Dreaming

It seems a barrier has been crossed. This week I had several vivid dreams of projects I want to do. One is a quilt series. Another was the beginning of a story, made even more incredible by the fact that it is in a genre that I have never considered working in before. Altogether, the fact that I am dreaming vividly and remembering the dreams is a reminder that I have attained access to an area of creativity that had been out of reach for a while.

Another thing I was able to do this week was go through a few of the items in my studio to weed out some of the things I will no longer use or which no longer interest me. The journey I have been making towards discerning my direction really helped with that, as I found it much simpler to distinguish whether or not something would help me towards my goals.

On another note, according to a report I heard today, the weather is five weeks ahead of schedule. The birds are all in spring plumage. I was lucky enough to catch one of the grackles in his glory this last week.

We have also been visited by cardinals, robins, sparrows, black-capped chickadees, and a red-winged blackbird, among others. Simultaneously, the apricots, forsythias, daffodils, and hyacinths are blooming, and the lilacs are beginning to set their flowers. It is all quite amazing, if rather scary, especially in light of the fact that the southwest and west are currently experiencing winter weather and heavy snow storms.

It has given me much to think about and will, undoubtedly, be incorporated into my artwork, at some point. For now, I am still slowly moving towards greater productivity and enjoying the creative process.

Until next time, I will you peace and all good.

Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative Donation

Since it may take a while for the photo of my quilt donation to AAQI to be uploaded, I am putting a picture up. You can find the rest of the information about it at http://www.alzquilts.org/9583.html

Please let me know what you think.

Contemplating Direction

I went to another quilt show this weekend. At this one, they had raffle baskets, which is something I had never seen before. Each "basket" was themed and filled with items associated with the theme. Since there was quite a bit of interest, I suspect it is a good fundraiser for them. You can see more about their show and philanthropic work at their website: Pride of the Prairie Quilters.

To my surprise, I won one of the baskets. The theme was gardens and these are some of the things included.

Earlier in the week, I had the pleasure of seeing John Flynn present his trunk show at the local guild to which I belong. You can find out more about his work at Flynn Quilt Frame Company. His dry humor reminded me of one of my brothers, which made the presentation even more enjoyable. In addition, his quilts are impressive and inspirational.

I am finding it especially good to have the opportunity to view so many different kinds of quilts and styles. The Salt Creek Guild show always has a lot of art quilts. The Pride of the Prairie show seemed more focused on traditional quilts, with a lot of emphasis on reproduction fabrics. John Flynn's quilts, though traditional patterns, often have a twist to them that makes them just a little different.

Altogether, between the quilt shows, guild show & tell, trunk shows, and raffles, I am looking more closely at my own preferences in quilts and art, which I am sure will translate into new directions for my own artwork. Another thing that is affecting my direction is the weather and my concern for the environment. Though I live in what is called "Zone 5" by gardeners, we have been experiencing the warmth of May instead of the chill of late winter or early spring. Our daffodils are beginning to come up and our lilac bushes are beginning to bud. (By my recollections, this puts them about a month ahead of schedule.) I am caught by the fear that the weather will suddenly turn and freeze the young plants, we are in for more extreme weather (as in the tornadoes that devastated the country in the last couple of weeks), or that we will experience an extremely hot year. It also brings to mind questions about how we humans are influencing the weather and what can be done to reverse the damage we have done. All of this, no doubt, will continue to have an impact on my work.

I wish you good weather, enjoyable work, peace, and all good.

Inspiration

I had the opportunity to go to the Salt Creek Quilters Guild show this last weekend.

The wall hangings and miniature quilts were especially inspiring this year. There was also a hint of serendipity in the fact that one of the classes some of their members took resulted in quilts that suggested a different direction for the quilt I've been planning from my last Sketchbook Challenge piece. Now, I just have to work out some technical issues to get it to look like my vision.

One of the quilters whose work I consistently look for at this show is Denise Havlan. You can find her website here: Denise Tallon Havlan. Her work is always inspirational and stunning. She was showing this and this.

My priority quilt has been sent off to the AAQI. You can find the information here: Scattered Violets. (If the link does not connect to the quilt info, search for the title "Scattered Violets.")

Until next time, I wish you good weather, peace and all good.

Change & Pathways

I worked with some of these this week, designing a pattern, cutting the pieces, drafting the steps:

Slowly, things are coming together, and I am feeling as if I am on the right path.  There is much more work to be done, not only with this pattern, but also in filling out the details of this new life I am living. I've made some progress with that, too.

I am constantly being reminded that nothing stays the same, however. My youngest child is talking about leaving the nest, which will, of course, bring significant changes to my life. He is not only the youngest, he is the last child at home. Over the years, I have learned to communicate with these adults who just happen to be my children, but having them in close proximity is something I miss when they are no longer under my roof. Fortunately, they do continue to communicate and share their lives with me.

My daughter, who, as I've mentioned before, is also an artist, is teaching some classes over the next few months. If you are in her area, I invite you to check them out.  You can find out more about them here:
Fly'n Gypsy Arts & Graphics: Upcoming Classes at Expressions Graphics in Oak Park and the Elk Grove Village Park District: Fly’n Gypsy Arts & Graphics™

Until next time, I wish you peace and all good.

Progress

I had a breakthrough last week that has resulted in a wave of new creative work. It resulted in my being able to finish the Priority Quilt, cut templates for a product, and choose an idea to work on for the Sketchbook Challenge. What happened is that I finally have a schedule worked out that gives me solid time in the studio, as well as time to do all the other necessary things to maintain a business.

The fact that it took me six months from the time I retired from the day job to get to this point made me realize that I needed to learn to live with my altered day-to-day existence before I could make these decisions. It is a reminder of the reasons I have been drawn to the slow-cloth movement. We tend to want everything to happen immediately in our society, but sometimes the best way is to let things move slowly.

This, too, was evident as I was working on the Priority Quilt. Since it is a piece I made with my beloved mother-in-law in mind, I found it quite difficult to work on for too long at a time. The emotional drain was too much. Once I accepted that fact, it became easier to do what I could, as I could, and accept the need to walk away without completing it more quickly.

I am just beginning to explore some of the areas that will make a difference in the scope of my business, as well as the great variety of techniques available to me as an artist. It is my hope that the insights I gained in the last week provide me with new ways to look at the decisions necessary ahead.

Since I want to wait to show the Priority Quilt until after I've made arrangements with AAQI, I don't have that picture for you, but thought you might enjoy this "conversation."

Until next time, I wish you peace and all good.

Creativity

After a minor rearrangement of furniture in my studio, I started quilting the piece I am making for the Alzheimers Art Quilt Initiative. It is going well, but somewhat slowly since I am free-motion quilting and deciding on direction as I go along. In addition to thinking about the images themselves, I have been thinking about my mother-in-law, whose struggle with dementia was the catalyst for my desire to help this cause. I hope to bring some of her personality and inner beauty to the piece.

Since I am not quite ready to share the quilt, I thought I'd show you the nerve centers of my sewing studio . . .

and the wet studio. 

I am fortunate enough to have two areas to devote to my work, and yes, they are both rather chaotic. It seems that no sooner do I clean them up than I am spreading out more materials, so they never stay completely organized for long.

Until next time, I wish you happy creativity, peace & all good.