I had the opportunity to be at the La Conner Museum the day before the closing of Best of the Festival, the exhibit which featured my art quilt Nature’s Fractal. The museum occupies the historic Gaches Mansion which has been lovingly restored and maintained and is quite a treat to walk through. Sybil, the well-informed […]
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Last Box of the Season
Shooting Star CSA delivered their final box of farm-fresh vegetables for the season this week. The Romanesco cauliflower looks too beautiful to eat! The rest of the box looks just as tasty and has me looking forward to the 2014 season.
Arts Guild of Sonoma
I’m delighted to share that I’ve been invited by Carol Larson to participate in the 2013 Arts Guild of Sonoma December Invitational. Carol is a member of the Arts Guild of Sonoma and was able to invite one guest artist for this annual exhibit. Oakleaf Hydrangea II will have its first public viewing in a […]
Fabric Postcards
When I signed on to trade with two groups of Postmark’d Art, I thought I had a good idea about what I wanted to do. As so often happens, though, the ideas kept coming and the postcards I finally created are somewhat different — though I am very happy with them. They also turned out […]
IQA Part III – Quilts and Retail Therapy
Here are a final few quilts that stood out for me, starting with a hand quilted and embroidered Tree of Life by Betty Alderman. This tribute to the military by veteran Catherine Zeleny was especially touching. The Veteran’s Home depicts the architecture of the building in Yountville, California, and the machine embroidery lists US wars, […]
IQA: Old, New and Wanna-be Friends
Thousands gathered in Houston for the 39th annual IQA Festival, most with the goal of seeing all 1300+ quilts, 1000+ vendors and taking in as many of the 380 classes as is practical. My goal was quilts first, selected vendors (I always have a short list) second, then 2 lectures. It’s always fun to find […]
International Quilt Festival Houston, 2013
The plane ride to Houston was a bit rocky and I had a 2-hour layover in Albuquerque so I was glad to have Linda Lee Peterson’s latest page turner, The Devil’s Interval as my companion. If you enjoy murder mysteries and smart women with real flaws, this book should make its way to your must-read […]
Keep Calm and Carry On
I recently experienced another birthday and received a card which now holds a front-and-center place in my studio. The front of the card has a birthday cake at the top (replacing the Queen’s crown) followed by KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON in white lettering on red background. The greeting: “Relax. Make a wish! It’s just […]
Watercolor 101
I’ve been attending a beginning watercolor class at Merritt College since August. I enjoyed the journal-style sketching and watercolor classes with Jane LaFazio (see the Sketch/Watercolor category for posts on those classes) so much that I thought something more ‘formal’ would improve my skills, especially mixing and using color. Instructor Pablo Villicana Lara is soft-spoken, […]
Studio Tour with PIQF
The annual Pacific International Quilt Festival at the Santa Clara Convention Center was held October 17-20. One of their events this year was to provide a tour of local artist studios. I was honored to be asked to participate this year along with fellow artist Alice Beasley. I thoroughly enjoyed having 45 visitors in my […]
Sketching on the Road
I was in Ashland, OR, recently enjoying some of the plays and the great food and I took a quiet moment for myself to do a bit of sketching and watercolor painting. This is one of three ceramic chickens that Pat uses on her dining table. This one was medium-sized and the most colorful of […]
Open House at Shooting Star CSA
This is the second year that we have subscribed to Shooting Star CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) and the first year we’ve been able to attend one of their open house events. It was a beautiful day to drive up into the wine country to see where our weekly box of fruit and vegetables are grown. […]
Second Chances
We all need them at one time or another. And aren’t we thrilled when we get a second chance to do the right thing? Well, I’ve gotten one! Last June I shared an embarrassing moment in the garden when I mistook a soon-to-be Western Swallowtail butterfly for a tomato worm and killed it. I was […]
Awards!
I always feel that having my work accepted for a juried and judged exhibit is reward enough. So I was excited when I learned that my two first-time entries for the La Conner Quilts & Textile Museum exhibit were accepted. A few days ago I received emails informing me that both pieces were award winners! […]
Wordless Wednesday
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Oakleaf Hydrangea II Fini
Deadlines can be a good thing. I’m not keen on short-term deadlines or a constant stream of deadlines, but an occasional deadline can spur completion of a project which might otherwise remain on the design wall for a very long time. It is easy for me — one who loves every step in the process […]
Progress on Oakleaf Hydrangea II
I’ve completed the quilting on the center portion of this piece and have begun quilting the border. As often happens to me, I have a plan when I start but as I work, more ideas come to mind. I have learned to listen to the conversation that begins between myself and the work. I’m always […]
Recovered and Recycled
The chair is back with its new seat cover. I am very pleased with how the light-colored fabric brightens the room. This nubby cotton fabric was used to create a window seat cushion in the bedroom. And here is the former seat cover recycled into a pillow. There’s nothing like wool needlepoint work to last […]
Bay Bridge Eastern Span Complete!
It has been almost 24 years since a portion of the Bay Bridge was brought down by the Loma Prieta earthquake in October 1989 and 11 years since the construction of a new Eastern span began. The new span connects Oakland to Yerba Buena Island and includes the world’s largest self-anchored suspension bridge. To complete […]
SAQA 2013 Auction
There are 421 opportunities for you to add to or begin your art quilt collection when the on-line SAQA 2013 Benefit Auction begins on Monday, September 9th at 2:00 PM Eastern Time and concludes on Sunday, September 29 at 2:00 PM Eastern. SAQA’s Benefit Auction is its largest fundraiser and SAQA’s biggest income source after […]
Oakleaf Hydrangea II Under the Needle
I completed this quilt top in May and have had it on my design wall while I thought about how to quilt it. Having decided upon a plan, I got down to the business of quilting a few days ago. Unfortunately, a ‘quilting romp’ — as my friend Jenny Lyon would call it […]
Wordless Wednesday
Boots
When traveling, I like to find something that will help to bring home the fond memories of a destination enjoyed. In April I attended a SAQA conference in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The first day there I took a cooking class at the Santa Fe School of Cooking. Creating those recipes at home has been […]
Quilt Named and More Sketching
I asked for suggestions for naming the quilt I completed last week and received many ideas. I particularly liked the suggestion of Branching Out from my friend Carol Larson. Capturing the obvious (a tree branch) and the allusion to my trying something new with the quilting hit the spot for me. The on-line class I’m […]
Finis But Untitled
The quilting is done and here it is being blocked. The lighting and angle were not ideal for this photograph so it’s difficult to discern the checkerboard of light/dark thread used in the quilting. A detail shot shows the thread change more clearly. But then, I did say I wanted a subtle background. So this […]
Back to Quilting
While all the sketching has been going on I’ve had an in-progress quilt on my design wall. Very often my projects sit on the wall while I decide on how to proceed with the next step. In this case, the next step was how to quilt the piece. Finally! Inspiration bubbled up to the top. […]
Another Drawing
I worked parts of several days this week on a page intended to introduce me to collage. Yesterday I was so unhappy with what I had that I tossed it out. I may or may not go back to that lesson and see what I can do with it. Meanwhile, I sketched and painted another […]
Acceptance!
Two of my art quilts have been accepted for this year’s Quilt & Fiber Arts Festival at La Conner Quilt & Textile Museum in La Conner, Washington. This is the first time I’ve entered my work for consideration. The museum attracts an international audience and I’m thrilled to have Nature’s Fractal and Forget Me Not, […]
8 Techniques, Page 2
Skidding to the finish line of this week, I have completed a second page using the 8 techniques of focus in Jane’s Sketching & Watercolor in a Mixed Media Journal class. A week always seems like plenty of time to complete several pages for one lesson. The problem is that I’ve never mastered the art […]
This and That
Where to begin. There are many things in progress here. After all, it’s July — the height of summer. Our side yard with the succulent plantings is filling in nicely. Here’s a close up of one panel The male oriole and his entire family — 2 chicks this year! — visit our feeder regularly. He […]
