Hello How you doin?

I haven't blogged in a long time.  I didn't feel like I had anything to say or I may have had things to say, I mean who doesn't? But I may not have felt like writing it down.  I've continued to quilt and be busy with fiber, and think I may have something to write about next year.
 Let's overview the last year shall we? In the last part of 2014 I spent 11 days in the Hospital and    spent most of 2015 recovering my energy and stamina.  Everybody has their own "Box of Rocks" and  I kinda feel like I've spent this last year trying to beat my Rocks into gravel, trying to my make my troubles smaller and more manageable.
Don't get me wrong, its been pretty awesome. Many of my friends really stepped up and provided so much support. I was kinda forced to take time for me,  the last few years I've been helping my elderly mother, and I liked it. I took classes, taught classes, took sewing trips, and even went to Quilt Con 2015.  I even took my Trunk Show on the road and spoke at a couple Guilds.
I taught a bunch of classes and made a bunch of quilts. I dined, I danced, I laughed out loud. I even bought a swim suit. Details aren't that relevant, I feel somewhat renewed and although I have a ton of work still left to do to get my health back where it should be, I'm up for the challenge.
Lots of people blog for profit, from the topics, to the links and even the fabric used, all are set up to make money, or were gifted or sponsored.  Most people who blog for fun or as an open sort of diary have pretty much quit, Instagram is so much easier. Lately, I have found IG  limiting in some ways and decided I may start blogging again.
I'm not in marketing or trying to generate buzz to sell product or patterns, I'm not judging those who do, its just not what I'm doing.  What I do is leverage my artistic skills to make Utility Quilts. I'll be writing about me and what I'm making.  I expect this next year to be productive.  So mostly it will be about the finishes and maybe a bit of Process thrown in but I would expect the majority of that to be over on Instagram.  Join me over there to comment and watch the day to day action.

Above is  my quilt The Dishes Can Wait, it won 2nd in the Applique Category at Quilt Con 2015. The photo above is from the Premier issue of Simply Modern, I was pretty excited. It was one of 4 quilts accepted into the show.

 

I'm a Hexin' Beast!!

Well, here it is my first finish for 2014. Its been about 4 years in the making. It's been waiting for me to grow my skills and decide how I wanted to communicate.

 

  About 4 years ago I started Hexing.The woman who taught me, her work looked terrible so I needed to figure it out. I didn't want the stitches to show in the front and I wanted to be able to take the papers out, but leave the basting in for more shape while in the "being made" stage.  I got a hole punch and punched all my papers, then I basted on the back side only. In the "Joining" stage I ladder stitched with the WRONG sides together. When I open them up, the stitches are covered and I've sewn the back edges together not the front edges.

I opted to make "Lumps". When I think about my Grandmother, I don't think of a silver haired Granny, baking cookies and wearing an apron. In the 30's, she was a pants wearing, art school attending, super athletic dynamo.  She was so cool! She traveled everywhere, she was in Cuba in 1969. She had a bright red floating fireplace in her living room. She made jewelery. She worked at a job, with her own office.  I used to look thru her phone book when I was young, looking to see who was in there.  I'm not sure why, but one day I discovered the home number of Bob Hope. 
So when I look at Grandmother Flower Garden quilts, with their sweet wholesome girlish charm, I don't see my Maxine. I mean, how cool a name is that? After I made a bunch of lumps, I kinda knew I wanted to make a quilt that spoke to those GMFG quilts. Something about my own Grandmother.
 It's always been sitting back in my mind. "Maxine's Quilt" Maxine's Quilt" 
This last summer I figured it out. I made a hex top. A low volume, whole and pieced , hex by machine top.

 Then I just machine appliqued the lumps on the top before quilting the background.

Above you can see I used a kind of flower pattern that also looks very topographical. You can also see that I've sewn around the edge of the lump but not in the middle around each hex. Are you thinking this is a problem? I am and I don't have a solve for it at this point in the process.  So....

After it comes off the quilter, I really have to come to grips with the the fact that this won't wash well.
I don't like the puff of the hexes, its uneven and where the lumps are 3 rows thick, I don't think it will wear well.
Having a Bernina is kinda awesome. I have a 440QE and I love it.  I have a Binder that I bind all my quilts with and a ruffler for making clothes. Nothing - but NOTHING- buttonholes like a Bernina. There is a sweet foot that will hold a button and then a stitch that sews a button to the garment.  Below you can see the "in progress" shot.

 

I put 1, 2, or 3 button stitches in each hex. I really like how it turned out. I feel like it will wash well, I like the "cracker" quality to the hexes that the tacking provides and the tactile quality to the different quilting treatments meets my goal.  The back is a solid pale yellow flannel I had in my stash. the very last piece.  It may have taken 4 years but I'm in no hurry.  It's a WIP off my list and a finish worthy of being this years first.

Quilters Rock!

Quilting Happiness: The Web Site

My story about volunteering  at the CCC is up over at Quilting Happiness.

If you have a chance to check out the web site, with not only stories but quizzes and helpful data to get your creativity flowing.  Are you getting what you want/need from your making? The web site will have projects and inspiration to create a more Joyful making experience.

I just love the idea of this book.

Sticks and Stones

"The details are not the details. They make the design."  - Charles Eames
"Art resides in the process of doing, process is not magic" - Charles Eames
"The real questions are:
Does it solve a problem?
Is it serviceable?
How is it going to look in 10 years?" Charles Eames

These quotes are what this quilt is about. I mean, sure, it's about all kinds of things, but mostly and intentionally, its about Design and Craftsmanship.

The background is Linen, so that it will have a long life, and provide a nice contrast to the cotton applique.
Its all turned appliqué so it wont fray. It's not fused, after all a quilt is for cuddling, for using.
The back is a great modern print from Ikea.
We recently welcomed the first grandchild into our family and this is the quilt I made while we waited for the child.  Clearly, its for a little girl, a modern little girl, a wee little me.  But no, my stepdaughter had a boy, with a green and yellow frog theme for the nursery.   They're expressing a different vision for him,  one that I'll interpret into a quilt for them and the baby. 

This quilt is designed to go into the washer and the dryer. Its all machine made.

 
It will hold up to the toughest cuddler. It's quilted with 2 patterns that will give contrasting touch and a good hand after repeated washing. In the quilting, I try and focus on creating a sense of intention and  I go for a more painterly quality, less uniformity. I want the quilt to be usable and comfy, not stiff or precious like a show quilt. 

Binding is low contrast and from a distance will not distract from the center, but up close it's a color coordinated stripe from Lizzy House.

This quilt is also really an homage to Eames. From the design, to the making, to the finishing. 
It's machine made. Machine quilted. Machine finished.

 After years of a dedicated focus on quilting, what it means to me, how I want to add to the legacy, and how I hope to have my work interpreted, I finally feel like Im starting to more closely hit my mark. My choices are purposeful, and intentional as part of the design.

 If your visiting my blog for the first time after seeing this quilt at Sisters Quilt Show. I hope you'll follow me here or over at Instagram or Flickr. If your interested in seeing whats going on, WIPS, Studio shots, etc.. Instagram is where I spend the most time.
Quilters Rock!

What I'm working on today

What I'm working on today, a photo by Rachel @ 2nd Avenue Studio on Flickr.

Im loving all this color. It's got zip, zing, pow!
Ive just thrown the blocks up on the design wall and Im working away. Some may have to be edited out (sorry henna garden, I love you but maybe not for this project), but over all I'm excited to see where this goes.
Quilters Rock!

Wordless WIP Wednesday

Wordless WIP Wednesday, a photo by Rachel @ 2nd Avenue Studio on Flickr.

So sweet!

Quilt, a photo by cupcakes photos on Flickr.

Cupcake Photos took pics of my quilt hanging at MD that show off the quilting really well.
Finally a non blurry photo!
Super flattering that someone felt the love enough to post pics....
squee!