Acceptance

is a wonderful thing. I just received notice that my entry was juried into a SAQA regional show - one of 38. It is a great feeling to be chosen for an exhibit. But, and isn't there always a but, reality means that I still have to get up and do the work needed to make more art to enter into more exhibits. This is what I love to do -- make the art. I am reminded of an interview with a pitcher who had pitched a perfect game the day before and said it was wonderful, but he had to get up and pitch again in the rotation - the perfect game was a very nice stat but did not change his 'job'. My job is to make more art, whether my quilt was accepted or not.

Rejections bruise and need to kept in perspective - they are not value judgments, just the choice of that particular jury. It is hard when we receive no feedback on the why. We cannot dwell on the possibilities. We need to get back into the rotation.

My quilt (that cannot be posted until after the exhibit) that was accepted taught me a lot in its making. First of all, I wasn't immediately drawn to the theme - Tarnish. It just felt hard, and winter is hard enough. After our regional meeting, I decided to give it a try with my own interpretation of Tarnish and in a shorter time frame. I asked for some feedback from some friends - some loved it and encouraged me - a couple had too many suggestions on how I 'should' do it. Both gave me things to ponder and made me stretch to create what was in my mind. Daily work brought me to the solutions I wanted to finish the piece. And I truly feel it is one of my best.

The exhibit will run from May 2 through June 1 at VisArts Kaplan Gallery, 155 Gibbs St, Rockville, MD 20850.

Phone:(301) 315-8200

 

Exciting stuff -- now it's time to get to work on the next right thing. Thanks for reading,

Karen

Oops

I don't know what happened in the previous post. It sorta ends mid-sentence and would not let me edit past a certain point. Ah, technology.

Here's the next part of my dyeing experiments. First, it's nice to know that the dyeing process works with the room temps below 65 degrees. The temps outside are way cold.

I played with arashi shibori as outlined in Elizabeth Barton's online class, Dyeing to Design. I used three different sized pipes. I like the results and how easy this was to do.

I hope to make something with these as soon as I finish a piece for the SAQA exhibit.

Stay warm and cozy if you are surrounded by cold and snow. I'll try not to be jealous of people in warmer climates. Keep creating from your heart. Karen

The snow is over,

at least for a couple days. Our total was about 12", more than enough to need attention. The sun came out brightly and helped melt a bit where the plow guy had salted, so my car is ready to go.

I spend my snow days dyeing more fabric. Some pieces I hope to use in a quilt for a SAQA regional exhibit - they turned out close to what I wanted but will work. Then I took advantage of all this snow to try snow dyeing. Here's the set up. I piled the snow on and packed it down, then poured the dye concentrate on the snow and waited.

Here's the result, folded in half to show different parts.

It's okay. I definitely need to play more with this. I feel more confident with the ice dyeing technique. I've done more of that and feel I can control the colors more. I will think about

58 days til spring

and it's snowing AGAIN! Yes, it's pretty, but ... old.

I am ready to do some snow dyeing later today after some more snow falls. I have been participating in Elizabeth Barton's class, Dyeing to Design, through Academy of Quilting. I have seven bottles of dye already mixed and have been dyeing some fabrics for a new piece. Elizabeth says that dyes will keep in the fridge for a long time. That has not been my experience, but I am willing to give it a try during this class. It is handy to have the dyes ready when you are ready.

The first lesson in this class was about value. We dyed an eight step gradation of black and then were to make a small quilt using just those fabrics. Here is my gradation (made from a mix of three black dyes - I did not have enough of any one black).

And here's the quilt I made from the gradation. I like it, but may add some more paint on the heron. It's about 10" x 18".

 

I hope you are staying warm and cozy in this crazy weather, as someone on another blog referred to it as "overzealous" weather. Karen

Two posts in one day !!

Tonight was the opening of the Patches and Patterns exhibit at our local arts council. It is an exhibit of quilts mostly from the women who worked on the barn quilt project. The opening was well attended and I sold a quilt. Hooray! one of my followers came and loved a small piece. They are such generous and kind people. So, A New Beginning will have a new home after the exhibit.

Thanks for good friends and people who like our art. Karen

Ah, a new year

Okay, so I am a bit late here on the 9th. I hope your new year will bring you happiness and great creativity.

I'm not one for making resolutions, but I like the idea of having a word or a phrase as a theme for the year. I have bounced around many options -- lighten up, bloom, listen, explore, Yes!, clarity, grow. The one phrase that keeps coming up in my morning pages is "live out loud". It fits. It can have many meanings and can change during the year. Right now, it's about being true to who I am, doing what work calls to me, living fully and especially getting out from under that bushel basket. Time to let the world get to know me better. That is, right after I get to know me better.

Abigail and I started the new year together. We played all day on NYEve, going to the Visionary Arts Museum, having a very yummy lunch at our favorite Paper Moon Diner, having dinner at the monastery (where everyone was so pleased to see her), stopping at her home to see Mom and Dad (their request), then home to get warm and cozy and watch a DVD. The Paper Moon is a funky diner in Baltimore with a great menu. The exterior and interior are decorated with all sorts of stuff hanging from the ceiling, glued down to the walls, stuck on every inch of available surface. Here's the outside, notice the flower containers.

And here's the ceiling:

In the midst of our fun, we also shopped for a pattern for her prom dress so she could make a 'practice dress' of muslin. We had to improvise a bit since no one pattern met her idea. Abigail did most of the work - it's been a while since she used the sewing machine, but we skipped the zipper.

I think she will be the belle of the ball!

On another front, I just started an on-line class, Dyeing to Design, with Elizabeth Barton through the Academy of Quilting (they have filled the void since QU closed). The first lesson included dyeing a 8-step gradation of black. It was a challenge to keep the dyeing pots warm as we were in the grip of the Polar Vortex - my apartment never got above 64 degrees. The gradation looks good. I  like the mottled effect.

A funny note: we've had a good bit of snow in the past month, just perfect for some snow dyeing which totally slipped my mind until all the snow had melted. Maybe if we get more snow, not that I want that. Enough is enough for me.

With the Vortex gone, I did get out yesterday and today to walk. After those single digit temps, 26 degrees was a piece of cake.

Enough for today. I hope to blog more, I'll try. Thanks for sticking with me. I just wish there was a blog site that could read my mind in the shower.

Did you make any resolutions? Do you choose a word for the year? Share if you like. Stay warm and safe,  Karen