This quilt was inspired by an earlier quilt titled “Beyond the Nile.” I really liked the way the stems of the papyrus curved and crossed each other, creating a gentle flow of air. This tropical plant has always fascinated me, not just because it was used to make paper in ancient Egypt, but I always have at least one papyrus plant in my garden each summer. The heads are so unusual and it can withstand a little bit of fall weather as well, and an occasional bird will sit on the flower heads. I love the way that I can machine embroider all the thin strips.
The piece came together with just three fabrics, just as I had envisioned it. The fish is actually a left-over from “Egyptian Garden I.” All the fish were cut from a hand painted fabric that had interesting gradations of color, and I had extras.
The quilting is simple. Swirls created heat for the sun. Yellow variegated thread outlined all the background stripes. And a variegated dark thread created the scales and details on the fish, as well as the currents in the water.
This quilt has a faced edge, with wool batting inside.
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