Sunday Drive

Leaving the to-do lists on my desk, I took a ride "out in the country" as my mother would say, and took in this riot of signage at a farm store. Why it appeals, I think, is the relationship to fabric printing and choice of patterning. The apple doesn't fall far.
 

Fall Will Be Soon

It is time to sit down with my calendar and set dates for Fall classes. They won't be up for another week, but I've a request for "Columns" and another printing class. This is just a little paper collage, an exercise for Columns. There's so much useful direction I can use from it. You might as well.

 

Fiber Works

This is a small, maybe 6" diameter bowl that has an unusual crochet/knotted structure. Beyond the method of construction, it is just intricately cool. The inside holds some thorny apparatus making it non-functional. It was a crowd favorite at the Schweinfurth's Fiber exhibition. Take it in if you can.
 

On Its Feet

This might bore you, but it means that the 10 foot long shelving unit is up and rolling. Which means that soon I will be up and running as well. I've got to repair the walls,  make and hang design walls, and get moved in, but soon working in this space (instead of fixing it) will be the reality.
 

Summer's Best

Sunday was a trip to visit friend's who grow lots of things. Wheat, potatoes, grapes, apricots, and more. I was gifted a bouquet of gladiolas. Nothing more elegant than these. 
 

Try Try Again

I've inherited a 10' long shelving unit that I'd love to use. And I want to put it on wheels. Which I did, but with little success. So, back to the drawing board. I'm a few more weeks before I can start designing new work, but I think this is worth the effort to get thing righted.
 

Old Door, New Door

The new studio came with a garage door (though it is on the third floor) for access when it was a shop. The new door is installed, and the garage door is halfway disassembled. We managed to take down the rails and defunct opener. Now to fill the gaps with drywall. Progress is slow, but progressing.
 

Mid Week Art Center Visit

QBL makes sure that our plate is full. We've classes, banquets, auctions, lectures, demonstrations, a quilt show, raffles, and yes, an evening dedicated to seeing the exhibition now on view at the Schweinfurth Art Center. It's all about fiber, so very timely. Go visit, it's a thought provoking show.
 

One for Me, One from You

Through the printing week at QBL we chose to talk about a piece we'd made. Many dogs (decided so by the maker) were part of the morning's lineup. The final day we choose not just one of ours, but one from a classmate. What fun that was -- to see our work through other's eyes.
 

Yes, It Was That Much Fun

It was 5 days with 9 spunky women in 3 rooms and 8 colors (along with 20 lbs. of print paste) to make 100s of yards of printed fabric. In between all was fun, questioned looks, a few questionable lunches, and a mess of great printing. Thanks QBL class, may you print on!

 

Works in Progress

It goes without saying that printing is a layered process. One set of marks evokes a response from another, until that point is reached when the work says "I'm finished!". Only the maker knows. And if we could read behind that mask, we might have a good guess too.
 

Busman's Holiday

Quilting By The Lake is sponsored by the Schweinfurth Art Center. Our night out was a great dinner (off campus) and a tour of the Excellence in Fiber exhibition that was on view there. Ice cream for the way home. Go check it out, it'll fill your corners with fiber.
 

Tuesday's Progress

A lot of techniques are tried in the first two days of our week. Here is a grand monoprint embracing the repellant surface of the table's plastic. Each piece has pleasant surface design surprises, and we're only bound to find more.
 

Did You Say Color?

Robin Long is teaching a few doors away how to make a Mariner's Compass block quilt. She's got it all figured out for any size, and the finished work is pretty slick. Nice to visit her world here at Quilting By the Lake.
 

Hudson River Did You Say?

Although I've settled in at Quilting By the Lake, I'm looking ahead to my last eastern U.S. venue for this year. I've got a great class at Hudson River Valley Workshops set for August 7-13, 2022. It is delightful, and if you are looking for a class with  class, that's the spot. Printing, of course. I'll teach you all I know!
 

Aprons Away

It took way longer than I would have liked, but I did enjoy getting on the sewing machine to make this apron for the Quilting By the Lake Friday auction. Hard to see, but there are FOUR pockets, enough to make you look a lot for what you thought you had in your pocket. 
 

While I Was Busy

I spent most of yesterday hanging a new door on the studio. Why, don't ask. But I made a decided turn around the garden this morning to find this. I've edited out the weeds, and you see only the best of color. I'll take a cutting of some with me to Quilting By the Lake on Sunday, just as a reminder.
 

Scarves in the Queue

Silk scarves wait in line for me to finish them with a French seam and a bit of the iron. I've a few more to go, but I've put in a long day and am now crawling to bed. I'll sew tomorrow.
 

Available Light

There's a super super moon out tonight, but way too much cloud cover to see it. Which means you take what you are given. In this case, it is the residual energy collected from earlier and transferred to solar lights on my deck. I'll look for the moon tomorrow -- can't be that changed.
 

Before Packing

About midweek it comes time to get ready for next week at Quilting By the Lake. I want to take examples of printing for my workshop, as well as pieces to sell at Vendor Night. So, a bit of printing to do. I've made a few new soy wax screens and enjoy the variations I can make. Tuesday night the table will be full. 
 

Scarves Are Tricky

Before washout, colors look smashing. But that green one just went for a swim again in the soda soak. Yes, Sometimes the dogs are in silk, too. I'll tackle that tomorrow with additional images. For now, it is just too dull.
 

Mighty Wee Camera

To determine how to put a freestanding unit on wheels I had to know how the underneath was made. Short of tipping it over, I took my phone camera (is there anyother?) and recorded the space underneath. Ok, now I know what to do, and I'm on my way. Small studio progress.
 

Dye Pots

Visiting daughter has a handful of linen dresses she wanted to over dye. So, being the kind mom, I did. Then I realized what a pain it is to slosh around in the dye pots. Give me thickened dye anyday and I'd be happy. (And, I'll be wearing long pants to cover the splashes from said pots.)
 

Studio Beginnings

I've taken charge of the space for a studio. It's in need of work -- removing a garage door and replacing it with a "normal" door, cleaning, setting up work surfaces, and getting lighting. I'm thinking it may take till the fall to get this going, because I'll be teaching a bit. But you would like to see this just to know.
 

Scarf Support

My printed yards fit comfortably on a square of rigid foam for transporting after I print and sit there till they are ready to be washed. The scarves -- at 6 feet long -- have their own narrow board to fit their size. Makes life easy, and the pieces don't have to fight for a spot in the queue.
 

The Other Side of the Tracks

Tonight was a brilliant clear night, and one where I took advantage of the talent around. It was Tunes by the Tracks night and we sat in the cool air and listened to fabulous playing. What summer should be. 
 

On the Pin Board

Every Quilting By the Lake conference holds an Apron Auction. The aprons are sent out ahead, and faculty makes them to their liking. As this apron has a stain repellant coating, I can't print on it with my dyes, so I'll be piecing. I've got a week or so to get it done. Wish me luck!
 

They Show Up

I try to make generic pieces, ones that someone else can put their drawings to, but it must be that I am composing without thinking. I've a set of squares of linen that people who stitch like to use, and this one caught my attention. Almost enough to make a stitcher out of me!
 

Seeing Anew

 

As I was looking for tonight's photo, I came across these two images that were taken in sequence. How odd, the intensity of color, the breakdown of shapes, and the cacophony of parts. Part of spending time with another artist rubs off in the intensity of constant visual information to decipher. 

Workshop Lecturer

Ariane Zurcher talks to her online workshop via Zoom today, explaining what she did to make this monoprint. The linen is about 5' square. She explored every which way to print, and took on the techniques in a very different way. Studio returns to quiet tomorrow. Will miss her!
 

Mastering the Monoprint

Ariane Zurcher is working in my studio this week and has been monoprinting some large linen works at about 60" square. Here she is scraping color through after the first pull is a bit dryer. It's been fun to see a very different take on handling large monoprints. And she'll take this further in her own studio later.