MAZ-BONITO

Our southbound migration is now complete and we have arrived in our winter's nest.
Mazatlan. Beautiful Mazatlan.
The sparkling water greets us with each lap at the shoreline.
The doorways and arches of the resident architecture beckon us to enter.
The swaying palms wave us closer with a rhythm that says "slow down".
Our friends, neighbors and local vendors call out their welcoming words:
"hola", "bienvenidos", "great to see you", "estoy feliz a verte".
The banners and flags announce the pulse of the city: fiesta, dance, love, family, happiness despite adversity, music, food, celebration.
Mazatlan. Beautiful Mazatlan.
We are welcomed by your spirit.
We are welcomed by your beauty.
We are welcomed by your people.

BACK IN MAZATLAN

My blogging history has rusted over the fall - first up north with intermittent power for my computer, then with transitions and travel, and now with cleaning and organizing for another season here in Mazatlan. My studio is now up and running, thanks to Tom for the fresh paint job, and a bit of elbow grease to wash away a summer's worth of dust and grime. It feels great and I am planning new projects and fun classes. More later on that!

In Mexico, the Day of the Dead (Nov. 2nd) is a special day to remember those who have passed before us. I made the piece above for a "south of the border" theme in my quilt journal group. I love seeing the beautiful tile work here and often times it will change to an oddball color here and there. My stitched and discharged skeletons represent my sister, Ginny, my parents, Mary and Arturo, friends Patty, Larry, and Ernie.

NOVEMBER WEBWALK 2008

On the road...
Blogging and displaying and showing off my wares have not been on my priority list these days…these days of packing and lists and finishing up a pile of projects that I slowly but surely add to my red, wheeling, quilt travel bag. Now, all packed up and on the road, we are hanging out for a few days in Mount Vernon, Washington, before flying off for our winter in Mazatlan. There I have a full winter ahead, of displays and workshops and reconnecting with friends and fellow fabric nuts, and savoring the culture and people I have come to love so much. And of course there’s that language practice, an elementary practice on my part, but nevertheless, a significant part of my Mexican life that certainly does wonders for stretching my brain. Ouch!

For November’s Webwalk, it’s most fitting to highlight some of these projects I’ve been working so hard on this past month. After taking Pamela Allen’s class, I was moved to push my work into more of the compositional realm, and happily finished 2 of the 4 pieces I began at the workshop(below and above).

I am trying to stretch myself to try new free motion patterns, mostly in a closed shape which allows me to use discharging or dyeing within these shapes and patterns. I’ll still use stippling, but I’m trying to keep it as the last option on my list. Beyond Pamela’s inspiration, I have been on a discharge kick by creating totes which you’ll see below. Then to blend the two methods (discharging and composition), I began making fiber spirit masks which are a terrific combination of the skills I have been playing with.
Where am I heading now? My ideas flow toward more compositional work with a Mexican theme, hopes to find a project for my Mexican sewing ladies to embrace beyond their current lines (increasing those options), and being open to all that comes my way…
It’s exciting. Almost as exciting as the emotions I have on this election day in the U.S.. I believe we may be on the brink of mending our colorful quilt of tattered American hopes and dreams. At least I am hopeful.

MARATHON WEEKEND

It wasn't a running race or a cross-bay swimming venture, but a QUILT MARATHON.

Place? Quadra Island Community Center.

Who's involved? Quadra Island Quilters' Guild.

Purpose? To make quilts to be given to young patients at the Vancouver Children's Hospital.

And yes, I was so happy to be able to attend.

For two full days, over 40 quilters and volunteers gathered at the Community Center to participate in this annual event that produces over 40 beautiful quilts for children. Comfy clothes, yummy treats, friendly advice , and of course fun companionship were also a big part of the weekend. The Quadra Guild is an incredibly generous group of talented quilters from all walks of life and with a wide range of sewing interests. There was never a dull moment, and one by one the quilts lined up on the stage. Here are a few of the projects and quilters hard at work.Thanks to the local Fire Dept. for set-up and take down, Linda for a super rosemary chicken dinner, all volunteers, all organizers, all businesses who donated goods and services, and all cooks who brought yummy soups, goodies, etc.

It was a super and productive weekend!

PAMELA ALLEN WORKSHOP

I had the great fortune to take a workshop from this amazing art quilter, Pamela Allen, a few weekends ago. That's probably the reason I haven't been on my blog lately. I was so inspired by her work, that all I have wanted to do is sew and compose.

Pamela, from Kingston, Ontario, pushed us right into mini fiber art compositions that fell into line with the title of the class: "Still Life Boring?- NOT!"

So here is what I learned/absorbed, etc.: (accompanied by student/Pamela's work)

1. Composition is SO important!

2. Color and value are vital!

3. Don't worry so much about being realistic or including an entire object...our brains know how to fill in the blanks.

4. Embroidery stitches can really accent objects/spaces.

5. The sky is the limit for embellishments.

6. Look for ideas within the fabric.

7. Expand your repetoire of free motion stitches.

8. Make it personal....tell your story!

This was a fabulous workshop that pushed me into new realms. Thank you Pamela!

(Check out her great website!)

OCTOBER JOURNAL QUILT

This month's theme was "rock and roll", and I struggled with what and how to fit something in an 8.5x11" space. I initially put together a piece showing the old yellow radio I listened to every night as a young girl, perfectly tuned to KJR channel 95 out of Seattle. Then someone told me my radio looked like a camping trailer, so I decided to make a change to something a bit simpler and more straight forward.
Nights in White Satin” by the Moody Blues was THE slow song for dancing during my era of teen-age-hood in Tacoma, Washington. Long, slow, romantic.
I’ve been doing lots of discharge dyeing lately and wanted to see if I could put together a closed shape for discharging within this theme. Simple, yes, but it was a successful challenge for me that I will try again sometime. And of course it was a great way to use up my little blue scraps.
As Barb suggested, it’s like having your name in lights.

FIRST FRIDAY WEBWALK...OCTOBER 2008

Yesterday the rains arrived to wash away the remnants of summer: petals and leaves finding their way to the ground, robins and hummingbirds no where to be seen, disappearing light more noticeable each day. Did you notice I said "rains"? I'm assuming today's rain is one of many to come. It's just how it is in October, inevitable, as right as rain, a sign of things to come.

This is my month to get in those last "on my mind" projects. The garden is calling to be buttoned up before winter descends. Mexico looms above my consciousness, with reminders that I still have a little time to practice my elementary Spanish. Tom is busy on the sawmill with final cutting and loves to have a helping hand (me!). And my sewing room is scattered with bits and pieces of projects that happen to have quite a strong magnetic pull in my direction. I think a list is in order!

My first display is a piece of cloth measuring 45"x 45". After a play day in the dye studio with my friend Suzie, I wanted to try putting together many of the techniques we tried into one piece. I used only black dye on white cotton and I am quite pleased with the results. Gloomy, dismal, destructive...I already have a few ideas for it.

Next I move into my explorations in discharging, or the removal of color. I initially became interested in the sunburst designs, but then wanted to try some borders. Don't they work beautifully in the design above?

And here I tried a border of dog bones.... the colors worked out so well here.

With all of my thinking about designs and borders, I began to wonder about stitched and discharged overlays....for example, one design of stitching over another design of piecing. Here is a small sampler of two shapes pieced to represent a house, then "overlayed" in stitching with the shapes offset. I added an offset rectangle too which adds another dimension to the piece.

Finally, I was inspired to try a scene from my surroundings. I love the abundance of birds here, and the red-breasted sapsucker (we just call him "woodie") is one of my favorite. Plus he eats the bugs! Tom loves the Spanish translation "pajaro carpintero"...how perfect! The spiral sun in the corner is discharged, as are the markings on the bright green border. I am pleased with the colors and textures, and don't those buttons at the bottom make a nice addition?

He's still around, working on his bugs. But for us, our migration is right around the corner.