New Work: Happy Family

This is my latest quilt, Happy Family.

I'm very happy with it.

The loose circles were a late addition and I think they add a lot of interest. Once I put them there they reminded me of my immediate family, which has three members. And since we get along very well I came up with the title of Happy Family.

I've got a bunch of detail shots and other information here and on my blog.

This piece is available for purchase. Full details.

It's not too late to sign up for the 5 day version of Design Your Own Nature Quilt in beautiful Pacific Grove, CA. Part of an Empty Spools Seminar, everything gets started February 25th. See examples below. Full info.

When do you consider adding a border? Do art quilts need them? In what scenarios? I have a tutorial article all about the options and preferences. Find it here.

I'll soon be teaming up with talented artists, Gabriele DiTota, and Sue Robinson, for a 3-person exhibit, which we're calling Cover Story. It will be on display at the Museum of Florida Art and Culture, on the campus of South Florida State College, in Avon Park, FL

Adrenaline Rush, above

Show dates are February 21 - March 29, 2024. (A change since the last newsletter.) There will be two receptions. The first will be February 21, 12:30 - 2:30, with light refreshments. The second will be March 13, 5- 7 PM (no refreshments.)

This is a pretty big deal for all of us. We've been interviewed and a video will run during the show. Cool stuff!

Above, my "Measure of a Woman" piece,
She Looked for Blessings and Found them

The "Measure of a Woman" challenge pieces are very interesting ones. Created by the fiber artists of "Dirty Dozen," each quilt is the height of it's maker and no more than 12" wide. Plus, each one is a self-portrait. Not necessarily about the way the artist looks, but her hobbies, family, or characteristics.

These pieces will soon be on display at the Osceola Fine Arts Center, in Kissimmee, FL and they'll be hung so the bottom of each piece aligns, and the stop edges go up by height. We've exhibited them this way before and it the viewers are always intrigued.

The exhibit will be February 20 - March 31, 2024, with a reception on March 2, from 2-5. We'll have 2 other group challenges on display: "Driven to Abstraction," and "Play List."

When hanging quilts in art galleries, the typical hanging sleeve no longer does the trick. But, I don't want to remove it since I'll need it if the quilt goes to a quilt show.

Thanks to a friend's husband I now know the trick to using a slat, hanging wire, and sleeve alteration to get the job done. Learn about it.