Creative Life Sampler

Appliqu é  Improv. 2 The experimenting with improvisation continues! This is the second time I have used the cutouts from an earlier appliquéd piece as a starting point for a new project. In this case, I pulled out the olive green from my scrap box and arranged them on a length of patterned fabric from my stash to create new shapes. Once the green shapes were sewn in place the fabric underneath was cut away to reduce bulk. This gave me shapes in the patterned fabric to play with, and the piece just evolved. The bottom cream fabric is a sateen cotton which has a bit of shimmer to it and helps show off the hand quilting. Really enjoying this process of creating. It's quite a contrast to my ordinary method of planning the design out completely before taking the first stitch. Somehow working back and forth between these two creative processes gives me a sense of balance. It also satisfies the itch to use every scrap of material, . . . win, win.

So happy to report that my two gradation studies in reverse appliqué (left) and appliqué (right) have been juried in to the 2023 "Quilts=Art=Quilts" exhibit at the Schweinfurth Art Center in Auburn, NY.  Quilts=Art=Quilts draws submissions from around the world and this year 72 quilts have been accepted for the show. I am really humbled and grateful to be included.  I especially appreciate the Schweinfurth Art Center for providing this opportunity to showcase the diverse voices in the quilting community. The Art Center has been staging this annual event since 1981 and it has featured the work of many of my favorite modern quilters/textile artists. In fact, the jurors curating this year's show are awesome, stars in the world of quilting: Chawne Kimber ( https://www.instagram.com/cauchycomplete/ )  and Irene Roderik ( https://www.ireneroderick.com/ ) Opening night is October 28 , so off these babies go to be on display through January 7 in up-state New York. I haven't s