I've been away for ages and ages and am missing my blogging and art friends! It is now summer, former jobs and obligations are complete (or my portion is on summer-hold), and my health is on the mend (minor bout with pneumonia this spring was quite an interference, but mandated a slow-down which I enjoyed by reading reading and reading some more!)
Have you read any great books lately? If so, post the title/author in the comments as I'm always looking for another great book to get lost in.
I have recently read:
1. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Anne Barrows.
Set in England in post WWII, the entire plot (including stories during & post German-Occupation, and a book club) is told entirely through letters, letters to and from various characters in this novel. It is totally fascinating! Read more about this book by clicking here.
2. The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant
Set in Renaissance Florence just as the Medici family was losing their command of the city-state, this tells an intriguing story of a young woman who yearns to be an artist. The Amazon link is here.
3. The Penguin Who Knew Too Much by Donna Andrews
For a lighter read, this is the eighth in a series of enjoyable murder mysteries featuring Meg Langslow. The first in the series, Murder with Peacocks, won several acclaimed mystery awards. Click here for more on this author and her books.
4. The Quilter's Homecoming by Jennifer Chiaverini
I am just beginning this book from the Elm Creek Quilts series. It continues the story of Elizabeth Nelson, the Bergstrom cousin who married in Pennsylvania then moved to Southern California. I have always enjoyed how Chiaverini weaves quilt making into her stories of living, and am behind on her latest additions to this series. Her website is here.
Hmmm, what ever shall I read next?
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Saturday, May 2, 2009
West U Art-Night Quilt
One of the best things about our elementary school are the Extra-Curricular Nights sponsored by our PTO. I jumped in our Kindergarten year to help with Art Night (There is also International, Math, & Science Nights). Art Night is geared specifically toward our Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd graders and features both demonstrations and make-n-take projects.
The theme that year, 2004, focused on artists & craftsmen. A Potter was throwing clay on a wheel and children received their own lump of clay to mold and shape. A Jewelry artist had a display of her creations and assisted the kids in making their own beaded bracelets. A local Portrait Painter taught children how to draw a person or a dog (most chose to draw the dog, naturally). There were several others as well (but they've slipped from my memory). I was the Quilter and brought several of my quilts to share. My station had not one but two quilt-design related activities.
My first activity was for the children to experience the joy of designing a quilt block using two basic shapes. These new quilters had a large variety of fabric squares and triangles (all pre-cut from my stash) and a few sample "classic" nine-patch blocks to get them started. To keep it a short-easy-to-do project, they simply used glue stick to fasten their design onto a piece of cardstock. It was fun to watch the kids (& the non-quiting parents) agonize over color options, block arrangement &/or basic design. While many made one block and moved on to the next activity quickly, a large number asked to make two lingering long past the allotted time.
My second project was not a make-n-take one, but rather to make a block to be used in a quilt for the next school auction. The children were to draw something colorful on the prepared blocks. My idea had been to make three separate quilts for the next year's school auction, one for each of the grade levels attending Art Night. In actuality, three quilts were not made for two reasons: many wanted to keep their colorfully drawn designs and those leaving theirs as instructed forgot to sign their name &/or grade on the freezer paper back. I did have enough to make a nice twin size quilt. Here are a few photos of the top before it was quilted.
This is the top left corner. Sharpies of all colors were the tools provided. Word of caution: be sure to be in a well-ventilated room when working with this many participants as multiple Sharpies open at once is quite fragrant!
This is the top right corner. I love the colorful kid-face-print fabric used for the borders. It has all the colors of the Sharpies and fabrics used in the quilt blocks and sashings.
Here are six blocks from the center of the quilt. Each block was bordered on two sides (right and lower sides) with different bright fabrics that coordinated with the block itself and with the border print. An additional row along the top and left sides completed the framed-block sashing look.
Here is the finished quilt before going to Mike Walton of Astro Quilting for his masterful work (oh to have time, money and space to be my own long-armer! maybe one day ....)
This is the lower right corner. The label appears on the front to finish the quilt to be 10 rows of 7 blocks apiece. Isn't it nice when the math works out so easily?
The quilt was sold in the school auction, bringing in a hefty amount for the PTO coffers that year. I will have to get a photo of the finished quilt to add to this post .... one day. Two years later I became the Chair of Art Night -- but that's a story to tell another day ....
The theme that year, 2004, focused on artists & craftsmen. A Potter was throwing clay on a wheel and children received their own lump of clay to mold and shape. A Jewelry artist had a display of her creations and assisted the kids in making their own beaded bracelets. A local Portrait Painter taught children how to draw a person or a dog (most chose to draw the dog, naturally). There were several others as well (but they've slipped from my memory). I was the Quilter and brought several of my quilts to share. My station had not one but two quilt-design related activities.
My first activity was for the children to experience the joy of designing a quilt block using two basic shapes. These new quilters had a large variety of fabric squares and triangles (all pre-cut from my stash) and a few sample "classic" nine-patch blocks to get them started. To keep it a short-easy-to-do project, they simply used glue stick to fasten their design onto a piece of cardstock. It was fun to watch the kids (& the non-quiting parents) agonize over color options, block arrangement &/or basic design. While many made one block and moved on to the next activity quickly, a large number asked to make two lingering long past the allotted time.
My second project was not a make-n-take one, but rather to make a block to be used in a quilt for the next school auction. The children were to draw something colorful on the prepared blocks. My idea had been to make three separate quilts for the next year's school auction, one for each of the grade levels attending Art Night. In actuality, three quilts were not made for two reasons: many wanted to keep their colorfully drawn designs and those leaving theirs as instructed forgot to sign their name &/or grade on the freezer paper back. I did have enough to make a nice twin size quilt. Here are a few photos of the top before it was quilted.
This is the top left corner. Sharpies of all colors were the tools provided. Word of caution: be sure to be in a well-ventilated room when working with this many participants as multiple Sharpies open at once is quite fragrant!
This is the top right corner. I love the colorful kid-face-print fabric used for the borders. It has all the colors of the Sharpies and fabrics used in the quilt blocks and sashings.
Here are six blocks from the center of the quilt. Each block was bordered on two sides (right and lower sides) with different bright fabrics that coordinated with the block itself and with the border print. An additional row along the top and left sides completed the framed-block sashing look.
Here is the finished quilt before going to Mike Walton of Astro Quilting for his masterful work (oh to have time, money and space to be my own long-armer! maybe one day ....)
This is the lower right corner. The label appears on the front to finish the quilt to be 10 rows of 7 blocks apiece. Isn't it nice when the math works out so easily?The quilt was sold in the school auction, bringing in a hefty amount for the PTO coffers that year. I will have to get a photo of the finished quilt to add to this post .... one day. Two years later I became the Chair of Art Night -- but that's a story to tell another day ....
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
A Place to Bark
"Home" is the theme for the 2009 Breaking Traditions Art Quilt Exhibit, supporting Bernie Berlin's "A Place to Bark". This is an annual exhibit curated by Lynn Krawczyk. Below are Lynn's words describing the exhibit with links to further details and entry information. Read on:
Breaking Traditions has become a community effort, helping to support the fundraising projects of fellow fiber/mixed media artists.
The 2009 exhibit will benefit Bernie Berlin's dog rescure, A Place to Bark. In honor of Bernie's efforts to find orphaned and abused dogs permanent loving homes, the theme for the 2009 exhibit is "Home."
The exhibit features 12"x12" art quilts. Participants for the 2009 show will express those things, memories or emotions that define home to them. This is an open call exhibit, everyone is encourage to participate. Prizes are donated for those in the exhibit and an Exhibit Favorite is chosen.
Guidelines and entry form can be found here.
Prize information can be found here.
Would you like to help? Find out ways you can here.
=================
This is a wonderful opportunity for everyone -- as it is an Open Call exhibit, with prizes handed out as well! What have you got to lose? Along with 92 other artists, I participated in last year's exhibit "With One Voice" which raised over $1,000 for the American Cancer Society, last year's designated charity.
I will join this annual fun again this year as I plan to make a new quilt for the new show. Won't you join me?
Friday, April 24, 2009
One of my favorite quilts
I love the challenge of making quilts as a collaborative effort, especially when the quilt is meant as a gift to someone special. This is one of my favorite quilts, because it was a gift from the hearts of many to one recipient, to honor her for her years in teaching. It uses artwork made by non-quilters (in this case - children) which is a fun collaboration (try it sometime!). But this quilt is not the first group quilt nor the first quilt featuring children's art that I have made. The first such quilt was one created especially for Grandma Shirley Burkom in honor of her retirement as the Director of the Becker Early Childhood Center, where my children attended preschool. It just so happens that she retired the very year that my boys were graduating from PreK. (Grandma Shirley, I need to get a new photo of your quilt to add here!). I went on to make a quilt for one of my sons' Kindergarten teachers, a wedding gift from the class (Kari, I'm way over due for a visit to you & would love a photo of your quilt to put here!). I even made a quilt for the WUE school auction one year. It featured many many blocks of kid-art in bright colors (third photo, this time needed from Melinda Mogas. Please Melinda?).
But enough of other quilts that I don't have photos of ... The quilt that I am featuring now was initially blogged about it nearly a year ago, shortly after its completion. I removed the blog post almost immediately after posting it, as the quilt was meant to be a surprise and there was a great fear that the surprise would be discovered too early! So I am happy to feature my original post about this lovely quilt that has been given to Reverend Jan Imig, from the many school children at First Methodist Church.
** ** ** ** **
What do you give someone to honor her for the years of caring and dedication she has given to your religious school program? My friend Sandy Faison had a great idea: make a quilt filled with art by the children. Jan Imig -- I hope you know how loved you are! Here is your quilt, made by the school children at First Methodist Church, and with Sandy's inspiration and organization:
Sandy chose a biblical theme -- very appropriate considering the reason behind the quilt. Each age/grade level worked on a different block. Here is the beginning, the First day of Creation by the Two-year-old class:
The second day, representing Sky and Water, is by the Three-year-old class:
The third block is the Third day of Creation, art by the Preschool class:
The fourth block, the 4th day of Creation, is by the Kindergarten class:
The fifth day of Creation has art by the First Graders at First Methodist.
The sixth day of Creation features art by the Second grade class:
The seventh block, the 7th day of Creation, has the honor of representing all the children that do not have their own block on this quilt: families with children who have already passed through the classes at First Methodist and families with young children who have yet to start their journey here.
Once the seven days of creation were used, Sandy selected three more biblical stories for the 3 additional classes. The eighth block represents the story of Noah with artwork by the Third grade class:
The ninth block, the Nativity, is by the Fourth grade class:
The tenth and last block is Jesus and the Disciples by the Fifth grade class:
All the artwork above was transfered to fabric by Original Works, the original art-based fundraiser celebrating children's creativity since 1989. For more information, here is a link to their website: www.originalworks.com/
The biggest struggle with making this quilt was deciding on a lay-out for the 10 blocks. Ten blocks seperates easily into 2 rows of 5 blocks each, but would you want a wide and squatty quilt to hang on the wall? Or how about a tall and skinny quilt? After much pondering and playing with ideas on paper and in my head, I came up with the above layout. I like how this keeps the seven Days of Creation together. Next, choosing fabrics and border-widths. After assembling the blocks and borders into a quilt top, quilting is added, unique patterns to complement the individual blocks. The finishing steps are to add binding and a label .... The quilt was completed and delivered to Sandy on Saturday evening, Aug 24th. In fact it is being presented to Reverend Jan Imig during the "Welcome Back" program at First Methodist Church-Downtown Houston on Sunday, August 25, 2008. [Note: I believe the actual presentation happened on a different day, a tad later than the original plan.]
By the way, this was my 3rd completed UFO Olympic piece during last summer's UFO Olympic games that I participated in (just couldn't blog about it until AFTER the quilt had been given to Jan!
But enough of other quilts that I don't have photos of ... The quilt that I am featuring now was initially blogged about it nearly a year ago, shortly after its completion. I removed the blog post almost immediately after posting it, as the quilt was meant to be a surprise and there was a great fear that the surprise would be discovered too early! So I am happy to feature my original post about this lovely quilt that has been given to Reverend Jan Imig, from the many school children at First Methodist Church.
** ** ** ** **
What do you give someone to honor her for the years of caring and dedication she has given to your religious school program? My friend Sandy Faison had a great idea: make a quilt filled with art by the children. Jan Imig -- I hope you know how loved you are! Here is your quilt, made by the school children at First Methodist Church, and with Sandy's inspiration and organization:
Sandy chose a biblical theme -- very appropriate considering the reason behind the quilt. Each age/grade level worked on a different block. Here is the beginning, the First day of Creation by the Two-year-old class:
The second day, representing Sky and Water, is by the Three-year-old class:
The third block is the Third day of Creation, art by the Preschool class:
The fourth block, the 4th day of Creation, is by the Kindergarten class:
The fifth day of Creation has art by the First Graders at First Methodist.
The sixth day of Creation features art by the Second grade class:
The seventh block, the 7th day of Creation, has the honor of representing all the children that do not have their own block on this quilt: families with children who have already passed through the classes at First Methodist and families with young children who have yet to start their journey here.
Once the seven days of creation were used, Sandy selected three more biblical stories for the 3 additional classes. The eighth block represents the story of Noah with artwork by the Third grade class:
The ninth block, the Nativity, is by the Fourth grade class:
The tenth and last block is Jesus and the Disciples by the Fifth grade class:
All the artwork above was transfered to fabric by Original Works, the original art-based fundraiser celebrating children's creativity since 1989. For more information, here is a link to their website: www.originalworks.com/
The biggest struggle with making this quilt was deciding on a lay-out for the 10 blocks. Ten blocks seperates easily into 2 rows of 5 blocks each, but would you want a wide and squatty quilt to hang on the wall? Or how about a tall and skinny quilt? After much pondering and playing with ideas on paper and in my head, I came up with the above layout. I like how this keeps the seven Days of Creation together. Next, choosing fabrics and border-widths. After assembling the blocks and borders into a quilt top, quilting is added, unique patterns to complement the individual blocks. The finishing steps are to add binding and a label .... The quilt was completed and delivered to Sandy on Saturday evening, Aug 24th. In fact it is being presented to Reverend Jan Imig during the "Welcome Back" program at First Methodist Church-Downtown Houston on Sunday, August 25, 2008. [Note: I believe the actual presentation happened on a different day, a tad later than the original plan.]
By the way, this was my 3rd completed UFO Olympic piece during last summer's UFO Olympic games that I participated in (just couldn't blog about it until AFTER the quilt had been given to Jan!
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Bloggers Quilt Festival
In honor of the Quilt Festival happening in Chicago, April 17 to 24, Amy of Park City Girl blog came up with a fun new idea ... She is hosting the First Annual Bloggers Quilt Festival!
Click here to read details about this event .
Click here to read details about this event .
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Fiber Art Auction
The 2009 Invitational Reverse Auction featuring fabulous Fiber Art is open.
This is Rusty Grove by Linda Teddlie Minton.
It has sold for $1,800.00 -- every penny of which goes to the American Cancer Society. Yea!!!
Click here to learn more about this piece.
Better still, click here to see all the art, and to learn how to bid. Build your fiber art collection and support cancer research too!
This is Sir Winter McDormant by Roxanne Stoner.
It is still available (as of the moment that I write this). Click here to learn more about this piece.
Click here to learn more about Fiberart For A Cause (FFAC), founded by Virginia Spiegel. Many fiber artists have joined FFAC and working together they have raised over $165,000.00 for the American Cancer Society.
Simply Incredible!
NEWS FLASH: This will be the last year for the Invitational Reverse Auction! Be sure to look at the amazing artwork donated by ten outstanding fiber artists and bid on your favorite. Remember, all proceeds benefit the American Cancer Society. This event ends at 5:00 p.m. Central Standard Time on Thursday, March 26, 2009.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Empty Bowls 2009
Above is a curious peek at the first of four bowls that I will be delivering this Saturday to the 2009 Empty Bowls event in Houston. This is the second year that my Beyond the Borders (BTB) Art Quilt group has contributed bowls to this annual fundraiser benefiting the Houston Food Bank.
If you are in or near Houston this Saturday, March 21, please drop by the Houston Contemporary Craft Center (HCCC) and the Lawndale Art Center to view the thousands of bowls donated by local artisans to this worthy cause. If you find one (or more) that call to you, a mere $25.00 allows you to take it home. To celebrate your purchase, you will be given a tasty bowl of soup (in a different bowl!) for your lunch. There will be live music and a variety of craft demonstrations taking place too.
Now to see how wonderfully creative my BTB friends are ...
Here is Connie Fahrion's bowl, the one I've been teasing you with. It is a delicately sweet bowl.
She named it "Earth, Wind and Fire"
A look at the bottom ...
and the colorful sides ....
changing with the different angles.
A look at the bottom ...
and the colorful sides ....
changing with the different angles.
Janice McKeehan created two bowls for this worthy event. This one is made using felt as the stabilizer, assorted cotton greens, beading, light and petite stamped designs (one has to look close to see them) and lots of quilting to hold the layers together.
The base is signed and dated, naturally.
The back stands tall, taller still if you unfold the cuff.
This is a great bowl ... I wonder who will select it this Saturday?
Janice made this second bowl to donate as well. I am sure you will agree it is a fabulous and unique floral bowl.
I just love it!
Each of the petals and leaves are wired, giving them the natural wavy look. They can be re-shaped if needed or desired.
An underneath view ...
Looking into the heart of the flower to see its beaded center.
Now for my 2009 Empty Bowl donation....
(may I have a drum roll, please?)
First, a view of the inside -- a simple, spotted green ready to be filled with your favorite what-nots.
Next, a view of the outside -- layers of yarns, fibers, tulle and netting, possibly a stray candy wrapper or two as well.
It has a well-loved, shabby-chic look, or are my rose-colored glasses blinding me?
Can you believe the diversity of these four bowls? Think -- these are by just three artists. Imagine the thousands of other bowls that will be there on Saturday! With ceramic and clay bowls in the majority, without a doubt, there will be an extremely wide range of all kinds of bowls ... including bowls crafted with wood, paper, felted wool and other fiber creations (including these four -- Thank you Janice and Connie!)
Please come to HCCC and Lawndale (side by side on Main Street) this Saturday, March 21, 2009 between 11:00 a.m. & 4:00 p.m. I will be volunteering in the morning with my boys and my friend Tammy. Make a $25.00 minimum donation and enjoy a tasty lunch of soup, listen to entertaining live music, watch various craft demos taking place, shop for the bowl of your choice and support the Houston Food Bank!
Click here to view last year's BTB bowls.
Click here to find an Empty Bowls event near you.
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