Bargain shopping

I found these great bargains at a resale shop recently.
I just love a bargain.

They were each 50cents. WoW

The Paula Nadlestern book alone was worth the whole trip.

I worked with Paula this summer at the NQA show in Columbus OH, she is really fabulous. We found out we both love coffee ice cream. Quilters are just so great. Have a great fall weekend!!

Quilts in public places

I love to see quilts displayed in public places.

I have a few of my works displayed in health centers. I like to think that is makes  people happy to view them.

Art made with fabric is often warm and inviting, as so many woman are.

When I was in NC recently, my two hostess took me to The First Citizens Bank in Hendersonville, NC. Hanging on the walls of this impressive building where quilts made by local quilt artists that had been commissioned by the Architect for this building . There were also several beautiful and striking antique quilts.

Each of the pieces of art was displayed behind Plexiglas and mounted on linen boards. The displays were stunning.

Here are just a few of the pieces.

“Golden Threads and Silver Needles made by Georgia Bonesteel, 1988


I saw Georgia at the quilt guild and we had a nice chat. I didn’t realize that she once lived in the Chicago land area, and worked at Marshall Fields, as did I.


“Stormy Sea” made by Barbara Swinea 1988. This is beautifully crafted and HAND quilted.



“Love Apple Variation” made by Linda Cantrell, 1988. This is a very different piece for Linda who makes fun and whimsical pieces that often tell a story. Notice Linda is talking, as she often is, as she is always telling a fun story.



Antique 1 1/2” squares





I believe this was made of wool. All of the quilts did not have their “name” tags with them as they had recently been rehung and moved.



This piece was behind the tellers at the bank. “Mirage” by Ellen Kochansky, 1988




Also by Ellen,”Form-Content”

What a great way to view quilts and what a wonderful setting for them. I hope the people of Hendersonville enjoy this great art.

Shimmering Foliage at Fermilab

This article will appear in the Fermilab Today Science Newsletter. There is a reception this evening. If you live in the area please attend. There will be wine and cheese. I will be working and unable to attend, so you should go and drink my wine and eat my cheese

New exhibit flaunts a rising art form

My Quilt Shimmering Foliage 82” x 82”

A violent particle collision ignites a heated core, spurring brilliant streams of color in every direction and unveiling the mysterious Higgs boson, as imagined by the art piece titled “The Heart of the Matter.” The story was fused and embroidered by artist Susan Jackan into an art form rising in popularity: the quilt.

“Stitched Together – Art & Science: Art Quilts by Midwestern Artists,” now in the Fermilab art gallery, is showcasing 28 quilts referencing science and nature. Themes range from endangered sea turtles to string theory. One quilt even has a matrix barcode that can be deciphered by smart phones.

Artist Laura Wasilowski channels warm memories of a prairie near her childhood home in Minnesota for her piece titled “Chicory.”

“It’s about the origins of who we are,” she said, in reference to the general motif of fundamental sciences in the quilts.

Wasilowski is an artist and representative of the Studio Art Quilters Association (SAQA) (http://www.saqa.com/), which promotes the art quilt through education, exhibitions, publications and professional development. The show is done in partnership with the Professional Art Quilters Alliance (http://artquilters.org/), a regionally-based group promoting fiber art development.

Wasilowski creates her quilts most often through an improvisational approach, starting with hand-dyed fabrics. She would then work in the direction that the shapes and colors inspire her. For a quilt like “Chicory,” she would invest at least 40 hours of work.

“The quilt is a piece of art and not for the bed,” said Frieda Anderson, a representative also from SAQA. “People are expressing their ideas on fabric in many ways.”

Anderson’s comparatively enormous nature-inspired quilt, “Shimmering Foliage,” took about four months to create.

Georgia Schwender, curator of the Fermilab art gallery, felt the quilts would find the right audience at Fermilab.

“I didn’t want to just have quilts,” said Schwender. “I wanted to tie in the artwork with the state-of-the-art science we do here.”

Stitched Together (http://www.fnal.gov/pub/Art_Gallery/current_show/index.html ) is on display now through January 20, 2012. An artist reception will take place today between 5 and 7 p.m. after a tour of Fermilab.

Design Wall Friday–new pattern Holiday Moments

I have several new patterns out just in time for the Holidays.

My latest pattern was inspired by making the tree skirt and fire screen for the Quilting Arts Gift Issue 2011-12.

I thought everyone would want to make really fun, bright and happy holiday wall quilts to go along with the skirt.

So I designed JOY

Peace

and LOVE

This has become my new mantra - Joy, Peace, Love. Each morning when I wake up I chant it to myself to bring these things into my life.  I hope you chant this to yourself each morning and encounter it each day. Pass it along too.

You can order the new patterns on the website. Each one is only 15” and the pattern has all three designs in one package. What a bargain.

Design wall Friday

Quilting Arts Holiday Gift issue.

I wanted you to see the fabulous projects I designed for this year’s Quilting Arts Holiday Gift Issue.

I got carried away with the red and green color combo, and made some hot and spicy holiday projects. I LOVE LOVE LOVE the brilliance of these colors together and the intensity of the colors that I dyed really made these projects POP.

I have them now displayed in my home and am already in the Holiday spirit. I hope they inspire you too.

60th Birthday–my sister

My only sibling and sister turned 60 on Saturday. It really seems like a big deal because I am not that far behind.  My husband turned 60 last year, but it didn’t seem like such a thing, only because he isn’t related to me by blood and well he is 4 years older than me and always will be. My sister however has been in my life since I began and everything that happens to her eventually happens to me. 
I am currently at my kids house grandbaby sitting.  My husband was here with me for the weekend but he has gone home now.  Our daughter-in-laws sister got married this weekend and all of her family and relatives were involved in the wedding so we HAD to come here to watch the grandboy. It is great, I get whole days alone with him. Woo woo. I am loving it. I am working on his first Halloween costume,  he is going to be a little white and black dog. He has a little french bulldog in his family, so it seems perfect. The kids live in PA and we will be driving to Boston to help my sister celebrate this coming  weekend.
I have many gifts for my only sibling, a pair  hand kit socks made from Sophie’s Toe Sock yarn in lavender, a pair of great earrings from my friend Sandy of  OF NATURE and a small wall quilt to match the colors of her bedroom. She  never reads my blog so I will post a picture for you here.

I have been walking around this little lake by my house everyday with George and there are cat tails growing along the banks, so of course I had to start making Cat Tail quilts. I am loving them and the color is perfect for my sister’s bd, her room is green and purple.

This little quilt is about 4” wide  by 12” and is trimmed with my hand dyed 4mm silk ribbon then sewn to a peltex frame that has fabric fused on both sides and then cut out with a decorative rotary blade.
It is just wonderful.

Design wall Friday - Machine Quilting–Stitch in the ditch

I am working on the machine quilting of a quilt that I designed and my friend Linda pieced. This quilt is a present to our children, my son Zac and her daughter Amelia, who were married in October of last year. It is a signature quilt that all the people who attended their wedding were able to sign at the wedding reception. It was a great joint project for the two mothers of the bride and groom to work on together.

I designed the quilt in Electric Quilt 7 and then hand dyed the fabric for it.

The inspiration for this quilt came from the windows in the church where the couple was married. The windows reminded me of pine trees and the church was surrounded by pine trees so it seemed appropriate, besides I love pine tree patterns in traditional quilts.

I sent the design to Linda along with the fabric and she paper pieced it together. It was laid out on a table at the wedding reception and everyone had a chance to add their names or comments to the top of the quilt. Now I am trying to get it quilted so we can give it to them on their anniversary. I may not get it done in time, but definitely by Christmas.

Here is the video of the second step in the quilting process. Stitch in the ditch. Enjoy

Stitch in the ditch–machine quilting

I made a spelling error in the captions and was unable to edit it. Forgive.

SAQA 2011 Benefit Auction

Tommy Fitzsimmons, Mirjam Pet-Jacobs,Judith Roderick,
Pat Kumicich, Marlis Egger, Gay Young Ousley,
Susan Christiansen, Patricia Gould

Studio Art Quilt Associates SAQA
2011 Benefit Auction
Start Date: September 12, 2011
2:00 p.m. Eastern/11:00 a.m. Pacific
Place: www.saqa.com
What: Reverse auction of 300 glorious small works of art created
and donated by SAQA’s members to raise money to support SAQA’s exhibition, education, and outreach programs.
Auction will be run in three groups:
Group 1 starts Sept. 12
Group 2 starts Sept. 19
Group 3 starts Sept. 26
Great art at a great price! Add to your collection — bid on a beautiful work of art as a gift for yourself or for someone you love.
Preview auction works at www.saqa.com

Design Wall Friday

This month while teaching in NC I got to meet so many interesting people who’s work I have admired.
Today I'd like to share with you my new friend Lesley Riley. She sent me a picture of one of her inspiration boards and this is what she has to say about it.

I'm a very visual person, so I like to surround myself with color and
ideas and, I'll be honest, work that I'd love to steal or copy! I figure
if I look at it long enough it will ooze into me and become the influence
that it's meant to be. I also put my own work (or photos of) up there for
these three reasons:
Reminders of big accomplishments
Work that I'd like to investigate more
Snippets of an idea I want to explore.
You'll find colors, shapes, and of course quotes and inspiration words of
wisdom that I need to remind myself of regularly.
One of the problems I have with an inspiration board is that over time,
things on it can become, what I refer to as, "part of the landscape." In
otherwords, you see it everyday so it no longer stands out. If there's
smomething on the board that doesn't leap out every time I look at it -
off it goes.
What remains, over time, form a part of my visual language. What is on
that board are ideas and/or symbols that truly speak to me. Using this
process of distillation,  it truly serves as an inspiration board because
it's something I can turn to again and again to uncover the work that lies
inside me.
Lesley
I really like her point of view and realize that I do many of the same things as far as surround myself with visual stimulation.
You can view more of Lesley’s work on her webpage at http://www.lesleyriley.com/

Prairie Grass–Design wall Friday

For the past three weeks I have been quilting these three panels. They will make their premier appearance at a show at the American Quilt Museum next month.

Prairie Grass 32” x 75”
artist hand dyed silk/cotton and cotton fabric.

Close up of quilting.
It is a shame the color is a bit washed out. They are more “luminous” in person.

Design wall Friday

These fabrics have been hanging on one of design walls for awhile. I LOVE these fabrics, but I really can’t stand to cut them. I haven’t figured out yet how I can use them.

Any suggestions?

 

Design Wall Friday–Denise Havlan

This Year's Vintage - 17" x 17"

DESIGN WALL

My design wall was designed and constructed by my husband, Jim.  It measures 90" tall by 70" wide. It is composed of four sheets of "pink panther" insulation

that are glued to a pvc structure allowing for the use of both sides.  The board is secured by being mounted on a stainless steel structure fabricated in my husband's shop that ensures it is at a very stable 90 degree angle to the floor when I am working on it.  And the best thing is it is on wheels!

I made a felt pillow case that covers the whole board. Grey on one side and black on the other.  Great for photography.  

Pulled away from the wall.

Showing the grey site with a quilt in progress

Up against the wall.  I can view the wall from 20 plus feet away.

That allows for really seeing how a composition is working.

A picture of the wheels.  This wall is mobile and stable all in one.

I love it!

Thanks Denise for sharing your wonderful work and design wall with us.

Design Wall Friday

My good friend Wendy Butlter Berns has sent along a few shots of what is new on her design wall.


Hi there,
here are a few small pieces I have been playing with.... still on the design wall.... !!
Poppy Pizzazz II and III are studies in playing with bolder fabric using my Poppy Pizzazz pattern.  I enjoy playing with commercial fabrics and both these pieces take the appliqued poppy and add it to a whole cloth background that is a fun large scale print.  Playing and experimenting is always so much fun to do!!!
Wendy Butler Berns    www.wendybutlerberns.com

Wendy Butler Berns
textile artist, teacher, lecturer
Lake Mills, WI  53551
(920) 648-7576
Look for my workshops and gallery-  http://www.wendybutlerberns.com
Vidcast of "Out on a Limb Exhibition" http://www.bonniemccaffery.com/vidcasts/057.html