The Road Less Traveled

 

I joined an online art quilt group I discovered on Facebook and they have challenges every two months. The current quilt deadline is today and the theme of the challenge was called "The Road Less Traveled." The size of the quilts are 11.5" x 16.5" and we reveal our work on the blog site today at www.aroundtheworldin20quilts.blogspot.com, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/artquiltsaroundtheworld and on our own blogs.

So what did I decide to do-I thought about what the road less traveled meant to me and it meant to do the unconventional things that other people aren't doing. I love to do portrait quilts and thought how can I combine portrait quilts with this challenge? Last February I was having the winter blahs and dyed my normally brown with blonde highlighted hair hot pink-that was not really conventional for a middle aged woman living in the Upper Midwest in a small town!! So that's how it started with a fun self portrait with my hot pink hair!! I do add the victory roll to my bangs so that was normal for me and hand stitched one of my pink hair clips that I actually use in my hair to the roll for a 3D look.

While I was thinking about this project, I attended the Wisconsin Quilt Expo in Madison WI in early September and Chris Daly had a booth in which she sold hand dyed fabrics. I purchased some bright hand dyed velvets including a hot pink. I added this velvet as the hot pink hair highlights which was the second "road less traveled" idea of velvet not cotton for this quilt. It was easy to fuse and to work with on my sewing machine.

Then my friend Faith who is in her early twenties, and very fun and inspirational, is all about using Duct Tape for projects. I watch her make wallets, flowers etc. out of Duct Tape and found this 1970s themed tape and decided to use it as the binding on this quilt. Number three of the "road less traveled" is no traditional binding but use Duct Tape instead. I began with the pink hair idea and it percolated into more ideas!! I had fun with this project-which to me is the whole point of these challenges to explore new ideas but if it is not fun why bother!!

I'm not sure the quilt judges would love the duct tape binding if I were to enter this in a quilt show but it is an art quilt!!

The next challenge is called "macro" which will be interpreted as a close-up view of something and I have an idea and it is not a portrait quilt and it is due Nov. 30th. 

 

My Quilting Arts TV Taping Experience in Photos

 I drove to the Cleveland Ohio area for my two 9 minute segments for Season 13 of Quilting Arts TV on PBS. My friends Patti and Faith were my traveling buddies and were able to hang out at the studio in the green room while I did my thing. Patti took all the photos for me. The season, I was told, will be broadcast in January 2014. My segments will appear in Episodes 2 and 3. The entire season is taped in one week and the TV show has the process down to a science! The first photo is me with Katherine the studio manager. All needed supplies for the taping are put on a huge cookie sheet and I am organizing my items for the first episode and feeling nervous and out of my element.

One of the show sponsors is Bernina sewing machines and if we are doing a sewing demo we who have never used a Bernina, Jeanne from Florida and has a huge title I can't remember, shows us the ropes. I am in the middle of getting a crash course on the mother of all Berninas. Jeanne is amazing and the sewing machine was so easy to use. I sew on a Viking Sapphire as my home machine and on a Janome at the quilt shop. Like my outfit for the camera and no make up!! YIKES!!!

 

 Me again organizing my supplies and trying to not be nervous!!

 This is me getting my make up done which is nice since I'm usually giving the service not receiving it!! This season of Quilting Arts is being taped in HD and the make up artist had special HD foundation which lasted all day-I didn't want to wash it off!!

I taped the same day at Diane Doran and the make up artist left after she did our make up but left Pokey, Diane and I all samples of our lipstick, foundation and powder for touch ups.

 Getting episode two prepped.

 This is the green room where Diane and I laid out all our goodies. Pokey had the back table. The far room was where the sewing machines were.

Pokey taped all the episodes in one week and tapes all the intros at once then the editing people add the individual segments later. Pokey has her picture taken in each episode's garment so when she sits with each guest she has the correct garment on and there is cohesion. The photo is the bulletin board that allows Pokey to keep track of her clothes!!

Quilting Arts TV has a new set and I am sitting there to feel comfortable in this environment.

And here we are taping my first segment on my Intro to Portrait Quilt pattern.

 This is a view of the set pre-taping with the director, Kathy, and Vivica, the editor of Quilting Art Magazine, Helen, the DVD lady, Kathy's assistant, Pokey and myself.

This is me doing my sewing demo on the Bernina in the first segment. What do you think of my beautiful Shellac manicure! Had to keep it bland for the camera or I would have had something glittery and hot pink!!

And these are my hands discussing my Line Drawing technique. I made one glitch in the first segment but I nailed the second one!

 

This was a great experience! I was fearful of the 10.5 hour drive and my friends rode with me to help me feel more safe and then I had people to talk to on the journey.  One of my hair customers at the salon lent my her EXPass which allows me to zip through all the toll booths in IL, IN and OH which saved time and money!! Everyone at the studio was kind and there were no divas! It was easier than my nervous stomach was telling me and I hope to be invited back again in the future.

After the taping I asked Katherine, the only local woman, if there was a Joann fabrics in the area and behold the store headquarters was 13 miles from the hotel. Paradise to leisurely spend 1.5 hours in the flagship store!! All in all I have been blessed!!

Witch? Award: All My Blog Followers Can Vote Too!!

I posted last week about the local portrait contest. The City of Menominee closed down the location for the exhibit and receptions for code reasons and it was decided to move the voting and display process to Facebook. The artworks were photographed and now our names are with our work. I would appreciate your vote on Facebook at www.facebook.com/witch?award. When you see my self portrait click on LIKE and better yet click SHARE!! I am in third place on the second day and a high school kid who did a pencil drawing is winning and I am in third place. I want to win the $1000 to buy an iPad. Thanks for helping me!!

The Witch? Award

The Witch? Award is a local portrait competition/contest for any local artist to enter. The rules were to have an unframed piece sized 16" x 20." Since I am a quilter to follow the contest rules meant no binding. I added 3-4" beyond the required size to wrap the quilt around the frame. The contest stated that the work had to be based on a photo with a model release. That part was weird to me since I base my ideas on my drawings not photos. I have no grandchildren or anyone I had a decent photo of that I wanted to make a quilt about and the rules said a self portrait would work. The second photo is the photo I based my entry on. It was a quickie iPhone photo last summer when I had blonde in my hair and I was goofing around with my hair that day. I added more "chin/shoulders" and added the awesome pink/orange/lime batik for the background. I didn't add much for embellishments because I thought the art community might not "get" that part and it may look too crafty for artsy. I can always add my bling after the contest!

Creating a self portrait is a strange experience but I just kept looking at value, color and details and made the applique pieces. I struggled with the mouth and also hid my work from my boyfriend Ken because it was kind of embarassing to me. He finally had to look at it when he stappled the quilt to the frame he made for it. He though it looked like me and I have accepted it as another piece of my artwork collection.

The exhibit will be on display at the Crawford Building, Menominee MI from July 12 through August 9, 2013 weekends only and extended hours Aug. 1-4 for the local Waterfront Festival. The general public will vote on the art. There is an opening reception on Friday July 12th and a closing reception on Friday August 9th in which the winner will be chosen. No idea how many local artists create portrait work or how many people will vote so I have to just watch and wait!! The website is www.thewitch?award.com.

Artsy Chick Quilts: July and August=Gallery Season

Artsy Chick Quilts: July and August=Gallery Season: I rejoined the Menominee Area Art Council (MAAC) and they are exhibiting at the University of Wisconsin-Marinette Gallery in the Arts Buil...

July and August=Gallery Season

I rejoined the Menominee Area Art Council (MAAC) and they are exhibiting at the University of Wisconsin-Marinette Gallery in the Arts Building during summer hours M-F and during the Theatre on the Bay Production of the Sound of Music. The play runs July 18-21 and 24-28. There is an artist reception on July 18th from 4-5pm which I will be able to attend. I chose my piece "Bella Gialla" for this exhibit because it has not been in a local exhibit and the size was small enough for the area. I personally love this quilt and the pink, blue and yellow versions as well!!

This quilt titled "Hera and Aphrodite" is on display at Farmers and Merchants Bank, 1644 Ludington Street, Marinette WI 54143 during bank hours. It is part of the "MAAC Attack" exhibit by the art council members and is on display from now until the end of August. there is a n artist reception in July but I am not able to attend since I will be in Rhinelander teaching.

This quilt called "Menominee Mermaid II" and the one in the next photo called "Geisha" are on display at the Harry and Laura Nohr Gallery at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, Platteville WI July and August 2013 in conjunction with the Sewing and Quilting Expo August 2-3, 2013 in which I am an instructor!! Love this gallery and the whole event!  The mermaid quilt I made for an exhibit that didn't happen in 2012 and my "Geisha" quilt was my entry in the 2010 Hoffman Challenge.

International Quilt Festival-Chicago

I had two weeks to get my act together because I am doing a 2 hour demo at the International Quilt Festival in Chicago this Sat. June 22. The show is June 21-23, 2013. I am thrilled it is returning to Chicago after being gone for 3 years. I decided to make a wearable art-like garment and I cut the sleeves of a denim jacket I wasn't wearing and thought I'd raw edge fuse applique my business name to the back for some free advertising! The front has several felt flowers with button centers. I did funky stitching with variegated thread around the collar, armholes and front opening and chose to stop and say that was enough embellishments. I will wear it the day of my presentation so if you see me at the show s

stop and say "hi!"