Where have I been?  Lost in parenting and life apparently. I honestly at different intervals in the past 6 years have wanted to start quilting again.  I've gone several times into my space and petted fabric sewed a little and then would walk out and close the door and not return. 

I have been busy raising boys and trying to help the men in my life deal with various life issues and while I wouldn't change the effort it didn't result the way I thought it would or hoped it would.  My boys are great they are both high schoolers and one is learning to drive so my days with them underfoot are fast disappearing.  Makes me proud and sad at the same time.  I was challenged recently to share quilts I have made in the past on Facebook and when I started to go through pictures realized how much I missed it.  So about 2 weeks ago I got back in the sewing room yet again and started.  At first it was just 15 min.  I have burned through a few computers and hard drives and had to find files I used for all kinds of my quilting things.  I have EQ7 and need to get all my quilting software installed and working again (haven't gotten there yet). But I did find my UFO spreadsheet and got it updated with what I found when I went through things.

I'm in the process of working on a couple of UFO's mainly because I have training camps that I sit and wait for 2 hrs every week for my sons sports interest and I need something to do.  So I've been trying to put together carry along hand work that I can have and applique' or hand piecing is a good way to do it.  I did a hexagon quilt for my mom before she passed so I really don't want to repeat that just yet.  I have thought about working on a Baby Jane or Quilted Diamonds and I think I'm going to do Quilted Diamonds it was something that always appealed to me.

Lillebet's Garden is what I'm working on.  I started this when Beth was doing it as a BOM on her blog.  I have all the blocks pieced and almost all the cutting work done (final border and binding not done) I have all the applique' flowers cut need to address the stems and leaves yet.  Started to work on assembling the sashing and setting strips and in my rush to see progress sewed with too heavy a quarter inch seam.  Soooo I will be ripping here shortly and redoing that.  My plan is to work on sewing things together while home and then working on the applique' while waiting until I get to the point where I can do both or finish this bugger. 







The other UFO is Sue Garman's "And To All a Goodnight" its a Christmas Quilt that is suppose to be for my brother.  I got the base done with the pieced blocks the part I stopped at was .........drumroll please......... the applique' top.  I think I have this problem with applique'.  Actually to be honest it isn't so much a problem as it is like that first High Dive.  I love it and love it in combination with piecing my brain goes absolutely haywired at the possibilities when blended together it just unleashes and unlocks so much creativity in my brain that I get overwhelmed.  It's a skill I'm not proficient at so while I love it and the possibilities I keep going to the edge and looking down and then gulping a lot and backing up and then back to the edge and looking down you get the idea.  Well time to just take the plunge and get it over with.  I have 4 UFO's with this pieced applique concept and I just need to get off the high dive which is what this restart is all about. 

My little quilt holders aren't so little anymore as in this picture but you can see there is definitely a lot done.  So these are my goal things for right now until I'm satisfied or they are done.  Next up on my hit list is finishing the quilting on the wedding signature quilt my friend made for my wedding.  I think being married for 17 years I should have this finished as well.  So it is on the list of things to complete. Beyond those 3 there are 2 more that really need to get the same treatment.  After that is figuring out what to do with blocks.  So this is my starting point.  I'll try and be consistent this time but I may vanish for a month at a time.  The elder child is looking at colleges!!!! I'm hoping for some nice February snows so I can just sit and produce stuff.  I'm in the zone again and as long as a catastrophe doesn't happen I'm back for good this time.


 

Traditional Vs Art Quilts

I belong to a Facebook quilting group and the question was posed after someone watched a quilting show about Art quilts vs Traditional Quilting.  This kind of gets my ire up in a way.  Its just another categorization for what purpose?  I can't type in all I want to scream and rant about on Facebook but I can here :)

First off how would you define "Art Quilt?" Really people, isn't anything individually crafted by someone art?  I would rather categorize quilters by things like geometric wiz machines, hand applique artisan, modernists, etc. all quilts are art.  I don't care if they are applique', pieced, fused, glued, glittered, beaded, sequined. Patterned like a cross stitch or a bargello knitting pattern, and on and on.  It's all art.  Someone had the idea to translate some pattern or design either from nature, architecture, whereever and put it in fabric.  So things are like cave paintings and writing a bit of history in fabric.  What makes a quilt a quilt is the layers, it is layered textile art.

My mamaw was the only quilter I ever knew and she did amazing things with a treadle sewing machine, needle and thread.  She would look at a picture and make a pattern.  So technically she's an art quilter yes?  She would sew with bits of this and that wasn't a 100% cotton purist.  She was making a blanket to keep her youngins warm.  She would use old blankets, old quilts and even old wool coats as batting.  Those quilts were loved to death.  My mother and her siblings remember them and all kinds of family events because of how special that "art" was.  It was functional yes.  It served a purpose yes.  It was beauty out of rags as my mamaw put it.  That was the art.  Making a silk purse out of a sows ear. I can hear her in my head as I'm typing.  The only thing that was ever a sticking point with her was the quilting.  It had to be 10 stitches to an inch.  If you did it wrong she ripped it out and did it over.  Was very particular about that. But that was it and that was her thing. 

When I started quilting my sense of color combinations was very good not sure why but I really didn't make the "omg what was I thinking" kinds of mistakes things really did work well together.  I would vary the colors and hues and scales of prints in a very natural way.  Then I took a class with a nationally notable quilter and "art quilter" and she told me point blank that my sense of fabric sucked.  I was devastated.  I wanted to learn her perspective and I admired her work but her attitude left a lot to be desired.  Okay I'm not you, I'm me I don't want to be you but I want to understand how you process things so maybe I can grow and evolve into something from it.  I will leave her nameless and chalk up my experience to her having a bad day or something.  Because I still think her work is amazing. I still would love to be able to have a conversation with her about how her creative process works when she comes up things.  What influences her.

Next class I took was with another nationally known teacher and she was like "Wow I love the fabrics you have, you can play for days and never come up with the same kinds of feelings in your work, the textures and colors etc. etc." See where this is heading yet? What's one quilters "omg what were you thinking" is another's "Wow I want to be able to have a stash like yours" its all entirely subjective.  That teacher undid a lot of the mental damage the first teacher did and the quilt that came out of her class is one that to this day when i lay it out on the floor (its still a UFO I'll explain why later) I'm still pleased with what I did in that class it still makes me feel proud of the accomplishment and it was like the 3rd or 4th thing I had ever pieced. Because of her I learned there are no quilt police.

Other things I've learned.  Juried shows scare the tar out of me.  Since to me quilting is a subjective thing how can you place standards on stuff.  I trully think there are times when 10 stitches to an inch is too much should be longer stitches used instead of shorter.  I think that the quilting on a quilt can have as much flexibility as the piecing and still be "good".  It's all in perspective and intention.  First thing I ever entered into a competition was within my guild and I was told it was just wrong can't remember all the "wrong" I did but it was just wrong. This is the wallhanging I entered.

Not bad for the 2nd thing I'd ever completed.  I took my time and worked really hard on meeting "the rules" the critique on my work was to me just mean.  There was nothing constructive about it.  I remember at the quilt show one of the guild members taking a family member around and when they got to mine said this is what you "shouldn't do" as a quilter.  Most people would have given up.  I didn't, I just hadn't found "my thing" its all experimenting and having fun.  What I did learn is I really didn't care if I won a prize or received national recognition for anything.  I'm a quilter from a long line of quilters and I quilt for the pure joy of the craft.  I make quilts for people that have meaning. Let me give you some examples.

First Quilt and one of my mamaws last quilt (hers is the blue one).

The quilt from the class that reset me as a quilter.  I'm doing a celtic knotwork border on this sooooo its still not ready for quilting because I wanted more applique's experience before I did it because I really love how this quilt came out.

My sons kindergarten teacher had a theme for the classroom that year called "growing together" I made this quilt for her.  This was the last classroom she taught she went on to become a state certfied teacher and went to work helping other schools in the state improve their teaching standards.  This quilt hangs on the wall of her office and to this day inspires her like she inspired so many children.  This was a total out of the box thing.  I had seen ideas but nothing like what I did.  The kids are the flowers and her hands are the sun.

Everything I do is different.  I've made over 200 quilts over 20+years of quilting I probably have about 20 UFO's and so many ideas for projects and enough fabric to start a small shop. Do I call my self an art quilter?  Of course I do.  Am I traditionalist, yep I'm that too.  Do I win awards and prizes.? Nope I don't care to have my work judged, I'd rather just have it loved.  So to those who want all quilters in little categorical boxes my advice is don't.  Because if you do they may just revert to the thing you don't want them to be.  Better yet let them just be who they are, quilt the way they want, and learn to value what all of us bring to the table either by our naivete', art education, or life.  We all make a difference in our unique way.  We all color the world with our fabric creations and a piece of our souls goes into everything we make.  If we were Voldemort that would be a lot of horcruxes to get rid of now wouldn't it?

Dog Days of Summer

To say I've gotten behind on life is a bit of an understatement.  Since my surgery in February the clarity with which I see my life is so much better, that I see I basically checked out for a very long time.  I muddled through so many things and I guess for lack of better terms "went through the motions" but I really wasn't into being me very much and it shows.  Since my post op period I have been reclaiming my life slowly but surely.  I started with a purge of the house I got a dumpster, a lot of bags and boxes and cleared zones for things.  Toss of course went in the dumpster, donate went in one half of the garage and separated into church yard sale, library, and others. Shredding was a pile that ended up being the size of one of the parking bays in the garage.  I also got a storage unit for those "family" things we just couldn't decide on but I didn't want to keep in the house anymore taking up space.  We will sit on this for a year and decide what we should do with it all later but for now it is safe and secure and out of the way.
The summer of the heat has delayed the outdoor plans until the past week or so.  We finally got temps and humidity that was much more bearable to be working long hours outside and I have been doing just that.  I've managed to fully reclaim a huge landscaping bed and 3 smaller ones with some assistance from the family but mainly it has been me out there day in and day out digging up dandelions, ragweed and whatever myriad other things that have taken up residence.  Today I finished the single largest planting bed and now I'm moving on to the second largest one.  The guys start mulching tomorrow.  I'll keep weeding.  My plan is to be done with this second bed by the end of the weekend before the kids go back to school.  There are some long narrow areas along the woods but my brother and hub can manage that when this latter huge area is done I move back to being indoors and finishing stuff we started earlier this year.
The inside projects consist of painting, flooring upstairs dining room, living room and hallway. In the basement we are going to tile most of it and rework the kitchen area so its more serviceable etc., etc. 
A big rework of the sewing room is scheduled for spring along with repainting the kitchen and master bedroom and if all goes well maybe we'll be able to redo the bathrooms next summer. But I'm not holding my breath on that I'm thinking those are a year or more out yet. Unless the economy improves. For now I just keep plodding along.
What does all this have to do with quilting?  Well nothing really.  But I have gotten a  new computer during this funky period and non of my quilting things were loaded on it.  I got my EQ software loaded and pulled all my projects off my old laptop.  I also got all my photographs and have been busy organizing those and cleaning them up so that they are easier to find what I want when I want it.  I really do feel like I'm starting over in so many ways.  I wonder if I'll ever be as productive with my quilting as I used to be.  20 finishes a year was nothing.  Right now I'm thinking I want to get the hand quilting job off the frame once and for all its been close to being done for so long I think its high time I just get it done.  Then I need to get my brother's quilt done as well just not sure what I'm going to do with it.  Think I may see if a favorite machine quilter or 2 would like some work if they aren't already swamped so I can clear away the old and prepare for the new.  Hmmm decisions, deicisions.  I am chomping at the bit to get back in the sewing room more often but I made a promise to myself after my surgery that I would get these environmental issues with the house and grounds dealt with come hell or high water.  I really don't need either so I'll keep working at this till its finished.  But I want to keep making entries here and let y'all know what is going on.

Well Let's try this again

Let's see where to even begin.  I thought I was going to be back in action when I relaunched the blog over a year ago. A lot happened and clearly I never made it back to being active full time on anything.  Long story very short.  Health issues prevailed and I had surgery to correct the problem in February 2011.  So many things in my life had gotten off track and behind due to health and other issues that it has taken me this long to get back to quilting.  But the delay was worth it.  I think that this next launch of myself and my passion for quilting is going to be some of the most productive and creative ever. Lots of ideas in my head and to flex the quilting muscle I pieced a "kit" quilt top together the past few days getting back into the groove again.  I'll post pics as soon as I get a good day to get some taken and posted up.  I have a new computer and will probably change the blog layout its been so long since I've been here.  So much has improved and since I'm a bit on the improved side some changes will be coming soon. Just wanted to post this to let you know I'm back.

   

Glad for doing extra!

This has been one of those weeks where I swear my pea brain works at a higher level than my consciousness.  When I started back to quilting I started working with kits that had been given to me after my mom passed.  I also have a niece who just gave birth to a baby girl and needed a baby quilt for her.  While I was shopping for that I found a simple pattern and fabrics for 2 other baby quilts.  I was informed later this week we have another friend expecting (anyday now apparently) and I just so happen to have 2 baby quilt tops ready to finish and I can gift one to this child as well.  Such foresight on my brains part its lovely.

I never did get to work on the wedding quilt or hand quilting this week after the earlier finishes.  Life has this way of interfering in the best laid plans.  But I will get something done this weekend.  I'm determined even if it is to just work on this baby quilt that I need to get done this week.

Weather is warming up, snow is melting, I haven't checked to see if the crocus have popped their heads through.  In a few more weeks windows will start being opened, I'll be complaining about weeds in the garden and needing to mow the grass.  Spring has definitely sprung. especially in my head! I need to start walking again everyday and other health related types of stuff which is a far cry from qilting but being in good shape lets me stay in the sewing room longer so important stuff.

Just a quiet kind of start to the weekend so I'm going to sit back with my cuppa and contemplate what happens next.

Goals and creativity

Well its Tuesday and as I started blogging again yesterday so much to catch up on.  Messed around a bit with the blog template more messing coming.  Want to customize it further and change a few things but this is requiring my idling brain to think techy again.  It's fun to reawaken things and get it going.  A shout out to my buddy Amy for reminding me where to create the signature that is now on all my posts.  I'm sure I would have remembered it eventually and found a much more difficult route to take.

As the title of todays post reads I find myself thinking about goals and the impact on creativity.  Some days the to-do lists are so large and the goals too high that it makes craft or even something so simple as cooking for your family not feel like a creative endeavor.  I love life.  I have always striven to make almost everything I do fun or at least tolerably pleasant (cleaning a litter box is just not fun no matter how hard I've tried) and that usually requires me to exercise my creative brain. Being human there is sooo much I'm just plain not good at so I might as well make it fun, right?

I find myself thinking about goals for my quilting again.  What is it I want to accomplish? Then I see stash busting goals and completion goals and alll kinds of other goals that hyper focus a person on an aspect of craft.  Does this hurt creativity?   Maybe this is something you just aren't good at or you feel guilty for the stash.  I know for me right now when I think of goals I think of closure.  I've had so many dramatic changes in the past few years and the effect it has had on me especially in the past 1-2 years. Then I look at my project list and the projects that were started or are wrapped up in some of the pain from this period of change.  I want to finish and put closure on it all.  Like tying up loose ends.  But I don't associate every project with this only certain ones. Do you do that?  Do you tie your emotions into certain projects and then the goal becomes either finishing for joy or finishing to bury pain?  Interesting reflection for me this morning. Curious as to how others think about goals and creativity and whether they are interconnected or run in conflict with each other.  Some think creativity just has to flow but can it have a goal? or can it be goal defined, time limited etc., etc.  Something to ponder anyways.

So goals.  Today my goal is to hand quilt a couple of squares on the wedding quilt and get Chuck's blue out and look at it again and start mapping or remapping the quilting I want to do.  I had a hard drive crash that had a lot of my quilting plans on it so things are having to be redone and reworked and replanned.  Some things I had back ups on but not everything and since those projects started I've changed and my vision for things has changed so the original thoughts no longer seem appropriate. So I'm going to look at it again and decide what I want to do and get it done. (She says with determination and a lot of doubt)

I can't forget the domestic goddess part of my day.  Mt. Washmore is calling too much piled up and an avalanche is threatening.  Then that goal of  "What to make for dinner".  Considering its after lunch and I haven't really started any of this my goals had better not get tooo lofty or I'm setting myself up for failure.  So now the goal is to end this post and get off my duff and get a move on.  As the needle turns .......

Good Day another Finish

It's been a good day!.  Just Finished Snow on my Fence, the boys are thrilled one more quilt to fight over!

Now that the quick finish fix is out of the way time to get back to LONG AGO AND FAR AWAY quilts that really really need to be finished.  My wedding guest book quilt is 12 years old and it still needs a small amount of hand quilting in the main quilt and the borders done.  This is all hand work and what is left to be done is complex quilting designs that I have struggled to find a way to transfer to the fabric.  God bless quilt pounce and needle punched print outs from the computer!  This is a very slick way to create quilting templates and I use card stock weight paper and it works like a dream.  As with anything new it takes a bit to perfect the technique but it isn't new nor is it something I dreamed up but as with most of what I use and do has been knowledged transferred to me from others.  This is a shot of the quilt I'm working on please note most of this is quilted except some small squares, setting tris and the border

So that is my focus for now other than to mail off the baby bargello quilt.  I'm working on a slide show for the blog but I don't want it to dominate the pages like the one I had earlier.  For the moment I'm going to try and embed a picture of the baby bargello with the tote bag.  This was a kit from Our Gathering Place  and she still has some if you are interested in it.

So after the wedding quilt is done what is next you say?  Well let me show you the next big job that has to get finished.  This is a quilt for my brother I joke it is from his blue period.

I think that is enough out of me for now.  Need my blog buddies to remind me how to do a signature for my posts and I need to get cracking on that slide show.  More out of me later.