the postcardquilt project :: my postcard

When I saw Zak Foster post about his #postcardquilt 'experiment,' I went and signed up right away! According to Zak, "This creative collaboration is designed to help us get our creativity primed and ready for a new season of making." Sounds good to me!

It's easy to participate, though the timeframe is snappy. Basically, you make a postcard, expressing the theme of newness. Then you mail off your postcard to your assigned collaborator. That means you'll receive a postcard too! And then inspired by the postcard you receive, you create a quilt block!  Once you post it on Instagram, you're done! Zak will use all the block photos to create a digital community quilt. See the nitty gritty about dates etc. on Zak's blog.

The project is co-hosted by Amanda Nadig. If you're interested in participating, be sure to watch the video she and Zak made about this creative challenge. Amanda gives SO many great ideas on how to let the postcard you receive inspire your block (and future work!). Be sure and sign up today, April 8, as mailing assignments will be emailed out tomorrow!

SO, I made my postcard last evening! Apologies to artist Frederick Stuart Church, who painted his "Girl with Rabbits" in 1886, which now hangs at the National Museum of American Art in the Smithsonian. I proceeded to cover his lovely art with mine.

I used a few scraps to tell my story of newness. If you've followed me on Instagram, invariably you've seen photos of the lake view seen from our home. Well part of the joy in the change of seasons is how the view changes. It feels new every day. Very simply, I portrayed the 'view' on my postcard - the colors of the lake, green trees, a rising (or setting) sun, and a 'sky' full of clouds.

I forgot to take a photo once I'd gotten that far, but something was definitely missing. It came to me that I see the view most often from the small screened window in our bathroom. I debated briefly how to add the 'screen' to my little art piece, and decided to try using the threads from a scrap of linen.

All of the fabric elements are just glued to the front of the postcard. We were told we could sew or otherwise apply them, but were challenged to use a method that wasn't our usual - such as glue. So it'll be interesting to see how my card travels through the postal system, but I'm looking forward to finding out. I'll report back once it reaches its destination and I receive my inspiration card. And don't forget, sign-up today if you want to join the fun!

It seems I've taken the prompt more literally than some, but that's OK! See the other cards folks are making at #postcardquiltwip.