The Yellow Chair
The Yellow Chair is my challenge quilt for The Endeavourers. We are a group of creatives who have joined together to participate in quarterly challenges each year. The theme for this quilt challenge was “Memories”. Let me tell you a little bit about my quilt, The Yellow Chair.
On a road trip a few years ago, we were driving along the north shore of Lake Superior. We had recently learned of the death of a friend who had lived on the shores of Lake Superior. We had lost touch over the years, but we had spent time at her cabin in the past, so we decided to stop and walk the shore a bit in her honor.
When I got down to the shore, there sat this yellow chair – an old vinyl chair from those formica kitchen table sets of the 60s. It was a bit worse for wear, but it was there, upright, waiting. I wondered what memories were hidden in that chair. Where did it come from? Who uses it, or was it just abandoned? Why was it sitting there on the shore facing the lake so expectantly?
To construct the quilt, I started with the background. Behind the chair on the shore was a scraggy bush, so I attempted to construct something similar for the background of my quilt. I used improv to construct a fabric slab, then cut it into squares and pieced it for the background. I did the same for the sandy shore. To make those two meet, I made a smaller slab of both fabric colors. True to my nature, I just winged it a bit while I was making this
The chair itself was weather beaten and faded, so I needed a yellow that looked faded. Nothing in my scraps or stash was working, until I realized that I could use the back of a fabric. You can see the difference between the front and back of the fabric in this photo.
I chose to use raw edge applique for the chair. I considered turned edge applique, but I thought raw edge relayed the worn look of the chair a bit better. I glue-basted the pieces in place, and machine stitched around each piece, matching the thread.
For the quilting, I just did some organic echoing of the chair, using matching thread. I had a little fun with the binding, matching the places where the fabric shifted from tan to green.
For the quilt back, I used a fat quarter of Minnesota Shop Hop fabric. All of the names on the fabric are places in Minnesota. It seemed appropriate for a quilt with so much Minnesota influence.
All of the fabrics used in the making of The Yellow Chair are from my stash. The batting is a scrap piece of Hobbs 80/20. The finished quilt measures 12 inches by 14.5 inches.
If you’d like to see more of the challenge pieces for Memories, by the others in the group, you can see them here.
Wendy
To Do Tuesday 48
26 Comments
Riceford Streams
You’re so talented! I love the improv piecing and and the chair. I can easily picture the scene in mind. Will you hang this in your quilt room? It’ll be a cool reminder of the North Shore.
Janine @ Rainbow Hare
This is a wonderful memory and a great quilt. Thank you for sharing how you constructed it 🙂
Stitchin at Home
Love the improv you did for the background and the chair looks so good sitting there.
Louise Hornor
Great piece, Wendy! I really like the use of slab blocks for the background, gives a real feeling of the brush and sand in their wind-tossed state.
Julie Holleran
What a fabulous rendering of your forgotten by the roadside yellow chair–so whimsical and evocative…you really caught the pathos of it all…Nice work Hugs, Julierose
Katherine Duquette
The yellow chair is fabulous. Did you sit on the chair to view what the person who left it was seeing? Earthy green is my favorite color set. Great job for this challenge.
karenfae
how neat and you can see it really is a chair – some art work it is left to the imagination
texasquiltgal
Great piece and love the thoughts behind it. The perspective technique is excellent! Looks like you had a good time making it.
Brenda @ Songbird Designs
Beautiful job on your quilt!! Thanks for sharing the memory. I remember us having one of those yellow formica table and chair sets growing up!! So that was a good memory for me!!
Vicki in MN
Loved the story behind the quilt, your friend is looking down and smiling that you remembered her and walked the shore. Perfect applique technique for this piece. How many Endeavors quilts have you made?
Diann@ Little Penguin Quilts
I love this little quilt, Wendy! I can picture just what you’re showing and describing. The improv technique you use where you piece some bits together and then slice it and add a diagonal piece is perfect to give us the idea of a bushy green area behind the chair! Nice finish!
ROCHELLE SUMMERS
A wonderful memory brought to life. So nice to imagine someone walking down to the lake to sit in that yellow chair and gaze at the lake. All the colors works so well. Someone told me once that sometimes the back of the fabric is just another piece of fabric. My only problem is remembering that I’m using the wrong side for the “right side” when I’m piecing. Thank you for sharing the quilt and the memory.
Yvonne @Quilting Jetgirl
Very smart to use the back of the yellow fabric for the faded yellow chair. I like the way you used improv piecing to make the background. The out of focus fuzzy background makes me feel that sense of wonder and thoughtfulness you describe after finding the chair sitting there at the shore.
quiltinggail
Very unique piece of art! I love the story of the yellow chair … the memories …
Nancy Bekedam
You had me on the edge of my chair, reading about this quilt!?!! Love it, Wendy!!!
thedarlingdogwood
What a neat way to keep a memory alive. This is a work of art!
Sandra
Wendy this is just the best little quilt! I got goosebumps when I read that a yellow chair was there, like she was waiting for you to sit a while imho. Thanks for the details on how you made it, and using the back of the fabric – I was into that big time when doing colour wash quilts, so that was a genius solution!
Helen
I love the story equally as much as I love the quilt. They are both lovely. There is a lot of “you” in the way that this one is put together.
Needle and Foot
This is wonderful Wendy. Great decision to use the back of the fabric so the chair looked worn – also the raw edge applique worked well to enhance the effect. Did you have a picture of the chair to work from or was it from memory? Really like the final result here – well done!!!
marissthequilter
This is such an evocative piece. The story behind the quilt shines through the piecing and stitching. You must be very pleased with it.
rl2b2017
Hi Wendy! What a wonderful backstory to this piece. I hope you add a label with your friends name included – I can almost picture her sitting in your chair enjoying the peace and quiet of the Lake. Your interpretation really comes across from the worn look of the chair to the scraggly bush and shoreline. Great job! ~smile~ Roseanne
Cocoa Quilts
Wendy what a great tribute to the chair!! I too wonder about those things, where did the chair start? Who all has sat in that chair? The great meals, laughs and tears the chair has held. Beautiful job.
Carol Andrews
Wendy your improv background and great use of upside down fabric and different quilting techniques has made another treasure. I think your chair brought back many memories for all of us; having had one in the family or coming across one in an unusual place. Beautiful tribute to a dear friend.
Kathleen McCormick
I love this! I love the chair, the story and your challenge piece. What a great way to remember a friend, a find in the wild and road trip. This is evocative in so many ways.
Quilting is in my Blood
This is a great improv mini that tells such a great story.
Kathy Swallows
What a fun piece. The back story has a bit of sadness and mystery. One game My Guy and I sometimes play is to wonder what things are like in a town we drive through or as we pass a house out in the middle of no where (in Oklahoma there is a lot of nowhere).