Presenting Myself for the Arts?

 Hi...It has been a very long time since I stopped by.  I have had an abundance of good, sad, and misunderstood occurrences since the last I wrote. So many beloved people in my family have died. They go on to be with the LORD but the space is heavy without them.  It is difficult to really explain because, their space is still being filled by the memories, however I know new memories or expanded ones will never be again.

This year I have been unmotivated. I try to find peace in my handwork but duties loom  in the background. Yet I lack the desire to quiet the demands by my performance, therefore they stand in piles throughout my home and my mind.

Next week, I have an obligation/opportunity to share some of my handwork at the Firehouse Gallery. I have chosen 3 pieces to take and speak briefly on. I have on good authority,(Trevor and Lucy) I should open with a funny antidote of how my quilting journey began. I also want to elaborate on the source of my inspirations. I have never condensed it before but I have a thought pattern I have recently unveiled.

The first piece is the tree that is in a previous post . A spark from the poetry of my youth William Cullen Bryant,  viewed trees as silent, sacred, majestic vaulted arches of worship. Walt Whitman penned God- built eternal monuments.

The second tree, also inspired from the Book. The Bible tells the account in John 1:45-49 the calling of Nathaniel. He asked Jesus,"Whence Knowest Thou me?" Jesus replied,"Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee."  

And for the third and final piece I will be taking, the garden quilt..Spiral Bound Garden also in a previous post.

Onward and Upward in the Garden by Katherine White was the inspiration for this quilt. It is a page from my imaginary garden journal. In past years seed catalogs were well written prose about each variety of seed from flower to vegetable to trees. The descriptions were vivid and often had antidotes as well.

So this is my planned presentation, if I can keep my nerve and my hands from shaking I will feel  excited and in some way happy.

The Aura of Sewing

 

Each time I run across a note book I have written in previously, then abandoned, I chuckle and sigh. I had hoped to keep a running list of all my endeavors with needle, thread, and yarn; however, I just forget.

Today I am planning/working on a peacock quilt. The idea has been prancing around in my mind in full bloom but never with the fabric and method decided. I have taken the first tangible step by roughly drawing the body and head onto my fabric. Now to decide-- how big should the quilt be? Shall I reverse appliqué or thread paint or both? 

All this to say I went down another avenue today but it was not a diversion.  I think I have accomplished something that will help me to focus in my creative mediums. Call it my muse but I will call it my Mother.

My Mother slipped quietly away in the early hours of November 2, 2021. It was strange--I anticipated it...knew it would happen. Yet when I went to poplar Bluff to curl her hair one last time, seeing her lying on the table sleeping, but not, it made no sense.  98years old but sudden. She was always and then she was not.

I went to my flower garden and brought in a resin statue, an Angel with her little Cherub, my Dad had given to me many years ago. She held a lantern which has rusted away, so replaced it with a colorful sewing machine ornament and placed it in a prominent spot in my sewing room. The Angel is now my Mother, my muse, my encouragement.

Mom was an accomplished seamstress among many other talents and abilities, I did not sit at her feet nearly enough as child to learn the finer art of sewing and tailoring garments but we spent many hours together making quilts. She passed the enjoyment and love of sewing to me along with the basic knowledge that if I wanted something, I could make it. The statue is from my Dad and the essence is from my Mom. Thank you both.

Peace Rose

I have a long story about a Peace Rose that I won't get into right now. Suffice to say I had a beautiful rose bush that produced a dozen dinner plate size roses each season.  It did not survive one winter and  I mourned. When I planted it..it was the LORD's rose bush, His Peace. I  finally found another bush, planted it, and hoped it would survive.  It produces average size roses every season but this last fall suddenly this beauty appeared. I pray it is significant of GOD's Peace flourishing.

MatchSticks

A Very simple yet ,"striking" little quilt. I enjoyed piecing and quilting with the solid fabrics. Not something I do very often but I may just have to re-think solids, All the while making this quilt I kept singing in my mind..."Pictures of matchstick men and you.....

Star Table topper

I started this little quilt in 2006!  Another reminder that I have improved a little in piecing over the years. That is just fine, it is finished.  Last week it was in the "what the  the heck is this?" box. Now it is getting its picture taken, posted on the world wide web and meeting Chiffon's approval. Reclaimed Star....October 2017

PPP

The PPP Whole Cloth

Practice, Practice, Practice; then Enjoy!

I finally took the time to put a solid white quilt sandwich on my machine and just play. I spent about 12 hours stitching random designs to practice and get familiar with my machine. I started to call the quilt.."My Way" because, well; mistakes, I made a few. After I put the binding on and took few steps back I was pleased with the result. I think Chiffon is as well. She rolled and scratched, picked out her spot on a large feather motif and went to sleep. I call that a success, because after all that is why I make quilts.  September 24, 2017

The Sheep is in the Meadow.....

And so it begins......Years ago after I started quilting, I saw some penny rugs made from wool. I boldly proclaimed, "I would never be interested in doing that!".  A very few years later my daughter took me to a quilt shop in Liberty Missouri where I bought, "Just a few fat quarters of wool.". I made a couple of pincushions and that was enough.  I recently was looking for a pattern for a toy for my granddaughter and ran across an Etsy shop..gingermelon. She had the cutest felt doll and animal patterns........                                                                                   
                                                                                                  The wool adventure began again. I later found the pattern for "sheep in the sunflowers" on Etsy as well, at cheswick company. Needles(s) to say I was interested and now I am looking at penny rugs in a whole new way.  However, I should have seen this coming; I said I would never be interested in quilting, several fat quarters ago.

Quick Quilts!!!

Normally I do not buy quilt kits or panels, however I enjoyed constructing these quilts from kits featuring beautiful panels.  First, "Greeting the Moon" is stunning and artistic. I love the asymmetry and  romance of the panel and general feel of the quilt. It was a must for me as it stirred my spirit.

The next two quilts are Christmas fare. "Sleigh Ride" conveys the Victorian era with a sense they are out for neighborly visits after church, in the snow.  One can almost hear the sleigh bells along with the gaiety  and excitement in their voices.

The bottom quilt is one of my favorites because of the beautiful Cardinals, my favorite bird, being St. Louis born.  I have heard when you see a cardinal in your yard it is a visit from heaven, for me this true.  My dad, the ultimate Cardinal fan, watches the games from a heavenly bird's eye view but I am quite sure he has his ear tuned to KMOX radio. There is a little quip that goes... Little boy cardinal to father..."Dad, what's a losing season?" Dad wisely replies," I don't know, son, we're cardinals."  This quit is a big hit with me.

The quilts were fairly quick to piece and the two Christmas quilts had similar construction with the panel borders and square in a square technique. The Cardinal Rule also has mitered corners..very effective. All kits are available at my favorite quilt shop, stitch-n-frame.net   Perhaps one of these quilts will evoke fond memories and emotions for you.

Christmas in July Updated....

Some of the finished Christmas in July projects....