I consider myself to be a fairly solid Tim Burton fan and often use his influence when creating some of my quilts. In my mind, anything arty can always use some Burton inspired flair!


One of the earliest projects within our group, the Divine Stitchers of the YoYo Sisterhood was based on the Hallowe’en theme. I believe the dimensions chosen were 8.5 x 11 inches, but I knew my design was better suited to a rectangular shape so my piece finished at 6 x 14 inches. Like I have said before, we rarely stick to rules in this group. Best way to keep us all happy!


I really had fun with this project. Hallowe’en has always been a favorite of mine - you can be tacky and tasteless and anything goes! I actually wanted to have a Hallowe’en wedding, but sometimes things don’t work out just the way you hope. I did make up for this missed Hallowe’en opportunity by celebrating in big style with my children when they were younger. Creating a haunted house atmosphere was important and hosting an annual party was paramount. I also created one new witch doll and one new wall hanging each year to add to our collection. Years later I realized how dedicated and perhaps off the grid I was as I remembered one mother looking at me very strangely and saying, “ you actually brought dead trees and leaves into your home....” But, creating the best possible atmosphere sometimes means you need to go a bit beyond the norm....And besides, my kids loved it!!


These days Hallowe’en is a slightly more quiet celebration in our home. So perhaps my style is more subdued. Sigh. Anyway, I am very pleased with this little piece which is all hand painted fabrics using Seta Paints. The sky is one piece of painted fabric and the rest is another piece cut and laid over the top and fused. I have used a bit of outline machine quilting and also fused the binding. Accents are 3 Dimensional paint.