Beyond My Wildest Dreams

I seriously never thought I could paint.

Apparently I can, and quite successfully.  All it took was the right teacher, and 30 years of experience looking at and analyzing fabrics.  wow.  Susan Brubaker Knapp is a genius!

In other news, one of my older quilts was accepted into Sacred Threads.  I was also able to get in a couple of submissions to the In Full Bloom exhibit for Houston.  I don't know when they jury that exhibit, but you can't get in if you don't submit anything, right?  right!

I've started quilting this painting, and I have to say, I'm very pleased.  Very pleased indeed.  I might even show up early tomorrow, so that I can make more progress.  Goals are good!

Going, Going, Going

wow.  On the road, to there and back again, and oh wait!  I'm not back again, I'm gone again!

That might give you a hint of my past week.  On Wednesday, we flew to St. Louis, for multiple reasons.  First, our son and his wife live there, and it was time to deliver their wedding quilt.  What better way than to hand it off in person?

 They immediately put it on the bed, and were willing to pose for a photo.  (I don't think the wall color is accurate.  I have no memory of a yellow green room.)

 Khan, my son's 17 lb cat, also approves.  I believe the plan is to hang the quilt on the wall, though they did want to see it on the bed.

On Thursday, my husband and I drove to Kentucky and back.

It was totally worth the 5 hours there and 3 hours home (we took a "short cut" to get there), even though we only had four hours in Paducah.  It was totally worth it.  Last year, my husband said that this year we'd stay more than a day.  This year, he says that "for sure" next year we'll stay for more than a day.  :)

On Friday, we were back in St. Louis, where my brother's FTC (First Tech Challenge) team was competing in the World Championships.  My nieces are in 8th and 10th grade, and their teammates are equally young.  They have The Knack (Dilbert engineering reference...google it, if interested), and really love building robots.

I'm related to the three on the left, and the one on the right.  Team 3595, comprised of my favorite Alaskans - yes, they were there from Alaska! - WON the competition.  These young kids are the reigning world champs.  I believe the oldest might be a junior in high school, so if they stay together, they might be back again next year.  Fantastic!!

On Saturday, we flew home, and on Sunday, I got in my car and drove to Asilomar.

I'm taking a class with Susan Brubaker-Knapp, a quilter I admire so much that I even own one of her pieces!

I have never had an aptitude for painting, but she's blown my mind.  In one day, I've generated this:

I can't wait to get back to work!  oh my!  Class begins in 8 minutes.  Gotta get going!!  Happy Quilting!

Still Plugging Away

No quiltie stuff to report, unless you want to hear about paperwork.  No?  I didn't think so.  I'm tired of it, too. 

One of the art quilts that came to the show was packed in a very creative manner.  I've seen quilts rolled before, but this was even better than those rolled on a single pool noodle.  Check it out:

 She used a flat piece of cardboard, to which she attached two sections of pool noodle.  She then braced the pool noodles with more cardboard.

 The quilt is in a plastic sleeve, then rolled gently around the frame.  (I might have added a pillowcase, but then, that's me.)

 The quilt then fit snugly into the box.  (She probably made the noodle frame to fit this particular box.)

It was then padded with bubble wrap, sealed, and sent on its way.

Isn't this clever?  It's perfect for wall quilts, which are so prone to getting fold marks during shipping.

I'm trying to prep for a class with Susan Brubaker-Knapp.  I've been going through scads of photos, looking for something that I'd like to work on for a week.  It's pretty much been a bust, because the things I find are too detailed for the type of project we'll be doing.  Like this:

 or this:

or this:

I ended up with 3 flowers, 2 birds, a deer and a dog...and a bill of $98 at Kinko's, after redeeming a 20% off coupon.  oh. my. goodness.  Whether I like those photos or not, I think I'm stuck with them.  I should have asked for a solid price quote before I gave the go-ahead nod.  I'm used to running oversize black and white copies.  Color is a different matter, entirely.

So.  The quilt show is not yet to bed, but it's close.  I'm hoping that come May, I will be back on track, both with quilting and blogging.  Without much quilting going on, there hasn't been that much to blog about.

What a Week!

In case you missed it, I've been MIA.  Actually, I've been busy, overseeing the Best of the Valley quilt show.  And were we the best?  I would like to think so.  A lot of non-quilters came, and gave it rave reviews.  The weather couldn't have been more pleasant, the vendors couldn't have offered better wares, and the people?  Well, the people were wonderful!!

If you'd like a taste of what you missed, here it is:

 One of my favorite tasks - and most difficult, I might add - is to select a recipient for the "Chairman's Special Merit" award.  This year's winner was #257, "Farmer's Wife Sampler," by Barbara Sindlinger.  Lots of itty bitty piecing and it's framed with lovely applique.  And look how well it hangs!  Lovely quilt, Barbara!

 I brought home a rosette of my own.  I'm tickled pink (or perhaps burgundy) about having my quilt selected as the recipient of Judy Taylor's Judge's Choice ribbon.  I haven't won many of these, but they are truly an honor.

I did lots of shopping, but mostly "window" shopping through the lens of my camera.  Shopping shopping?  For the most part it didn't happen, though I had grand intentions.  Instead, I visited with friends from far and near.  My daughter and granddaughter came, and three sorority sisters that I hadn't seen in decades also made it to the show.

And there were plenty of front page articles, in the Porterville Recorder, and the Visalia Times Delta.  You can read them here and here and here.

It was a lovely week, and now I'm playing catch-up with the post-show paperwork.  We already have a new sponsor, a vendor deposit, and a special exhibit set aside for next year...and we don't even have the dates yet!

The show may go to bed when we shut down on Sunday evening, but it never sleeps!

Now, back to work!

Almost Here!

The excitement is building, and the preparations continue.  In two days, the quilts will be checked in, and Show Week 2015 will be underway.  Me?  I'm still sitting behind the computer, creating more lists and signs and this, that, and the other thing.  I need to get out and about, but some of the quilts from out of town aren't here, and I daren't leave, just in case they're coming via USPS, UPS or FedEx.  I can think of one quilter in particular, who has always shipped her quilts.  Oh, wait.  Make that two.

I need to switch vehicles and get to the storage unit before it closes today, since I really don't want to do that at 7am on Monday.  That doesn't sound like any fun at all.  But I know it will work out.  It always does.  :)

In the meantime, my garden is forcing itself to bloom.  It's not doing it gracefully, with the exception of the roses.  But with some careful camera angles, I can make them look pretty good.  Just don't look too closely, or the aphids and snail trails will give you the willies!

 The stems of those gerberas are barely 1" long.  I've never seen anything like that, before.  But the roses?  I've got plenty of long-stemmed beauties this year.

 A few of the iris are forcing themselves to bloom.  They're pretty stressed about it, but I do love to look at them.  They're better than Easter eggs!

 This Dutch iris has also bloomed.  I hadn't noticed it pushing up through the spent narcissus.  He's pretty striking, no?

And this year, I have no lilies blooming for Easter.  I have plenty of plants, just no blooms.  Therefore, I will leave you with photos from yesteryear.

Happy Easter!