Sally Ride Science

Several years ago, a friend and I visited the Heath Ceramics studio in Sausalito, California.  I have been a fan of their beautiful tile and ceramics ever since.  Last summer in preparing to renovate my bathroom, I stumbled upon some neat little square-images of tile samples on the Heath website.  I quickly realized I couldn't afford Heath tile for my project, but I could cut and paste the sample images into a quilt design idea that I would save for a later date. I was finally able to start the piece and my goal is to have it finished by the end of April, so there's time to get it hand-quilted and ready for a show this September at the Catich Gallery at St. Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa.  Here is the work in progress: sketch  Each strip takes about an hour to construct, not including the time it took to pre-cut the pieces  A finished 24 x 24 inch blue square This image (four - 2...

  I always put a label on my quilts.  I hand-stitch it to the lower right hand corner of the back.  The labels are inspired by old-fashioned hang tags and include: Quilt-maker's signature Title Quilt size Year of completion Number of pieces Place where it was made Quilting information (*) Website Prior to constructing the label, I adhere freezer paper to the back of the fabric, which makes it much easier to do the writing (with Sharpies - one thick, one thin).    Someday, the label may be the most important part of a quilt.  Imagine pulling a quilt out of a trunk in your late uncle's attic and finding a label which would give you at least some of the quilt's provenance.  No matter what the quilt looks like or it's condition, the label would be the most intriguing and exciting find!   *I am unable to directly credit my Amish hand-quilters in accordance with their cultural tradition.    

SATs MAR 8 & 15, 10A-1P, Home Ec Workshop , Iowa City Join me to make the Modern Quilt Relish quilt pattern, "Taffy Twists."  The class is limited to four people with the following quilt-making skills (or willing to learn them very quickly): read and follow pattern; confident, safe, accurate rotary-cutting; "fussy" open-seam ironing; consistent, accurate "scant" 1/4-inch seam sewing.  With these skills well in-hand, the pattern is easy to follow and fun to put together. I made the Throw size (60" x 78"), but you can make whatever size you like  (pattern has four size options: Table Runner, Baby, Throw, Queen). Laffy Taffy, my dog

  SATs FEB 8 & 15, 10A-1P, Home Ec Workshop , Iowa City "Wonky" Double Cross Learn to make this wonderful quilt pattern by Pam Rocco. Work toward a finished 50" x 50" quilt in this 6-hr class, or take the top home and make three more to construct a quilt fit for a QUEEN! Perfect gift for a bun in the oven or for someone you love bunches! Whimsical and loose: recovering perfectionists welcome

 On-board the Southwest Chief (Amtrak)  El Santuario de Chimayo, Chimayo, New Mexico  Chimayo with faralitos  Hwy 84 north of Abiquiu, New Mexico  13-mile Forest Service road to monastery  Rio Chama  Christ in the Desert monastery  bush at monastery  stations of the cross at monastery  Los Ojos, New Mexico  Hwy 84 north of Abiquiu, New Mexico  Hwy 84 north of Abiquiu, New Mexico  Just north of Bode's , Abiquiu, New Mexico  courtyard outside our room at the Abiquiu Inn  Georgia O'Keefe home and studio, Abiquiu, New Mexico  Shiprock Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico  Holy Trinity Parish, Arroyo Seco, New Mexico  Holy Trinity Parish, Arroyo Seco, New Mexico  Bridge over the Rio Grande, near Taos, New Mexico Abiquiu, New Mexico

My September 2012 trip to Shanghai, began in this bookstore in Iowa City, Iowa...   ...where I bought an exhibit catalog containing this image: "Sea of Japan in Winter"  (1983) It is a quilt by Shizuko Kuroha, which appears to made largely of indigo fabrics from Japan.  This quilt inspired me to to make my own version of this pattern (Arabic Lattice block), which I would title "Portmanteau." "Portmanteau" (2011) "Portmanteau" would travel to China in the early part of 2012 as part of an exhibit "The Sum of Many Parts," and I followed thereafter in September.  I attended the opening of the exhibit at Shanghai Museum of Textile and Costume, and was fortunate to meet Naomi McCallus (see photo below).  She commented on my fabric choices for "Portmanteau" and suggested that I would probably like a somewhat hard-to-find fabric that is unique to China and no longer made, simply called "lao bu" (old fabric).  It is hand-dye...