Close ups

 Thought I would show you some close ups of the

quilts I have worked on this winter. Sometimes

closer up is just as interesting as the whole.

 Vines and berries. Pine trees and sky.

 Hills and catalpa trees.

 The bright red of sumac.

A duck reflected in the water.

Life is just a bunch of close ups.

Started the big art quilt.

I finally started putting fabric on the 5 panels of

the big quilt. Taking photos help me see where

to go with a quilt. This is just the background I will

be making lots of changes in the elevations. The horizon

needs to dip and flow and the far tree line is too dark.

Well it is a start. Looks like quite a daunting

task. Thinking maybe I was a little ambitious

but than nothing ventured nothing gained.

It will be a nice landscape quilt when I am done.

Today is taken up with Doc appointments.

Eyes and than a mammogram, next week the dentist.

Got behind in my yearly exams.

Looking forward to finishing this quilt.



Minnesota Green

I could get used to this.

Today we will start exploring the area.

Well rested and raring to go.

This is an unusual experience for me.

Spending 30 days with my husband and
being mellow. The next cabin(big house) over
is a native and he has agreed to let me go
there to take some photos of his farm where
he grew up.  Looking forward to
being off the beaten path,



Wolf River finished,

 The Wolf River quilt is finished and hanging

in the Wells Cultural Center in Lafayette,

Indiana. The Gallery Walk will be May 17th.

We anticipate a big turnout. Lafayette is a town

that appreciates art. The inspiration for this

piece came from a photo I took while we

spent a week in Wisconsin at the Cabin In

The Woods on the banks of the river.

Yesterday my grand daughter got more of

 the spring yard clean up done. The plants

are growing fast now. The sweet spicy viburnums

are blooming now. They smell so good. The

lilacs will be next. We are getting a meal of

asparagus a day now. Having a garden is

such a pleasure. To have good clean food fresh

from your own garden is special. Looking

at the new leaves on the oak trees I sense that

the season will fly by and in no time the

leaves will be the colors of fall. Like

the song says Sunrise Sunset Swiftly Pass

the days. The way it goes.

Winter

 This is one of my favorite paintings. It even looks cold.

I am glad I gave it to the library so I can see it now

and then. Indiana hasn't had much snow this year.

Maybe Wednesday we will get some.

I need snow to keep me at home in the studio.

I think I will turn this painting into a art quilt.

First I NEED to finish the messenger bag for

the Virginia Spiegel fund raiser.

Which I will do this week end.

Now in fact. bye.

Herons

 For some reason I am fascinated with herons,

they eat my gold fish in the Koi pond.

We have given up on Koi.

Just too expensive a fish food.

We now rely on free gold fish.

The birds are huge,

they land on the roof and

hop down to have a meal or two.

They must stand 4 ft tall.

A funny thing happen this spring.

A pair of barn swallows nested in the

wood duck box and when a heron landed to feed.

The swallows dive bombed the heron until

he flew away.

I think they kept him away enough that the

small koi pond was left alone.

Fun watching nature.

Pond times.

This is my quilt for the SAQA auction.

I love this quilt .

Looking at it again I might just bid for my own quilt.

Go to the SAQA.com site and see all the lovely quilts.

Bidding starts Monday the 10th.

 

I will be heading to Lafayette today to help take

down the Under Indiana Skies exhibit.

It will re appear in Rensselaer for the October show.

Art just gets around.

Another chance to share with our community

what the artist of Jasper and Newton county can do.



Central Park

 My art quilt Central Park is going to be in the Salon Show.

I tried for 4 years to gain access to this show.

Finally got accepted.

Today my daughter and I will deliver it to the gallery today.

The opening is the 16th of September.

 I love trees reflected in water.

Love the colors too.

Fabrics make a quilt.

Batiks and hand dyed fabric made this quilt special.

 

It will be nice to spend a day with my daughter.

We both have been too busy this summer.

Friday we take down the show

Under Indiana Skies in Lafayette..

We will bring it to the Lillian Fendig Gallery

in Rensselear for a month long celebration of the 40 years

 anniversary of the Jasper County Art League and

20 years for Prairie Arts Council.

Jasper County is a very active county in the arts.

The show will run the month of October.

I will let you know when the opening is.

I will have 2 art quilts in the show.



Time Flies.

This summer we had a flock of 22 martins.

The air was filled with their squawking.

They circled around the bird house and the farm.

The last of the chicks hatched 3 weeks ago.

than poof they are gone.

Making their way back to South America.

This summer is flying by too.

Life moves faster and faster.

Yesterday we took time to honor a grand dame.

There was lots of laughter and good memories.

Mariam left her body to research.

Her soul she left to heaven.

She was one interesting woman.

She went back to collage and graduated at 70 years young

She taught for a year and was disillusioned

She said young people do not want to learn.

She was a piano teacher.

She got hard of hearing at the end and would

sit close to the speakers in church.

The pastor said he knew when it was time

to quit preaching Mariam would just get up and leave.

She did not like long sermons.

Farewell my friend.

Monday Morning

 Went to my pictures to find something to show you today.

Instead I found lots of ideas for art quilts.

I will be busy this winter making art for our show

Harmony in Nature in May 2013

 These flowers are begging to be put into a quilt.

I am so blessed to live here on the hill with lots of flowers.

Today I have to finish the big painting.

Even though I don't like it.

It will need to have its satin varnish on by Thursday.

My mind is already on to future projects.

My attention span is so short I need to work fast,

Art Quilts are calling be back to fabric and thread,

Have a nice week.



I have been busy.

I haven't blogged  for awhile,

 Sorry - I had to take time out to clean my house and studio.

My daughter in law sent the info on my house to a Realtor.

We have had 12 years living at the special place.

But we need to downsize eventually.

Somehow squeeze 4000 sq feet into 1700 sq ft.

With a bonus room for a studio.

It is getting harder to keep up a large home and larger yard.

So if it happens it was meant to be.

If not we will live here in paradise longer.

 I dyed some background for my new project

but I ended up using my first choice.

The colors are the palette for my new quilt.

I am going to try for the Quilt Nationals.

If I doesn't work I will have 2 pieces for my show next May.

SO it is a win win.

I get a head start on May's show.

Or I hit the jackpot.

May as well aim high.

Summer brings a show of color.

Flowers keep blooming all season.

In March the ground is bare and brown.

Than it warms up and a riot of blooms

 pop out of the ground and delight us all summer.

I just love the magenta petunias with an edge of lime green.

They are my favorite new annual.

Have to have a few annuals for color.

Well a full day in the studio today.

A clean studio at that.

Monday moring

My brain is still asleep but I have a busy day ahead.

Today is the day to bring my entries for a new show.

My friend Doris is bringing them for me.

A set of 4 of the Indiana dunes

And my sunset sky art quilt.

Lets see if a traditional art show will accept a

art quilt.

I have decided what I am putting on the 4 by 6 foot canvas

and I will do a 18 by 24 inch art quilt of the same

subject matter.

I need to finish the art quilts done at QSDS.

and least of all

I must not forget to feed the chickens.

They are pretty things,

Off to work.



Ready Set and GO to Columbus today.

 I start my day here at Cedar Ridge and will end it at

QSDS 2012 in Columbus.

Where I will be for 7 days.

Looking forward to learning something new.

Most of my friends will be here at the Indiana Dunes.

Indiana has beautiful places to go.

And Live.

I left my husband lots of food.

Written instructions on the washer and dryer

and instructions to wash those dishes.

When we were first married I went to the hospital

to have our first child and came home to a

sink full of dirty and moldy dishes.

7 days worth.

I do not think he has ever washed dishes yet

in the 50 years we have been married.

Well I better get dressed and head to Lafayette to pick

up Pat and Anita.



On Golden Pond.

Morning at Cedar Ridge brings the wood ducks to the pond.

The feeders are full of birds.

Lots of activity as they build nests.

I live in paradise here on the hill.

The rain last night washed away the heat.

A clear cool morning.

I can just smell the North Woods air.

Reminds me of fishing in Minnesota.

I am ready for a new week.

Today I will work on adding surface design to

some fabrics for QSDS.  I am looking

forward to meeting some new artists and

learning new techniques.

I have Pat and Anita coming with me.

It will be nice to share the driving.

Well have a great day

I am off to the studio.

Send a little art in a card.

I spent the last 3 days making 45 art quilt cards.

Now I have to finish embellishing them with beads.

Put a label on the back, sign them and

slip them in their clear bags.

10 of them go to Lala's in Lafayette, Indiana.

The rest are for a quilt design symposium I

am going to at the end of May.

I hope they will appeal to other artist.

Easter is at my house so I need to

step away from the machine and work on the house.

In a weak moment I ordered 50 strawberry plants

I need to get them in the ground.

What was I thinking the birds will probably eat them all.

Have a great day and a blessed Easter week.



Mellowing out at the farm.

 Love my pine trees.

 Cedar Ridge has several kind of pines.

White pines, cedars, arbs, spruce and more.

Took a walk yesterday afternoon with the camera.

Perfect weather. A perfect day.

Got some good photographs of logs, rocks and trees.

Got to spend some time in the studio.

Made a dozen small quilts for cards.

A friend stopped over for a short visit.

Made the mistake of drinking a cup of tea while

watching the Voice.

After only 3 hours of sleep I got a great

shot of the sunrise.

Sunrise out the sun room porch steps.

Now another day of making small quilts.

Need 100 cards to take to a seminar with me in June.

Have a great day.

The saga of the Reflections of Fall quilt.

 Basic background

 Trees trunks added.

Remember  I had these trunks on the Robin quilt first.

Changed directions on that one but they looked good here.

 Leaves came next.

Lots of leaves.

Thread painting to provide the next layer.

Then lost the dark blob in the water.

Extended the orange stripe on the left.

Added  in more water to emphasize the reflection.

Better flow I thought.

 Finished and hanging at Saint Joseph College from now

until the end of the month.

Along with the Robins in the Spring.

They will both go the TAF in Lafayette for the

summer show Under Indiana Skies.

 Detail of the trees.

The size of this quilt is 29 by 40 inches.

I found this easier to work on than the Robin quilt

which was 40 by 58 inches.

The larger size is just too hard on the shoulders.

I did get my paper work done for the tax man.

Wednesday I will be trimming the boxwood.

I look forward to a day outside.

Sunday when I was showing the family my winter's

production of art quilts my grandsons joked that

I was spending too much time in the basement studio.

They told me I needed to come up for air now and then.



Finished.

Finished and I am out of the Studio until Monday.

The rest of the week-end is for family.

Going to visit my Mom in the hospital.

She has a bladder infection and some congestion.

Than Sunday a rib fest for lunch for the March birthdays.

Have yourself a great week-end.

I intend to.