Quilt Show in Melbourne

Hi Cheryl did you take any pics of the Japanese quilts? Or is that not allowed? I have never heard of a book about meshwork, but then I haven't really looked. What is the name of the book? There is an article in the Sept. issue of McCalls Quick Quilts called "Water Weaving" that sounds similar. I was thinking about trying it. It's different from traditional piecing, but it looks like fun.

Karen

Sounds wonderful, Cheryl! I'm always blown away by the Japanese quilts I see in magazines or at the Houston show -- they're amazing. :)

No photos in the Japanese exhibit. It was sponsored by Clover and I think all publishing rights are assigned.

Meshwork is woven strips of fabric. If you have seen a bias tape maker, picture strips made through one of those on the straight grain, and then woven. Three different coloured strips on three angles gives you a mini tumbling blocks pattern. If you use iron-on tape you just weave and iron to finish. It makes a very thick piece of work (4 to 6 thicknesses of fabric) that is great in small projects like bags and mats. Or as small blocks in a sampler quilt. Imagine a Tumbling Blocks sample with the pieces only 1/2".

This is what it looks like

Some of our European quilters may have seen this but I don't think it is well known in the States.

I don't get to many shows these days but this was worth it.

I saw an exhibition a few years ago that had a wall hanging of a waterfall by night. Some of the pieces were 1/2", and the quilting was in silver (real silver) thread. As you walked past you would swear the water was flowing as the light moved over the threads.

For me one of the most breathtaking in this exhibit was an applique done entirely on organza. Pieces were matched front and back and all the seams were finished so that when the piece was hung and you could not tell which was the front. There was another very dark quilt in browns and indigo, in an abstract pattern from log cabin blocks. But they were all unique in some way.

Exhausting, but I wouldn't have missed it!

Our own local quilts were also very impressive. Some of the applique was just breathtaking, and there were some truly masterful quilting pieces. There were not as many quilts as in past years, but the overall standard was as high or higher I think. Hats off to the Victorian Quilters Guild - they can hold their heads high among the best anywhere.

You can take photos in the Victorian Quilt show but only for personal use. But as the signs for "NO PHOTOS" were so prominent at the show entry I checked my camera with my bag before going in and being told that. I may send my digital camera down with a friend over the weekend.

there was an episode on Simply Quilts on weaving. dont recall the quilter or the episode #, sorry. i'd look it up for ya but my brain is out to lunch atm. sorry, jeanne

Yes you can usually pick the quilts made by Japanese quilters. A lot of it has to do with their use of colour, but there is more to it than just colour. If you look back over centuries their aesthetic appreciation (in literature, textiles, painting, sculpture, pottery, even architecture and landscaping) has often been for very elegant (often minimalist) expression, and this often shows in their quilts. At a base level, just consider the impact of their floral arrangements, many of which have only one perfect bloom.

If you can, check out what it takes to become a registered quilt teacher in Japan. Last time I looked it was virtually a ten year apprenticeship, with extremely high standards and exams, and requiring submission of original designs and work for judging. One small perfect work is more highly prized than many "good" pieces, and this has often been interpreted by Western culture as perfectionism. To some extent this is true, but there are possibly some more mundane reasons underlying this. If space and resources are limited you tend to aim for one perfect example.

A few modern anthropologists have theorized that this is part of the reason for Japanese tourists taking so many digital pictures when travelling. Few if any of the images will ever be printed, but they take no space. Possibly one image in a thousand will be selected, printed, and carefully and thoughtfully displayed in a modern home.

Others have concluded that the modern striving for perfection is a reaction to the post war industrialisation of Japan when so much was mass produced, often at the expense of quality. Or a (subconscious?) effort to remain different from the all-pervasive "Western cultrue" that seems to be enveloping the globe.

The impact of national cultures on designs is fascinating. Modern Japanese quilters also make the most amazing fluorescent coloured quilts with massive embellished 3D ornaments, although I think the underlying sense of style is still there. So where does the impulse to use such colours come from?

OMG - that all sounds so prosy LOL. That's what you get for reading anthropology!! I will go back to my stitching.

BTW - welcome to the fourth fur baby

Sounds like you had a great time Cheryl. I have instructions for a basket that sounds like mesh work that was published in Patchwork & Stitching (?) many years ago. Never thought of other uses for it.

Dee in Oz One day I will get there....

Cats wrote:

Oh Cheryl, that is so lovely. I really shouldn't let myself get interested in another technique >g< but this would be fascinating to me - and I know I would love doing it. Thank you ever so much for mentioning it and then showing us.

(I did make a tiny 3" x 4" Tumbling Blocks with half inch diamonds!!!! but I did it the traditional way - fiddly? a bit >gggNo photos in the Japanese exhibit. It was sponsored by

Fascinating. I love to look at their work, too. Thanks Cheryl - a fount of information. . In message , Cats writes

I've had a go at trying to find a book on Meshwork - the word must have many different meanings! Any chance of a title, Cheryl? or, if it is in Japanese, an ISBN number? I would be most grateful. It's just the sort of thing I'd like to have a go at, in between piecing things. Thanks muchly. . In message , Cats writes

might be more familiar (and accessible) as woven ribbon work or

Ribbon plaiting

Just another interesting variation on fabric use.

See previous answer above -

might be more familiar (and accessible) as wovenribbon work or

Ribbon plaiting

Just another interesting variation on fabric use.

Mine is all Japanese, and I haven't seen any books on American sites. But European sites do seem to stock the Japanese titles.

The ISBN for the book I just bought is - ISBN4-529-03004-0

site has a couple of books listed well down the page under Ribbon Weaving, Mokuba

Thanks so much. I'll check those out, later on, after dinner. . In message , Cats writes

I missed Cheryl's original post about Meshwork. What is the name of the book? Where was it published? I have done the weaving with strips perpendicular but have not seen it done with the three angles to create the look of tumbling blocks. I think this would be a great technique for my miniature quilts and would like to know more about it. Please respond to me privately if it is not too much trouble. slpdesignsatspeakeasydotnet

Susan

no no, not privately, the rest of us want to know all about it too, just in case we get a hankering to do some weaving into our quilts too, ok, so i do anyhow. sounds a great technique for adding surface texture to things like bags and vests/clothes. i love surface texture and 3D stuff on whatever. so do please keep this on the group. canework for chairseats and other places has 4 layers (iirc) woven in all diff directions, i think. gives a 6 or 8 sided hole left open in the centre. thanks from a chilly overcast rainy south pacific winter day (i was getting quite used to nice sunny winter days, lol), jeanne

OK OK

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