The Last Addition

Well, here is the last addition to my block celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Blue Ridge Parkway. And now I have to figure out just how much blanket stitching, invisible thread stitching and thread painting I should do. It's been really fun for me once I figured out exactly what I wanted to include and where I would place the various elements. I'm really looking forward to seeing the finished quilt and how all of our separate blocks have come together to make the whole.

Moving Along With The Block

Here is the next step in the making of my block for the quilt celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Blue Ridge Parkway. I've added the branches and berries of the Mountain Ash--a LOT of little berries. And I've also added some more landscaping in the background--There was going to be way too much sky if I hadn't. The next--and probably final--step will be to add a limb of a hardwood tree with an owl perched on it. I'm a little concerned about proper perspective on this aspect but all I can do is try and see how it turns out.
After I finish the applique, I then have to decide just how much stitching I will do to anchor it all down and whether or not to do some thread painting. It's an entirely different procedure when you're turning the block over to someone else to complete a quilt and then to quilt it. Well, you just have to do your best and then hope for the best--don't you think?
At any rate, I'm still having fun.

Blue Ridge Parkway's 75th Anniversary

The Blue Ridge Parkway will be celebrating its 75th Anniversay very soon (I had no idea about how many years it had been in existance!) and , as part of its celebration, the Ashville Guild has been asked to make a quilt that represents our portion of the Parkway. Various members of the Guild have volunteered to create original blocks that will contain various aspects of the parkway environment.

I will be making one of the blocks and it will contain a fox, an owl and the mountain ash (with berries). I was assigned the size of 16" wide and 28" high--which made me take one huge gulp when I began to realize just what those measurements would entail. We were all given the same light blue batik background to use as the base for our block--the rest is up to our own discretion.

I took my basic idea to my art group, Focus, last week and they very generously gave me some good imput--which actually reinforced the idea I had originally started with and then veered away from.

So, here is my red fox and you can see him in relation to the rest of the blue "canvas." The bottom will come up to his leg area. I worked several days on him and was really pretty happy with the way he turned out since this was my first real effort at this type of realism. If you click to enlarge the image, you can get a better idea of the detail.

And next, I have added a grassy area with a stone wall behind. And, oh yes, there is a LOT of space still to fill. I will now be adding the mountain ash branches, stems and berries (I have seen these in their full glory a couple of times up at the Pisgah Inn and they really do make a spectacular showing). And I know how I'm going to place the owl. My only big decision left is whether or not to add more background landscaping (more mountainous terrain). Nothing is attached too firmly at this point so I can move things around if I need to.

So far, this has been a lot of fun to do--once I came up with the idea. And it will be rewarding to see it in its final resting place as part of whole--joining other quilters in a celebration of our nation's highway successes--a place in which we can enjoy the journey without worrying about the destination.

A Never-Ending Saga

It seems hard to believe it sometimes, but we bought our present house in Hendersonville almost two years ago and moved here permanently about 11 months ago. Some people have salt water in their veins--certainly my husband does having been born and raised in Charleston--but my veins seem to be filled with components of mountain vistas, lilacs and bluegrass. It really hurt when I had to leave here 8 years ago and I felt blessed that I could return.

But back to the house. We chose this house because it was close to doctors, stores and other things that make life a little easier. After the fact, we discovered that we have wonderful neighbors, too. However, we debated long and hard whether to stay here or not. In fact, we were so discouraged that we stayed away for long months at a time.

Why? Because we discovered quite soon after we bought it that we had purchased a flipped house with many dangerous hidden issues. We were just sick with regret and a feeling of not being smart enough to have realized what was going on. Hindsight is so often far better than what we can see in the moment in which we actually live.

Well, we decided to get over it and get on with making this house a home. It has been--and continues to be--a long and bumpy road. We have just finished the kitchen (which was posted w/pictures a while back) and are now in the middle of putting down new hardwood floors in the living and dining rooms. The house was carpeted throughout when we purchased it and we soon pulled up all of the carpet--to find a disaster. The first disaster was in the guest room where we found that carpet covered a floor that had been eaten by termites in a long section by the outside wall. So . . .we pulled up the flooring and put down new oak boards.

About that time, Smokey had to have more heart surgery so everything was put on hold. BUT--we are now back to putting in new flooring. Smokey found this wonderful MANLY tool to take up old flooring and ripped through a huge section in one morning. Then, all the subflooring had to be renailed to eliminate the squeeking (that occured with EVERY step). And here he is today, using the special nail gun to nail the boards down. What doesn't show up in the photo is the LARGE hammer he is using to hit the gun and release the nails. My job in all of this was to keep the boards flowing. It's a little more complicated than it sounds because you have to make sure that the boards on neighboring rows don't end at the same place (He gave me a gold star for a job well done!).

And here on the right is the flooring that we have put down so far. It's the area that's set apart. You can see the black felt paper inbetween the old floor and the new floor. The old floor in the living room was so stained that it really couldn't be refinished. And when we're finished, it will be great. But for now, we're back in the Waiting Mode as we have to wait for our next order at Home Depot to come in.

If you've gotten this far in this non-quilt related saga, congratulations. But here is what I really wanted to say and why I have written this. First of all, Smokey and I have always really enjoyed doing home projects (we even built a log cabin many years ago) so although this is hard work we weren't counting on, the sense of accomplishment is something that is beyond a price. But the part of this story that is quilt-related is that it--like quilting--is dipping into that well of creativity that gives our lives purpose and meaning. In this case, to take something that was ugly and to turn it into another facet of our slowly evolving home is beyond simple measuring. And, when we finally finish, we will have created another section in the quilt of our life in this house. It's not ready to win a ribbon (not even honorable mention) but it's growing on us just like a quilt attains enhanced meaning and beauty as each new section is finished. Someday we'll be there and there will be a huge celebration.

The Zen of Fabric Folding

I try to keep my studio neat--I really do. However, life usually takes over and my messy self emerges quite unbidden. Then, I can go along for a while--sort of melting into the stew of my own creation--until, by the inevitable process of osmosis, chaos takes over and the creative spirit seems just beyond my reach. And I become absurdly close to contemplating my navel for inspiration.

What to do, what to do? For me, the simple answer -- in addition to actually cleaning up and vacuuming--is to start refolding the fabric on my shelves. There is something very soothing about the process and as I spent a good part of the weekend sorting and folding, a sense of calmness and preparation began to seep into my pores. These shelves hold mostly batiks and hand-dyes. Everything--especially the hand-dyes--was literally jammed into any available space. As I folded, I came across fabrics that I had forgotten I had and it was like meeting new friends who very much wanted to be included in one of my quilts.

So . . .at last I've stopped the train leading to nowhere and have come to a station that is tranquil and pastoral--filled with beautiful fabric spun, woven and dyed from the extraordinary cotton plant of the mallow family. It beckons me--and I think I'm ready now.

Cobblestone Quilt Show 2010

After two years of planning and preparation, the Cobblestone Quilt Show took place this past weekend in Charlestown, SC. The weather was great, the quilts were great and the vendors were great. What more could one want on a quilt show weekend?

My big news of the weekend was that I won Best of Show for Arabian Mystery! It is exciting--but also humbling--to receive such an honor. There were so many beautiful quilts and I know it must have been difficult for the judge to make his decision.

This year, there were two Best of Show awards and the award for Best Wall Hanging went to Pat West for her wallhanging A Message of Peace, Liberty and Freedom. It is quite beautiful. Pat is fairly new to the Charleston area and I know that she is a welcomed addition. Not only did she win Best of Show, but she also won a first in the Pictorial category with August in Val d'Orcia.

This is a LARGE wallhanging and quite lovely.

One of the fun things for me as a teacher is to see the finished quilts of people who have taken my classes. And I especially like it when they change the pattern I wrote and really make it their own. Karen Kendo really did this with my pattern, "A Taste of the Lowcountry. She added elements--such as the turtles and the flowers-- and changed the straight border into a curved one which was complimented by her quilting along the edges. I love it.

Maureen Smithen also entered a quilt that she started in my "Los Flores del Sol" class. She did a wonderful job and the judge must have thought so, also.

Marilyn Wall--an accomplished art quilter and teacher-- didn't have a quilt in this show; however, her influence as a teacher was present in two of the quilts which were made by students that she had in her class at White Oak this past fall. I've never taken one of her classes, but her classroom is always bubbling with creative energy and results in wonderful works of arts such as these. This first one is Buddies by Lucretia Pope. The picture doesn't quite do it justice but you really got the feeling of the swamp when you saw it in person. The second quilt is My Quilted Songbird by Sandy Radar. Sandy is also an artist and had previously painted this bird (I'm not sure whether it was on canvas or watercolor). In Marilyn's class she learned the techniques to create her vision in fabric and I think she was successful, don't you?

I took lots more pictures but, unfortunately, something happened between the snap of the shutter and hand holding the camera so there was a lot of fuzziness going on. One of the nice things that happened for me at the show was that, since I spent more time there than I had originally planned, I got to visit with so many people I hadn't seen in a while. Quilters truly ARE such nice people!

Mid-Atlantic Quilt Show

This past weekend, I was fortunate to be able to attend the Mid-Atlantic Quilt Show in Hampton, Virginia. This is always a great show and I think that the quilts this year were even better. I know that the judges must have had a difficult time choosing the winners. I am posting pictures of some of my favorite quilts--some winners and some not--but all wonderful.

This first quilt is by Cynthia Catlin. I don't have the name of it, but the branches making the water ripple just appealed to me.

This next quilt is by Jan Hutchison and is called "Dancing to the Tune of Spring." I think that many of us in the "snow-infested" areas are really looking forward to signs of spring and I think that this quilt successfully captured that feeling. Also, the background quilting gave one the feeling of the flowers dancing in the wind.

I was especially drawn to this quilt by Linda French--"Marblemania." It dramatically captured the feeling of perspective and you could just imagine those marbles rolling around on the floor. Also, note the small quilt hanging on the right side.

And don't you just feel that you're right behind this couple as they stroll down a beautiful old street in "A City Walk In Spring" by Lenore Crawford. Even when viewed from a fairly close perspective, the details held up.

The detail work on "Paisley Peacock: by Pat Holly is simply amazing. I would have to be honest and say that paisley is not one of my more favorite motifs; however, this quilt was stunning. The machine applique work was done with such small, detailed pieces. It was very inspiring for me.

And some quilts just make you smile--like this "Really 'Wild Flowers'" by Sharon Schlotzhamer. Her use of color lightened the heart and the detailed piecing of her flower blooms was a big 'Wow."

This was the Best of Show winner--"Circles of Life" by Linda French--another VERY detailed quilt with wonderful use of color. (You may notice that she also did "Marblemania.").

I have included "Woven Wind Flowers" by Doris Keaton and Sandi Wagner because of all the wonderful feathers in the quilting design. and I like the way they used to taupe tones for the log cabin blocks in the background. I have been working on making more interesting backgrounds for my applique work so I really aprreciate successful efforts by other quilt artists.

Mary Ramsey Kessler's "Orange Hibiscus" makes good use of an interesting background, also. It is reminiscent of Ruth McDowell's work and I think quite a great job of capturing the appearance of hibiscus blooms.

And, finally, here is my quilt "Whither Goest Thou." I was fortunate to have been awarded a Judge's Choice ribbon by Libby Lehman. With all of the wonderful quilts there this past weekend, I felt really blessed to have received it.

And NOW--don't forget that the Cobblestone Quilt Show is taking place in Charleston, SC, this next weekend--Friday, Saturday & Sunday at the Gaillard Autditorium. Everyone has worked so hard to make it a great show this year and I know you'll enjoy looking at all of the wonderful quilts that will be there. Don't be a stranger, ya heah?