Hello,

 Thanksgiving is really the beginning of holiday season for me.   The QuEG’s group started the week off with a Holiday Potluck  as a part of  our meeting.  We also added to the craziness by having a cookie exchange too.   This first shot is of Liz and our hostess Linda with the gift that Liz brought her.   We all were in top sprits and the food was great as were the cookies.

Friends always make my life full and this day was no exception.   We did the ususal show and tell and there was lots of both. Linda started us off with her beautiful  Baltimore  album squares that she had unearthed when she moved.  They show  excellently exicuted hand  applique’ work on this  old project that she now feels she is ready to complete.   She suggests that doing a UFO is a good way to get back into the creative process in her new space. 

 Angela was the next power house to show her work.    She is framing her felted works now and they look wonderful.   Her Hawaiian dased petrogliphits are wonderful.   She is also experimenting with felting, hand stitching and dyeing.   Sometimes in that orderis her order.  She then goes back in and stitches even more .

 I really like the color combinations she is using too.  This work is also based on her petrogliphic series.

 Sally continues to blow me  away with her thread drawn  Computer / Quilt work.  She mixed  and manipulated five different programs to create this holiday quilt.   She also had some stunning little works that she had made into cards- her other specialty.   What a gal!

  I then went off to the Quilt Diva meeting  the same evening.  Alice was a busy this last mouth and she shared four finished and one work in progress.  The work in this photo is called Guardians.    

Ruth is continuing her work with on blocks that are based on Guyana symbols.   This symbol is used to purmote Versatility, Intensity and Dynamism.   She asked for ideas about how to quilt this work.  What a strong graphic!  I am impressed with her work.

 Donna’s  busy getting ready for her solo show.   She is using found wood pieces and found objects as starting points for her new spirited figures series.  She says she needs to make 27 by February.  So she will be one busy gal to meet that self created challenge.

Elsie had been busy creating new bird blocks for Christmas.  I enjoy her cardinals.  They are so chipper and bright.  They really make me smile. 

 After spending a day with all these  intense creative folks all working in their own directions,   I always go home with a mind full of new ideas and images from these two wonderful  groups of gals.  

Progress Report:    Transversing Foundations #4   Because I am not a real fan of numbering art works I now have  added to the title of this quilt.   I added lots of machine drawing  on this quilt this week and now feel it is complete.  This morning I painted the back and so that is the image presented here.    I will add the sleeve this week and the piece will be done.  Using the bobbin thread colors as my guide I tried to paint in similare  color and patters as the  front.  I know this is a lot difference, but it still works for me.  

Foundations #5     I continue to work away on this piece.  Everything here is quite fluid because so much work needs to be done on this piece before it is were I want it to be.  I did try adding  paper to the surface of this piece to get the color and effect I wanted.    I will do almost anything for the sake of texture.

Flight:  This quilt was called Swallows last week. I do not think that is accurate any more so I changed it.  I am going to use that title on another piece where I used the swallow stencil on a more traditional piece.   I worked on the quilting portion of this work this week.  I am going to try to add some shadow(only machine drawn) swallows into the flight pattern to add interest and more texture.   There is one small one drawn in the lower center of the flock at the moment.  Can you find it?

  New  Swallows:    Here is the new work that will carry the Swallows title from now on.  I am still in the construction stage, but that is almost done.   I find  that I really like this stencil and may even do some more work with it.

Daily’s – This project continues.    I have two more weeks of squares with red circles and black triangles to work with before I change the beginning lay out units. 

The season is full of visual images and lots of action.  Keep Creating.

Hugs

Carol