Winifred's Threads

Change of pace -- Aprons

2011-12-18T14:53:00.000-08:00

I'm sewing with cotton for a change. It seems easy by comparison and presses out so crisply. I'm also having fun finding companion fabrics from my stash.

Thomas thinks these cartoon cats are curious creatures with their funny colors.

Ironing Board

2011-12-17T21:09:00.000-08:00

I just can't put it away.

To-Do List

2011-12-15T07:50:00.000-08:00

The in-process quilt. Yes, I will photograph everything as finished, but I just ran across this snap and thought I would show the Quilting Assistant as he assesses the coral squares. "They need buttons," he says. "Buttons it is," I reply.

Opening Reception

2011-12-11T11:02:00.000-08:00

They came to say HI and to see what the new work was all about. I overheard little conversations, such as "but it could go in the entry by the..." or "my favorite is...." and so it was all very promising, with two sold and one commission and another one or two in consideration. Stay tuned...

Synapse

2011-12-03T10:04:00.000-08:00

"Impulses transmit along nerve fibers, arriving at a synapse, a junction, that is actually a gap, where neutotransmitters must cross to their waiting receptors. That's where the magic happens. From the Greek "sunapsis," or point of contact."

Penny on the Tracks

2011-12-03T10:01:00.000-08:00

"Industrial detritus surrounds the train tracks where we used to see the train roll a penny out like pie dough. Do kids get to pull pranks like that anymore?

Centered

2011-12-03T09:59:00.000-08:00

"It's the core in Pilates, the breath in yoga, the calm in self-assuredness, the faith in spirituality. It's the clear source of strength, so we can handle the ragged edges."

Bounty

2011-12-03T09:57:00.000-08:00

"Harvest colors combine in color displays, hinting at baskets of vegetables, fruits, flowers, and seasonings. We give thanks for our agricultural bounty."

Amish Bubbly I & II

2011-12-03T09:54:00.000-08:00

"Where can one find this thick hand-made felt? Ocean Shore Hardware, of course! And the bubbles? A necklace from Tokenz on Main Street. Simple Amish quilt color blocks hold escaping bubbles."

Vacation

2011-12-03T09:49:00.000-08:00

"Quadrants of paradise. Dark exotic locations, tropical landscapes, clear azure waters, sun & surf & beach, speak of island getaways."

You can see the quilts on display in this lovely hair (and more) salon. Also shown on the right is the quilt Breakthrough.
"That wonderful Aha! experience. We roll along, consciously thinking and struggling to solve a problem. Bot now and then, we get a glorious breakthough from the deep, that bubbles up and solves the puzzle. Clarity!"

Welcome to Bamboo!

2011-12-03T09:42:00.000-08:00

Entry of Bamboo Hair + Body, the venue for my show True Colors.
Left: Serotonin - "The dance of peppy colors and blips of surprise all connect in a composition of wellbeing. Life is good!"
Right: Hot Flash - "A Basic Amish quilt block, redux, with flashes of brilliance and intermittent sparkles."

Pimento

2011-12-03T09:37:00.000-08:00

"Log Cabin is a classic quilt pattern. This quilt uses nine log cabin blocks, turns them wonky, and ends up in a martini. Cheers!"

Pimento: 12" by 12" framed quilt installed in Bamboo Hair + Body.

8 MORE DAYS TO PARTY TIME!!

2011-11-26T13:35:00.000-08:00

Thank you Yasmin for the beautiful Bamboo to showcase these wall hangings. Wonderful lighting and ambience, but then, what would expect from a Feng Shui consultant applying her principles to her own studio?

And Flavor Restaurant will help with the refreshments! Francisco has such a good feel for what people love and and then he adds his clever twists--classics with flair. This will NOT be a diet-as-usual day for me.

And! And! Stevan Pasero on guitar. What a nice man, who is selling out concert halls around the country, and has agreed to support local artists and play for my party. He will bring some of his CDs for sale. Please support his artistry, too!

I can't wait!

EEEK--There's a spider in my quilt!

2011-11-25T18:56:00.000-08:00

Anyone who knows me, knows I have a spider phobia. You can imagine my surprise to see one IN my quilt, thankfully not ON it. I hadn't seen it till I looked at a photo I took of Tom on the landscape quilt I've been working on since mid-July. Yes, it's been that long. I participated in the Sandra Sider quilt critique, showing one of the in-process pieces. It's had several iterations since. Anyway, when I looked at this photo in Photoshop I was shocked to see a tarantula. I can hardly type the word, even the word itself in print now having almost the same sway. I hadn't seen it before, just knew that the one area wasn't working. It took a photo to show me what I had--legs. Eeeuw!

My solution solved two problems: eradicated aforementioned "T" as well as improved the composition by repeating both a shape and a color. My friend Bridget calls these "happy accidents."

BEFORE -- see it?

AFTER -- all gone!

Vantage Point

2011-11-24T22:31:00.000-08:00

I put some finished quilts on top of a bookcase for safe-keeping, meaning safe from Tom. He tries to bite off the beads. Oh, that's right. Cats can jump up on top of bookcases.

Sniff Test

2011-11-24T22:27:00.000-08:00

It's part of checking out a new addition. I think it was the ribbon embellishment. This long skinny quilt of pastels, reminiscent of the beach, turned out to be SO time consuming, with all those little beads and hand-dyed ribbons and threads. Perhaps it has too much now, but it took hours and hours, and I don't want to feel those hours are in vain, so I don't want to remove some of the trims. It feels more like a party than it does the beach.

Lap(board) Cat

2011-11-20T08:50:00.000-08:00

Here I am, set up with my lapboard, quilt, needle & thread, and box of pebble beads----ready to hand-stitch! But wait, a visitor has discovered a new surface to explore....

Petta on Metta

2011-11-20T08:45:00.000-08:00

Metta means "Loving Kindness" in Buddha circles. This quilt outlines the Eightfold Path and also has a Metta Meditation: "May I feel safe, May I feel happy, May I feel strong, May I live with ease." Little Petta lives his little Metta life....

Another red

2011-11-08T08:33:00.000-08:00

No title yet. But it has Tom's blessing. He hunkered down and wouldn't let me near the color strips I needed to fuse. The concept isn't fully formed, but it may end up fairly simple. Quilt blocks redux. That may be enough.

Black & White & Red all over

2011-11-06T09:07:00.000-08:00

How to make a red quilt that isn't just red? First, I drew out the composition on the back of an old architectural drawing. Then I cut out all the fabric pieces and made sure everything balanced. Fortunately the Quilting Assistant was taking a nap when all these little pieces were laid out. Toward the end of assembly, however, he emerged and decided to check things out. I've never made a quilt without my helper. And a camera.

Color-coded

2011-10-30T16:57:00.000-07:00

I can either match Tom's eyes or match his fur. Here's one of each. Tom has learned to not look at the camera for photos, alas. Even though I no longer use the flash, apparently there is the anti-red-eye light that flashes, so he won't look at it. Smart kitty! He really is friendly, even if he doesn't smile and look into the camera with those big baby blues.

How to create a quilt?

2011-10-28T09:06:00.000-07:00

Assemble the parts. Move them around. Take out the colors that don't want to be there. Add embellishments that want to join the party. Does it dance? Does it tell a story? Sandra Sider, president of SAQA (Studio Art Quilters Association) and professional critiquer, encourages us not to make "just another pretty quilt." I'm still processing her challenge and what that means for my creations. I guess I just want to make a composition that pleases me, and that makes me feel good when I see it. I want to have an emotional reaction first, and then think about what is drawing me in as I study it. Is that what she means? It's not just pretty to look at?

Time for Purple

2011-10-19T07:32:00.000-07:00

Quilt production is in full swing in advance of my solo show coming in November (through mid-February). Purple has made a big showing, but color, color, color is bursting out in unusual combinations. It's been great fun to be surrounded by all these colors. Tom seems to agree. He likes to plant himself on each project, adding his little kitty blessing.

First, Something Happens

2011-09-20T22:07:00.000-07:00

What makes a doctor leave a 9-to-5 position and take off for distant, often dangerous places, to help The Great Unwashed and suffering? I suspect that something happened while growing up. Some kindly adult said to a would-be doctor, "Did that touch your heart?" That led to a new Compasion Filter through which that future doctor interpreted new relationships and interactions. And instead of a regular, plush life, that new understanding led to journeys of colorful experiences and surprises.

Here's to Doctors without Borders!

Doctors Without Borders

2011-07-06T08:25:00.000-07:00

Art for a great cause!. 41 artists will donate pieces to raise funds for these brave medical humanitarians. The theme is "Journeys." It's almost finished...

Paper Beads

2011-04-09T23:25:00.000-07:00

Dee Danley-Brown has the cleverest eyeglass/cell phone case that hangs around her neck...truly hands-free. So I am attempting my own version. Hers has paper beads that she made, taught to her by Judith Content. I found an online YouTube tutorial, gathered some old wrapping paper, and now I have paper beads for the outside trim. I made up a pattern. Now to select fabrics and assemble. Oh, yes, and this little pouch also serves as a nametag, since I keep forgetting to bring one to the meetings. That's my goal for next meeting: a quilted nametag.

Where do ideas come from?

2011-03-21T08:52:00.000-07:00

Often from the materials themselves. And where did I find extra thick wool felt? The hardware store, of course. There's a great little arts supply section at Ace Hardware in Half Moon Bay! Thus, a new medium. It will still be a quilt: three fabric layers stitched together. Just how that will happen will unfold.

In the Meantime

2011-02-23T08:41:00.000-08:00

Thomas found a handy perch. He's just occupying the ironing board until I need it for the next quilt.

It's always landscapes

2011-02-02T09:44:00.000-08:00

They pour out of me. It comes from primordial outdoor images. Those Sunday drives in the Iowa countryside. Hills and wooded riverbanks, planted rows of corn, farmhomes, and gravel roads. It's Grant Wood everywhere. And it's my place to start: my entry for the SAQA trunk show "This is a Quilt." A little 8" x 8" landscape.

A Body of Work

2010-09-05T17:41:00.000-07:00

It takes about fifteen pieces to make a show. I know this because I made thirteen and then hung them. My friend Marilyn went through the show and said, "Great work but you need MORE." And I knew she was right. It's a feeling, this sense of critical mass. So I devoted 5 days to completing two more quilts, each requiring about 30 hours. That could be what led to the the burn-out.

I've selected a THEME, and I've outlined 15 quilts. In the last two weekends I've I developed two quilts. 2 down, 13 to go. I'm going for the critical mass...

The Blank State

2010-09-01T09:12:00.000-07:00

Now What? How to begin again?

"The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing. "

Walt Disney

or it could have been any number of sensible people who get things done....

Walker Zanger displays Afrigraphica(s)

2009-11-22T09:43:00.000-08:00

Pat McIntosh is the manager of the Walker Zanger tile and stone showroom at the San Francisco Design Center. She enthusiastically welcomed my tall, thin textile panels to her showroom during Fall into Fabrics 2009. In fact, she installed them prominently on the front doors, inviting the designers and their clients into the showroom. Check out her blog on my list ("You are invited to...") to see her sublime photography and check out her showroom to see her handsome product displays. She is an artist, a lovely person, and an ace for all matters of stone and tile. Thank you, Pat.

Ocean of Wisdom

2009-10-28T17:28:00.000-07:00

The Mongolian name for Dalai Lama, Ocean of Wisdom, draws on the Water symbolism of Feng Shui. Inspired by the hand-painted silk fabric of swimming koi, each coordinating fabric conveys its own meditation on the theme. My friend Yasmin owns this quilt. She even painted her walls to match the art! As a Feng Shui Consultant, she knows what to do. There is a Thai ikat-weave silk in the quilt (lower right corner). She pulled that color to paint her kitchen aubergine and it's fabulous!

"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible."

Dalai Lama

Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can't help them, at least don't hurt them.

Dalai Lama

Tom must be a Buddhist. He always tries to help and steps very lightly.

Afrigraphica I & II

2009-09-26T12:21:00.000-07:00

This pair of bright banners was a geometric play of colors and textures, framed in black and dotted with cowrie shells. I have done these designs as a mockingbird spews new songs; they just keep tumbling out and the patterns can run for miles, ever changing and combining, never repeating.

This time, I tried to conceive contemporary African color combinations.

Ears pinned back in full attack mode, Tom bites off the enemy cowrie shell.

Afrigraphica I & II will hang in the Walker Zanger Showroom at 101 Henry Adams St. #412 during the month of November, as the San Francisco Design Center highlights TEXTILES. 10% of the proceeds for the sale of 36 displayed art quilts will be donated to the Textile Arts Foundation of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.

Pumpkin Patch-Work

2009-09-20T16:18:00.000-07:00

It's Half Moon Bay, after all. I had to have something pumpkin in my show, but determined it must have purple and blue to make it work. (I can't stand orange and black.) This was a cheerful quilt to make, and I'm delighted that it is gracing the home of one of my client/friends, Diane Prosser, in her Pumpkin Art Collection.

It must be an instinct.

He always knows just where to settle.

Redhead

2009-09-20T15:30:00.000-07:00

Redhead was the sleeper of the Bamboo Hair Salon Art Quilt Show for Winifred's Threads. The patrons of the salon liked looking at her while they were getting their hair colored (often red) and styled. She apparently was given names by the stylists: "Jessica" by one; "Roxie" by another. People walked right up to her and examined the patent leather open-toed shoes, red button toenails, her (real) false eyelashes, tumbling red locks, and her strawberry-covered cleavage. This inspires yet another future collection of art quilts: Dames.

My fantasy was that some guy would discover this quilt and HAVE to have it as a gift for his redheaded babe. Know anyone?

Turn, Turn, Turn

2009-09-20T13:56:00.000-07:00

The Byrds recorded Pete Seeger's song from Ecclesiastes 3:1-8. Someday I will make a quilt collection inspired by my favorite songs of the Sixties.

My quilt Turn, Turn, Turn renders each of the four seasons as a California landscape.

Tom looks especially good on "Winter."

Biting off the beads again...

Iowa Corn

2009-09-19T17:38:00.000-07:00

It's only 11" by 11" but it holds my whole heart. This is my farm. It floods me with memories of my dad who loved to drive those Iowa roads and look at crops. It brings back thunderstorms on hot, humid nights, and lights in farmhouses from 35,000 feet. My cornfield has black Iowa soil. It's earnest and generous; it informs my wholesome rootstock. That soil makes me breathe deeply, just thinking about it.

Tom went to visit last year. He LOVES Iowa. He also loves to bite off those gold bugle beads, each one an ear of Iowa gold.

Mobile Homes

2009-09-11T21:41:00.000-07:00

As an interior designer, I find I'm drawn to the HOUSE motif, usually a stylized square body with a triangle roof. I picture an entire collection of house designs into art quilts some day. My riffing turned to three dimensions: what about 3-dimensional quilted houses? And then it leaped to movement. What about QUILT as HOUSE as MOBILE? A-ha! Mobile homes.

On reflection, it would have been good to talk with someone about the construction. I just set about the old-fashioned way, with balsa wood glue frames, fishing line and dowel crossbars. What a fun excuse to go to the hardware store, looking for solutions.

5 Mobile Homes:

Home Sweet Home - Cherries & Dots -- Too Cute
Love Pad - Peter Max and Yin & Yang
Animal House - Cats & Dogs & Fish, Oh My!
Fixer-Upper - Before and After Half & Half
Eco-Friendly House - Solar & Recyling Bins

Quilt as Apron. Apron as Quilt.

2009-09-06T15:47:00.000-07:00

It doesn't have to go on a bed or hang on the wall. It can get put to use as functional art.

The details on these aprons can be downright silly, as we discovered at the Quilting Bee. Funny apron ideas had us all giggling as the embellishments got wilder. To be continued....

Here's another addition to the apron series:

Tom has a special fondness for sashimi.

And the seasons, they go round and round....

2009-09-04T21:56:00.000-07:00

Circles on circles on squares was much more labor-intensive than I originally planned, all the while humming the song Circle Game. My friend Carol Forster helped sew (by hand) little running stitches around the outside edge of 40 circles. Then I pulled a thread of each circle to cinch in the outside edge, turn it under, and stitch it flat. Circle Game. I finally stopped, went to my computer, and looked up the lyrics so I could sing all the words with the melody: http://www.lyrics.com/lyrics/joni-mitchell/circle-game.html me.html Then I had to review all the Joni Mitchell songs on the album Ladies of the Canyon. This took me on a trip down Memory Lane with more and more songs, each one manifesting in a visual image of an art quilt. Now to take them out of my head and translate them into fabric compositions. Joni Mitchell has recently built herself a home in British Columbia, probably filled wall-to-wall with her own artwork (paintings.) Joni, if you hear me, I have Circle Game for you....

Tom wasn't around in those days, but he would have enjoyed seeing painted ponies going up and down.

Quilting Bee circa 2008

2009-08-27T15:07:00.000-07:00

After designing quilts on paper for two months, it was finally time to put scissors to fabric!

With the Mountain Aerie home available for the long Thanksgiving weekend, I packed up my machine and fabrics and set up shop on that 8-ft dining table overlooking a redwood forest.

I put out the call to a few friends and they showed up to pour wine, serve tea, use the sewing machine, and entertain with hilarious stories and girltalk. It was a Quilting Bee, circa 2008.

Surprise of the weekend: there is glee in sewing a smile on the face of a cartoon cat and watching an expression emerge...

Farmer's Market

2009-08-23T21:45:00.006-07:00

This is where it started. We completed this kitchen remodel using Amazon Verde Fire granite, custom cabinetry inspired by both antique red lacquer tansu and natural cherry lumber from the Leopold Preserve in Wisconsin, a custom light fixture, two family chopping blocks, and those many personal tweakings that make a cook's kitchen highly personal and just right.

And then came the question, "What goes on THAT wall?" I was reminded of an Oakland Art Museum exhibition commissioned in 1998, which paired women chefs and quilt artists, producing 50 varied, extraordinary art quilts. We looked at the museum's monograph of the show, selected our favorites, and were about to contact the artists, when I admitted my secret longing.....I wanted to make it. After all, I knew the homeowner was the Beet Queen, I knew that she got teary at the beautiful bounty of tomatoes at the Palo Alto farmer's market, I knew that she had been making Thanksgiving dinners since she was eleven. And I knew that her husband plumbed and wired that kitchen to code, that he ordered up the solar panels and music system speakers, and finally, that he grilled those beautiful vegetables outside. Yes, I had to make this quilt! They said, "We'd LOVE that, but didn't want to ask...."

And so, this wall hanging is a fantasy, a crazy salad of dancing vegetables, all of dupioni silks, beads, and embellishments. It is a combination of the homeowner's silk fabrics from her India travels, deer antler buttons she carved as a teenager in Minnesota, and pleated silk fabrics from my collection that picked up the kitchen color scheme of a redwood forest.

Oh! And this all took place before I was a pet owner. The world looks different now, and this is one quilt that didn't require rolling with the lint remover before delivery.....

Moon Town Schmatts

2009-08-09T16:15:00.000-07:00

Half Moon Bay is home of the Moon Town Schmatts, a bassoon trio, and not your ordinary bassoon trio: favorite hits of the the 40s, 50s and 60s, rendered for bassoon. Contra-bassoonist Mia Gates and I were featured on an HGTV segment Crayons and Cats, which showed her colorful home packed with design ideas in, yes, crayon colors and cat paw motif. This prompted the red bassoon to serve as rod for her wall hanging. Each of the nine cats has its special personality and name, surrounded by the text "Every life should have nine cats." Shown here at Bamboo Hair Salon and later to be displayed in Mia's home against some crayon wall color, yet to be determined. Electric blue?? Cheddar cheese yellow?

Designing and Stitching Art Quilts

2009-08-09T13:16:00.000-07:00

When Julie Powell decided to blog about cooking, she cooked to blog and blogged to cook. Which came first?

I have quilted without a blog, but never without a cat. In fact, I don't know how to make a quilt without a cat pawing at the threads, beads, tape measures and other paraphernalia spread out as I work. I watch my thimble get batted across the table till it tumbles on the floor and rolls away. Tom's favorite pastime is toppling things. And reclining on the ironing board to survey the world.

Feel free to add a thread.....