the Nancy Crow workshop at Shakerag continues

Let's see, I left off with my first composition.  A dud.  I am considering doing a bit of slicing and dicing with it and see what happens.  I have never done that before.  Once I finish piecing, it is usually over for me.  But what would happen if I restructure it?  m-mmm


Many of the ladies in the workshop produced some terrific pieces.  Naturally I didn't think to ask permission from most of them to post pictures on my blog.  But Karen obliged and here she is with her first composition. 

Sorry about the blurry pic, Karen. I think my hands were weak

with fatigue when I took this one)  

                                            

Note that she is sitting rather than standing by her quilt.  

We were already pretty tired by day two.  

Here is a much better shot

And it is oh so much better to see it in person.  

So, Karen hung in there and was one of the few that actually had her composition completed and partially sewn together by the end of day 5.

 Notice that she is now gleefully standing.  Nancy really, really liked Karen's composition and even helped her start sewing it together.   A little adrenalin rush happening here, maybe?

Karen is an expert seamstress, sewing and designing couture clothing, dyeing exquisite silk scarves and fabrics, but she doesn't do a lot of quilting.  She does know a lot about art and can critique with the best of 'em.  She has a great eye for design and color.  Nancy saw a huge potential in her and encouraged her to also go home and make a quilt per week.  Karen was brave enough to request a week off for Christmas, but I never did hear Nancy approve of that.  Nancy sorta put me in charge of staying on her back to continue with this.  Since we live in the same town, watch out Karen, I am gonna be checking in every week.  And calling for you to HELP! me.  

Another amazing lady in our class was Frances.  From Franklin, TN , she is 86 years young, has dyslexia, (which prevented from attending school as a young girl), now has double vision and has recently retired from her late in life career as a "dec -a -raata"  aka, interior decorator. She would climb up in her chair to pin things on her design wall, refusing assistance from anyone for anything, she was always there early and went home late.  To have a meal with her was an entertainment of the lifetime.  Oh, the stories she could tell in her genteel, southern manner.  Twinkling blue eyes, a cute wink and a nod, you are never certain if you should believe everything she told us.  The fact that (she says lightly) some movie star, what's her name that married some ole country singer, lives in her nearby her,  makes me think that she is not easily impressed and has lived a full life indeed.  

Frances brought her stash of home decor fabrics to use for her composition, as she was quite revolted with those loud (bright) cula's (colors) that some of us were using.  Nancy sent her over to see my stash and get something to brighten up her composition.  She meandered over, whispered to me, "what does she mean by bright colors?  Is she talking about that horrid orange?' pointing to the orange hand dyes on my wall.  When I confirmed this and then politely suggested perhaps a hot pink, she threw her hands up and said "phewy!"  As you can see, Frances does things her way.  

As for me, I am about to catch up on my rest and recovering from a nasty sinus and ear infection, sore throat, the CRUD as we call it down here.  But I am ready to grab my rotary cutter and start slashing this afternoon. More details will be trickling in.  Stay tuned.  

Nancy Crow workshop at Shakerag part 1

Nancy Crow. What can I say? She isn't kidding when she describes this as a graduate level class. It seems to me that she structures each workshop according to the average artistic level of the entire group, once she gets the feel for what we can accomplish. Although Strip- Piecing and Restructuring is described as an beginning to intermediate class, it is the second in the series of workshops that she offers. As far as artistic training, I am a babe in the woods. As far as the sewing stuff, I can handle that fairly well. So. Nancy Crow. What can I say?  She is one of the best teachers I have ever had.  Tough, but fair.  Lots of excellent teaching critiques.  I was constantly screwing up, but boy howdy, did I learn from those mistakes.  And that is what I wanted and needed.  
  
I had brought with me tons of fabric as noted in my last post. Right away, I was "awarded" recognition for having a huge "candy store" of luscious fabrics. That was about the only thing I got right all week.  I did, believe it or not, find that I still desperately needed more dark-darks, dark brights, and some light values. (Off to the dye studio I go.) Lesson learned.  At any rate, Nancy seemed delighted.

For the first composition, (day 1 and 2) each student sewed together free formed cut strips of fabrics following specific parameters, then free form cutting these strips into all sizes of rectangles and squares.  Then, place/slap those cut pieces on the design wall very quickly ( as in a New York minute) and intuitively. So here is what I did. Hardly pausing to to glance from one to the other.  

Nancy approved and told me to run with it, filling in the white spaces. I heard her words, but I didn't follow through. I tried to hard to make it all balanced, matchy and nicey nicey,etc.  Just had to keep messing with it.  I have yet to wrap my slow brain around the concept of line/space or figure/ground as it applies to abstraction. So I ended up with this. To which Nancy commented, "I liked the first one better". And so do I. Lesson learned.

(actual colors are brighter)

You know, when I got home with this, I had several well duh! moments.  Such a simple assignment, and saying that I never perform well in a workshop situation, is an understatement.  Were I following her instructions at home, all alone, it would have been great fun.  Now that I am home, I will be able to follow her directions and as she challenged us ,  "make lots of strips of fabrics and make one large quilt each week."  There's that old adage leering at me yet again,  "practice makes perfect".
I cannot begin to tell you everything that I learned last week.  I learned a whole lot about myself (better late than never, huh?)  And I think am beginning to grasp the composition concept. Nancy wants us to learn how to critique our own compositions, which is what I need.  Still working on that part.  She said so many things to me that are only beginning to sink in.  
I am still in recovery. I don't think I have ever been so exhausted in my life. Childbirth was a snap compared to this workshop!  Come to think of it, the results were much better with the birthing of the babies.  And oh yes, I recovered more quickly from childbirth than this 5 day (and night) workshop.  
More to come, gotta go rest again.  

June 10 is Almost Here

No, no, it's not my birthday, or anniversary, or a new national holiday.  But it will be a holiday of sorts for me.  I am off to Shakerag in Sewanee, TN for a 5 day workshop with Nancy Crow.   This is something I have wanted to do for years and at last, the time is about to arrive.  I've been dyeing and buying solid fabrics for months.  It seems that I will never have enough of the right values and colors, but perhaps I am likely a bit OCD on that issue, as my friends have hinted.  On the other hand, as Nancy says, you can never have enough fabrics.  Or is that what I say?  What about you?  Can you ever have enough of the perfect shade, tint, hue, color, solids,prints, plaids, stripes? So, thus far I have 7 plastic tubs of fabric.  Here's a couple of the tubs:

That doesn't include the high contrast print/stripe/plaid/dot fabrics.  Or the 4 yards of white and 4 yards of black.  That is in tub 8.  And mind you these are substantial tubs.  I won't release the plastic tub measurements, because then everyone will know that I am, indeed, OCD.  

I've made many improvisational quilts in the past, using a multitude of prints as well as some small projects using solids - as with pillows.  But can I do a beautiful composition on a large scale?  Scary scary scary.  In readying myself for this experience, I have been playing around with solids, just to see if I can remember how to start from scratch, without a pattern. Using mostly shot cottons, I began cutting and sewing.

Sketch One  11 x 14

Sketch Two  11 x 17

Okay, I started from scratch, but these are little ones.  Sketches a la Gwen Marston.  And there are no parameters, no rules except that all fabric must be solids.  Jump in and go for it.  Abstract. What is abstract and what does it really mean? 

Ah, well.  So, meanwhile, I have been multitasking in my studio I must admit.  But then, who doesn't these days?  I am quilting, still, on the dogwood quilt.  All the while thinking of abstract design.  Pictures coming soon.

I completed the Friends Shirts Quilt.  Footloose, no rules, no matchy-matchy points, all fancy free piecing. Perfect for practicing some traditional machine quilting with feathers and all that stuff.   All washed up and cuddly.  It will be my blanket of choice for my week on Monteagle Mountain.  Taking my friends along, as it were.

I also began working on my homework assignment # 5 from Lorraine Torrence's book, Fearless Design for Every Quilter.   The assignment, if I choose to accept it, (sorry) design a simple, well balanced composition as a line drawing and interpret the composition in 8 color schemes.  

"turn a blind eye and a deaf ear" achromatic

"turn a blind eye and a deaf ear" monochromatic

Only 6 more color combinations to go.  

Lorraine's homework projects have been much more challenging that I had thought they would be.  I discovered that I do not like being forced to follow the rules. Rules are so limiting.  But then, momma always said there was a reason for them.  To make you stretch and learn.  Yet, my secret self has been revealed.  Deep down, I honestly do not like much structure in most things. I have spent my life trying to conform, fit the mold, and follow the rules. At age ## I am so OVER IT. Rules are good for some things, but not so good for other things.  Ya think?

What is that going to do to me at the upcoming workshop?  Okay, so I must remember the reason I wanted to take this workshop with Nancy. Following her guidelines and be disciplined, because I want to learn more about art, composition, to stretch myself as much as possible, to dig deeper and find out more about myself.  Wish me luck. 

TO THINE OWN SELF BE TRUE

Once upon a time 

there was a young, innocent, country girl who loved to play along the fence rows and road sides where wildflowers grew in abundance  Having no playmates, she made friends with all the lovelies that nature had to offer. Acorns were her best buddies, always tucked away in the pockets of her clothes. Daisies were woven into delicate crowns to top her head.   

 

Queen Anne's lace made wonderful chains to circle her waist.  

Gathering many other beauties along the fields and dusty roadsides, the young girl scattered the seeds of all of her lovelies in her ma's well manicured yard, 

much to ma's dismay.      

Ma explained that these were weeds, and would just take over her lovely flower bed, turning it into ruins. The young girl was so dismayed to hear that all of her lovelies were considered to be undesirables.  Even though she could not understand why they were thought to be inferior to ma's iris, roses, lilies and jonquils, she obeyed her ma and learned to appreciate the right and proper ways of life.  She grew in to a woman and always tried to remembered  the rules as her ma had taught her.

Many, many years later, the woman remembered her love for the simple, road side lovelies where she spent many happy days in her daydreams.   So she decided there and then, it was time to find that openness and idyllic playfulness of her youth.  Disregarding all of the rules of prim and proper ways,  she once again let her imagination guide her. Playing with fabrics, she made a not so prim and proper quilt.  It began with free form log cabin blocks in mostly solid colors.  That still didn't make her happy. 

Where upon she decided to grab her scissors and cut lots of  
free form flowers which she randomly stitched onto the top of the quilt with wild free motion zig zag stitches.  If the fabric frayed a bit, all the better, she decided.  And continuing along with the idea, she created many more free pieced flowers stitched in colors to rival Joseph's multi-colored robe.    

Multiple leaves of all shapes and sizes were added to the mix.   

 Lots of freely pieced blocks bordered the quilt in fence row style. 

And all along the border the quilting will be sticks and blocks of all shapes and sizes. 

 Finally after days of play, the ole girl, deciding that the plain ole log cabin blocks were covered with enough colorful posies, it was time to quilt it.    She decided to cover the quilt with hundreds of quilted seeds with sprinklings of posey shadows.  







  The old girl was, at long last, free to be what she wants to be.  

The moral of this story is ?

Time to play some more

So many ideas, so little time

Stitched together

It was time to buckle down and finish sewing this together.  I stared at it for a week to try and find things that bothered me, and decided the time had come.  For me, it always makes a difference in the appearance of a piece to see it actually sewn together rather than all the separate pieces on the design wall. Couldn't decide:  do the deeper colors of the branches work?, does the background work?, is  it a balanced composition?, do I need to add more leaves?, should I do some thread painting on the blooms?,  add a border or not?,  etc, etc,

Reading Elizabeth Barton's blog post on eight steps to overcome quilter's panic recently only added to my indecision.  I printed out her steps and pinned them to my wall.  I have so much more to learn.  She posed some probing questions to ask yourself as you try to critique your work.  These 8 steps are tremendously helpful.  I must admit, while I was creating this piece I thought it was going well.  As I put it together, I asked myself the questions from Elizabeth's 8 steps. ( Dang!  It is really difficult to critique your own work.)   Just when I thought Pinkie jumped through most of the hoops sufficiently, I read Elizabeth's last statement of the post :  Remember not everything works and if you think everything IS working you are probably wrong!


YIKES!   Okay, so nothing is ever perfect. Decisions, decisions.  Now that is together, I will  let Pinkie hang around a bit longer before I do the normal (for me) thing.  Quilt it and hope for the best.  

I highly recommend using Elizabeth's suggestions.  Her blog has a wealth of information and inspiration.  She is a fantastic artist and I have heard great comments on her teaching skills.  I hope to be able to participate in one of her workshops one of these days.  As I said, I still have so much to learn. 

Sweet Memories are Made of This

So, back to my somewhat regular routine.  Not that I could ever say I have a routine.  I sorta do whatever, whenever, and try to enjoy what may come.  After returning home from Alabama, and my most wonderful new friends departed for the great northwest, I dragged around for a few more days, still reminiscing about the fun we had.  You might have read about Nifty's, Bonnie's and Tina's purchases while shopping around Cleveland.  After finding those treasures, we hit the thrift store and each bought a few shirts. Then the girls treated Steve and me to a delightful dinner at our favorite local restaurant.  A few martini's, some nice wine and delicious food gave us new strength to head home and cut up the newly purchased shirts.  We continued laughing and cutting up into the wee hours.

Tina rescued the "seams" from all the boxers and shirts and made balls for the cats to play with.  Sorry Tina, but the cats don't get those balls.  I found a much better use for them.  The smaller ones are perfect for filling up the glass of my new Target lamp.  Now to make more more more.

Instead of getting back to work on my dogwood quilt, or any of the other projects that I have started.  I just couldn't wait to play with those shirt scraps that we shared.   I decided to make Friendship Star blocks.  Along with scraps from Tina, Bonnie and Nifty, these shirts turned out to have just the perfect color combinations.  For me at least. I think it will be the perfect quilt full of memories that will last forever.

Got twelve blocks whipped up in no time.  Not sure where it will go from here, but I've got lots of scraps left and it will continue to grow.  As I hope our friendship will continue to grow.

check out the pocket
another "Nifty" idea

Alabama Folk School part 2

Great Friends, Great Fabric, Great Food.  Just can't get enough.  Still reeling with with all the thoughts and memories that will serve me for a long time to come. 

I must take the time to thank Sarah Mills Nee, the director of the Alabama Folk School.  She and her husband are an amazing talented couple.  Sarah and her crew made the daily operation and schedule go smoothly and effortlessly to those of us participating in the workshops.  Everything was done to make our experience relaxing, inspirational and enjoyable.  If you like music or crafts, I can not say enough about this special spot.  They offer classes from nationally know artists and musicians and I can guarantee that you will get your money's worth and then some.

Thank you Sarah and the staff of the Alabama Folk School and Camp McDowell

Mary Ann Pettway - Gee's Bend
Sarah Mills Nee - Camp Director
Anne Robertson - Quilter

Now back to quilting

Mary Ann Pettway posing with her top ready for quilting
Can you tell that she is a fun lady?  

Bonnie

At the end of the workshop, everyone "hung" their quilt tops with blue painters tape to the windows.  Here is Bonnie (sorry Bon, not such a good picture) with her two quilts.  Bonnie has a delightful webpage with great pictures and descriptions of our time together.  Jump over to On The Way and read all about it.  Bonnie is a wonderful artist and you must also visit her web page and art gallery.    Hey!  I just had an idea.  Maybe the Folk School should put Bonnie on their list of teachers!  What fun that would be!!!!

I love the idea of hanging our quilt tops in the windows.  It was magical 

Nifty

Tina

Kim and her very cool GB piece

Suzie made lots of great pieces!

Cathy used her wonderful hand dyed and stamped fabrics

Looks like Cathy and I will be going to a Nancy Crow workshop together!
The fun never ends, my friend.

                                   

Anne had a blast with this one
I cannot wait to see more of it!

I began making more posies on day 2 and laid them on another bark cloth curtain panel. Soon got a bit bored with the posies and looked over to see what Victoria was up to.
(footnote: Tina made a posey for me too - the one on the top with stripped outer edges
Thanks Tina! )
(Do you think I am easily distracted?)

OK, so, back on track.   I scrambled around for some pale neutrals from the table of "shared fabrics" and made this little block:

Mary Ann and China graciously signed it for me
My plan is to hand quilt this one, frame it and hold on to it forever.

So ends the saga of my Camp McDowell/Alabama Folk School experience.  You can see all the other quilt tops if you jump over to the other sites that I mentioned in today and yesterday's post.  As I said, I am being a bit lazy here.  Or is it a case of TMI?
Whatever, there is just way too much to ever fit into one little blog. 
Happy trails to you
until we meet again. 

Alabama Folk School

I have just returned from a trip of a lifetime.  No, no, not an exotic trip to some far flung destination.  I am talking about Nauvoo, Alabama.  

The Alabama Folk School at Camp McDowell seems to have been a well kept secret.  From me, at least.  Last winter my friend, Nifty, gave me the heads up on her plan to come south to learn from the ladies of Gee's Bend.   Naturally, I could not pass up this opportunity.  Along with 17 other ladies from all around the country, we made quilts with the guidance of Mary Ann Pettway and China Pettway of Gee's Bend, AL.

I had the pleasure of reuniting with Nifty and Tina from Seattle, and meeting Nifty's sister-in-law, Bonnie, from Salem, OR.   I also had the pleasure of meeting Victoria, a.k.a. Bumble Beans,  and Kim from NY after reading their blogs for a long long time. They have both already posted some great pictures and reads. Victoria shared lots of great ones on her  Flickr link  Another new friend, Cathy from Birmingham, AL has posted great pictures and stories on her blog that you will enjoy checking out.  Sweet Diane from Birmingham posted some great pictures on Picasa.  Ann, from Jackson, MS also has a blog and a website.  Jump over to see what she has going on.  So, I am taking the lazy way out.  You must jump over to see their pictures and descriptions.  I promise you won't be disappointed.  

                      But I must tell you about this lady.  Cherrye Parker

left to right:
China Pettway from Gee's Bend, Cherrye Parker from Brimingham, AL, who had never made a quilt, and  Mary Ann Pettway from Gee's Bend.

Cherrye arrived with fabrics that she had purchased in Africa and a sewing machine just purchased, still in the box, with not a clue how to use it!  Not only did she learn to use a sewing machine, but completed the top and began to learn hand quilting.

Just look what she accomplished as a novice sewer/quilter.

My hat is off to you Cherrye!

Cherrye also wrote a very touching note to all after returning home.  With her permission, I am sharing her thoughts:

 but mama said we'd learn to quilt

           a note from Cherrye Fincher Parker

When I was a little girl, mama would sew a few clothes and crochet.

Somewhere along the way she stopped sewing and taught my friend, Juanakee

and me how to crochet...

but mama said we'd learn to quilt.

Mama, Mrs. Lillie M. H. Fincher,  and I crocheted lots of blankets for Cassandra, my sister, Jasmine, my one niece, Mu Dear, my grandmother - Dr. Gertrude C. Sanders, and family friends. We shared good times together completing each others crochet projects. I enjoyed creating the body of the blanket and mama would do the edges and the fringes.....

but mama said we'd learn to quilt.

Years passed fast... work, new experiences, travel, marriages, divorces, illnesses,

job promotions, joys, disappointments, God's grace keeping us strong...time changes a lot of things...

but mama said we'd learn to quilt.

Mu Dear had a stroke at the age of 90 and mama took good care of her for two years until she went Home...

and mama said now we'd learn to quilt.

100 days after Mu Dear went Home, I guess she got lonely because

mama went to sleep and followed her Home too...

BUT MAMA SAID WE'D LEARN TO QUILT!!!

Three years later, Grace brought me to the company of some awesome women, representing eight different states and 2 phenomenal quilters from Gee's Bend at the Alabama Folk School.  With my brand new in-the-box sewing machine in hand, no thread, Joy in my heart and my mama's spirit dwelling in me, I worked hard to make my first quilt top. Mary Ann and China showed me how to bring it all together and several of my new friends added a stitch here and there.

Mama said we'd learn to quilt.

We did.

I know she was there.

Each one of you have blessed me.

Love ya'll,

Cherrye

(Cherrye's sister/best friend, Juanakee, passed away 5 years ago from breast cancer.) 

Here we are, in our final hours together, still laughing

And now to the beginning:
Day 1

China is amazed at Victoria - the day has just begun and she has already gotten half a quilt pieced!  

Where do we begin?

(left to right)    

Mary Ann, Bonnie, Tina, Nifty, Barb, Victoria, Cathy

Nifty & Tina stitching away while Mary Ann confers with Bonnie

(Note the extra large classroom with lots and lots of natural light.  It adjoined the cafeteria and made it oh so easy for meal breaks.  The food was just plain wonderful, I might add. 

Mary Ann shows us a top made by another Gee's Bend lady

Using old boxer shorts from my hubby & son (much to their dismay) and cut up for me by Nifty, Tina and Bonnie.  I brought along a bark cloth curtain panel from the 1950's, as well as bundles of Kaffe fat quarters given to me by Bonnie.  This is the beginnings of my Gee's Bend interpretation.

China suggested that I use this dark green along with the bark cloth.  I agreed, tentatively, but secretly, I didn't like the idea.  But then, why did I come here?  Just to do my own thing?  NO, I wanted to dig into the creative thoughts of a lady from Gee's Bend!  So I reluctantly decided to go with her suggestion.  

I am so happy that I did so.  And I think China was pleased too!  Ya think it looks a bit Gee's Bendish?  I promised China that I would quilt it immediately and not go home and stick it in a drawer.  

Bonnie incorporated some blue "flame" fabric given to her from Tina

Nifty's in progress, using pieces cut from her baby clothes made by her grandmother.

Tina's all together, using some blue and white vintage fabrics from her Mom.
Isn't it great!!!!

Okay, so if you have gotten this far, congrats.  Enough for today, but I promise that there will be more to come.