Eclipse Charity Quilt: Nature

Nature by Joyce

You see it everywhere. Nature taking its course - hunter and prey, the endless cycle of life and death. And yet, you don't see the fish trying to plant a kiss on the eagle. You never see that. -Jacob Black, Eclipse, page 109

I read and re-read the section of Eclipse where Bella visits Jacob and they talk on the beach. I drew what I thought it might have looked like, then searched through pictures of eagles and salmon. I combined elements from many pictures to create the eagle in the position I wanted.

The sky is a batik that varies in color. It is one of my favorites. I used a darker batik for the water and sewed the two together. The beach came next, and I added some curves to give the feel of waves coming ashore. Having finished the foundation, I started cutting out the characters and details.

Bella is black with a treble clef design. Jacob is black with a 'furry' design. I drew the tree freehand and adjusted it to curve and turn with the designs on the fabric where possible.

The fish was drawn freehand and is a batik fabric which goes from yellows to purples. The eagle has many fabrics and is layered. I used Lite Steam A Seam 2 to attach everything and sewed where I wanted a bit more detail. The eye of the eagle is a french knot.

I think this is probably my favorite block. I really like how it turned out and hope you do, too.