The Pantone Color of the Year

The whole idea of someone selecting the color of the year and impacting art, fabric, clothing and just about everything in the world, seems strange to me. I decided to try to better understand by doing some research.

First I wanted to know Who or What is Pantone. Where did this company come from? The website says “In 1963, Lawrence Herbert, Pantone's founder, created an innovative system of identifying, matching and communicating colors to solve the problems associated with producing accurate color matches in the graphic arts community. His insight that the spectrum is seen and interpreted differently by each individual led to the innovation of the PANTONE MATCHING SYSTEM®, a book of standardized color in fan format.

Since then, Pantone has expanded its color matching system concept to other color-critical industries, including digital technology, textiles, plastics, architecture and contract interiors, and paint." So, my question is, what makes this company the leading authority on color and allows them to select a “color of the year” that impacts so many industries.

I thought that perhaps they looked at what designers were doing worldwide to see what colors were being used and then used that pallet to identify what the popular color is. But that doesn't seem to be the case. 

Their website says the color of the year is “A symbolic color selection; a color snapshot of what we see taking place in our global culture that serves as an expression of a mood and an attitude.”

This year’s color is greenery. It’s supposed to be a “bright but calming symbol of new beginnings and a reconnection with nature.” I sure don’t see that happening in my world.

Leatrice Eiseman, Executvie Director of the Pantone Color Institute says, “Greenery bursts forth in 2017 to provide us with the reassurance we yearn for amid a tumultuous social and political environment. Satisfying our growing desire to rejuvenate and revitalize, Greenery symbolizes the reconnection we seek with nature, one another and a larger purpose.”

I actually love their color choice and plan to use it a lot in my quilts this year and will be happy to see it reflected in fabric. I also agree with how they describe the color: “Greenery is a fresh and zesty yellow-green shade that evokes the first days of spring when nature’s greens revive, restore and renew. Illustrative of flourishing foliage and the lushness of the great outdoors, the fortifying attributes of Greenery signals consumers to take a deep breath, oxygenate and reinvigorate.”

Green has long been a favorite of mine and my favorite green is a spring green, which to me describes But the question remains, does the Pantone color of the year come from what the world has already dictated. Or does Pantone’s selection of that color make it become prevalent throughout the world. We may never know.

Pantone says “color experts at the Pantone Color Institute comb the world looking for new color influences. This can include the entertainment industry and films in production, traveling art collections and new artists, fashion, all areas of design, popular travel destinations, as well as new lifestyles, playstyles and socio-economic conditions. Influences may also stem from new technologies, materials, textures and effects that impact color, relevant social media platforms and even up-coming sporting events that capture worldwide attention.”

Yet they also say “For 17 years, Pantone’s Color of the Year has influenced product development and purchasing decisions in multiple industries, including fashion, home furnishings and industrial design, as well as product packaging and graphic design.”

So, maybe it works both ways. If you look at my stash, you’ll see I’ve been collecting this spring green color for some time and there has been no shortage of fabrics with this hue. But thanks to Pantone’s emphasis, I’ll be using it more and more in the next year. What about you?

If you’ve never looked at the Pantone website, I highly recommend a visit to: www.pantone.com.  If nothing else, you’ll see some great color combinations that you can experiment with in your next quilt. You're sure to find something you like. Here's a few:

New Resolutions for the New Year

Do you make resolutions with each new year?   

Are they quilting related? 

Do you keep them?

I don’t know about you, but I have a hard time keeping my resolutions.  So this year I resolve to make my resolutions easier -- achievable.  Here’s some ideas in case you want to join me.
---

Instead of “Always pull fabric from your stash instead of buying new yardage” How about “Always use small pieces of fabric first”No one said you couldn’t cut the bigger ones to make them smaller before you use them.---
Instead of “Keep your sewing space neat and organized”How about “Keep your sewing space clear of unwanted people”Like those who say you should be more neat and organized.---
Instead of “Finish projects you’ve already started before starting new projects”How about “Finish a project this year”Who cares how many you start as long as you get at least one done.---
Instead of “Finally make a quilt for yourself”How about “Only sew what makes you happy”If it makes you happy, it doesn’t matter who it’s for, because you get to enjoy it, regardless of where it ends up.---
Instead of “Start your holiday projects and gifts earlier”How about “Don’t celebrate holidays with quilts; every time you finish a quilt consider it a reason to celebrate”Who cares what the holiday is -- every day is a good day to quilt.---
Instead of “Do your own quilting instead of sending it out”How about “Quilt what you want, when you want, how you want”If that is sending it out or quilting it yourself, if you finish a project to the quilting stage, you’re a winner.---
Instead of “Stop promising to make quilts for friends and/or family”
How about “Stay in your sewing room so much no one can ask you to make anything”Problem solved.  If you don’t see or talk to anyone you can make or break no promises.---
Instead of “Make more time for quilting”How about “Take more time for quilting”Steal it from wherever you can.  Five minutes a day is still better than nothing.---
Instead of “Finish one BOM before joining another”How about “Finish one block at a time”Whether it takes an hour, a day, a month or a year, if you finish just one block you are making progress.---
Instead of “I resolve to make no more resolutions”How about “I’ll try not to lie to myself as often as I do now”You really are just kidding yourself when you make a resolution.  Everyone who knows you knows you’ll never follow through, so don’t make a resolution, don’t resolve anything, just have fun, enjoy and stitch to your heart’s content. 

What makes you an artist?

I think the question of whether a quilter is an artist has been circulating for a very long time.  There is a class of quilts called art quilts (defined as an original exploration of a concept or idea rather than the handing down of a “pattern.” It experiments with textile manipulation, color, texture and/or a diversity of mixed media. An Art Quilt often pushes quilt world boundaries."  But if you don't make art quilts, are you an artist?  I never thought I was, but I'm beginning to question that.

To further confuse issues, Modern Quilters believe they are pushing quilt world boundaries, but often argue vehemently that though they are artists, but don't make "art quilts."  They often call the quilts they make their "work," like any artist calls the things they make their "work."  If you google modern quilting you can see all the controversy associated with that movement; you'll see a ton over the year.  Here's my favorite: http://leniwiener.com/2013/06/the-modern-quilt-movement-and-controversy/ But ..... that doesn't answer the question of whether or not quilters are artists.

When you look up the definition for artist.  The text above is what you get.  And according to the third definition, "a person skilled at a particular task or occupation," a quilter can definitely be considered an artist.  And it doesn't seem to matter what "type" of quilts they make: art quilts, modern quilts, traditional quilts, foundation paper pieced quilts, English paper pieced quilts, or portrait quilts.  But it does seem to matter about the quilters skill.   Perhaps the level of skill is another reason I never saw myself as an artist.  Huffington Post had a great article about defining artists: , but it was published more than 5 years ago.  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/daniel-grant/how-do-you-define-artist_b_582329.html

There is something in that article that spoke to me. "Artists are people who call themselves artists."  And that may be all that is needed. I never thought of myself as an artist before, I never called myself an artist.  Why is that?  Because 1) I didn't think I was creative enough; 2) I didn't think I was good enough: and 3) I didn't create art quilts.  But since I have begun modifying and most lately designing quilts and quilt blocks; since I do feel like I am a master at some quilting techniques, or at least good enough to teach others; and since I recently learned how to make a fabric self portrait, I now feel like an artist and I am comfortable calling myself artist.  And maybe that's all that is needed.  If you think you're an artist you are. 

What do you think? Which of these are art?

https://www.themodernquiltguild.com/gallery
http://www.soulsgrowndeep.org/gees-bend-quiltmakers
http://texasquiltmuseum.org/exhibits-at-txqm.html
https://www.saqa.com/

http://www.textileartist.org/quilt-creators-5-contemporary-quilt-artists/

In my opinion, it just doesn't matter.  Anyone who makes anything due to a feeling inside them, I consider an artist.  So whether you're following a pattern, improvising as you go, sewing traditional triangles, squares and rectangles together, or experimenting with mixed media --- if sewing and quilting is the way you get your feelings out (good, bad or ugly feelings), then I think you're an artist.  And I encourage everyone to let their inner artists out.  Be brave.  Try something new.  A new color pallet, a new technique, a new pattern or a totally new expression of yourself through a quilt.  Think you're an artist and you'll be an artist!

Hump Day is for Curves

Do you do sew circles or curves?  I have to admit, used to be afraid of them.  I've used the Quick Curve Ruler to make patterns with curves, but they're not a true drunkards path. I have a die for my Sizzix for the drunkard's path and I think it's time I tried it.  I did some research first on the block itself and how to make it modern.  Read below some of what I learned (cut and pasted from the sites listed).  You can google Modern Drunkard's Path and see plenty of pictures to motivate you.

https://www.pinterest.com/explore/drunkards-path-quilt/

I really liked this one from http://sotosewn.blogspot.com/2011/12/monday-path-of-modern-drunkard.html  I'm a fan of solids and symmetrical designs.  But there are so many options with this simple block . . . . if you're willing to try those curves.  So challenge yourself.

Drunkard's Path (The National Park Service website)

It is easy to imagine the origin of this name. The meandering diagonals resemble a drunkard's staggering walk. Sewing for a cause is an old tradition. Women made quilts to raise money and consciousness, both to promote the abolition of slavery and to promote women's rights. Women across the country were also involved in the Temperance Movement. By 1907, The Women's Christian Temperance Union had 350,000 members. Prohibited from voting, the Drunkard's Path was a popular way for a woman to express her opinion on alcohol and its use. It appears that more quilts were made for this cause than for any other.Although other colors were used, blue and white became the Temperance Union colors: white for purity and blue for water, the purest beverage available.

Drunkard’s Path (Fons and Porter’s website)

Just like the Log Cabin design, the Drunkard’s Path design can be traced all the way back to ancient Egypt. Archaeologists have unearthed this design on ancient Roman artifacts, as well. Quilters started using this design later in the 19th century and its origin in the quilting world is quite exciting. Once in the new colonies, several different names were used to describe the block’s new and different arrangements. Rocky Road to Kansas, Oregon Trail…and Wanderer in the Wilderness were just a few of the early aliases. Later on, Amish quilters added names such as Solomon’s Puzzle…and Endless Trail to the growing list of block names. Today, all of these names are used, but the most popular is still Drunkard’s Path.


Traditional to Modern: Drunkard’s Path (Albuquerque Modern Quilt Guild)
The history of the drunkard’s path block is both steeped in romanticism and history. Some theorized that the zig zag pattern of the blocks contained secret codes designed to aid slaves escaping through the Underground Railroad. However, some have found this notion unreasonable as slaves would have traveled at night and would have been unable to see quilting patterns in the pitch black of  night (1). Others assert that the history of the drunkards path lies mainly in the Women’s Temperance Movement.  Women sewed these quilts to promote the abolition of alcohol. The drunkard’s path was meant to symbolize a drunk’s staggering walk. Often, these quilts were sewn in blue and white, white representing purity and blue representing water, the purest of all beverages (2). This notion may be fanciful as well, “As a writer* in an 1898 issue of The Modern Priscilla stated, ‘Color harmony is the key-note to success [in patchwork], and simplicity the next most important consideration. . . . All things considered, pretty indigo blue and white print and white muslin combine beauty with the coveted old-time air more effectively than any style of cotton patchwork.'” Katherine B. Johnson, The Modern Priscilla (May 1898).” Today’s modern interpretation of the drunkard’s path hardly resembles quilts of the past. Modern Quilters make clever use of negative space and very nontraditional block layout. Often, the quilting (or stitching) on these modern quilts helps convey a story as much as the piecing. Although these quilts lack historical romanticism, they do not lack the rich stories of their makers.

Here’s some links to blogs and videos about sewing curves and using drunkard’s path blocks in modern quilts.  Check them out.  And if you know of others that you prefer (there are plenty out there), please add them in the comments.

http://crazymomquilts.blogspot.com/2011/06/running-in-circles-tutorial.html

http://sewnomadic.blogspot.com/2013/02/semi-simple-drunkards-path.html

http://kateconklindesigns.blogspot.com/2012/08/piecing-curves-without-pins-video.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTOGt4cRdJE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwuv4oYXOqY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vULfFqqM3Uc

August is for barns

Doris Rice gave a great presentation on Barn Quilts.  She discussed the history, shared a great book, showed photos of Barn Quilts across the U.S., explained an easy way to make your own (at your own home or at the Queen's Rustic Retreat workshop) and showed off  a beautiful barn quilt that goes on the bed, not the barn.

We completed our Mini Quilt swap. Check out the happy swappers and beautiful quilts

Next month will be our annual business meeting and we'll be holding some Quilting Olympics.  Hope to see you there.

July's meeting was hot

Our July program was provided by Shannon Brinkley who introduced us to Scrappy Bits Applique and her great technique for turning scraps into something awesome.  The meeting was changed to Friday and then a workshop was held on Saturday.  Workshop pictures are below.  There was no special project for July as in June we announced a Mini Quilt Swap due in August.  Don't forget to check out the Eye Candy page for the great show and tell from the meeting.

How do I quilt that?

Our June program was a presentation from Sharon Young on how to decide what kind of quilting to put on a quilt.  She gave us a list of questions to ask and think about before quilting anything. 
Understanding how the quilt will be used, who it is for (male, female, child, senior), and what their preferences are will make a big difference in how a quilt is quilted.  Folks brought in their half square triangle special project.  Look at what they created using an odd number of HSTs.  Don't forget to check out the eye candy page for show and tell pictures.