Adventures in Improv by Cindy Grisdela
As a beginning quilter, I discovered the bright, energetic improv quilts of Cindy Grisdela, was completely captivated, and had the delight of interviewing her for a FriYAY Friends blog post. Now, four and a half years later, I’m delighted to be part of the blog hop reviewing and sharing about her new book, Adventures in Improv.
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Y’all know I love bright, popping quilts that just “punch you in the face,” and Cindy is the absolute master of quilts like this! Her color choices and shapes jump out to meet the viewer, and her compositions keep your eyes intrigued, investigating every intersection and element in the quilt top. Then, over her amazing piecing, she does beautiful free motion quilting— sometimes a single design and sometimes riff quilting by combining a number of designs— and often in bright, variegated threads. In her new book, Adventures in Improv, Cindy generously shares her best tips and tricks, as well as a few guided activities, to help jumpstart your own improv adventure.
Piecing Tips from Cindy
Cindy describes improv quilting as “quilting without a pattern,” but since well-done improv is more than just pulling random bits from the scrap bin, sewing them together, and calling it done, here are some tips from the book to consider:
Set a few boundaries for yourself as you get started: pick a color palette and finished size for the quilt so that your quilt top will be cohesive, and so that you have an idea of the “finish line”
Consider working with solids so that your pieced shapes and free motion quilting can “pop”
Ask “what if?” as a way to push your creativity toward more dynamic and interesting compositions
After sharing a wealth of knowledge regarding color, composition, and creating pieced units, Cindy shares several techniques and guided exercises to encourage readers to put what they have learned into practice and make their first improvisationally pieced bits. My personal favorite is “Retro Circles.”
Quilting Your Improv
I’m hopelessly biased, of course, but Cindy’s section on quilting your improv quilts was one of my favorite parts of the whole book. Cindy breaks down several ideas for adding texture to your improv quilts:
Walking Foot Quilting: Add straight vertical or horizontal lines across your quilt at irregular 1/4” - 1/2” intervals
Echo Quilting: Use a free motion quilting foot to free-hand echo the shapes of your piecing. This method is quicker and more organic than walking foot lines
Free Motion Quilting: Whether you prefer one all over motif or mushing a whole bunch of motifs together (which Cindy refers to as “free-style quilting” or “graffiti-style quilting,” and I often call “riff quilting”). One of my favorite motifs in Cindy’s quilts, is a swirl combined with a bit of a meander, like a little rooster crown on top!
Cindy Grisdela’s new book, Adventures in Improv, is beautiful, inspiring, and educational. It is a perfect addition to any quilter’s library, especially if you’re seeking to be motivated to play with color, scraps, and a freer, more improvisational, way of piecing.
Additional Resources
If you enjoyed this review of Cindy Grisdela’s Adventures in Improv and are hoping to dabble in a bit of improv yourself, I think you’ll enjoy these additional blogs:
FriYAY Friends with Cindy Grisdela- my original interview with Cindy where she shared about her quilting journey
How to Make a Design Wall- Cindy talks thoroughly in her book about the importance of her design wall to her creative process. If your design wall needs an upgrade, check out this tutorial!
Sewing Machine Feet for FMQ- Improv can be bulky if you work with small bits. Let this blog be your guide to make sure you have the best FMQ foot for adding texture to your gorgeous quilt top!
Win Your Own Copy of the Book
Enter below between October 19-26, 2021 for a chance to win a digital copy of Adventures in Improv, compliments of C&T Publishing
Visit the Other Stops on the Blog Hop
These other bloggers have written their own reviews of and experiments from Adventures in Improv. Click the links below to check them out: