NEW LAPTOP TODAY! 01-19-19

I apologize for the silence, but my laptop died completely and I could not figure out how to blog on my phone.  Today I picked up my new laptop from Micro Center, hopefully with all the programs I need already installed.  But now I must begin the download from my backup provider, Carbonite.  I have had to do this once before, but it has been five or six years ago.  I have not been faithful about deleting files, so the download (or is it upload?) will take at least a few days.  But I don't know how to function with Word 10 anyway, so I probably won't be able to post very soon.  

While all this is going on both of my Pfaff sewing machines broke down and have been in the shop.  If you should need machine repair, I highly recommend Sew n' Vac in Long Beach.  Worth the drive and it is a charming shop that has been there for forty years.  Just put this address in your GPS  1762 Clark Ave, Long Beach, CA 90815  562-498-6684.  And take some time to browse the interesting notions and feel the nice selection of fabric.  

If you need a lunch spot try Katella Deli, 4470 Katella Ave, Los Alamitos, CA 90720

562-594-8611   www.katellabakery.com   It is a very popular spot, so if it is lunchtime you may have to wait for a table, just go browse the fabulous bakery.  It is impossible for me to leave without a Katella Bakery box in hand.  

Once I get Carbonite working I need to set up my repaired/serviced sewing machine and get busy on this quilt.  I have completed the background, not just this sky, and am eager to get quilting.  There is a deadline and with my usual style I am pushing it! 

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Revisit a quilt by Karen Stiehl Osborn 01-06-19

The Thomas Contemporary Quilt Collection started out with just medium to large quilts, but as artists made smaller works I added some of those. Finally, as the Collection grew larger I divided my files into quilts greater than 24" in any direction and those less than 24". It makes storage and record keeping easier and helps when I am putting together a trunk show. Quilt auctions have become more common (there were three online quilt auctions at the same time this year [2008] in Oct/Nov) and the quilts made for these auctions are usually medium to small sizes. So, it is a great place for new or aspiring collectors to find quilts that they like.

"Haiku" Karen Stiehl Osborn 2003 9"W x 17"L

This quilt was part of the 2005 Fiberarts For A Cause online auction. I was attracted by the depth Karen has achieved and the density of the blue color. She creates her own cloth to use in her quilts and also does paper for her wonderful paper collages. The three rectangles represent the three lines of a haiku, making it a 'visual haiku'. www.KarenStiehlOsborn.com

A funny story about this piece - when I bought it I knew I would be out of town for several weeks, so I ask that it be sent to a friend. While I was gone I called to ask her if it had arrived and she said yes. She thought it was very nice, but she said, "I guess I need new glasses, I can't read a single word". We had a laugh when I told her that nobody can, they aren't real words, they just resemble them.

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Rain - A Special Event 01-05-19

Yes, it actually rained in Southern California today; an increasingly rare occurrence.  And, of course, the first rain of this new year, perhaps a omen of good rains to come.   It didn't start until 5pm and then has been on again, off again all evening.  KoKo and I managed a walk between showers so didn't get wet.   

It was mostly solid clouds, but there was an occasional peek at blue skies above.

The roses love the rain.

Dripping trees in the park. 

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Friday Food 01-04-19

I don't always remember to take pictures of my food at restaurants.  Way back in 1990 when I went on a textile tour of Great Britain there was a lady who photographed almost all her meals.  This was before digital cameras and we all thought she was a little odd, but, hey, do your own thing.  With digital it seems there is always someone snapping shots of what they eat.  I find it interesting and enjoy looking back at what I ate and when and where.  One of my favorite meals I always order to go and that is poke bowls.  My favorite place is H2O in Irvine, but I don't really understand why their food is better than other places I try.  I wouldn't mind finding a place closer to home, Irvine is about 17 miles, so I only go there when I am en route from south Orange County or San Diego. 

One goes down the serving counter and selects the items one wants in their bowl.  Here is sushi rice, salmon, scallops, corn, edamame, papaya, masago, special sauce, and black sesame seeds.  One has three fish selections, but i ask for two scoops of salmon and one of scallops.  Sometimes I vary it, but this is my favorite combination.  Soooooo good. 

Irvine (Irvine Market Place) 13262 Jamboree Rd. Irvine, CA...www.h2opokefishgrill.com

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Wordless Wednesday 01-02-19

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KoKo time again 12-31-18

Another year is almost gone - more quickly each year.   KoKo and I are staying warm and out of the wind - no walk this evening, just a quick piddle in the backyard and back inside out of the very gusty, strong wind.  

It is a good thing I am able to sew up KoKo's toys as he is very hard on them.  He loves his Froggie, almost to rags, so he frequently has to have surgery.  

This was just a simple open seam on the back of his neck.  

But you can see how bad his scars are.  There isn't much fabric left on Froggie's back and butt, so I have had to put in an under lining so there is something to sew on to.  

He does love his Woodstock, new this past month.  But it is not very heavy so doesn't throw very far.  

But he does take it to bed now and then.  

We wish all of you a Happy New Year, hoping that 2019 will be better than 2018.

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"Winter" - revisit a quilt by Els Vereycken 12-30-18

This post is from almost eight years ago.  I still find this quilt fascinating - such complex simplicity.   And it seems like a suitable post in mid-winter 2018.

Quilt from TCQC by Els Vereycken 02-13-11

This is the last of the quilts that I added to the TCQC during the Studio Art Quilt Associates online auction last autumn 2010 

"Winter"  Els Vereycken  2010  12" x 12"

Gray ink/paint on white cotton with black stitching.

 

A very plain back.  I suspect Els used a fabric from her "fabric library" that she didn't think she would ever use on the front of a quilt.  Notice that she turned up the bottom half inch of the image on the front of the quilt.

I was attracted to this piece because of the simplicity of the design and execution.  It is one of those works that is so striking from a distance and pulls me in closer to see the detail. 

Els lives in Belgium, but doesn't have a website that I can find. But here are a few websites that show some of her quilts. http://www.quiltingdaily.com/media/p/15682.aspx http://www.howoriginal.net/Snowflakes/artist_pages/els_vereycken.htm http://www.quiltingdaily.com/media/p/2836.aspx

Linda Colsh tells me Els is in the group  http://www.q-art.be/  with her - check it out.