To dream under water

We have a summer home in the skerries of the Oslo fjord. It is very small, only 37 m2, but has many smart solutions. This makes it possible for us to live there for longer periods of a time. One of the smart solutions is a box bed behind a curtain in the hallway. The curtain was a bit dreary, so I wanted to quilt a nice drape in front of the alcove.

The theme for the drape was “An under water dream”. It is made of a large piece of backing fabric, and measures 210x190cm. It has applications of fishes, sea turtles, mussels, starfishes, corals, kelp and seaweeds. The aim was to make it dark enough to sleep behind the drape.

I have had the pleasure to snorkel with sea turtles twice in my life, and it is a magnificent experience. The last time I snorkelled with turtles, I was with my daughter, who were to sleep in the bed box. Thus, I wanted sea turtles on the drape. I found a nice pattern for the application of the sea turtles and sea weed, named "Follow me", designed by Carol. The pattern for the corals and the yellow and black fishes, is "Dolphin Bay" from Cornelia W. Carpenter.

Additionally, I found some pictures of various fish on the net, and made my own patterns (see pictures below). I particularly enjoyed making the clown fishes.

I also loved to make the turtles. In the original pattern, the turtle in front was looking behind to the other turtles, as to urge them to follow him. I wanted the turtle in front to look at the fishes in the foreground, to focus the attention on the minor details on the curtain (see pictures below).

The drape hangs in a narrow corridor, which makes it difficult to make an overview picture. I have tried, and if you see the two pictures below in relation, it gives an idea of how the curtain is put together.

 

The drape works as a charm, and nobody can see that there is a box bed behind it. Additionally, it gives a lot of colour and atmosphere to our summer home.