Around the World Blog Hop

Julie, aka Quiltdivajulie, tagged me to participate in the Around the World blog hop. The example she set in her post (which you can see here) was a bit intimidating but I took a deep breath and accepted.

First of all I'm going to take this opportunity to finally introduce myself visually. I've been keeping this blog since 2007 and to the best of my recollection I've never shared a picture of myself. This one's for you Julie!

 The blog hop invitation poses these four questions:

1. What am I working on?
2. How does my work differ from others of its genre?
3. Why do I write/create what I do?
4. How does my writing/creating process work?

Currently I'm working at clearing enough space around my cutting mat to enable me to prune two large-ish quilts. They're large for me and my space even though one is barely twin size and the other will only fit a double bed. These two quilts were just quilted by my younger (adult) son who has become a professional long arm quilter during the past year or so. Now I have to cut away the excess batting and backing and make and apply bindings to them. Not my favorite steps in the quilt making process but necessary.

My work may differ from that of other quilt makers in that, lately at least, I work primarily from the scraps created when previous quilts were made. I have always enjoyed scrap or multi-fabric quilts more than the controlled, organized versions that seem to have been popular (and more socially acceptable) back in the day. For example, I could never make this:

I have the skills, I would just get bored after the first block! Plus, technical complexity doesn't do it for me. What I like is ingenuity, figuring out how to make something aesthetically pleasing out of a pile of apparently unrelated prints and colors. To which end I design my own quilts. I'm not sure I'm capable of actually following a pattern anymore. I will inevitably find something about it that doesn't suit me and make changes.

I also prefer to work intuitively. That means I will start out with a goal in mind but not much more than that. Most often there is a person for whom I want to make a quilt or who is in need of a quilt for warmth or comfort (generally both). That will help to determine the size the finished quilt will need to be and sometimes I can get color cues if I know the person's taste. For example, I just finished and shared this quilt for my father-in-law:

I did my best to incorporate his interests and color preferences. This one was not made from scraps but from a wide variety of prints. The quilts I make from scraps tend to look more like this:

In the beginning (around 1985) my motivation for making quilts was, I assume, much the same as many other quilters. I admired the traditional quilts of yesteryear and the make-do spirit in which many of them were created. Not that I had much personal experience with quilts growing up. All we ever had were store bought blankets until my folks purchased a lakefront cottage that came furnished. There were a couple of comforters in the bedrooms. Tied, not quilted, and made out of whole cloth instead of being pieced or appliqued. It was years later that I learned I had great grandmothers who pieced and quilted and that there were specimens of their work in the family. I have since become the curator of those heirlooms. :- )

One of the first big influences in my quilt making were sisters Roberta Horton and Mary Mashuta. Off the top of my head I don't remember which sister specialized in which type of work but one focused on the utility quilts of the past and the "imperfections" that made them so charming. The other promoted the idea of quilts as vehicles for art and expression. I've made my share of art quilts but at the moment I seem to be stuck on making utility quilts rather than show quilts. I believe I have Gwen Marston to thank for that. She has managed to show us quilt makers how to cross the line between art and function. Or better yet, how to combine art and function. I think that's what ultimately drives me, the desire to combine artistic impulses and function.

And so lately I've been cutting patches and strips from the leftovers of a quilt I just made and then piece simple traditional blocks from those scrap patches and use those blocks to create a quilt top that I will beg or pay someone else to quilt for me. Right now that's my process. This blog has always been the place where I share my textile processes, whatever form they may take. I do dabble in other forms of the needle arts, just not to the extent that I piece for quilts.

I have reached out to two creators whose work is very different from mine to carry on this blog hop. They are Maya of A Million Little Stitches, primarily an embroiderer who lives and stitches in India, and Cyra who lives a free form life and creates all sorts of textile art in New Zealand. Look for their blog posts next Monday, 22 September. Or go visit them now and see what they're up to! You won't regret it. :- )

Thoughts on Blogging

I have been writing Morning Pages nearly everyday of my life since I first learned of the process in Julia Cameron's book The Artist's Way. This morning I happened on the topic of how and why I blog. It seems appropriate to share some of my thoughts with my readers at the beginning of a new year. Heaven knows I won't think of it when my blogiversary rolls around!

I began blogging in an effort to become part of a new community because much of my old community was taken away from me when my chemical sensitivities were diagnosed. I thought also to share what knowledge and experience I have with others. There has been less of that than I expected, partly because I'm not willing to learn the computer and Internet skills necessary to be effective in that way but also because there are plenty of other folks out there doing a perfectly good job of it. I will  continue to share what wisdom and knowledge I have when opportunities arise.

The biggest reason I began blogging, I think, was as a motivational tool for myself. In general I have no schedule imposed on me by a job or other outside commitments. I thought blogging would be a way to hold myself accountable for the work I did or did not accomplish here in my isolation. Overall it has been reasonably effective in that regard. However, I have to remember to take pictures of what I'm doing so I have something visual to share with my readers! When I fail to do that I also fail to blog about my projects. The work I do is all about color and design. At the root of it all I am a visual artist; pictures are necessary to any discussion of what I'm involved in.

I'm not blogging just for the sake of being a blogger. Or to practice the craft of writing or to make money or to build a following. I blog to keep myself on task with my creative endeavors, to keep me moving forward, and hopefully to occasionally inspire or motivate others. I blog as the spirit moves me and my health allows. I'm tempted - very tempted - to try to post on a schedule. In my gut I know that won't be successful. I suspect I would quit blogging altogether if I kept that up for very long. I just can't be that regimented, not any more. If for no other reason, my body won't co-operate!

This blog is a tool. It's a personal tool that happens to also be public. That's something I need to keep in mind. I appreciate my readers deeply (especially those who comment!) but in the end I do this for myself, not for anyone else.

Technical Question

I have a question for those of you who have been blogging for a while now. What is the secret behind photos that open larger in a new window v.s. those that don't respond when clicked on?

There are pictures of quilts I'd like folks to be able to see the details in but inevitably those are the ones that won't respond when you click on it. Then on my detail shots when you click on 'em you get a bigger version in a new window! Of course it doesn't always work this way but I can't figure out what the trick is. I know there are other new bloggers out there who would like the answer to this question too. (Blogger Help isn't as helpful as one would wish.)

Thanks in advance for whatever advice you can offer!

Blogger Junkie

It's official. Six weeks after discovering blogs I'm now a blogger junkie. (Has it even been 6 weeks?) DH was working at the computer station here at home yesterday and I got all put out because I couldn't get to the computer myself to check the blogs I read every day or to post to my own. {sigh} Guess we're going to have to find a set up for my studio so this sort of thing won't happen again ;- )

Fortunately I'm in a much better mood now, partly because I was able to get together with a few like-minded souls in a safe environment. Said like-minded souls are fellow fiber artists who live in the area. One of them lives in a rural setting atop a high hill at the edge of the valley in which we live (up above most of the contaminants). She is also very conscientious about keeping fragrance and other toxins out of her studio when she knows I'm coming, bless her heart (and the rest of her too!). The five of us commiserate about the things that keep us from being more creative/prolific, we support each other in our individual endeavors, and we work to keep each other on track or accountable for the things we've said we're going to do. As far as I'm concerned, we don't meet nearly often enough! We do check in with each other every two weeks via the internet but the face-to-face meetings are so much more rewarding. At least for me. The rest of them have lives to live (jobs, younger children at home, community service, etc.); I have the luxury of time. Not that I use it any better than anyone else. Squander might be a good word to use for my consumption of time... or fritter (and I'm not talking apple here either). I console myself that when I appear to be doing little with my hands I am very busy in my head. To that end I'd like to announce that I believe I have come up with the topic of my next journal quilt. I don't think I'll tell you exactly what it is - although my compadres already know - but rather let you wait and see what develops. You may have to wait a few days as I have to put the binding on the dorm quilt I've been helping to create. Or maybe I'll create the journal top and stew over the embellishments while I apply and stitch down the binding... It's so wonderful to have options! (And to finally feel good again. It's been a rough week physically.)

The sun has been shining. I love it when the sun shines :- ) Reilly doesn't care one way or the other. He just looks cute standing in my patch of buttercups. These buttercups are technically a weed in this part of the country but they're much prettier than most of the other weeds in my yard.