After O’Keeffe
July 7, 2009
This is a wall hanging that I made in 2000. As the name implies it is copied from a painting by Georgia O’Keeffe, Church Steeple.
I used a frayed edge appliqué technique for it. All of the edges have been stitched down with a very small straight stitch and the edges have been deliberately frayed.
I know that I learned about the technique from a book that I borrowed from the library. But I cannot remember the name or the author and neither a library search nor an internet search has turned it up. Don’t you hate it when that happens?!!
Anyway, I believe that this quilt was the first quilt that I experimented with using washable glue for holding the pieces in place for sewing. The layers are not fused in place, only glued and then the glue was washed out in the first wash. The washing also helped to fray the edges.
It is fun looking back at old work and remembering the techniques I was experimenting with at the time.
Deb Geyer, Quilter 
I'm so glad that you shared this technique with us today, as I for one, was completely unfamiliar with it. And those frayed edges? well, they're quite coquetish (as in they beckon me).
It is fun to see how far we have come over the years.
I just bought a postcard of this painting the other day. I'm glad you found it inspiring too.