Looking Out

Our house is empty.
A big truck took is on its way to Maryland with all our stuff. (We have too much stuff. Too much.) We're in a hotel here in Texas for a few more days and we'll hit the road on Monday morning.

We had an excellent time at the swim meet this morning.
Claire and Benjamin did awesome!
You have to keep kicking to keep moving. We're all kicking! (It's tiring.)

I wish I was there!

The Beneath the Surface show is opening today in Long Beach. I really wish I could be there to see the quilts and the artists in person! In the meantime, I am devouring the stunning catalog of the show.
Curators Jamie Fingal and Leslie Jenison worked with Loris Bogue to create this publication through Blurb (an amazing print-on-demand publishing website). You can order one too! They did a beautiful job. Every quilt is pictured on a two-page spread with the artist's Q&A on the facing page.

Here I am!

I am looking forward to seeing the show in Houston in November. I know lots of the BTS artists will be there. I am totally planning to bring my book and get everyone to sign their page.

Breakfast

I made crepes for breakfast this morning. So good! Claire had a friend spend the night, so it's especially fun to have a special breakfast. (Plus, I had all the ingredients and they need to get used up!)

I was inspired by Ashley's and I also wondered why I don't make crepes more often. So easy and full of potential for breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert. (If only I had some nutella.)
This one was too big to wrap up. It had to be eaten with a fork. Still delicious.
My grocery shopping, cooking and kitchen routines have become quite boring of late. I'm going to start fresh in our new home!

Alighting

shot outside the City Museum when we were visiting family in early July

I'm in the midst of packing, organizing and planning. I'm trying to take short moments to breathe. To look ahead and to look back.

We're planning lots of get-togethers with friends. Last meals together and quick book-club meetings before we leave Texas. Why do we wait until it's almost too late to spend quality time with friends?

I set aside a gift card I knew I needed to spend before we moved. I remember putting it in a safe place. Grrrr. Can't find it.

The Twelves have been going over the laser proofs of our book that will be published in the Spring. It looks so fantastic! All 144 quilts are beautifully photographed and presented. The written content that goes along with them is so interesting, thoughtful, honest and inspiring. I am very thankful that my connection to this fabulous group won't change, no matter where I live.

We're trying to eat all the random stuff in the frig and freezer. Last night was frozen talapia which was yummy. The rest of the week is not looking so good. Even though we'll be out of this house soon and in a hotel for a few days, I still need to buy more milk, cereal and bananas.

Claire played in a soccer tournament this past weekend. I think it got up to 104 degrees. That I will not miss. The fellowship and fun with families on the sidelines: that I will miss.

Painting

I have a wonderful little local group of arty friends. Truly wonderful. Three of us are moving in the next few months. Grumble. It's so hard to part ways. To ease the pain a bit, we decided to take a private workshop with local artist Margie Woods Brown.

It was a wonderful celebration of our friendship, creativity, time and art.

Margie's studio space is beautiful...

Little shrines here and there.
Smiling faces!
Getting messy.
Inspiring direction from Margie.
Choices!
I love this sink and art vignette.
Here are the pieces I created.
As we were creating, I was really aware of the colors, patterns, layers and motifs I was using. I can totally imagine using some of them in my fiber art.

I was also absorbing the pleasure of time with my friends. A blessing.

Fireworks

For the past few years, we've been traveling on the 4th of July so we've missed traditional neighborhood celebrations. This year, we visited Grma and Grpa in Illinois and stopped by a roadside fireworks stand. Benjamin was beside himself. Since fireworks of this sort are not legal in Texas, it was a new experience.

We totally got sucked into the pricey combo pack and some additional little items.
Here are Jeff and Uncle Bill preparing for the show. Notice the bucket (waste basket) of water in the background. Safety first!
All the family, plus a couple of wandering neighborhood kids. The more the merrier!
We started with sparklers!
It was a beautiful evening. Great fun.
I think backyard fireworks shows can be more fun than super-sized public displays. We laughed as the small tanks battled, grumbled when various items just popped rather than doing anything interesting and were easily impressed by fountains that included more than one color sparks!

Beachy!

We spent a week in Maryland looking for a home to rent and generally absorbing what it will be like to live in a new place. We're very excited. We took a day trip to Ocean Spring, Maryland -- a quintessential beach town with board walk, sand, waves, funnel cakes, and big fun!

We all enjoy miniature golf. I won.
Benjamin was very serious.
I created a little shell mosaic on the beach.

Benjamin had so much fun playing in the waves.
Claire loves digging in the sand.
I just love taking it all in.
This place was crazy! You never know where you'll find "art."

SAQA Auction

As I was contemplating what to donate for the Studio Art Quilt Associates Square Foot auction, I knew I wanted to send something that felt like a full expression of my current style. (It's always changing, right?) After finishing Spontaneity and Stability, I decided to return to some of those same motifs.

Here is Possibilities.
SAQA is an excellent organization. It has been a wonderful resource for me and I am thrilled to support it with this donation.

The auction has a very unique format. Quilts in my section will be up for auction beginning on October 4 for $750. By October 9, the price goes down to $75. For the full run down of ddates and prices, check this out.

There are two other sections of quilts. Their auction periods begin Sept 20 and Sept 27. Last year's auction raised $47,325. It's an excellent opportunity to own a piece of original fiber art from and established professional or an emerging artists. Plus, support an organization that supports the arts!

It's an amazing collection. Quite inspiring. I'll be compiling my wish list.

12x12 Reveal Day!

Today is reveal day for the "purple and yellow" challenge on the Twelve by Twelve Art Quilt Collaborative blog. Here is my contribution. It's titled Culmination.


Be sure to check out the blog to see the other 11 art quilts. Each is so amazing in its own way. This is the sixteenth challenge we have completed together. One of my favorite things is scrolling down the blog on reveal day and seeing if I can tell who made each quilt before reading the name of the author of the post. At this point, even when one of us does something a bit unusual, I can usually still make a good guess.

I'm not sure there is a greater complement than being able to recognize a person's art. Plus, I feel so blessed that each of the other Twelves recognize, support and appreciate my art.