Red Birds

I finished up the little quilt I showed last Friday, Red Birds. I made it as a donation to the fundraiser for the Texas Quilt Museum.

It's about 10"x10".

As usual, I quilted the dickens out of it.

Instead of a sleeve, I added tabs for hanging it. I fastened them down at the bottom, so they wouldn't poke up above the top edge when hanging.

There are still several chances to win a copy of my new DVD - you can head over to Vivika's now, or to Debra's tomorrow.

Next Stop - Vivika Denegre

Wow! The response to the blog hop giveaway of my DVD over at Gerrie's blog was amazing, and I really appreciate the many kind comments!

If Gerrie didn't draw your name, today you have another chance to win a copy of my new workshop DVD, Digital Collage for Quilt Design, over at Vivika DeNegre's blog.

I met Vivika this February when we were both filming segments for Quilting Arts TV Series 800. She is such a warm person, I immediately felt I'd found a new friend. She makes lovely quilts, is a frequently published designer, and creates wonderful collages using stitching, fabric, and paper. You may also know her from her Prayer Flag Project. Many thanks, Vivika, for helping me celebrate!

As a reminder, after Vivika we still have several chances for you to win the DVD:

October 14 Debra Gabel  

October 17 Candy Glendening 

October 19 Deborah Boschert  

October 21 Diane Doran

DVD Giveaway!!

I'm having a blog hop and DVD giveaway to celebrate the release of my DVD, Digital Collage for Quilt Design.

Five of my friends are helping me, for a total of 6 chances to win!

Gerrie Congdon kicks off the celebration today. Gerrie is a prolific and well known quilter. Her lovely work includes lots of surface design, and she is part of the Twelve by Twelve group of international quilters. Hop on over to Gerrie's blog for today's chance to win. Many thanks, Gerrie!

In this DVD I show how to 

- Combine a variety of image types to create imaginative collages to print on fabric

- Use Photoshop Elements 9 for basic digital enhancement and layering techniques

- Consider color, value, and contrast while designing

- Explain printing, basting, and finishing options for your collage, and demonstrate ways to enhance your design with quilting, markers, and pencils.

And much more!

The DVD is available for pre-order on my website or at the Quilting Arts/Interweave website.

A digital download is available now at Interweave.

Here's a preview:

The complete Blog Hop schedule is as follows:

October 10 Gerrie Congdon 

October 12 Vivika DeNegre 

October 14 Debra Gabel  l

October 17 Candy Glendening 

October 19 Deborah Boschert  

October 21 Diane Doran 

Work in Progress

I'm working on these little red birds - it's about 10"x10".

I'm trying to finish this up by tomorrow - shouldn't be too hard, eh? I love the look of many thread color changes, but hate tying and burying the knots. I recently had a quilt appraised, and "many thread color changes" was one of the notations on the appraisal. It didn't occur to me that all those thread colors would be considered as part of the evaluation, but it makes sense.

Surface Design Junkie

I *love* to experiment with surface design - dyeing, painting, monoprinting, gelatin printing, screen printing, and many variations thereof. I use lots of my hand dyed fabrics in my quilts, but most of the other prints are somewhat small and end up in other projects, with the exception of some of the screen prints.

This week I got the marbling bug - again. I think I first tried marbling way back in about 1993. Because I've tried so many techniques, I generally have supplies on hand to try out a technique that catches my eye, so I wasn't surprised to find alum and Methocel in my stash of supplies. How convenient!

Here are some of this week's prints hanging on a line to dry -

Love the colors!

 This pictured inspired me, so I decided to play around with it in Photoshop. I often take pictures of  surface design work I've done, and play around with them  in Photoshop - more bang for the effort!

 This is the photo above, with a more closeup photo of the center piece of fabric layered on it. Maybe it's the start of something? The transparency really appeals to me - what do you think?

DVD News!

I'm so excited! Earlier today Helen Gregory of Interweave sent me a copy of my instructional DVD cover - check it out!

It will be released sooner than I anticipated - by late October, and a digital download will be available even earlier than that. I will be sure to keep you posted.

For some reason I've been doing lots of experimenting lately. I've always loved experimenting with surface design, and boy have I gone at the last few days. One experiment was an unmitigated failure, but I have high hopes for some of the marbling I've been doing - hopefully I'll have photos tomorrow.

Metrothreads Trunk Show

Artist Reception - at Seminole Sampler-

Thursday, September 22, 7 - 8:30 p.m

A Quilt for Cathy

Cathy Kleeman was our MD/DC/WV SAQA rep for several years, and she recently turned over the reins to Deborah Boschert and me. We decided to give Cathy a small quilt as a token of our appreciation.

We're all in another group called Metrothreads, which coincidentally has been working on an exhibit of small, matted works. Deborah and I decided that the little quilt should be matted like the Metrothreads pieces. I decided to finish up a piece I'd started back in July.  I knew I wanted to add "more", but I wasn't sure what that "more" was. I eventually added a salmony/orange flower that echoed the shape of the purple asters.

 Here it is with the quilting finished, and a few french knots. You can see the chalk lines where I marked the area to trim to fit in the mat. (Sorry, no photo in the mat.)

And here's the closeup. I quilted this piece in a looser style than I usually use, and it was fun - I'll definitely be trying that again.

So thank you, Cathy, for your years of service, and I hope you like the quilt!

The Metrothreads Trunk Show has turned into quite a nice exhibit. You can see it at Seminole Sampler in Catonsville, Maryland now through October 31, 2011.

Thread Painting Experiment

One of the best parts of meeting other artists is seeing what they make, which often leads to being inspired by them. This is just what happened when I met Terry White in the green room for the QA TV taping in Cleveland. She showed me some stunning examples of her thread painting on some hand dyed osnaburg. I'm sure you've seen the ads for Star Threads that feature her lovely work, and they are even more impressive in person. Then she gave me some of the thread she designed! I couldn't stop thinking about it.

Now, I'm a super fine thread, tiny needle, tiny stitches kind of machine quilter, and this thread is 30wt. But I checked out some of her videos and decided to first try thread painting instead of quilting with it. (I'm working on next year's new and improved Filler Finesse column for Machine Quilting Unlimited and needed to make a sample to quilt on, and didn't feel like making an applique.) So here's my experiment (without quilting).

What was really great about this was how much work the thread did for me. I always thought of thread painting as involving endless thread changes, but because of the gradation of color in Terry's threads this was much easier than I anticipated. The thickness of the thread is also a plus, as it fills in faster than a thinner thread. I have not thread painted anything like this before, but it was very fun and I'm so glad to have tried it out. And the thread is so pretty that I'm sure I will quilt with it eventually.Thanks, Terry, for the thread and the inspiration!

Quilting Arts Gifts 2011-2012

I received my preview copy of Quilting Arts Gifts 2011-2012, and what a fun issue it is! Look at these cute birds on the cover:

I had a lot of fun with the project that I designed - quilted mini stockings.

In the magazine they show them as gift decorations, but I really like them on the swag, too. The directions for the decorative clothes pins are also in the article. My stockings are quilted, but if you're in a hurry, or just want a simpler look, you could just as easily use commercial fabric, plain felt, or something with surface design that you love.

Don't forget, the SAQA benefit auction has begun! It started yesterday, and every day the prices go down. My quilt is in the third group, so it will go on the block starting September 26th.

Non Stop Action

Wow - so much going on! And I'm not just talking about earthquakes, hurricanes and flooding. (Luckily we've been spared the worst of it all, though I do miss the sun.)

Last week I had an excellent time in Cleveland with the fine folks from Quilting Arts. I taped two segments for Quilting Arts TV Series 900, then an instructional DVD! I did not take a great camera, because I had too much other stuff to carry, so all of these pics are from my phone camera. Eventually I'll have to get some better pictures from Helen (unfortunately I have none of me and Pokey on my phone).

In the green room with Candy Glendening of candiedfabrics.com Candy had taped a DVD the day before, and she generously shared invaluable tips with me on how to make it through the taping!

During the DVD taping, Helen Gregory took pictures between chapters. Someone in the green room captured me on the monitor - I'm smirking at Helen in the studio.

Here is the lovely Helen. Helen has such a wonderful, calming, yet totally on top of things presence. She makes all things seem possible.

Missing from this picture is the delightful Jackie Marsal of havelssewing.com (she was taking the picture). I'm not sure why Terry White (threadpaint.com & starthreads.com) is hiding behind that frond, but if you ever get a chance to dine with her, do so! Jo Leichte of berninausa.com provided invaluable technical assistance on sewing machines all day. Margaret Applin (margaretapplindesigns.com) arrived early to tape some segments the next day - I love her take on digital imagery. We had a very fun dinner at Bahama Breeze.

I'll have to take some pictures of the fabulous swag I received and post them later.

Whew!

I hope you've all been having as wonderful a summer as I have. We returned last week from a once in a lifetime trip to some of our fabulous national parks - Grand Teton, Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, Mesa Verde, and Arches, with a little break in Vegas (to see Hoover Dam) in the middle. My guys were real troopers - they were already seasoned travelers, but this was quite the road trip. We took thousands of pictures - too many to fully appreciate yet. Here are two of my favorites:

A peaceful moment in a geyser basin

A storm was brewing  in Lamar Valley in Yellowstone as we observed a (very) distant grizzly on another hillside. The dramatic lighting really caught my eye.

Last week I received my preview copy of the September issue of Machine Quilting Unlimited.

 

As always, jam packed with great articles. I especially enjoyed Barb Hollinger's article on pressing - she used an analytical approach that I found very appealing, and quite informative!

The kids won't start school until next week, but in the meantime I'm super excited to be working on a few things for Quilting Arts - 2 more TV segments, and an instructional DVD!

Quilting Arts TV Series 800

The DVDs for Quilting Arts Series 800 are now available! I received my copy last week, and admit that I dropped everything and watched my three segments right away. I'm in episodes 805, 806, and 810.

 

My favorite segment (that I'm in) is the one on serendipitous screen printing, in episode 806. You can watch previews of the episodes here.  I really love being able to watch the episodes at my leisure, rather than waiting for PBS to air them. It's a great group of artists, and there's so much wonderful info in this series!

So much of what I'm working on lately is samples for various articles and projects, so I can't share photos that often, but here's a peek at my design wall and sewing table. (I've cropped out the ironing board and long table covered in batting, thread, fabric, old samples etc.so as not to scar you).

Do you think three sewing machines at once is enough?

New Boyfriend*

When it's hot outside, my thoughts turn to just one thing - dyeing! Sun and heat make the dyes take very well, so I look forward to super crazy hot days.

OK, no pics yet of the fabric I have dyed this week (some still needs to be ironed), but I have been working on some samples for an article for Machine Quilting Unlimited (now available at Barnes & Noble - yeah!). I won't show the finished sample just yet - I'll save that for the article - but thought I'd show two "in progress" shots.

                                     
 Silk screened leaves and rubber band printed lines. (I wrapped the rubber bands around a wood block.)

 Purple aster like flowers screened on top.

I was inspired by the motifs on some vintage fabric that belonged to my aunt. Normally the mustardy color of the background is not one of my faves. However, something about this combo makes me very happy. I'm adding some applique and decorative stitching on top of this.


*In the surface design community, sometimes new fabric, with which one is infatuated, is referred to as a "new boyfriend".

Ode to the Shuttle Team

A long time ago, I was a Space Shuttle Engineer. To this very day, I cannot watch a Space Shuttle launch without crying. They are not tears of sadness, but of sheer awe. Yes, the Space Shuttle is an amazing machine, and the technology remarkable. But what I'm in awe of is the incredible team of people who worked to the best of their abilities to make each launch happen. The dedication, persistence, and, above all else, teamwork required to get that vehicle off the ground, into space, and home safely is a great example to us all. Many thanks to the thousands of people who played a role in the successes of the Shuttle program.

Some of the McDonnell Douglas employees who worked on developing the Spacecraft Trajectory and Mission Planning Simulation. See if you can spot me ;)

SAQA Benefit Auction

I've finished my 2011 SAQA Auction piece and shipped it off. It's called Blue Bird 2. (You can click on it to enlarge the image.)

Blue Bird 2, Digital Collage printed with pigment ink on silk, free motion machine quilting

SAQA (Studio Art Quilt Associates) is a wonderful organization that promotes art quilting, and assists art quilters in many ways, including through exhibitions, educational programs, and networking.

The auction begins September 12. It's fun to look through the many gorgeous pieces ahead of the auction at the link above - there's some stunning work there.

Architectural Inspiration

I take many types of photos - family photos (of course), macro photos of almost anything that looks interesting, lots of flowers, butterflies. Increasingly, I also find myself taking photographs of reflections, and architectural subjects - both buildings as a whole, and parts. I mean to share some of these with you, but somehow don't always get around to it, so here are a few.


Back in November I went on a field trip to Mount Vernon with one of my sons. As we wandered across the lawn, I couldn't help but look across the river to where I grew up in Maryland. I excitedly pointed out Fort Washington to my little troop of boys, but they weren't very interested.

Fort Washington National Park, as viewed from across the Potomac River.  You may just be able to see the lovely yellow house to the left of the main fortification.

 

We've taken the boys to the Fort before, but it was so long ago that I don't think that they remembered it. Since the park was literally in our backyard when I grew up, I have many vivid memories of it. We decided to stop by on Easter Sunday while visiting family.

This building, now restored, is used as a visitor center. We used to sled down the hill in front of it. The home course for my high school cross country team was in the park, so I also had many opportunities to run UP the hill, which we dubbed "The General" .

Detail of one of the windows - almost looks European, doesn't it?

Looking out of the fortification, towards the hill with the visitor's center. Two of my sons are visible within the arch, on the draw bridge.

This used to be the quarters of the head park ranger. In elementary school I was friends with the ranger's daughter, and was invited to spend the night. To my surprise, she had been telling the truth about there being a skeleton in the closet there - and a headless one at that. I didn't get much sleep that night. The building currently appears to be undergoing renovations.

Will any of these photos end up in a quilt in the future? Only time will tell. Either way, I'm glad to have them.

Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival

I'm a knitter. Sometimes I forget this, as I don't knit all the time, or even often. But when I tally up what I've made over the years - including 3 cardigans, a vest, 2 summer sweaters, some cowls and socks, and enough hats and scarves that I've lost count of them - I realize that I am indeed a knitter.

So when the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival rolls around, it seems like I really should go. Unfortunately, the timing of it is such that it's hard to make it, even though it's less than a 10 minute drive away. There's always something else happening that weekend - First Communion, birthday parties, Mother's Day, school or scout related activities, or all of the above.

Somehow, I usually make it for at least the last few hours. Yesterday I took the boys over, bought them that wonderful soft serve ice cream dipped in chocolate, and we looked at the sheep. We cruised through some vendors, then my husband drove over to pick up the boys. I made a last dash through the booths, and that was that. Not filled with exciting meet ups with blog friends or Ravelers, not a wild yarn buying extravaganza, but a relaxing interlude on Mother's Day.

And it was a lovely way to spend the afternoon.

Spring at Last!

When I last posted, I was feeling pretty cheery and confident that spring was here.

Then it was rainy and very cold for two weeks.

But things are looking up now. One fine aspect of the prolonged chill was that the crocuses lasted for weeks, instead of melting in a day or two due to high temps.

 This bee looked quite content on Monday.

 I was concerned that the tulip magnolia, one of my most favorite plants, would be too burned by the cold to bloom. Luckily my concern was unfounded, as shown by these buds today. (Our wonderful weeping cherry is in the background.)

 And, the wait for Interweave's  101 Patchwork Projects + Quilts is over. These water bottle slings are my contribution (page 36), and they've already come in handy for several walks this week. There are lots (well heck, 100) of other great project and gift ideas too. If you make one of these slings I'd love to see a photo!

Iridescent Exuberance

Well, now I know it's coming.

Lambs up the street? Check (sorry, no pic)

Crocuses?

 Check

 Cherry Blossoms? 

Check and Check

Grackles?

Check!!

When I was writing the artist statement for my Houston IQA entry last year, I was admittedly a little punchy. I wrote that the "iridescent exuberance" of grackles fascinates me, and that though some folks count on robins to announce spring, I really know that it's coming when the grackles show up. And this year, that day was yesterday. Welcome, Spring!

Cover Girl

First off, many thanks to everyone who took the time to offer an opinion the day before yesterday. It was very interesting to see what everyone thought! I've started to quilt the bird, but have decided not to try and rush it. We've reached the unprecedented situation of having every family member on an antibiotic simultaneously, so I'm taking it a little bit easy today.

The same day I received the email from Pokey Bolton about appearing on Quilting Arts TV, I received another very exciting email. Barbara Polston of the NQA  let me know that The Gathering was selected to be the cover quilt for The Quilting Quarterly, the NQA publication. Yesterday my copy arrived, and I'm so honored and grateful. Here's a picture of the magazine -

We're still waiting for spring here. I saw a single crocus blooming the other day in a neighbor's yard, and the willow trees are starting to green up, but otherwise we're off to a slow start.

My thoughts and prayers go out to the people of Japan today.

Decisions, Decisions

I'm trying to finish a small piece for this year's SAQA Benefit Auction.  The "early bird" deadline is next week, so I'm hoping to finish up a piece by this Friday. The two (as of yet unquilted) contenders are below. Which do you prefer, and why? You can see a bigger view if you click on the pictures.

March Issue of Machine Quilting Unlimited

It's always fun to receive the writer's copy of a magazine when I have an article in it. It usually arrives a few days earlier than a subscription, making me feel a little bit like one of the cool kids. I just received the March issue of Machine Quilting Unlimited and it's beautiful. Here's a peek at my article, the second in a series of six on machine quilted fillers:

I know I say this every time, but this is a really great issue. If you're interested in using colored pencils on quilts, curved crosshatching, integrating machine quilting with machine needle felting, or learning more about straight of grain and stitch regulators, it's all there! Be sure and check it out.
 

Materials Matter

Since I didn't go to art school, for a long time it didn't occur to me that the result of making art work - with paints, dyes, or inks - was heavily dependent on the surface to which it was applied. Painting on watercolor paper certainly gives a different result from painting on canvas, right? The same holds true with printing on fabric using an ink jet printer. Over the years I've printed my digital collages on a variety of fabrics, both pretreated and ones I've treated myself with Bubble Jet Set. One thing I haven't been afraid to do is experiment. New products come out all the time, and occasionally old ones fall by the way side.

I recently tried printing on two new-to-me fabrics in this spirit of experimentation. The photo below shows two print outs of the same kaleidoscope (created using Kaleidoscope Kreator), printed using the exact same settings, on different brands pretreated silk fabrics.

It's pretty obvious that I'd choose the right hand fabric, Jacquard Fabrisign II, over the left hand fabric. That said, I have a pigment ink printer (an Epson 2200), and that fabric clearly works better for me with my printer. However, a different ink formulation might work better on the left hand fabric. The lesson? Don't be afraid to experiment! Better to test out several small samples on a few types of fabric than to get started on a big project and end up with disappointing results. And remember, experimenting can be fun! I can always screen print over less than optimum prints, or use them as a background for something. I wish you happy printing!