Quilting in a New Medium

DH built me a fence, but it is really a tall screen behind which I can hide the garden tools, wheelbarrows, recycling, garbage can...all the detritus of household and landscape management.  We have a faux pond, which we built to catch runoff when we have our occasional gully-washers.  It is a landscape feature with plantings in and around it.  The junkyard behind it was not attractive and spoiled the whole picture.  The fence is doing its job, but was boring and stood out like a sore thumb with its bright, fresh wood.  Odd looking.

I gathered up some flat slabs of old, gray wood that have been lying around the yard for years and years.  I arranged them on the fence and DH attached them.  The fencing is a calm, repetitive background, but too bright.  The irregular, weathered slabs added interest reminiscent of a modern quilt, and toned down the brilliance, but it still lacked something.

 It needed some quilting!

My grandfather bought this cabin in 1938.  He built a little porch where the view is best and put up 3 inch poles around it as rails.  Then he collected a lot of shapely, mountain driftwood and painted it brown like the house.  He nailed all the driftwood pieces to the poles instead of regular balusters to keep us kids from falling off the porch.  Several years ago we built a new, much larger deck across the house and those pieces of driftwood have been sitting around with nothing to do.  What better use for them than to "quilt" my fence....and so I did!  They add texture, contrast and design.  It is all a bit funky, but fun.  It has meaning to my family.  It is functional.  I love it.

"Quilted Fence"

Now, for some big, metal butterflies to add the final touch.  I'll know them when I see them.

Showing a bit of the faux pond, wildflowers and iris.

Try something in a different medium this week.  Broaden your horizons.  Have fun.