Housekeeping

...Of the blog variety... I made some changes to the color, layout, and even a spiffy new banner at the top made for me by my dear husband!  I love it! If you read my blog in a reader, I hope you will pop over to the blog site and let me know what you think. 
     In addition to that, I had a nice long time on my plane ride back from the San Diego Comic Con to think about a lot of stuff about my art, so I also plan to take more photos and have them accompany my various posts.  I love blogs with at least one picture on the post.  I will admit my photography skills are less than stellar, but I think it will let me blog more often.  I would often like to blog but think that without a picture to go along with my post I lose interest in doing it.
     My website is not far behind as my dear hubby Joe is making me some new buttons along the side that go with my new theme.  I'll give you a hint as to what is to come, as some of my new buttons will read "gallery", "lectures", "workshops" and "shop".  Not everything is fleshed out yet, but I'm getting closer.
     In addition to the blog revamp, I'm planning a slight studio redo.  I have a very very limited budget, so this has to be done on the very cheap. I have some ideas in mind, so I'm anxious to get them worked through.  I'll be sure to let you see the process pics and other details soon.
(And the flowers are coming along nicely, 3 more weeks until the wedding.)

Playing Catch Up #5

An ATC using "found poetry" made for an ATC art retreat I went to last month. This uses paper attached to the fabric using gel medium, and the edges are ala Melanie Testa in a recent episode of Quilting Arts TV.

 

The Light at the End of the Tunnel...

No No... it's not an oncoming train...  The summer from hell is almost over.  I promise that next year I will not be so busy!  I wanted to post a picture of what it is that I have been working on since my sabbatical from the Techniques of the Week.  These are the flowers for my sister's wedding in mid August.  She wanted to have fantasy flowers for her wedding, and these are shaping up really nicely.  The roses are the only ones that are time consuming to make.  I love the lilies, they have been great to work on. They will go together pretty fast.  I can't wait to show you what the final bouquets and corsages look like!

Psst. It's done.

I did it.. I submitted my article.  
Many thanks to Kelly, Carol, Diane, Toni, Megan, and Debbi!  Your swift kick in the pants encouraged me to just get over it and send it off already! ha ha!  
Now the long wait for a response begins... 

This N That #13

The "nerd prom" is coming up (That would be the Comic Con International- San Diego).  It is always the same weekend as the big quilt show in Long Beach, CA.  Comic-Con is absolutely huge, the biggest show in the US for pop culture by far.  I have a ton of things to do before then... ugh
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During the July 4th weekend we went to my Father-in-Law's for a family reunion.  It also happened to be the week of the Kutztown Folk Festival, with over 2000 hand made quilts on display and for sale.  We went Monday the 5th, when temps were close to 100 degrees!  The quilt barn is air conditioned, which is nice.  Most of the quilts were hand quilted, which was quite a sight.
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Speaking of lots of quilts, my quilt, "Road to Home" was shipped off to the Knoxville Quilt show by AQS, but did not win a prize.  However, I'm super pleased to have been juried in.  Turns out you can buy a CD of all the entries here.
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This lilac didn't make it.  My new garden outside my office window is otherwise doing really well, but "Mr. Lincoln", my Lincoln lilac, turned brown and looks near dead.  It's sad too, because I really liked the two-tone flowers.  I thought it was damn near impossible to kill a lilac, but I have proven that theory wrong...
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The fabric wedding flowers project is coming along and I'm super pleased with how they look.  When the bouquets are ready, I will definitely post pictures here.
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Thank you all for the "swift kick in the arse" over my submitting an article to Quilting Arts.  I am happy to say that I am pushing SEND on the email tomorrow, and "come what may".  Thanks for the support!

I had a crazy dream last night....

This was one of those "my mind must be trying to tell me something/working something out" kind of dreams.  I usually dream about work. I guess it's how I process stress.  But last night's dream was about something I have wanted to do for several months.
Way back when when I started the "art quilting" end of my quilting hobby, I was asked "What is your goal with all of this stuff?" and I thought about it very hard.  I wondered where it could all lead to.  I ended up with a goal of "being published".  Maybe that meant a book, but when Quilting Arts Magazine hit the scene, I knew I wanted to be part of it's pages.  It's still a goal of mine.  
I have an article written ready to submit to Quilting Arts.  I have all the steps, and I think it's pretty much ready to go except the artwork/photos.
The problem is that I'm scared to submit it, and also (as you know) this summer is crazy full.  But it's a neat, progressive article that no one else has done before. 
In the dream, the plan didn't work out 100% and it was published... but not in the way I expected.  That left me a bit confused this morning, which is why I'm blogging about it.  Perhaps it's fear of rejection, perhaps it's fear of acceptance and the work that means to get it ready for print, or perhaps fear of a 3rd alternative will be presented (as in the dream) which wasn't expected.
So, readers, should I submit the article?

This N That #12

Trying to get back on a normal schedule of sleeping and eating after a trip overseas, then back to back trips out of town each weekend is pretty darn hard.  Really.  This has contributed to how far behind I have fallen on my artwork.  Yikes!  
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That's momma bird Ethel's babies, the mourning dove family that had taken up residence in my now-dead fuschia plant.  She had one baby and one egg when we returned from vacation, and eventually both eggs hatched, and the babies have since grown up and flown away.  We were so worried about the plant staying up during some recent bad weather, but so far it's hanging on, and stayed up while it's family was there.  Ethel has not returned to make a future nest in the plant, and I've put other plants in the planter since.  Both hubby and I miss her.
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So my quilt was all packed up and ready to go to the AQS show in Knoxville, TN, which hubby had to mail while I was away for work so it arrived on time.  I needed to put a new sleeve on it because my old sleeve didn't meet the AQS guidelines.  My sleeves are always sewn into the binding, so I will have to rethink that for future competition quilts.
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I have so many ideas and things I want to do for my artwork, but the summer isn't just going to cooperate with me to get them done.  I am traveling a lot for comic book shows this year, so I'll be in a different city each weekend.  Good thing DH doesn't mind being a bachelor.
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OK, OK, I give.... The summer is defeating my quilting plans.

Perhaps the best laid plans are the ones that go awry.  Not only did I have my entire 52 weeks of Techniques planned out, but I even thought that with this busy summer schedule I could actually get it all done.  I have been trying to get my techniques done in an agonizing manner.  I have been trying to keep up with them weekly and failing miserably, which was just making me feel bad about it.

Well, I decided not to let myself feel bad about my art, so I am taking a break from the Techniques until the end of August, and will start back up in September.  The act of writing that here and putting it out in the world actually helped free me up to want to be able to create again. 

Everyone gets busy, and I was/am no exception.  I should have given in to my "stoppage" weeks ago and I would be a lot happier at this point, but it is what it is. Work and other obligations kept me on the road alot, and time athome has been all bout catching up from being away.  As it was I felt uninspired, afraid to go into my studio because "I should" have been working on my weekly project, and generally apathetic towards quilting. I was afraid to write on my blog, because "folks are waiting for my Techniques"!  I should have recognized this sooner and put it all on hold.  But, I am in a much better spot now and feel the creativity growing again.

So, followers and readers, I hope you will stick with me as I post about some other things until August, when I can start back up on the Technique of the Week.