At the Hemingway House, Key West, Florida

Back to some visual inspiration from our Florida trip!  After our first night on Duck Key, we drove down to Key West for two nights.  This allowed us one day to wander (sweating a lot…it was over 90 degrees and 90 percent humidity) in downtown Key West and one day for a snorkeling trip to the Dry Tortugas.  The one thing I absolutely wanted to do was visit the Hemingway house, where I promptly fell in love with the acid green shutters!  The house is on the second highest bit of land on Key West, a little over 20 feet above sea level!

Of course, one of the reasons I wanted to go is the cats.  We have a polydactyl, which means many-toed cat.  They are reasonably common here in Maine as well as on Key West.  Most cats have 18 toes (four per foot, plus dew-claws on two feet).  Thumper has 26 toes–basically a foot and a half per leg!

This regal calico allowed us to photograph her in the dining room of the Hemingway house. I think she has the normal number of toesies.

Here’s one of those lovely windows from the INside looking onto the verdant garden.  There are fans for the obvious reason…it was HOT!  Apparently Hemingway’s then-wife (they lived there in the late 20s and 30s) decided to remove the ceiling fans and install her collection of crystal chandeliers.  The tourguides regret her decision every summer!

I loved the paving in the verandah area around the house…looks like a Quilt Modern plan, eh?

I LOVED the pods and flowers… I believe this is a Royal Poincianna tree. Stunning against that blue sky!

Speaking of cats… clearly they go where they want, even if it is on top of wet cement so that their feeties are preserved for posterity! Can you say Surface Design?

More wondrous and bizarre berries on trees–this one near the dock area where we departed for the Dry Tortugas.

LOVE LOVE LOVE the Royal Poincianna petals among the stones and buttress roots! Can you say QUILT-to-be?

And here are Mr. and Mrs. Smith at Mile 0 of US Highway 1. Now we need to go, maybe next summer, to the OTHER end of US Highway 1 where it runs into Canada a couple of hours to the north of us!

Coming soon:  our trip to the Dry Tortugas… yes, it is possible to go beyond the end of the Key West…keep going west!

This past weekend was the third annual SAQA (Studio Art Quilt Associates) The Maine Event… a weekend of folks from upper New England and far eastern Canada. This past weekend was the third annual SAQA (Studio Art Quilt Associates) The Maine Event… a weekend of folks from upper New England and far eastern Canada.  This year organizer Beth Berman chose the Capt. A.V. Nickels Inn, and boy do we want to return!  It is under new management, is gorgeous, has good food, and was a great place for a weekend workshop.  Folks arrived from hither and yon on Friday, had a reception Friday evening, then a full day of workshops led by various SAQA members Saturday, dinner for everyone Saturday evening at the Inn (a B&B), Show and tell, and another workshop on Sunday morning.

The Capt. A.V. Nickels Inn, just north of downtown Searsport on U.S. Route 1

This was the first year I got to stay for supper and sharing, and am so glad I did!  Since I live locally (about 35 minute away) I can’t rationalize staying at the inn or one of the nearby B&Bs or motels, but maybe next year I’ll go back for the Sunday session, too.

Sandra Betts from New Brunswick gave the first session on Free-motion Zendoodling–basically the same as with pen and paper (with which we began) but then done on the machine.  This is the same idea as how I noodle around with various fill patterns for free-motion.  I took photos of the doodling by various folks, but alas didn’t get names to go with sketchbooks.  If one of these is yours (or you know whose it is) let me know and I’ll attribution!  (PS–the (c) is just for the photo..the works in the photos are copyrighted by the artists.)

Zendoodle…she later filled the entire page

LOVE the house and antler-tree! I quilted some “antler coral” in the quilt that is on the cover of my book that looks just like her tree!

Michele O’Neil Kincaid (website here) gave the next segment on texture in quilts.

Michelle O’Neill Kincaid’s textured quilt (detail)

Next was Beth Berman’s turn, showing us her method for framing pieces using rigid foam insulation board and painted wood slats…nifty!

Then we had a break before supper and sharing.  I took some pictures:

The Inn was lovely…the first thing I saw as I entered is this sideboard…loved the candelabra!

Sweet creamer and sugar pot in the dining room

And the chandelier

The regular view

and a couple alternate views (that I much prefer):

Close up

And my favorite view, from underneath looking up at the ceiling

The internet is being hideously slow at our house today, so will stop here and will share the rest in a couple of days!

Cardinal in the Pine by Sarah Ann Smith

Cardinal in the Pine is my contribution to this year’s Coastal Quilters Chapter Challenge (see this post for all the quilts).  Once again, I–the art quilter–went traditional!  Since the Ohio Star of course reminded me of Christmas, I thought I’d make a holiday quilt with mine.  Online I found a couple free Tree of Life blocks.  I wanted my tree to be vertical.  Since the vertical axis of the tree is usually on the diagonal of the block, I figured out what size I needed the block to be so that it would fit vertically within the 20 1/2″ square format.   (PS–sorry about the double watermarks on the bottom of the photos…I’ll fix that on the next batch.)

First, there were a LOT of half-square triangles to make, both green-and-white and then red-and-white for the sawtooth border. The red pile on the bottom left is what I had after I “un-stitched” the original block (seen in last photo in this post).

For the reds, I used the red in the original red-green Ohio Start block plus a range of red batiks, all tone-on-tone.  Here I’m trimming, finger pressing, squaring up.

Hooray! I LIKE IT! I’ve got the components of the block pieced and ready to sew together. I used all the green and most of the red in the original block. For the Tree of Life I opted to use just one red square for my favorite East Coast bird: the cardinal; alas, we don’t have any our yard, but they are here in mid-coast Maine. I set the pieced bits out on my 20 1/2″ square ruler to gauge size.

Then on to the really FUN part:  quilting!  I knew I wanted to use a feathered vine as the wind swirling the snow around the tree, and I knew I wanted it to stand out and sparkle, so I used Superior Threads Glitter (a holographic thread–basically ya know the stuff they use to make mylar balloons?  sorta like that except cut into looooonnnngggggg flat strips) in Pearl / Crystal #111 (here).  This thread is amazing, as it looks clear/white/opalescent here, but when used on dark fabric, it looks like an irridescent green (the black quilt on the cover of my book uses the same thread!).  It’s important when using holographic and metallic threads to use a SLIPPERY thread in the bobbin;  I use The Bottom Line, a smooooooth, fine poly from Superior.  Once could also use clear (ugh), rayon (not my fave at all) or silk.  You do *not* want to use cotton, as the slubs on the cotton will grab the glitter or metallic threads and play not-so-nice.

Close-up of quilting on Cardinal in the Pine. Feathered vine stitched in Superior Threads Glitter (Pearl #111). Other background quilting uses Superior’s 40-wt trilobal poly thread in white.

An angled view of the quilting in Cardinal in the Pine shows the relief and (to borrow Pamela Allen’s word) puffosity of the quilting.

And the quilt with the block which inspired this challenge:

Cardinal in the Pine, 20 1/2″ square, with another of the original Ohio Star blocks. I used one of these blocks, a white-on-white (the back side so it wasn’t so garish), and red and green batiks.

Just wanted to dash off a quick note to tell you how happy I am to be teaching again at International Quilt Festival in Houston this coming fall!  I hope to see some of you there…perhaps in my classes!  To learn more about the classes, click here to go to the Quilts, Inc. website.  From there you can download the PDF class catalog, register (online–easy peasy) for classes and/or events.

I’ll be very busy; my schedule begins on the Monday of Quilt Market (a to-the-trade only wholesale show) and continues through the week of Festival!

October 29-November 2, 2012 – International Quilt Festival, Houston, Texas (click on images to view larger):

• Monday: Fine Finishes(edge finishes including perfect mitered corners!)
  • Learn to make a perfect mitered binding straight grain bindings, double-fold bias bindings, piping, and couched yarns.  Time permitting Sarah will share how-to’s for  fabric accents, curved bindings, fused bindings, wacky raw-edge squares, and couched-yarn finishes! By the end of this class you’ll have a “swatchbook” of samples and notes including a wide assortment of styles and techniques to finish your quilts and quilted garments.  See a previous blogpost about this class here.

   

• Tuesday:  Birch Pond Seasons(fusible applique)
  • Learn fusible applique, several techniques for “piecing” with fused fabrics, and how to make your own Birch Pond art quilt.  I’ll also cover facings as an edge finish and a range of fun ideas that will let you branch out on your own after class.  Kit fee ($20) covers the cost of the pattern and one package of white MistyFuse (except when taught in stores; then, please purchase these items from the store). See a previous blogpost about this class here.

   

• Wednesday:  Decorative Stitch Applique(use those fancy stitches on your machine!)
  • Make a small wallhanging or a selection of small blocks which take full advantage of all those decorative stitches on your sewing machine. Using fusible appliqué and an assortment of as many threads as you care to bring and use, you’ll see how versatile a single leaf pattern can be! The embroidery / decorative stitches you use in this class can be adapted to your choice of other appliqué methods; we will use fusibles in class so that you can make a wide selection of appliquéd leaves during the class. The project samples can be used for a quilt, a garment or home dec items. See a previous blogpost about this class here.

   

• Thursday Morning:  Machine Quilting Forum—Fun with Fancy Threads
  • I’ll share some tips about using fussy, fiddly threads and how to master them with the right needle, the right bobbin thread, and a fun little project/demonstration.  This Forum starts with an overview and introduction to six machine quilting experts.  Each of us will give a 9 minutes (not one second longer!) presentation. Then we break out into 6 stations…think of it as speed-dating for machine quilters!  We’ll do a 20 minute presentation, then the bell rings and off you go to the next station/teacher.  A great way to see if you want to learn more or book a teacher for your group.

   

• Thursday Afternoon:  Meet the Teacher,a free 30 minute demo on the show floor:  Collaged and Fused Art Quilts
  • I’ll show you my process for creating fuse-collaged quilts, with step-by-step examples of this small tomato-garlic-and-basil quiltlet.

• Friday Morning: Friday Sampler–QuiltColoring with Thread
  • Think of your sewing machine and thread as a big box of crayons… more colors than you’ve ever had in a box of crayons!  Then learn to use your machine and thread to color your art quilts and bring them to life.  This Sampler is a ginormous room with 20 or more teachers giving quick demos.  Participants can move from station to station as they choose.  It’s a great way to see if you’d like to take a class with a teacher or even book them for your guild.
• Saturday:  Sarah gets to relax and play today… I’m going on the bus tour to the Texas Quilt Museum in LaGrange.  Anyone want to go on the same bus?
• Sunday:  I’ll be visiting the booths and quilts today…including one of mine that has been juried into the show (more on that later, after the judging is done and it’s safe to post pictures to the internet).

I’m so looking forward to Houston this year…hope you get to come play, too!

SAQA Auction 2012–Week 1. See below for more information and larger images.

The Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA) annual major fundraiser, the auction, begins tomorrow morning!   The auction is in four phases this year!  As in previous years, for the next three weeks, a given set of 12 by 12 inch art quilts will be auctioned; the price is highest on the opening day, then goes down each day until the end of the week.  This year, there is a fourth part:  some of the quilts…including mine (GULP) will be live-auctioned at the International Quilt Festival.   The process will be similar:  the quilts will go on “sale” on Wednesday night at preview at the highest price, then will go down each morning and each afternoon in a set increment.  (And I’ll confess right here and now, I’m nervous and sure hope someone wants to buy mine!)

To see all of the quilts in this week’s auction visit the SAQA website here and here.   To find out more about bidding and details of how the auction works, go here.  SAQA has set up a way for folks who will not attend Festival can place absentee bids.  For information on that, please contact Martha Sielman, the Executive Director of SAQA via the contact page on the SAQA website or write to me for her email address (which I don’t want to put on the web and generate tons of spam for her!).

If I had unlimited funds, here’s where mine would go this week!

Happy Wolf by Nancy Erickson. Nancy’s style is instantly recognizable, and I always love her wolves, bears and people. This wolf is no exception! (Click on image to see larger.)

Nancy Ryan’s Madrona Tree calls to me with those incandescent leaves. Click on photo to see larger.

Sizing Up by Mary Pal. What Mary does with simple cheesecloth and stitch is stupendous. Click on photo to view larger.

It’s All Blue by Benedicte Caneill. Usually I’m not a fan of abstracts, but the vibrancy of the blues, the play of value from light to dark, and all her wonderful surface design make me love this quilt. Click on photo to view larger.

What would YOUR dream collection be?

PS–I almost forgot…here’s my contribution!

Conversations 3, by me (Sarah Ann Smith) will be in the IQA-Houston portion of the SAQA auction. This part of the auction-fundraiser begins on Sneak Preview night Wednesday, October 31!