WOW!!! I love it! This is beautiful - a work of art. Very, very happy art!

Elissa said...

um. i'm almost speechless i love that so much.

MAGIC, D, MAGIC.

**nicke... said...

i have no words! stunning!

Amy said...

Squeal indeed!!!!!

Christine M. said...

Absolutely Beautiful. I love it.

Anonymous said...

It's so creative. I love how you turned something that you saw everyday into a quilt. I think it's really cute and love the colors. Makes me want a bag of cotton candy!

Gail:)

Phyllis said...

This is just the cutest thing ever. Love it! You are so creative.

Shannon said...

Fantastic!!! It is so darn cute. I think it is time for me to do more ticker tape type quilties. Thank you for the inspiration!

Amanda said...

Very cool!

dolores said...

Heheheh...and I'm honored to say I saw it first!;)
Yep dear kiddo....this is the bomb!! And a big old freaking congrats on the Sewing Summit gig too!!
xoxo

~Michelle~ said...

Oh-Em-Gee! this is amazing! :)

Trudi said...

Sqeeeeeaaal! Love, love, love it!

kirsten said...

I'm squealing.

:)

Bec Clarke said...

Oh I love it so much, once again I am so inspired by your quilts. I can't wait to get into my scraps and try something with those techniques.

Loafer Mountain Primitives said...

Wow, That's really neat!
What a great imagination..
I'll take two tickets, Please.
Tisha

WendyLou said...

Wow! WoW!! WOW!!! Love the ferris wheel peeking out from behind the trees. Sooo fun :)

J said...

So wonderful!

Audrie said...

Love love love this!!! I live in the sticks too and there's this house down the street that's a castle. Complete with moat and bridge and everything. I want to live there please.

sarah, rsm said...

that is sooooooo cool!!

Lara said...

Coolest quilt ever. Enough said.

Dianne said...

Love the quilt!!! And I'd say if there's a real ferris wheel in your neighborhood, there is a STORY there...

Janelle said...

OMG Dana~ this quilt is stunning! I love, LOve, LOVE it. Great job. You are so talented.

~Caroline~ said...

Oh I love love love it!!!!

laura capello said...

this SO AWESOME, it make me kinda hate you a little.

[not really]

[okay, maybe a tiny bit]

Nicole said...

Your quilt is absolutely magical!

Catherine said...

This is such a fun little quilt. Great when an idea in your head comes to life so beautifully! What's the pretty backing fabric??

mean sarah jean said...

what a fun quilt idea. i love how it turned out.

Ginger said...

I LOVE this quilt!!! It is so cute, I love everything about it!

Dandelion Quilts said...

Very cool!

Unknown said...

SO adorable! I love the scene, and your fabric choices! Bravo :)

Mama Said Sew said...

You have totally outdone yourself Dana. That is a GORGEOUS quilt!

Andrea said...

Dana, this has got to be one of the most stunningly beautiful quilts I've seen in a long time. It totally makes me smile.

eva said...

oh so very beautiful!!!

xo
eva

Corinnea said...

Genius. Pure genius and gorgeous too.

Pearl Maple said...

Oh gosh that is just gorgeous, what a fun theme for a colorful quilt

Heather said...

Love it!

Melissa said...

What a unique source of inspiration! This turned out just beautiful. It makes me smile.

Angi said...

AMAZING! Love your work!

Wendy said...

Love your little quilt! So fun!

Dena said...

Judging by the response I'd say some others thought this was fabulous too. Sewing summit gig? WHat she talking about willis?

Emily Cole said...

Wow, Dana! I love it too! So arty! Beautiful job! It reminds me a little of some quilts I recently saw by Ann Harwell at Artspace in Raleigh!

Cynthia said...

I love it! I have ideas but haven't had a chance to sit down and sketch. So fantastic!!

amy smart said...

This is purely delightful.

Meta said...

Lovely idea, lovely placement of the tents and greenery, lovely fabrics! Very inspirational!

brown robin said...

wonderful! love your creativity!

MomMom said...

That is AMAZING!!!! I love it when quilters are artists, you are an artist quilter, no doubt. Stunning, really!

Liv said...

This is so amazing...well done!

beki said...

Love it!!

Anonymous said...

This is the coolest quilt I have ever seen! LOVE <3 the colors, LOVE the design and LOVE the theme!!! So coooolllll!!

Debbie

Jessica Christensen said...

Oh, good golly, but do I LOVE this. Castle Peeps is perfect in it.

An Art Nest said...

I'm a newbie as far as quilting...I don't think I ever realized this kind of creativity was 'allowed' - if that makes any sense. I'm captivated by this!

Heather said...

Absolutely striking! Gorgeous! Yum, Yum, Yum! Thank you for the inspiration. Wow

Anonymous said...

What a fun piece! Next time try using a bobbin thread that will blend with your backing.

Kristie said...

So. Very. Awesome. I will be following you now!

A ferris wheel just hanging out like that? I can see how that gets in your head.....

Austysmum said...

Stunning, fun and so very creative! Love it!

Sunshine said...

Oh Dana, that's one of the coolest quilts I've seen in blogland since I joined 2 years ago! Wonderful! I wish I was scrupulous enough to just copy this quilt, but this is definitely one of a kind! Well done :)

Ashley Ann said...

Holy smokes Dana!!!

That is glorious and beautiful and awesome and I love it. :D

Kelly O. said...

you're my hero :)
I love this
wish I could go to summit but I have a tag along right now until I'm done nursing :(
someday...

Silvia LGD (Little Green Doll) said...

Wow!!! It's great!! wonderful!! I love it!!! :)

Pat Sloan said...

there it is!! How fabulous!

Shannyn said...

Ya know what?? I think I've been in your neighbourhood on my travels. Because how many folks actually have a ferris wheel in their yard.....
And your quilt is beautiful,, really captures the spirit!

Carla said...

Just found your blog via Constantly Quilting. Love this ferris wheel quilt. Adorable.