Archive for the ‘La Conner Quilt Museum’ Category

Our first update is of a brand new calendar from The Textile and Fiber Art List, Muse Moments. This is available in the tafashop on Zazzle. It’s a wonderful collection of some of the many (over 430) artists around the world and the work they do. We happen to be the month of July.

Rachel, our wonderful creator and inspiration, has also designed a second TAFA calendar, this one showing different artists in their studios. Money made from the sale of the calendars helps to fund the development of what is becoming the go-to place for fiber and textiles on the web.

Also, Martingale Publishers are having a sale, and included are ebooks of the patterns of Lois Fletcher. I met Lois in Houston in 2002, and we created a series of fat quarters for her for use in her Spring book. It was quite enjoyable to see how she utilized the marbling throughout the book in her various patterns. I still absolutely love the marbled butterfly she created.

Handmadeology is announcing a new market opportunity today, January 3. From the website: “Today, we  launched  our own market by leveraging Meylah’s marketplace technology. This partnership will super charge marketing for creative businesses and support all the creative community, giving sellers new ways to market their products through online and social channels.  We are inviting sellers across the creative community to become part of Handmadelogy market.” It’s worth checking out, which I will be doing in the next few days.

We will be participating in StashFest again this year. StashFest is a fund raising event for the La Conner Quilt and Textile Museum. Dates are April 6 and 7. Look for marbled silk offerings this time from Marble-T Design.

It’s the third day of January, and I have just started organizing my ideas and goals for this year. So far we are seriously off to a great start!!

It’s been a week since we got back from Seattle, and we’ve been busy doing a lot of catch-up and ordering of more fabric and paints. There were quite a few lessons from the event, most of them good ones.

First, we didn’t make all our expenses, with  the cost of the trip. But we did make enough to cover all the supplies (fabric, paints, bags, etc). We knew we’d be going for a vacation, so there was a certain amount we wanted to be able to make – at least the cost of preparing the stock, which we did. But we had a fabulous time. You can check out pictures from the StashFest here.

Second, next time we will bring up more than just cotton. We had originally planned on other fabrics but were talked out of it, since this show was being geared specifically to quilters. Out specialty fabrics that we did bring went very quickly, with lots of requests for more.

Third, bringing all the quilts (even though we worried about them being stolen from our car) was excellent. One of the results is we need to bring up a lot of unpolished satin next time, as that is what all the big art quilts were made from. The traditional quilts were a hit, as people could see how small pieces of fabric could be used in traditional blocks.

Fourth, we did get a good mailing list, and now I am really committed to getting out the regular newsletters. I set people up as a separate group, so when StashFest rolls around next year, they can get separate emails.

Fifth, I definitely have to get a garment from marbled fabric for me to wear at shows. That’s another whole audience to reach.

Sixth, lots of good connections, including two new commissions. We really loved talking to people, and the article from the National Quilting Journal was great to show the marbling process. There definitely are some things to change in the overall portfolio set-up.

Seventh, we had a chance to go through the quilt museum, and there were two great exhibits. Larkin Van Horn curated one called Deep Spaces, with some really gorgeous pieces. Carol Taylor had her “arc-i-texture” series, and I enjoyed seeing some of the other things she did with that technique. If you get to the area, check out the La Conner Quilt and Textile Museum. The building is amazing, and the people are just great.

And there’s probably lots more, but the marketing is ramping up again, so I definitely plan on capitalizing on our first really big event!

Not a whole lot of pictures today, but a whole lotta work going on.  We are in the process of marbling 400 fat quarters for StashFest the end of March. This is a fund raiser for the La Conner Quilt Museum, and we have been invited to participate and sell our marbled fabric. Yay! So needless to day, there are a LOT of marbling sessions ahead of us. With hubby’s health, we are being very careful about scheduling the sessions. And…we are planning ahead. Counted the number of weeks we have, allowed for vacations, and started ordering LOTS of pima cotton. Hubby is really in the groove, and the fats are looking fabulous. We pulled out one of the marbling books and are going to try some new patterns as we work. Pretreat, alum one day, then marble the next….all our mornings are set aside for this. Plus, I can’t wait to get to the Northwest. It’s been on our bucket list for a number of years. and now it’s actually going to happen. So send me suggestions for things to see and do – and eat – in the Seattle and Portland areas. We’re going to save the ocean spots for another trip. We’ll be happy, us desert rats, with rain and fog and humidity!

Those of you in the Seattle area, mark your calendars for March 31 and April 1. There should be publicity hitting any time now in your area. You can check the Stashfest website for more information. Also, we are taking small quilts with us for display purposes at StashFest, so if any of you in guilds would like us to give a talk (and perhaps a demo), please let us know.

Now, along with that are several shows I have decided to enter. Some I have recent work for, but most of them will require the creation of new work. And I am so up to the challenge. The piece I am working on now, for a show deadline in February, is teaching me – and speaking to me – a great deal. I am thrilled with how it is turning out, and even if it doesn’t get accepted to this show, I know I have created something different, meaningful, and beautiful

Here’s what I’m looking at:

Visions – 2/13 (If I’m going back out there, go big….last acceptance for a major show – Expressions in Fiber – was in 2004. And if accepted, I’ll let you in on what prompted me to go for this.).

Art Pin-Up – 3/2 (12 x 12, very do-able, and no jurying….)

Fish Follies – 4/20 (?) (great acceptance rate over the last 6 years for fiber. This year I have a really wacky fiber idea…..it is Follies, after all….)

Tactile Architecture, Hands All Around – 4/27 (one piece is already completed….)

I’m Not Crazy – 5/5 (idea is sketched)

Pushing the Limits – 5/16

Pattern Base – book inclusion, June 12

And this is just the first 6 months. So I guess a goal for this year is to get out there and enter my work! Along with trying to set up two individual shows.

It is going to be an awesome year of taking chances!