No Mush

Hi, guys. How's everybody doing? I'm doing okay, just a terrible blogger is all. Thanks for the emails checking up on me.

On Sunday I gave a demo to the Baltimore Modern Quilt Guild which happens to be my guild. I talked about working with ugly fabrics (and how I've grown to love them), showed off Ellis Island and some larger chunks of ugly fabric that went in it, and emphasized the importance of value. I didn't bring any value-less (hee hee hee) examples with me because it was supposed to be a short talk. So let's see if I can do a better job of explaining myself here.

In order to check value in my quilts in progress, I use red and green value finders. I have a mismatched pair but these are  Cottage Mills Color Evaluators and they work great.

You can get the filters from Amazon for sure and sometimes get lucky at a quilt shop. Or, use camera filters or plastic or acrylic in red and green. Doesn't have to be anything fancy, but you need both colors.

You hold one of the filters up to your eyes and look at your fabric or blocks. I put the blocks for Pokey's Quilt up on the design wall today and this is what it looked like through the green filter.

I could not get a photo through the red filter for nuthin, but it would look similar (but different). The point is, I can see light lights and dark darks and no area where everything is blending together. If I find the same contrast looking through the red filter, I know this quilt is working great. (Which it is, woohoo!)

What is mush you ask? Here is Kansas City Troubles which I made in the 1990's. Very typical of my colors of the time. 

It's a quilt that never worked and I didn't understand why until many years later. If I'd had the filters I could have looked through them and seen something like this:

Okay, there is some contrast here. It's not really sharp, but I can see triangles and sawteeth and a strong inner border. And here it is through the red filter:

That's a lot of mush, with an inner border.

I faked these two filtered pics using Picasa, so this isn't entirely accurate BUT you can get my point right? Use both the red and green filters and you need to see contrast in both unless you are purposely doing a low-volume quilt but that is a whole other animal.

So if you keep the red and green filters by your sewing machine you can make frequent checks on your progress. I've gotten much better at seeing it myself without needing to use them.

Another great tool, which many of you already know about, is your camera. Look at a photo of your quilt in black and white (on your computer using photo editing software unless you have a really peachy camera).

Mush. This is the most accurate representation of the value, but not necessarily the easiest one to work with constantly.

Did that make sense? Was it helpful? Feel free to ask questions.

Here is a tutorial by Piecemeal Quilts that I think is wonderful. Great examples of pushing your fabric choices so there is less mush and more zing.

I surprised myself at just how much fun I had doing the demo. I need to remember that and not be so intimidated about teaching. Speaking of which, I'm coming out to Colorado to teach in May! fingers crossed.


Okay, before I go, here are a few kitty pics.  Old photos, which says something about how long it's been since I've done this. Annabelle

She was three months old when I took these last July.

 

 And not to be left out: Cooper

They've gotten so much bigger since then. Annabelle is still getting into trouble and Cooper is sleeping a lot (growing boy).

If you want to see more kitty pics, Friend me on Facebook. I am better at posting there...

Fabulous Blocks

I am so lucky to have fabulous wonderful people out there in quilt blog land who sent me blocks to make a mourning quilt for my baby Pokey. And how do I repay you all? By not blogging for the last 6 weeks. eeeek, how did that happen?

Blocks from Marathon Quilter Cher and Heidi B. Heidi was sweet to send me German fabric to include with the quilt.

I never would have guessed Cooper would be so photogenic. He's great at cute poses and sitting still.

Smazoochie Beth made this oh so cute little Pokey face and the letters for MEOW:

Giraffe Dreams Carol E sent me an X and crumbs, and sweet Mary E., whom I met in WA last summer, made the hearts:

I'm sad to say that my horrible disorganization, procrastination, AND kitty mayhem means that I'm not as sure of who made what blocks as I should be. Diane S made the cappuccino heart (cuz Pokey was my cappuccino-colored girl) and I think it was Lynette who made the other lovely blocks. right?

Annabelle with an X made by A Moment of Whimsy Laura (a new friend from the Baltimore Modern Quilt Guild - how dare she have the nerve to have to start back to school teaching instead of playing) and blocks from Margaret C:

Em Celebrates:

Quilt It Marit, who recently lost her beloved Venus. Breaks my heart.

Pokeytown Kim who's been blogging lately about her Beaver Island Quilt Retreat with Gwen Marston (woohoo):

Blue Mountain Daisy Rachael:

Sandi:

Indigo Threads Sharon K:

Note to self: never go this long between blog posts. My brain melted and I can't remember a couple of blog names. This is a lot of blocks. They are all so beautiful - this is going to be a wonderful quilt.

Laura took pity on me and cleaned out her stash.

I'm grateful for the lights and I have already used a bunch of these. Such a hoot to have all this Williamsburg Blue and Dusty Pink. Yes, I'll always take donations of uglies, especially lights. Oh and I did receive some lovely scraps to use in Pokey's quilt but did I keep track of who sent them? no, bad blogger.

I mentioned Debra in my last post. In addition to letters, she sent cat toys (those big mice with the long tails are *awesome* - they throw really well) and this cat bed (in Pokey colors) which the bigger cats take turns lounging in and catching rays. Here's Lily modelling it:

I'll leave you with one final picture. Destructo climbing girl Annabelle scaling my design wall (there's insulation board under the batting):

That's 6' off the ground at the top there. You can see all the gouges in the batting from her previous mountain climbing adventures. If there are blocks up there, she leaps up at them until she can get them down. If blocks are stuck up there with pins, that just means an extra toy to play with when she gets it down to the ground. She's a very silly girl.

So interesting how the kittens personalities differ. Annabelle is mischievous and loves to pull towels down. She leapt one too many times at the large quilts on the walls, so they've been put away and my walls are barren. Cooper meanwhile is so sweet - he jumps up and sits on my chest and rubs his face against mine. I think they've both had goes at the toilet paper - Annabelle likes to pull on the end and run with it, Cooper likes to chew through the roll. But really, that's the only naughty thing he does. I'm enjoying it all - I know they'll outgrow this kittenness all too soon.

Quilt Blocks Go Wild

Hey all ya'all. I gotta do a little bit of shameless self-promotion. See this?

 

Shazam! It's the block I redesigned for the book Quilt Blocks Go Wild just published by Leisure Arts.

It's my version of Rail Fence. You know my Dr. Seuss Christmas Quilt? Well this is the way to make it. The easy way I figured out how to do years later...

I've got a mixed opinion of the book. Of course there is my block--which is fabulous-- and made UnRulily. That is, no marking or real fussing - although you do have to pay attention. I love that we were allowed to use photos to illustrate the steps, so I think it's pretty clear. (If not, give me a holler.) I love Malka Dubrowsky's Drunkard's Path redo. I love that the book shows you alternate methods for working.

But. But there are some methods in the book that do not appeal to me in the least. Freezer paper and templates. So this book isn't about Liberation. It's about how to step outside the traditional zone in baby steps. And of course not everyone loves Liberation and UnRuly so hopefully they'll find a way to play that they do like.

The book will be available on Amazon (Quilt Blocks Go Wild) and at JoAnn's stores. Possibly other places as well.

While I've got you all here, can I make a request for blocks? I know I don't deserve them since I still have several UFOs-worth of wonderful gifties from readers. I do, I know. If you don't worry about it eventually becoming a quilt and just think of it as a gift to Lazy Gal, who looks at it and feels loved... I'd appreciate it. Not that I'm trying to guilt you into anything ;-)

I'd like to make a love quilt for Pokey. I still miss her so much.

I have a quilt in mind. I know what the components are, but not how the quilt will look. I'd love to receive Pokey-colored blocks. White, cream, all those lovely shades of brown and dark brown/black accents. I called her my cappuccino girl - coffee with cream. And of course turquoise/cyan for her beautiful eyes and pink/red for her nose and paw pads (and love).

And the type of block? It's a love quilt. UnRuly L-O-V-E letters and UnRuly XOXOXOXO hugs and kisses. And wonky hearts.  Individual letters, or joined together. Just one or several. Nothing too big please unless you're piecing the letter fabric. Any questions, just ask.

Summary: UnRuly Letters (as found in Word Play Quilts)  E, L, O, V, and X and wonky hearts in white, cream, and all sorts of brown with hints of turquoise, red, pink, and black. (not that you have to have all those colors in one block). The goal is to have a quilt for the next book (yes, I'm finally working on one) so it's gotta be UnRuly.

If you make some letters/hearts and they don't come out well? Don't throw them away. Send them anyway. The UnRuly Orphanage takes in all sorts of strays.

To be even more obnoxious: as always, I'd love any spare orphan UnRuly letters you'd care to send. And teensy bits of ugly ugly fabric in light colors. I've got way too many dark fabrics in my stash...

I hate sunless, overcast days. This blog post makes me sound so sad and dreary and that's really not the case. I'm enjoying the Olympics and sewing. Yes, I'm sewing again and book plotting. woohoo! And enjoying the company of the cats. Even the little stinkers, Annabelle (or should it be Annabowl?):

and Cooper:

They both love the dishwasher, why I don't know. Shiny cave to explore, oh boy! These are older photos, amazing how much they grow in just a couple of weeks.

Later, gators!

Meet Annabelle and Cooper

I know this is supposed to be a quilt blog, not a cat blog (or at least not ONLY a cat blog) but I haven't done any sewing and hardly any hand quilting or cutting since my last post which was eek, five weeks ago? aagh.

I've had distractions. Meet Annabelle and Cooper:

They are darling siblings, now 3 months old. Rescue kitties of course. I saw their little faces looking at me from Petfinder.com and they just drew me in.

Notice the resemblence to Lily? (that's her down below) Couldn't bear thinking of Lily living in jail, so figured I'd bust these two out. Not that they were in jail - actually living in a wonderful foster home, but that's besides the point.

The big difference is the eye color. Right now the wee ones have yellow-green-brown eyes, as compared to Lily's striking clear green. And the little dudes have a more pronounced snout. Their mother is gorgeous, as well as friendly, so I know they will be too.

Anyway, Annabelle has a white face, ears, and legs.

She's a chewer - chewed my iPod headset cord in two and scared us by playing with electrical cords. We now have lots of cords wrapped in blue electrical tape,  which supposedly has a chalky taste that kitties don't like. Agh, Annabelle just launched herself at a quilt hanging on the wall - and she stuck there for a few seconds.

Meanwhile, Mini Cooper has the same face mask as Lily and two brown ears and hind legs.

Cooper's more likely to chew on fingers or toes. He loves hunting and dragging prey behind the sofa - there's quite a collection of toys and paper towels back there. Cooper has made the unfortunate discovery of the dishwasher - he loves jumping in there while I have the bottom rack pulled out. He's the more affectionate of the two and voluntarily sat in my lap for a couple of hours yesterday.

They both have tiny sharp teeth and tiny sharp claws. Agh.

The big cats for the most part ignore them, but there has also been hissing and running away. The big boys are mostly uninterested and Lily is peeved.

The little dudes added a lot of life and energy to our house. We sorely needed it after losing Pokey. And then Bubba.  Bubba was a sweet, cuddly little guy that we really loved, despite having him in our family for only 9 days. I had to have him put down - the vet suspected Feline Infectious Peritonitis. That was truly awful.

I feel like I am finally, slowly starting to come back to life again. The last few months have been difficult.

Besides the cats, the other big event around here was the super derecho which left us without power for three days. That meant we had no internet, cable tv or phones either. The winds knocked down the cell phone tower too - so we felt really cut off. First time I've ever really wished for smart phone. But the whole thing could have been much worse, since there are areas that STILL haven't gotten their power back more than a week later.

And now to watch the Wimbledon Men's Final and whatever stage of the Tour de France we're at today.

Lily on the Mat with Diamonds

I'm trying to get back to normal, but I still miss my sweet Pokey so much. Writing in my blog makes me think of her, so it's hard to do.

Working again on a string diamond project inspired by one in Gwen Marston's Liberated Strings book. I dragged my machine up into the kitchen (rather than using my still horrendously unorganized but wonderfully lit new studio down in the basement) so I felt a part of things rather than apart.

Lily worked on the quilt with me, of course.

I'm using the EZ Rulers 60 degree diamond. Love it. (Thanks for letting me keep it, Kathy!)

the classic "holding down the blocks so they don't get away" technique:

Kitchen islands (and counters) really are a fabulous place to set up a cutting station. So stable and just the right height. I'd be able to iron too if Lily would just move...

I was caught horribly off guard when I downloaded my new photos to the computer. I didn't know I'd find darling Pokey.

So frail and underweight, but still my baby. She'd just come back from the hospital so her leg was bandaged in bright pink.

I miss her so much. dammit dammit dammit.

That's why working on the diamonds is a good project for me. Stringing onto paper is soothing for me. The decisions are small and I know exactly how each piece fits. And I'm working with some of the fabrics that ya'll have gifted me over the years so those are good thoughts. I miss my blogging community even as I find it hard to participate.

Everything will be okay. just not yet.

Pokey

Sorry I've been away for so long. This is a really hard post to write. Lots of things have been going on in the last few months, some really really good but others not so much. I'm about to start bawling now, so I'm just going to write it quickly and get it over with.

Sweet baby Pokey lost her battle with Chronic Renal Failure. I am absolutely heartbroken and I've spent too much time crying. Pokey was never "just" a cat. She was playful, sweet and my truest companion. I loved her dearly, as did my husband. She was just 8 years old. She was lucky to have made it to her first birthday, but that knowledge doesn't make her loss any easier.

She took a dramatic turn for the worse right before we moved to Maryland. The most stressful move to a new house and new place to live that I have ever had. Vets both in Florida and Maryland did what they could.

Sorry, bummer of a post. I needed to get it out of the way. I'm turning off comments - don't think I can handle it. Hope you are all well. I am actually doing well, just having a hard time today writing about my sweetie girl.

So Much Socializing

I've been doing way too much socializing and not enough blogging, obviously. Last Thursday, sewing day at my house. That's my friend Kathy sewing at her Featherweight, and of course Pokey helping me out.

Bibi jumped up on my lap to get some attention so it was a perfect photo op.  Love Pokey's ears laid back...

Lily at least turned around, Pokey's only got one eye open, I'm making a face and have a firm grip on Bibi's head - yay, family portrait.

My friend Susan is in town from Cairo. I loved living there, but I'm glad we're not there now. We've been driving around looking at real estate for her and eating some fabulous food. Susan brought me some of the scarab beads I love so much. I want to use these in a mosaic someday.

In fact, I'm going to lunch with her in 5 minutes so I have to run. A last look at Legos.

Thanks for the uglies that have appeared in the mail. ya'all are wonderful. yes, I'll let you know more details about how I'm making this. Meanwhile, Julie is making her own version with Flying Geese and it is awesome. She also blogged about it at the UnRuly Blog, so check that out too.  Later, dudes.