But Where Are All The Martians?

Well, it's very exciting that the Mars rover Curiosity has landed with newer high tech equipment ready to beam us back some new pics of the Martian landscape, but my guess is it's still going to look a bit stark.

I made this quilt after the first rover landed on Mars in 2004 and all the photos showed a barren rocky landscape. I prefer thinking of Mars as depicted in 1950's B movies with sexy Martian ladies and crazy carnivorous life forms.

Do you think we'll get anything more exciting to see this time around?

Charting a Course in Color

I teach color theory very much like you would learn it in art school, because I think the way to really understand color is by mixing paint and seeing what happens when you physically add one color to another. As an educator I believe experiential learning like this creates the deepest level of learning for most people.

In the first half of the class I show a power point explaining the various terms relating to color theory with graphics and going through all the color schemes with fabric swatch examples along with samples of my art quilt work that falls into the various categories.

One of the first charts we make is a basic color wheel with primary, secondary and tertiary colors created from red, yellow and blue.

It's funny how every class has an over achiever, who takes the project to a higher level than required :-)

Actually this gal is a fabric dyer who wants to really understand how to attain exact colors when mixing dyes.

I think she's well on her way.




After lunch I show another powerpoint with examples of how colors interact and affect each other so that one can choose colors to enhance mood, visual activity, depth and contrast. Then we get on with our next charts.

This is exercise is mixing complimentary colors, one of my favorites! I love the beautiful color palette you achieve when doing this, look at those gorgeous greens and browns made from blue and orange.

The class has 6 charts in all, we usually get through about 3-4 in 6 hours, but everyone has the experience they need to continue at home.

I teach an online version of this class too, but right now the class is on hold until after I move later this fall, am resettled, get a new web host and have the site up and running again.

Linda took my Tea & Ephemera class last year and brought in this fantastic pillow she made with her collaged fabric, it's backed with a rust colored ultra suede.

Beautiful!

Alternatively Bound and Stitched in Long Beach

There are always a few things I learn teaching a new class, like if I've forgotten to put something on the supply list or how long will it take students to go through each part of the class within the 6 hour time frame.

With sewing machine based classes at conventions, it always takes a little extra time as well when students are working on machines they're unfamiliar with, that said the Bernina 550's were a dream to work on and everyone got the hang of them pretty quickly.

The main thing I learned was making quilted samples as big as 12" x 12" were a little too big to finish before lunch. Luckily we had a 2 hour lunch break and since the show hadn't opened yet, students could take the extra time to finish.

Everyone did a wonderful job with the three different binding techniques in the afternoon.

From now on I'll have students precut fabric and batting and work on smaller samples in the morning and the timing should work out just right.

International Quilt Festival Long Beach Pre-show Set Up

It was so nice to be back in Southern California for another Quilt Festival. This is the lovely view from our hotel window at the Hyatt.

Here's what the convention center looks like the day before festival opens. It is amazing how it all comes together in a relatively short period of time.

That's a lot of lightbulbs!

6 of us hung the 'Rituals' exhibit organized by curators Jamie Fingal and Leslie Jenisen. Each quilt is
2' x 5' and will travel to each International Quilt Festival venue over the next year, including the newly added Chicago location.

the hanging crew: Leslie, Me, Julie, Jamie, Sherry and Peggy

 

 

Leslie, Jamie and I volunteered to put up the Artist Village exhibit curated by Kathy York. The platform was longer than the exhibit so we decided to put the quilt on point and rearrange the houses, what fun we had doing that.

Stay tuned for posts from my classes.

Sacramento Living

I don't usually think about chickens when I think of Sacramento, but my girlfriend Joanie has a veritable miniature farm in her beautiful back yard.

Everything in her yard grows so beautifully, I have no hopes of ever attaining this kind of thing. I'm much better at painting plants than tending them, but I can admire their beauty.





I think this french pumpkin was trying to make its escape.

Angry chicken.
She's got her eye on you!

Northern California Farmers Market Love

I have been staying with my parents in Davis and a friend in Sacramento, really getting a feel for the area, since this is where I'll be moving in the fall. Can you tell I am in love with the farmers markets?

I love the amazing variety of fresh, ripe fruits and vegetables available in the central valley where pretty much everything is grown and you can see plenty of seafood and things like grass-fed beef, it's not so plentiful in Chicago.

This Sacramento market is under the freeway! Excellent use of space and shady and cool too!

I want to try everything, like these baseball sized melons!


Tomatoes!!! of every shape and variety.


I want to cook this two color squash!

So much color!


and texture! I love the way these bitter melon look, such an interesting vegetable.

I'm leaving in on a jet plane...

I'm on my way to Sacramento to spend a few days with my parents and check out neighborhoods for potential places to live. Then I'm flying to Southern California to spend a day with my gal pals Leslie Jenison and Jamie Fingal and teach at International Quilt Festival, Long Beach. By the way I still have a few spaces in each of my classes.

I am so looking forward to seeing all my quilting friends in beautiful sunny southern California!

Emboss some metal at Road to California next January

I am excited to be teaching at Road to California for the first time next January. Registration started Sunday and I can't believe 3 of my 4 classes are already filled!

My Heavy Metal Play Day class on Sunday still has room in it though, if you'd like to change things up a bit and try something new.

It's a fun, relaxing class, no stressing out over matching points or even stitches here! 

The cool thing is it has very short supply list (pencil, paintbrush and cup for water) and everyone in the class gets a $29 tool kit free! 


Check out some of the great work done in previous classes.

free motion quilting designs were this students inspiration for the peice with the leaves

It's amazing the kind of dimension you can get with the copper

A little color added with alcohol inks

Take a break from stitching for a Heavy Metal Play Day!

Start your fiber art collection now with a CSA ArtBox!

You've heard of buying a CSA farm box of veggies from a local grower and having it delivered to your door right? Well, ArtBox, CSA is a smilar concept that a group of well known and loved :-) textile artists are trying out. We have created a beautiful collection of unique artwork to be delivered and ready to hang in your home or office. 

Participating artists are: top row Jamie Fingal, me, Lyric Kinard, Deborah Boschert,  

bottom row Leslie Tucker Jenison, Desiree Habicht, Kathy York, and Sue Bleiweiss. 

Each unique piece is mounted on an
8"x 8"x 1 1/2" canvas that simply hangs 
on a nail. 

See the whole collection here.

Full Art Box 8 pieces of artwork - $640 

only 6 boxes available, US Shipping $30

Half Art Box 4 pieces of artwork - $375
only 6 boxes available, US Shipping $20 

Priced at less that $100 per art piece, this is a total steal. 


FYI, 3 full art boxes have already sold.

Combining images of nature and technology with paper and fabric, my series of quilted mixed media textile pieces incorporate vintage engravings printed on abaca paper, technical drawings from old text books and sewing pattern tissues collaged on painted fabric, then embellished with thermofax screened floral patterns, and stamped text and insect imagery. 

The focal point of each collage was painted with inks and enhanced with colored pencil. A free-motion machine stitched pattern based on gothic ironwork and accented with sheer color from paint sticks, brings cohesion to the overall design.

 

Check out ArtBox, CSA now.