Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Help Wanted: Halloween Noises

I don't know if any of the rest of ya'all have this problem, but sometimes I get stuck. I have this huge mental list of quilts I want to make and quilts I have to make and I just can't make a decision about any of them. I just keep hand quilting. 

Anyway, I've really been enjoying getting the free-pieced name blocks and I really and truly WILL get them together into a quilt. Anyone want to help me with another quilt (or two or three)?

While you think about it, here's a really and truly gratuitous photo of Pokey, just so that I have a picture in this post. This is from a few days ago, you can see her pink belly from where they shaved her for the ultrasound and the shaved bits on her arms where they had the IVs in.

Unfortunately one of the things that they are monitoring in her blood (the BUN) has gotten worse, while everything else has improved. So that means another trip to the vet in just a few weeks. Poor baby. She's doing extremely well though, playing and happy. Well, happy about everything but those pills.

Okay back to my idea for the quilt that I hope some of ya'all will help me with. It will be a fun quilt especially because you guys come up with different ways for doing things than I do, so it won't just be the same-old-same-old letters from me.

For ages now I've wanted to do a font sampler. I found the post I wrote about it way back in 2006. Yes, I'm a slowpoke. My idea is to have a bunch of words that represent noises you might hear at Halloween.  And they'd be written out in different styles.

Some fun words:

argh
arooo (a werewolf has got to sound like something)
a-whooo  (but maybe it's more like this)
boo
cackle
clank
creak
eek 
groan
grrrr
gurgle
howl
hiss
moan
mwa ha ha ha
shriek
slither 
slurp
thump
wooooooo

some font styles:

very tall and skinny
very wide and skinny
letters composed of very narrow AND very wide strips
very short and wide
small
big
leaning
rounded and curvy
extra angular
serif
italics
three-dimensional

This would be a fun chance for you to play with a different style of letters than you usually do AND if you get stuck I'd be happy to give you some ideas of how to proceed. Kind of like a class except that the teacher gets to keep your homework.

For colors I'm thinking: black, orange (okay, that's kind of a given), lime green, purple, yellow and/or white. For the letters and background stick mostly to solids or kinda solidy fabric so that the focus is on the letters and styles, not on busy novelty prints.

Finish each word off as a block. You can frame if it you'd like, but not necessary.

Anyone interested? I sure hope so. Just leave a comment saying what word(s) you'd like to do and in what style. We can definitely have duplicate words and and duplicate styles, but hopefully NOT the same word in the same style. if that made sense. Questions? Just ask. 

Think of another style I haven't included? that would be excellent.

Just to make sure we're clear on this. They have to be free-pieced letters - no applique or anything like that. The words can be in upper- or lower-case or a mix.

oh oh oh, and - as always - if you have any letters that didn't work I'd love to have them. Yes, I know, that's another quilt I still have to get together...

Don't you think this will be a fun teaching example? I always find Halloween is a great holiday to work with because you just can't take it too seriously. My fingers are crossed some of ya'all will play with me.

29 comments:

YankeeQuilter said...

I can't believe I'm first on this one...woo hoo....I want to do groan short and fat (the sound I make trying to fit in to the discount airline seat!)

This means I get to pull halloween fabrics out...you may be able to hear DH's screams!!!!

jovaliquilts said...

Oh, I'd like to do THUMP, with extra wide strips and extra narrow. It will look like a heavy thump. What a great idea! And perfect -- my word verification is 'pounder' (with a c on the end...).

Patti said...

I'd like to do the word "boo". Not sure what style, maybe big and skinny since it's a small word. I'll see how it works out but it will probably be leaning too since I'm not an expert at your letters yet:)

Marge said...

I would enjoy doing "eek" in wide and narrow strips. I'm imagining that it might start off narrow and get wider. This sounds like fun!

Clare said...

Ohhhh - lots of choice. I've still got my piece of paper with all the Halloween words on it from my quilt. Can I do "screech" again?

Victoria Findlay Wolfe said...

I may be able to help you with the names quilt/s.
It might have to be the fall though.. As I am outta here June 5. til sept.

Janet said...

Great idea. I have several quilts in the works so this idea will have to wait but... I just posted a quilt using your tutorial and free-pieced lettering. Thank you for your help.

Brenda said...

I want to do BOO! my brain is frozen tonight, so I'll have to get back to you on the fonts,but i'd be good for several. I'll be in touch soon.

Karmen said...

Love your blog, love your work, and love that beautiful blue-eyed kitty. My allergic-self's son pulled a starving, ruptured eyeball kitty from an apartment complex dumpster. Yup, picture on my blog...(yes, we love her and are keeping her!) God bless allergy tablets!

Tracey in CT said...

Oohhh....I want to play! Can I make hiss?? Those s's are definitely going to have to look like snakes, maybe with arrowhead shapes on the ends.

Carol E. said...

Tracey beat me to hissss. So I'll do clank in extra angular. Well, I'll try. If I totally fail at this I'll scream for help. (Appropriate, under the circumstances, don't you think?)

Unknown said...

I've been reading your blog off and on for a while now and have been meaning to try your letters so this gives me the opportunity to give it a shot. The word that jumped to mind is squeek but with a few more e's. Does that sound ok? This is going to fun and a good learning experience.

Sharon said...

Oooo, I want to play too! How about if I do "wooooo"? Its late tonight, so I can't come up with anything about fonts. Later? Or assign me something!

Millie said...

I want to do a word. Can I do shriek or slither or cackle?

Honeybee Quilter said...

How about bang in a big font. Grunt. Rattle. Howl.

Anonymous said...

Fun idea!!! Can I do "grr"??

Anonymous said...

I forgot this, maybe a "grr" that's tall and skinny and leaning??

Beena said...

I might try "moan". Can I mix big and small letters? I'd either try it with the "O" larger than the rest of the letters, or have the letters all gradually getting bigger. Can you give us a deadline?

Cher said...

I am in- argh....big...leaning as well.and I am still going to do a name block..just still very hectic in my life right now.

rondiquilts said...

Has anyone taken slither? If not I want it! Or just assign me a word. This will be fun!

Rondi

Dionne said...

Ok, I'm in. I'll take 'HOWL' in a thin growing font, but you might want to get a backup for my word because I seem to have brain freeze when it comes to letters. I love them, I try them but somehow I haven't transcended into the legible yet! But, practice right! I'm in for howl!
Cheers,
Dionne

Katie said...

Oh, I want to play. I want to use my variation of cutting off the outside of the letters, various sizes and angles and having them touch each other. Any word would be wonderful. You pick.

Katie said...

This is Katie again. Would Trick or Treat be okay?

Rachael said...

Of course I want to play -- how about slurp in rounded, curvy, slurpy letters?

ForestJane said...

Can I have snarl? It's not on your list. ;)

Straight up and down, I think.

I also need your snail-mail addy.

Lynda said...

I'd like to do gurgle, and I'll try and do it rounded and fat, just like water swirling round the and going down the plughole!

Nat Palaskas said...

Am I too late? I would like to play too please, but I only made one letter so far...! I would do Kitty please? Is that Halloween? You know like a cat with K instead of C

Valerie said...

Hope I'm not too late. This isn't a word you posted, but what about "hoot"? Would that be acceptable? Probably rounded as much as possible (because that's how I think of an owl's eyes).

Wilene said...
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