Finally – I’ve done some fiber work this week. This was inspired by one of the small works It’s about 25″ square.

I’ve started quilting it, but black on black doesn’t show. For me, the quilting is the HARDEST decision. After pinning it to the design wall and seeing all the safety pins, I love them. Engergy. Direction. Now I think I know how to quilt it and what to do.

My friend Nancy has just asked that question. Well – I just came home from TWO retreats. The first was  with my Uncommon Threads Art Quilt group at Lake of the Ozarks and the second was in Arkansas at a yoga retreat, in a cabin, in the woods,  on the Buffalo River.

Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri

Wow! Am I restored and inspired. I don’t remember seeing such gorgeous fall color here in the Ozarks before. Most of our trees are oaks which just turn brown; lovely browns, but just brown. This year the reds and yellow and oranges sang. Sumac, hickory, dogwood, etc.

Lake Stockton, MO

Little Buffalo River, Arkansas

Now it’s back to the work in the studio. I’m actually working on something that I’ll share with you next week.

The following picture is scanned from the latest White Flower Farm catalog. Click link to see the actual page.

Note that this bulb is in a vase of pebbles. Years ago I bought a bunch of amaryllis bulbs and put each one in a tall vase with just a dab of water in the bottom. Roots formed, gorgeous flowers emerged, and I gave them away as Christmas gifts. Last year Susan gave me three wonderful bulbs that I photographed repeatedly and shared on this blog. I’ve tended them all summer and now leaves just started forming a few weeks ago. In moving them into the house for the winter, their pot fell off the deck, dropping 10′ or so, the pot smashed but the bulbs look o.k. except that most of the roots broke on the biggest one. Since they are out of the dirt, I put them in vases with clear glass marbles  or pebbles. We’ll see how they grow. Will keep you posted. I know you’ll be breathlessly awaiting the outcome!!!!!

I spent a week in California with a dear, dear friend. We did little except talk, read, talk, knit, and talk some more. There was a lot of catching up to do. Besides, we were sitting in front of an incredible view. Our one big excursion was to the Getty Villa Malibu, a museum of art and culture from ancient Greece, Rome, and Etruria. Here are a few pictures.

California Coast Line

Bucket Full of Guava Fruit

Recycling Plastic On The Beach

The End

Time flies when you’re having fun and I’ve been having fun spending time with a Dear, Dear Friend and traveling. Will show a few of the travel pictures later, but since returning home I’ve done a tiny bit of creative work, like cleaning the studio and finishing some of what was started before I left home. It’s time to DO ART.

I was cleaning out the flower bed yesterday, pulling grass and weeds when I discovered this chrysalis attached to a lower limb of a rose bush. I hope it survives; it should be a Monarch. We are also having early morning heavy fogs and I found this dew laden spider web a couple of mornings ago. Both are such treasures; better than jewelry.

As it turned out, I took 1391 pictures on the trip to Durango and Wyoming. Don’t cringe. I’m only going to show you three more. These are three of my favorites which turned out to be quite minimal. As my quilting is going minimal, so seems my photographs.

Before I edit the more than 800 pictures that I took on my trip, I want to post pictures of the award winners for which I was the Juror at:

FIBER CELEBRATED 2009, An international juried fiber art exhibition

July 29 to September 20, 2009

Center of Southwest Studies Gallery

Fort Lewis College, 1000 Rim Dr., Durango CO

BEST OF SHOW-TOOTSIE POP ATTIRE-Linda Andrus

FUNCTIONAL HOUSEHOLD-MONGOLIAN TEKEMET STYLE FELTED RUG-Anna Kinney

FUNCTIONAL WEARABLE-NEW MEXICO SKY-Ann Shafer

NON-FUNCTIONAL 2D-RACER, AN EQUINE PORTRAIT-Sue Cleveland

NON-FUNCTIONAL 3D-NATURALLY ENDOWED-Pamela Zimmerman

FOUR CORNERS WEAVERS GUILD BEST USE OF COLOR-CONTEMPLATIVE GARDEN-Rebecca Mezoff

LAS ARONAS WEAVERS GUILD EXCELLENCE IN WEAVING-SEPTEMBER-Kathy Spoering

HANDWEAVERS GUILD OF AMERICA AWARD-PACIFIC SUNSET-Jeanne Steiner

AMERICAN TAPESTRY ALLIANCE AWARD-SO SOUGHT AFTER-Kathe Todd-Hooker

COMPLEX WEAVERS AWARD-REVERSIBLE TOP-Barbara Herbster

Fiber arts has come a long way in the years that I have been a fiber artist and I am extremely honored to have been chosen as the juror for this exhibit..

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A week ago today I was in Durango, CO, judging the Intermountain Weavers Conference exhibit for awards. That was a jumping off place for us to have a camping trip to Wyoming. We’ve been camping in National Forests with no conveniences except enclosed toilets and this is my first opportunity to use electricity to download all my pictures and surprise, surprise, I have internet access. I’d like to show you the award winners at the conference, but first I must get permission, so that will be later. Here are some pics from the trip so far:

Actually this was in Colorado

As was this, in Silverto, CO

Buffalo in WY

And an incredible thunderstorm in the Tetons.

More later.

Uncommon Threads, an art quilt group that I belong to, has made a funeral quilt to be used for each of us when we die. When the last one dies, it will be donated to a museum. Sounds morbid, I know, but a couple of members researched the subject of funeral quilts and discovered that they have been used for several centuries as a cloth or covering of caskets for people who couldn’t afford a nice casket or during the Victoria era covered with embroidery and fancy work. Maybe it was just another excuse for us to have a challenge, but it was accepted with enthusiasm. Our only problem was that no one could agree on the color, so it was decided to make one side warm colors and the other side cool colors. Each member made two blocks; one cool and one warm. It became such a magnificent project that we decided to create a book. I did the photography and Merrilee Tieche was the editor. Each member has two pages to depict their blocks and to tell why, what, or how they were inspired. Below is the cover, front and back. Click Book Preview in the sidebar to see the first 15 pages. It can be ordered from Blurb. There is much more history and explanation in the book. Enjoy.