This quilt was a result of a challenge from my Fiber Dimensions Art Group. It had to be 16″ x 40″ and the theme was “A is for…” so after much puzzling, pondering and perusing the dictionary, I choose Arachnid.
I had a general idea of how I wanted this quilt to be. The spider web is shadow trapunto, white felt covered with a white batiste and a camouflage print tulle. I kid you not – camouflage! Found it in the bridal section at JoAnn’s – there’s something for everyone there.
But the event that clenched the design was when I walked into a bead shop. Not just any bead shop but one that specializes in paper beads and the tools to make them – Paper Bead Girl in Havre de Grace, Maryland. She had the perfect beads there for spider legs!
These spidey legs are sooo cooool! They are even 3-dimensional – copper wire is threaded through them to help them keep their shape! Now the spider itself was pretty labor intensive – used up a whole canister of #8 black hexi beads – there are 4 left not counting what I keep finding on the floor.
Then there is the border – a strand of light green seed beads goes all the way around the quilt and a fringe of glass leaves (also from the Paper Bead Girl) finishes off the bottom.
Needless to say, I spent lots of hours sitting on the couch watching Netflix movies and beading and beading and beading some more. Next beading marathon, though, I will try to avoid tear-jerker movies – very hard to stitch seed beads on through tears!