Heather's Blog

Fri Resonans

2011-12-08T10:24:00.001-06:00

My quilt was used as the background for a music festival in Norway!

Several months ago, I got an e-mail from a woman in Berlin asking permission to use my quilt on the poster. Isn't it great!

I'm getting all caught up!

2011-12-08T10:21:00.001-06:00

We spent our Thanksgiving in Colorado with friends. The week involved a little hiking, a lot of good food and wine, the Packers and Badgers football games, a visit to the Denver Aquarium, and shopping in Littleton and Breckenridge.

We took a hike above Dillon Reservoir:

We also conducted our traditional day after Thanksgiving Christmas tree hunt in the National Forest. This year Janet purchased two permits, so we cut down a 17 foot tree for our friends:

And a 5 footer for us:

I love our little tree! It'll make us think of our friends this Christmas...

New Work

2011-12-08T10:13:00.002-06:00

Between customer quilting and the approaching holidays, I haven't gotten much work done since I got back from Ohio. I've mostly been trying to finish some projects.

The first is a quilt using fabrics I dyed using two different shibori techniques, arashi (pole wrapping) and nui (stitching):

The next two are pieces I started this year in Ohio:

The second quilt is huge -- much larger than my design wall.

I will be busy in January -- I won't be doing any client quilting, but I have a huge pile of my own tops to quilt. Looking forward to it!

International Quilt Festival 2011

2011-12-08T10:00:00.000-06:00

SAQA Texas once again had an exhibit of small quilts hanging in the SAQA booth at Houston IQF. I entered three quilts:

The SAQA Texas Region members put on another wonderful show. We had 48 quilts, many of which were for sale. Two of my small quilts sold during the show.

A few more pictures from the Barn

2011-10-11T16:18:00.001-05:00

Fabric "sketch"

Quilt made from the "sketch"

Black and white improvisational piece

Final quilt -- still in progress

Home from the Crow Timber Frame Barn

2011-10-11T07:50:00.000-05:00

Whew! I've just gotten back from two weeks with Nancy Crow. It was inspiring, illuminating, eye-opening, exhilirating and exhausting. A wonderful two weeks!

I spent the weekend before the classes and the weekend in between the two with my brother and sister-in-law. Can you tell that Andrew is a Brown's fan?

The first class was "Lines, Curves, Circles and Figure/Ground." We first made linear units, and then curved and circular units, and then put them together into a composition. A couple of shots of work in progress:

Not a finished piece, but I hope to complete it this week.

The Barn is a beautiful place to be in the fall. And we always got a very early start.

I need to photograph my quilts from the 2nd week, "Improvisations." We made a total of 6 pieces, mostly small. This is one of them:

It's good to be home, and time to get back to work!

New work -- just in time for the Trinity Valley Quilt Show!

2011-09-24T16:01:00.000-05:00

I've been working hard, trying to get my entries for the Trinity Valley Quilt Show ready before I head to Ohio for a couple of classes with Nancy Crow.

Tuning Fork #6

A closeup of the "texture" section

Another closeup

Strip Study #1

Closeup of Strip Study #4

Strip Study #4 -- the whole quilt

Strip Study #2

Strip Study #3

Tuning Fork #4

TF #4 closeup

Client Quilts

2011-07-19T16:57:00.005-05:00

A couple of pretty client quilts that I have recently finished. First, Cindy's friendship teapot quilt:

And secondly, a Christmas quilt for Karen:

Vacation to Maryland and Washington DC

2011-07-17T12:12:00.010-05:00

Brian and I are just home from a wonderful trip to visit his brother, Bruce, in southern Maryland. We not only spent some wonderful time at Bruce's home, we also stayed two nights, including our anniversary, in Washington. We were at a wonderful B & B, the Swann House, near Dupont Circle:

We spent one day on the Mall, admiring the capital and visiting several Smithsonian museums, and spent the evening at a Nationals' game.

The Mary Livingston Ripley Garden (part of the Smithsonian) was a beautifully cool oasis on a terribly hot and humid day:

Brian ran into President Jefferson on the concourse of the Nationals' stadium:

On our anniversary we visited the Phillips Collection, which happened to be having a mixer. We enjoyed a pre-dinner cocktail while admiring the paintings by Kadinsky, Stella, Kley and Rothko (among many others). And followed it with dinner at a Japanese restaurant. It was a heavenly evening!

We drove through Virginia, visiting Spottsylvania Courthouse, The Wilderness and Fredricksburg battlefields, on our way back to Bruce's house. Brian and I of course had to have our picture taken by a cannon at Spottsylvania:

The visit to Spottsylvania brought back memories for Brian and I, who had visited the battlefield during a geology field trip in college. Thirty-four years ago or so.

Back home, Bruce, who loves Japanese food and culture, made onigiri (rice balls). Yum!

While in Maryland, we visited Annamarie Garden (near Solomons Island):

And Sotterley Plantation in Hollywood:

It was a shock to come back to the unrelenting heat of North Texas. Our garden is getting a little brown, and my potato plants died while we were gone. But it's still good to be home!

A visit from guess HOO?

2011-06-26T19:18:00.005-05:00

We had an unexpected visitor in the yard this morning. While we were out on the patio with our coffee and the Sunday papers, we heard a giant ruckus. The bluejays were screeching and the squirrels were squawking. Brian went over to investigate under the holly bushes below the big magnolia tree, which is where the ruckus seemed to be centered, thinking it must be a cat. Nothing. The ruckus continued, however. No cat, possum, or fierce wolverine. Finally, a fourth time, Brian spotted, not 5 feet away, a little gray screech owl, trying to take it's daytime nap. It is now 7:00 pm, and it is still there. It has been mobbed by squirrels, blue jays, mockingbirds,...even cardinals and chickadees. It doesn't seem fazed, however. It just sits there snoozing. And letting me take pictures! I have never seen one in the wild before. If you can count suburban Fort Worth as the wild.

He really upset our other backyard residents:

But he didn't let it faze him. He napped the day away:

Texas Reps meeting

2011-06-26T19:15:00.005-05:00

The four Texas SAQA representatives got together over the weekend at the home of Lynn Allen in Austin, Texas. Not only did we have a chance to get to know each other a little better, but we also made some plans for SAQA Texas. It was a delightful day, and a very productive meeting!

Workshop in Pipe Creek

2011-06-20T09:29:00.003-05:00

I just got back from another one of Susie Monday's wonderful workshops! This one was on markmaking, and involved two days of deconstructed screen printing, monoprinting, gelatin printing, stamping and screen printing. On Sunday afternoon, we showed off our newly printed fabrics:

I loved some of the fabrics I created. The pieces below were all created with deconstructed screen printing, and the one on the right has been overdyed in blue:

Susie has a great studio, with wonderful facilities for dyeing and painting. We had dyes, paints and screens spread all over both the studio and her driveway:

The weekend also involved lots of great food, good music, swimming and just hanging out, enjoying the fabulous view from Susie's deck:

I left San Antonio on Sunday, and spent the rest of the week with Kyra in Austin. We always have a great time together, and I got a few strips sets pieced as well.

It's always good to come home, though. I missed Brian and Boomer. And my garden:

Check out Susie's workshops! They are great!

More flower pics

2011-06-08T15:28:00.004-05:00

A few more pictures of our garden. Everything is green and lush right now, but it won't last. The heat of summer is starting.

The daylilies have been fabulous this year. Best show ever:

Texas Scottish Festival

2011-06-08T15:20:00.004-05:00

The first weekend in June -- hot, humid and time for the Texas Scottish Festival! It's one of my favorite events of the year. We go for the great music, the Scottish food and the beer.

Two of our favorite bands -- Tullamore from Kansas City:

And the Killdares from Dallas:

As you can see, the Scottish piper has updated his wardrobe...

New Work (in progress)

2011-05-31T11:06:00.002-05:00

In progress (not yet quilted), Tuning Fork #6:

Strip #5:

A Few Garden Photos....

2011-05-31T10:55:00.002-05:00

We've had wild weather -- torrential rain, tornado warnings, hail, high winds and now temperatures in the 90s -- but our garden has survived. In fact, it has flourished. Brian took a few pictures on Memorial Day.

Near the front door:

The daylilies are putting on quite a show:

Brian repaired the fountain. The basin cracked during the February freeze:

I missed the splashing sound!

The acanthus in the back garden:

We spent Memorial Day weekend first working in the yard and then relaxing on the back patio. Heaven!

Back from New Mexico

2011-05-08T15:40:00.003-05:00

I've been in New Mexico, with my bridge buddies. Judy, one of our regular foursome, has a wonderful house in Alto. It's perched on top of a ridge, with a view of Sierra Blanca from the front windows and a pine filled canyon from the back balconies. It was cool and lovely, and we played lots of bridge.

One day we decided to take the long, roundabout, scenic route to Cloudcroft to the south. On our way, we stopped at Three Rivers Petroglyph Site. 20,000+ pictures were carved into basaltic rocks on several ridges by the Jornado Mogollon indians 600 or so years ago. We climbed the ridges and had a great time examining the petroglyphs. Here is a bighorn sheep pierced by arrows:

A jolly looking man:

Another animal. Sheep, horse, deer or goat?

Ginna, Ann and I had lunch at the Cloudcroft Lodge. What a cool place!

Scenes from our Easter weekend...

2011-04-25T13:04:00.002-05:00

Spring

2011-04-20T09:00:00.001-05:00

Spring in Texas. Everything is suddenly very green, thunderstorms rumble through periodically, the roses are in full bloom. Beautiful!

Home from Houston

2011-04-19T08:30:00.004-05:00

Brian and I went to Houston last week. He attended the annual meeting of the AAPG and I revisited old friends and a few favorite places.

We of course had to go to a baseball game at Minute Maid Park:

We had lunch at the Black Lab in Montrose:

We visited the Natural Science Museum, the Menil, the Museum of Fine Arts and the Center for Contemporary Craft.
I also spent a day in the Woodlands with friends.

We moved to Fort Worth over five years ago, but I still have a soft spot for Houston. Always will.

Home from Saint Thomas

2011-04-04T09:35:00.010-05:00

Brian and I just spent a week in St. Thomas with our friends from Colorado. It was fabulous. The water was warm and clear and the most beautiful turquoise blue I've ever seen:

We spent one day sailing, with a midday stop for snorkeling:

Together we rented a villa on a cliff above the sea:

We spent every day at a different beach, some on St. Thomas, some on St. John. This is Lindquist beach on St. Thomas:

Our villa had a deck overlooking the sea. The view was amazing, and this century plant added a splash of yellow:

We had some great happy hours on that deck! There was always a lovely breeze, pelicans and frigate birds soaring overhead, hummingbirds (during the day) and fruit bats (at night) feeding on the century plant, the waves crashing on the rocks below....it was a beautiful place!

Elena and I saw several green sea turtles feeding on sea grass while snorkeling at Maho beach on St. John. She and I are both turtle lovers, so we were pretty excited:

Our villa came with several friendly iguanas. Two spent their days sunning on our roof: some basked on the rocks below the villa. They all loved bananas:

The bougainvillea was everywhere. I wish my bougainvillea would grow half as well:

Brian and I took underwater shots with 35 mm film. I'll post a few when we get them back.

Super Moon!

2011-03-21T09:11:00.003-05:00

Saturday was the evening of the super moon. Brian snapped this image as it rose over our house:

We also have a new backyard resident. This little fellow has been sitting on the statue's nose every sunny afternoon for the past week:

It was a busy week...

2011-03-21T08:56:00.003-05:00

Filled with work on another tuning fork quilt, some client quilting, and a wonderful day spent dyeing fabric! The fabric dyeing was the highlight -- I've been trying for two years to dye a gradation of gray that was neither cool nor warm, and I finally did it!

I also tested three different PFD fabrics to see which I liked the best. I threw a yard of each into a pot of yellow-green and a pot of gold. It turns out I like the fabric I've been using, P & B special dyers muslin, the best after all:

And I also dyed a red-orange gradation and an eggplant gradation that I'll be able to use in the current turning fork piece:

I quilted a lovely quilt for Willadean:

And Brian sent me flowers for no particular reason:

So, really, it was a busy and really wonderful week!

The Turtles Are Awake!

2011-03-11T16:19:00.004-06:00

At least, Charlie is up from his winter hibernati0n. He was peeking out from under a pile of live oak leaves (it's the time of year that they fall en masse) so I didn't get a good picture. His little head looks too much like a fallen leaf. But I am so glad to see him! It's been a very cold, icy winter (for North Texas) and I was worried about the turtles, especially my poor little three legged Charlie!

Dallas Quilt Show

2011-03-11T16:08:00.004-06:00

Wendy and I went over to the Dallas Quilt Celebration today. We had a wonderful time -- we did a little shopping, saw some wonderful friends from Houston (Sharron, Lonnie and Kathleen, it was so good to see you! I'm glad we had a chance to spend a little time together!), and admired the quilt exhibit.

I had entered three quilts in the "Master Art" division, and was very excited to see that Block Study #2 had won an Honorable Mention:

And Syd's quilt, "Procrastination" also won a ribbon. Her grandmother pieced the eight-pointed star blocks, Syd put the quilt together and I quilted it. It was entered in the "Group" category:

I bought some indigo dyed fabric and some silk scraps in a wonderful assortment of colors. I'm feeling inspired -- time to get upstairs and to get to work!

It's nearly Spring!

2011-03-07T09:45:00.002-06:00

According to the calendar it is still winter, but we are enjoying mild days and cool nights here in Northern Texas. Brian and I spent the weekend working in the yard, cleaning out and re-mulching the flower beds, and we were amazed by both the flowers popping out and the perennials leafing out.

A Texas redbud:

We have several small saucer magnolias. This one is in the front yard, where it gets a little more sun. The one in the backyard is still budding:

Forsythia on the sunny side of the house:

In Ohio, where I grew up, I seem to remember the forsythia blooming before the leaves came out. Here, every year, it blooms and leafs out simultaneously. Not quite as showy, but still lovely!

A visit

2011-03-01T09:04:00.005-06:00

Our friends from Colorado came to visit last weekend. The weather was beautiful! We took a hike in Dinosaur State Park in Glen Rose. The girls were fascinated by the dinosaur footprints in the Paluxy River:

The park is lovely, and we hiked from the river up onto a ridge:

I'm afraid Boomer wasn't a very congenial host. He likes the girls, but really wasn't impressed by the two canine visitors. He kept a wary eye on them:

A late Valentine...

2011-03-01T08:58:00.001-06:00

Finally downloaded pictures from my camera. Brian gave me this rose on Valentine's Day:

Client Quilt and Valentine's Day sunset...

2011-02-15T16:56:00.004-06:00

Yesterday was Valentine's Day, and Brian and I celebrated by watching the sunset in our back yard. It was pretty spectacular. Brian took this photo of the moon in the East through the bare limbs of our red oak tree:

This afternoon I finished one of Syd's quilts. Lots of quilting on this one!

Syd's grandmother had pieced the Lemoyne Star blocks, and Syd put it together. It was a privilege to quilt it for her.

At Last -- Some Nice Weather

2011-02-14T07:17:00.005-06:00

After two weeks of unusually cold and icy weather, we are finally enjoying being outside again! Both Saturday and Sunday the highs were in the lower 70s. Absolutely perfect! Brian and I spent the entire weekend outdoors, working in the garden and relaxing on the patio.

I'll plant the gerbers in a flower bed this week, but we enjoyed having them on the patio table. Very festive! Yesterday I planted a flat of pansies in my herb garden outside the kitchen door and another around the patio. I love to look outside and see those cheerful little flowers! And I bought several pots of primroses to brighten up the plant stand by the front door:

Winter isn't over, we'll undoubtedly get more cold weather, but I'm certainly enjoying the nice weather while it lasts!

More new work

2011-02-11T07:40:00.003-06:00

Srip Study #2. Just finished quilting it yesterday:

New work

2011-02-09T07:45:00.005-06:00

The first piece I started at the TVQG retreat, and finished this week at home. Kyra helped me "edit" it when I was at her house last week. I call it "King Tut":

Three black and white studies, two with the addition of gray. I'm trying to work on figure/ground, and am having fun with the efforts:

Lastly, a very vertical quilt. I've named it "A Light Repast" -- Kyra, you are the only one who really knows why...
Now I need to quilt them!

Brrrrrr!

2011-02-07T10:04:00.003-06:00

Fort Worth is part of the North Texas area known as the Metroplex. Although we here in FW don't want to admit it, we are inextricably linked with Dallas. And as part of the Metroplex, we hosted a number of pre-Super Bowl parties and activities this last week. In fact, ESPN set up their broadcast center outside my husband's office in downtown Fort Worth:

If you have been following the Super Bowl coverage, you know that we had record cold, snowy, icy weather here this last week. The roads have been treacherous (I had a harrowing trip up I-35 last Thursday) and the weather inconvenienced many out of town visitors. But the Super Bowl went on as planned, with 103,000 people in the stadium, and it was a great game.

Honestly, we never have weather like that. Well, almost never. And spring is just around the corner. I promise!

TVQG Retreat

2011-02-07T09:52:00.004-06:00

I spent the last week in January at Tanglewood Resort and Spa at Lake Texoma at the Trinity Valley Quilt Guild retreat. Had a great time, and got several pieces started.

I began with a black and white piece, and then moved into color:

Looks like a mess, doesn't it? It was somewhat more cohesive when I pieced the multi-colored top together, but have since revised it, thanks to my friend Kyra's input. I'll post a picture of it later.

Everyone else got a lot of piecing done, too. Here, Sue is showing off a completed quilt top:

I made a good start on Tuning Fork #6:

I was home for the weekend, and then visited Kyra in Round Rock. We had a great visit and got a little piecing done, too. I seem too have been laughing too hard and having too good a time to remember to take any pictures......

2 finished pieces and one finished top

2011-01-22T14:27:00.004-06:00

January has been a good month -- time to work on my own pieces. The first is Strip Study #3, started during my Nancy Crow class in October:

The second piece is Tuning Fork #4, started in November and finished this month:

A closeup of the quilting:

And, lastly, a top I finished this week, Tuning Fork #5:

The holidays

2011-01-22T13:35:00.005-06:00

We spent Thanksgiving with our friends in Colorado, once again searching the National Forest for the perfect tree. Which happened to be 19 feet tall:

Our tree in Fort Worth was much smaller. We had a lovely Christmas with Brian's dad and brother:

Playing Catch-up

2011-01-22T13:12:00.005-06:00

It's a new year, and I'm still trying to get caught up with the old one. What have I been doing?

October: Less than one week after getting home from the Crow Barn, Brian and I went to Maryland to visit his brother, Bruce. We enjoyed his new home, visited the Black Walnut Point Inn, hiked, and visited Alexandria. Wonderful!

Boomer was glad to see us when we got home:

I almost immediately took off for International Quilt Festival in Houston, where two of my quilts were displayed in the SAQA booth:

Note: one is directly over my head and one is to the left of me in the picture.

Early November is fall here in Fort Worth, so when I got home I thought I would visit the Fort Worth Botanical Gardens' Japanese garden. It was too early for the Japanese maples to show color, but I came within two feet of this great blue heron:

First Frost, Last Harvest

2010-12-06T17:34:00.005-06:00

Our first frost is usually in late November, somewhere around Thanksgiving, so we were rather pleased to be able to harvest peppers and tomatoes well into the month of December. However, we knew the mild weather wouldn't last, and had our official first hard frost last night. So Brian and I ran out yesterday afternoon and stripped the last of the peppers and tomatoes off the plants.

Anyone know a good green tomato recipe?

A few quilts from the Crow Barn...

2010-10-10T17:51:00.006-05:00

Crow Timberframe Barn, week one

2010-10-03T07:20:00.004-05:00

Hello from the Crow Timberframe Barn! Wendy and I have been here taking several courses from Nancy Crow. We just finished the first one, The Best of Strip Piecing, and are both exhausted and exhilarated. The amount of work we accomplished in one week was phenomenal! We have been staying in a lovely old farmhouse just a mile or so from the Barn, with no internet access, and are spending the weekend in town, visiting a few shops and galleries. And catching up on our sleep! I'll post pictures later...

Cape Cod Vacation, Part 1

2010-09-21T10:46:00.004-05:00

We have been visiting my father in law in Eastham, Massachusetts, on Cape Cod. It was a wonderful trip, and this year we decided to spend several days in Boston. We took the ferry from Quincy, and I loved approaching Boston from the sea:

Pop is a big Red Sox fan, and had never been to Fenway Park. We decided it was high time for him to make his first visit:

It was a wild game, certainly not a pitchers' battle, and the Red Sox won. I snapped a photo of Brian in front of the "green monster" after the game:

Quincy Market:

On our second day in Boston, we toured the USS Constitution:

I liked this fellow in the museum next to the ship:

Back on the Cape, we had a lovely lunch with Dot and took a postprandial walk through the salt marsh near Rock Harbor:

I love the dramatic clouds and the flatness of the marsh and the bay beyond:

Brian, Pop and Dot on the boardwalk:

To be continued...

Cape Cod Vacation, Part 2

2010-09-21T10:31:00.004-05:00

Windmill Weekend in Eastham is a fun event. We always enjoy the annual sand sculpture contest. This fellow won best of show:

And there is always a parade. Pop and I are trying to keep warm while we wait for it:

To my mind, a good parade always includes a pipe band:

These folks were very entertaining:

Of course, being New England, no parade would be complete without a unit of Minutemen:

Mostly, since the weather was mild and mostly sunny, we hung out with Pop, enjoying his house in the woods:

We did spend a morning picking up interesting rocks and flotsam on Duck Harbor Beach:

And one afternoon, we drove down to Chatham (where incidentally, Brian and I spent our honeymoon 31 years ago) to see if we could spot the seals that have been seen around the harbor. Can you see them?

A closeup:
As always, we had a wonderful time. I can't wait to go back next fall!

Home again!

2010-09-21T09:57:00.003-05:00

We have been visiting Brian's father on Cape Cod this month. In fact, we got home just in time for me to work at the Trinity Valley Quilters' Guild quilt show. I'll post pictures from our trip later, but for now, two "welcome home" shots.

Boomer was glad to see us. In fact, he is making sure that we can't pack this suitcase again:

Brian and his squirrel friend saying hello:

Trinity Valley Quilt Show this weekend!

2010-09-16T15:05:00.004-05:00

Come see us this weekend at the Trinity Valley Quilt Show!

Amon Carter Exhibit Hall
Fort Worth, Texas
Friday, September 17th through Sunday, September 19th

My entries:

Sticks 5

Sticks 4

Sticks 3

Motif #1

Motif #2

Circles and Wedges

Sticks 8

Sticks 7

See you there!

Kay's quilt

2010-09-04T13:58:00.003-05:00

I just finished quilting this beautiful lone star quilt for Kay:

Kay had the great idea of quilting a leaf in each diamond. It was very labor intensive, but well worth it for the final effect:

I echoed around the applique sections, and did a flower and leaf pattern in the border:

Fall Flowers!

2010-09-04T13:49:00.004-05:00

After a very hot, dry summer our garden is finally starting to come back to life. On Thursday (incidentally Brian's birthday) we got over 2 inches of rain and a wonderfully cool air mass moved into the area. The garden immediately seemed to spring back to life.

These cacti are of course not in the garden, but by the front door:

It must be fall if the asters are starting to bloom:

This crinum has been in for three years. This is the first year it has bloomed. I love the bright fuchsia stamens:

The Rhodolphia, or "Schoolhouse Lily" comes up every year. In the fall, it only sends up the blooming stalks:

I love autumn! The mums are all budding, the roses are starting to bud again, and the light is almost golden. My favorite time of year!

Cindy's quilt

2010-09-01T11:28:00.004-05:00

I just returned this wonderful Christmas star to Cindy. Very scrappy, very cool!

I've finally updated my website!

2010-08-31T09:15:00.000-05:00

I can't believe I've left it so long, but I finally updated my website! I'll be adding more client quilt pictures soon...

Texas SAQA exhibit

2010-08-24T11:06:00.002-05:00

I've copied this post by Mary Ann Littlejohn from the SAQA Texas blog:

"All Texas members of SAQA are invited to exhibit one or more mini-quilts in an exhibit to hang behind the SAQA Booth at IQF-Houston. The booth is right outside the SAQA “Creative Force 2010” and “Sightlines” exhibits, which will draw a lot of visitors.

This is a showcase for Texas SAQA members. There is no specific theme. It is your choice. This is your chance to get your work seen by up to 50,000 visitors to the Houston show.

After Quilt Festival, the exhibit will circulate around TX to the SAQA Circle meetings, and other Fiber Artists groups.

If you are able to send more than one, the merrier. Should we not be able to hang all at one time, they will be rotated in and out through the days of Quilt Festival.

Entry Fee: $5 to cover return shipping

Size: 9 x 12 – Portrait
A hanging sleeve is not required, but if you already have one on your work, that is okay.

Important Dates:
September 15 Email your intent
October 15 Deadline for receipt of quilts
November 3 Preview night for IQF
November 4-7 Houston Show

NOTIFY: To get an idea of how many quilts to expect, please email your intent to Mary Ann Littlejohn by September 15."

SAQA North Texas Circle meeting

2010-08-24T10:51:00.006-05:00

The North Texas Circle of SAQA met on Saturday for the first time in nearly a year. We had 8 members attend, and we had a fabulous time sharing our work and exploring the SAQA and SAQA-U websites. I hate to show other people's original work on my blog, so I chose this picture of Kathy (my Texas co-rep) showing just a sliver of her quilt. It's being held up by Penny and Julie.

Kathy and I became Texas co-reps in June, and are really excited about getting a group going here in the Northern part of Texas. San Antonio, Austin and Houston have active circles. We have just sent out a survey to area members to ascertain what they want out of a group. We'll let you know when we get the results.

You can see what is happening SAQA-wise in Texas by reading our blog. We'll keep you posted!

Charlie's Doppelganger

2010-08-18T10:43:00.003-05:00

Which one is the real Charlie?:

Note that each is missing his right front leg, though the second turtle has a wooden replacement. Perhaps Charlie #1 needs one as well!

Charlie #2 was made by my friend Jay, and his front leg was carved by her husband, Dick. Isn't he wonderful?!

Reworked Work

2010-08-18T10:27:00.004-05:00

I mentioned recently (either here or on my SAQA-U wiki) that I was very unhappy with several of the Sticks series tops. With the help of my friend Susie Monday, I think I have improved them.

I went to Susie's one weekend in July for a UFO workshop. Everyone brought projects that they were stuck on, and Susie helped us get unstuck. My pieces were already pieced, so I mainly was interested in using surface design techniques to "fix" them.

Susie agreed that Sticks 5 was too in your face bright. So we overdyed it in golden brown. Much improved:

I felt that Sticks 12 just needed a little more detail. Susie suggested stamping over sections of the top and adding a silk screened petroglyph motif:

I also brought some fabrics and stamps to play with. This is a fish rubbing (I had a rubber flounder about 12 inches from nose to tail) on a piece that I had batiked with a fish tjap:

Susie is great. I heartily recommend her classes. Take one if you can -- you'll come away refreshed and inspired!

Vacation!

2010-08-18T09:38:00.004-05:00

Brian and I are just back from visiting our best friends at their summer house in Northern Wisconsin. It was blissfully cool! And beautiful.

The girls (Elena, Carolyn and Emily) enjoyed tubing:

The adults enjoyed the sunsets from the deck:

Which is perched high above the lake:

And we also enjoyed boat rides:

And the floating dock down at lake level:

Brian and I took a day and visited Marquette, MI, on the shores of Lake Superior:

And I especially enjoyed revisiting the Negaunee Fire Department. During my senior year in college, on the annual geology department spring break field trip, I visited several mines in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Bad weather (cold and a very nasty thunderstorm) forced our group to seek shelter in the Negaunee Fire Department. They were kind enough to let us sleep on the floor of their garage. I'll never forget it:

July in Texas -- Hot Hot Hot!

2010-07-07T13:00:00.004-05:00

July in Fort Worth can be pretty steamy. But the turtles don't seem to mind. Here's Charlie hanging out by the fire pit:

And Tug, looking for a piece of fruit:

Two oriental lilies by the back patio:

A rather cute spider on the echinacea:

Blackberry lily:

4th of July!

2010-07-07T11:49:00.004-05:00

Recap

2010-07-07T11:01:00.004-05:00

Sorry about the repetition. I have posted almost all of these quilts before, but I am updating by SAQA Visioning page and wanted to put them all together for easy viewing...

Goofy!

2010-06-19T16:33:00.002-05:00

Charlie is free!

2010-06-15T14:57:00.003-05:00

The stitches came out today, and Charlie has returned to the back yard. He had a great time exploring, and then disappeared into the newly rebuilt turtle house.

More Flowers!

2010-06-15T14:44:00.004-05:00

Brian sent me flowers last Friday! He waited to send them until the week after my surgery:

Lots of flowers blooming outside, in spite of the heat and dry weather. The first two are species lilies:

A new echinacea, I believe it is the one called "midnight:"

Our first vegetable harvest. Actually, there were six jalapenos. We made salsa with the other five. We found the fossil in the backyard last summer when digging a new bed:

More daylilies. The early varieties are finished, and now the midseason ones are blooming:

I took by Motif quilt apart once again, and reassembled several sections. I'm much happier with it now:

Flowers!

2010-06-09T17:23:00.005-05:00

One of the only good things about being sick and having surgery is that people send you flowers. Lots of flowers. These gorgeous flowers are from my brother in law, Bruce:

These are from the folks at Brian's office:

And these are from my bridge partner, Ann:

Motif quilt top finished...

2010-06-09T17:07:00.005-05:00

I've been working, a little each day, on the motif quilt that I started during my class at the Crow Timber Frame Barn. I'm still getting tired very quickly, so it's taken all week, but I think I've finally finished the top. Sorry about the horrid picture -- it is slightly longer than my design wall and I didn't get it pinned up too well -- it looks very wavy and I'm pretty sure it's flat.

New work

2010-05-23T16:01:00.002-05:00

I had this on the design wall before I left for Ohio.

Not sure whether I'll add a border yet or not -- any suggestions?

North Texas in May!

2010-05-23T15:49:00.003-05:00

May is beautiful here in North Texas! Our garden is starting to bloom, and the turtles are enjoying the sunshine. This is Miss "M", having a tasty snack:

The daylilies are starting to bloom. This one is a spider form, called "web browser."

Our species lilies have also started to bloom:

And my favorite flowers of all, poppies, are beautiful:

The balloon flowers and scabiosa add a cool splash of blue to the flower beds:

Nancy Crow "Sets and Variables" class

2010-05-15T15:29:00.007-05:00

I just got home from Ohio, after a wonderful week at the Barn. I was taking "Sets and Variables" from Nancy Crow. It was an intensive design class, and as a result, I'm exhausted!

The first project was very small. It will be 7-1/2" x 15" when the two sections are joined. Or larger if I decide to make more sections.

This is the final piece, designed during the third exercise. Not entirely successful, but I wanted to play with yellow-green and grays/neutrals.

I have never used much gray in my quilts. I found to my surprise that I liked the way it made the other colors sparkle.

I think my best piece was this, pieced during the second exercise.

Nancy suggested I lengthen it by 10", so I will be working on that after I recover from my upcoming surgery.

It was a wonderful week, and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. It was tough but very stimulating, and I've come home with my head whirling. Now it's time to get to work!

Visit to Columbus -- before the barn

2010-05-15T15:21:00.004-05:00

Before the barn, I spent a wonderful weekend with my brother, Andrew and his wife, Jennifer in Columbus. It was good to be there! It was cool and rainy, but my brother's home is always a warm place.

Off to Ohio!

2010-05-09T07:54:00.002-05:00

Back at the Crow Timber Frame Barn for a class with Nancy Crow. We set up this afternoon and then meet for a welcome dinner. I'll let y'all know how it goes....

studioQ meeting and Charlie update

2010-04-27T13:55:00.005-05:00

I'm glad to report that Charlie is on the road to recovery. It's been two weeks since his injury, and I've finally been able to persuade him to eat. And he's a great deal more active. Thank goodness!

The photo has a reddish cast because of his heatlamp. We must keep little Charlie toasty!

Monday was our monthly studioQ meeting. We met in my sun room:

Beth showed several small pieces she made using fabric we marbled during one of our meetings. Pretty cool!

Life is good!

2010-04-18T16:02:00.006-05:00

It's Sunday afternoon, and I'm watching the Astros-Cubs game. My 'Stros are winning, and that's just one of the the things I'm thankful for today.

1. Charlie is doing well. Not too happy about being confined to the downstairs bathroom, but he's recovering nicely.

2. Red tulips in the living room. I love red tulips.

3. Flowers in the backyard. I took this shot of the garden around the back patio before the rain started. Everything is green and lush!

4. Rain. It has rained steadily since Friday night. We've gotten several inches (but the rain gauge is clogged with pollen and not registering. I'm basing my estimate on the official DFW airport report).

5. Sticks 12. The pieces of this quilt have been on my design wall for a month, maybe longer. I finally got it pieced together this afternoon. I'm ready to move on to something else!

Turtle disaster!

2010-04-15T14:26:00.003-05:00

I hate to report that something attacked the turtles Monday night. The creature, whatever it was, was strong enough to move some large rocks (which I can barely lift!) and to dig down into Charlie's turtle house. Poor Charlie is ok, sort of. He lost his right front leg, but the vet says he will be fine. But he will now be handicapped, poor guy!

Charlie himself doesn't seem too concerned about his missing limb. He seems to get around just fine, and he resents the fact that he has to be confined to a box for at least a week until his stitches come out.

I called a pest control company, and we've placed live traps all over the back yard. And re-secured the larger turtle house, where Emma and Tug spend their nights.

The pest control tech thinks it was probably a raccoon. Hopefully we'll catch the perpetrator and relocate him to another part of the county.

Shibori -- specifically itajime shibori

2010-04-12T13:45:00.007-05:00

I spent a day last week doing itajime shibori techniques on underpainted cotton. The underpainted fabric was not soda soaked, but was painted with procion mx fiber reactive dyes and allowed to dry. I love using underpainted (but not chemically fixed) fabric as my base for shibori! Because the fabric hasn't chemically bonded with the first set of dyes, the colors blend and merge and meld, and you can end up with some really interesting fabric.

Itajime shibori is the technique of folding, pleating and clamping the fabric to create a resist. If the clamps are tight enough, the dye cannot penetrate beneath the clamped shapes, giving you a repeat pattern that can be very, for lack of a better word, cool.

I have a growing collection of shapes and clamps. Last week I concentrated mainly on circles and squares/rectangles. The first piece was pleated and folded in a triangle pattern and clamped with a 2" diameter circle. It had initially been painted red and yellow, and overdyed in Pro Chem's "nickel" dye:

I clamped a number of circles of various sizes. These pieces were fan folded in squares. They had all been underpainted, some with yellow, some with blue and fuchsia. Some were overdyed in blue violet, some in lime green, some in nickel, some in red violet:

This piece was blue and fuchsia, overdyed in red violet. It was fan folded in squares and clamped with a 3" square shape:

This piece was yellow and orange, overdyed in turquoise. It had been fan folded and clamped with popsicle sticks:

I fan folded this piece into a rectangle and placed alligator slips along the two long edges. It was white (one of the few that was not underpainted) and dyed in red violet:

This piece was fan folded and clipped with large alligator clips. It was quite a bright yellow before overdying. The final dye bath was blue violet:

I also wrapped quite a few pieced on poles for arashi shibori. Some silk and some cotton, all underpainted. I'll post pictures when I've had time to overdye them!

April!

2010-04-11T17:22:00.003-05:00

We're having a beautiful spring in North Texas. The flowers have been beautiful. This is our Lady Banks rose:

And Tug is looking coy in his next of oxalis:

The roses are loaded with buds, the iris are blooming, the clematis and the columbine are starting -- what a lovely time of year!

Turtle time!

2010-04-01T13:53:00.009-05:00

First turtle sighting of 2010! It's Charlie, newly awakened from his annual hibernation!

If you look closely, you can see he has food all over his chin. He was very hungry, and very glad to see me.

I had a great day yesterday. Not only did I see Charlie (I was worried about the turtles -- it's been a very cold and wet winter) but I also spent the day batiking fabric. I got out the wax pot and tried out my new tjaps (pronounced "chops"). My favorite is of course the turtle. Looks like Charlie, doesn't it? The original fabric was pale yellow, overdyed in fuchsia.

I also found a tree border tjap. I printed it in more or less straight lines on pale gray fabric and overdyed it in fuchsia.

I also have a new fish tjap. You may have to squint to see the fish. His tail is to the right, nose facing left. This fabric was mottled yellow, green and white, overdyed in turquoise.

Not enough contrast, I think. I'll have to try this one again.

It was beautiful out (almost too warm, but with a nice breeze) and I spent most of the afternoon outside dye painting 18 half yard pieces of PFD cotton. I'll be using them next week for shibori dyeing.

This week's bouquet of tulips. I really love orange tulips:

This morning (Thursday) I saw Tug poking his little green head out of the turtle house. So my back yard is coming alive in every way!

New Work (and a few better pictures)

2010-04-01T09:48:00.004-05:00

I finally got around to taking better photos of my newer quilts. Some are quilted, some are not. The first 3 are quilted.

First, Sticks 3. The only other photo I had of this quilt was draped across a bed:

A detail of the quilting. This one is finished except for the label:

Sticks 8:
A closeup of the quilting:

I pieced Sticks 8 for my living room. I dyed the oranges to coordinate with the orange wall.

Sticks 7:
A detail:

Now a few that aren't quilted. Sticks 9:

Sticks 6:

Sticks 5:

Sticks 4:

The final three will be quilted when I get caught up with client quilting again. Hopefully that won't take too long!

studioQ

2010-04-01T09:38:00.002-05:00

studioQ met last Monday at Jay's house. As always, it was a wonderfully inspiring meeting.

We've been using a word or phrase to create a small work or a block to a larger quilt each month. I know I've mentioned it before -- for me, each phrase has inspired a discrete piece. Susan, however, has been adding each month to her quilt:

Assignments have included personal symbols, the color or shape of fear, part of a chicken (you can see the chicken parts scattered across Susan's quilt!), mysterious, magic, whimsy, earth.....It's been a great exercise.

Nancy showed her latest, an improvisationally pieced quilt with an appliqued flower:

studioQ is a great group. We not only inspire one another, we also push each other to try new things.

Goodbye, Jean!

2010-04-01T09:35:00.002-05:00

Sad news: Jean is moving to Virginia Beach. It all happened so fast -- she put her house on the market and it was sold within a couple of weeks. She leaves next Monday.

Here's a shot from Jean's going away party last weekend. Me, Jean and Rhonda:

Goodbye, Jean! I'll miss you!

I had an adventure!

2010-03-30T16:58:00.009-05:00

I've just returned from New Braunfels, Texas, after a wonderful class at Quilting Adventures, at the TbarM resort. I had a great time! If you haven't heard of it, check out Quilting Adventures. Barbara and Alice offer several weeks of classes each spring, with fabulous teachers and delicious food in a beautiful location -- the hill country of Texas. There is not a better place to be in the spring! And they offer more than just fiber art courses -- they also offer courses that will interest traditional quilters. It's a great program!

I was there to take a course with Carol Taylor. Carol is a very talented woman. Her quilts are amazing! She utilizes color, texture and shape beautifully. She led us through 20 improvisational piecing/applique exercises, along with a little bit of machine quilting. And we spent the last two days working on a composition.

Carol is not only talented, she also has a lovely smile and an infectious laugh:

Evidence of spring was everywhere! This palm outside our classroom will soon be very spiky, but the new fronds were soft and fuzzy:

But slightly menacing, too, don't you think?

My design wall was way too small for the units I pieced using Carol's techniques. Here it is in the midst of the piecing exercises:

Wendy and I were both able to complete two small quilt tops. Wendy's palette was very cool and tranquil. And amazingly enough, she dressed to match it:

Not really amazing, if you know Wendy. She loves blue.

Mine was pretty hot! Also not surprising. I used a piece I had dyed several years ago as my focus fabric. It had an olive background with large splashes of lime, red-violet and orange. Right in my comfort zone! I threw in some yellow and some black and white prints for fun.

This is the second top I pieced. I was playing with lines again....I do love lines...

The first top I pieced was very circular. I love Carol's method for piecing circles, both large and small! So easy, so wonky, so very very cool!

I will definitely be integrating some of the improvisational methods Carol taught us into my work! Now, if I only had time to sew....

Spring!

2010-03-30T16:50:00.005-05:00

After a cold, wet winter, it seems to finally be spring. Hooray!

Time to put the tropical plants back outside. And to buy a few fresh plants to replace the ones that died this winter. Brian has been trying to persuade me to buy a plant stand for the front entry for ages, and I finally found one I like. Looks pretty smart, I think:

The narcissus are blooming! Brian has been planting Southern heirloom bulbs, and they are multiplying nicely:

Ah, Spring! I love it!

Client quilts

2010-03-30T16:36:00.006-05:00

I can't believe it's been 6 weeks since I've posted. I've been busy, of course, but that's no excuse. So it's time to catch up.

First, a quilt by Syd. A detail of the front:

The entire quilt (more of less):

A detail of the back:

I quilted 3 quilts for Billye. First, a sunbonnet sue for her niece:

An "I spy" for her grandchildren:

A Twisted Sister:

I also quilted 3 for Cindy. First, a batik panel that she asked me to outline and enhance:

I had a lot of fun with this one! This is a shot of the back:

A Christmas quilt:

And finally, a lovely spring quilt:

Valentine's Day

2010-02-16T09:20:00.002-06:00

As always, a wonderful day in our house!

Aftermath

2010-02-16T09:10:00.007-06:00

We spent the weekend cutting down broken branches and stacking them on the curb. A neighbor helped Brian cut the trunk of the fallen oak into logs.

The neighborhood is full of broken trees, and many are much worse than ours. At least our live oak trunk fell onto the lawn. Many others fell over on electrical wires, cars and even houses. And it didn't totally uproot. Two of the three trunks are still erect. The poor tree is not quite as majestic as it used to be. It looks a bit odd, and has a large wound (on the right side of the tree, out of sight in this photo), but I think it will probably be all right. We were lucky.

Beautiful, but deadly

2010-02-12T11:04:00.005-06:00

Well, it has finally stopped snowing. We got 8" of wet, gloppy, heavy snow. This was my view out the back door at 6 am:

Brian came home from work early yesterday (the roads were becoming increasingly icy), and we made a snowman. We hadn't made a snowman for many many years:

Jaunty fellow, isn't he?

But the storm was very destructive. All of our live oak trees (we have three large trees and one medium size tree) have pretty major damage. The largest, which is in the middle of the front yard, is the worst. One of the trunks (there were two big trunks) split and fell:

Hard to tell from the picture, but that piece on the ground is HUGE.

The other three live oaks have broken branches. Nothing quite as big as the one pictured above, but still very sad.

Our magnolia has one broken limb. It doesn't look too bad.

I enjoyed the snow, but I'm really not enjoying the aftermath. Rats!

Snow!

2010-02-11T11:23:00.005-06:00

Woke up this morning to this view out my back door:

I love the snow in the blue light of early morning. What a beautiful sight!

It is still snowing heavily (at 11:30 am) and it is supposed to continue until late tonight. I just heard on the radio that this has the potential to be the heaviest single snowfall in Dallas/Fort Worth. I'm so glad I am home and warm and cozy!

Earlier this morning, a moving truck got stuck on the hill in front of our house. It's not a very big hill, the grade is probably 2 or 3%, but they were having a a rough time of it. Two very cold looking men with shovels were trying to clear the roadway:

The finally got up, but my poor live oak tree took a terrible battering. They ripped off several low hanging branches (one about 3" in diameter) and actually bumped the trunk during one of their backslides. I'm hoping the tree will be ok.

What a horrible day to have the movers come!

I'm enjoying the snowy day (except for the tree part), dyeing fabric and gazing out the window. After my next stirring of the dye pots, I need to venture out into the cold and fill up the bird feeder. It's a busy place today!

But first, I think I'll make another cup of tea...

A Valentine (quilted for a client)

2010-02-11T11:21:00.002-06:00

Karen's quilt, very appropriately a Valentine's gift for her husband:

A peek at the back:

Newest work and studioQ meeting

2010-02-11T11:14:00.003-06:00

I managed to finish another quilt top. Sticks 9:

And studioQ met at Jay's house. I love this group!

We are working on a monthly challenge -- using a word or phrase to inspire a piece of fiber art. I have been making a series of small quilts, but some people, like Nancy, are making a larger piece, adding the newest challenge block every month. I have enjoyed making my small pieces, but I love the way that Nancy's quilt is evolving:

More from the TVQG Retreat

2010-01-27T22:56:00.002-06:00

I worked on Sticks 6 today:

Retreat has been great! Today we got together and showed off our work:

Work in Progress

2010-01-26T22:53:00.003-06:00

What I've been working on at retreat:

Scenes from the TVQG retreat....

2010-01-26T22:46:00.002-06:00

Wish y'all were here!

It's not all fun and games. Some of us are actually working...

Snow and cold - brrrr!

2010-01-14T11:24:00.005-06:00

We've had some unusually cold and snowy weather here in North Texas lately. In the four years we've lived here, it has snowed three or four times, and it has never snowed enough to blanket the grass. But over the holidays it snowed twice in one week. The first was on Christmas eve. I took these pictures on Christmas morning:

The snow had melted by December 26, except for a few patches here and there, and then it snowed again. Amazing! Not as much snow, but it fell in lovely big fluffy flakes.

I love snow!

It warmed up for a few days, enough for Pop to board the train back to New Jersey, and then we had some of the coldest weather we've seen since we moved to Texas 28 years ago. Three consecutive days where the temperature didn't get over 25 degrees Fahrenheit! Our poor backyard fountain was encrusted in so much ice that the basin kept emptying (it was all frozen on the sides and base). I spent three days pouring hot water into the basin every couple of hours, trying to keep it from freezing completely solid and cracking the main part of the fountain, which is ceramic.

It has warmed up again, and now it may actually rain. Winter is an adventure in North Texas: you never know whether it will be balmy or freezing!

Wonderful Christmas!

2010-01-14T11:12:00.005-06:00

We had a lovely Christmas! My father-in-law (from New Jersey) and my brother-in-law (from Maryland) joined us for the holidays. Pop was actually able to spend New Year's with us as well. It was the first time that we had spent Christmas with Brian's side of the family in nearly 10 years!

Our tree wasn't as big as Janet's and Erik's (see previous post) but it was the largest one we had ever put up. And Santa was very good to us, as you can see:

Pop:
Brian received an antique Missouri-Pacific china dinner plate from Pop. It looks great in our dining room, especially next to my lime green tinsel tree:

Bruce:
Brian:
And as usual, Boomer enjoyed the whole experience. He loved the crunched up wrapping paper, the tree (although he is very well behaved. He doesn't climb it or play with the ornaments, he just loves to sit under it) and of course his presents. He gets lots of presents!

Christmas -- actually, several days before Christmas...

2009-12-30T15:00:00.004-06:00

A few early Christmas shots. Boomer, the Christmas kitty:

Our front door:

The arrival of our first guest, Brian's brother Bruce:

We have had a wonderful holiday so far.

Client quilts

2009-12-30T14:53:00.004-06:00

I had a crazy Christmas quilting rush this year. I was so busy I didn't even photograph them all. But I did manage to get pictures of a few. The first is Teri's civil war basket quilt:

And the back:

Caroline's beautiful batik quilt:

A closeup:

Syd's African animal quilt:

Billye's 30's scotties quilt:

And finally, Karen's Christmas Carpenter Star:

I finished the last quilt the day before our family arrived for Christmas, leaving me just (almost) enough time to clean and grocery shop. Crazy!

Baby, it's cold outside!

2009-12-04T07:32:00.003-06:00

And inside, too.

Here in North Texas we're in the middle of our first cold snap. Our first freeze is expected either this morning or in the early hours of Saturday morning. We may even get a little snow. All very seasonal -- great for putting me in the Christmas spirit. I enjoy cold weather, and love nothing better than curling up in my nice warm house with a book and a cup of tea when the outside temperature plummets.

But one problem -- our ancient furnace has ceased to function. We have a monstrous unit -- a combination heater and air conditioner -- that serves the ground story of our house. When I turned it on last week it worked, but sounded rather funny. The repairman came out yesterday and gave me the bad news -- not only was it not functioning properly, but it was a hazard to run. Leaking carbon monoxide like a sieve. Sorry, ma'am, you cannot use the furnace in it's current state. And just to make sure we couldn't use it, he took it apart.

By the time he had declared the furnace dead, the inside temperature was down to 62 degrees. This morning it is 54 in the living room, and just slightly warmer in the kitchen (57).

Luckily, the house has a second furnace that heats the two upstairs rooms. My studio and the guest bedroom. Brian and I camped out in the studio last night, eating dinner while sitting on my small love seat. And if it gets too cold tonight, we can sleep in the guest room (we opted for the chilly master bedroom last night, adding a feather duvet to our bed for warmth).

The new furnace will be installed next Wednesday. Until then, brrrr!

The tale of the 18 foot Christmas Tree

2009-12-02T14:55:00.004-06:00

While in Denver, we helped our friends cut down a Christmas Tree in the nearby National Forest. What an adventure! They had obtained a permit and scouted the perfect tree, so Friday morning we trekked into the woods to chop it down and bring it home.

Here it is! And only one mile downhill on a very snowy trail:

Getting ready to cut it down. I think it is bigger than that little blue tarp:

Cutting it down was the easy part. Now how do we get it back up the trail?

After much tugging, pulling and hoisting, the tree is on it's way:

OK, it's by the car. How do we get it home? It's bigger than the car! And we're all exhausted from the climb out:

Erik had better drive home slowly...

On the way out of the forest we met Smokey the Bear. Elena was excited:

We had to cut off 1 1/2 foot of trunk to make the tree fit in the living room. Final height was therefore 16 1/2 feet. It was 10 feet across at the base, and getting it in the front door was an amazing feat of pushing and pulling. That's Erik in the picture for scale:

Janet has promised to send a picture of the tree fully decorated, as well as an account of the number of strings of lights needed. Can't wait to see it!

Our own tree is going to look pretty small this year. Our ceilings are only 10 foot....

Random pictures from Colorado

2009-12-02T14:41:00.007-06:00

Brian and I celebrated Thanksgiving with our closest friends up in Evergreen, Colorado. It was a week filled with fun, food and friendship. As well as quite a bit of snow. A few shots from our trip:

Carolyn:
Elena:
Dressed up for Thanksgiving dinner:

Playing "Pin the Hat on the Turkey":

Trooper:

Brian:

Erik and Carolyn:

Hiking near Evergreen:

Janet at Red Rocks:

A view of Denver from Red Rocks:

Surprise!

2009-11-19T14:58:00.003-06:00

Brian was in Midland, TX, this week for an oil and gas symposium. We lived in Midland 15 years ago, so going back is always fun. It's great to revisit old places and meet up with old friends. Brian was disappointed to find that one of our oldest and dearest friends, Carol, was out of town this week. But as he was waiting for his flight this morning, he ran into her getting off a plane from Milwaukee. What a happy coincidence!

It's Friday!

2009-11-13T15:17:00.006-06:00

What a busy week! I'm glad it's Friday...

Our house is just a couple of blocks from the campus of TCU. And the TCU football team is ranked #4 in the nation and is playing a very important football game this weekend. Many of our neighbors and friends are TCU grads or employees, and Brian and I have become fans by association. Go Horned Frogs! But we will always be first and foremost Wittenberg University fans. We met there as students in the late 1970s, and married after my graduation in 1979.

Wittenberg has a great team this year as well. They are 9-0 overall and 6-0 in the NCAC. They are guaranteed at least a share of the conference title and a berth in the NCAA Division III playoffs. If they win their final game tomorrow, at home against the College of Wooster, they will win the NCAC outright. Go Tigers! Beat Wooster!

The weather has been beautiful this week. Sunny and in the mid-70s during the day, 50s at night. The roses and fall flowers are looking really lovely:

Today Brian and I met for lunch at St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church. They are holding their annual Greek Fest. We had a great Greek lunch, and of course a little baklava. And listened to some live Greek music.

I had escaped for lunch in the middle of quilting this quilt for Linda. A really nice cowboy and pinwheel quilt. I finished it a few minutes ago:

I need to load another client quilt this afternoon, and then it's the weekend!

Another gradation

2009-11-11T10:07:00.003-06:00

More dyeing on Tuesday. 7 yards, including a 5 step warm brown gradation (above). I also dyed 2 yards with the "leftover" dye stock, just dumping it willy-nilly into another bucket. The "surprise!" fabric turned out a lovely khaki brown. Dumping unmeasured dye stock made me feel vaguely guilty, but in an odd way it was very freeing. For most of my dyeing I measure very carefully to a tenth of a gram or a milliliter.

I think I have this gradation thing down, although I still need to adjust the steps. The 2 steps on the left, .05 and .25 owg*, are too close together. The other steps, from left, are 3, 6 and 12 owg. I think I will eliminate .05 and add 1.5 owg for the next batch. Perhaps I will get a better gradation.

*owg means "of the weight of goods" and is a measure of the depth of shade.

This week's output (so far)

2009-11-10T09:40:00.004-06:00

Busy week so far. Monday, I dyed a seven step gradation. It took all day, but I think I worked the kinks out so it should go faster when I dye another gradation today:

Over the weekend, I pieced together my shibori project from the Jan Myers-Newbury class:

I need to dye another pole or two to finish the left and right border. I'll post another picture when it's completely finished.

More pictures from the Crow Barn

2009-11-10T09:26:00.007-06:00

A few more pictures from my Shibori class at the Crow Barn. The last morning, Wendy and I headed out to the barn before sunrise. The overcast sky provided us with brilliant color:

After several days of dyeing, I tried to decide which shibori patterns and color palette I wanted to work with:

Wendy did a clamp shibori project. Pretty cool. Here Jan is offering her expert touch:

Lisa was my table mate. She did some innovative pole wraps, and her project is stunning:

Gunilla, from Sweden, created a really wonderful triptych:

Carol did a combination of pole wrapping and clamping:

It was a fabulous week and I can't wait to explore shibori here at home!

Brian's day off

2009-11-08T11:25:00.005-06:00

Brian took Thursday and Friday off, so we took advantage of the wonderful weather and visited the Fort Worth Botanic Garden. It was a perfect day, and the autumn colors were brilliant against the bright blue sky:

The Japanese Garden at FWBG is one of my favorite places. The garden is a beautiful and contemplative place. It has so much to offer -- water features:

The brilliant colors of Japanese maples:

Beautiful architecture and paving:

I loved the rather random pattern of the cobblestones. Not sure why...

Ravenous (and astoundingly large) koi:

Arching bridges (Brian only adds to the natural beauty):

And plentiful turtles:

After our walk around the garden, we had a delicious Thai lunch. What a lovely day!