I'm still here. . . .

but not a lot to talk about.  I haven't spent much time in the studio- I did spend several days horizontal, going through Kleenex at a very rapid rate.  I hate colds.

I do have a new toy.  I love my SLR, and have learned a lot about photography with it.  But I decided I wanted a smaller camera that I could carry with me all the time.  I did some research, picked several models that I thought would work for me, and started haunting the two used camera websites to see what they had.  I ended up with a Nikon S8000- a point and shoot that got decent reviews.

I've had it ten days.  I haven't played with it as much as I'd hoped, but I have done some.  So far, so good.  I've deleted a bunch of photos I wasn't happy with.  I do like this one of a sunrise- the sky colors were just amazing.

It has been slow or no going on the creative front.  I'm hoping to change that this long weekend.  I hope your Thanksgiving is filled with family and gratitude.

A New Decade. . .

It's also the last year I will be able to say I am in my fifties. Turning fifty felt ok, I celebrated that one- but sixty? That just sounds OLD!! Ah well, I have a year to get used to the idea.

Well, if I'd had my act together, I'd have some thoughtful, well- written insights and musings about the last year. Obviously, I don't have my act together. The last two weeks of December always feels like a sprint to me, a chaotic one at that- by the time we get to New Year's, my brain is pretty much toast.

I did see one idea I really like on Terry Grant's blog. She did a cool slideshow of pictures from the past year, everything from her work to family. I thought about doing one, then decided it would take me all night- especially if I tried to link it with music like she did. So, that didn't happen. I hope I remember it for next year, but given my memory lapses of late- who knows!

We went to First Night in Provo for the New Year's celebration. We didn't make it to midnight, but did enjoy some good music and dancing. These Latin ladies and gentlemen could really move!





My favorites, however, were the bagpipe band.



They played Scottish tunes, then changed some instruments and treated us to Irish music- which we couldn't hear nearly as well as the bagpipes.



I had my new (to me) telephoto lens on my camera, and learned that this lens is probably best used outside. And, you can tell that the lighting in the mall was not all that hot for photography.

Today, I've been down in the studio most of the day, with football on in the next room. It must go back to my childhood, but the one thing I associate New Year's Day with is college football. So, now I'm watching the Rose Bowl and rooting for Oregon to TROMP Ohio State. Woody Hayes made me a diehard anti-Ohio State a long time ago.

Anyway, back to the studio. I have a second piece for my Twelve by Twelve group about done. If all goes well, I'll finish the background quilting tonight after we go out to dinner.

And, navigate over to the Twelve by Twelve Project blog to see the latest theme. The word for this theme was 'Chaos'- I managed to get mine done early enough that I was the first poster. I came onboard midway of this group, and will try to do a piece for the themes that have already been completed. They are all supposed to be displayed as a group at this year's Home Machine Quilting show in Salt Lake.

Here's hoping that 2010 is a good year for you and yours!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I'm counting my blessings today- health, home, family (even though most of them are distant), a new, beautiful granddaughter- we truly are blessed to have such abundance in this country. I learned this first-hand when I spent a year in Africa with the Peace Corps in my early twenties.

The cooking began yesterday. I made an apple-cranberry pie, Shannon made yeast rolls. The topping for the green bean casserole is done, and I'm cooking the beans as I type. DJ and Bentlee are making peanut butter pies- definitely not my cup of tea, but some in the family love them. I'll stick with pumpkin and apple, thank you very much.

If I remember, I'll get a photo of the bounty. In the meantime, may your Thanksgiving be full of family, friends, and a sense of gratitude.

Let the Season Begin!!

We brought in the tree and decorated it last night. We've learned that when you have vaulted ceilings, anything but a tall tree looks dwarfed in the space. So we look for the tall, skinny trees, with plenty of room for ornaments.

A tall tree also presents challenges in getting the decorations up top- but that's what kids are for, right?? Bentlee and Jaden hand the ornaments to their dad,



who then gets them up there!



These ornaments look as good as I'd hoped! And the kids loved my giant orbs, just like I knew they would.



So here we are, all decorated and lit--



Shannon is looking through her favorite recipe website to find creative ways to use all our leftover turkey.

The mantle also gets a makeover for the holidays--



And with the change in weather, the room now feels cozy and warm. We've had the warmest autumn I can remember, but it has been cold, gray, and drizzly all weekend. Time to snuggle up with a book, knitting, and comfy quilt!

What I did on Black Friday (and it wasn't a shopping marathon!)

Well, Shannon and I did get up and head for a store- Ikea, to be exact, about 25 miles north of us. I'd scoped out some Christmas decorations, so we headed up to get them.

I probably should explain. DJ and I have very different taste when it comes to decorating. The last few years, our tree has been his style- soft colors, classic. Our tradition has been to trade off tree styles every few years, so this year starts mine. And what Ikea had was right up my alley- simple, modern, minimalist, and in my favorite color combo- red, black, and white!

So here's what Shannon and I came home with--



Aren't these little gray-bearded santas cute?? They're the whimsy to go with the modern, according to Shannon.



I fell in love with those giant size orbs the minute I saw them. And these have lots of finishes- some matte, some shiny. I think it will look great in our living room, which also happens to be black, red, and white.

That was the extent of our Black Friday shopping. Instead, I spent the day in the dye studio, doing silk scarves. I love doing those in the microwave, it is instant gratification. And I did some discharge after I dyed- three have been in the steamer, three more are in it now. My studio is a disaster!



The counter has stuff all over it, I've got a couple of scarves hanging on my Ikea rack. The sewing area isn't much better, there's a half-finished shirt I started Wednesday night covering the cutting area. I think I have enough energy tonight to get the studio cleaned up,so I can sandwich Blue Tsunami. And, I need to cut out leaves for Autumn Mountains. You can see the fabric I've auditioned in the studio photo, just pinned at the top of the quilt top.

I hope everyone's Thanksgiving was a happy one. Ours was a small group but fun- and probably the most relaxed Thanksgiving prep I can remember. We didn't go overboard, and it sure helps to have three cooks, each doing a part. The best part, working off dinner playing Guitar Hero, Wii tennis and baseball!

Reunion in Reno

I've been in Reno since Wednesday night, where we've had our first Hart family get-together since my uncle's memorial service three years ago. We've had fun visiting, playing games together (a real Hart tradition), eating wonderful food, and just enjoying each other's company. This year has had one new twist, with multiple laptops going at any given time!



Cory, my cousin Debbie's teenage son, introduced us to a game called Apples to Apples, which was a lot of fun. I may have to look for it when I get home, it is one that even kids can enjoy.

One of the reasons Debbie, Cory, and my aunt Mary Lou came to Reno was to see Cory's collection of library cards, which are being displayed in many of the libraries in Washoe County. He has been collecting them since he was 5 years old, and now has a collection of over 3000 cards from every state in the US, and about 48 foreign countries. Here's Cory next to the case with his display--



I haven't seen much of Cory as he has grown up, but he's a delightful young man with a good head on his shoulders. His parents should be proud!

Another Hart tradition is good food, both tasty and healthy. One night we had salmon and halibut my BIL Kevin caught up in British Columbia- a rare treat! Breakfasts, we were treated to homemade oat bran muffins with fresh blueberries, and chicken sausage from Trader Joe's.



Trader Joe's is one store I really miss, I shopped there a lot when I lived in California. And they've gotten bigger and better since then. I did make the trek to the store here, and will go home with some goodies I can take on the plane.

My sister Carol and I have hit every quilt and fabric store she knew about in Reno- Going Batty, Windy Moon Quilts, and Mill End Fabrics. I found some silk at Mill End that I hope will dye well, and get a top out of.

My brother is in the process of scanning the many boxes of photos my father left. Many are not labeled, and I know we are going to have many pictures with people that we kids have no idea who they are. A lesson to us all to label our pictures for posterity! Even with those unknowns, I love looking at the pictures from the forties- it was such a classy looking decade, unlike the abysmal seventies.

Mary Lou, Debbie, and Cory left on Saturday, so it is much quieter. Carol, Paul and I made a trip to Incline Village at Tahoe- but I'll post those later. One last night here before I return to Utah--

A Blessed and Merry Christmas to All!

It is mid-day, and a space of peaceful time between two storms. We had Lance, Tiff, Chris (a friend of theirs), and the grandkids overnight on Christmas Eve. The kids got to open one present each (pajamas)--


then they were sent to bed while the adults played SceneIt, the TV version. We got the movie version last year, and quite enjoyed it. Maybe if they'd had more from the early days of TV, I would have been more entertained- but I watch so little anymore, many of the shows referenced were a mystery to me and DJ. But it was fun playing with the kids.

Amazingly enough, the grandparents were the first up on Christmas Day. We actually had to WAKE the kids up. We spent a lovely hour or so opening presents--


Look at my new clothes, Nana!!

Now just what is in this big box??


Now where did I put that box with my LP's? (This was the one present DJ wanted, and I can report that LP's still crackle and pop when you play them!)

then they headed off to Tiff's family for breakfast and more presents.

When we went outside to see them off, this is the scene that greeted us--



Definitely a white Christmas year!

We've spoken with Sean and Marly on the webcam, and Shannon on the phone. And, I was very pleased that Marly loved the butterfly picture I made her.

The pumpkin pie and blackberry angel food cake are done, all that is left is the ham. We are doing Paula Deen's Christmas ham recipe- should be interesting. We'll have Lance and Tiff, and the Gardiners and friends over for dinner. So, the quiet will be short lived!!

Tomorrow night I fly to Reno for 5 days, I am really looking forward to seeing my aunt and the rest of the family that will be there. I'll take some work to show my quilter aunt and artist brother, and maybe even get to do some sewing. I actually did get that shirt cut out!

I hope your holiday, whatever it is, is filled with the joy and comfort of family and friends. May the new year be a creative one!

Days Three and Four

I obviously was delusional thinking I would get any studio time before Christmas. If I'm lucky I'll get a shirt cut out tonight, but no quilting stuff done yet.

Yesterday we went over to a friend's for Dutch oven dinner with a group of people who do wildlife rehabilitation- mainly with birds. When we got there, the first thing I saw was this golden Eagle on a perch near the cooking. It is hard to imagine how magnificent these birds are until you have been close to one.



Before we ate, Greg showed us his falcon, and turned him loose to do some hunting- first with a sacrificial chicken, then with a starling. I'd seen some falconry years before when I was in Peace Corps in Africa, and I've always found it fascinating. Being friends with Patti, we've been lucky enough to see how beautiful these birds of prey are.



We cooked and ate outdoors, and it was COLD!! Hovering around the fire was the only way to stay warm. I decided to play with my camera after it got dark and the full moon was out, and got some interesting shots. You can see just how smoky it was! We all smelled like a campfire by the time we left.





Patti also showed us some birds she is rehabbing that are indoors. I love owls, and have seen many of them close up thanks to Patti. Otis the sawwhet (?) was adorable, and I thought the tiniest owl around- until last night. Patti has two pygmy owls that are even tinier! One consented to leave the cage, and sit a bit on Patti's finger- I tried, but he would have no part of me. But you can see just how tiny he is!!



Tomorrow- pick up photos for one Christmas present,and get the very last one. Hope your holiday preparations are coming along or are done!

Day Two

I have not made it into the studio at all, closest I got was the desk computer to balance the checkbook. In all fairness, I had an appointment with the eye doctor this morning (6 month checkup after the cataract surgery), and an appointment in Salt Lake. Since I had to go there anyway, I left early and got in a little last-minute Christmas shopping. And all is well with the eye, everything looked great.

I have been sitting on the couch with the laptop, perusing the blogs and sites of some of the people signed up for SharonB's Take It Further challenge. This is a really international group, from literally all over the globe. And, it is not just quilters, it is fiber artists of all kind. This is going to be a fascinating experience- with one big plus for me over the Journal Quilt project. We are SUPPOSED to blog and post about our project, process and thinking each month. Whoohoo!! As much as I loved doing the Journal Quilts, it drove me crazy to keep my thinking and work under wraps until the fall. I'm hoping this will help me become more thoughtful in how I approach the work, maybe even get serious with my sketchbooks. I have them, but they are mostly doodle books.

We will definitely have a white Christmas. It snowed last night, making the drive to Salt Lake a fun one, and more storms coming on Saturday, Monday, and Wednesday. I hope it doesn't wreak havoc with my trip to Reno.

And, in the spirit of the holidays, I leave you with this picture of our crazy cat Annabelle. She is Shannon's cat, but with her departure for Switzerland, she has adopted us. And here you can see that she has taken over the Christmas tree as her personal nap space. Merry Christmas, Annabelle!

Updated!!

Well, I'm sure you've noticed I've changed the look of my blog. The first time, it literally took me weeks to figure out the html coding to add the banner and sidebar links. Blogger has done some upgrading since I did that, and the improvements sure worked better for me!! I managed to make the changes in two nights, and no cussing was involved! That alone is a distinct switch from the last time I messed with my blogger template.

I treated myself to a couple of books I'd been wanting for some time, and they have kept me occupied since I got them.



I like doing landscapes, but have wanted to move in a more abstract direction. Ineke has some good ideas for working more abstractly. And,there is plenty of eye candy of her work.



Linda and Laura Kemshall's book is a visual and idea feast. They cover many surface design techniques, but in a way that is original and thought provoking. I've never seen paint or Shiva paintstiks applied to a piece that is already quilted, but they do it to great effect. This one will keep me busy for months!!

I've also got two of Jane Dunnewold's books on my Christmas list, and only a few days to wait to see if the Santas in question came through. I'm not buying many quilting books any more, but I find it hard to resist a good surface design book. And, I just found out that Rayna Gillman has a book coming out in June- that will be another one I HAVE to get!

For those who are wondering how all the food came out yesterday- here's the bread, ready to hit the oven--



And here it is are, fresh out of the oven--



I love this bread, the tart dried cherries and apricots just make it.

Here's Sean's Tres Leche cake, ready for the whipped cream-



And, with the glorious whipped cream!



I have my share of food weaknesses, and whipped cream would be at the top. Not Cool Whip, or any of the other poor chemical imitations, but real whipped heavy cream- preferably without much sugar. Yum!! And yes, those are fresh raspberries and blackberries in the background.

One and a half more days till vacation starts. I'm not antsy or anything, am I??

Counting down. . .

No, not until Christmas. I have finally come to that place I remember seeing in my mother that I could never understand as a child- it will come, and I have plenty of patience to await the arrival. No, I am counting down until Thusday, when I will officially be away from work until January 7- longest length of time I have been off work in many years. I've already started my list of how I want to spend it.

I have been taken to task by one commenter regarding my feelings about winter. Trust me, I would GLADLY send all our snow to you- at least right after Christmas. However, in the spirit of positive thinking even when in less than positive circumstances, I took Sadie on a long-needed walk Friday afternoon. Fortunately, the river walk was cleared. I tried to pay attention to the details of winter, find the beauty in the stark contrasts. I do love the way trees make a dark web of branches in the sky, and this one really caught my attention.



And, up close was some fascinating bark texture. I played with brightness and contrast in Elements, and will probably see if this one has any potential as a Thermofax screen.



Further down, I loved the way the tree branches in the river had little circular icicles around them.



My studio is clean, ready to go. If I can ever find a shirt pattern that will fit me and not some super skinny twenty-something, I have some faux suede to make into a shirt. The rest of the time, I plan to be working on quilting related projects. In fact, I got the answer to my question, "What do I do now that the Journal Quilt project is over? on Karoda's blog. Sharon in Australia is hosting Take It Further, a monthly online challenge that already has lots of artists signed up. Go there if you want more information or to sign up!

We have a family Christmas party today, so I have been doing some baking. Made a Tres Leche cake, using a recipe recommended by my son Sean. He tells me he took it to Thanksgiving with a large crew of Latin friends and family (his wife is from Colombia), and they couldn't believe a 'gringo' made it, it was so good. I also cheated and got a cheesecake at Costco, but also got fresh raspberries and blackberries to go on top. And, finally, for us, I made my Christmas kuchen, a sweet yeast bread studded with dried cherries and apricots. Love it! Here it is, first rise about done, ready to be shaped.



Got to get ready, more later!!

Warming up the old homefront. . .

And we need it, it warmed up enough last week that most of the snow that fell last weekend melted. But yesterday and today. we got more snow-- lots more, we probably have 8 inches in our yard.

I didn't go out much, and managed to finish four valances for the windows in our living room. We have been here two and a half years, and pretty much the only window coverings we've had are the wood blinds installed when we moved in. Our glass slider to the back yard has been naked, fortunately it just opens onto our small fenced back yard.

I was amazed how much difference a simple change like valances could make in the ambience of a room. They are my favorite color, a deep red. So here's the results:




DJ is hanging the rod for the curtains I'll make next.





I love the way the red lights up and warms up the room! Looking at this last photo, I think we will have to rethink our Christmas decor colors. No purple!!

And, I have decided to do something I haven't done in my almost fifteen years in social work- I am taking a long (for me!)vacation!! From December 19 to January 7, no work, no on-call, just regrouping, unwinding, relaxing, creating. I am serious enough about the latter that I will plan what I want to accomplish. I do not want to look back and figure I've wasted this time. Not on work stuff, but on the activities that feed my soul. I'll let you know when my list is a little more well-defined!

In the meantime, stay warm, enjoy yourself during the holidays, and take the time to feed your own spirit- not with stuff, but what is most important- family, friends, and giving.

Family, Creativity, and Gratitude

It has been a lovely Thanksgiving weekend, ripe with all those feelings that accompany the start of the holiday season. We spent Thanksgiving afternoon with son Lance's in-laws in Provo. The food was great, company good, and I frankly loved not having to deal with cooking the entire meal. I contributed Brussels Sprouts, done in a way that even sprout-haters usually like, and two apple pies. One was a sour cream struesel, and the other a normal two crust apple, but with my own tweaks to the spices. Instead of all the usual cinnamon, nutmeg, and so on, I've found I like apple pie best spiced with lemon juice and freshly grated rind, and fresh ginger, finely grated. I love the clean, tart taste this gives the apples. I also use less sugar than many recipes, and stick to tart apples, with Granny Smith being my favorite. I've also learned a cool trick to prevent the big gap between the top crust and the filling as the apples reduce- cook the apples ahead of time, sauteed in a little butter, then put in the crust and bake. Makes all the difference.

Friday and Saturday I was able to get into the studio and play. I wanted to try out my Thermofax screens, so I pulled out a 2 yard length of raw silk I'd dyed a couple of time, and a half yard piece of cotton. Here's the silk being printed--



I am not used to working on pieces of cloth this large, but given that I had to move it more than once to get to all of it, it came out well. I also learned lots about using the Thermofax screens, which by the way are AWESOME!!

- Less is more when it comes to the amount of thickened dye or paint. My best images were with a lot less than I would have thought I needed.

-Don't skimp on the screen material, leave yourself a large enough well, or place to lay down your dye or paint, when you make the screens.

-If you want a sharp image with lots of detail, use soda soaked fabric that has been allowed to dry.

-I'll need to figure out a way to pad my entire table- but I think that one will be easily resolved with a trip to DI (Goodwill to most of the world).

I used cobalt blue, done in a dark value on the silk. The images are both ones I took and photoshopped. One is the windows in an old sort of factory building close to the freeway in Spanish Fork, the other is a rock wall. I think I will add one more image to this fabric in a lighter color paint, and then use it to make a simple jacket. Lime green for spring, sounds good to me!




On the cotton, I wanted to do my images first, then I will dye and overdye the fabric. The text is a page from my great-grandmother's high school graduation essay that I scanned and manipulated to increase the contrast. I love her handwriting! The other images are the same- a dry thistle, which I then manipulated to get this image, then did screens in three different sizes. I lightened the value of the thistle images.



I have a lot to learn about this process, but that will come with practice and doing more pieces. Subtlety is not yet in my vocabulary, that will definitely take more work. But I am thrilled to be able to add another skill to my toolbox, one that allows me to include images not possible any other way.

Bentlee spent the night with us, and Saturday I helped her make fabric cards to give for Christmas. We stared out with a piece of red velveteen fused to Peltex, then cut out shapes from all kinds of sheer fabrics I had in my stash. Once she had the shapes down to her satisfaction, I fused them to the velventeen with Misty Fuse.



Then I ran some stitching all over it with heavy gold thread in my bobbin. I gave her a cardboard "frame" to look through and mark the cards she wanted to cut, then stitched around her marks and cut them out. Then Bentlee learned all about the joys of beading! Here she is stitching beads onto a card--



She did a great job embellishing her cards! Once the beading was done, we fused a backing to the cards, then I couched four strands of eyelash yarn around the edges. She ended up with seven cards, each different and all very Christmas-sy!!



We had a grand time, and I think I now have some ideas for a Christmas present for her.

I hope your Thanksgiving was equally blessed and joyful!

Parades, quilts, and art show. . .

Well, I never got around to posting about the holiday doings last weekend, so here it is, a week late. We got up in time to get a decent seat for the parade. It was nice out, thanks to a cloud cover that vanished as soon as the parade started. We eventually had to move to a shady spot, but still had a decent view.

The parade started with Civil War soldiers, who scared us all when they fired their muzzle loaders.





There were the usual horses- these draft breeds are huge!!



And high school bands, but this one was by far my favorite.





I wonder how many high schools across the country have their own bagpipe band? There were actually three pipe bands in the parade, but I figure two pictures is plenty.

And the "boys with their toys" that are so common in rural areas. . .



Betcha didn't know that Cinderella's coach was really an onion, not a pumpkin!!



There were baseball teams galore, and other assorted characters- but enough of the parade. There was also an art show in the park, with people's choice awards for the best kid, teen, and adult artist. One fiber artist entered three pieces, of course I voted for her. Here's the tent, photoshopped so you can see the inside--



There does seem to be an interest in the arts here, which is nice.

And, finally, the quilt show. It's traditional quilts, hung outdoors at a historic house on Main St. by a local guild.





And that was enough holiday celebration for me- I left the carnival to Bentlee and DJ.

I tried working on my Journal Quilt last weekend, but had to give up because my Juki kept acting up. It spent several days in the shop,and came back working great. I got all the quilting done yesterday! So, only the last element, and then the binding to do. I can't believe I got it done this early.

Hopefully, more quilty and Florida posts later this weekend. No, I still have not posted all my stuff from Florida!