So Many Exclamation Points!

A picture is worth a thousand words.

This absolutely sums up my life right now. Summer break from school does not make for easier times in these Covid days. Nor does owning your own businesses. One block, one step, one more day at home, one mask, one walk in the forest at a time.

I’ve made a lot of Exclamation Point blocks in the past few months, a good form of therapy for sure. You can make your own too.

For the record, this is not a posed photo… he came in and did a number of poses as I was trying to capture this potential lay out for a quilt.

No Travel? No problem! Webinar Opportunities

Oh! The places I went.

Working as a quilt professional has taken me to some mighty amazing places. From the small towns and big cities, quilters are the same. We just to make and create and enjoy the company of others. We are there for ourselves, we are there to make for others, we are there for the fabric. And, if you are one of my students, you are there for me. I consider it an immense privilege to be able to entertain, to teach, all of you.

I miss it.

The travel, while stressful, always came together in truly memorable experiences for me. You’ve brought me to some pretty amazing places and gave me the time to explore just a little. A few times there were language barriers, but quilts do end up being a universal language. Ultimately though, it is the people that make it all worthwhile. Quilters are pretty amazing people. And that’s a universal truth no matter where you are in the world.

As a teacher and entertainer I loved the moment in someone when they ‘got it’ best. As an improv teacher I’ve seen people struggle with the open endedness then the turn around as something comes together in a beautiful, albeit unexpected way. Or the visible relief when they don’t have to have it all figured out in order to sew. Or the joy in a simple little trick that will make all their sewing easier. Or the laugh when we all realize that we don’t need to take ourselves so seriously.

While I admit that online learning deprives me of those moments, it does nothing to diminish them for everyone else. I’ve played in the online world and always wanted to do more. So let me tell you I am working on it. You know, in between all the homeschooling and running and business and keeping everyone loved and mostly happy.

In the meantime, I’ve opened up some webinar opportunities. This way you can get me in the comfort of your own own for either some sewing/demo presentations or for a lecture/trunk show style presentation. Book with a group of friends, your guild, your store, or even just yourself! We can’t be together just yet, but I can at least show up in your sewing room.

Does this mean I will have to INTERNET to my list of places?

5 Minute Improv - Exclamation Point from Quilters' Playcation

Take a Quilters' Playcation. No demands, no requirements, just sewing. Improv quilting at its most fun! part of a series of 5 minute improv - make one block ...

Well, what can I say? These are strange, surreal times. Has anyone really processed it all yet? Can we even?

At least we can make! I’m sure we’ve all seen a meme or a joke about how quilters have always been prepared for self isolation and staying home. Of course, for those of us with kids at home or having to figure out work in all of this that presents a challenge for sure. Thinking about all the words we want to say, all the emotions we are feeling, and knowing that making helps our mental health SO MUCH I designed a simple improv block. And I filmed a tutorial to share.

Exclamation Point is the first in a series of videos I am calling 5 Minute Improv. Grab some scraps and you can make a block in 5 minutes. Sneak in the sewing when you can or make a mountain of blocks to help you process all the feelings. They are part of a bigger venture called Quilters’ Playcation. More on that soon! For now, enjoy your making. At least we still have that.

Ripples - A Water Inspired Quilt

Ripples

52” x 68”

Next in the landscape series of quilts. (First there was Mountain Meadow, then Names for Snow).

Completely inspired by the deep blue landscape of Prince Rupert, British Columbia. Whether it was the morning sun reflecting off the calm ocean, or the hidden blues of the spruce trees in the rain, or even the rolling fog covering the community like a quilt, they all found a home in this quilt.

Simple improv curves, the repetition of blocks and colour an homage to all that I saw that long weekend on the coast. A way to capture the energy of the community and the creativity of all the people I met. This is absolutely Improv With Intent.

Quilted with concentric circles to emphasize the Ripples. Kind of like the ripples on the surface when you toss a handful of rocks into the water. Or the ripples when the seals poke their heads up to see what you see. Or when the fish bubble up, trying to hide from the seals and the herons. Or, as I see more often than not in our life on the Prairies, kids jumping in a pool!

The quilting was done on my Bernina 820 with an Aurifil 50W in teal. It blended with the front and the fabric on the back.

Backed with a gorgeous loon print from Mark Anthony Jacobson, an Ojibwe artist. Bound in grey, one of my own prints, to remind me of the fog, the logs, and the weathered wood of the docks.

To see more of the inspiration, check out the original post.