Earlier work 1

This is some of the work that I have done over the past few years:

I made this (the red quilt on the left) with reverse applique, or Mola as it is also known. It was inspired by the motives found on Egyptian tents, but the design is my own. The Egyptians use normal applique, where they add the motifs on top of the base fabric. I changed it around, for no other reason than that I liked doing reverse applique. The cutting away and revealing what lies underneath has an element of excitement and surprise that appeal to me.

This quilt was inspired by the highly embellished Indian fabric that are used in their clothing and home decorations. One of the wonderful things about living in Dubai is being exposed to so many different cultures and all their traditions. This range from food to language to fashion.
I pieced the diamond shapes first and then embellished them one by one. I didn't plan the embellishments before the time but did them as the mood and the available treads, beads and sequinces appealed to me. It is finished of with bells as is common in Indian embroidery

This one was a g ift to my neighbour-friend's
little boy. They are SA expats too. She had a surprise baby about a year before we had ours (there's something going on in this street...) and it gave me a good excuse to make baby things again. We are both emotional about the fact that our children were not born in Africa and we worry that they won't have Africa in their blood and soul like we have, so I decided to make him a blanket with African wildlife on. I used normal fleecy blankets and worked them like felt. They worked very easy but are a bit softer and more cuddly than normal felt. I used the reverse applique/mola technique again.