What's for Dinner?

Mostly ever night on Facebook, I ask the question "What's for Dinner?" and that is how this exhibit was created.  My vision was to set the table with art quilts, instead of hanging on a pipe and drape.  As the co-juror for the special exhibit "What's for Dinner?" that will be shown at the International Quilt Festival in Houston this Fall, I have the opportunity to have a quilt included.  Jurying has been completed, but I needed to get my piece done and sent.  I am starting with 2" strips of cotton fabrics, part of the me+you line from Hoffman Fabrics

Here is my inspiration.  A jar of Talenti Black Raspberry Chocolate Chip Gelato.  My favorite.  So, why can't I have this for dinner? I have always wanted someone to make a quilt about eating a pint of ice cream for dinner.  So, it's me.  I have never eaten a pint of gelato for dinner, but my birthday is coming up, so it could happen.  I do confess that I can eat a pint of this amazing gelato in one sitting. It's creamy and delicious.

This is something different for me in the way that I Mistyfused the fabrics.  Usually, I fuse a fat quarter of each fabric and then cut them up.  But, this time I already had strips cut.  So I laid them out on my fable, and overlapped them ever so slightly.  Put one sheet over them, and fused them into place.

Then I fused them to a piece of wool blended felt, which will be my foundation (or batting).  I am trimming the edges from the back, using the felt as a guide and my ruler to cut a straight line.

Now my background is ready for it's design.  I think backgrounds are so important, when making a quilt. 

I am making the jar with a piece of lavender fabric int he shape of the jar with a sheer over it, to look like plastic.  Both pieces have Mistyfuse on them.

I actually pieced these strips.  I haven't pieced anything in over a decade.  I probably won't do it again.  It reminded me of why this isn't for me.  So, now several layers of pieced strips are placed on a Sizzix die that is a pair of scissors.

I think that these look like spoons, so they will be fun to use for this.  I am saving the negative side for another project. 

My art quilt is called "Cut to the Chase:  One spoon to rule them all.  Scissors for cutting, chasing the spoons round and round, and one spoon in the middle to eat the gelato in one sitting.

Detail.  And then I went home and ate some.  realized that the chocolate chips are visible from the outside of the jar, so back to the sewing machine it went.

And I also outlined the scissors and the spoon in thin strips of wool felt to high-light them.

Super happy with the results.  What's for Dinner?  Talenti Gelato Black Raspberry Chocolate Chip!  Hope to see you in Houston!