I have a lot of talented colleagues who also attended the quilt retreat. I realized, after I got home, that the pictures I thought I took only were taken in my head. Sigh.
Dolores 2010 #1
Dolores, for whom I made the pencil roll, is really making progress in her work. She takes classes deliberately from well respected quiltmakers and works through the techniques and makes it her own. For the past several years, she has worked in neutrals. This year she decided that she was going to add color back into the equation. This piece is from a photograph (right) and some techniques she learned in a class with Caryl Bryer Fallert. Dolores reworked the photo on her computer and then blew up the pattern, transferred it to freezer paper and used Fallert’s method of piecing to create the top.
Sonja, a new CQFAer was working with FabMo fabrics and just playing. She did a fabulous wave piece that I was really sorry not to have taken a picture of.
Sue and I are kindred spirits in that we both like to make quick projects in between our larger quilt projects. She worked on totes, scarves AND basted two quilts!
FabMo also has wallpaper -high end wallpaper – and Jan has been experimenting with folded boxes and bags using pieces of the free wallpaper. They are fabulous. She is also working on a piece based on the view of Nebraska from a plane. She worked on embellishing the circles she was making. Jan was sitting next to me and we talked about color, because she is finding her piece too dull. We discussed colors that would fit with her nature theme.
Julie's Hearts
Julie bought a pack of Moda turnovers and is making a fun and sweet Valentine’s Day quilt. She is trying to limit her need to cut and this was a great way to do it.
Julie's Hearts #1
Here is Julie’s quilt before she started on the appliquéd hearts.
Julie's Heart Art
Above shows her machine applique’ pieces waiting for their turn under the needle as well as the tools that are required for excellent quilting (glasses, rulers and coffee!). 😉
Illuminated Manuscript Heart
I thought that the above block looked like one of the illustrations in an illuminated manuscript.
Good Color Combo Heart
This is a nice color combination. I am not sure the computer intermediation shows the subtlety, but it s great.
Skull Heart
We talked a lot about this block, because of the skull. It is the block that shows that relationships can be icky and rocky sometimes. Fun fabric, though.
Maureen tried the pencil roll pattern and came up with a nice piece using some of her hand dyes and some FabMo fabric.
Terri worked on getting some tops put together. One was an exchange top that included some really nice batiks.
Debbie was trying to finish her daughter’s college quilt. She was using some very jewel-y turquoise, purples and other blues. It was very rich looking.
Kathy is a member’s daughter. We haven’t seen any of her work before this weekend. It turns out that she does wonderful handwork. She is working on this Piece O’Cake design, do it mostly by hand. I like the color choices she made. They are a bit muted, but not murky.
Kathy's Piece O'Cake
She didn’t like the scallop border that came with the pattern, so she designed this leaf border on her own.
On Monday, per the game directions, I posted about participating in the One World One Heart blog project. I have never done anything like it and have found it to be interesting. I haven’t had much of a chance to look at the other blogs, sadly, though I have looked at a few.
I am madly approving comments from people that come to visit. Most visitors just leave a quick comment, but the ones who take the time to tell me where they are coming from make it really interesting for me. Visitors have come from such places as:
I think one of Lisa‘s idea’s with One World One Heart was to show off different artists’ work. It worked for me.
I was checking a comment (some of the comments look just like spam – bleah!) on the OWOH post and was taken to Roc’s blog. As you know, I am a wannabe visual journaler and just haven’t quite gotten there yet. Don’t worry, I am not giving up.
I was thrilled to see Roc’s blog, because her visual journaling work is wonderful. I really like the textures and the different imagery she uses.
I think one of my issues with visual journaling is that it looks messy. I know that the actual process is messy and I am not into messy, especially painting and such. However, the pages look messy. There is a lot of stuff on them. I like that look, but it is also keeping me from trying. That sounds like it makes no sense. I guess I need a therapist to work on that weirdness!
Update: 2/15/2010: The contest is closed! Thanks for reading. Check the 2/16/2010 post for the winner! Thanks for playing and come back and read the blog!
Welcome, new readers and well known readers, to Artquiltmaker.com. We are participating in One World One Heart, a fun way to get to know new blogs and win prizes! Lisa created this event in 2007. “The original idea behind this giveaway event was to bring bloggers together from around the world who may never ordinarily meet. It closes the gap of the blog community and enables us to interact, discover new and wonderful people, and in the process possibly win a prize or many prizes along the way”, as she says on her blog.
Artquiltmaker Blog is a way for me to share what I am working on with other creative people. I like the idea of this blog being a magazine type information source, so I try to vary the content to include commentary on works in progress, book reviews, media reviews (such as podcasts), Quilt World News, etc. Sometimes I venture outside of quiltmaking to appreciate other artists, different crafts and and report on different events and exhibits I attend. Every week, I put up a creative prompt as a way to spark inspiration and creativity in the Artquiltmaker.com community. You can find more information about the creative prompt on the AQ CPP Inspiration page. In the future I would like to include tutorials as well. It is on the list!
At this time there is no money making venture associated with Artquiltmaker. I write in this space because I enjoy writing, love quiltmaking and want to share my creative journey. My hope is that Artquiltmaker.com and Artquiltmaker blog will inspire you to be creative and expand your creative horizons.
As part of the One World One Heart Project, I will be giving away at least one prize.
Batik Handbag
This is a batik handbag that I made in August, which I will give away to one lucky winner. Depending on the response, I may also give away other prizes. If possible to add prizes, I will update THIS post with other prizes before the deadline. Your comment must be in the comment section of this post. How to enter and things to know about my giveaway:
Leave a comment in the comment section of THIS post on this blog (e.g. NOT on FB or FriendFeed or a reply on Twitter). I would love it if you would comment on something I wrote about on the blog, but any comment will enter you in the drawing. I review all the comments and any spam comments will be deleted and not count as part of the drawing.
It is not a requirement, but I would love to know where you are from and whether this is your first visit to Artquiltmaker blog.
One comment on THIS post will enter you in the drawing for all the prizes I may post. (As of 1/25, I have one prize posted, but hope to post more.)
The cutoff time for comments is 6pm PST, February 14. The time stamp on my blog’s comment area will be the official timer. That means that if your comment’s time stamp says 5:59pm, you are in.
Please leave your blog address, if you have one, in the comments area.
To choose the winner, I will put names in a bowl and pick one out.
Make sure that the email you provide when you leave the comment is valid as I will email you for the address to which you want your prize shipped. Please DO NOT leave your snail mail address in your comment. Let’s all be safe!
I will announce the winner in the February 15 blog post. Sometime on 2/15 or 2/16, I will email the winners for their snail mail address. I am happy to mail internationally.
You don’t have to be participating in One World, One Heart to win.
I am a OWOH newbie. If I find any issues with the rules, I reserve the right to alter what I have written above.
NOTE: I have to be able to tell that your comment is not spam.
There is a lot to look at here at Artquiltmaker blog. Once you have taken your magic carpet ride, I would love it if you would come back and become part of the Artquiltmaker community.
Have a blast!
1/26/2010 Update: ArtQuiltmaker.com Blog is #472 on Lisa’s list! Thanks to Lisa for coordinating this project. Leave her a message saying thanks, if you have a chance.
I have to admit that this week has been a challenge and I am pretty exhausted. I felt this way on Wednesday and just had to power through the rest of the week. It was tough! Boys are gone and I am supposed to go to a party. I am tempted to blow it off, but I have gotten a lot of emails asking me if I will be there. I also really like the people who are giving it. We’ll see.
I’d like to get some sewing done as my brain is starting to wonder what that is. I feel like it has been an eternity since I have been at the machine.
I went to the Timberlake Quilters Guild Blog, which is called Fiber Whimsy and saw some lovely photos from their string piecing workshop. One of the photos was a Spiderweb! They seem to be popping up all over. I guess this is message to get back to mine. I think it is one of the projects I want to work on in 2010. Stay tuned to see. Love the red background on the one pictured in the photo.
Tagging this Blog
As a librarian, you’d think I would have all the answers about tagging, but I don’t. I have been thinking about whether or not I should add a tag for the name of each project so you (and I!) can click on the name of a project and see all the posts about that project. I am not sure I could back and tag all the old posts unless I was laid up in bed for a period of time, but I could do it going forward. Let me know if you think that would help you. I would also like to k now what you do in your blog, if you have one.
I helped my mom download iTunes and subscribe to some podcasts. We listened to a little of the Cast-on podcast and she loved it. I can’t wait to hear whether the whole premise works for her or not. She has really gotten into Cat Bordhi, a knitter, lately so I downloaded some interviews to which she could listen as well.
Laura Wasilowski class "Flower Garden"
Laura Wasilowski left a comment encouraging me to finish the piece that I started in her class. I took a look at it again and realized that the handstitching makes the piece look really spiky and unfriendly. I think I need to add some petals to the flowers and see if that makes it look more friendly.
You can see a watercolor painting that usually hangs in my dining room. I love this painting. It makes me feel calm. I just generally love beach and water scenes. That thought makes me wonder if that is why I like turquoise so much? After the painting project, the art is not back up yet. We may rearrange the art. However, as I seem to never be home, we haven’t discussed it yet.
Elizabeth of Oh, Fransson! blog has a laptop sleeve tutorial on Sew, Mama Sew! While I am not fond of beige, I do like the swirly motifs on the fabric. This would make a nice gift. Yes, I am thinking ahead! I would probably add a strap or a handle, however. I have to admit that I find it hard to navigate that site, but sometimes the effort pays off and here is a list of a year’s worth of Elizabeth’s projects just for you.
Oregon Fabric
My sister received Lakers v. Trailblazer tickets for Christmas from her boyfriend. Our dad lives near Portland, so I think they went together. While she was there she took the opportunity to raid and scan our childhood photos. In the course of that project she went to a craft warehouse to get supplies. While she was there, she found some fabric that she said was for me. YAY! I haven’t received it yet, but presume I will soon.
She has sent me some scans of my 5 year old self, which are not new, but still entertaining.
I saw a post on Twitter to a Detroit artist who is doing interesting things with blue. Steven Magsig has a blog called Postcards from Detroit where he posts paintings of little areas of the city and buildings in the city
I seem to remember mentioning that I spent an hour and half last Saturday talking to the CQFAers about developing a creative habit. I got lots of good feedback. Here are some tips from my talk:
Use what you have at hand
Use materials you feel comfortable using
Tools (KISS)
paper
pen
Start small
Acknowledge your distractions
Be process oriented not goal oriented. The goal will be achieved if you engage in the process
Develop a daily practice that works for you
Surround yourself with inspiration
I am thinking about something bigger with more detail on this subject, so am just giving you an overview.
I have been thinking of row quilts on and off for a long time. I wrote about a row quilt idea back in April of 2007. I have seen a number of them that I really like. One I remember was from a Sue Nickels machine quilting class I took a number of years ago at an EBHQ workshop. The quilt was called Blue Tulips on Pink Skies and you can see it in her gallery. She is a great teacher, by the way. I would highly recommend one of her classes.
I haven’t actually made one as I have plenty of other UFOs! Still, I cannot help being inspired when I see patterns and motifs that might work.
As I was walking to the Courthouse from the parking lot on Tuesday for jury duty, I noticed that the walkway would make a great pattern for a row quilt, especially if you wanted a simple one.
I took this with my phone so there isn’t much that you can see. The basic idea of the paving was that they had laid three rows of 4patches (right of photo) by the width of the sidewalk. I was late so I didn’t count. Those four patches were interspersed with many, many (perhaps 20?) of rail fence blocks by the width of the sidewalk.
I would have to figure out how to make the proportions look like the sidewalk without making a quilt that was 1/8th of a mile long! Perhaps really small blocks? This particular idea might also be a good idea for a monochromatic quilt. Hhhhm lots of food for thought.
I meant to write about this sooner, but it just didn’t happen. I saw this Flowering Snowball quilt when I went to Back Porch in October.
Back Porch Flowering Snowball
I have to admit that I was shocked, because I thought that nobody was making that pattern except for me and here was a semi-local quilt shop teaching a class. I have to admit that I was disappointed, because I thought I was doing something unique. Call Back Porch if you want to sign up for the class.
When I went to the Kaffe Fassett lecture, we also went to the shop, where we bought a few things.
Back Porch Fabrics
I wanted to restock up on the Lonni Rossi fabrics. The line was long and as we stood in line, I saw this quilt on the wall.
Back Porch Log Cabin
I know TFQ will like it, but I also like the cheerfulness of it. I think the background is dots.
My mom often cleans out some part of her house or storage and tries to give me things. I have a lot of things. Probably too many, so I try and refuse. She got me in a weak moment over the holidays and I ended up with a plastic bag containing something that was a very odd shade of green. She said it was Aunt Grace’s Holiday tablecloth.
I have a holiday tablecloth and during one of the massive cleanups during this holiday season, the plastic-bag-with-green-who-knows-what got shoved in a closet downstairs. As luck would have it, or perhaps some goddess of table linens was smiling on my dead Aunt Grace, The Child spilled chocolate milk on my holiday tablecloth right before a party, so I went in search of the green thing to see what it was and if I could stand looking at it.
Oh Me of little faith!
Holiday Tablecloth
Well, I have to say I do like this tablecloth. My mom said that Aunt Grace had one of the first zigzag sewing machines in the 1950s and made this tablecloth with her own drawings. I have no idea if that is true (when were zigzag machines available to home sewists??) or just family lore. I can relate, however, as I did a wild and complicated machine applique’ project when I first got the 9K because I was so excited about having zigzag capability.
Dancing Santa
We had a big discussion in my house about the meaning of the Happy Dancing Santa and his red face. Too much dancing?
Santa has long and luxurious hand embroidered eyelashes!
The satin stitch on all the pieces is really thick, so we have had discussions about that as well. I can’t tell if she used thick thread or if the fabric bunched up under the zigzag. I guess there could also be some stabilizer in there, but I didn’t see any when I looked at the back.
Candles
One thing I noticed is that there is a lot of movement in these designs. The slanted top of the candles is an example of this. The shape of the candles echoes the shape of the holly, wreath and other motifs.
Reindeer
We all agreed that this reindeer looks very Seussian. I would love it if Aunt Grace had a journal or blog where she talked about her inspiration. Was she reading Dr. Seuss at the time? It gives me renewed resolve in continuing to post about my projects and quiltmaking encounters!
Bells
As you may be able to see (click to enlarge the picture), Aunt Grace has used French knots for the edge (lip??) of the bell. Notice how she used one towards the bottom to highlight the shape. Very subtle, IMO.
Snowman
The very un-PC snowman with his prominent pipe! She used some hand embroidery stitching for the eyes, which she also used on the reindeer. I also like the way the stitching around the sections of the motifs do not match the fabric.
Tablecloth detail
I love the detail in the designs and also the variety of thread used. I also like it that everything is not perfect. I don’t mean that she put in fake mistakes. She just did what she could do. It looks real to me.
On FB, I am a fan of Janome Sewing machines. Periodically they post a project from their sister site sew4home. This update included heart sachets displayed on a tree. The concept reminded me of a thought I had where I would decorate my ficus for each holiday. Not sure what I would do for MLK Jr Day or Veteran’s Day. Tiny flags, perhaps.
So far, I haven’t done anything like it and am still working on the napkins for each holiday.
My Tivo is taping Fons & Porter periodically. I didn’t ask it to do so, but it started doing it on its own and then I started to watch them. It is nice to be immersed in quiltmaking for a few minutes and get a different perspective. Recently, they had a show on a baskeweave quilt. The photo is from their website. I love the idea of this quilt, because it is not simple patchwork done in rows. The maker has to insert pieces into the middle of already pieced rows in order to get the basketweave effect. The project was originally published in February 2007. I would like to see if it is actually make-able. It looks pretty straightforward on the show and the video, but you know how that goes. I’ll have to look around at the library to see if they have it. I found that with my Quilt Out Loud membership, I was able to log into the Fons & Porter site, so I have to look around there as well. If I ever had that magazine, it is long gone.
Clipmarks and my Internet security system are not liking each other, so I will have to try and explain about Bemused and the online Quilts Japan preview rather than show you. I was reading the Bemused blog and she mentioned her love of Japanese quilting magazines. She also mentioned that Quilts Japan has an online preview. That means you can page through the new issue. YAY!!!
As soon as I remembered to click the page LEFT button, it worked great. Remember? They read towards the left.
My regular podcasting people, Jennifer at CraftSanity, Amy at the Creative Mom podcast and Annie Smith of Quilting Stash/Simple Arts, are not producing podcasts fast enough for me. At the rate I consume them I could go through about 3 hours of them a week. Of course, I can’t whine or complain (I am certainly not whining or complaining, just stating a fact) since the podcasts are FREE, the hosts work for free and I guess don’t get paid. Not having new episodes each week, however, means that I have nothing to which to listen. This has forced me to search iTunes for new material. I found some interesting works. IMy two current favorites are CastOn by Brenda Dayne and An Illustrated Life by Danny Gregory.
One of the things I like about Brenda Dayne’s podcast is that it is about fiber and not just knitting. I wouldn’t call myself a knitter, though I do know how to knit and I admire knitting and would like to knit more, yet, Ms. Dayne does not bore me with the minutiae of knitting. She does talk about the minutiae of knitting, but I am not bored by it. She talks about other things, too. And the way she talks about things is not boring, it is professional, and, real sounding. She squeals with delight in a professional sounding way.
Danny Gregory, author of An Illustrated Life, Creative License and dannygregory.com did a series of podcasts in conjunction with the publication of An Illustrated Life a few years ago. I talked, briefly, about that book here on the blog in the past, but didn’t review it thoroughly. His podcasts are about 30 minutes long. Longer segments are broken in two parts. He has a wonderful voice and his conversations with artists who contributed to the book make me appreciate the book a lot more. Perhaps I will look at it again and give it a thorough review.
So far, I have listened to Danny talk with Peter Arkle and Roz Stendahl. I also listened to the Voodoo Lounge interview with Roz and I, now, want to be her. She is amazingly creative and practical in a way where she seems to use every moment of her time and get a lot done. I liked her interview with Danny Gregory, because she says that shopping (e.g. going and looking for the perfect pen to sketch with, or, in my case the perfect green fabric) is not a substitute for creativity. I think she also inferred that you cannot count shopping as part of your creative time. She has a follow-up to that comment on her blog.
One of the things I like about these non-quilt podcasts is that I get exposed to other artists and start thinking about creative things in a different way. I am not going to give up quilt podcasts, don’t worry.
I have never heard of Peter Arkle before. Peter Arkle is a commercial artists/ illustrator. He also does something called The Peter Arkle News. It is a newspaper containing stories of his everyday life. I love the idea. He started it just out of college (??) to show potential employers he could create and idea and follow through on it. It is now an occasional publication, which he calls ‘wheneverly’. As a librarian, I’ll have to use that instead of ‘irregular.’
One of the things I love about podcasts is how I get to hear the story of people’s lives. As I listen to more and more podcasts, I find that listening to professional radio is starting to be a bit boring or….not as interesting. I always liked Terry Gross, but now I’d rather know about her life than listen to her interview people all the time. I am interested, usually, in the people she interviews, but would also like to know about her. I like stories about people. I like to hear about the wonderful things ordinary people do. Have you done an StoryCorps interview? Take your grandma or your dad out to a StoryCorps booth and do one. Or use your new Flip. What is your story?
I love this tree quilt. It is one of those Miami Christmas quilts. I admire the way she put together the fabrics. I found this blog when I was working on my end of the year post and I was looking for the name of a pattern I bought to make the “It’s a Wrap” quilt by Sandy Gervais (obviously, I found it!). Not Your Run of the Mill blog seems to be associated with a shop, but I wasn’t able to find a direct link to the shop, though it looks like she has some interesting things.
My guild, CQFA, is doing a creativity project in 2010 and I am the first presenter. I did a lot of legwork in anticipation of the prep meeting in November and then was unable to attend. Dolores, from CQFA met me about an hour south of here on Thursday. We had lunch, looked at quilt and creativity books and talked about what I would talk about. I feel much more prepared for my presentation than I did before. I, frankly, had no idea where I was going or what I was going to say. Dolores is extremely creative. Sadly she has no website and no blog, but you can see some of her work that I have posted. Perhaps I will post notes or something on what I talk about. I am feeling a bit overwhelmed with things that people expect me to do lately. Not to mention the pressure I put on myself! I think I will have to practice the word ‘NO’ in 2010. We’ll see.
By the way, the Dynamic Quilt link in my sidebar provides a list of my delicious quilt bookmarks. If you have any interest in what quilt sites I am looking at, click there and you will see some of the sites I have bookmarked.
Matt Sparrow is talking about creating a TMZ type quilt website. It should be interesting to see what comes of that. I wonder if there is enough quilt news and gossip to make it worthwhile?
Christmas Fabrics
Nobody can tell me that I do not have the best MIL in the world, perhaps the universe. I love my MIL. She told me recently that I was the best daughter-in-law.;-) I was helping her wash silver after Christmas dinner. I don’t think the dishwashing was the issue. I like to think she just likes me. Anyway, part of my MIL’s fabulousness is that she gives us money every year for Christmas. I used to spend a weekend gift shopping with her, but she is no longer interested in shopping, so she gives each of us, usually, a magazine and money. If you do not select a magazine, you get some soap or something “to open”. Usually, I hoard my money jealously and wait to spend it. This time, I spent it almost as fast as I could on the fabrics in the photo when I was at Back Porch fabrics. I bought some more pieces of the Lonni Rossi fabrics. I used most of the FQ pack I bought on Marilyn’s Multi-tasker. I have another project in mind for them and wanted to include some in my FOTY quilt. I may wait and include them in FOTY 2010 as I still have a lot of fabric to cut and wasn’t sure I could commit to washing and cutting and sewing all of those additional fabrics before midnight on 12/31. As I write this, it didn’t happen.
For FOTY 2010, speak of the devil, I am thinking of doing another one patch, specifically diamonds. I like what I learned from combining fabrics when I make the Zanzibar blocks. I know I told myself I would create a design that used new and old fabrics like TFQ does and I do see the value in that. As the year came to a close, though, I felt quite stressed about this project. I wanted the cutting and piecing to be done by the end of the year and it just didn’t happen. It was totally my fault for leaving the washing, ironing and cutting until the last second, but still. I have to have fun with my quilt work, so I am cutting myself some slack.
If I do diamonds, I just have to decide what size. I almost bought some diamond rulers at Back Porch, but resisted until I could see what I already owned in the diamond arena.I was thinking of something like a 60 degree ruler.
As of January 4, 2010, I will be working more hours. For various reasons, I have always worked part-time since I left graduate school. My husband, however, has been our house-husband for the past year (almost). Sadly, I cannot afford to pay him at all, even though he does an excellent job. There are just things we need more money to pay for such as healthcare, so more hours at the day job for me are required. I am VERY fortunate that the work is there and the company is willing to allow me to make the change. I am sad to be giving up some of my free time, which I love. I don’t want to make changes in the blog in terms of posting less, but we will see. I haven’t gotten many comments in the past 1.5 months, so perhaps I don’t need to post as much? Again, we will see.
Although, New Year’s Day was yesterday, I want to wish all of my readers a great day and may 2010 be MUCH better than 2009!!!
Yesterday I drove to Monterey to attend a Kaffe Fassett lecture. It was put on by Back Porch Fabrics, a local Pacific Grove/Monterey quilt shop. I have written about that shop a couple of times, most recently on November 4, 2009 after my late October visit.
During my last visit, I saw that they were selling tickets to a lecture by KF. I decided to buy 2 tickets and just go. I knew it would be after a 2 or 3 day holiday extravaganza, but I decided the opportunity was too good to pass up and that I would worry about who to take later.
Signed Books
I left in time to arrive before 2pm, which is when the book signing started. I got about 6 of his books signed and he didn’t mind. He said that I was supporting him and he was glad to sign. 😉 I don’t know why getting books signed thrills me so much, but it does.
Quilt Road Signed
My SIL went with me and she was pleased to see and shop at Back Porch Fabrics. She bought a few fabrics for another Infinity block project she is working on. I bought a few of the Lonni Rossi fabrics so I could make another bag. I bought some FQs there in October and used them all up on Marilyn’s Multi-tasker.
The lecture wasn’t until 7pm, so we had time to hang around Pacific Grove a little bit. We spent a fair amount of time in the shop, partially because it was REALLY crowded and the lines were long. One thing I love about my SIL is that she makes me slow down in quilt shops. She really looks at things, which is a good reminder for me to do the same. Not much else in PG was open, so we went out to eat and then to Home Depot to find some paint colors for MIL, and to Borders to look at books.
After some technical difficulties with the projector and the Powerpoint, the lecture got started at about 7:30. Things I didn’t know about Kaffe Fassett:
He found the name Kaffe in a children’s book about an Egyptian boy he thought looked like him. He took it to replace his boring given name, which he is trying to forget. He refused to tell us the boring given name. I imagine it is Joe or Rod.
He was born in San Francisco, grew up in Big Sur and is now living near the Camden and West Hampton (Hampshire??) sections of London in Kilburn.
He went to a museum studies program in Boston
He learned to knit and purl in 20 minutes on a train, which was followed, later, by another 20 minute lesson from his cleaning lady on weaving in the ends and casting off.
He feels that color is in instinctive, that people have to work hard at conquering their fear of color and to learn to listen to their instincts. He enjoys going to places where there is intense color such as South Africa, India and Guatemala. He feels that color is life enhancing; it can make something elegant. He finds color to be a gift that people can give to themselves every day for a very low cost.
He thinks that there is a lot of visual pollution in the US, such as concrete parking garages, and hideous buildings. He thinks that the buildings in the US are very drab. Every morning I go to a horrifyingly ugly concrete parking garage and wish that someone would add some color to it or embellish it with tiles or mosaics or something, so I have to agree with him. He finds developing countries o be filled with intense color, which he calls visual poetry. He showed a number of slides of buildings in various countries, which were painted and embellished in a different ways.
As you may know, Kaffe started as a knitter. He said that knitters are never bored, are happy in their own company and make things that are very personal. He also said that anyone who says they can’t do what he does hasn’t tried. This is the point where he said he learned to knit in 20 minutes on a train. His point was that people certainly cannot make what he makes if they sit and whine. People have to go to their knitting needles or sewing machine and try, then try again. He said that he makes simple things and spices them up with glorious color. I am not sure his needlepoints are simple, but I get his point, which echoes one that TFQ says:
Go to Your Studio and Make Stuff!
InKaffe’s career trajectory, he moved on to needlepoint after knitting. Some of the chair covers and cushions are just wonderful. I love his vegetable cushion and chair covers. He also create rugs and does quite a bit of needlepoint commission work.
He finds knitting and needlepoint to be slow, so was amazed when he discovered patchwork and saw how fast quiltmakers can cut up fabric and put a piece together. He loves teaching quiltmakers and commented several times on how he loves seeing how people put his fabrics together in new ways.
His adjectives of choice were ”thrilling and ‘exciting’. He uses those two terms a lot when he talked about fabric. He said that making books and fabric allowed him to give part of his creative mind to others and he commented again on how thrilling it is for him to see how people put his fabrics together.
For him, the different media are all about manipulating color and the knitting, needlepoint, fabric design and patchwork all are ways that he can work with color. He said that he painted white on white still lives for a long time, because he was also afraid of color. He continues to be fascinated by neutrals. He talked about how he enjoys putting colors and textures together so they almost merge (you can see what he is talking about in some of his vegetable needlepoint works, in the shading, especially the Lichen Auriculas at Ehrman Tapestry, which is part of the needlepoint slide show). He showed the Vegetable Rug Border Pack in the rug form and also made into cushions. He makes me want to take up needlepoint!
He got around to talking about stripes as well. He said that he is thrilled by stripes and finds that lots of ordinary stripes put together become extraordinary.
He talked about hanging an exhibit of his quilts in France, where he was thrilled to find that the quilt stands had shocking pink background drapes/curtains. He was thrilled and said that he would never find such an occurrence in the US. He finds mostly black and, the most ghastly color against which to hang quilts, white in the US. “Ghastly” was his description and I immediately thought of TFQ.
Philip Jacobs and Kaffe Fassett are now working together. Apparently, Philip Jacobs does large realistic paintings, which Kaffe then recolors in different colorways. One of the recent collections includes some very large sea shells.
Someone asked about creative waxing and waning. He said that life serves up the rhythm and since he travels quite a bit he gets quite hungry to get back to his studio and work, especially when he has been surrounded by inspiring views. He often will see something and go to his studio and make something from the inspiration. This is a piece of advice that I also like.
He hangs up projects which have gotten stale and works on something else. Leaving the stale project around so he can see it affords him the opportunity to be reinspired.
He doesn’t usually plan his projects from beginning to end, but makes the color combination up as he goes along. He also keeps looking at it from different views and angles to see what the piece needs.
Kaffe’s theory about fabric design is that he is working with a palette of color and continually works with those ranges so that newer fabrics work with some of his older fabrics. He is also working on keeping fabrics in print for longer by recoloring them and adding older designs to new collections. He doesn’t want to create a line that is in today and “so yesterday” tomorrow. I completely appreciate this and whish more fabric companies would take this advice. He seems to be going for more of a classic look/feel. I am not sure if that is the right description, because I am not sure I would characterize his fabrics as having a classic look. Perhaps they are the ‘new’ classic?
He said that he is basically a shallow person who likes pretty things. He claims not to have much depth. I think he was saying that we should make things that we like, things with which we want to surround ourselves and I think that is wonderful advice. He encouraged people to just start playing and put something into repeat to see how it looks. He also reminded us to work with simple shapes.
Kaffe finds inspiration everywhere and said that in England the gardens are where the passion is hidden. Aside from this, I think the best advice he gave was that ‘manifesting’ was vitally important and that having the confidence to make the statment [with your work] and enough energy to make the thing in the first place are the most important parts of the battle. Finally, he said it is important to surround myself with other positive people. This advice is stuck in my head and I think the confidence part is particularly pertinent.
His next book will be out in the spring of 2010 and will be called Simple Shapes, Spectacular Quilts.
It was 2 hours each way and I didn’t get home until 11:30 pm, but it was totally worth it and I am glad I went. I am now very interested in taking a class from him.
My birthday isn’t until January, but during my week away, TFQ took me to Laura Bee Designs, a handbag maker in Seattle, and I was allowed to pick out the makings of a business card holder. It came last week.
I asked about whether she made saddlebag type handbags and she asked me what I liked about my handbag. I found out later that Laura asks many people that question.
Biz Card - inside
I love the bright cheeriness and I am waiting anxiously for someone to ask me for my card so I can whip it out and show it off.
We first heard about Laura Bee from a CraftSanity podcast. You can hear a lot of more about how Laura got started and her whole business.
I visited the San Francisco Quilt Guild on Tuesday of last week because Mike McNamara was going to speak. I haven’t been a member of that guild for a long time, bu I recently started getting notices of upcoming speakers. I was pleased that they are now meeting closer to where I live and that the group seems to have lightened up a bit.
I was amazed at all they do. They gave over 100 quilts to the local public nursing home. They are having a Quiltaway next year and have lots of activities surrounding that.
I spent some time talking with Mike McNamara (called Mac) about his quilts and his working style. He lives in the City and also has a studio. I tried to question him closely about how he works that style of working. I have thought about getting a studio, but can’t quite figure out how I would have all the supplies I needed in the location I was working in at the time.
Scissor Quilt
I saw one of Mac’s quilts at PIQF and it stuck in my mind, which was part of the reason I wanted to go to the meeting. I also just needed a jolt of some other quiltmakers. The holidays demand more of my time and that time usually gets taken away from my quiltmaking time. My mom came with me.
Scissor Quilt - detail 1
The scissors were added using a Thermofax machine.
Scissor Quilt - detail 2
Mac stepped in front of the quilt at one point and said that one thing he didn’t realize until he was giving a trunk show was that if he stood in front of the quilt it looked like it was raining scissors.
Double Wedding Ring
Mac has a series of Double Wedding Rings that he has been working on. He has made 13 or 14.
Double Wedding Ring - detail
You can see the rings really well in this version of the DWR. Above is the detail of the gold rings and how he combines fabric.
Mike McNamara Quilt
I don’t remember the name of this quilt. He uses a block called the ‘Magic Block’ quite often. You can see it in the upper left hand corner. It has a black kind of cross in the center.
Mike McNamara Quilt - detail 1
Love the coffee fabric. This is also a good example of the curved piecing techniques he uses frequently.
Mike McNamara Quilt - detail 2
You can also see the cool bamboo fabric in the above detail.
Double Wedding Ring #2 - detail 1
This is another one of Mac’s DWRs. It is actually a straight block quilt. Some of the blocks were made from different fabrics then trimmed to make a block.
Double Wedding Ring - detail 3
Elvis fabric in the DWR quilt.
Double Wedding Ring #2 - detail 2
Each of Mac’s quilts are made for a friend with the understanding that he gets to use the quilt for his trunk shows for 5 years. As a result of making quilts for friends, each of his quilts have stories associated with them. Because of the stories, he finds and uses a lot of interesting fabrics including the skull fabric above.
Ohio Star
I liked this Ohio Star quilt. Actually l really liked the movement of the Ohio Star blocks. I also like that tree fabric he used.
Ohio Star - detail
I like the swirly fabric around the upper Ohio Star.
Post the direct URL where your drawing, doodle, artwork is posted (e.g. your blog, Flickr) in the comments area of this post. It will keep all the artwork together.
The Creative Prompt Project, also, now, has a Flickr group, which you can join and where you can post your responses.
See the Creative Prompt page if you have further questions about this project.
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
When I first started reading this book, I immediately noticed the tone: kind, positive, inspirational and soft. Not disgustingly so, but in a way that made me really feel inspired.
My overall feeling of this book was it was a book that would be useful regardless of what the reader makes. This book is about having confidence, being inspired, getting rid of roadblocks and trying new things.
The format of the book incorporates the patterns/projects into the chapters, so they don’t seem slapped on because publishers think that “everyone must have projects if they are going to buy a book”. I didn’t try any of the projects as I cannot craft late at night in bed (too messy) and I didn’t have most of the supplies needed (too cheap). Still, I though the projects were interesting and would make good exercises for a class.
Kelly Rae Roberts has also peppered the book with interviews with other artists, such as Judy Wise, Mati Rose, and Christine Mason Miller. This feature brings some liveliness and interest to the book.
Ms. Roberts was interviewed on the Notes from the Voodoo Lounge podcast, 17 November 2009. The podcast is a great companion to this book as it gives just a bit more insight into KRR.
The only thing I didn’t like about this book was size of the font. There is a lot of information crammed into this 128 page book, but you might go blind trying to read it.
I think this is a book that I would like to put on my wish list as I think it would be good to dip into on occasion.
, which is part of the needlepoint slide show). He showed the Vegetable Rug Border Pack in the rug form and also made into cushions. He makes me want to take up needlepoint!
