PTA CHALLENGE WINS 3RD. PLACE!

Our PTA (Piecer's Talker's and Appliquer's) Fiber Group's 2010 Challenge for our 13 members was "Sunrise/Sunset" wall quilts. Besides the theme and a recommended size (32" x 42") we asked each participant to add some black to their piece.

We are thrilled to have been awarded 3rd Place in the Ultimate Guild Challenge category at the AQS Knoxville show being held this week. Nine of us had plans to attend prior to the good news.....and now are looking even more forward to seeing our quilts on display!

Here our exhibit is displayed at the Biltmore's Deerpark Gallery in the fall of 2010.

This is my piece - Pine Ridge at Dawn

(available for purchase)

Hand and machine appliqued, machine pieced, hand quilted and beaded.

Detail

Georgia Bonesteel made this beauty....which is also published in Charlotte Warr Anderson's newest book published by C & T Publishing.

Kate Weston made this striking quilt.

Lynne Harrill's challenge piece.....truly one of the best pieces she's made in my humble opinion.

Here's Barbara Swinea quilt which wasn't quite completed when I snapped this photo. I'm only sorry these are the only ones I have......perhaps we'll bump into you visiting the show in Knoxville....where you can see them all.

YIPPIE!!!!

BANSKY QUILT PROGRESS

Got a project that frustrates you?? We all do.....you aren't alone! But, that can be hard to remember when you are about to trash a difficult one.

I don't give up easily.....this is as much a negative personality trait of mine as it is a positive one. Most often, in the end, persistence provides a 'happy dance'.....and I'm having one today. (Almost.)

My 2nd artist inspired challenge quilt has been progressing. It's based on the urban street stencil art of UK artist Bansky. As a reminder (or for new readers) click here and here for the back story.

So, after I had to admit defeat with the desired 'stenciled' approach I had planned for this piece.....it was time to figure out how I could achieve a nice clean look to echo Banksy's style. Sure.....I could have hand appliqued the motifs using solid cotton fabric, but I was in too much of a hurry for that detail process and I didn't want to fuse it...which require finishing the edges with machine stitching. Besides, none of those options provided quite the texture I imagined.

That led me to my 'boxes under the bed' stash of Ultra-Suede.....and thankfully, I had just enough of the colors necessary for this new approach.

The design is now underway again, using Ultra-Suede motifs, hand appliqued to the background. My first drawing didn't include a side walk as shown here.....which I felt would add to the look of an urban brick wall.

Here it is almost finished.....however, I have now decided to remove the cement 'sidewalk' and will embroider some weed tufts along the bottom edge after the piece is quilted and bound. Because I cut off all but 1/4" along the bottom edge when I added the grey fabric, I'm worried about the placement of embroidery if I added it now, so I must wait to add these details.

I plan to machine quilt it......but who knows....my skills may not provide the quality I demand in my work...... I'll keep you all posted.

I hope this little saga will encourage some of you to drag out a 'difficult' project you've put on the shelf and try to rethink your approach....maybe you can have a happy dance too!

HAND QUILTING

Perhaps the popularity of hand quilting is swinging back around in favor again. The workshop I'm teaching here in Asheville, Aug. 24th is now full with 25 students and a waiting list. If you delayed connecting with me....please still do that.....as often happens at the last minute, a few students drop out and you might still get in the class. If not, I'm willing to teach another workshop!

So....speaking of hand quilting....I'm plugging along each evening quilting on my artist inspired Calder piece. I hadn't planned to do as much concentrated quilting as I'm now finding the quilt needs.....but am content to sit and enjoy this relaxing activity as the quilt comes alive before my eyes.

The lines of echo quilting on the lower portion of the quilt is being worked about 3/4" apart.

I like to feel the needle pierce all three layers so my fingers beneath the quilt get pretty sore, even with calluses!

Before going to bed I smear beeswax on those fingers to help smooth the rough spots...... I consider my calluses a 'badge of honor'......as I follow the time honored tradition of hand quilting!

GUESS THE THEME....

Our L.I.N.T. fiber group is developing an exhibit for 2012 and in order for it to be somewhat cohesive, we've selected a 'theme' for the show.

I got really, really inspired by the choice and immediately began making a piece, which led to another.....both now completed. You can view the development of both pieces here, here, here,

here, and here.

During those posts, I hadn't revealed exactly what that theme was. Perhaps after seeing these two pieces.....you might want to guess?

Obviously, since I have more than 6 more months and many more ideas to make replacement pieces, therefore both of these are available for purchase now if anyone is interested.....email me using the link at the upper right.

Sea Shell 11" x 16"

Bamboo/rayon felt, machine stitching, bead embellishment

Detail

Sand Dollar 11" x 17"

Woolfelt, machine stitched, embellished with found object

Detail

TOURING BILTMORE INDUSTRIES

The main purpose of our L.I.N.T. outing was to tour the historic Biltmore Industries.

It was established in 1901 by Misses Vance and Yale who wanted to develop activities to keep young boys out of trouble. Under the patronage of the Vanderbilt's it grew to be a successful business, creating fine hand made crafts.

Vicki arranged a private tour for us....in areas not open to the public....we felt very privileged to be able to step back in time.

Huge stone buildings still contain some of the massive machines used to produce Biltmore Industries famous 'homespun' woven wool fabric. This one of the dye vats which is a tall as I am.

The looms were HUGE......our guide explained that they were set up with over 1,000 threads each.

Most of the equipment were not in well lighted rooms but these machines were.....rows and rows of machines to spin wool into thread.

Their cloth was highly prized.....several U.S. Presidents visited to obtain material to be made into clothing.

It was an amazing day, filled with so much stimulation and friendship. Surely no matter where you live....there are places to explore? Grab some girlfriends....go visit some galleries, museums, or hey....what about this idea...... visit a quilt shop!

DANIEL ESSIG

During our L.I.N.T. outing at Grovewood, a number of the artists were holding an open studio day.....so luckily, we got to see some of the finest crafts persons in our area at work.

Daniel Essig is L.I.N.T. member Vicki's husband.

I had heard about his awesome pieces but had not seen them in person until this visit. I want one!! Heck, I coveted more then just one..... I'm fond of repurposing materials.....nah, I'm not just talking about the new trend of going GREEN.....rather, the ability of the maker to see how sometimes even the most obscure materials can be incorporated into a piece to make it more interesting and successful. Daniel wins that prize!

Enjoy some of his spectacular pieces below.....

L.I.N.T OUTING

I've recently been invited to join a long standing, group of professional fiber artists. L.I.N.T. (Ladies In New Textiles.) Each month a member takes her turn organizing the generally short 2+ hour meeting. From time to time we do a field trip....this was such a month.

Vicki Essig arranged a lovely and educational day for our group which started off by meeting at the Grovewood. It's located adjacent to the historical Grove Park Inn, Asheville, NC. Working artist's studios are contained in this building.....one of which is Vicki's husband....I'll be showing (and still coveting) his fabulous work in an upcoming post.

The gardens surrounding the property are dotted with sculptures. many are available for purchase. This steel work of art was made by Grace Cathey and could be yours for $1,600.

Get an eye full of the wonders of this magical place below......

We were visited by two aggressive hawks when we first gathered....I suspect they had a nest nearby.

This section has been named Wind Forest; the work of artist Lyman Whitaker.

More to follow tomorrow.......this may be such a tease to some of you......really.....I encourage you to come and visit our mountains where beauty can be found around every corner.

ENGLISH MUFFINS

Keeping a sour dough starter active requires responsibility on my part. It has to be 'fed' about once a week or so. Sighing here..... I must admit it goes against my Midwest upbringing to throw perfectly good starter out just because I'm too lazy to bake.....so.....I now find myself baking about once a week as I remove a portion of the starter and replenish it with new flour/water.

Over the weekend, I decided to attempt English Muffins again......though my last batch was fairly good, I never felt they rose like they should.

I almost forgot to take a photo of the tray of risen beauties before I 'baked' them......

English Muffins aren't baked in the oven....rather they are cooked on a griddle or in this case an electric frying pan. The first side got a little too toasty because I was multi-tasking and lost track of the time.....

But thankfully that didn't affect the end results........

Yummy......

FIBER JUNKIES JULY PROJECT

I've noticed we have some new followers.....welcome and thank you for joining me. You all give me a reason to stop each day to reflect and be grateful for how full my life is. (Ya...that statement is a little deep for me....but the feelings are genuine.) Here's an overview of a group I blog about a lot.

Two plus years ago, I organized a small and powerful mini group called the Fiber Junkies. There are 6 of us....mainly living about an hour or more, in every direction, apart. We've purposely kept our group small to allow us to meet in each others homes, though we know so many more fabulous creative folks we would love to include. Each month we gather to learn a specific technique...the activity is led by one or more of our members.

This month Carol Sloan was our guide. She makes the most interesting books....filled with Carol's can do attitude and style.....'make it work with what you've got'. She teaches workshops in the area, so check out her website to find one near you.

The spines are finished and covered with a variety of materials and methods.

Between the "signatures"....which is a grouping of papers, Carol adds interest and personality by including vintage hankies, hand painted papers, laces.....you must see these books in person!!

She suggested we have a theme for our book.....a method I use constantly to not only spark my creativity but to rein it in and better focus. So, I've selected some batik prints of (what else??) cows and some colorful polka dot fabrics for what will be a children's book......like possibly a grandma's brag book.

This could cause some reaction from 'the perfect child'.......no I'm not pushing!!! Instead it's easily a gift for the many friends I have who are becoming grandparents.

We started out small to make it easier to learn the techniques. This is my cover.....left to right...the back, spine, and front. Naturally.....it needs to be trimmed, edged etc. We all have some homework to do before our Aug. gathering where we will learn to assemble the books.

Here's Nancy's cover.....and look....our clever gal has a book marker already made with a felted acorn (one of her favorite subjects) already made! Sooooo clever. Judy Simmons generously set out a bin of her ink jet leaves/flowers for us to use. Nancy selected these three which look to have been transferred onto a sheer, possible even hand dyed fabric.

Val is our quiet and productive member......and always, always astonishes us with her ideas and skillful combination of materials. The main focus of her cover is a greeting card....soooo Val.

I'll report back in early August so you can see the finished pieces......