Blog
If only I could show the quilting world how cool and versatile trapunto can be…. I am one step closer to maybe, maybe, maybe making an on-demand trapunto class a reality. I finished one sample this week. There are (hopefully) many to follow. This piece shows a very traditional approach to trapunto. I’ll be creating samples that show it is perfect for statement quilts, Modern quilts, home decor, wall quilts – it is so useful! Tada, my finished traditional trapunto sampler: The trapunto adds incredible dimension. The photo below of the piece wet from removing marks shows the dimension beautifully:…
Sometimes you have to work on life stuff instead of creating, sigh. Every moment seems to be filled, but I don’t have a lot to show for it yet. Three life things have taken my attention and I’m working on two creative things in between: Life: Shoes. I’m working on shoes. Shoes that don’t hurt my damaged feet. We are way beyond the “shoes that are cute” phase. Now it’s shoes-that-are-cute-and-don’t-hurt-my-feet-and-have-room-for-inserts phase. Comfort shoes that work for others do not work for me. I have re-shoed 3 times in the last 2 years. Until these 2 successes, I had 1…
I am overwhelmed at the moment; too many things have happened in a short time period. Nothing bad, nothing dramatic, just too. much. I switched from Android to Iphone last week and that consumed days. It’s not an easy transition. Rule: pleeeeease don’t tell me how much I’m going to love my iphone. It’s. a. phone. And reeeeally don’t tell me how easy it is. It’s a foreign language. Yes, I’m grumpy. I do want this phone; there are things I want that it has. I made the right choice for me overall, but what a huge time suck. I’d…
I am playing catch up with Real Life after getting back from the Minnesota show. My Spring was jam packed from beginning to end and now it’s time to start conquering the more mundane things around the house and my studio like mending quilt sleeves that have been damaged. I do have a few things to catch up about: I didn’t write about judging the San Mateo County Fair late May. I don’t know how many quilts there were in total, but there were 6 quilt judges and I judged about 50. I’m guessing then that there were around 300…
NOTE: This is a long post, photo heavy with fabulous eye candy. New readers, you can automatically get my weekly blog post plus more content in my newsletter, my preferred source if you are interested in following me. My weekly newsletter includes that week’s blog post, a Quilt of the Week, an article about something in the textile/art/quilt world of interest, my schedule, and….my snort laugh of the week. I make SURE my newsletter is not all about me. It’s fun! You can sign up here if you wish. I recently attended the Minnesota Quilt Show (MQS), an annual show…
NOTE: I’m traveling to Minnesota next week to help with judging (volunteer, not judge) of the Minnesota Quilt Show as part of my training for my Quilt Judge Certification. I won’t be putting out a newsletter this Saturday and no blog post or newsletter next week. I clicked on one….. I clicked on one upcycle/redo of a men’s shirt and the floodgates opened! There are LOTS of people doing this. It’s amazing the creativity that is shared on social; this is social at its best. I asked loooooong retired Hubby if he had any dress shirts that I could use…
The Loomis Quilt and Fiber Guild always puts on a good show with a wide variety of genres. This year’s Featured Quilter was Tamera Failla whose work runs the gamut from art quilts to garments to quilts and other ephemera that suits her fancy. This is just a small selection of her work shown at the show: There was a lot of special work in this year’s show, pieces that had meaning and memories behind them. I wish I could add write ups about each, as each has a story: I hope you enjoyed the show! Visit in person next…
I visited the Beach Cities Quilters Guild last week and enjoyed some lovely weather and a large and creative guild. The Guild has around 300 members and there was a great turn out for my lecture: Yes, that is Jean Impey front row, second from right. We have crossed paths at a variety of venues, but never met. It was great to meet her. I was pleased with the strong response to my “Imperfection” lecture. This was the snack table – oh my! Every month has a theme and the chairperson asks for small quilts to fit the theme. This…
Well this week’s trip was a true adventure. I taught a two- day free motion class to 18 students and also lectured to the Hi Desert Quilt Guild, a rousing guild! And surprise, surprise, I was invited to an 80th birthday party, plus I caught the first half of the local orchestra’s concert that featured youth talent. Wow, who knew? Traveling to teach and lecture holds its surprises. The Hi Desert Guild is in Ridgecrest, CA, in the Mohave Desert and home to the China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station. Interesting stats (these may be a bit off; I’m going…
I have a very well developed skill of taking something simple and making it complex. Here I go again. I’m going to be taking a Quilt Coat class with my local guild, the Folsom Quilt and Fiber Guild. The instructor, Diane Karna, sent out directions for prep work before class. The idea was to take an old quilt and cut it up. I grabbed this photo from Diane’s site, an example of the pattern we will be using. I wrote about my process last week that led me to a beautiful piece of hand dyed silk that I had pre-quilted…