To be an artist, one must work in more than one medium.

Oh, these last few months have been extremely busy for me.  My art quilt group had a big display at the BBQ Show on the last weekend of September.  I was so inspired by all the amazing creativity displayed at the show, it inspired me to come right home and make another Kawandi quilt in three days.  Oh, then I received an e-mail on Oct 4 about an extended call for art quilts in the Idaho/Montana Regional Art Quilters (SAQA).  So, I made an entirely new art quilt in three days, that I just got mailed out to Montana on Tuesday.  You can see that quilt here.  It is titled: The North Cabin.

Meanwhile, I finally had time (one afternoon last Sunday) to go out and obtain a new printer for my computer.  I got an EPSON ET-3850, and my wonderful husband got it all connected up for me.  I Love My New Printer.  Then of course, I was also contacted to pick-up a truckload of quilt fabric from another amazing quilter who has gone on before; Vesta Bergen.  Her sons had it all in boxes and they put it directly into my pick-up.  I need my pick-up next week to load up and head up to a quilting retreat in Cascade, so I rallied my Piecemakers of Idaho to do a fabric sale this Saturday at my house.  It is happening!   I need to clean my house! and sweep out the garage and muster some tables, etc!

That is what a madhouse it has been for me lately.  Back to the new printer . . . the old did not work so well, so it had a stack of crap on top of it.  I went through said stack of crap and got it all handled, including an 18-month-old clay project for another group of ladies that I belong to.  Done!

Here is my completed clay project, using every bead that I made and decoupaged.  I spray sealed it yesterday and strung it all together last night.  I hung it next to my latest Kawandi, which has a Halloween theme.  It is okay to call it a Kawandi (instead of Kawandi quilt), because Kawandi means quilt.  I love my Spooky Houses Kawandi and my clay Hope art piece.

A Truly Unruly Award!

I am so glad all the Fair stuff, and the many other things in my life that occurred in August are over.  I worked way too hard and long at the Fair and a strange thing happened to my ankles.  Truly feet and concrete do not mix!  So, being ill this past week has allowed me some creative down-time (after three days of being a vegetable).  I made a special "Unruly Award" ribbon for the Unruly Quilt Artists to award to some lucky individual at the Boise Basin Quilt Show coming up on Sept 27-28.

I actually drew a plan in June, but I through that out the window and started fresh!  How refreshing!  I went looking through my grandmother's sewing cabinet, which has resided with me for thirty years, and found some amazing 'vintage' things that might go into an amazing award ribbon.

The fabric measure tape was the item I was hoping to find.  So glad I found one!  Then there were some large metal bobbins, some amazing plastic shower curtain hooks, a pack of three sizes of metal thimbles, made in Germany and only 33 cents at Skaggs!  Looking at said goodies, one asks if one should open that thimble package or put it on Ebay.  I have been on a bent to use what I have, so those thimbles will finally feel the air of 2024 upon them.  Yes, I am going to cut up that fabric measure tape.  If I just hold on to these things in the museum of my grandmother's sewing cabinet, who knows what will become of them after I am dust.  Let us use what we have on hand, instead of running down to the store to buy some cheap, (but oodles more expensive than 33 cents!) made in China, thimble.  

looks like an electrical project gone wrong

I have long held the idea that using what you already have makes you more creative.  I keep proving it to myself.  I dug out my old box of ribbon and found some amazing stuff to bling up an award.  To add strength to the award, I used actual batting and a wee strip of stiff interfacing in between the back and the front pieces.  The front piece has a contrasting fabric below, so I can cut a bit out of the top layer of fabric to reveal that which is beneath.  I am just copying a technique that Kirsten used on all those name tags she made.  Oh, yes!  I used some of the hand-dyed fabric, I made in May, for the front and back pieces of the award.

Here is a truly unruly award!  I used the thimble, measure tape, and bobbin, plus a strip of creamy yellow rickrack to pull it all together.  The little bit of measure tape, up top, is a loop to hang it with.  I really outdid myself; it must have been all that cranberry juice!

Busy, Busy!

Greetings!  I have been busy helping the American Girl Dolls and friends realize their wildest dreams.  They wanted to have a quilt show, so they are having one!  I made a floor that sits on top of a standard six-foot folding table. It is 7 ft long and 4 ft wide.  I made the pipe and drape for the quilt show.  I purchased all my materials from three different Ace Hardware Stores, Lowes, and Canvas Etc.  

I ordered 23 yards of banjo cloth to make the drape part of the pipe and drape, and to make the skirt that went around the 22-foot circumference of the "floor" of the quilt show.  

Last February, I met with the Superintendent of the Home Arts Department of the Western Idaho Fair.  I told her about the "doll quilt show" and she granted us (the dolls and I) a showcase, in the Home Arts section at the Fair.  So, "we" got busy and built a quilt show!  Above is a photo of the banjo cloth I carefully measured and cut.  I am so glad I was careful, as I used all but six inches of that 23 yards.  

I had never made pleats before, so I practiced on the "admissions table".  It was very slow going, so I worked out a way to make pleats with the fork method.  I needed a half-inch fork, however, so my husband used his Dremel tool to cut two tines off of a fork to make it a half-inch wide.  It worked like a dream!

By making the pleats 1/2 inch with a quarter inch between each pleat, I only needed 44 ft of fabric to go around my 22-foot circumference board.  Once I got it on my machine and stitched all the pleats I had pinned, I was able to just make pleats as I went, with my fork, and kept sewing and sewing and sewing.  This was truly the most daunting part of the entire not-quite-sane project. 

The banjo cloth really made this showcase come alive and look neat, clean, and professional.   This shot was taken while the set-up was still in my quilt studio.  It has since gone off to The Fair.  It looks marvelous there, and I have had so much positive feedback and excitement, even, from Fairgoers both young and old, women and men.  I am truly satisfied with my efforts to help those quilting maniac dolls finally have a quilt show.

There are 19 doll quilts displayed.  All of them are of different designs, except the two red, white, and blue ones on the end.   Both quilts are of the same design and same color pallet (red, white, and blue).  By arranging the colors differently, or in different quantities, perhaps combined with fabrics of different color saturations, the results are totally different looking quilts.  To view more photos and information about the Good Friends Quilt Show, visit czdollquilts.blogspot.com by clicking HERE.  Those dolls are blogging all about it.

Shark Week! Shark Fabric!

My friend A wanted to go to the grand opening of the re-opened quilt shop in Caldwell, Stitch n Giggles.  So, we went.  They had some great buys, and I found a piece of amazing shark fabric for $3.00!  It is about a yard and a half.  And just one day prior to "Shark Week"!  It was meant to be.

I feel a Hachi quilt coming on!  This is fabulous fabric and I feel I am on target for Shark Week this year.  How did that happen?

Thoughts Among the Clouds

Have some thoughts about "Thoughts Among the Clouds".  I think those thoughts are streaming by on the breeze.  I hope you like it!

I have embraced the dark blue polyester thread and more cut layers.  It is totally amazing when viewed as art should be; at a distance.

Art Quilt Update!

I have been having so much fun with my color wheel as of late.  It is not your average color wheel.  It is a "Stampin' Up" color wheel, that I misplaced several years ago.  I have made two new art quilts with the aid of my color wheel (CW).  Here is the pallet for the most recent one. 

I decided to use cut layers.  I made the backing, added batting on top, then put my layers on and stitched the layers together.

Then it is ready to be cut.  I cut out the insides of the letters.  I use a straight pin to lift the top layer away from the next layer down, so I only snip the top layer to reveal the one underneath.  If I want to go to the next layer, below that, I repeat the same process.  Be aware of what your final layer is, so you do not snip through it.  The photo, above, was shot on my ironing surface that is in front of my east-facing window, so it has some shadows, but I think it looks cool.

Ta-da!  Here is the final product.  I am quite pleased with the sharp outcome.  CW is not doing me wrong.

Scrappy Happy Strip Quilt Completed!

I started this strip quilt last October, at the retreat in Cascade.  I made it a specific size just for me.  I needed a quilt with a flannel back, but a scrappy top to encourage sweet dreams.  I wanted it big enough to cover just me and not lots of extra on the sides, but long enough to cover my feet and my shoulders.  Sometimes I like to sleep in my recliner, because of my back problems.  This quilt is perfect, except now that it is finished the weather is too warm to use it.  It will be perfect next fall/winter.

It has scraps from my friends Annita, Elverta, Betty Ray, Teresa, and my mother.  In addition, I have included bits for memories of my friends Hope, Caryl, and Leni.  Besides my "Zinnia portrait" (in the top row), I have Zinnia portraits of Hope and Caryl.  The blue floral L is for Leni.  To quilt it, I did the stitch-in-the-ditch method.  It is so cozy and fun!