Sources: Photos & How to Use Them

Digital cameras and having a camera in our phones have just made snapping and sharing a way of life for most of us. We post them on Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter & Facebook (to name just a few online share opps) and as viewers we are treated to almost every subject imaginable.

It stands to reason that photos are a very convenient and powerful source for letting our creative juices out for a whirl, and there are a lot of different ways that we can use them. Over the next few days I will be sharing some ideas on just that. Photos & How to Use Them.

Today I will be sharing the way I have been using for a number of years to take a photo and turn it into a pattern that I then stitch together using my own Fast-Piece Applique.

starting with a photo - here is one I took of a walkway in Glacier National Park.
I loved walking through the trees and the zig-zag of the path.

in order to see the lines more clearly I made a black & white print to work from

then using tracing paper I went over the main lines -
I eliminated details and sought only for the strong identifying shapes
for these would become fabric that would further tell my quilt-story

there are sometimes many sheets of tracing paper
and many different versions of what is selected - what is left out during this process
but once I have it completed I can enlarge it and use it as my  pattern

I have used this pattern many times --
having my choices of fabrics and embellishments change the time
of day conveyed on this walk thru the woods -- this is just 1 example

 
I hope you enjoyed this how-to.
There will be some others - so check back in...
Meantime,  you can start looking at your photos --
that one snapped yesterday or last year might just be the source for your next project.

I'm heading back to stitching.
~Rose