November 18th

I was thrilled to see comments on my unknown blog site. Thank you all for that. And thank you Keith - my nephew - for sharing. I am glad I brought just a bit of insight to you.

Today was my mother's 77th birthday. It's hard to know what to do for my mother. She has or buys everything she needs/wants. But I was able to get her a Polartec Fleece that will help block the wind when she is out. We planned a nice mid-day dinner for her with some of the family, but she decided she wanted spaghetti (she makes the best in the world - the kind that cooks all day and includes hot Italian sausage, pepperoni, and meatballs!), so she made the sauce and she insisted on making the cake, as she always does. And as always, ithe spaghetti was out of this world. My daughter, Keri, and granddaughter, Sarah (2 1/2) came for the weekend. And one of my bonus-son's, Peter (and his gf Jill) came for mom's bd lunch. It was a great meal with great family and a fun time

I look back on photos of my mom and see Keri in her. Most people say she looks just like me, until they see the photos of my mother as a young girl. At that age, Keri and my mother could have been clones.

How funny is it that Keri looks like my mother and Sarah looks so much like me? Probably the worst part for Keri is that Sarah acts just like me, too. Or not. I like to think she has the artistic temperament and will one day be a great individualist. But that could also just be those "terrible two's", which Grammy just loves!

So, if you are still with me, I am gearing up for the 2008 exhibit season. I have lots of ideas, so let's see if they pan out. In the meantime, not sure whether I'll be back before Thanksgiving. If not - be sure to be thankful for what you have. I am - and I give thanks every day.

November 14, 2007

I have to say how nervous I was last night. I joined a traditional quilt guild back in August (the BBQ City Quilters - as we ARE the BBQ capital of the world here in Lexington, NC!) Actually, it's the only quilt guild in Lexington, but that's all right. The women are wonderful and some enjoy taking new workshops and learning new techniques. After show and tell last month they asked if I would present a program on threadpainting in November, which I did last night. I am definitely an introvert, though I love people for short bursts of time, and I was in knots. I don't teach and I am not great at public speaking.

I was terrified that my 20 minute program would be over in 3 1/2 minutes, but it wasn't. I managed to get through without stuttering too much or tripping on something invisible. My presentation was a basic overall view of the different techniques and materials used in threadpainting to get the various results you want to achieve. Most of the guild members said they enjoyed it and asked me to give a workshop after the new year. So now I have to do a workshop? At least I have a couple of months and there won't be as many people. I think I can handle the individual attention better than standing in front of the crowd. So - we'll see how this workshop develops.

After an email from Pamela Allen that I must have a cute granddaughter to spoil, I suppose I should post her photo. You know how Grandma's hate to show photos of their grandchildren! Sarah is a dynamic and brilliant child, of course. Her mom says she is my clone and I feel a bit sorry for her, but am also thrilled! And I get to see her this weekend. That's the most fun. Since she's only 2 1/2 she isn't quite ready for creating much more than chalk drawings and finger paints, but we love to do that and before I know it she'll be a full-fledged Camp Grandma addict. So here is The Butterflly Girl at my nephew's wedding last summer. Butterflies on her dress and on her sandals. She looks so sweet - but what's behind that tree?

November 12, 2007

I have had these fall-colored silk flowers cluttering up my studio with a vague idea of what I wanted to do with them. But the vision refused to form, lingering in the back of my mind shrouded in mist. Today I decided they would show me what to do with them if I would just bite the bullet and play with them. So I did. First I had to find a background fabric and that was really difficult. I don't have a huge stash (dh would say otherwise, but what does he know?), so it was really hard to find just the right fabric. I found the perfect piece, but there wasn't enough of it. (Being a mostly landscape quilter, I tend to buy lots of quarter yard pieces). I ended up piecing together squares of two similar fabrics. I really needn't have obsessed about it so much, because in the end, most of it doesn't show. But one doesn't know that going in, so you obsess.

I put the borders on right away because I wanted the leaves to spill over them. Dh believes that almost everything I do looks best with a narrow black border and then a second, wider border to complement it. I rarely add the narrow black one, mostly because I don't think of it. This time I did and I like the effect.

I scattered the leaves (oak and maple) around the background and it was fairly easy to get an arrangement that I liked. then I realized I had no idea how to tack them down. And then I realized I hadn't put any stabilizer on the back of the background fabric. I had to take all the leaves off and put a stabilizer on the back. Then I replaced the leaves. Back to "how am I going to stitch these down? They are all twisted and turned and overlapped." Aha! Tulle! I will cover the entire piece with purple tulle (yes, purple). I pinned the tulle over it and it was very cool. I used invisible thread to stitch it all down. It went much faster than I expected it to. And in the end, it's not so bad! A little bit wonky, but not bad for a first try. Of course, hating to bind as much as I do, I did the pillowcase and turn method. I really really hate bindings.

So - here it is for anyone out there that might be interested in how I spent my day today. I've titled it "Autumn Carpet".

November 10, 2007

Tomorrow is Veteran's Day and it made me remember my dad. He was in the Navy in WWII and earned 4 bronze stars. His ship was bombed 6 times. He suffered a nervious breakdown and had to go to Sun Valley Idaho for R&R before he went home. He suffered for years with depression and ultimately Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome was diagnosed after the onset of Alzheimer's Disease. As horrible a thief Alzheimer's is of one's soul, it seemed to finally give my dad some peace from the depression and nightmares. When I look at his Navy photo I see a youthful and hopeful young man. When I look at the picture of him with my daugher at her wedding, he seems to be somewhere else. Perhaps that's not as bad as it seems, for him, at least. This is the youthful photo when he still had dreams.

Here is a photo of him when he returned from the war with his mom, his aunt, his brother, and his father. Still looks happy, but not quite as hopeful.

And here is the photo of my dad at my daughter's wedding. Somewhat lost, but who knows where he might have been? He knew at some times who we were and had a lovely time. I remember he ate so much that the food got stuck in his dentures and he didn't know how to get it out so he spit his upper plate in the trash can. Fortunately, my sister-in-law, Abbie, saw it and fished them out. She was so kind to take them to the restroom and wash them out. Abbie is a nurse who works for a dental surgeon, so I guess she wasn't too grossed out. I don't know if she realizes how much that meant to me.

Dad's gone now. He died in 2003 in the beautiful VA hospital in Salisbury, NC. It is a beautiful place with a wonderful atrium. The staff is thoughtful and kind and considerate and treated him with love and kindness. We couldn't have asked for better care after my mom was no longer able to take care of him alone. I enjoyed visiting him there and taking him to the atrium. He always remembered that we were people he loved, though wasn't always certain exactly who - sometimes calling my mom sis and just hugging me. He often revealed his sense of humor in little ways like noticing that I had new shoes and he would pretend to try them and laugh. I took my mom to visit him every week. The VA hospital is about 20 miles away. We went every Wednesday or Saturday. It wasn't always convenient and I sometimes felt guilty thinking there were other things I needed to be doing. But I was always glad I went - that mom had a chance to see him and that I did, too. When we no longer had a reason to go, I missed those moments. We tried to go at lunch time when we knew he would be awake and mom would help feed him. Then we would usually go for a walk in the atrium. It really was beautiful with small waterfalls and large green plans and a little stream with short bridges that crossed it. I wish I had thought to take photos of it.

So tomorrow, on Veteran's Day, I will remember my dad and what a service he did for his country. And what that means to me now.

November 8, 2007

I had to bite the bullet and post my Journal Art Quilt. These are for the final challenge of Karey Bresenham's Journal Art Quilt Project - 2007. The original JQ's had to be 8" x 11", but these were to be 17" x 22" and include at least 3 techniques from the Creative Quilting book featuring previous Journal Art Quilts. I knew what techniques I wanted to use, but it took a long time to decide on how to use them. I finally decided that I like making fabric postcards so much that I would make a sort of "travel poster" of NC's beaches and make each scene a little postcard. I really enjoyed making the small pieces - each one a miniature scene of its own. I purchased some pfd fabric from Hollis Chatelaine and used fabric dyes to paint the background in a very simple sunset with sand bottom. The fabric is like butter and takes the dye beautifully.

I decided that "painting" would be the "thread" of my scenes, both using fabric dyes and thread to paint the pictures. The backgrounds are mostly painted and much of the rest of the scenes is free motion thread painted.

The pelican and the seagulls were photos printed on printer fabric paper which was then fused to 10 oz. cotton duck. Each bird is entirely made of thread. They were trimmed from the duck and stitched on their backgrounds.

The rest of the scenes incorporate thread painting directly onto the little postcard, free motion style. The grasses, horse's mane & tail, etc. are all done this way.

I also used Angelina fiber for the light in the lighthouse and for the sun in the round photo transfer of the sea grass at sunset.