Cold Feet Quilter

Spider Silk Textile

2012-02-07T07:03:00.000-09:00

My friend Margaret sent this link , & I thought others might be interested. My arachnophobia makes me shiver to think of how this was done, but the end product is a beautiful textile!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/gallery/2012/jan/23/golden-silk-cape-spiders-in-pictures Publish Post

DAY CANCELLED ON ACCOUNT OF SNOW

2012-02-03T16:26:00.000-09:00

These are views from my windows today. Above is the deck through the kitchen window. Below our bedroom window.

The view out the back door. Those were foot prints in the snow an hour ago. Warren went out earlier, & he had a hard time getting back home. The roads are the worst he's ever seen them. So due to weather, after discussion with a few other ALCQ members, we cancelled the lecture tonight, & classes this weekend. We're going to try & reschedule in a couple of weeks.

I've got the bags packed for classes, & lecture, & will just put the aside & try not to trip over them. I'm going to look upon this as a bonus weekend of time to work on cleaning up the mess I made preparing for these classes!

Warren's Retirement Dinner

2012-02-02T16:54:00.000-09:00

My apologies to those who read this blog for it's quilting content. I promise the next posting will be back to quilts.

Things got a little wild at Warren's retirement party last night. We had a small get-together organized by some of his friends, at Simon & Seaforts.

They were a lot of fun, & the dinner was really good.

Gifts were opened, & Tim Tebow was mimed by one of the nurses teasing Warren's buddy Will.

Ellis gave Warren a book that was appropriate for our Wednesday evening crowd,

& the group gave him some nice tappers for his kegerator. They also gave him a nice Visa gift card.

Retirement

2012-02-01T17:41:00.000-09:00

It's official, Warren has retired. I will be working full time now so I can have insurance. It's been fun working part time, but my leisure days have ended. I'm going to do 4 - 10 hr shifts starting Feb. 13th. I'm still waiting for an official position & will carry COBRA until then. I'm going to keep Thursdays off, so I can continue to go to Quilt Guild.

THANK YOU!!!

2012-01-19T11:42:00.001-09:00

I am being a total slacker today. I should be at my quilt guild meeting, but have been out every day for the past week, & am just plain tired. We had the hospital "Holiday" party last Friday evening after I had worked all day. I really hate going to those parties, but Warren always wants to go in case he should win something (mostly he's hoping for the PTO-paid time off), that's usually given out. Of course we didn't win anything, & now that he's going to retire, I swear I will never go again, no matter how much longer I have to work there!

The photo above, was a picture of Joyce's purse. She works with Warren. It's made from felted wool beads. I thought it was too cute!

Last night we went to the PAC to see "Beauty & the Beast". Of course you can't take photos of the performance. Disney is finicky that way. Although there were people everywhere snapping shots of the stage with their iPhones. I had my iPad in my purse, & only shot the carpet (below),

the ice sculptures outside,

& these 2 little beauties in the lobby. They were so cute.

Below are my souvenir streamers that we were shot with at the end of the "Be Our Guest" number. The performance was fun, I love Emily B. who played Belle. She is a very spunky girl, & had a beautiful voice.

Gaston & his sidekick were great too. I have to say though, if I had the opportunity to go to another Disney stage performance, I'd go see "The Lion King" again, over "Beauty & the Beast". LK is still my favorite.

THANK YOU TO ALL YOU WHO SET ME STRAIGHT ON THE QUILT PARTS. YES I AGREE, AFTER SEEING IT YOUR WAY, THE TREE IS A STOP SIGN. (I was thinking, autumn, school starts, & the apples above are shaped just like the stop sign too..). The perspective on the 4-square & the hopscotch are from the air, where everything else on the quilt is from the side, so I was trying to figure out what the were from the wrong perspective. THANKS AGAIN FOR HELPING ME OUT. I'm going to add binding & the sleeve, then will photograph the finished quilt & post it soon.

I"M STILL ASKING FOR PHOTOS OF ANY QUILTS OR ARTWORK OR CRAFTS YOU WOULD BE WILLING TO SHARE FOR A SLIDE SHOW HERE IN ANCHORAGE AT THE GUILD.

JUST TELL ME WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO MAKE IT. IT DOESN'T EVEN HAVE TO HA A PHOTO OF THE INSPIRATION, JUST THE STORY. PLEASE?????

Thanks to Judy who has already generously shared several photos!!!

What is this?

2012-01-12T15:29:00.000-09:00

I am quilting this school themed quilt that will be given to the a local school next month when we hold my classes there. It was part of the deal for using they facility. The person who made the top, left Alaska years ago, & donated this top to our Comfort Quilts at the ALCQ. I was quilting on it today, & realized I have no idea what this section of the quilt is supposed to represent, other than a red tree. The blue & purple checked block below, & the purple, yellow & green squares below that are part of the "playground" area on the quilt, but what are they?

I should be able to finish the quilting on this Saturday. Yay!

We are getting hit with another winter storm. Tons of snow falling in the Anchorage bowl, & still coming down. We had about 10 to 12 fresh inches this morning before I left for my Calendar Girls. I just barely made it back up the hill, & we have about 16 inches more & still falling now. If they don't plow our road tonight, I won't be getting to work tomorrow. I suppose I could finish the quilt then though! There is a bright side to every problem, right?!

Jan was working on this cute quilt that will be donated.

Jackie had fun checking out my new iPad, with our host Jean looking over her shoulder.

We played with the "photo booth" APP, & did so kaleidoscope images. They look quite quilty!

The one below is the same image as the last photo. I took it at Moose's Tooth last weekend.

Museum Day & New Year Resolutions

2012-01-08T18:50:00.000-09:00

In this new year of 2012, I resolve to be a better blogger! I will post at least one tidbit of fun information or link to something interesting no less than monthly! I also resolve to get my new web page built before my next birthday in May! I try to make resolutions that are achievable, so I don't feel like a failure!

For my first "tidbit" here is a fun link that you can go to, download one of your own photos like I did on the one below, click on the enter button, & it will generate a color palette for you from your photo.

We have been having a real winter this year. Lots of snow. I took this picture a week ago, we've had another foot of snow since then.

The Anchorage Museum had a free day today. It was "Hobby" day, & I was invited along with all the other quilters from the ALCQ guild to come & share our hobby with the public. Because of the snow, the turnout wasn't as big as it might have been. I loaded up several smaller quilts, & a couple of lap-sized ones, & a quilt "sandwich" with a big needle & thread to be used by the public if they wanted to try a few hand stitches. A sweet little girl named Sophia decided she wanted to try her hand at it. It had been in a hoop, but the hoop ended up being more challenge than it was worth.

Ruthe & I, along with my DH were the only ALCQ people that showed up. A knitter named Ann sat with me for most of the time, & we chatted with the public. It was a fun afternoon.

Afterwards Warren & I had dinner at the Firetap, & used a gift certificate I got for Christmas from Wendy & Tracy. Thanks Tracy & Wendy!

& Thanks Ruthe for showing UP!

I have a favor to ask of all you quilters & artists...

2011-12-30T10:07:00.002-09:00

Thank you to all of you who sent us your concerns over the fire. It really wasn't that bad, & my blisters are healing quickly.

Now for my question. ..I am presenting a lecture in February. It is "Inspired Design-Finding your Own Voice". Part of it will include photos of design inspiration, along with some of the things that I have made from that inspiration. I was thinking it would be fun to include the work of others in the photos. If you have a photo of something that inspired a piece that you made, & would like it to be shown in a slide presentation during my lecture, please email your pictures along with the info you want shared. I intend to make a handout with web addresses for folks to take home, so they can explore more too.

My email is akquilter1@acsalaska.net

For each person willing to share, I put names in for a drawing. I will make 2 quilted clocks, to be sent to 2 people whose names will be drawn January 20th.

We have been getting a lot of snow falling this winter. My brother said there was nothing for cross-country skiing in Michigan this year. You should all come to Alaska if you want to play in some snow!

I thought I should show a couple of back side views on the 9 patch quilt that I made for my DH.

I got a wonderful pile of beautiful stuff from my girlfriend Kathy (the Woodland Quilter) in Michigan, for Christmas. It is a Crazy Quilt just waiting to be made. It was all wrapped up in a yummy silk Pashima that goes perfect with my favorite brown slacks.

The little bags held, beads & trims,

There was a pair of little scissors, with a thimble (that fits perfect), & a needle case, & a luscious bundle of velvety fabrics, in my favorite color group.

Below is my cup of tea,(fancy tea from my DD for Xmas). The tea bags are so cute, they make me happy just looking at them. It's "Tea Forte". In front of the tea, is my Kindle. I'm still loving it 3 years later. Just under the Kindle is the new gift from my DH, an iPad 2. Yes I will still use the Kindle. The iPad is something like a fusion between the Kindle & my computer. I'm still learning how to use it. I haven't been able to set-up my email account on it yet, but have realized that it will make keeping up with all the blogs I like to read much easier.

I loaded my Kindle contents on to the iPad, & bought a guide book to help me learn my way on this cool tool!

Christmas is over...

2011-12-27T14:43:00.000-09:00

We had a nice Christmas weekend, starting with friends on Friday evening. We did our annual ornament exchange/Chinese auction style. Above is the glow-in-the-dark snowflake that I made for the event.

Ethan, Hope's boyfriend (below right) ended up with it.

After eating & exchanging ornaments, we played Pictionary-man. Much fun & silliness ensued.

The crowd left about midnight. We blew out the candles & crawled into bed until... (I'll finish this story at the end of the post.)

I wanted to share other things I've done for Christmas first. I got a blank PFD white silk scarf for one of my gifts from Jan at my Calendar Girls group. I used it to make a gift for my friend Kathy, who always exchanges with me.

I finished up a customer quilt for Tracy Trasky. This bear who I think should be called "The Guardian", because that's what he felt like to me, when hanging on my studio wall, waiting to be bound.

I also quilted the top that I gave to my DH for Christmas last year. I was a day late fining it, because of the rest of the story....

At 4 a.m. on Christmas eve morning, we were awakened by the electronic voice of the fire alarm screaming "FIRE! FIRE!" along with it's obnoxious alarm that even the hard of hearing can't ignore. I grabbed my robe & ran up the stairs, & found we indeed did have a fire blazing on top of the bookcase where earlier there had stood a candle. It was burning the cotton batting that was snow for the nativity. My first stuporous impulse was to smother it with my robe. Well, I found out that fleece burns quite well. Now I had a fire right by the Christmas tree, that was burning a package & a robe along with the cotton snow-batting... I ran to the kitchen & grabbed my tea kettle & a pan of water, & ran back pouring it over the fire, putting about 2/3 of it out. I think this is when I carried the flaming robe, & burning foot stool, which were melded together, out on to the snow covered porch, & got more water to put the rest of the fire out. Warren was working on damage control at that point, & I think that's about the time that I realized my hands felt like they were on fire. The right hand fingers got the worst of it. We went to the ER where they gave me drugs & attempted to bandage my wounds, but I couldn't stand having my hand out of a cold bucket of water for any longer than a few seconds before I had to plunge it back in again. It was about 24 hours before the fingers no longer felt like they were still in the flames. We felt very fortunate that so little was damaged, & we are safe, & healing. My hand no longer hurts.

The final photo that I am posting is another piece of silk that I dyed when I did the scarf. I think it looks like fire.

Christmas gifts

2011-12-15T15:17:00.000-09:00

Here are all 4 stockings, finished & now shipped to the girls.

I free-motion quilted each girl's name into one side of the stocking, & then first initial into the other side, & painted the letters in, after the quilting was done. I used a white rabbit fur pelt that I bought from a local bead & leather shop. Yes, I know, poor bunny..but don'y you own a pair of leather shoes, or a leather purse or belt? Poor cows...

I put a glass bead on each one. For Alex's stocking, I used part of a lambs wool collar that Aunt Ethel gave me years ago, "to make something with". Now it's heading back to Florida, where it came from.

On the back, there was an overlap, that I decided needed a button.

With satin scraps left over from the stockings, I made ornaments to put on cards. I used wire around the edges to give them stability & to make the hanger.

Another little project I did, was these wine bottles. I stuffed strings of lights into them, added a hair scrunchie around the neck & some tulle on top, & they are setting in Warren's bar.

Here is his wroght iron tree with his collection of Hallmark Eskimo figures. His art work is on the wall behind the tree.

The teddy bears are flanking the stairs again this year.

I've already received some great gifts too! My pal Judy Evans made this nice reversible bag for me.

My other friend Judy Wedeimayer made this great little wool felted bag.

This little gold zipper bag was a party favor at my Quilt Guild party today. It was full of all sorts of fun bits.

& this last bag was made & given to me by one of my best customers, Dr. Shirley Fraser.

Thanks for all of you kind comments!

Happy holidays!

Now I've got to go finish several more projects & the decorating, & cook, & get those holiday letters in envelopes & mailed....etc, etc..

Christmas stockings

2011-12-11T21:31:00.001-09:00

My DD called me recently, asking if I might be able to make a stocking for her SO's little girl Sylvia. It reminded me that I hadn't gotten stockings made for 3 of my other DGD's either, so I after I finished Shirley's quilt, I decided I HAD to get these stockings made. I had a nice chunk of red satin fabric, that I loaded on to Lily, & made a pattern from a piece of newspaper. I stitched the outlines of 8 stockings first, then quilted them all today. I was fun doing a free motion job that I didn't have to worry about what anyone else thought!

Sylvia wanted pink, so I trimmed it in pink. On one side I quilted her initial, & colored it with pink paint.

On the other side I wrote her name. The tassel sticks out in the photo because of gravity. I tipped the camera to get the full stocking in.

I added some pink bling with beads. I hope it's enough pink for her. I have a little hand work to do on the others, so I'll finish them & show them later. I just wanted to post this for my DD to see, & know it's on its way soon!

Here is Shirley's latest quilt. I quilted up fairly easily.

Here are a couple of group shots from our Calendar Girls Christmas party at Betty's house. Sorry you couldn't come Margaret & Jean, & Cheryl.

Betty made this pretty Jello dessert. Light & fun to eat!

Getting ready for the holidays

2011-12-08T09:30:00.001-09:00

This has been an odd winter here in Alaska. The deep freeze came early. We got some good snowfall, for which I was grateful. I snapped this picture of a "snow snake" in my tree Saturday morning. By that afternoon it had warmed up, a Chinook blew in, & the snake was gone. That night we had 118 mile-per hour wind gusts. It sounded like a freight train coming through the yard. I spent half of the night camping on the floor of my studio because of the noise. Warren was working, so it was just me & Broc, & I couldn't sleep listening to the wind blow in the bedroom. Several people had damage to their homes. We had leaks in odd places. Water was being blown sideways, & it leaked where we never had leaks before. Now we have new leaky spots to add to the to-do list.

I made a turkey last week, & made a pot of soup from left-overs. It was yum-perfect.

In the studio, I have been working on Christmas, as well as 2 customer quilts. Shirley's is done, I just have to lint roller it, photograph, bundle it, & calculate the bill, & I can deliver it. Tracy's bear just needs border quilting, so I think I'll get it finished this weekend. Broc plopped himself down on top of the little ornaments I was trying to get finished for giving to the Calendar Girls, & for package decorations. I simply fussy-cut these from a print, layered them with bits of stiff batt (Timtex -like stuff), & sewed around the edges, with a string layered in the top edge. They can be hung as an ornament or pinned on & worn.

Now I'm heading out to the Calendar Girls, with my "White Elephant" gifts, ready for our exchange. It's always fun to see who gets stuck with the most junk! At least whoever gets mine will have a nice hunk of fabric.

In the Deep Freeze

2011-11-27T20:24:00.002-09:00

We've been below zero for several days now. The Waxwings were gathered & looking extra fluffy in a tree by our driveway.

We had our traditional Thanksgiving at the Meyn's house. I made a cranberry jello-creme pie, yam casserole & pear salad for my contribution for the dinner. Brandon & Bryan came too.

On Saturday morning we met again at the Meyn's for breakfast. It may be bitter cold outside, but warm food & friendship indoors more than makes up for it.

Here's a picture for you Anita. Bryan using the Force to levitate the ball in the tube. He was very good at it.

The Sentinel ~ my final Fiberactions Challenge

2011-11-16T11:23:00.002-09:00

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmnm

That first line was from Broccoli. He has missed me, because I was working the past 2 days, & haven't been home much.

Below is the piece I made for the last Fiberactions Challenge. The word was 'Structure', & I chose to build a 'Cairn'. It's a rock structure that hikers build to mark paths, or spots to alert other hikers. This one is placed by a river to mark a safe crossing.

The first photo shows the quilt how it looked when I first finished. As I had it hanging on the wall, I realized there was a hole in my stack of 'rocks' , & it bothered me. I made the rocks from the Shibori pole wrap process that my friend Sandy Winfree taught me this past summer.

After contemplating how I might fix that hole, I found a real rock that looked very much like the ones I made from silk. I threaded some long pieces of thread through a button, then glued the rock to the top of the button, & stitched the threads through the quilt (a process I learned from Allie Aller).

The raven standing guard by the Cairn is the one I made entirely from thread, free-motion on wash-away stabilizer.

The leaves are all from fabric that I straw dyed this past summer, appli-quilted in place over the couched yarns for branches. The challenges have been a lot of fun, but I've decided to challenge myself this next year. Changes are in the wind for us. Warren will retire. I will have to go back to full time. I am thinking about what I'm going to do next......we'll see.

In the meantime, I'll warm myself by the fire.

A Fond Farewell

2011-11-12T19:54:00.000-09:00

Today I made the above card for our friend Elle. Her husband, our dear friend Dr. Richard Neubauer, died recently. Today was the Memorial service. The service was nice. There were about 300 people there. Several people I hadn't seen in years. Afterward, we went to the Bear Tooth Grill with Mindy & John, Kate & & Brooks, & Grace. All us girls had worked together in Richard's office about 20 years ago. It was a nice reunion.

To-Do list finished.

2011-11-09T13:33:00.001-09:00

I feel a nice sense of accomplishment. My 'To-Do' list is completed. (Now I need to make a new one). I got all the stuff that my friend gave me sorted & organized. The ribbon reels & put on dowels & placed them under the shelves where I keep my larger cones of thread. Now Lily is clear so I can load the next large quilt, which will be Shirley's. I'll photograph the top today, & start working on quilting designs for it.

This last photo is a sneak peak of the 'Structure' quilt, that I just finished for the Fiberactions final challenge. I've enjoyed doing the challenges, & they've forced me to produce when I probably would have just worked on customer quilts. It's always good to stretch my inner artist!

New To-Do list:

1. make 2 cards

2. Photo Shirley's Quilt top

3.draw designs for above

4. work on quilting Tracy's bear quilt

5. Write holiday letter

Crow Vs Raven

2011-11-08T09:37:00.001-09:00

In my last post I made 2 Ravens out of thread. A few of you thought they were crows. I wanted to show you the difference between the 2. This first little video shows the 2 side by side. The Raven is a bigger smarter bird. I have been lucky enough to have some close encounters with Ravens, & I have a real affinity for them.

They have a voice like no other bird, & this next video is the only one I could find that captured it.
It starts at 5:18 in the video. Enjoy.

Threadplay RAVEN

2011-11-06T10:06:00.003-09:00

I have done a little Threadplay this week. For my first attempt I used one of my Raven photos. (I always use my own photo or drawing, so I don't infringe on anyone else's copyright). As you can see, the first bird didn't end up looking at all like the original. My problem? Well, the hoop I was using for my stabilizer was a little loose, for one thing. The stabilizer also has a little grain line to it, & I was only using one layer.

So I tried again. This time I used 2 layers of stabilizer, laying them perpendicular to each other, & stitched a grid pattern on the 2 layers before chalking my outline on the whole thing, & stitching out the bird. The bird on the left, is still a little smaller than the original, but he's proportioned much better. I'll keep the one on the right, & call him a baby bird, but he won't be used until I find the right project for him.

Yesterday I taught my Threadplay With Wire class at Quilt Zone. My students all made Dragonflies. Kathy here sews fast, so she decided to make a Star too. It was her own idea, & I thought it turned out really cute.

Thursday, when I went to my Quilt Guild meeting, Pat came in with a large garbage bag full of stuff that she thought I might like. It included several rolls of white wire ribbons, & white silk floral bits. Also bags of lace & embroidered trims. All great fodder for Crazy quilting. I'm thinking I can paint or dye the white stuff any color I want. Even some of the trim would be fun to over dye. Now that I've sorted it all out, & made a big mess of my studio, I want to get down there & clean & do some rearranging....Hopefully I can get there, just as soon as the other things on my To-Do list are done....

1.Make bread ~DONE

2. take down Halloween & put out Thanksgiving decorations.~DONE

3.Post ALCQ blog for this week.~DONE

4.Finish project for Fiberactions due on the 15th.DONE

5. Clean up this mess!DONE

Too bad I have to go to work tomorrow!
to be continued Tues....

It must be winter.

2011-10-31T10:02:00.000-08:00

It must be winter, because Broc is back to sleeping in his bed, & there is white stuff on the ground & trees now. We woke up the the world of new snow yesterday morning. This looks like it's here to stay, & more is falling today. I hung the bird feeder up yestrday, & the birds are enjoying the feast.

Tracy's latest quilt

2011-10-29T16:45:00.000-08:00

I finished Tracy's quilt this morning. Here is the final result.

The back is pretty too.

I have to tell you, I broke down & bought these tension guages from Superior Threads, to use on my longarm. It has made my life SOOooo much easier. I found that even I had my thread tension balaced, I was having trouble with skipping stitches. When I got he tension guages, I discovered I was running with my thread tension way too tight. When I turned it down to the reccomened tension on both the top & bobbin, it made all the difference. So much better. No more skipping & breaking.

I wanted to tell you about the visitor I had at this window this week. It was a young black bear (sorry no picture, the camera was upstairs at the time). I was setting right there at the machine when the bear litlerally walked right up against the window. It was so cute. It had thick fur, ready for winter. He looked like a giant teddy bear. The mama was in the yard too, but further away.

It's chilly outside. The ground is frozen, with ice puddles in the driveway, but no snow here yet. It seems to be coming later & later. I guess it's the global warming.

A Quick Pumpkin Quilt

2011-10-25T16:51:00.000-08:00

Thursday, when I went to Quilt Guild, there were little white pellets on my windshield cover. by the time I got back home from the meeting the white stuff was all gone. It seems like the snow is coming late again this year. I believe global warming really is affecting our environment.

At the guild, April talked about her project, "Pedals For Africa". She founded a non-profit organization, to raise funds to buy bicycles for students in Africa, to ride to & from school. This needle work was donated to her, by ALCQ member Clara Jo, to be used at one of her auctions.

Friday evening we had Kathy Kansier for a lecture. She is an AQS certified quilt appraiser, & judge.

She also gave classes on Saturday & Sunday, but I didn't take any of them, because I was teaching classes, myself, at Quilt Zone. Sunday evening my friend Mary G. brought Kathy up to my house for dinner, & to appraise 2 of my quilts. We had crab with lemony-butter, pumpkin soup & home-made rolls.

I had Kathy appraise my "Oh! to Dance With a Dolphin!" & "Ravages of Time~Port Townsend truck thread painting".

I had a vacant space about my front door, & threw together this little pumpkin wall hanging to fill it for the autumn months. It is simple raw edge machine applique', & a bumpy yarn edge instead of binding. I made it in just a few hours.

Quilt- purse & Autumn Bits

2011-10-19T13:22:00.001-08:00

I've been busy working & quilting. I have 3 borders left to quilt on Tracy's quilt, which I will post when I've finished. Below is the "Cool Cat" card I made for my DGD Darian. She turned 17 yesterday. I can hardly believe she's so old!

I taught my Basic Threadplay class on the 8th. This coming weekend I have Advanced Threadplay & Free Motion Machine Quilting to teach on Saturday & Sunday.

I always enjoy sharing the fun of free-motion with my students.

Today I made a small purse for the ALCQ to give to Kathy Kansier when she comes this weekend. It started with an experiment with a bit of gold polyester fabric. I tried to see if I could dye it. I couldn't. It didn't take any bit of the dye, but it did hold the shape of the rocks when I tried the pole wrap with rocks. I used it for the front flap, & added burned silk for leaves. I'm pretty happy with the final results.

Autumn being my favorite season, I enjoyed making my pumpkin soup for my DH & 2 of his fellow RT's who came over on Sunday. It was a farewell dinner for James, who is a traveler that Warren has worked with once before. James was brought up to Alaska this time, to work while Warren was off for his knee surgery.

For dessert, I made another Esspresso Cheesecake. This one cracked a bit on top, so it got a heavier coating of coffee frosting than the last one. (Not an all bad thing).

Birthdays

2011-10-07T22:59:00.000-08:00

Today is both my DH Warren, & my DS Brandon's birthday. Brandon is far away in Kwajelein, but Warren & I went to Girdwood, to the Double Musky for dinner to celebrate. The drive down the Seward Hwy is always beautiful.

There was an unusual sight in Turnagain Arm. 2 boats. I've never seen boats out there before. They just don't go up the Arm. It's tides are dangerous, & there are spots that are shallow. I'm not sure what they were doing, but it was a strange sight to see boats there.

The bushes along the road were colorful.

We saved dessert for home. I made an Espresso Cheesecake, that was really good.

Other projects I've been working on are Tracy's quilt is on Lily right now (pictures later), & dyeing some silk.

Below are some grapes I dyed, by the shibori wrap method that I learned from my friend Sandy Winfree.

This was the card I made for Warren.

Quilting Design, Mystery books & a gift

2011-09-28T17:15:00.001-08:00

Vivika DeNegre sent this little Prayer Flag to me, as on the the Fiberactions group. Isn't it sweet? It's always fun to get a little surprise bit of art in the mail. Thank you Vivika!

I've been eating up the books lately. As I quilt on Lily (my longarm), I like to listen to books on my Kindle. Recently, I received an email from Mary Pomponio, who is a publicist for Clare O'Donahue.

Clare is a quilter who also write Mystery books. She has a new book coming out soon, & Mary is asking some quilters who blog to read her new book. Well, since the new book is the 4th, Z& even though she offered to send me all 4, I decided I wanted to get started on them now. The first 2 aren't available to my Kindle, so I'll have to read those the old fashioned way. I found them at Titlewave today. The 3rd,"",Double Cross I was able to get on Kindle. I've already got started on "Lovers's Knot", & I'm already hooked. This will be my bedtime coffee in the morning reading for now. Since I'm a Gemini, I can continue listening to the "Anna Pigeon Series" by Nevada Barr, on my Kindle when I want to quilt. There will be a give-away here soon for the newest book, along with something made by me.

For what I'm working on next, is a quilt by Tracy. These are the designs I offered her, & she chose B (my favorite). She wants it double batted, so it'll not only be really warm, the quilting will stand out well. I loaded it today, tomorrow I hope to start quilting.

As far as what is TERMINATION DUST: it's the first snow on the mountains in the autumn, that marks the termination- hence the end of summer. Time to get ready for winter.

Autumn Inspiration

2011-09-24T21:36:00.000-08:00

This fella took a nap in our yard yesterday. Isn't he handsome in his homely moosie way?

Today I took a little walk around our yard, looking for a little autumn inspiration.

Termination dust has been on the mountains behind the house for a few days now.

This is what I made after my walk.

Oh, by the way, ...If you want to be my neighbor, this house is for sale!

The Case of the Mysterious Oompa Loompa...

2011-09-20T07:12:00.000-08:00

Yesterday my DH went into his closet to pull out a shirt. Weather is getting cooler, so he went for long sleeves. The shirt he chose, was one he hadn't worn in a long time. This Oompa Loompa doll was neatly buttoned under the collar of the shirt. Neither one of us recall ever seeing this thing before. We have no idea how it came to be in his closet, or on his shirt. I find this a little creepy....

Catching Up

2011-09-17T16:19:00.002-08:00

One of the things I finished recently was the quilt for our past quilt guild president, Pam Harris. I didn't want to post about it until we gave her the quilt, as she reads my blog pretty regularly. The blocks were made by lots of the members of the Anchorage Log Cabin Quilters.(You should check out the quilt show pictures too). Jackie Carley put them together into a top. We gave Pam the top a year ago, & I promised her I would do the quilting for it. She added the small green & wider purple borders herself, & with the help of Sandy Winfree & some extra blocks, pieced the back.

I did all the quilting, & made the binding, put it on by machine, then Jetta Brewer- Huber, Donna Evans,

Marge Seidler & Barbara Clinton hand finished the binding.

I took one of my photos from the front of the quilt, & made a label for it using the Colorfast Printer fabric.

I cut it into a circle & hand appliqued it on at the meeting just prior to presenting it to Pam.

Today we had breakfast at the Meyn's house. Their youngest, Hope is going off to Southern Oregon U. in a few days.

Next to her is her BF Ethan.

Pete & Lily came too. (Pete is the Orho Doc that fixes our arthritic joints).

I made 2 pans of sticky, gooey, oh so yummy carmel buns. They were gone pretty fast.

Texture

2011-09-15T15:23:00.000-08:00

Today is the reveal day on the Fiberactions Blog for the word "Texture". Above is my completed piece. I finished the quilting on it this morning. I started with the black satin background quilt. I finished the edges with a nubby black yarn Already that's 2 different textures.

Detail shots from left to right, & top to bottom below. I made 9 white wool mini quilts 3 1/2 x 3 1/2 inches. Each has a Timtex-like stiff batting for thier center. I painted green or orange around the edge of each block after blanket stitching each edge with a white wool yarn. In the center of each little wool square, I did a small study of different textures.

The first, below was done by sewing a grid on wash-away stabilizer, then weaving my hand-dyed cotton string left-over from a shibori dying project that I did about 8 years ago. This took me back to those little pot-holders we all made as childeren. After the weaving was complete, I free-motion stitched another layer of threads to anchore the piece together, & washed out the stabilizer.

The 2nd is a piece of fused glass made by my Mindy. She's the best! Always giving me little beautiful bits, that I can include in my pieces. I did some simple thread-play on the wash-away stabilizer, rinsed, & hand sewed it to the top, trapping the glass underneath.

This on is a bit of silk chiffon that I simpley pole wrapped & dyed, & dryed.

The green is another Thread-play on Wash-away. I did 3 layers, washed them out, & layed 1 on top of the next to give depth.

For the center block, I did a little bead scene with a mirror sun cabachon. 16 hours of beading & all I have to show for it is a wonky 1 3/4 inch square. Maybe I should take a class to learn how it's supposed to be done.

For the next one, I got out my wool rovings & a felting needle. I sculpted this little flower in a very short time.

It's hard to tell here, but it's very dimentional.

The next is another little bit of silk that I hand dyed, & pole wrapped with little beads inside, to give the fabric shape & dimension. This was after my friend Sandy showed me how to wrap rocks under fabric & on a pole.

I dug into my botton collection for the next square. I love sorting through old buttons.

For the last of the 9 squares I painted a bit of Mulberry bark, & added some hand embroidery stitches for a different texture.

In the empty space at the bottom, I did 3 squares of free-motion machine quilting. All in Sulky Holoshimmer thread, 2 green & one Copper.

Check out all the others on the Fiberactions Blog.

A week with Quilters

2011-09-12T14:36:00.002-08:00

Thursday we had our Calendar Girls Meeting at Mary Gerkin's house. Mary always serves up a gourmet meal. This time it was Paella & antipasto. Her sweet dog Scamp looked on, longingly from the door on the deck.

Don & Marilyn Locke were our special guests.

Dessert was a lovely Flan.

Mary's view from her deck was lovely. On the way down the mountain, we got to see a big black bear. Don got a picture of it with his camera, but I was too busy driving to try & take a pic.

Friday we set up the quilt show. Here are Don & Marilyn with his very first quilt.

& Don with "The Supper", when we got it hung.

Saturday, on the 1st show-day, he wore his hand-dyed shirt that matches the back side of the quilt.

Bryan stopped by & did this little pose for me, so I could post it here for his mom, Anita Heady. I know how it is to have you kids so far away Anita, so here he is for you. He very sweetly offered to make dinner for us on Sunday, & I took him up on it. See below!

I introduced Bryan to several of my quilter friends. They all loved him. This is our guild president Rena, who he is talking to.

Here bidding was ending at the small quilt silent auction.

For the first time ever, I actually got a quilt that I was bidding on. It was made by my friend Sandy Winfree, who taught me how to tie the rocks into the fabric for Shibori.

Bryan came over after the show on Sunday, & brought these WONDERFUL Knishes....Oh boy, were they good! I made his favorite bacon wrapped dates for an appetizer, & pear salad.

For dessert we had vanilla ice cream, with warm caramel, & Brandied Rainer Cherries, made by my friend Rena. She had given them to Don & Marilyn. It was a great meal, & so nice at the end of a great week. Thank you Bryan, Don & Marilyn, & Rena!Now we will all go on a diet!

Don & Marilyn are off to Texas again. I'll miss them.

Autumn in Alaska

2011-09-06T06:46:00.001-08:00

I didn't realize until I unloaded the pictures from my camera yesterday, just how long it's been since I'd done a blog post. Like the fungi in my yard, my blog has been growing pretty stale!I have been working on some quilts, but can't show them until after Sept. 15th.

Sorry folks! I've realized that part of my incentive for posting, was my Dad reading my blog regularly. He would call every Sunday & comment on what I had posted during the week. I think he was the biggest reason I tried to blog regularly, because I knew he enjoyed reading about what was going on in my life.

We have had a wet August, & are still in the season of Road Construction.

Marilyn & Don Locke (both quilters from Texas), are here staying with us right now. Don made "The Supper" quilt, which is how I first met him, back in Barcelona, Spain, in 2002. Yesterday we took them down to Seward for the day. We stopped at Beluga Point along the way. Beluga whales were in the inlet, & I was lucky enough to see them, but not get any pictures. Don & Marilyn have been braving the elements here without complaint. When the left Texas it was 110 degrees!

I did all the driving, Warren is doing better with his right knee, but hasn't dared try driving yet. I had to make this "truck stop", photo opportunity along the road. I thought it was a beauty. This will definitely have to go into my truck series one of these days!

We stopped at "Sew & Bee Cozy", the local Seward quilt shop, where Don & Marilyn both bought fabric & tools, & had a general good time. Next we ate a late lunch/early dinner at our favorite restaurant, "Rays", where we all had great food,

& decadent desserts.YUM!

The local entertainment outside the window was great too!

After filling our tummies, we made a stop at

Softly Silk, where we were just lucky to find Kerry Cline in the shop, & willing to open the door for us.

I bought a couple of small gifts for Christmas, & Marilyn got herself a lovely sweater vest.

We made one last stop at my favorite coffee house to get our driver (me) a good cup of coffee to help keep me from going into a food coma of the 130 miles return trip home, & Don & Marilyn got to check out a little more of the local art.

He's Home

2011-08-19T19:00:00.000-08:00

I brought Warren home today. We made him comfy in the recovery recliner. We bought it for me when I had shoulder surgery, & have gotten a lot of use out of it ever since, for every surgery & bronchitis that we've had since then. It was well worth the investment. It's in our bedroom.

Broc was happy we were home. He's not used to being home alone for so long. He liked the bag that Warren had his robe in.

I did get some quilting finished this week. I finished Wendy's Reindeer Runner, while I watched over Warren in the hospital. I'll try to get a photo of it tomorrow before I deliver it over to Wendy, & post it later. I'm going to be early tonight. We're both whipped.

More Shibori with Silk & cotton

2011-08-14T19:19:00.000-08:00

My sister Em asked for a shot of the deck skirt, so here it is. Warren worked on the first of 4 raised beds that will go in this corner of the back yard too. The other 3 wil have to wait until next summer, as he will be having his right knee replaced on Tuesday.

I've been working in the studio. I put the old Microwave oven in the corner, & set up all the Acid dyes that I just bought for dying.

I bought some black silk & tried discharging it with bleach, but it wouldn't discharge at all! so...I got out my Lumier paints, & painted it instead. The fabric on the right pole was a black cotton, & it did discharge without any problem, but the silk didn't fade one bit.The silks are the one on the left with the rocks, & the piece draped behind the 2 poles.

One of the pieces that I dyed at Sandy's house, the one with the large rocks, I stuffed the back side with bits of wool batting,( left from some traupunto project a while ago),

Then I basted a piece of cotton batting on, & stitched a flat backing, & quilted the whole thing from the front, & also added a cord for wearing it....

I left the edges on the front piece raw, but burned them a little to seal the edges. Now I can wear it like a little piece of art.

Michelle's Birthday

2011-08-10T22:50:00.000-08:00

Just a quick post to say I'm still here, just busy with life. Above is a little piece that I sent to my DD, Michelle for her birthday. It's a tiny bit of the Shibori silk that I made using beads to shape the silk (removed after it dried), so they are soft little puffs of fabric.. Bits if the hand-dyed silk, some Angelina fibers, some foil, some grass cloth, tuelle, wire & beads are all worked into the little piece. It's a 2 x3 inch art piece that took about 6 hours to create. No I wouldn't make them to sell.

Below are some little red dresses made from Friendly Plastic & beads.

More Shibori

2011-07-31T00:42:00.000-08:00

Wednesday I spent a couple more hours with Sandy dying silk. She soaks the fabric in water with White Vinegar. Roughly 1 cup of Vinegar in a big bucket of water. She lets the fabric soak for a minimum of 15 minutes, then rings it out, & scrunches it on a plate. She drips the dyes on. The dyes are Jaquard Acid dyes, just the powder mixed in a little water until dissolved. These can be kept forever, & used until they are gone. They don't bind in the water & lose the ability to dye the fabric the way other dyes do.

After Sandy's, I went to the local art store & bought some dyes, & set up on my hutch. I used straws to mix & transfer the dyes to the fabric, just dipping & holding my finger on the end of the straw, then dropping the dyes where ever I pleased.

After dripping dyes on to scrunched fabric, it's covered in plastic wrap & microwaved for a couple of minutes. Sandy did 3 minutes in her microwave, but mine is a little more powerful. The microwave causes the dyes to steam under the plastic wrap, & therefore sets the dyes.

After taking it out of the microwave, let it set for a few minutes more under the plastic to continue steaming, & to cool down a bit. The next step is to rinse the fabric well under running water, then let it dry.

Wrapped on a piece of PVC drain pipe (this has to be smooth, not bumpy). Using plain string wrapped tightly around the fabric, & rocks added as you go. The pole with fabric was soaked again in the vinegar water bucket, then more dye was added after wrapping. Next was the hard part....waiting for it to dry...

This was how it looked when finished.

Tonight I did 3 more pieces. This first one, I used beads instead of stones.

Broc modeled one of the finished pieces. It has potential for a Halloween costume..Broccosaurus?

Acid Dyes

2011-07-27T08:49:00.000-08:00

The thought of using "acid dyes" had always made me a little nervous. I had never really considered that the "acid" was only white vinegar. I had taken a couple of silk painting classes in the past, & love how the dyes flowed & colored the silk, but honestly never actually "got it" until yesterday, when my friend Sandy Winfree invited to come over & play at her house, & do some silk dying. I forgot to bring my camera along for the the process, but here are the results so far......

Here are the silk wrapped on poles, Shibori style, with the 3 to the left including rocks & small stones to add texture. Today we will be adding another layer of color, then I have to wait a few days for the fabric to dry completely before we can see the finale results.

Sandy's process involves ironing & pleating her fabric before wrapping on the pole, which I did do for one small piece, but the others I just did the wrapping, scrunching & rocks, for what I hope will be a more organic result. Below is one of Sandy's breath-takingly beautiful quilts. She came to quilting from a doll-making background.

Birthdays Quards

2011-07-18T23:02:00.000-08:00

I have to start out, by saying gee Thanks! for all the compliments on the Raven! It was nothing! Really! I could teach each & every one of you haw to do the same thing!

Always there are people I want to make quilts for, & never enough time to do all I want to do. I make little "Quards" (my term for quilted cards), for special people in my life. July is birthday for 2 of my grand-daughters. Alex turned 19 on the 2nd.

Carys turned 4 on the 19th. (Which is today for her, but tomorrow for me yet, since she is over the International Dateline). Carys's card was a bit of serendipity. I had a felted piece, with 2 goofy little fishes on it, that I made a long time ago. She is into mermaids right now, & I had this great photo of her from our vacation time together last month. I just cut out her face & glued it on the background, then added the Threadplay & quilting. Easy-peasy, & lots of fun. I called her tonight to say happy birthday. She has a cold, as does her baby sister Zoe, & Daddy Brandon has a cold & Mono again. It's a good thing Laura is healthy!

Thursday was Calendar Girls at Margaret's house. Margaret shared some of her latest projects, & fed us great food. We also had a great time talking & laughing.Her crown was made by Carol. She has made each one of us one this year. We are going to wear them at the Quilt Show in Sept.

This is the front cover,

inside,

& back cover of a portfolio booklet that Margaret made.

I also want to mention that my pal Stephanie told me I would like author Janet Evanovich. I just finished reading "One For the Money", & I have to say, it was the funniest, laugh out loud book, that I have read in a long time. I am already on to the next book, & it's making me laugh too. They are detective type stories, & my kind of humor. Thanks Steph!

Raven the Collector

2011-07-15T07:16:00.001-08:00

This was a 2 for 1 Challenge. I had the Fiberactions Challenge word "Departure", & the Calendar Girls challenge "Our Inner Animal". I decided to make a Raven, who has been very special to me ever since I came to Alaska. I do like to wear black, but love other colors too, so I started on him by thread painting with neon brights, then over laid them with the blacks. I surrounded him with bits & baubles of fused glass made by my BFF Mindy, & friendly plastic, & a bit of jewelry. The background includes Angelina Fibers under black Tulle. I did Thread play on Wash-away stabilizer for both the Raven & the cabochons to hold more glass galaxies on the upper left. The background moon is glow-in-the-dark fabric.

Check out the Fiberactions blog for all of the other Departure pieces.http://fiberactions.blogspot.com/

Sneak Peek

2011-07-12T11:56:00.000-08:00

I have been busy in the studio, working on my "Departure" piece, for the Fiberactions Challenge. It's done, but can't be shared until Friday. Above is a sneak peek of a small portion of it.

Below are some of the local wildlife taking a respite in my back yard a couple of days ago.

Yesterday Byan & Brandon came over to help Warren finish the skirt on our deck. It took 2 to hold while one ran the drill. I fed them well afterward.

Quilter's Lunch

2011-07-07T18:10:00.000-08:00

Today after Quilt Guild, a few of the ladies wanted to go for lunch at the brewery to see my quilts on the walls. We even had 2 husbands join us! Beer & quilts seems to be a good combination! It's been fun talking to the people who work at the restaurant. Several have said that we've helped educate them, that quilts can be art as well as bed coverings.

Two of the smaller quilts have sold. The smallest one, second from far right above, & the one on the far right below.

Below, this picture is the grouping by the door, where I've placed a little book that I hope people will sign to let me know they dropped by. Do you see the design on the cabinet below the green bordered quilt? It's the same. I made the quilt design by rubbing an oil-paint stick on fabric, over the top of that cabinet.

2011-07-03T01:09:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year, here in the Land of the Midnight Sun, where most of us tend to get a little manic because the sky never gets dark. We've been very busy with getting ready for my show, & gathering with friends & entertaining too.

One kind of funny thing that happened this past week (which wasn't so funny at first) was an incident with my Rowenta steam generator iron & my cat. I'm talking about the iron that runs around $200.00. I went to iron a small piece of fabric on my small ironing pad, that always sets on the table next to the iron. I hit the steam button, & got this HORRIBLE smell of ammonia. I thought, "Oh no, Broccoli has peed on my ironing pad!"

I shut off the iron, threw away the ironing pad, & proceeded to tell my DH that we needed to take Broccoli to the Vet to get checked out. I figured he either had a cystitis going on, or crystals in his urine. Well Broccoli checked out fine. Aside from being a little on the concentrated side, he didn't have any abnormals on his lab work, & the vet just recommended wet cat food with a little extra water mixed in.

That's not the end of the story. The next time the iron was turned on, Warren was going to iron his shirt. He hits the steam button, & there it is again. Ammonia! UGH! This time, I looked closer, & realized the "water" jug that I had filled my iron with had "UREA" written on the label in my own handwriting! I had mixed it for dying fabric months ago, & the jug had been setting right next to my water jug that I had just used up last week! After much rinsing, & running lots of steam through the iron, it smells & works fine, & Broccoli is happy to be home & eating wet cat food!

Aside from that little comedy, we had a fun evening with new friends. This is James with Warren out on the deck. James is a friend of my son Brandon. They worked together in Kwajalein for the past 5 years. James & Susie, along with her son Blake came over for dinner on Thursday evening. They are in the process of moving to Fairbanks.

We also had Bryan &his friend Brandon over too. Bryan is Anita Heady's son. The 2 boys are fresh out of the military, & are signed up to go to UAA this year. I told them I am adopting them for now. We had dinner with them Wed., Thurs. & Friday this week! They are nice boys.

On Friday, it was the official opening of my quilt show at the Midnight Sun Brewery Restaurant. As the "Artist of the month" I got to "Tap the Firkin". I didn't even know what a "Firkin" was!

Well after some instructions, I was given this heavy metal mallet...

& after about 6 good whacks (only one of which hit my thumb), the beer was flowing, & the party began.

My friend Judy took this shot of Susie, James, me, Warren, Brandon, & Bryan.

The star of my show, "Oh! to Dance With a Dolphin!", looks nice on the wall. I have 26 quilts hanging in the show.

Some of these guys looked familiar. (Docs we know, who shall remain unnamed).

Friends Mindy & John came too late for food, so after the restaurant closed we all went to our house & I threw together a late meal.

This morning I went to Mindy & John's for breakfast, & Mindy had made a Fused glass necklace to give to my friend Judy for her birthday, which we celebrated this evening.

This was the card I made for her,

& the necklace by Mindy.

Judy loved it.

Now that the show is up & running itself, I can get to work on the next Fiberactions challenge, & customer quilts.Whew! I'm looking forward to darkness again!

My Solo Show Opens Tonight

2011-07-01T10:34:00.000-08:00

Not Your Grandma’s Quilts!

A show of 26 art quilts,

Debra Jo Hardman

July1-August 2, 2011

First Friday Show tonight along with First Tap

starts 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Midnight Sun Brewing Co Restaurant

8111 Dimond Hook Drive

Anchorage, Alaska [AK] 99507

Directions:

Midnight Sun Brewing Company is located in South Anchorage on Dimond Hook Drive, a couple blocks North of Home Depot on Abbott Rd. Heading east on Dimond Blvd past Seward Hwy and Sandlewood Place, get in the left turn lane then do "the squiggle" to remain on E. Dimond Blvd. Turn left on Petersberg Street. Turn right on Dimond Hook Drive...brown block bldg.

2011-06-26T20:39:00.000-08:00

Friday evening we went to Kate's house for dinner (far right), & to see an old friend Kerry (in the center) & meet her daughter & husband. Kate & I worked in the ICU with Kerry about 30 years ago. It was a lovely evening.

Saturday morning we went to our friends the Meyns house for breakfast. Everyone was wearing hand-dyed shirts (or in my case a dress), & Mindy even made colorful pancakes. It was a fun time.

The rest of my weekend has been spent on getting ready for my show at the Midnight Sun Brewery Restaurant, opening July 1st.

This is the pile of quilts, clocks, & signs for the show. I'm hanging 26 pieces. I've been finishing things like labels, & hanging sleeves. Odds & ends that need to be finished up for the show. I've also put a few hours in on Judy's quilt. She chose design A from the last post.

This was a postcard quilt, that I thought needed something to finish it off, so I quilted a background piece & mounted it on to a stretched canvas.

The clock-quilts finally got their clock parts.Ready for the show.

Client Quilt Design Choices

2011-06-21T21:37:00.000-08:00

I love the Wacom Bamboo tablet that I can drawn on the photos of quilts to explore design choices. I learned about this from Carla Barrett, when I took her on-line "Quilt Whisperer" class a while ago.

Above is the next quilt I have to quilt, & below I redrew the designs on a black screen so that they could be seen more easily. I like doing this, because I can draw the designs & tell the client what the charge for each design would be, & she can decide which one she prefers. It makes for a little less anxiety on reveal day, & the client gets some input on the design choice. It's a win-win!

2011-06-19T17:28:00.000-08:00

I'm feeling better, the sore throat is almost all gone. Today is the first day since Tuesday that I've eaten solid foods, instead of soup, & yogurt. I finished up working on Wendy's quilt. It had a few issues. Wendy had never done piecing before, & tackled this for her first pieced quilt. I put 2 layers of batting in it to help square it up, & it worked fairly well.

We had 2 sunny days in a row, Friday & Saturday. I decided that I should get out on my deck in the sun, & take advantage of the weather, as we can't count on having many days this warm.

I used these textile paints on some silk chiffon. Below is a close up of the finished fabric. I will be a lovely top layer for a quilt some day.

I did some "Straw Dying" on 2 rayon jackets & a T-shirt from Dharma.

What I mean by "Straw Dying" is, using straws to scoop up small amounts of dye powder, to sprinkle on the fabric (which I had pre-soaked in a soda-ash solution). I used about 1/3 cup of soda ash in a gallon of warm water. I let the pieces soak a good 1/2 hour prior to the dye session.

I arranged the fabric in the bottom of a big retangular plastic tub, & wearing a face mask, I sprinkled on the dyes. Then I sprayed a little water on, carefully rearranged e fabric, & repeated the sprinkling process.

This is how the fabric looked after setting over night in plastic bags, then washing & drying.

It turned out to be a creative weekend, in spite of myself!

Vacation's End

2011-06-16T22:25:00.002-08:00

We had so much joy playing with the kids.

Little Zoe was starting to get more interactive. She actually cooed & smiled for me.

I felt very sad when they left. We had a few quiet days, just the 2 of us, before spending the last day in Seattle with Michelle.

We got back home last Friday & I went back to work on Monday. By Tuesday I had a very sore throat & aching all over. We went out to dinner yesterday with my friend Judy, & Anita's son Bryan, & his friend Brandon are back in Anchorage, so we asked them if they wanted to come too. It was nice seeing the boys again.

I ate soup, as it was the only thing that sounded good, then went straight to bed when we got home.Today I did nothing. I'm almost finished with Wendy's quilt, it just needs trimming & binding, but I couldn't get enough energy to even trim it today. Feeling ill is such a waste of time!

Wild Animals

2011-06-03T08:01:00.001-08:00

We've been having a blast with the kids.

Close encounters with some of the wild life at the Olympic Game Farm.

2 Grandgirls

2011-05-28T12:40:00.000-08:00

Carys is getting creative with paper.

Zoe napping on Poppy.

Having a good time in Discovery Bay!

A lovely Birthday

2011-05-24T21:23:00.000-08:00

Thanks to all of you who have been wishing me a Happy Birthday today!

I've had a lovely birthday today. Mostly it was a quiet day. I got up early, spent time reading my Kindle while I had my coffee. Ran errands in the morning while my DH was sleeping (he worked the night shift for the last 5 nights). I dropped off 2 of my Berninas at J&H for some maintenance & minor repairs while I'm out of town. Yesterday I had Wendy & Tracy Trasky over for lessons in binding your quilt. Today Tracy dropped off a gift certificate from the local nursery to help landscape our yard future. Thank you Wendy & Tracy! You are darlings!

The stack of pink boxes were all gifts from my DH. Yes, I know, I am spoiled ROTTEN! The top 3 were Blue Ray DVDs of all of the Star Trek movies, & Back to the Future. Next were 2 books. , & last were a blouse that I fell in love with (from Chico's) when we were in Newport, RI, but I didn't want to spend the money on it, so he went when I wasn't looking & got it anyway. & the big box on the bottom held 2 new jackets, both in spring green (which I love)..

The book below came in the mail, wrapped in pre-mordanted white wool fabric, from my soul sister Kathy Jolman. When I was in Michigan Kathy dyed Easter eggs with onion skins. She had picked small leaves, & laid one on each, then wrapped the egg in a piece of nylon stocking to hold the leaf in place. She tied the stocking on the back side of the egg with a rubber band, then boiled them in the skins from yellow onions (with a little vinegar if I recall correctly), & came out with the must beautiful reddish -rusty-brown eggs with a white leaf image on one side, & a little tie-dye image on the other, where the knot/rubber band had been.

That led to me wondering what if I tried the same thing with fabric. Below is one corner of the quilt that I made (in 1995 or 96) from cotton fabric dyed with onion skins, because of Kathy's egg. It has faded some with time, but I didn't mordant it properly, because I had no clue back then. This led us to many fun dye sessions & experiments first with cotton, then wool. I moved back to Alaska in 1997, & Kathy has continued to dye wool, & now silk with the natural dyes. She has gone to Arizona & study with a Native American dyer/weaver. She has really studied & taken it to another level. This lovely book was written by a gal who was at the same class in Arizona. I think I just may be inspired to spend a few summer days this year simmering a dye pot, & using some of my own native Alaskan plants....

Tomorrow we head to Seattle to see the kids!

Spring Fever

2011-05-18T11:05:00.000-08:00

Yesterday on my way in to work the trees were all bare branches. When I got out 10 hours later the world had turned green. It happens that way here in Anchorage. Just all of a sudden one day the world comes alive, & the rush is on toward the end of summer, & winter comes again. Do I sound sad? I'm not, it's invigorating to see Nature in fast forward, like it happens here.

It's been years since we've planted in our yard. We have been waiting to get the rock work done, before planting. Now we have to wait for Richard to come & bury the electrical wires, then we can start gardening in earnest. We are chomping at the bit.

Warren bought this orange Rhody that he wants to get planted.

I used $10.00 that my cousin gave me to help buy this Bleeding Heart, that we planted in memory of my Dad. She had given each one of my siblings a plant for their yards, but gave me cash since I wouldn't be able to take the plant back to Alaska with me. I thought the Bleeding heart was appropriate, & they are a hearty perennial here. Most importantly, the moose don't bother them!

Last night when I came home, this surprise was by the back door, waiting for me...

an early birthday gift from my DH, now if we can just get Richard up here with his trench digger to get the wires buried, I can put a nice little flower bed underneath my little French baby-bathtub.

Embellish Reveal Day

2011-05-15T11:46:00.000-08:00

Today is reveal Day for the Fiberactions Challenge. The word this time was "Embellish". I decided to try to use some restraint with this word. I tend to go a bit "Over the Top" with embellishing. In fact that's the name of one of the classes I teach "Over The Top Embellishing".

I used some of the fabric that I dyed using the "Straw dying" technique. (I'll share this with you as a tutorial some time this summer.) I just free-motion quilted the whole cloth top, then started coloring with my Gel Pens. (Just regular acid-free Gel pens used in scrap-booking). Beads, wire & threads were then placed wherever they wanted to go....

I placed a few mirrors, & attached with beads (below), & with a washer covered with thread above.

Last, but certainly not least I wanted to include my DS Brandon's latest posting of our newest family member, Miss Zoe....

Quilted Clocks

2011-05-13T21:57:00.000-08:00

Wednesday I spent a little of my time working on 2 small pieces for my July show. Both are from the same piece of black fabric, that I used a bleach pen on to draw a design. This first one, I mounted on a square canvas frame,

& this second on a circular frame. Both will be clocks when finished. The brown areas are the bleached parts, then I quilted with a hand-dyed brown thread, & added the white thread circle for contrast.

This new toy arrived in yesterday's mail. It came from my DD, Michelle. It is a sticker maker. I will have to play with it to see what I can do with it.

Thursday was Calendar Girls. Rena showed us this piece that she made in the Vikki Pignatelli workshop last week. She also gave me this little work of art below. The Girls potlucked at Betty's house instead of coming up to my house, out of the kindness of their hearts, to give me a break after my rather stressful past week.Quilting friends are the best!

Something to Celebrate

2011-05-10T12:20:00.001-08:00

I know I've been a bit down this past week due to the death of my father, but I also want to say I was thrilled over the birth of another grand-daughter the day before Dad's passing. Here are 2 photos taken by my DS Brandon of Miss Zoe on her birthday. Her middle name is Melina (I knew that Michelle, it was a typo). We will be seeing her when we meet in Seattle in a couple of weeks, for a mini family reunion.

I also took a self portrait yesterday after getting new glasses. The old ones literally fell apart on Sunday.I liked the Greek key bling design on the side of these.

Thank you all for the well wishes & kind thoughts & prayers. My Dad had a good long life, & went at the right time for him.

Remembering My Dad

2011-05-09T19:19:00.001-08:00

We spent the past week at my brother's house. My sisters, & nieces, my DH & sister's husband all gather at Linda & Dave's, peaceful home on the lake.

I thought about posting family photos that I took while there, but nothing seemed right but to remember my Dad. I probably spent more time in actual conversations with him in the past few years than I ever did growing up. He would call me every Sunday & we would talk for over an hour each time.

He worked his whole life, & when he took time off he fished. I remember days in the boat or canoe on the lake. I miss those days.

The Muskegon Chronicle published an article about him.

I miss you Daddy.

Joys & Sorrows

2011-04-30T12:19:00.000-08:00

Yesterday our newest family addition was born, a healthy 8 lbs. 2 oz. Zoe Melia Price, 2nd daughter to my 1st born Brandon & his lovely Laura. Carys is a big sister now.

This morning my father passed away rather suddenly from congestive heart failure. A blessing that he didn't have to endure Chemo or Radiation for his lung cancer. We are on our way home to Michigan today, so blogging won't be resumed until after May 9th....see you later, & thanks.

Judy O's Moon Over The Mountains

2011-04-28T13:52:00.000-08:00

The most recent client quilt I finished is this Moon Over The Mountains. Judy made this for a friend of hers that just got through treatment for cancer. She said her friend has surmounted mountains, & that why she made this quilt for her.

She wanted it only lightly quilted, so I restrained myself & did some pretty simple quilting on it. This one went pretty smoothly. I think the fact that it had a flannel back made it easier on lily, because even though it's all Batik on top, I had no problem with the skipping of stitches this time. I suspect my problems happen when I have to sew through the double & triple layers of Batiks, which will be the next quilt on the hit parade.

Here's the flannel back. If you look closely, I hadn't gone all the way around the moons on a couple of blocks. I fixed that & sent it back to Judy without hanging it for a second photo.

I've also been working on the next Fiberactions challenge quilt. The word is "Embellish", & I am trying to use some restraint with it, but still having fun. I may show a bit of it here soon, but the reveal isn't until May 15th.

The other thing I am trying to work on is getting ready for my one woman show in July. Making fliers for publicity, doing an inventory list, making name plates & figuring out how each piece can be hung, & trying to crank out a few more pieces for the show....No rest for the wicked!

My Dad has been calling me frequently too, to report on his doctor visits, & what they want to do for treatment of his lung cancer. It's wonderful hearing from him so often (& I'm so grateful he has a phone program that allows him free long distance -something that we can't get here in Alaska.) He is still going to work part time, & is now using oxygen, which makes him sleep better at night, & feeling better..

My favorite philosophy learned from an old friend Mr. Fiano,.." I'm going to live until I die". Good words to live by!

Stiched the Film

2011-04-26T17:03:00.000-08:00

OK, warning: this is a bit of a plug for a little independent film about quilters & the quilting world of IQA & AQS.(Made by non-quilters).

I just got "Stitched the Film" DVD in the mail & have watched it twice! What a neat little film. 72 minutes about the quilting world, focusing on 2 of my favorite quilters, & one who was new to me.

It's a very well done documentary, featuring Caryl Bryer Fallert, Hollis Chatelain & Randall Cook, & some of the controversy that they inspired in the quilting community. The art vs. traditional stuff...

It's beautiful to look at, the music in it is fun & original. It would be great to gather a group of friends & spark a little discussion.It was well worth the price!

Purse Revised

2011-04-21T14:15:00.000-08:00

Thanks for all the nice comments on the purse yesterday, but I thought it looked dull, so I added a little color on the feathers with my gold gel pen! I'm happier with it now.

Neck purse & clearing the deck

2011-04-20T15:05:00.000-08:00

At the top of my To-Do list when I got home, was a neck purse for our next guest teacher at ALCQ,

Vikki Pignatelli.

The triangular bead is glow-in--the -dark paper-clay.

While I worked on the purse, Warren worked on clearing the deck.

It's that time of year, when it's nice enough to sit out on the deck in the afternoon, but there's still snow on the ground.

Vacation End

2011-04-18T13:01:00.000-08:00

Our last full day in Newport family came down & we walked over to The Red Parrot for dinner.

Above grand nieces, Alexie & Maia posed for a shot.

Food was good. Maia geared up for "Lobstah".

Aaron wanted to pose too.

Back at the condo, I got the girls hooked on doodling with gel pens on black paper.

We had a great time.

Yesterday we flew all day. Flights were packed tight. Head winds made our flight from Atlanta into Seattle late. We had to run from B terminal to C terminal to catch the flight home.

Now to upack & get back to real life.

Straw Dying

2011-04-16T04:43:00.001-08:00

My last class at MQX on Thursday was "Straw Dying" with Nancy Begin. She started by spraying thePFD fabric with a solution of Soda Ash in hot water. Then using a straw to scoop a bit of dry dye , sprinked it over her fabric. Sprayed some more & rubbed it around...

ending up with a grid from the plastic lid below.

Here are my fabics after washing & drying.

I can't wait to go do more at home!

PS-YES FITZY, I AGREE YOU MUST WEAR A MASK!
I DID!
It's Nancy's personal choice to not wear one, but I remember a dyer dying from not
wearing one.

Bookmaking With Sue B & MQX

2011-04-15T03:51:00.002-08:00

On Tuesday, Vicki drove us up to Sue's house to play in Sue's new studio.

Above left to right: Glenda (Vicki's mom), Sue Bleiweiss, Susan (what a sweet girl), Vicki Welch, Kathy S, & Kathleen Murphy.

Here is my book made with the paper I had been doodling on.

The page on the left below was paper from Sue's collection.

Tuesday evening was the Ice cream social at the MQX Show.

Wed, I had 2 classes. A lecture with Linda V Taylor, then a quilting class with Renae Haddadin, which was VERY FUN. Below left is Ruth S, & Right is Renae.

Ruth is such a kind lady.She lost a son in Afghanistan in 2001. She is an active member of Gold Star Moms.

She also has 100 Quilt of Valor quilt tops that need quilting. Volunteers can contact her at

rstone17@gmail.com.

The vendors opened after the awards were given out. I blew my budget on thread & some rulers.

I was tickled to see a famliar quilt from home. Cindy Rainy's quilt from Kenai, Alaska.

This won Best of Show, a stunning beauty by Janet Stone.

Pins, Passport Purses, & Doodles

2011-04-12T08:00:00.004-08:00

Today Vicki, her mom Glenda & I, are going to Sue's house to play.Above are pins I made to share with all the girls.

When I fiished the pins, I had to find somethng else to do with my hads, so I've been doodeling.

These last shots are more Passport pureses that I made for the girls.

Newport Portals & Textures

2011-04-09T05:15:00.004-08:00

Flowers are starting to bloom in the Newport area. Bring Your antihistamines Vicki!

We went to dinner with friends Jimmy & Sandra, in New Bedford, & enjoyed the seaside restaurant.

Yesterday, while the rest of the gang was watching the red Sox win a game, I took a long walk around New Port. I really love the old buildings, old architectural details, & stones. I made it over to the Tower that I first saw a few months ago on the History Channel. It is aligned with the sun so that it marks the solstice. Nobody knows who actually built it.

These are actually only half of my pictures!

Textures & Tastes of Newport RI

2011-04-07T06:24:00.002-08:00

Wednesday dawned bright & sunny, but with a chill wind. We decided to take a walk around Newport.

The Trinity Church. is a famous spot. Built in the 1700's, George Washington actually attended a service here.

Several movies have used this church. Amistad among them.

I love these narrow walks between some of the buildings,

these gnarly trees.

We checked out Cupcake Charlie's.

A peanut butter bliss, & chocolate mint just had to come home with us for later.

They were wicked good! Good thing we walked & swam today.

Here are some of my favorite architectural details & textures from our walk:

I loved this little dress. I wish I cold buy it for one of my grandgirls.

Back at the condo Warren & I took advantage of the pool & hot tub.

I loved the ceiling tiles. Like doing my own synchronized swim show

I got this hat today because I was cold.

while these crazy kids were jumping in the water!

We had dinner at Yesterday's Ale House.

The proprietor told me these tiles were laid in the 1930's, 1 tile at time.

The food was great.

Warren had to try the bread pudding.

Vacation in RI

2011-04-05T12:02:00.001-08:00

We are in Rhode Island now. Broccoli was pretty sad when I got the suitcases out to pack for the trip.

On our last day home, I made a little neck purse to hold things for my trip, & for my name badge while at the MQX show. This is the name badge side. It has 4 pockets.

This is the other side.

Our condo view isn't as nice as it was the last time we stayed here at the Long Wharf.

It's been a bit wet & foggy. I have been enjoying the sound of the fog horns, the wind whistling, the tink-tink-tinking of the flag pole, & the cry of the seagulls.

It's been very relaxing.

Lastly, Marsel received her Chickadee, & says she loves it. I also sent her a copy of Allie Aller's beautiful book.

Thanks for the kind words & prayers for Dad.

New England Bound

2011-03-31T15:42:00.001-08:00

It seems like a long time since I last posted, but it's not because I had nothing to say, I just have had a lot to do. Life happens. Today my Dad called with his biopsy results, & he has lung cancer. His attitude is good & he is still working & in pretty good shape for the shape he is in at 90. I hope to get home to see him again some time soon.

The hand is feeling better, but a bit encumbered by the brace I have to wear to avoid the pain that happens when the tendon snaps when I move my thumb. I actually screamed a couple of times in the shower yesterday while washing my hair. LOL...it's better than crying!

We are getting ready to go to Rhode Island this weekend to visit family & go to MQX East. I'm excited about the blogging friends I'll finally get to meet face to face. I'm sure we'll all be blogging about it.

I have been working on a few small projects & a customer quilt, as time & pain allowed. I finished this little Chickadee for Marsel, who won the drawing for my 600th blog. You'll have to wait to see the whole thing until she gets it in the mail.

This is Wendy Trasky's quilt, that I finished quilting & binding today. She made it for a new grandson.

The green swirl fabric gave me fits, with skipped stitches. The Milsoft suggestion from Deb Levy seemed to help quite a bit. Once I had sprayed it with a mix of Milsoft & water the skipping wasn't as bad. Thanks again Deb!

Spring-breakup seems to have arrived here in Alaska. The days are bright & warm (in the 40's).

Snow is melting, though still a good foot or two deep in our yard & on the deck. Broc seems to be bothered a bit by the sunlight, but I am enjoying it, & looking forward to seeing green in New England.

Impression Again

2011-03-16T13:10:00.000-08:00

OK, maybe it's just the Windows Live Space that is closed down. That is what I had been using to post.

So I will post the details of the Fiberactions piece "Impression" again here. If I can continue to use this space, I will.

Here's a view of the edge.

And the winner is...

2011-03-15T19:55:00.000-08:00

Marsel.
Thank you all so much, for the kind comments, now I am going to post a link to where I will be moving my Blog since Blogger is forcing me to move!

https://coldfeetquilter.wordpress.com/

#600~ Flat Debbie

2011-03-12T13:37:00.000-09:00

Yes I can still blog...today anyway. I am a bit worried about the switch that I've been getting emails about. I don't know if I an find the time or energy to figure out a new system, & I've been looking at Typepad vs. Wordpess, & am completely overwhelmed by the whole mess. I welcome any words of wisdom from you out there in Blogland. Remember, 24 hours from this posting I will be drawing a name from the past 5 post's comments, for a nice prise made by my own hands.

Speaking of hands...I have a nice golden brace on my right hand now, & my pain is almost all gone! YIPPIE!

The Chickadee above, is a card I sent to my friend Ilene, for her birthday last month. She should have gotten by now, so I feel free to post it.

Now, you have all hear of "Flat Stanley", right? The little flat paper doll guy who gets sent all over the world for some kid's school project? Well, Jackie Carley brought cardboard cut-outs for us all, at my Calendar Girls meeting a few months go, & challenged us to make our own likenesses using them. I used mine as a pattern to cut out the shape, from Fast-to-Fuse (a stiff stabilizer similar to Timtex).

This is what I ended up with.....Flat Debbie......

I drew the face on the fabric using both pencils & ink both. The hair I did on Wash-away stabilizer, with 2 colors of thread, very close to my own color. I washed the stabilizer away, then added the front hair, then back hair.

I dd the same with the sweater, doing free-motion thread-play, to look just like my favorite outfit.

On last thing I want to record here is about my wacky cat, Broccoli. Before 5a.m. he woke me up, "talking" in his sleep. This was a new one for me. He is a very verbal cat, always talking to us, vocalizing all sorts of odd sounds. He has a certain pattern of speech that he uses when we come home, & he meets us at the door. I actually awoke, thinking Warren must be coming home early for some reason, because It was I knew it as too dark to be is usual time, & Broc was talking the way he always does when Warren comes in after work.

Then I realized he was still curled up by my legs, so I nudged him, & he went back to his usual asleep wheezing snore. Who knew cats talked in their sleep!

Now you have 24 hours to comment before a draw a winner. Thanks for all your comments & kind words!

post 599- Still here

2011-02-27T19:58:00.001-09:00

Yes I’m still here. I am having hand issues still. It has now focused into my right hand & is a case of De Quervains tendinitis. I will have to call my pal Mindy & see if Pete can help, because it has been going on since Jan 4th, & isn’t getting any better. It’s interfering with everything.

On a more fun note, this quilt, that is featured in my header, is now in Allie Aller’s book, on page 64. I was very honored when Allie told me she was going to include it in her book, & a wonderful book it is! I’ve already bought 4 copies to give as gifts! I also showed it to Diana Bradley at Quilt Zone yesterday, so she is going to order some copies to sell in her shop.

I was teaching my Minimal Marking Free Motion Machine Quilting class.

Below are 2 samples that I demonstrated on. I like the #12 wgt. Aurifil thread , it shows up well against the black fabric.

Below are 2 cards I made this week. The Raven is for a friend who is in the hospital.

& the flowers for a childhood friend, who just lost her father. Both are needle punch with a small bit of quilting, on wool.

Last, I wanted to show you Broccoli, keeping my chair warm for me.

Next post, will be #600. 24 hours after I publish it, I will draw names for a prize. It will probably be some time next week! Until then, as my friend Sue Hausmann says, “Happy sewing!”.

UFO’s on Valentine’s Day

2011-02-14T20:07:00.001-09:00

Actually this post starts on last Thursday. We had our Calendar Girls meeting at Rena’s house.

Jan was working on a dog applique’ above.

Below are pictures of Dean & Betty’s owl. Dean carved it, & Betty painted it. It’s wood.

Rena served a lovely lunch, on these cool plates.

I love the UFO.

Speaking of UFOs. I started going through a box full of them today.

I found these blocks from 1996! Quilt camp in Michigan. I had completely forgotten them.

I played with layouts, & I think I may make them into a table runner for Fall.

I also found this little block that my daughter made. I added the borders, & have started quilting it.

Here is a project that took me about 30 years, & 15 minutes (as my friend Kathy would say).

I colored this fabric book 30 years ago, & today I trimmed up the pages, & sewed them together, in about 15 minutes. I had intended it for my kids, but will send it to Carys & Zoe (the youngest grand girls).

I started pinning some of the UFO’s to my wall. Plenty to be inspired by, when I hit a dull day.

I am avoiding my latest customer quilt, until the Milsoft gets here, from Dharma Trading Co. Thanks to a suggestion from Deb Levy.

Here is the UFO box, AFTER I went through it. Several more UFO’s remain in the box. Oh the joys of having ADD!

The Teddy Bear Tea is coming this Thursday, so I had to make a couple of small quilts to go with this gorilla,

& Sully. Sully has been in my studio since last year, & I have fallen in love with him, so I’ve ordered another just like him, for myself. I just couldn’t live with out his sweet smile in here.

This Chickadee, is the last of today’s post. I was watching them yesterday at our bird feeder, & did a quick pencil sketch of one, the put him on to wool. with my felting needles, & a little quilting for finishing, plus a few beads. So this is my sketch for this week, & my DH’s valentine.

#597 Progress

2011-02-09T15:33:00.001-09:00

Above is a small portion of the customer quilt that I am making slow headway on. This fabric is causing skipping of stitches, which always seems to be my biggest headache when quilting for others.

On the home front, my DH Warren finished getting the flooring on the stairs, & this past week, our electrician/all-around Handy man, Richard came over & got the lights installed on the stairway. This is Richard.

& below, is how the lights looked after Warren placed the final trim piece, over them. It makes for a nice glowing, well lit stairway.

Sunday we packed a bunch of our friends into the living room, & had a Super Bowl day. I cooked, fed people & did Sudoku, while they ate, watched the Super Bowl, screamed at the TV, & napped off & on. At least 3 people fell into food comas & slept while others screamed at the TV.

It was also Mindy’s birthday, & her youngest, Hope made the cake.

In closing I want to show just a wee bit from my next Fiberactions piece. I completed it today.

Virtual Craziness

2011-02-02T15:35:00.002-09:00

I was on call last night & got called in. I can’t complain, it’s the first time I’ve been called in on a call night since before Thanksgiving. I’ve never had such a good long run of good Call Karma.
I only got 2 hours of sleep though. The cat & life just conspired against me, so I’m a little punch drunk today, & don’t have any ambition for anything.
I decided to do another quilty sketch today. I guess my computer is my Sketchbook. I went a little Crazy with this one. It was simple, mindless fun, which describes me pretty well right now.. Simple, & mindless!

PS. this is post #596. I think it's time for another little give-away, to celebrate when I reach # 600. So leave comments on this through # 600, & 24 hours after posting #600, I will put all of the comments in the drawing & draw one out for a prise.Something handmade by me of course.

I do value all of your comments! Thanks so much! Warm hugs from Alaska,
Deb

The Hurrier I Go the Behinder I Get

2011-01-31T22:31:00.002-09:00

I realized how far behind I was on posting when I saw these photos from2 weekends ago.

We had breakfast at the Meyn’s.

The photo above is some of Mindy’s glass tiles.

They reminded me of the quilt I was working on at the time.

On Wednesday we went out to dinner at the Bear Tooth, one of our favorite places.
While there, the table next to us was seated one of our ER Doctors, with his wife & little boy.
As they were leaving he introduced us to his wife, & mentioned that their next baby was due any day.
Later when we asked for our check, the waiter told us the Dr. had paid for our dinner. There were 5 of us.
To say thank you, I made these 2 quilted pads, for laying under the baby when changing his diapers . This is the flannel side showing. On the reverse is a Batik. The one on the left was a good exercise in all-over
feathers (something I need more practice at). That one took 3 bobbins of thread. The one on the right only
used 1, & took 1/4 of the time to do. They are about 22” x18”.

These are 2 blocks I made from pieces of fabric collected at the last quilt guild meeting. They will
be used in comfort quilts at Guild.

The biggest project I was working on, was this “rag” quilt for the next grandchild, Zoe.
She is due the end of April. I made the “rag” side out of Minke (far left polka dots, pink, green,
& black). The other side is batiks. Lots of x’s & o’s, & fun designs quilted in.

Below are clean-up rags (left), & Tyvek (right) hanging to dry on my wall.
I’ve been working on the next Fiberactions challenge.

I also started another customer quilt on Lily. I worked on it until I lost patience today.
There is one tight batik on it that wants to make the stitches skip. Other areas seem ok,
but the border fabric is KILLING me! Am I the only long-armer that has this problem?

Feather Doodling

2011-01-24T11:45:00.001-09:00

I’ve been doing a little doodling in prep for a feathers class I will be teaching in the near future.

Small Quilted clock

2011-01-16T13:18:00.001-09:00

My DH is my biggest promoter. He recently went to the owner of his favorite Brew-Pub with an armload of my quilts. He walked out with an agreement that I will be doing a one woman show there in a couple of months.

After my initial panic, I sat down & started counting how many pieces I have that I would be willing to sell. I have several that if the price is right I could part with them without too much heartbreak, but nothing I would sell cheap. I decided I should make a few small pieces just for the show, that would be readily affordable for most people.

This is the first. A little 5 inch square, quilted clock. I used some of my gel-printed fabric, that I did last summer.

Now I better get going on the next grandchild quilt. She will be born the end of April.

Snow Storm- Environment Challenge

2011-01-15T00:01:00.000-09:00

This is the latest challenge I have been working on, for the “Fiberactions” group. The Challenge word this time was “Environment”. Well this is my environment for about 2/3 of my year. SNOW!

I used Glow-in-the-dark thread & fabric to create the snow & snowflakes. Below is a picture I took under black light to show the detail of the Glow-in-the-dark parts.

This really was a fun project. Please check out the others at Fiberactions.