Well, as usual life is crazy busy, but good! I can't complain. Let me see all sorts of things to fill you in on. This year at our Quilter's Affair - a week of classes and lectures that we put on before our annual Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show - we are lucky enough to have some of the ladies from Gee's Bend. SO EXCITED!!!! If you have not heard of or seen any Gee's Bend quilts take a second to check them out. Their composition and color choices are beautiful.....very inspiring and freeing. Since they are coming to the show we have decided to do our employee challenge based on the inspiration of Gee's Bend. Every year we do employee challenge quilts that have a theme and then are hung on the side of the shop on Quilt Show day......the firemen hang them up for us. Anyway, mom has been giving mini lecture and technique classes based on Gee's Bend. Last week I shot some photos of the little class - I even started a piece....I am not sure I will be able to get it done for the show. I don't think I have completed a challenge quilt in years. I always have good intentions then market comes and getting ready for the show.....ok totally rambleing.......let's see some photos.
The little lecture - our staff is so attentive!
Quilts......
Inspiration.......
Sewing a gentle curve......
After a few curves and some pressing this is what she had.....I did crop off the edges - you have to square these things up. 
For those of you who remember this is mom's New York quilt - I think she calls it City Scape - it has a lot of the same sort of piecing. I am excited to see what the staff is going to come up with. A lot of them are using what they have - old shirts, jeans, etc. I am going for the solids and a bit of a print and working on the technique rather than using something old. That is what is so cool about our challenges and having such a variety of people at the shop - everyone interprets things a little bit different....I will keep you posted.
Now for other news........
Most people in Sisters just think of me as someone who quilts, some of them know me as someone who designs fabric and there are few that know I do other art but not many. I am excited to have my first show with my photography and paintings.......our athletic club is a great space to show and there is a lot of traffic......I am interested to see what happens and what the response is....a bit nervous also! I haven't put myself out there in this fashion before........good for me to take a risk and step outside of my box!
Anyway, if anyone is in town come on by......
As far as the studio is concerned there is a huge mess of Del Hi fabric all over - gotta love the creative juices.....one quilt is done and three or four more to come! Not too sure how many I am going to do. Then I just finished three new paintings for flannel for this fall, I finished 5 paintings for the show next week all with birds - I have been a little obssessed with birds........and.....and.....oh yeah - got a wild hair and decided that in the mix of this I wanted to make a dress out of the new fabric for the Show next week.....I took one of my dressed that I liked and made a muslin pattern out of it - suprised myself it worked! Just a few minor adjustments and am going to cut the real thing......God I hope it looks good when all is said and done. Ok....I will go for now and once I get the camera unburied from the fabric I will get some photos.....
Have a great day!
Valori