inspiration on a beach walk...

on saturday A and i went for a walk at point holmes. A was hunting for driftwood (he has big furniture plans) and i am always happy to mosey along the shore, beachcombing, exploring, absorbing everything around us. we were greeted as soon as we got out of the car by the enthusiastic barks of sea lions just off shore. the herring are running right now, and the seals and sea lions were driving the fish in to the shore for a feast. feasting too were the gulls, swarms of them eagerly snatching up the fish and roe that washed onto the beach. above us, quite a few eagles were surveying the scene, floating easily on thermal currents high in the air.

there was a slight haze overhead, and the wind was light, leaving the world around us in soft shades of blue and grey. i've been thinking about trying my hand at building a landscape quilt for some time now, inspired by the ones my mother has created over the years. recently i've also been inspired by the use of recycled materials and hand stitching, creating organic pieces that stray from the perfect cotton quilts in modern fabrics that populate my flickr faves (don't get me wrong, i still love those quilts too!).

so the beach got me thinking, and a few pieces of debris gathered in my big straw basket at the beach - two small dried crabs in near perfect form, a few feathers, a small piece of driftwood or two - got me started once i got home.



i cut a rectangle from a piece of grey quilting cotton, and began to add layers of denim from old pairs of jeans (lovely the many shades of blue you get), scraps from an old blue bedsheet, and strips of silk and linen. the dimension and texture from the different fabrics is pleasing so far. some of the fabric is new, admittedly, but all of it was already sitting in my stash, leftovers from other projects. and i'm liking where it is going. once i have the basic scene, i'm hoping to add layers on top with additional machine and hand stitching, incorporating yarn for more texture and possibly adding on my little beach finds to really give it life.

stay tuned...