Week in Review 2015 - 02/27

Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci
as it looks today.

Tips, Thoughts and Techniques:

One question I was asked recently is where do I find the various calls for entry that I submit my work to. The answer to that question has changed with time. When I first started entering exhibitions the only place I knew to look for calls was in quilt magazines. It is hard to believe that in the late 1990's internet promotion of calls just weren't that prevalent. Now there are many lists of art and fiber art calls. Here are few that I check regularly:

• www.saqa.com
• www.quiltingdaily.com/content/Call-for-entries.aspx
• www.callforentry.org 
• http://lyrickinard.com/calls-for-entry/
• www.artdeadlineslist.com

Detail of the beading on the largest blue
section of Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci.
I thought it would be fun to imply a sunflower.

The more calls you enter, the more those calls let you know of additional opportunities or remind you of their annual/biennials. Thus making the need to check lists less necessary.

The stems of the feathers are filled in with
a basket weave of beads in the red section of
Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci.

I maintain a tickler file for my calls for entry. The file includes a spreadsheet of all my exhibition quilts. I have all the particulars about each quilt in searchable fields so that I can easily determine whether I have any work that fits a particular call. There is a list in date order of upcoming exhibitions I plan on entering. Finally, there is a section of all the exhibitions I am currently in. The relevant material for each of these exhibitions has its own clear plastic sheet protector/sleeve. I file these by date of when my next responsibility is, such as when the quilt needs to be shipped. Once a chore is completed I simply move that sleeve to the next chore's date.

A system is only as good as the effort you put into it. I make it a point every Wednesday to search for new calls, complete upcoming calls and check what needs handling on exhibitions that I am in. Most Wednesdays this takes me less than two hours to do. 

With the business of quilting taking care of I am free to spend solid days working in my studio. That is precisely what I did this week as I beaded, beaded some more and then added more beads to Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci.

1) Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci - (Due May 1, 2015)

a) Continue beading - done!

2) Free motion quilting practice. - done!

A free motion quilting practice piece of
Leah Day's design, Ocean Currents.

I did take one break from quilting and tried my hand at Leah Day's ocean currents FMQ motif. This is a great one if you want to develop your skills at echo quilting. It also makes a lovely filler design for sky or water. Although I would probably vary the size of the echoes in order to more naturally create water ripples or the sense of a turbulent sky.

3) Post the number of days I have worked in my studio in 2015 - 22.5/126

4) Perform a random act of kindness - done!

5) Night Vision - 

a) Add the label - On hold until I need a second label

I am on the home stretch with beading Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci. Even so, I expect I will spend most of next week beading the yellow section. I will give myself a break to do some free motion quilting and I have been spending an inordinate amount of time mulling over what design to execute next. Good thing I have the following plan to keep me on track:

1) Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci - (Due May 1, 2015)

a) Continue beading

2) Free motion quilting practice.

3) Post the number of days I have worked in my studio in 2015

4) Perform a random act of kindness

5) Night Vision - 

a) Add the label - On hold until I need a second label

I am now linking up to two blogs on Fridays. The first is Nina Marie's Off the Wall Fridays and the second is Free Motion Mavericks.

Week in Review 2015 - 2/20

Tips, Thoughts and Techniques:

Adoration - submitted, but rejected from
Legacy, an upcoming art exhibit at the
Neville Museum in Green Bay, WI

The question I am asking myself as I sit down to write this week's post is how best to frame the past week? It would be easy to put myself forward in the best light and share my week's successes. It may be cathartic for me and enlightening to you to share the more difficult issues I faced. Dickens said it best when he opened A Tale of Two Cities with "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..." In truth, my week was neither of these extremes, but it certainly hasn't been inconsequential times either. I received the slim envelope twice this week. First from the Neville Museum in Green Bay, WI that requested artwork for their upcoming exhibition titled, Legacy. What could better suit the theme than Adoration? Well apparently after reviewing all the entries the juror came up with an exhibition that was land based. Adoration certainly didn't fit into that slant on legacy. Next to be rejected was Night Vision. I was in very good company with this one. 80% of the works entered were rejected. How do I dust myself off? I fill out yet another call for entry this time to an art exhibit in Missouri titled Wild Thing, that is looking for art based on wild animals and even mentions creatures of the rain forest in the prospectus. So the waiting game begins again.

Night Vision - submitted, but rejected from
Wild Fabrications. Now waiting to hear if it
got into Wild Things.

Another way I cope with rejection is to focus on what has gone well. It took a little more than two weeks, but I am finally able to attend to my work as Interim Chair of SAQA's Exhibition Committee and still spend three solid days working in the studio and another day handling the business end of things. How did I spend my studio time? Beading, of course.

1) Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci - (Due May 1, 2015)

a) Continue beading - Done!

2) Free motion quilting practice. - Oops. I meant to do this yesterday, but I was so caught up in my beading that I just plum forgot.

3) Post the number of days I have worked in my studio in 2015 - 19.5/126

Two rows of beading complete in each of the four
quadrants of the 16" square white block in
Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci 

4) Perform a random act of kindness - I was kind many times last week, but I didn't manage to perform a random act of kindness.

5) Night Vision - 

a) Add the label - On hold until I need a second label

What will next week bring? Will it be the best of times? Will there be more challenges? At least I have a plan to help smooth out the emotional upheavals. It is as follows:

I opted to try my hand at moss stitch beading
for the 4" square block. 

1) Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci - (Due May 1, 2015)

a) Continue beading

2) Free motion quilting practice.

3) Post the number of days I have worked in my studio in 2015

4) Perform a random act of kindness

5) Night Vision - 

a) Add the label - On hold until I need a second label

I am now linking up to two blogs on Fridays. The first is Nina Marie's Off the Wall Fridays and the second is Free Motion Mavericks.

Weekly Report 2015 - 2/13

Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci
The quilting is done. Now it
is time to turn to bead embellishment.

Tips, Thoughts and Techniques:


I left everyone on a bit of a cliff hanger last week. I can now share what the volunteer job is that I said yes to. I am the Interim Chair of SAQA's Exhibition Committee. SAQA is the acronym for Studio Art Quilts Associates. It has over 3,400 international members most of whom are fiber artists and the remaining members support or feel strongly about the field, such as business owners or collectors. SAQA's "mission is to promote the art quilt through education, exhibitions, professional development, documentation, and publications." There are currently ten exhibitions touring the globe and nearly an equal number in the pre-exhibition phase. Just as it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a committee to develop and manage the exhibitions from first kernel of an idea through returning the artwork back to the artist at the end of the exhibition. I am very fortunate to have inherited a talented committee with a strong range of skills to help make sure all aspects of SAQA's exhibitions run smoothly.

Detail from Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci
There will be two rows of beads along the feather's
spine on each of the quadrants in the white block.

I have spent much of the past ten days learning about my new job and taking care of the immediate business that needed to get done. However, I am determined not to give up my own work. I did manage multiple half days in the studio which was sufficient to make some personal artwork progress.

1) Night Vision 

a) Add the label - On hold.

2) Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci - (Due May 1, 2015)

a) Finish the quilting - Done

b) Remove the markings - Not yet 

The blue chalk that has always, always brushed off with no problem cannot be removed from the white fabric. Grrrrrr! I know, I know always test your marking tool before committing. My personal mantra is that "there are no mistakes in quilting. There are only learning experiences and creative opportunities. " I am doing what I always do when a flaw can't be removed. I am covering it up. :) Let's hear it for beads! The key when covering a flaw is to make sure that the coverup looks as though that was the original intent. 

c) Square up the quilt
d) Decide whether to bind or face it.

Zooming in even closer in another detail from
Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci. You can see the blue
chalk marking in the lower right corner before it is
covered with beads. There is the same amount of
blue chalk discreetly hidden behind the line of beads.

3) Free motion quilting practice. - Once again, I allowed my free motion quilting on Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci to fulfill this obligation.

4) Post the number of days I have worked in my studio in 2015 - 16.5/126

5) Perform a random act of kindness - Done!

I expect my work on the Exhibition Committee to continue to cut into my studio time for a while. My goal is to continue to work towards a more comfortable balance. When I do carve out studio time this is what I will be working on:

1) Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci - (Due May 1, 2015)

a) Continue beading

2) Free motion quilting practice.

3) Post the number of days I have worked in my studio in 2015

4) Perform a random act of kindness

5) Night Vision - 

a) Add the label - On hold until I need a second label

I am now linking up to two blogs on Fridays. The first is Nina Marie's Off the Wall Fridays and the second is Free Motion Mavericks.

Weekly Report 2015 - 02/06

Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci
Everything but the yellow square
is finished. I still have small section
of feather swirls to quilt. Then I will
fill in the background with some McTavishing

Tips, Thoughts and Techniques:

Have you ever noticed how as soon as you clear a counter, closet or chest it becomes cluttered and disordered again? Life can be like that, too. I thrive on a well defined life that I carefully order with the projects, jobs, groups and commitments that fulfill me until I am overfull once more. I have spent the past few months paring down and simplifying. Then bam! This week I said yes to an opportunity that is guaranteed to turn my life upside down for a few months and quite possibly, several years. Why throw myself into this? There are many rational, self serving answers. The truth is, that after several years of being content, I suddenly felt energized, enthusiastic, engaged and eager to face whatever demands would be foisted on me. So, clear those closets, let go of groups and projects that hold you down. It will allow you to say yes to that opportunity that seems to come at just the right moment. With the clutter cleared away you have the time to dig in and embrace the new life you have just gifted to yourself.

I was worried that using a blending thread might make
quilting feathers more difficult. Fortunately that hasn't
proven to be the case. The blue/green marking lines are
from a water soluble pen. They will be washed out.

I was fortunate enough to have two full studio days before the phone rang with the above referenced opportunity. I even managed to squeeze in another hour and a half later in the week. Here is what I accomplished with that time:

1) Night Vision - (Due January 31, 2015)

a) Add the label - On hold.

2) Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci - (Due May 1, 2015)

This is the backside of
Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci.
This time I opted to use a thread
in the bobbin that would blend with
the top thread.

a) Start the quilting - Done! 

Remember all those feathers I quilted last week? It was so, so worth it as I spent my studio time quilting even more feathers, but this time on Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci.

3) Free motion quilting practice. - Done! I'm double dipping again this week by allowing my work on Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci to count as FMQ practice.

4) Post the number of days I have worked in my studio in 2015 - 14.5/126

I lost a full studio day this week as I dealt with my new opportunity. It will probably take me a few weeks of getting up to speed with this opportunity before I can manage three studio days a week. It is definitely going to be close as to whether I reach this goal or not.

5) Perform a random act of kindness - Done!

My ability to free hand draw curves, especially keeping
them a uniform size is non existent. I traced around
my cat's food bowl (clean and empty of course) in order
to lay out the guidelines for my swirling feathers.

Whether I manage one, two or three days in the studio next week at least I know what I will do with the time I am gifted. 

1) Night Vision - (Due January 31, 2015)

a) Add the label - On hold.

2) Mondrian Tackles Fibonacci - (Due May 1, 2015)

a) Finish the quilting
b) Remove the markings
c) Square up the quilt
d) Decide whether to bind or face it.

3) Free motion quilting practice.

4) Post the number of days I have worked in my studio in 2015

5) Perform a random act of kindness

I am now linking up to two blogs on Fridays. The first is Nina Marie's Off the Wall Fridays and the second is Free Motion Mavericks.