Poppies

One month ago I showed you some fabrics I was preparing for a poppy quilt which is for a little girl with that name. Then I did not get much further than the fabric, partly because I have been busy and partly I  am not sure why. I liked the colours , I knew what to do but  somehow nothing would come out of my hands. Last Sunday I decided enough is enough with all this procrastination- it's not getting the quilt made- it's simple really - "you have to make a poppy quilt". When I started to work I suddenly realised why the ennui- the poppies made me think of France- of missing France- of missing the summer there and the poppy strewn fields- I was feeling homesick for something that is not my home at present- how can you be homesick for not your home?

So the only way is forward with the quilt and  realising the dream- somehow by hook or crook. Maybe my block of land will finally sell so I can move on with my life and start something new!It's too much of a waiting game at the moment- if the block sells I can go do other things and maybe buy a house in france.

So here are some photos of the layers for applique- stitching and quilting has to be added- and I am still contemplating whether it needs a small pieced border or maybe not.Any thoughts?

I dyed the background fabric especially- it looked fabulous out of the dye bath but greened up a lot once it was washed ( sorry i forgot to take photos). I was trying to get the effect of the wheatfields in the background, looking up to the sky , like the photo below- though I did not quite want so much blue stunning though it is.I have a better photo of this but I can't find it at the moment.

I had to piece the transition between the blue of the sky and the blueish green of the dyed fabric as the  top of the fabric was too green and the blue too blue to  make a pleasing transition- eek I have not pieced in a long time!It starts to look better with more stems.

And last- I think that's as much as I am going to do in  layering pieces- I don't want it to be too busy, and more lines can go in with stitching in any case. the piece is finally starting to speak to me- it's calling me to another place.