shoot the moon

Final crazy eight

2012-02-12T10:28:00.000-08:00

I restored some organization in the studio. All the solids are back on the shelves. Gee, what a BIG stash!

shelves of solids

If I'd only known before I got another crazy eight collection. I could've stopped at the six yards of black for the next workshop. But you know how one thing leads to another. Since I was at it, got some other colors, too. Might as well.

final crazy eight

The latest stack of Moda Bella Solids: Baby Yellow (good light), Buttercup, Willow (good neutral), Betty Red, Purple, Peacoat (very inky dark) and Black. The last crazy eight collection.

Until I use up a lot of fabrics. Unless I have a yen for a particular color. Unless I find a new cool color . . . You know how exceptions do crop up.

Just right

2012-02-11T16:44:00.000-08:00

I went back to the drawing board but kept returning to my conumdrum with the quarter circle. I had to resolve it.

first one is too wide

second one is too tight

third one is just right

Like Goldilocks I kept trying until I found the right fit. Goes to show it pays to be s~~tubborn~~ tenacious.

Trial & error

2012-02-06T22:36:00.000-08:00

I feel like a film director. Actors are following the script but the results are unexpected.

On the left - lost curve & on the right - found curve

Planning gets me only so far. Then I must test the plan - sew it up. Perserverance (i.e. stubborness) helps. So considering the varied results for part 1, I did a trial run of part 2 using the goofed square.

part 2 trial - white only

Gee, I had a stronger impact in mind. Back to the drawing board.

First Friday favorite photo - February

2012-02-03T00:01:00.000-08:00

Day in the studio

2012-01-31T14:39:00.000-08:00

. . . to further explore circles.

I goofed the first one.

A more systematic approach for the next one. Systematic means less prone to error. At least it gave me an approach for the next quarter circle.

Took most of the day for one quarter circle - about 20" square. A long term project is in my future.

Guild show

2012-01-26T11:48:00.000-08:00

Very spring-like yesterday. Yet I was indoors clearing e-mails, catching up on paperwork, and cleaning up everywhere. I did manage a late afternoon hour in the garden pulling weeds. Some things can't wait.

My two submissions for the guild show can't wait either - they're due Monday.

Orange Rhyme

lap quilt

EBHQ's bi-annual show, Voices in Cloth, will be on March 17th and 18th at the Craneway Pavilion in Richmond, CA. The pavilion is an award winning former Ford assembly plant - a soaring space with skylights and big windows with views of San Francisco Bay. I'm very excited about this new venue - a welcome change from the downtown convention center.

The show is non-juried, but the caliber of work is amazing. Terrific quilters in the guild - award winners too. Am I lucky to be in such a good group, or what? We'll showcase more than 200 quilts. Get a flavor by watching the slide show of November's Show and Tell.

Come for the quilts, for the show, for the view, for the architecture and for the history. Come say hello.

New circles

2012-01-24T09:50:00.000-08:00

Piecing circles with straight lines again.

on the wall

Circles differently from this or these. And discovering possibilities.

Crazy Eight 2

2012-01-23T12:33:00.000-08:00

Are you missing the old Monthly Solids Club as much as I am?

Pink Chalk Fabrics now has a Charming Solids Club - a combo of charm packs of prints with coordinating fat eighths of solids. This variation doesn't work for me.

For my December withdrawal I selected my own eight solids - previously posted here. So this month I'm self-medicating again.

From top to bottom, these Moda Bella Solids (I love the hand of this line): (1) Fig Tree Olive, (2) Hay, (3) Paper Bag, (4) Dark Teal, (5) Weathered Teak, (6) Earth, (7) Golden Wheat and (8) Fig Tree Wheat.

They weren't stacked in packing list order, so I'm not sure I matched the colors - except for the olive and teal - to the fabrics correctly. The Weathered Teak especially doesn't live up to its name nor to its online image.

Oh well. Next time: a wider range of colors for easier identification. If there is a next time. I still have hope that Pink Chalk Fabrics will have another monthly solids option.

Went south, going north & an opportunity for you

2012-01-22T16:12:00.000-08:00

Thursday I went south for Road to California in Ontario. Warmth and sunshine!

I thought everybody else would be at work on a weekday. Instead quilters were out in force and chomping at the bit on opening day, which meant a 40-minute line to the ticket booth. From the entrance you can’t even see the end of the line which ended out on the street sidewalk.

ticket line

I was there for a photo op with Orange Rhyme which hung in Ricky Tim's All That Jazz exhibition.

Orange Rhyme and me

Seeing is believing. Silly me. See an online slide show of the entire exhibition here.

I also met with Annette Guerrero. Always great talking with a friend, roommate and fellow Crow Barn workshop participant. After lunch she help me find my way to the quilts amongst the many vendors.

Seeing others’ work always inspire me. I ended the long day by squeezing in an hour in my studio when I got home.

Then at the end of February, I'm heading north > brrr!< to Indianola, WA again for another workshop with Nancy Crow - Potpourri: a Challenging Variety of Compositional Exercises. That same week from 2/27 to 3/2 she's also offering Improvisations: Let’s Experiment!.

Turns out there are two last minute openings. Interested in this opportunity? Contact me for more info.

Artist in training

2012-01-15T13:06:00.000-08:00

About halfway done with the 3,000 almond trees to prune before they bloom in mid-February.

pruned branches on ground between rows of trees

Since November I've been helping out in the orchard. I've lost count how many I've pruned. Maybe half. This city girl has gone country.

Some trees are saplings. A few snips and they're done. Easy peasy. The bigger ones are tougher.

I was a pruner in training for the first few rows. After a few hundred trees, I'm surer and faster. Pruning is as much about the eye as it is about the physicality of the cut.

after

before

Sometimes it's really obvious which branches must go. Other times I must choose. The difference may be subtle. Yet I know I've chosen wisely when the tree lets out a nearly audible sigh of relief.

How does this relate to quilting? Nancy Crow always advises her students to do the exercises again and again, to compose many many quilt tops.

Only by repetition does the body and mind learn. As with pruning, so it is with quilting. Quantity does count.

Train the quilter. Train the eye. Train the artist.

First Friday favorite photo - January

2012-01-06T16:21:00.000-08:00

While preparing for a workshop last fall, I re-discovered photos scattered on multiple flash drives and computers. So one goal this year is to organize all my photos on a portable hard drive.

If I share one with you each month, I will come face to face with the disorganization and be compelled to do something about it. That's the idea anyway.

This one is special because it's the first favorite I re-found (not a quick and easy search).

I'll post monthly through the end of the year irregardless. The next one will be on February 3rd.

New center

2012-01-05T16:08:00.000-08:00

re-quilted center

Compare this to before. Less thread contrast. Repeated lines stitched elsewhere. No more doubts. About the quilting anyway. Ready to move on to squaring, facing, and sleeve.

Questionable center

2011-12-31T21:56:00.000-08:00

I've finished quilting the piece I started here and here half a year ago. Saved the center for last.

I'm very happy with the quilting everywhere but the center. Is it the quilt lines or thread color? Or both? So I'm setting it aside. Allow time and distance for a fresh view. Or a clue to redo.

Crazy eight

2011-12-26T19:51:00.000-08:00

The monthly solids club at Pink Chalk Fabrics will morph into a new version debuting in January 2012 (less than a week away!). They'd feature a charm pack of prints with coordinating solids. Don't despair yet fellow solids fans.

"A Solids Stack of the Month will be available for purchase each month in the shop similar to what is being offered now in the club - it just won't be an auto-ship."

Let's hope they'd offer the stack in 1-yard cuts.

With no shipment in December, and especially with the holidays, I needed my monthly fix. So I picked eight Moda Bella Solids. Here's what I got from top to bottom: Fig Tree Apricot, Lime, Betty's Orange, Tan, Rust, Horizon Blue, Stone and Kansas Troubles Red.

Hmm - not so pretty, eh?
What about this group?

Prettier restacked. Presentation does makes a difference, doesn't it?

Choices at a brick-and-mortar shop might've been different from these chosen online. I'm adding to my stash, not using them together. Otherwise I'd go crazy picking the perfect eight.

No bargain

2011-12-19T13:38:00.000-08:00

batting was stacked atop of solid black fabric.

bunnies under the table after sandwiching the quilt.

I’d picked up the batting at the East Bay Depot for Creative Reuse for a bargain. Soft, silky and lightweight. No packaging, no brand. I suspect a bamboo blend. Turns out this was no bargain after all.

blue masking tape frame around test square to contain the lint

underside of quilt top

I cleaned up the lint as best I could and re-built the sandwich with another batting. Back to tried and true. Save the experimentation and unknown for another day.

Backward progress

2011-12-18T17:46:00.000-08:00

Steps backwards to move forward.

2011-12-07T16:49:00.000-08:00

I’m lounging about in my pj’s eating bon-bons and watching day-time soap operas. Not!

The first month of retirement past quickly. A week handling personal business. One week out of town pruning an almond orchard.

Another week of deferred housekeeping.

The rest zoning out, recovery and r&r. Where did that time go? Haven’t seen that full time studio artist yet.

Plans are afoot to be a stationary nomad. Rooms will trade spaces: studio with the guest bedroom, and my bedroom with the home office. The bathrooms are slated for a long overdue remodel. Retiring means making changes in other areas too.

Though I still haven’t cleaned up after Hurricane Elena, the state of domesticity allows some guilt-free time in the studio.

Four years after my very first quilt top, I now have a lap quilt.

Just in time for the guild’s annual Show-and-Tell in November. Orange Rhyme also got another moment in the limelight. A slide show will be posted here.

Just a peek at another project in the works.

Discipline or structure

2011-11-03T16:40:00.000-07:00

When my friend called me disciplined just because I go to the gym three times a week and to tai chi every Saturday morning, I laughed. Ha! Me disciplined?

I don't swim endless laps, run miles around the track, or lift tons of weights. The main attraction is the hot tub! Ahhh! Soothing hot water! All other activities are secondary. Monday is Restorative Yoga. Very passive. Very restful. Very calming. Friday or Saturday is aerobics and weight machines. I fit in stretches and crunches here and there and more tai chi if a room's free. No pain. No stress. No sweat. Enough of that elsewhere.

I say it's structure, not discipline. It's a framework around which I schedule all other activities after work. Regularity works well for me. Limited free time means I avoid over committing. At least to a certain degree.

In two weeks I won't have to worry so much about limited time. How will I structure my whole day then? Can I maintain hours in the studio, not lose it to non-creative activities, yet still get other things done? Hmm. The new frame of mind calls for a new framework.

How do you do it? How do you safeguard your studio time?

Aftermath

2011-10-24T14:54:00.000-07:00

Hurricane Elena hit almost two months ago. We interviewed the artist most affected by this disaster:

This place was tight quarters before. Now with this devastation it's almost impossible to get any work done. And clean up too? Very discouraging.

buried

I've been thinking about moving and this was just the impetus I needed. I found a bigger space with higher ceilings, better natural light and more wall space. When that's ready I'd be very happy to get working again.

Well, there you have it: a positive opportunity from disaster. We'll check back with the artist in a few weeks. Stay tuned.

Photo op

2011-10-19T16:53:00.000-07:00

Despite enough photos of my own quilt, I asked my friend, Joyce, to take one of me next to Orange Rhyme in the special exhibit, New Quilts of Northern California, at PIQF (Pacific International Quilt Festival).

Proof it was there. Proof I saw it there. That feels kinda weird.

Rhyming again

2011-10-12T15:46:00.000-07:00

Orange Rhyme

Woot! Woot!

Ricky Tims has selected Orange Rhyme for All That Jazz: Improvisational Quilts exhibition during the Road to California show held at the Ontario Convention Center, January 19-22, 2012.

Woot! Woot!

Compounded & confounded

2011-10-11T17:34:00.000-07:00

Curves Sampler

The Bride & the Batchelors - Wild Bride

Two weeks at the Crow Timber Barn - 5:30am to 11pm days - compounded by a three-hour shift from Pacific to Eastern time has turned life topsy turvy and my usually disordered household into a disaster zone. Small price for priceless workshops.

First week - Lines Curves Circles and Figure Ground, Part 1 - was the least stressful workshops I've ever taken from Nancy Crow. I didn't finish all the exercises, but gained much confidence piecing curves. A terrific time making these too.

breakdown screen print

resist on silk

Second week - Layers upon Layers with Carol Soderlund - was a enticing exploration of surface design techniques which also cemented dyeing knowledge gained in True Colors last fall. The starch resist and breakdown screen printing are my favs.

resist on undercloth & direct resist on pimatex

The bags under my eyes are receding. My pants are not worn backwards. I'm back at work and recovering from these exciting times. If I find those papers I'd stashed somewhere safe, life would return to normal.

Dreamy two

2011-09-16T10:45:00.000-07:00

I’m setting up at the Barn. Other workshop participants doing the same. Or they’re meeting new friends and reuniting with old. Atmosphere is electric with energy.

With a sinking heart I realized I’ve no boxes of fabrics. Uh oh. I can visualize them in the studio all ready to go.

It’s bad. Nancy tells me I can’t be in the workshop without materials. No point in being there if I can’t do the work. But . . . but . . . She says I have to leave. Waah! At least she takes a little pity and gets flight info for me. I don’t want to go. Waah!

Don’t worry. Just another variation of going to the first day of school in pajamas. I've had this type of dream before. A sequel to yesterday's Dreamy one from 2009. Okay. Worry.

After these heart pounding ~~nightmares~~ dreams, I prepare. Fabrics packed, labels printed, boxes ready to drop off. But I forgot - out of sight out of mind. Drove off without them this morning. Thank goodness for a sweetheart. He'll bring them to me in exchange for lunch. A small price to pay.

Dreamy one

2011-09-15T10:52:00.000-07:00

It’s the first day of another workshop at the Barn.

But it's a different setup, smaller room, smaller tables. Only one empty spot with large window but very short design wall below it.

I suddenly realized why it seemed I was travelling so light. I didn't ship nor pack supplies! Attempted to get my sweetheart at home to gather them & send pronto. What’s on the supply list? Where will he find them? When will it get here?

Didn’t see my roommate. But there is a three-tiered bleacher with people including some former classmates. Roommate arrives in furry outfit befitting a rock star but she doesn’t recognize me.

As the day ends, I realize I didn’t cancel the other hotel reservations. Whoops! Extra costs for one night’s lodging.

At least I wasn’t in my pajamas. Nor barefoot or in slippers. Not this time.

Rhyme & reason

2011-09-08T21:37:00.000-07:00

Orange Rhyme

Today I started out feeling tired and overwhelmed. But after focusing and crossing off multiple to-dos, I was feeling quite accomplished.

Then to top it off, I received an acceptance letter. Orange Rhyme will be at the Pacific International Quilt Festival as part of the New Quilts of Northern California exhibit.

Woot! Woot! I'm rhyming with orange!

Work two, play half

2011-09-07T13:38:00.000-07:00

After chores Saturday and Sunday, Monday was a day for rest and relaxation. I caught Picasso, Masterpieces from the Musee National Picasso, Paris at the de Young Museum in San Francisco.

There's no question about Picasso's place in the pantheon of modern art. But afterwards I was hungry for color and expressive brushwork.

Picasso

Compare that to these Bay Area Figuratives.

David Park Two Bathers

Elmer Bischoff

Which do you prefer?

The rest of the day was lost to computer time. Really lost. After three hours and much frustration, my computer seized. Yikes! I prayed feverishly for recovery. It did, but it was a sign to back up everything. Eschewed the online system and called customer service. A live person and a quick successful transaction!

Whew! The whole experience left me beaten and pummeled! Watering the garden and washing the car will wait for another day.

Proclamation

2011-08-23T20:32:00.000-07:00

The secret is out. Told my manager today. After 19 years plus, I am retiring from life at the office. Countdown to the last work day of November 15th, 2011: 84.

I shall be a full time artist. My! How well that resonates!

There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle; you can live as if everything is a miracle. - A. Einstein

Many thanks to Guy Tal for that quote. Read about his journey to his creative sweet spot.

Cranky factors

2011-08-22T14:42:00.000-07:00

After Saturday night's dinner, my friend remarked that I always get cranky when I get together with my side of the family.

True.

I sewed a little gift for my mother's birthday. She tossed it aside with disgust.

I learned my sister doesn't keep in touch with my Chicago cousin even though they went together on a cruise of the Yangtze River a few years ago. Because of my cousin involvement with Hispanic friends, advocates of immigrants' rights.

I learned my sister's fiance won't travel to any third world countries. Not at all. Explains why my sister travelled with my cousin. Explains those hateful e-mails that my sister forwards.

Another sister remarked on the abundance of gray hair. Said it makes me look old. Told me to dye it. She'll turn 60 in October.

This same sister lives next door to my mother yet arrived without her. When questioned about my mother's tardiness, she jabbered excuses. And kept jabbering until I vanquished her into the restaurant while I waited outside.

That's half the family. The other half were too far across an immense round table in a noisy room to have a decent conversation.

Yes. I got cranky.

Washed out

2011-08-18T17:19:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a bust. I took the day off work to attend to four different things. But the universe did not cooperate, so only one of four done. It wasn't a total loss though. Watered the vegetable garden. Cleaned the laundry room (dye studio). Made a zucchini salad for dinner. Stretched in yoga class. A day of smaller accomplishments.

Here are the neutrals, out of their dye baths, dried and ironed. Colors are a bit washed out. I may not be using enough dye. Or it's the muslin.

The light gray cloth is from leftover dye solutions. Going for a solid, it was bagged to batch. But it developed a rectangular patch and a line with slightly different hue. It had laid atop the washer, near the west facing window where I'm guessing the top layer and fold might've dried out. Couldn't tell when it was wet.

But all is not loss here either. I learned four things: the color leanings from each combination; the dye-ability of the muslin; the unflat container bottom caused funny markings on the cloth; and to give a little more thought about the batch spot. A worthwhile experiment for my first time dyeing solo.

Washout!

2011-08-16T13:03:00.000-07:00

Can you hear the opening guitar sounds of Wipeout by the Surfaris? Don't know it? Watch and listen here. Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-a, washout! Sorry, this mind works in mysterious ways.

Today it's washout. No - it's not a total failure! The other definition: removal or erosion of something by water. You dyers know!

Yes'm! I finally dyed solo! Here're the bathing beauties.

Kinda dark. Kinda colorless. Eh?! They're supposed to be! It was an exercise to explore neutrals from three basic dye colors. Wait until they're done with their baths. Dried and ironed they'd be pretty as a ~~peach~~ plum! Stay tuned . . .

Reflecting life

2011-08-11T17:43:00.000-07:00

In a public place with a lot of luggage. More than I can carry. An important matter calls for me. I am torn. Left unattended, they may not be there later.

Anxiety. Awoken I realized I've had this dream before.

Trip tik

2011-08-01T17:06:00.000-07:00

A road trip is just the ticket for hand stitching.

I'd stitched on facings following Kathy Loomis' perfect faced quilt tute. Thanks to the three hour drive and quiet moments, hand stitching was finished before the return trip.

Attached the sleeve during minutes in the waiting room. Done! Yay! The birth of finished quilt no. 3.

New age

2011-07-29T12:24:00.000-07:00

One decade has passed. A new one begun.

I celebrated my 61st birthday last week. I hardly believe it. I feel like a kid. Yeah, sometimes act like one too. Until my body reminds me.

Heat wave

2011-07-07T13:22:00.000-07:00

The 3-day weekend was HOT HOT HOT! Walnut Creek – only 15 miles more inland - hit a record breaking 108°! Oakland was cooler yet too hot to be out. I retreated into the cave, aka studio.

And finished quilting another sandwich. Or so I thought. A decision made in the heat of the moment didn't look so hot. Blame it on the weather. The first tentative quilt lines looked good. But finished, not so. I'm learning.

Unstitched and stitched. Now it's on the design wall as I contemplate whether to stitch more, stitch less or face & finish it.

Support the cause

2011-06-28T11:57:00.000-07:00

My contribution to the Alzeheimer's Art Quilt Initiative – Twist & Turn, no. 6962 – is one of many for sale.

Waiting for directions

2011-06-27T16:35:00.000-07:00

No impetus like having guests to get cleaning. I made up for deferred housekeeping. In a few rooms at least.

With children I would feel obligated to set a good example. But I don't have any. So having people over is my incentive. At least once in a while. The house appreciates it too.

Before and after, betwixt and between, I quilted. And quilted. And quilted. More quilting begets faster stitching and better turns. It's about half done and up on the design wall.

I'm looking, listening, waiting for the quilt to tell me what's next.

Intentional intensity

2011-06-24T14:34:00.000-07:00

I've been quilting. Not as in designing or piecing. As in stitching quilt lines.

Intended lines about 3/16" apart. An hour to stitch a 3" wide swath. Five hours to exhaust a 100-meter spool of thread. Very intensive.

Only an hour at a spell. Maybe 25% quilted after eleven hours.

An adjustment. No change in intention. A change in intensity.

Birthday every month

2011-06-10T16:22:00.000-07:00

I'm getting a stuffed Priority Mail envelope each month.

Just look at the luscious blues in this month's little package.

I'd joined the Monthly Solids Club at Pink Chalk Fabrics.

At the beginning of each month, soon after an email notification, the package arrives. I don't know what colors, but always eight one-yard pieces with a card identifying each one.

When I go to the fabric shop, I'd stand in front of the solids for a long while trying to figure out what other color to buy. Yes, I do need more solids. There I'd be tempted by eye-candy prints. Or by nifty notions. Or by new patterns. Or by luscious silks. You get the picture. I'm avoiding temptation and relinquishing color selection to Pink Chalk.

I feel like a birthday girl each month. What a pleasant treat.

Cataract Falls

2011-06-07T13:08:00.000-07:00

In his Outdoor and Sunday Drive columns for the San Francisco Chronicle, Tom Stienstra (the one writer I read in the newspaper's Sports section) has extolled the trails to beautiful waterfalls in the Marin Watershed . Until recently, adequate rainfall, good weather and free time have never fortuitously coincided.

When a day of gorgeous weather popped up after a rainy day in the middle of Memorial weekend, I dropped everything and opted for a hike on the longest - 2 miles - and steepest - 750-foot climb - trail of the three – Cataract Trail.

Cataract Falls is not one long drop, like you may find in Yosemite, but a series of cascades, all more beautiful than these photos can reveal. A hobbit's stone house sits in a pool at the foot of one cascade.

Wildflowers bloomed along the trail.

The wildflowr at left with its hooks may have been the inspiration for Velcro.

A lizard takes advantage of the sun in the shelter of a hollowed out tree.

A respite in the picnic dell at the top. After two hours up the trail, sitting felt wonderful.

Another hour back down the trail and justification for a hearty meal.

A good day.

Give him a 10

2011-06-06T22:39:00.000-07:00

I ask for your help in supporting a friend. Vote for his $300 house concept:
http://www.jovoto.com/contests/300house/ideas/12790

The contest has only two days left. His idea ranked no. 11 last I looked.

An other pace

2011-06-06T13:30:00.000-07:00

Recently I returned to the Crow Barn for a workshop. In contrast to Nancy Crow's intensive pace, this was a relaxing week with Dorothy Caldwell.

We made marks – Human Marks – batiked, burned, discharged, drawn, pierced, printed, smoked, stamped and stitched.

I didn't get as far as making books from these marked pages, but here's my little handbound sample book.

Contemplative approaches. Meditative processes. Gestural marks. A wonderful change of pace.

I allowed myself the luxury of commuting alone. Not even the radio for company.

Under the needle

2011-05-06T16:14:00.000-07:00

I've been sewing with my Janome sitting atop the Gidget 2 table. Works for piecing. But when machine basting the sandwich, I discovered how much more bulk and weight I had to carry. Never mind the extra bulk and weight already around the middle.

It was time to really make use of the table I got last year. Fiddled with the platform height adjustment for an hour. Not because it was difficult. Because this older woman doesn't get up from the floor so easily. Because this finicky woman was re-engineering the height adjustment mechanism. After adding a second table in back for more support, I was set up.

I've mapped out quilting lines with pencil and paper. I've tested tension with small samples. I got into the groove of fmq. I was ready to start. This will be a lap quilt, so no heavy quilting. A couple of hours, right?

The first block: uneven stitches and uneven tension. > !@#$%^&*()_+! < Unstitched the rest of the first hour.

Off with the fmq foot! On with the walking foot! Oooh! Aaah! Sooo much better! Less fighting. Less tension. Another hour. I've quilted 5 of the 15 blocks. Called it a night, laid my gloves down and let the quilt be.

Say the word

2011-05-02T16:07:00.000-07:00

. . . and you'll be free
Say the word and be like me
Say the word I'm thinking of
Have you heard the word is . . .

procrastination! Dear readers think I am procrastinating?!

Nancy Crow uses that word often. When we are slow to get anything up on the design wall. When we take frequent breaks. When we reach for that comforting piece of chocolate once again. When we've little to show since our last workshop. When we let life get in the way of art and quilting.

What is the definition of procrastination? According to Piers Steel, PhD the author of The Procastination Equation: to voluntarily delay an intended course of action despite expecting to be worse-off for the delay.

Do I procrastinate? Yes. 95% do to some extent. 15 to 20% consistently and problematically. That last certainly doesn't apply to me. Nope!

Why do I procrastinate? According to his TMT (Temporal Motivation Theory) of procrastination: motivation = expectancy x value / impulsiveness x delay. So what does that mean?

You're more likely to procrastinate when you are less proficient; when the task is more unpleasant or you have less need for achievement; when you are more distractible, impulsive or have less self control; and when the goal is in the distant future. One definite Yes. Two Maybes. One No.

Steel offers two quizzes to determine your procrastination profile. Complete with tips to tame it. How helpful! I'll take the quiz tomorrow.

Procrastinate now, don’t put it off. - Ellen DeGeneres

Deeper water

2011-04-29T18:30:00.000-07:00

Nothing beckons more on a hot hot day than a pool of shimmering water. Much as I would like to jump right on in, I hesitate. More likely to sink than swim. Same with quilting. Six sandwiches but no quilting. Not yet. I'm in the pool but head out of the water and feet on the bottom.

After seven workshop weeks with Nancy Crow, I feel better about design & composition, color choices and piecing skills. Fine and good if I were only making quilt tops, but developmentally lopsided. What if I made a masterpiece today? Unlikely though that may be. I'd be totally stymied by underdeveloped techniques, a plethora of choices and a lack of confidence.

I'm working on this lopsidedness. First: the sandwiches. Then choices: thread, quilting lines, and fmq. Where to start? Which sandwich first? Daunting challenges!

Focus and choose. I'm starting with the very first quilt top I ever made – the one that catapulted me into this quilting adventure three years ago. It's the largest one dimensionally of the six sandwiches. No heavy quilting at least. It'd be a lap quilt. But thread? Quilting lines? Walking foot or free motion?

Just choose. Let go of perfectionism. Wabi-sabi. I'm making my way toward deeper waters.

Sandwiches

2011-04-13T10:55:00.000-07:00

Been making sandwiches. Don't salivate yet. Not for eating - for quilting.

Six tops. Pressed & measured. Backs & batting. Sandwiched & pin basted. Vamoosed the pins after re-basting with water soluable thread. An assembly line.

Gathered and put away tools and supplies once. Cleared design wall and worktable once. Cleanup is always a B I G deal.

Et voilà! A new milestone. Six sandwiches to go. Got things done. I like that. Threads and stitches next.

Architectural inspirations

2011-04-07T12:17:00.000-07:00

This multi-story building is under construction and has changed the Oakland skyline. I see it from the freeway nearly every day. I can even see it when I'm at the gym a mile away.

Located not far from the San Andreas fault, the new Kaiser Hospital will have lots of structural bracing. Reminds me of Colleen's quilt, Looking Through The Lens.

Two more views of the skeletal structure. Inspirations for lines shapes motifs colors and compositions.

Changed and trimmed

2011-04-04T15:09:00.000-07:00

I left it this piece from the recent workshop on the design wall.

With a little distance and after many viewings, I see some room for improvements. A few changes and some trimming. Now it's really ready for quilting.

No fooling

2011-04-01T15:49:00.000-07:00

I got my income tax returns done today. Really! No April's fool!

You usually hear a lot of moaning from me this time of year. I've taken a more positive stance. Be more adult 'cuz crying doesn’t help.

So for the past week I’ve hunkered down with receipts, spreadsheets, 1098s, 1099s, schedule. I pulled it all together for my appointment with the accountant this morning. Whew! That’s done! Now let’s get back to art!

Squaring up

2011-03-29T19:07:00.000-07:00

Extra fabric hangs around the edges of this improvisational piece from the Lines Curves Shapes and Figure/Ground workshop. It was cropped for my last post, but as you can see here, it really needs squaring up.

I have no tried and true method to square up pieces bigger than my worktable. This one is about 54w x 42h. Here's how I did it this time.

I smoothed it out on the design wall, picked a side to start, then chalked a straight line. Using my biggest square ruler, I rotated around and chalked other sides with the hope that the last side would be at right angles to the first one.

To review I pinned fabric strips along each chalk line.

I see I could've started with another edge. Okay, once more around.

Comparison of the two photos side by side.

Until I can get to a big table to cut and sandwich it, I securely pinned the strips along the chalk lines.

Next time I'll try squaring it up in Photoshop first. How do you square up?

Making peace with piecing

2011-03-09T17:21:00.000-08:00

Have you ever done something, enjoyed it so little that you do your best to avoid repeating that experience? Here's an old post about an exercise from Nancy Crow's Improvisations, Let's Experiment! workshop two years ago. Can you tell how much fun I had?

If I'd known I'd be working similarly last week, I might not have gone to Indianola for Lines, Curves, Shapes and Figure Ground, Part II. I stuck it out. Straight lines and edges, fairly simple composition, consistency. Amazingly finished all exercises except one.

I didn't mind the process so much this time. In fact, I see advantages to working this way. The big question: will I voluntarily work this way again?

To & fro

2011-03-08T14:01:00.000-08:00

The trip to Indianola started Thursday after work. I drove through a dark and stormy night to Diana's home in Davis.

Weather forecasts warned of a big Arctic storm coming down from the north. What an inauspicious start for a trip taking us over high mountain passes near the California-Oregon border.

My travelling companion, Diana, wanted to cancel the whole trip. I doggedly held high hopes of getting through it. After checking road conditions, we started out the next morning. Through rain, light snow flurries and biting cold winds we got through all the passes to Eugene, Oregon. Optimism rewarded.

From there it was free sailing Indianola. And free sailing on the return back. Lots of rain. The weather warmed up. No snow. Just two very tired persons: one napped while the other drove.

Making lists, checking them thrice

2011-02-23T13:25:00.000-08:00

I've been a nervous wreck packing for this workshop. So I made two lists: one for workshop supplies and another for personal stuff. But I'm still not comfortable.

It's my first time in Indianola, Washington. It's a small town. What will happen if I forget something?

I'm always antsy before a trip. Don't worry. Once I'm on the road I'll relax.

Boxes and chocolates

2011-02-19T17:17:00.000-08:00

In another week I'd be on the road with Diana to Indianola, Washington for another workshop week with the esteemable Nancy Crow. Sixth workshop and seventh week since the first in fall 2008. It'd be my first workshop with her outside of the Barn.

Nothing worthy may result but I've loved each and every workshop. It's my vacation - my retreat from the everyday – a week to focus creatively and productively. Exactly what I need despite the challenges.

My shelves are nearly empty. I've packed my fabrics - about 165 hues, 250 yards, 90 pounds ready to go.

Most of them fitted so perfectly into this big Ikea zippered bag. But it was impossibly heavy. Oh well. I've whittle them down to fit into three manageable boxes. Packing the other stuff tonight.

So my friend, Diana, doesn't accuse me of hogging all of her trunk space, I'll make a test run by packing my car tomorrow after the rain has stopped.

Thank you all for your well wishes for my sweetheart. He's much improved. No more pain only itching. He drove 4 miles to the opthalmologist without incident. He's been feasting on Girl Scout cookies and watching his favorite sitcoms. His appetite has returned. Yesterday he made a salmon dinner and we started on the one-pound box of chocolates. Wonderful to have him healthy again! and wonderful chocolates!

Sweetheart's weekend

2011-02-14T16:16:00.000-08:00

The weekend with my sweetheart started on Friday. Made special foods. Fed him. Catered to his needs. But it's not what you think.

Last Monday started with pain centered around his left eye. The doctor suspected trigeminal neuralgia. By Thursday night it was twice as bad - like "trying to push the eyeball out of its socket". Bumps appeared on his face. Three calls to the after-hours advice nurse and a night of extreme discomfort. He almost woke me at 3am for a trip to the emergency room.

Friday morning at the doctors. The revised diagnosis: shingles - his first attack. The prescription for Vicodin caused a delay at the pharmacy but any waiting was nearly unbearable for him. So I took him home, and returned for his meds.

I set up his med schedule. Administered drugs and eye drops. Ensured he had water. Cooked the few foods he could tolerate: jello and pudding. And even spoon fed him. My sweetheart expressed his appreciation for this nurse-maid many times.

Today he's better though half his face looks like hell – lesions, swollen eyelid, enlarged lymph node on the neck. I am back at work knowing he has healed enough to administer his own meds.

That box of chocolates will wait until his appetite returns.

Summer in February

2011-02-07T14:45:00.000-08:00

It's magic when it snows. Landscape blanketed by white. Sounds muffled. A great time to nestle in. To cocoon.

I am jealous. Just a bit. After living in Alaska, I know the dark days drag on too long, the fight to stay warm and active become onerous. Strong urges to escape confinement. Stir crazy! Cabin fever! Take heart my friends! Spring is around the corner.

The San Francisco Bay Area had a gorgeous weekend. Sunday high of 79° in Oakland! I'm not rubbing it in. But with weather like this, part two of my kitchen cleaning regimen didn't happen. If I'd only been cocooning. Instead, I was in the garden weeding and pruning. I gave the feather reed grass its annual crewcut.

Good thing I'd finished pruning the apricot tree last weekend because it's in full bloom today. Okay busy bees, do your thing! Fresh apricots - yummm! If the raccoons don't get them all first.

Sunday, I met with Dana, Marjorie and Sandy. Our first get together as a critique group since last October when we were all in Nancy Crow's Strip Piecing & Restructuring workshop.

I am so fortunate to have a great group. We'll meet again in June. I got great feedback on two pieces.

On the right is the non-silk purse from a sow's ears started here http://mad-elena.blogspot.com/2011/01/sometimes-great-notion.html

Also a top from a workshop exercise. Before and after. Do the small changes make any difference?

Seven year old mantra

2011-02-03T11:25:00.000-08:00

I recently unearthed something from August 2003. Something personal. I am sharing it with you.

An Artist's Affirmations, a poem & prayer

I will listen to my creative voice, act on my creative energy, nurture my artist.
I will let my creativity flourish.
I have not always
But I always will.

I will let my creativity lead me to forgiveness, to truth, to love,
To fulfilling my dreams and yearnings.
I have not always
But I always will.

I am strong enough, passionate enough, confident enough,
To step forward and step out.
I am learning how
So I will always be.

I am willing to take steps of passion, make a commitment
To create my own footprints.
I am willing now and
I will always be.

I will move toward my destiny one step at a time.
I am making progress now.
I am finding the way
I am compelled to go.

With my talents I will build a rich rewarding life.
I am creative. I am an artist.
I have always been.
I will always be.

I wrote the above to counterbalance the many issues and doubts that surfaced while working through Julia Cameron's An Artist's Way. The mantra still holds true today.

Clone me

2011-01-31T18:39:00.000-08:00

Not a permanent doppelganger. Just a temporary replicant to pull out as needed. So I could be in two places at once. Or get twice as much done without a lot of instructions. Wouldn't that be great? She could do the more onerous tasks. But then maybe she'd be as onery and rebel.

I took advantage of Friday's health (as opposed to sick) day to start a new regimen and cleaned the refrigerator, cooktop, oven and hood. Part two of the kitchen next weekend. We'll see how long this lasts. If I only had a clone. But you really don't want to hear about housekeeping, do you?

Yes, some time in the studio too. My donation to the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative is almost finished.

Almost ziplocked another project (started here) but stayed the course. The top is pieced! No silk purse, but a good one for testing FMQ skills. I promise a photo next week after my critique group meeting.

So I was a productive homebody. Let's have more 3-day weekends and more fun! Less production?!

Sometimes a great notion

2011-01-24T16:49:00.000-08:00

Sometimes not.

An idea for curvilicious seams tested using print fabrics to reduce my stash.

Ugg! Blame fabric & color choices on poor studio lighting. Can't hurt to cut it up.

Restructuring on the design wall. Better but not great. Possible to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear?

Decompression Friday

2011-01-24T13:42:00.000-08:00

Dog tired from the work week and home alone, I ate dinner in front of the tv. Wound embroidery floss around floss bobbins and re-ordered my solids fabric deck value scale back to hue groups. Decompression activities.

I did have one moment of creative productivity. Figured out quilting lines for the twisted log cabin for the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative.

Made it to the camera repair shop Saturday. Wouldn't you know - the camera's flash worked very ably there. It's still working now. Go figure.

Early howling

2011-01-21T14:15:00.000-08:00

Thursday morning howling wind and rustling trees woke me up very early. In a few hours before heading off to work, I managed to

· put away the remains of the twisted log cabin block (how do you handle all those bits & pieces - or do you?),

· pin baste the twisted log cabin block, and

· remove another project that wasn't going anywhere - bagged – or ziplocked, Colleen's great term).

It's a tough quest to keep my main work area fairly neat - to get things off the worktable and to keep them off. Always remainders and reminders left.

A workshop top on the design wall awaits pin basting. Out of the picture there's still a other stuff to sort through from my latest cleanup and reorganization binge. But maybe, just maybe, having work-able space I will be sane, focused and creative.

Twisted & girl-y

2011-01-19T18:22:00.000-08:00

Camera is working but flash is not. The only way to take a photo is without the flash. Either a repair or a new camera is in my future. Hmm, which will it be? Meanwhile I'm making do without.

My fellow Quilt Therapists and I are make quilts for Ani Simm's Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative. Ahh, an opportunity to make something small and not too challenging.

My contribution: a twisted log cabin, 9" square and paper pieced. I wanted to try one. Thankfully only one. More would drive me bonkers.

Only top finished so far. So girl-y in pink and black. So not me. But someone may love it.

Testing 1 2 3

2011-01-13T13:46:00.000-08:00

I tried out a block for a bigger gift quilt.

These eight and a half blocks went together quickly. Less thinking. More sewing. That's the power of using a pattern.

From a fat quarter of the bolder print I got six 7" blocks. Two of ones shown used other prints. But I've nixed it for the project.

Oh well. Another idea is brewing.

Start of a new year

2011-01-11T14:57:00.000-08:00

Staying up past midnight on December 31st is an activity of a distant past, but I have other new year traditions.

Typically on January 1st I'd go for a long walk to slow down and savor fresh beginnings & new possibilities. Every new year, a book store holds a sale - any 3 calendars for $10. So one for the pocket book, one for the wall, and one for the desk.

Like many others, I set goals - rather than resolutions - for the year (see previous post). I've don't usually select a word for the year, but this time Matisse supplied one (images from desk calendar).

verve (vûrv) n.

1. Energy and vigor, especially in artistic performance or composition

2. Liveliness: vitality

Great word! Merci, Henri!

Wish you all a new year full of verve!

Little improvisations

2011-01-06T17:22:00.000-08:00

On the road or away, when I couldn't cut and sew, I made little 2.5-inch square samplers of embroiderery stitches - lessons gleaned from Laura Wasilowski's Thread-U-cation Thursdays.

I love the way this square turned out.

But this square. Hmm, needs what? It's lacking something. Or maybe delete some stitches.

Old new tried & true

2011-01-05T10:24:00.000-08:00

With long term intensive projects at work and at home, 2011 doesn't look promising for studio time Work means much frustration. Home means much disruption. So what about artistic goals for 2011? They're less concrete, more nebulous, reflecting the state of affairs - guidelines.

Something old, something new,

Something tried, something true.

Old. During studio clean up, I unearthed many ufo(ld)s. I will not finish them all nor are all of them worth finishing. More workshops mean more ufos. So I will finish at least one for the EBHQ's biannual show in 2012.
New. I may not have time in the studio, but creativity doesn't take a break. I have ideas and am itching to start new work.
Tried. Something I've done before – like redoing an exercise from a workshop. Or someone else has done before - maybe even adopt a pattern.
True. I feel the emergence of a series.

What else is store for 2011? Three week-long workshops. End of February: Indianola, WA for Nancy Crow's Lines, Curves, Shapes & Figure-Ground Composition, Part II. Mid May: Crow Barn for Dorothy Caldwell's Human Marks. End of September: Crow Barn again for Nancy Crow's Lines/Curves/Circles, & Figure-Ground. I am backing out of Carol Soderlund's Layers upon Layers in October since I haven't dyed a thing since last fall's True Colors and probably won't.

I know, I know. At some point I must stop taking workshops and develop what I know. While I am still earning a paycheck, I will continue taking workshops. Until retirement rolls around in a few years. Where I started almost four years ago seem light years away. Even if I haven't made many tops, haven't redone workshop exercises multiple times – all is not lost. Everything is starting to meld and jell. A little voice is speaking up.

A candid look

2010-12-29T18:21:00.000-08:00

Who works here? It's terrible, isn't it?!

That's a view of my work table. Just push things aside and I'd have a teeny tiny working space. Or pile the stuff elsewhere and I'd have more room. I'm sure you're much much neater.

Yes, the studio has been screaming for an overhaul. It has reached a tipping point 'cuz I can't find things.

So no more! By the new year I will have it cleaned up and re-organized. So I can get back to quilting again.

And start a mess anew.

Happy holidaze

2010-12-21T17:08:00.000-08:00

Lots of good cheer
to all far and dear.
May your stockings be stuffed
with more than enough
to give you a kick start for the new year!

Bumpers

2010-11-05T13:13:00.000-07:00

I made these crib bumpers for my co-worker.

I finished sewing together the front panels Monday night. Another night to get it all done, I'd thought. Delusional me. I stayed up beyond David Letterman Tuesday night. And Wednesday night. Last night I had to finish them - today is her lst work day before maternity leave.

Just in time. Her baby boy is due on Nov 17th.

Restructuring report

2010-10-12T13:02:00.000-07:00

All right! All right! For friends chomping at the bit, here's my lowdown on the second workshop week at the Crow Timber Barn – Strip Piecing & Restructuring with Nancy Crow. I'll report about the first week in True Colors with Carol Soderlund later.

It was great having familiar faces there, including three from my guild - EBHQ - as well as meeting new ones. Everyone was focused and produced terrific pieces. I can't show you their work but here are mine.

Out of many many strip-pieced fabrics, we produced three compositions. What? You only see two?

I am not showing you my third and final composition. It was a disaster. I was constipated - not bodily, but creatively. And Nancy absolutely agreed. I don't know what happen or why. Let's just say my approach did not produce the desired results. I will begin that final one anew.

I am very pleased with the first two compositions. And miracles do happen - I finished them on time! They came together easily. Even Nancy was surprised! She revealed that my so very s-l-o-w deliberation in the very first workshop - Best of Strip Piecing 1 & 2 -gave her fits! Ooh! Sorry about that Nancy! That was only two years ago, yet seems ages.

Despite the labor intensiveness of strip piecing, I like this way of working. But there's no way I could do a quilt top a

week like Nancy's recommends. Maybe one each month. Or so (yes, I'm hedging).

Addendum: see Robert Genn's, The Painter's Keys, post about choking. Did he read my mind? To prevent creative constipation, I will sing as I work. You may suffer a little dissonance, but better that than a visual cacophony.

Planned absence

2010-09-21T10:50:00.000-07:00

Work is crazy. The last few weeks of a construction project usually is. Lots of coordination with the contractor and subs, vendors, suppliers, fabricators as well as the operations department. Lots of details. Lots of decisions. Lots of "gee, did I remember to . . . " A little nerve-wracking as we head toward inspections and deadlines. The eventual goal: doors open for that first customer.

But Saturday I head to the Crow Barn in Ohio once again for two weeks of workshops. I didn't plan it this way. The project should've been done long before this.

But, boy, am I glad I'm going.

Color choices

2010-09-16T13:32:00.000-07:00

Color Improvisations - the catalog - arrived. Simply beautiful both inside and out.

Which color cover would you choose: yellow, orange, violet, blue or green? I picked violet. It's not as saturated or as magenta as it'd looked online. It's a beautiful soft purple. Compare it to my my deep purple sheets in the photo.

Though it's usually shown with the round logo in the top right corner, doesn't come that way. Instead, you get a sheet of nine stickers. DIY. Which one would you choose for the purple cover?

Sorry, I'm not giving you peeks inside. You can see some of the works online at exhibition website or from the artists' websites or blogs. The catalog has more. Photos are terrific and include detail shots. Next best thing to being there. I especially love the little snapshots of the artist at work in her studio, development sketches or works in progress.

Enticed? How to get your very own copy: (1) Lisa Call, one of the artists in the exhibition, has a limited number; (2) SAQA or (3) if you deal in Euros or speak German, the exhibition website.

I stayed up beyond my bedtime being inspired. Worth every minute.

Do do do do do do do do do did

2010-09-13T13:45:00.000-07:00

A challenge from my quilt minigroup: interpret wings in an 18"x18" quilt.

I could do this – have a few months.
I could do this – it won't be very big.
I could do this – use prints from my stash.
I could do this – try something new.
I could do this – a free motion quilting opportunity.

I found an origami-like crane pattern. I've never paper pieced, but how hard can this be? I could do this! After much trial and error – and tedium – I made six 6x9 blocks. Place them in a simple 2x3 grid? yech! Arrange it more improvisationally? I could do this! More trial and error and it is ready for quilting.

I came up with a my own filler design. Yes, I could do this! No way could I have done it a few months ago. Thanks again Leah Day - see also this previous post.

Finish the quilt in time? I could do this!

First one I've ever free motion machine quilted. With my very own fmq design to boot! I did it!

Caught up with Leah Day

2010-09-10T11:32:00.000-07:00

If only in one respect.

For various reasons I stopped making fmq sample patterns in April. Recently I started up again for more practice before tackling an actual project.

I was making samples when my free motion quilting foot broke - fell apart! It seemed loose a few days ago but I couldn't see anything wrong. Then a plastic chunk fell off the right side. Oh, oh. But still usable so I kept going. Then last night the whole plastic piece fell off, leaving only the metal shank. OH, OH.

I hauled out my 37 y.o. Bernina 830 (the original mechanical one not the new fangled one). No needle down, no needle threader, limited stitch length & width, limited stitches. But I love that machine! It was just been serviced and a couple of motor brushes replaced. Unlike the Janome – it purrs. Hmm, maybe the Janome needs service as well as a new fmq foot. Photo shows the two sisters together.

Struggled with the different control foot and the toughest filler designs, which I had avoided until now, but I plowed onward. Finally, after midnight, milestone achieved! I have made samples of all of Leah's beginner free-motion filler designs to date!

Many thanks to Leah Day of 365 Days of Free Motion Filler Designs! Without her encouragement and hints, her filler designs and videos, I would have quit long ago. Though I am still no master, I am ready to free motion quilt a project – a first! At only 18x18 it is a good place to start.

Nearly losing it

2010-09-07T12:55:00.000-07:00

A month ago, I'd placed an order with the stipulation for delivery by the start of the workshop. Didn't hear anything, so I e-mailed customer service. Delivery is scheduled for September 8.

Despite the three-day weekend respite, my brain is addled. I made the improbable leap to October 8th – after the workshop ends. Oh no! Too late!

I jumped on the phone but got the answering machine. Started leaving a message, but then I realized my mistake.

Oops. Never mind.

On the verge

2010-08-19T11:26:00.000-07:00

Life is spinning out of control when I got a check and can't recall depositing it. Nor can I find it. Oh-oh.

Over the rainbow

2010-08-18T18:35:00.000-07:00

A local tv station use to televise Wizard of Oz annually. Always on a Sunday because I'd always missed a section due to the family dinner hour. That movie started me on a reading adventure through every Oz book at the library.

The local jazz station (publicly supported & you can listen over the web) recently played Somewhere over the Rainbow - though sung by Eva Cassidy, not Judy Garland. Nevertheless it stirred up an old memory once again.

I am on the roof of my parent's house to hang laundry on the clotheslines. It's a beautiful San Francisco mid morning with sunshine and a mild breeze. But I am very sad and long for a happier place. I wish for ruby slippers . . . to click three times . . . to be elsewhere.

I don't remember why I was so unhappy but my childhood was not the best. I've had this vision many times. And the same emotions with it. Everytime I hear this song. Such is its power.

Possible madness

2010-08-10T15:55:00.000-07:00

I was just there in May. But in less than two months I'd be off to the Crow Barn once again. I'm taking a dip in the dyeing waters with True Colors with Carol Soderlund followed by a week of Strip Piecing & Restructuring with Nancy Crow.

Last time there I got a very clear message: make pieces between workshops and concentrate on tops rather than finished quilts. So I'd started here with a black and white study. Then I got off on a tangent.

First circle was shown here. Yes! a circle is piece-able with only straight lines. (Don't listen to naysayers calling it a multi-sided figure.) The struggle with bulky seams around a second smaller circle showed I needed a little more method for this madness.

I draw the circles with a compass and then locate equidistant points for the tangents. Points too close together mean struggles with bulky seams. Points too far apart call the naysayers out of the woodwork.

With a little math, I pieced two more circles, one smaller, one larger.

Ooh boy, possibilities!

S*** happens

2010-07-30T13:59:00.000-07:00

S*** happens. It's one thing when s*** happens to your worst enemy. It's another when s*** happens to good people.

If you've been to the Crow Timber Barn, you'd know Margaret Wolf, the chef, not only feeds us so very well with her wonderful meals but also delights us with her good humor and supportive spirit.

Last May I met her husband, Dale, when he joined us for a few days. This is one couple I'd say has no better half. They're both terrific.

Margaret and Dale were recently in Germany where she has a wonderful piece in the Color Improvisations exhibit. She's the one in the graphic b+w dress in this photo. More about the multifaceted Margaret on her website.

Upon their return they received bad news. Read more about their son's accident and ordeal here. Just breaks my heart. ~~Please send lots of good wishes their way.~~ Nathan died on 8/4/2010. You can send your condolences here.

Inspirational Color Improvisations exhibit

2010-07-22T12:18:00.000-07:00

Color Improvisations is an exhibition that opened on July 11, 2010 in Stuttgart, Germany. 50 large quilts from 26 artists.

Nancy Crow had invited artists to submit pieced tops which had to be new and large – minimum 6 feet in both directions. Upon approval, the artist finished these tops – all the while keeping these works under wraps. I awaited the unveiling with high anticipation.

Twenty four of the artists, as well as Nancy Crow and co-curator Ginie Curtze, were at the opening reception. The excitement is palpable in the photos. Oh, to have been there to bask in that creative atmosphere!

Here are links to postings from a few of the exhibition artists:

Lisa Call posted her two works, but was unable to attend the opening.

Kathy Loomis was the first artist at the opening to report. You can see her two magnificient contributions and a link to her photos.

Bonnie Bucknam posted her three beautiful painterly pieces.

Terry Jarrard-Dimond posted most recently. Not only can you see her two fantastic pieces, she also provided great photos of other artists' works and their statements too. ***7/27/10 update*** Terry added photos of her three pieces and describes her process in another post.

What an inspirational work! Congratulations and kudos to all! These works will contribute immensely toward perceiving quilts as an art medium.

There is a catalog available through eBay.

Two prayers: may I have a chance to see this exhibition and may it travel in the United States.

Hole-lee, mole-lee!

2010-07-16T12:03:00.000-07:00

There I was in the middle of my b+w study when an idea took hold. I was off and running with options and variations before cutting any fabric before taking a stitch. It's all I can do to keep the idea in check and stay focused. Do you have that problem?

I love skinny lines. Kathy Loomis' Art with a Needle posted about an art date with skinny lines. I also want to make circles or curvilinear lines. Together they resulted in a sketch of a circle made only with straight lines.

The sketch looked familiar - where have I see that before? I was channeling Andy Goldsworthy! Here is his work for comparison against my pieced piece on the right. Maybe I was subconsciously influenced. Or maybe it sprang from my love of math, particularly geometry.

Going for the goal / goad!

2010-07-06T18:49:00.000-07:00

Such a delusional belief that over a three-day weekend I can get a lot done. I visited SFMoMA, worked in the garden for about 12 hours, did three loads of laundry, and went to the gym twice. Among other stuff. But I did not wash the car, bake a cake, clean house or reduce my pile of paperwork. Unless ironing fabric counts, I did no work on my art either. Ahh, so much for ambitions.

Here's what I've been working on. Only one more seam for my black and white study then I can square it off. Except for one spot nagging for a redo.

How little – only this one thing - I've done since returning from the Crow Barn in May. I need goals as a gauge. But I also need goals to goad me into action! You know I love 'em, so here they are.

One small to medium project each month until I go back to the Barn in the fall. That means four projects total (including the one above) to work improvisationally, experimentally and artistically. That's realistic. Then I have the more ambitious goals: one additional project each month. Lest you think I'm crazy, I'm playing loose-ee goose-ee with these. They could be anything – even following a pattern! As long as it involves fabric and sewing, it counts!

Lately, I haven't been posted frequently. That will be the case for the next few months. But stay tuned! I'll be back when I have something to share. Until then, à la Captain Picard, make it sew!

All in my head

2010-06-10T17:49:00.000-07:00

Do I look different to you? Have you notice? Did I cut my hair? Lose some weight? Botox wrinkles away?

None of these. Let me help you. It's all in my head(ing) which used to say ambitions of a beginner or beginnings of an ambitious quilt artist. I still quilt. I still think of myself as a beginner. I'm still ambitious. I'm still an artist. My new subheading subtlely reflects my clearer focus and resolve.

"It is necessary . . . to go beyond . . . to create something so unique – personal yet universal – that it takes viewers beyond their own understanding, perhaps even out of their comfort-zone, and shows them the world in a new way. Only then . . . does an artist cross the line . . . to fine art."

Rose Fredrick was referring to specifically to illustration, but she could just as well be talking about any other craft or medium - or about quilting. I intend to eventually cross that line and create art.

Tip for a tipping thread stand

2010-06-09T15:51:00.000-07:00

I've stitched many miles with machine piecing. I've used Aurifil Cotton Mako' 50 but it's not as readily available here. Spools of Superior Masterpiece were satisfactory so I gave their cones a whirl. Their spools hold 600 yards but the cones hold 3000 yards. A lot of thread. Aurifil's spools hold about half that.

Only trouble is, my Janome 6600 didn't like it. Even with its own thread stand. The upper thread kept breaking. Especially if I sewed fast. Especially when crossing seams. Switched needles. Still broke. Adjusted tension. Still broke. I turned the upper tension lower and lower. Broke less but the upper and lower were out of balance. What to do?

This happened just before leaving for workshops at the Barn. What better place to ask for advice than from other piecers? I brought the cones along on the chance I may be able to use them after all.

The advice? Use a thread stand. At least get the one from Joann's – it'd be better than nothing. So I got the Dritz stand. It's all lightweight plastic even the upright arm. I used it only when winding bobbins with me assisting so the arm rod doesn't fall out. Get what you pay for! Superior Threads sells a nice heavy duty weighted thread stand. But I wouldn't want to pack that lead weight.

During the unpacking back home I spied a screw in the base where the rod goes in. Aha! Loosened it and pushed the rod in further. Tightened it and it kept the rod from falling out. The tip: use this set screw.

Now the stand is set high behind the machine. Now my machine is happy. I am happy. And my thread tension is back up and in balance. Ta-daa! Happy ending!

Two humbling weeks at the Barn

2010-06-08T18:01:00.000-07:00

The first week was Sets & Variables I & II. It was really really tough. Since some of the students had already taken a Sets & Variables workshop elsewhere, Nancy notched up the challenge. She even warned us not to hyperventilate before giving us the big exercise. Ha! We were all along for the rough ride and hanging on for dear life! The result of all that hyperventilation top right.

The second week, Sets & Variables III, seemed easier. Had we found our groove? Or were the exercises easier? Then Wednesday afternoon we got the final BIG assignment. How to even begin to approach this? Total brain freeze. Such a humbling experience.

I started putting things on the wall and recovered some how somewhat. (Not) sleeping on it helped. At 2am I was eager to get working again! By Friday afternoon I had nearly the entire composition pinned on the wall. Pinned not sewn, my dears. At least I had a good idea of where it's going before packing it up. My 4'x8' final project bottom right.

Recovery from two tough weeks

2010-05-28T12:10:00.000-07:00

It is one week after finishing two weeks of workshops with Nancy Crow - Sets & Variables I & II and Sets & Variables III – and I'm still in recovery mode.

My focus the past year was in making that quilt sandwiches and stitching those quilting lines. Though I can pat myself on the back and say, yes! to bringing a few quilt tops to their ready-to-hang state, these skills did not help me in the workshops.

The month before I'd struggled with finishing the ribbon quilt. How many times did I sew together something only look at it, blanch, then begin anew? So I left for the workshop feeling like I'd forgotten how to create. And I did.

I was unprepared. Despite slogging through those weeks, I got a lot out of them. I'll post more about the workshops later.

I've now spent in total five weeks in four of Nancy's workshops. I am still in awe of the woman – she's amazing and inspirational. Words alone cannot convey how fabulous a teacher she is. She teaches more than piecing, more than quilting, more than art. Much more.

I have a list of things to work on. I have exercises and ideas to develop. Projects to finish. I have direction and aspirations. I am now much more clearly focused. I intend to sustain this feeling this drive until I return to the Barn once again.

Refusé

2010-05-05T08:24:00.000-07:00

We regret to inform you that your quilt Neutra House was not selected to be shown in the Tactile Architecture 2010 exhibit. We received many entries, all of them extraordinary. The jurors had to make many difficult decisions. Thirty-three quilts were ultimately selected for this exhibit.

Thank you very much for allowing us to consider your work. We greatly appreciate your willingness to share it with us.

Neutra House is not going to Houston for International Quilt Festival 2010.

Sticking with the program

2010-05-03T17:26:00.000-07:00

It was my very last weekend before Ohio and workshops at the Crow Barn. I've shipped three boxes jammed with fabric. I've completed the top of the ribbon quilt. I've made more motifs.

The weekend was full of temptations. An errand brought me close to my favorite haunt - East Bay Depot for Creative Reuse - great finds but not so good use of time. Nearby was an even greater temptation: fried chicken sandwich from Bakesale Betty's. More so because it was early enough to avoid the usual half hour or more queue. Great eat but not so good for the weight's line. A narrow escape.

This week it's bed by 9 and rise and shine at 5. Moving into Ohio time. Saturday I'll be on that early morning plane to two terrific intensive weeks.

Conspiracy theory

2010-04-30T15:17:00.000-07:00

Wouldn't you know it. Happened the last two time and it is happening again.

Life would be quiet and smooth for months. Then everything breaks loose the month before and especially the last two weeks before I'm off to a workshop. All demands ramp up.

It's a conspiracy I tell you.

2010-04-28T16:57:00.000-07:00

At the guild's Monday general meeting, they announced 2780 people attended the EBHQ's biannual show, Voices in Cloth, held three weekends ago. That averages more than 200 persons each hour! Wow! Good show! Thank you, my buddies, for coming.

Great quilts! I will post some of my favs from the show. Start with this delectable eye candy.

Joan Samuelson stitches a face every morning. She put together 49 for this arresting assemblage.

Take a closer look. Terrific fine motor control. So expressive and impressive.

See more of Joan's terrific faces on RoseGardenQuilts.

Two weeks - yaa-owwl!

2010-04-23T10:11:00.000-07:00

Okay, I've decided: I'm not finishing the ribbon quilt. So there! My rationale: quilted means more weight and less space in my suitcase. So doesn't this make sense?!
For the next two weeks, I'll have time to work on more motifs. To pack up fabric & supplies for shipping. To take up again with fmq practice. To clean up the studio. To take care of personal business. To relax a bit.

Then earlier to bed and earlier to rise. Shifting from California to Ohio, I want to be a fully awake workshop participant.

Orange in a different light

2010-04-21T14:47:00.000-07:00

I finished the orange section last night. Not without a few missteps of course. After all, what would life be without them?
The bottom strip of black and fuschia isn't attached yet. But the section is taller than I thought it'd be. It's not attached to the rest of the ribbon quilt yet either. Opportunities for adjustments await.

The whole ribbon quilt will be more than three feet wide and could be six feet tall or so but the proportions seem off. My design wall won't allow a long view so I must find someplace to hang it all. Tonight it's going to my quilt therapy group for a different light and multiple eyes.

Old tricks

2010-04-20T14:53:00.000-07:00

Three weeks ago, I dared to think I could finish the ribbon quilt before the workshop in Ohio.

One week ago, I dared to think I could finish the top in a few more days so I could get some space and helping hands to pin baste it.

Today I haven't totally given up on this quilt, but I have missed the latter goal and have serious doubts about the former one.

Intending to accomplish more, I set up mini-goals each night – i.e. sew strip A to piece B x 6 times. A couple of nights later I'd look and really see what I've made. Ugh! So I've spent the last three weeks piecing and un-piecing. Repeatedly. If I had enough fabric to cut more or had bought more, I wouldn't need to un-pieced for reuse.

What I've learned so far:
• there's no point in rushing just to get it done (didn't I say this before?);

• adding to an existing project may be harder than starting from scratch when working improvisationally;

• to make visual decisions, I must really look and see (didn't I say this before too?);

• to minimize un-piecing, take it one piece through all steps first rather than all pieces one step at a time;

• to minimize un-piecing, look and see after each step (and this before?);

• to get in the right frame of mind after one project, take a little break (not a month) before the next.

My Quilt Therapy Group, is meeting tomorrow night. Dare I think I could show them the ribbon quilt with this orange section added?

This old dog, same old tricks.

Cave habit

2010-04-20T13:46:00.000-07:00

Most nights I'm in the studio which occupies part of the basement rec room – a dark wood paneled low ceiling room that could use a thousand watts of light. The ritual of descending the stairs each night, turning on a few lights and the tv (my timekeeper) prepares me for creative focus.

The room looks out into the garden if I would bother to open the shades and pull aside the drapes. But I don't at night when I can't see out much. On weekends I can and I do. Then working in the studio can be problematic because I am distracted by beautiful weather and the lure of the garden.

So though the weekend promises many more studio hours, I go into my creative cave at night. That's my creative habit.

Where did it go?

2010-04-19T10:19:00.000-07:00

It's gone! Deserted me! Aiyah! Such a struggle now. Multiple do-overs. Where did it go?

I want it back! So I can do what needs to be done. So I can move on. Where did it go?

I had it a year ago. I want that mojo back. That strip-piecing mojo. That narrow strip-piecing mojo. That mojo that enable me to do these:

What will it take? Is it a problem with the thread? the needle? the tension? the pressure foot? the speed? What is keeping that mojo away?

I plead with you for help. Help me get back my mojo. All you have to do is sing Looking for My Mojo (to the tune of Going to a Go-Go – Na-a-h, nah, N-A-A-H, nah, N-a-a-h, nah).

Thank you very much.

Back two, forward three

2010-04-16T17:52:00.000-07:00

The first attempt to finish my ribbon quilt was disastrous. I threw pieces together in a hurry. Didn't look. Unstitching became the name of the game. I'd forgotten the maxim: make visual decisions visually.

I had to step back and take another approach. Satisfactory results come from listening to my instincts and taking time to play, to look and then be critical. No point in rushing through the process if the finished product is not acceptable.

After another week I'm quite comfortable with the new section. This photo shows it with some colors I've auditioned. There are a few more decisions to make. Back into the studio tonight.

Maybe I'll meet my goal to get it to the guild drop-in tomorrow. Maybe not. I'm not going to push it just to get it done. I've learned my lesson – until next time anyway.

Can do!

2010-04-12T12:07:00.000-07:00

The past weekend was lost to the EBHQ's quilt show. Saturday's dinner didn't happen until 10pm whereas Sunday I was in bed by 9pm. A great event but whew!

Only three weekends remaining! Yikes! Then I'm off to the Ohio for another two weeks with Nancy Crow. Feeling momentarily ambitious, here's my plan for the ribbon quilt, fmq and workshop homework.

Finish the quilt top for sandwiching on Saturday at the guild drop-in. That'd give me three weeks to quilt it. I already have an idea about that. Squeeze in more fmq practice sessions to give it a go. Sets and variables motifs will just fit in wherever and whenever.

Yes, I can!

EBHQ's Voices in Cloth

2010-04-10T15:52:00.000-07:00

East Bay Heritage Quilters did it again! Another fabulous show! Don't miss it if you're in the area. It continues on Sunday from 10am to 4pm at the Oakland Convention Center, 10th and Broadway.

Thinking and seeing

2010-04-08T16:12:00.000-07:00

Sometimes what I get is not what I want.

I've taken up the ribbon quilt top where I'd left off last spring. I've extended ribbon tails and pieced more ribbon together for the bottom.

The concept seemed good at the time but it just didn't work out visually. A case of too much thinking and not enough seeing. This pattern is too regular and the coloring too lightweight. Doesn't balance nor anchor the rest of it. Why didn't I see this before?

So it won't be finished tomorrow. But I now have a better visual idea about finishing it. I threw other ribbons on the design wall to see if they'd stick. Back to the cutting mat.

Simple beauty

2010-04-06T16:30:00.000-07:00

The prestigious Pritzker Prize for 2010 went to SANAA architects - Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa - of Tokyo. They've designed buildings all over the world with two in the United States: the New Museum of Contempory Art in New York City and the Glass Pavilion for the Museum of Art in Toledo, Ohio. Christopher Hawthorne, the LA Times architecture critic, writes about them winning the award here. In an earlier review on August 23, 2006 he praised the pavilion. From that review:

". . . Minimalist architecture deserving of the name pares itself down not in the pursuit of style points but in an effort to frame the relationship between solid and void, nature and culture, and color and its absence -- and to explore how the eye sees and the mind understands those differences."

How about applying this poetic definition to quilts? Minimalist quilts.

The house that Mad Elena built

2010-03-31T12:47:00.000-07:00

The architect Richard Neutra was was instrumental in introducing the International Style of Le Corbusier and Mies van der Rohe to the United States. A 1947 Time Magazine article named him second only to Frank Lloyd Wright in making an architectural mark on the United States. In 1949 he was featured on the cover of Time Magazine (read the cover story to find out why it's captioned Architect Richard Neutra, What will the Neighbors Think?). His renown residence - Lovell House - perches on a steep hill in Los Angeles and epitomizes his geometric and linear forms.

Neutra House is my homage to him and attempts to emulate his architectural lines. It is 35w x 38h and will hang in EBHQ's biannual show on April 10th and 11th - Voices in Cloth where I will be a white glove hostess at the show each morning from 10am to noon. If you're there, come and say hello.