Pop-up cards 07-18-09

I love pop-up cards and books. I guess that I have a collection - if we go by the standard, "two are a pair and three are a collection". I save the cards in a box and sometimes take them all out and arrange them open on a shelf for a while. Several decades ago I made a few on my own - not as successful as some of the amazing artists work.

This one came in the mail today as a thank you note. Isn't it lovely? It was made in Japan and the sender said she has kept it for a special person and a special occasion. Lucky me!

Corky is with me, just for tonight. It is almost ten o'clock and he is ready to go to bed. Tonight I guess I am also.

"Stacked Bowls" from 2002 07-17-09

In the constant and very slow process of clearing out and rearranging things in my house I emptied a bureau drawer containing many small quilts. Some are part of the Thomas Contemporary Quilt Collection and some are pieces I made in past years. I think I will share some of them on my blog. Maybe I could do it on Fridays and call it "Fearless Friday"!

"Stacked Bowls" Del Thomas 2002 10"W x 12"L

This is a very small quilt made for "Changing Perceptions: Small Works by Kansas Art Quilters", an exhibit that showed in Kansas during 2002 and at Quilt Festival - Chicago in 2003.

The artist's statement read: "A bowl is such an ordinary thing, but present in the lives of the majority of people around the world. This quilt is part of a series using bowls in the imagery."

When I started it I thought it would be part of the Color Bowls series, but then decided that it didn't quite fit. Thus a new series.

The backing fabric is a drapery sample that I had in several color ways and it was just about the exact size needed. The rings for hanging were one of the exhibit requirements.

I always put a bird somewhere on each quilt I make. Could be quilted, inked, embroidered, machine stitched, part of the design, in the fabric print or any other method I can think of. After a period of years I sometimes cannot find these little "logos", but I know they are there. I talked about them previously at: http://delquilts/blogspot.com/2008/01/blog-post.html

Lightning 07-16-09

Lightning is not something we have much of here in SCalifornia. In the mountains and in the desert all around us, but here on the coast it is a rare event. Back in 2003 I was working on a series of small wall quilts I called "Weather or Not" and one of them was going to be Lightning. I went online and looked for an image for inspiration, but didn't have much luck. Could be I wasn't very good at searching, but also there just weren't that many lightning pictures available online. Not compared to the millions we can access today.

I wish I had access then to this fabulous shot by Paul Cichocki taken in July 2006 in Las Vegas, which gets terrific thunder/lightning storms during the summer. Even though I'm sure it was hot there, the image has the cold, sharp, menacing aspect I was looking for. When I look at this picture I can almost feel the crackling in the air.

I used about a half a dozen pictures to do my sketch and came up with this wall quilt. It is much more 'gentle' than what I intended and I think I went overboard with the skinny subsidiary cracks. They look more like falling fireworks than part of the lightning. I know I will never make another quilt w/lightning, so I must be happy with this one. Live and learn, eh?

First Show &Tell 07-15-09

My friend Patty Mayer's grandchildren are visiting for several weeks and they are all having a great time. Yesterday Wynnie brought the quilts she made in 4-H to the Show & Tell at the Surfside QGuild meeting.

She doesn't look very frightened while waiting in line for her turn. (Behind Sheryl Smith-Birney)

On stage with her two quilts being held up, she looks more uncomfortable.

By this time her knees were shaking. We hope she will come back next year with more quilts to share and that she will be more comfortable. Guess it could be scary to be in front of around 160 quilt makers to show your first quilts. Good on her for being so brave.

In the background you can see two quilts made by our speaker, guild member Diane Collins, who shared a giant stack of her own creations - wonderful quilts from her many years of quilting. And each had a great story to go with it. Thanks, Diane.

HOT! 07-13-09

Does this make you think of an avalanche? Well, maybe it is just me - yearning for a little less heat. Yesterday on my patio was HOT Sunday - 100.4F, the hottest day so far this summer. I did not stick my nose out the door! Today was a repeat but 100.9F.

More experimenting, using a Scribbler design multiplied four times and rearranged.

Tomorrow is the Surfside Quilters Guild meeting. Diane Collins, a member of the guild, is the speaker. I'll bet it is MUCH cooler in San Clemente. I hope, I hope, I hope!

More Sylvia fiber postcards 07-12-09

I thought I would show you the other two fiber postcards Sylvia made the same day. But I didn't think of it until I had already posted for today. So, this is sort of a postscript.

Untitled fiber art postcard by Sylvia Einstein 2006

Untitled fiber art postcard by Sylvia Einstein 2006

Sylvia Einstein quilt from TCQC 07-12-09

"Summer Swim" Sylvia Einstein 2006 6"W x 4"L

You may remember that I have previously shown several of Sylvia's quilts: http://delquilts.blogspot.com/2009/03/visiting-empty-spools-03-06-09.html

(Plus a great picture of Sylvia)

html://delquilts.blogspot.com/2009/01/this-weeks-tcqc-quilt-01-11-09.html

She has such a unerring eye for color and motion and loves using bold commercial fabric in her designs. She is very quiet as a teacher, but gets around to everyone in the class as she is needed. She has become a good friend over the past eighteen years.

This fiber art postcard was made when she and I were both staying with Mary Leakey in San Juan Bautista one year. I was (as usual) really pushing the line to finish cards due immediately and we three were in Mary's studio playing with her fabric scraps. Sylvia put together three cards "lickety-split" while I was still futzing around. Mary was working on something else. I liked this little piece so much I offered to buy it, however, we ended up swapping cards. We then went on to Empty Spools/Asilomar where I took Sylvia's class and finished the very first quilt top I have ever done in a class at Empty Spools. I never go with the idea of completing anything, but to learn new techniques and design solutions. Sylvia deserves a gold star for getting anything complete out of me.

No Post Tonight 07-11-09

Headache has me wiped out. Sorry. Del