Three Stones 02-09-08

These three stones - fist-sized to cereal bowl-sized - are on the table on Mary's deck. I don't know why they are there, but they remind me of all the stones I have carried home from places I have visited - the mountains, the beach, the desert, the forest. I wonder how many of us stuff our pockets with stones and shells and why we do it! Do you carry these things home, do you know why?

"Color Bowls - Two" 02-08-08

Installing the exhibit at Back Porch was a very special event, but there was another special event in my life yesterday.

"Color Bowls - Two" Del Thomas 2008 17″W x 23″L

Virginia Spiegel introduced the quilt I donated to the FFAC Reverse Auction - 2008 when she posted it on her blog yesterday and explained about the auction. Check it out at: http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/blog/archives/date/2008/02/07/

FFAC raises money for the American Cancer Society and this auction is one of the major fund raisers each year. I am particularly dedicated to supporting this cause because eighteen years ago my husband died of a brain tumor. I hope that my small efforts will help find a cure for all types of cancers - sooner rather than later. I am very proud to be among such talented artists who are trying to make a difference with their art. On March 10th I will remind you that the auction is open!

No pictures! 02-07-08

Oh, dear! The exhibit of Ruth McDowell quilts from the TCQC went up this afternoon and I didn't take a single picture of the process! I suppose I was just too excited, because I didn't even think of pictures until we were driving back to Mary's. It is such a thrill to see so many of Ruth's quilts hanging together in one room, after they were hung I just sat and soaked up the wonderfulness. Ruth has an unerring eye for fabric selection and color . She has no equal in her ability and technique for piecing fabric together to create wonderful images. This exhibit is a tribute to her and the 350+ quilts she has created in thirty-six years of quiltmaking.

Hanging the quilts was preceded by lunch at one of my favorite local spots, Peppers, only a block from Back Porch Fabrics. We needed energy to carry us through the hanging process! But Gail Abeloe, shop owner, her husband Gary, and Jeanne Mills have eleven years of experience hanging exhibits every three months, so it was a smooth, painless procedure. When we finished it was closing time, so we will have to make another trip to do some fabric shopping. I already have several selections in mind!

Check out Ruth's website at http://www.ruthbmcdowell.com/

On the Road Again 02-06-08

Driving up I-5 I was surprised that there is so much snow along the Ridge Route. But it was only a week or so ago that the highway was closed due to snow and hundreds of people were stranded going to or from the Los Angeles basin.

These southwest facing hills are a few miles south and lower than the community of Gorman which has an altitude of 4524 ft.

The rest stop just north of Gorman and Fraser Park still had quite large patches of snow and the run to the women's room was mighty cold!

But from this spot it is almost all downhill to the community of Grapevine located at 1500 ft where the road levels out into the San Joaquin Valley.

The sun went down before I reached San Juan Bautista, great sunset. Tomorrow the Ruth McDowell quilts go up at Back Porch, I am eager to see them all hanging together in one room. It will be wonderful!

Ruth McDowell quilts 02-05-08

Conversation on the Porch 1993 Ruth B. McDowell 54"W x 37.5L

When I started the Thomas Contemporary Quilt Collection in 1985 by buying one quilt at a guild auction, I didn't know that in twenty years there would be over ninety quilts in the TCQC - some large enough to cover a wall and some smaller than a postcard. I'm very attracted to the work of Ruth McDowell - great lady, great quilts - and in 1994 I purchased the quilt above, the first of many of Ruth's quilts that are now in the Collection. This week I will drive up to Pacific Grove to hang sixteen of Ruth's wonderful quilts at the Back Porch Fabrics. The exhibit will be up during the weeks of the Empty Spools seminars at Asilomar Conference Grounds - until April 16th. Each quilt is unique and each has a story. Check the shop website for open hours and allow time to select fabrics from the marvelous bolts that Gail Abeloe, shop owner, has collected. I rarely buy fabric elsewhere these days. http://www.backporchfabrics.com/gallery.htm