Gotta Dance!

Gotta Dance by Cathy Geier

 As promised, I'm finally showing you what I've been working on all summer...

Soooo, what do these have in common? 

A cityscape - New York? 

Gene Kelly

 

New York Beauty Blocks

 The answer is my latest quilt. I'm calling is Gotta Dance! Here is another shot -

Buildings and blocks

The idea sprang into my imagination last spring when the National Quilt Museum introduced the theme for this year's New Quilts from Old Favorites contest; New York Beauty.

There are few traditional blocks that could tempt me, and this was one.  Like a silly fool I let the idea take root and grow. This quilt was a 'triple threat' you see.

I have never pieced New York Beauty blocks, never pieced a cityscape and never made a quilted portrait. Triple Threat.

In case you don't know where 'Gotta Dance' came from, it came from one of the best old Hollywood musicals - Singing in the Rain. Here is a clip of the dance number - it is about a young hoofer (dancer) heading to Broadway to dance on stage. He shows up in his ridiculous pink and purple plaid coat with an oversized red bandana... well, you should watch it yourself. Better yet, rent the whole movie.

Gotta Dance

Unfortunately this clip doesn't show the beginning of the Gotta Dance number until 40 or so seconds. And the music isn't synchronized with the lips... sigh. Just go rent the movie and make a big bowl of popcorn.


2 weeks ago, I lost every folder on my computer that I had saved to my Desk Top. That included the huge folder of in progress photos and all the stuff I did to show you how I made the quilt. I'm sorry! Really sorry... I wanted it for my own records too and it is all gone. Hubby and I tried everything.

Gotta Dance captures my love of dancing and quilting and color. I love the way my eye 'dances' around New York Beauty quilts looking at the colors swirling and playing with each other. That led me to think about dancing and since I'm a big fan of Singing in the Rain it was only natural that I begin to put these ideas together.

Thus, in my mind I could see Gene Kelly arriving in New York to dance and sing on Broadway. I chose to make a sunset scene so I could bring in all my favorite colors and keep the city buildings dark behind Gene. I'll let you decide whether this is supposed to be a 'real' life scene, or whether Gene is dancing onstage and this is the backdrop.

Gotta Dance, getting quilted...

So far, the buildings and foreground are all done. I'm working on the yellow part of the sky, quilting it with long narrow diagonals in metallic thread to look like 'rain'. (That is my nod to the movie - Singing in the Rain). It isn't supposed to be a 'real life' New York City landscape you know...

I've been working nearly 8 hours a day for weeks now trying to get this done. Since blogging takes 5-6 hours for a good one, blogging was the first thing to go. Then cleaning the house, then changing water in my fish tanks, then sleep... etc.
This has been the toughest quilt I've ever made and I have to get it done by the end of next week. (Fall teaching and  camping with hubby, etc.)

I hope to show you more in a couple of weeks, and rest assured that I'll get back to regular blogging eventually!

Comments Welcome!