Virtual Quilt Show...Road to California 2020 recap

I got the email inviting me to appear on Quilting Arts TV on New Years Day, with 4 segments to prepare much of my attention went to working on my step outs and projects but I did find time to run off and play at the Road to California quilt show in January. There are a lot of things I love about this show… 1) it’s local, about 30 min from my home, so I always see lots of people I know 2) They have great vendors and since I drive not fly, I can shop to my heart’s content and not worry about how to fit items in my suitcase or the expense of shipping purchases home 3) This year I didn’t have a booth so I just got to come and go as I pleased 4) It’s the show where I first discovered ART Quilts about 18 years ago so It will always have a special place in my heart.

With all that history I’ve seen a lot of changes over the years, this year had the biggest one yet. The moving of the competition quilts and most of the exhibits to a single ballroom. I can’t say I like the change. I liked being able to mix my day in a more organic way, with the exhibits in the same hall as the vendors I was able to see a batch of quilts, then a batch of vendors all on the same row, weaving in and out so neither became sensory overload. With the quilts in a separate ballroom you have to make a point of going specifically to see the quilt displays. Also the ballroom was a bit small for all the quilts displayed causing substantial crowding in the isles. The lighting which did highlight the quilting texture itself made it very hard to get good pictures of the quilts some I couldn’t share because it was impossible to get decent pictures, either because it was too dark or because I couldn’t stand back far enough to get the quilt into the camera frame. I’m curious what you thought of the change, I’d love it if you’d let me know in the comments below.

So, without further ado, here is a curated collection of quilts I enjoyed at the show,

Messengers - Kathy McNeil - Arlington, WA

Rock Garden Princess - Teresa Seifert - Modesto, CA

I really LOVE this succulents quilt, I think it deserves an award, even if the judges didn’t think so. It is so vibrant especially in person! I love the colors, the light and shadows and that it is quilted well but not within an inch of it’s life.

Signed, Sealed and Delivered - Sheila Gaquin - Deer Harbor, WA

It’s so cool when a small group of people work together to turn the tide… according to Sheila “My community’s rural post office was slated for closure by the US postal service. The tiny community of Deer Harbor, with just 350 folks, raided $250,000 in 8 weeks to buy the post office building and convince the USPS to keep the post office open. I made Signed, Sealed and Delivered to celebrate that community success”

The Painter - Lenore Crawford - Midland, MI

This quilt reminds me of my trip to Montmartre! Making a quilt of Sacre-Coeur Basilica is still on my bucket list. (so is visiting Paris again!)

The Elephant in the Room - Sandra Mollon - Valley Springs, CA

This quilt also really caught my attention, Awesome use of color and the elephant’s looking me right in the eye.

I Spy and Orca - Suzette Coppage - Bel Air, MD

This quilt is so beautiful full view. Suzette said she wanted to capture the sense of awe and wonderment she experienced when an Orca approached her boat and breached the water on a trip to San Juan Islands, I think she captured that beautifully, but look closely at the photo below to see all the amazing detail she quilted into the Orca’s surface (pretty sure that includes a map of the San Juan Islands). Enthralling!

I Spy and Orca - detail

Pop-Up Stories - Flora Joy -Johnson City, TN

I thought this quilt was so unique. You can see better how dimensional it is in the photo below. I love how some peoples brains work!

Pop-up Stories

If Only - Diana Bicknell - Merrill, OR

If Only is a small quilt as I recall around 18” square. but Diana has a bigger message “ I’ve become more aware in recent years of the problems facing endangered animals. “If Only” is a tribute to all of the people, researchers and volunteers around the world who work so hard protecting our animals. “If Only” it was as easy as drawing a picture to bring them to life…”

Octopus Garden, detail - Marilyn Hanson - Jamul, CA

Loved this “Baltimore album” style quilt of whimsical sea life, i couldn’t get a good shot of the whole quilt, but enjoy these detail snippets.

Octopus Garden, detail - Marilyn Hanson

Octopus Garden, Detail - Marilyn Hanson

Triple Threat - Debra Crine - Marco Island, FL

Stargazer Splendor - Andrea Brokenshire - Round Rock, TX

Feathers and Frost - Joanne Baeth - Bonanza, OR

You really need to see “Feathers and Frost” in person to truly appreciate it. In addition to all the layers of ice dyed cotton and ice dyed organza there are over 1500 hand sewn crystal beads. Zoom in as close as you can!

Just in case you’re thinking I ONLY like pictorial quilts (which admittedly are my favorites) here are a few from outside that category….

Mesmerizing - Jodi Robinson - Enon Valley, PA

Composition I - Christine Yi - Portland, OR

I liked what Christine had to say about her quilt - proving inspiration can come from anywhere… “While cleaning, I found a postcard-sized painting I made 10 years ago while trying to design a business card for my piano studio. Though I never ended up using it for that purpose, I knew the moment I saw it I had to make a quilt out of it. For the quilting I wanted to keep with the theme and used the words of different musical genres and styles. On the back, I wrote the names of famous composers using fabric paint”

I love how she quilted words of the musical styles and genres, reminds me of how I quilted the logos and lyrics from opera’s and musicals into the background on my quilt “Cue Orchestra, Curtain Up!”

New Beginnings - Pauline Salzman - Gulfport, FL

Scarlet Snowflake - top by Jill Scherer - quilted by Rose Maynes

Well, that about does it for this post and catches me up on January. I gotta go play with the dogs before they create havoc. Let me know which quilt was your favorite in the comments below.

ttfn

Life in the time of social isolation

Hello out there…. you are out there, aren’t you?

My son, who I love dearly, is continually reminding me I should be posting my life and thoughts here on my website. I try, really I do, but I get busy and usually only post to social media when I’m traveling and don’t have the siren call of dirty dishes or laundry or… you get the idea. As a California resident I am home for at least the next month unable to see clients and with all my teaching and speaking engagements canceled, I now have some time on my hands. Not that I’m not busy. I’d like to say I’m creating amazing new original art quilts and knocking out my UFO’s but I find I’m actually very unfocused, watching too much TV news and simply hoping we get through all this with our lives and sanity mostly in tact. Anyone else feeling this way?

What I have been doing…. making masks. A little belated, but since our Mayor has strongly recommended that if we do need to go out we wear a mask and that they don’t want us purchasing any that may take them away from health care workers or first responders, I have pulled fabric and started the process of supplying family and friends. I’ve sent out the 1st batch to my son and his girlfriend who I cannot visit even though they are only 45 minutes away. I checked out several tutorials and the one I think is best is by my friend Loralie at Loralie Designs. I have made a couple of adjustments, I use floral wire (2) 4” pieces with the ends curled, in place of the pipe-cleaner. I use a 1/2” x 4” piece of fusible web , place the wires and cover with a similar size piece of fabric to anchor the wires before turning and stitching the top like in Loralie’s video. Also I use an 8” x 8” piece of fusible interfacing on the outermost layer of the mask for extra filtration. stitching down the center of the mask to add extra anchoring for the fusible in case it releases during multiple washings. You can find her method here: Loralie’s mask making video.

The other way I have been distracting myself is thru yard work, luckily my local nursery still allows curbside pick-up, but sadly no browsing of spring plants : (

I find digging in the dirt greatly comforting I think of it as “moving meditation” but when my mind and thoughts intrude… books on tape to the rescue. I have a subscription to Audible and it’s the best money I spend each month! I am currently listening to “Middlemarch” by George Eilot ( but don’t take this as a recommendation I’m not entirely sure why I’ve kept with it,,,) We are expecting rain for the next 5 days so I’ve buttoned up my garden project with expectations I can get back to it next week and that the weeding will go that much better with the soil softened up by the rain. I feel good about rescuing the border from the weeds and looking forward to when I can shop for new plants to put into it, until then the barrier cloth and bark will keep it tidy until that day comes. Fingers crossed I can get the rest of the bark I need before they decide the nursery must shut down completely as well.

It’s not all bad news, with my husband home from work our beloved fur babies Lilo and Stitch (Lilo is the Apricot poodle and Stitch is the grumpy Terrier) are getting 2x’s the attention and many more walks, and since I’m not wearing make-up (as evidenced in the photo at the top) and I’m getting outdoors any time the sun shines my skin is very happy! So we will celebrate what’s working until life comes back to some semblance of normal.

I am getting ready to send out a new newsletter and I’m also going to pretend its January of 2020 and create blog posts of all the cool things that have happened to far this year that I haven’t had time to post about (spoiler alert - I’m going to be on TV!!!) so tune in again soon, until then stay SAFE and HEALTHY!

Out with the old, in with the new...

Happy New Year & Happy Valentines!

New Year changes… I have a NEW website which will allow me to add products more easily and allow a better shopping experience for you. It’s taken a few months with all the stops and starts but by the time you read this it will be up and running. Some of you checked it out in preview mode and I appreciate your feedback. I looked over my blog posts and decided I couldn’t let go of that much history. I started blogging back in 2008 - crazy , where does the time go? So I put together 2 “archival” blog posts if you want to travel down memory lane with me.

A few things that will be changing with the launch of the new website.

Change #1 -It is my intention to send more newsletters. I am moving to a monthly cycle. Not every newsletter will have a mini quilt - I anticipate 6 mini’s per year and the other 6 will include: studio peeks ( if you think your sewing room is a mess, you may feel much better when you see mine!), reports from Quilt shows, Works in progress… whatever I think may interest you that month.

Change #2 - The newsletter mini quilt link will now take you to the website where you can “purchase” the mini quilt download. Each new mini quilt newsletter will include a code good for 30 days for you to get 100% off the purchase price of that months mini quilt pdf. You will need to fill in your email address which the system needs to send you digital media, as well as your name and snail mail address, I could’t find a way around that, but I will not in any way sell your home address. If you are really uncomfortable with that feel free to use a address de plume ( in other words make one up) obviously if you are purchasing a physical item that has to be shipped I need your real address. The system will not ask for credit card information if you are only purchasing the free mini quilt with the code. Remember the codes will only be active for 30 day from the day I send the newsletter so don’t delay.

As soon as you complete the checkout for purchase of the free mini quilt pdf you will see a confirmation page and you can access the pdf directly from that link or from the email purchase confirmation. You will need to download the file once you’ve purchased it as the file link expires within a few days of purchase.

I attended Road to California JUST FOR FUN last week, since I didn’t have a booth and I’m not teaching this year. I looked forward to just seeing all the quilts in their new “ballroom” setting and chatting up all my friends at the show. I’ll be writing up a blog post as well so you can check back and see which quilts wow’d me from the show.

Cue Orchestra, Curtain Up!

RE-POSTED FROM 6/27/18

The notice arrived unexpectedly early… the final exhibit of the Dinner@8 Artists. A flutter of the heart as I click thru the link to the list of accepted pieces. Scrolling thru the list of now familiar names… yes it’s there Lauretta K. Crites – Cue Orchestra, Curtain Up! will be part of this last chapter.

I came late to the party. Gaining entry (it’s invitation only…) in 2014 after my quilt “Winter Squash” ribboned at Houston Festival, giving me my first opportunity to “come to the table” with this amazing group of women in 2015 when my quilt “Undaunted” was accepted into the “Affinity” exhibit, meeting for the 1st time artists who’s work I had long admired. I remember now how much I tortured myself and my quilt that first year knowing how high the caliber of the work would be and how proud I was, and am, to see my work alongside the work of these beautiful ladies. 

Being a part of this group has really inspired me and pushed me to grow in my work, opened my eyes to new ideas and opportunities and made me laugh ’till I nearly cried. I am grateful for the friendships and the committed deadlines!! Many thanks to co-curators Jamie Fingal and Leslie Tucker Jenison for creating this exhibit and fostering this community.

Cue Orchestra, Curtain Up!

I have an affinity for live theater. I’m not certain where I “caught the bug” but I know even in elementary school I loved putting on stage shows, even puppet shows! More comfortable behind the scenes I moved naturally into the “tech” side eventually joining my sewing skills with construction and design working in costume shops in Los Angeles on all kinds of productions.

I love all kinds of theater but its the musicals I return to over and over again. They are the ones that steal my heart. Call it Opera or Musical Theater when you combine music with the human voice and the actions of the performers I’m transported, fully engaged. Even when I can’t understand the words the emotions are so clear.

In this 30″ x 50″ quilt Cio-Cio San (Madame Butterfly) and Alexander Hamilton (Hamilton) share the spotlight in my tribute to theater in it’s most magical form with other productions represented in the quilting in the background surrounding these central characters. Between my time “backstage” and “front of house” some of the most exquisite moments of my life have been experienced in the theater.

2017 Dinner@8 piece “White Lace on Red Velvet”
theme: Patterns

2016 Dinner@8 piece “Undaunted” Theme: Affinity

Letting go is hard to do... part 2

I decided that, even saving just select blog posts and even with my somewhat sporadic blogging history, 10 years was way too much for just 1 post so I have broken up my “archive” into 2 posts. 2008-2013 was in the last post this one covers 2014 -2019 one thing I noticed was I posted much more consistently in 2013 than any year before or since, and that each January I vow to post more often (humm, I’m seeing a pattern here since once again that is my goal… and it’s once again January!

Continuing down memory lane….

1/15/2014

Whats up for January

Some people have no trouble putting it all out there, immediately and with no editing. That is just not my style. As an introvert, I need time to process the events in my life and once that processing is complete I’m off on another adventure and talking about what has passed just seems pointless. Add to that I grew up believing that to brag or even really to talk about yourself was well…rude. BUT… I am trying to grow and sometimes that means doing things I’m not entirely comfortable with (OK, growth almost always requires pushing into those scary places) and for me saying what I really think and feel is SCARY! Why? If I do so, you will think I’m weird.  But, It’s time. Time to “let my freak flag fly” embrace my personal brand of weird and get over it. So, here is my disclaimer:

* If you don’t like what I’m saying, I won’t mind if you don’t read it *

If you do stick around I’ll try to find something to say. I am still going to build in a delay feature – a one week lag to allow me to process but that’s it. Also, since I’m about more than quilts, I’ll be sharing more of my other activities and interests.

Now that we’ve gotten thru that, whats up for January 2014?

01.22.14

News too good to wait…

“Winter Squash”

The esteemed judges at the Road To California Quilt Show, have awarded the 3rd prize ribbon for my quilt “Winter Squash” in the category of Art – Naturescape. The judges notes were brief, “tulle use is effective for the design” “good realism” “good perspective”

Tonite is preview and I am jazzed to get to see all the quilts on display. “Too Soon to Tell” did not ribbon at Road but has more opportunities for awards in the future being a larger piece and eligible to be entered into more quilt shows.

ta ta for now, just had to share my excitement!!

02.23.14

A Couple of Old Broads rock San Jacinto!

Cindy in our booth

This week (ok, 2 weeks ago now…) brought the 1st event for Cindy and I’s new adventure as quilt show vendors, so a couple of old broads hit the road!  We had a wonderful time with the lovely ladies (and gentlemen) of the Valley Wide Quilters Guild. What a sweet group. I especially appreciated the loving offerings of home made dishes and made to order sandwiches prepared for our lunch. Talking quilts can really make a girl hungry!

We saw some old friends and made some new ones. We were grateful to one booth neighbor ( another Cindy) who loaned us a step stool (I’m tall but even I can’t reach up eight feet to hang quilts!) and to the super sweet ladies Mimi & sister Mima of Mimi’s Quilt Shop in Yucca Valley. They were directly across from us and made us feel very welcome and encouraged in our new venture. What’s not to love? So when you are in the Yucca Valley area make sure to stop in and say hi to Mimi AKA: Karen Howes owner of Mimi’s. She will make you  feel right at home.

The other equally exciting event this week ….drumroll please…. I Bought A NEW (to me) CAR!!!! My beloved 2001 Taurus was getting tired and even with the split rear seat and gianormous trunk was a little lacking in the cargo capacity department. Talk about perfect timing, Cindy and I had planned to load ourselves and all our booth set up and products into Cindy’s PT Cruiser for the show. Since I got my new car on on Tuesday I wanted to take it on Thursday for the show so we loaded it up. We had her crammed to the ceiling and still didn’t get it all in. We packed the PT cruiser pretty full too!! We laughed at how we would have had to cram if I ‘d still been driving the Taurus. I’m pretty sure I’d have had to carry patterns in my lap in the drivers seat to get it all in.

Just goes to show life is good and everything happens when it is supposed to and “Scarlett” my 2013 chevy captiva sport arrived just when I needed her. BTW she’s “Scarlett” my new BFF because she’s a combo of the awesome coolness of Scarlett Johansson (think Natasha in Avengers) and the feisty single-mindedness of Scarlett O’Hara, and of course she’s red.

Sew happy, cheers!

04.24.14

Don’t stop the presses!!

Yesterday I received super exciting news! Lori Baker creative editor for Quilters Newsletter Magazine emailed that Winter Squash was selected to be the Photo Finish for their October/November issue. Quilters Newsletter is a well known magazine loved by quilters and the Photo Finish is a full page that has featured so many outstanding quilts I feel giddy to have my work chosen to join that company. I can’t wait to see it!

“Winter Squash”

As I was thinking how nice it will be to see a large picture in print I suddenly realized I never even mentioned the 1st time my work appeared in a national magazine. Sometimes things move so fast and I’m so busy living life I don’t seem to have time to report on all the wonderful things that are happening along the way. Last year, I was also privileged to see my work in print. Quilting Arts ran a reader challenge competition for which the theme was “Text Me” the ubiquitous OMG came instantly to my mind and well… you can see my interpretation below. It certainly jumps off the page …even if I do say so myself.

OMG in Quilting Arts Magazine

05.24.14

Happy Memorial Day Weekend!

 I decorate for the seasons. Maybe its because I live in Southern California where we don’t have any seasons. We do have different temperatures though, coolish, warmish, and too darn hot. But, as those don’t line up with any particular dates on the calendar (as evidenced by 95+ degrees last week and 70’s this week) I create my seasons indoors. The cycle changes slightly depending on my mood and my schedule. Just before mothers day I packed up the bunnies and pastel brights in favor of Red/White/Blue. I will continue to layer on more on the theme this week for memorial day and it will stay thru 4th of July.

I do have a “rinse and repeat” process using items stored in totes but increasingly my quilts and a couple of key accents rule the decor. One way I create a new look with the same items is to use them in a new way. Here I have placed a table runner on the back of a couch for a pop of color.

I wanted a throw pillow in the red/white/blue theme but didn’t find quite what I wanted. This wall quilt didn’t have a good spot this year so I took an existing pillow and simply wrapped the quilt around the pillow.  Placed on a chair or couch that is rarely sat on it looks great.

Finished pillow wrap

09.26.14

On Newsstands Now…

Oct/Nov issue Quilters Newsletter magazine

The better it gets, the better it gets! September has been such a wonderful month. I was blessed with time away from our inland heat with labor day weekend at the coast, then I turned right around and headed to San Diego for an awesome time at the San Diego Quilt Show playing all day in our “A couple of Old Broads” booth.

I arrived home to find a big white envelope from Quilters Newsletter magazine. Feeling so excited, I opened to the last page where I knew Winter Squash was due to appear. I can’t describe the thrill chill that I had when I saw it in print. Even now I feel all bubbbly and wobbly and really really appreciative. I placed it in a page protector (no grease or grime on my baby….) and placed it where i can pass by regularly (or grab in a quick sec to show anyone who holds still long enough…) just for the buzz i get from seeing it. These moments are the juicy ones in life and I intend to savor.

10.24.14

I’m off to see the wizard…

Well, maybe in this case I won’t meet the wizard but I AM heading to the land of OZ or maybe Mecca for quilters.  My quilt “Winter Squash” (the little gift that keeps giving) has been awarded a ribbon at the IQA Houston Quilt Festival. The ribbon comes with a CASH PRIZE!!! The best part of all is they hold an awards ceremony and I get to go! I will be at the show for a week. IQA (International Quilt Association) holds a wholesale market 2 x’s a year and the fall one in Houston is the largest the wholesale market in the country. There are over 600 exhibitors with every imaginable thing for the quilter. After the 3 days of market there is the Winners Circle celebration and preview then the Quilt Festival opens and continues for 3 or 4 days. I get to go to the wholesale market as a pattern designer/producer and also to shop for our retail business. Then be celebrated for my  winning quilt and finish it off seeing all the other wonderful quilts in the show and shopping for myself. I am soooo excited. Gotta go pack my duds. I look forward to posting wonderful pictures when I get back.

11.11.14

Oh, how sweet it is…!

Quilt Market and Festival in Houston was sooo much fun! It’s taken me more than a week to catch up and process the experience and my brain is busy calculating plans to attend again next year. Step 1 make another awesome quilt that wins a ribbon….

George Brown Convention Center

OK details… For starters the place is IMMENSE really truly immense. The good news is all that walking keeps the pounds off!

Now for the really good news… “Winter Squash” was awarded 2nd prize in the “Art Miniature” category.

“Winter Squash” at Houston with its 2nd place ribbon

Now, in my opinion, the category should be “Art, Small” since there is a separate category for “Miniature Quilts” which are quilts in reduced scale, something else altogether, but, I am over the moon about winning at Houston!!!! they can call it any thing they like. There were many really really beautiful quilts on display and I had to pick my chin up off the floor on a number of occasions!!

If you’ve never attended the award ceremony for the IQA Houston Festival then you would be as surprised as I was at how they do it.

The ballroom is set up with a small stage at the front with steps at both ends. The stage has a podium and a table with flowers on it. There is a large screen above the stage slightly  to one side. As the award sponsors present each award the winning quilter goes up onto the stage to receive their check.

The room is completely draped in black curtains and as each quilt is announced a photograph is projected onto the screen so the audience can see the quilt. They start with honorable mention for each category and work their way up. When they announce the 1st prize winner a spotlight comes up on the wall and a curtain flys away revealing the winning quilt beautifully lit eliciting a gasp and collective ahhhh…

I don’t know why but this part really surprised me, I didn’t expect the quilts to be in the room, and truth be told when I found out and knew I had seen my quilt already displayed down on the show floor, I had a sinking feeling… but as soon as I saw this stunner by Janet Fogg, which won 1st place in “Art – Whimsical”, my heart was back in hopeful excitement, since I knew for sure I had seen her quilt on the show floor.

Eloise Joins the Circus – Janet Fogg 1st place Art -Whimsical

When the Masters awards are presented, those are quilts winning $5,000 and above, a bouquet of flowers is also presented to the winning quilter. I didn’t notice at the time, but later learned that the flower colors are chosen to coordinate with the quilts, which might lend a clue to the highly knowledgeable and extremely sharp eyed among you in the future.

Speaking of the future, I’m setting my sights on another win at Houston. Next time I’d like my quilt to be “behind the curtain” and I wouldn’t complain if it came with a bouquet of flowers, either!

11.27.14

Happy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving morning

Happy Thanksgiving!

We have kicked off the holiday season …. last Saturday we went out to the Riverside Municipal Theater to see our Nephew Austin performing with his fellow students. He attends a performing arts high school and it was so fun to see the talent these young people exhibit and the skills they display already. It made me realize how much I miss going to live theater. My husband, David and I both agreed we need to add that back into our lives. We have several theaters and colleges nearby, I’m excited to check out their schedules and order up some tickets!

On Sunday we enjoyed an early Thanksgiving Dinner at the home of our Son’s girlfriend. Her parents Juliet and Mike remained unflappable with nearly 20 sitting down to dinner. I admire them so much. My own sit down dinner on Thursday will be far more modest… 5 at last count. I’ll be doing a blend of home cooking and prepared foods. Leaning on Trader Joe’s market to create a few sides… I’m brineing a turkey. I did it last year for the 1st time and it really is worth it! I’ll make the garlic mashed potatoes from scratch but dear TJ’S is in charge of the corn casserole, pumpkin pie and cleaning and trimming the green beans.

I put the tree up yesterday and will try to complete the indoor decorations for the family room by this morning. With Thanksgiving so late this year I feel like one foot in each holiday is the best technique for managing, dining room and living room is in fall, family room and bedroom moved on to Christmas.

However you choose to tackle the holidays this year, be kind to yourself and remember it will all be over by January 2… Smile. Enjoy, repeat.

01.04.15

Happy New Year!!!!

A ritual I love to do this time of year is to sit down with my calendar and planner and work out my goals for the coming year, and make sure I put my vacations in 1st! Last year I did the e-version of Leonie Dawson’s 2014 Create your amazing life & biz workbook and planner. But, considering my computer and I are hardly BFF’s (although we are working on our relationship…) this year I treated myself to the print version.

2015 Create your Shining year workbook

Leonie’s workbooks are so fun, colorful and positively supportive. Now that Christmas is over I’ve been curled up with my “2015 Create your Shining Year workbook” and a handful of colorful pens and am deep into planning.  “Planning” Leonie style includes scheduling self care and lots of time to dream along with more practical “action” steps. I have been busy writing in vendor dates for “Old Broads” as well as vacations for myself and my sweetie pie.

I love this workbook and Leonie’s vibe! In case you would like to get one of your own, she has e-versions for life or business or a combo of both. And, if you are looking for some fun positive information from a nutty Aussie who swears like a sailor and loves to make up her own words you can sign up for her mailing list, check out www.leoniedawson.com

2015 is off and running…

02.26.15

Follow your heart

How much time do you spend in joy?

“The measure of my success is my joy” read the poster in the yoga studio I was attending for the 1st time. Huh… the measure of my success is my joy… not my job, bank account, status, or what my family thinks. My JOY. I know it sounds kinda obvious but seriously… how much time do you spend in JOY do you really ENJOY your time, your day, your life? That poster launched  me on a journey of discovery. Discovering how I could move closer to  joy. These mini quilts are really personal prompts to me to remind me how to live in joy, and I am so happy to share them with you. Today spend some time thinking about what brings you joy. What lights up your heart? I made a list and do at least one thing on it each day. FOLLOW YOUR HEART make your own list and spend some time with the people you love or doing an activity you love (like coloring and  making a mini quilt…)

Sign up on my mailing list to get your mini quilts delivered to your e-mail box.

03.15.15

Winter Squash is in IQA journal!

 Thank you International Quilt Association for featuring Winter Squash in your winter journal issue.

to read the entire issue click here

07.01.15

Life is supposed to be FUN!

 I believe that life is supposed to be fun.

If its not, then you’re not doing it right!

I wasn’t doing it right… I was mired in lack-full thinking, so much so that I got cancer.

Interestingly though, cancer also allowed me the opportunity to begin to see my truths, my limiting beliefs and begin to understand the power we all have over our lives, our health and our happiness. That power starts with believing that life is actually supposed to be fun!

One thing I’ve seen proven over and over again is that the better you feel the better everything in your life goes, and you can have total control over how you feel.

Notice I said “can have”, not “do have”…. the doing comes with practice. First you have to realize you can control how you feel, and that doing so has HUGE benefits! I’ll be talking about this more in my upcoming series “CREATE! 7 keys to unlocking your creative power” so stick around.

Until then… go have some FUN!!!!

02.11.16

LOVE …is all you need.

Love is truly all you need.

When you are in love everything feels wonderful. You feel more beautiful, more vital, more alive.

This Valentines Weekend  fall totally and madly in love… with yourself. 

You are utterly amazing. You are here because YOU are a good idea. Because YOU add to all that is by who you are. Everyday you engage and touch others in ways you never imagine.

YOU are exactly right. You do not need to be anything or anyone other than who you are, so relax.

YOU are exactly where you should be RIGHT NOW, so relax.

You are growing and learning so much and you will continue to grow and learn, that is the nature of life, so relax.

Look at what you have done and what you have chosen and what you have created and know it has all been exactly right and be happy NOW.

…and that goes for me, too. So this weekend I’m practicing extreme self love. I’m going to be delighted with myself. I will be indulgent and playful. I will ask myself leading questions and really listen to the answers. I will be open and curious. I will eat CHOCOLATE.

I will fill my cup until it overflows knowing that its from that abundance  – that overflow – that I can best love others, too – Much love to you <3

I’d love to know how you  fill your cup this weekend. 🙂

06.14.16

Take time to bliss out

June in Southern California is one of the nicest times to stop and smell the flowers. Plants are in full bloom everywhere you look and the days are sunny and warm … or even hot! Most years I would be spending as much time as possible outside working in the garden, enjoying my veggie seedlings growing up and up. But thanks to the drought new planting areas are on hold and the veggie garden will be getting replaced with drought tolerant plants… probably just as well. This year “A Couple of Old Broads” has done shows in Phoenix, Tuscon, and Mesa Arizona. Salt Lake City, Utah. Santa Rosa, CA and next week we head to Reno NV.  That and all other things “Lauretta Crites Designs” take time.

Bicycle flower basket

I love to take time to do “summery” things. Concerts in the park, walking on the beach, Laguna Beach’s Pageant of the Masters. This year I’m taking belly dance at the rec center. So however you enjoy summer I hope this one’s especially great for you.

08.09.16

REACH for a better thought

Mini Quilt REACH for a better thought

Sometimes what we really need is some new thinking. It’s so very easy going around just reacting to what happens to and around us. But, in order to CREATE! our lives, we need to grab the reigns of our mind and say “Whoa! Slow down! I’m in charge here!” Our minds go racing off at a million miles a minute and most of it is not serving us. Our minds can be like wild horses reacting.  You may not know this, but, if what you are thinking makes you unhappy or keeps you from your pursuit of happiness it is not serving you. These thoughts can be reactions to events or just the kind of low grade negativity that prevents you from going for it.

Lets say for example, I would really like to have an article published in a magazine. Now for me that is exciting and a little intimidating. Even with my experience It’s easy for me to think…”I don’t have a clear idea for an article” “They probably get dozens of submissions every day by people with more writing experience than me”, “that magazine fits my work BUT, …”

Or I can REACH for those better thoughts

“If I sit and brainstorm, I bet I can come up with 5 ideas for an article”, “I don’t have to write the whole article, just submit a proposal” “Magazines are always searching for new ideas” “Nothing is truly new, even older ideas can be recycled” , ” Writing a proposal will be good experience” “Even submitting a proposal will give me some name recognition”

Which will be more likely lead to action? The negative defeating thoughts, or the better more empowering thoughts?

Whether you believe you can do a thing or not… you are right.  – Henry Ford

07.19.17

It’s been a long time…..

I hardly know where to begin… It’s been a challenging and rewarding year so far and quite a long time since I’ve posted anything. In December my Husband’s Father passed away just a few days before Christmas. In January my Mom passed away just a few days after New Years, and just 1 day shy of her 72nd birthday. Both deaths were unexpected and both combined were devastating. Even with wonderful family support there has been a lot of work and grieving in closing their estates. My father-in-law lived in San Diego county a 4 hour round trip from our home and my task was to hire the contractors to do renovations on his home, make all the design choices and handle all the details of selling his home. My mom lived in Iowa so I was there with her for the final week while she was in the hospital, then back again for another week to help sort and move her personal items, design the grave marker and hold the memorial.

In between all that “A Couple of Old Broads” did shows in Ontario:CA, Phoenix:AZ, Mesa:AZ, Tuscon:AZ, Livermore:CA, and Reno:NV, and I spoke at Quilt Guilds and held workshops in Aliso Viejo:CA, Santa Maria:CA, Northridge:CA, taught at the Reno Sew and Quilt Expo and I will be headed up to central California soon to do presentations at 2 more Guilds and another workshop. Whew!!

July 25 – I’ll be presenting my trunk show “A Quilters Year” sharing how my Southern California home changes seasons thru quilts at the Central Coast Quilters Guild in Arroyo Grande, CA and I will be teaching my “Harvest Scarecrow” workshop on July 26. In this class we use fabric markers and inks to add detail and shading to enhance our applique, and you learn some free-motion quilting for the background cornstalks as well.

July 27 – I present “CREATE! keys to unlocking your creative power” at the Old Town Quilters in Nipomo, CA.

August 3 – “CREATE! Keys to unlocking your creative power” for the Acadia Quilt Guild in Buena Park, CA followed by my “Cutting Mat Tote Bag”” workshop on August 5. A one day class where we build a bag to fit our 18″ x 24″ cutting mat with pockets to fit our rotary ruler and rotary cutter as well.

August 8 – “CREATE! keys to unlocking your creative power” at the Pine Needles Guild, in Wrightwood, CA followed by Saturday the 12ths Workshop “MiPhone your Phone bag” a great cross body mini messenger bag that is customized to fit your personal cell phone, another project typically finished in the 1 day class.

Most of the presentations are open to non-members, either free or with a modest admission fee. Workshops are open for a fee, space permitting. Contact me at LaurettaCrites@gmail.com or the guilds directly for more information.

Letting go is hard to do...

The saddest part of changing my website is letting go of the 10+ years of blog posts on the old site. Reading thru the old entries is - well, reading my diary in a way. I decided to create this compilation post - mostly for myself as a way to keep some of those memories - replacing all the photos (since the early ones won’t open for a good “save as”) was too laborious but I have included what I could. 2008 to 2013 from oldest to newest…

08.22.08

The Site is Up

My website is up and running, hurray!

09.14.08

I love ribbons…

Wow, the August 29th Double Irish Chain class went very well and some really beautiful quilts are underway. One 3 color version using copper and turquoise was particularly striking. The day went so fast I did not have a chance to take any pictures so I hope everyone will e-mail me photos of their finished quilts.

This year I entered quilts into the County Fair for the first time. I was very excited when I visited the fair on Saturday to find that I had won ribbons on both of the quilts I entered! My quilt of my son Brian scuba diving in Hawaii and meeting a turtle won both a 1st place ribbon and a judges award of merit.

My other quilt done as a quick study with my art quilt group won a 2nd place ribbon. I encourage everyone to enter into the shows, not only do you get to see your work exhibited ( and hear comments, which can be both good and bad…) you get written critiques from the judges which helps you improve your quilting. So enter away, it’s alot of fun.

My Son moves to the UC Riverside dorms next weekend so I’ve been busy running around buying all the stuff he will need to create a home away from home. It seems that the summer pokes along and as soon as September come its moves into hyper drive. Before you get too busy be sure to check out my new classes for the fall and sign up while it’s on your mind. I will be at Gingers for “meet the teachers” on Sept 17 from about 3 to 5 and can help you pick out fabrics and answer questions about the classes. Hope to see you then!

11.06.08

Home Again, Home Again, jiggity jog…

I am back home again after spending a week in the lovely city of New Orleans. It was a sort of last minute trip designed to celebrate my husband David’s 50th birthday. ( and our anniversary, my birthday and probably Christmas while we are at it…) We had a wonderful time and when I get an extra minute I’ll put up some pictures from the trip. It was my first visit to the city and I loved the people and the food and the weather was wonderful. Just one thing… There was not a single quilt shop in the whole city. There wasn’t a quilt shop in a 50 mile radius! I don’t know about you, but I couldn’t live in a city that did not have a quilt shop! I whine when my closest quilt shop is a 20 minute drive! I would go nuts If I couldn’t just wander in a fondle new fabrics on the bolt. (or maybe I am nuts, but I think you are with me here…) Despite their lack of all things quilting I look forward to going back.

Ta Ta for now.

03.06.09

Time Flies

How can it be that 3 months has passed since my last post? Humm… can I even remember the last 3 months? In December I was installed as the President of Nite Owls Quilters Guild. Something that I am still trying to get the hang of, not to mention trying to cram “parliamentary procedure” into my head. Just why do we really need to “motion” and “2nd” stuff anyway? It seems to me after 100+ years we could figure out an easier way…. or maybe it’s just me.
Christmas was really nice, I remember taking down all the decorations immediately afterwards but I can’t really remember why.
Road to California was  interesting and as always I was very inspired by the quilts and learned alot. I only took one class this year but it was 4 days long. I worked on portrait quilts with Pam Holland. If you saw the show her quilt was a copy of the painting “American Gothic” here is a picture of my work in progress.

My "self portrait" before stitching

Pam must have liked it as she put a photo of it on her web site as well (you’ll have to dig back thru her blog since she posts WAY more frequently than I do. (Where does she find the time???) February was my “Prairie Points and Patches” table topper class. We had a really good time and I was so inspired by the color combination’s my students came up with I want to make about 6 more for myself. I have included a few pictures of work in progress from that class.

Shirley was the 1st one finished

Elisa's sophisticated teal and brown combo

Rita's very pretty spring colors

My favorite “over achiever” completed her project from our last class “Holiday Star Tabletopper” and brought it in to show us. She is motivating ME to finish a few things! I’ll be sure to let you know when I get past the motivated part and on to the actual finishing. tee hee…

Judi with her FINISHED holiday star project, lovely

My husband and I tore out our small bathroom and are rebuilding it from the studs out. We did the demolition 2 weekends ago and I am hoping to be finished by April 18 ( Nite Owls Quilt show weekend) but we will see what we will see… this is the “state of the bathroom” as it stands today.

The wall the vanity/sink goes on

Now even the toilet is out

the ceiling ( or lack therof)

Looking over all this, and I have a new class this Sunday , “Stars in Stripes”, I am beginning to see why I haven’t been posting lately. Please forgive me the delay and I will try to keep up a little better. Thank you all for your support and good wishes.

07.25.09

Report on Long Beach Quilt Show

Yesterday I attended the 2nd Int’l Quilt Association Long Beach Quilt Show and if you haven’t been you really should get down there. We are so lucky now to have 2 fabulous quilt shows in our area. (OK, I’m leaving out San Diego but I’ve never been to  it) IQA sets up their Long Beach show differently from the way Carolyn does Road to California. The quilts are in one area and the vendors in another not kind of blending together so I was there about 20 min before I figured that out and found the quilts!. My only disappointment was that many of the quilts were “special exhibits” and we were not allowed to photograph them. I saw Jane Sassaman’s “Metamorphosis” I am so inspired by her thread work. She uses decorative stitches to finish her applique and uses heavy 12 wt thread which has a lot of impact. I took her class at Asilomar this year but I’ll post about that later.  Hollis Chatelain had a quilt in the “special exhibit” also. I love to study how Hollis  does her stitching as well, Jane and Hollis  work very differently and I find both brilliant in their own personal style.

I met Heather Purcell (Mother Superior) of Superior Thread. I picked up some of their new”Texture Magic” and was excited to show her a dimensional name tag I made with the product. “Texture Magic” is a lightweight material that when steamed shrinks up 30% in all directions. I am very interested in exploring how this can be used to created “trapunto” effects and dimensional texture.

My Snazzy name tag

I also met the “Elizabeth’s” of LizzyBcre8ive. They are a design team that have the same name (they are sister-in-law’s) and their work is fresh and charming. I especially loved their banner style wall hangings (at least that’s what I would call them) I’m dying to make their “create” banner to hang in my studio and the “floor quilt” from their new book is too fun. 

I ran into a few old friends and made some new ones. I received about a million dollars worth of information on quilting personally and professionally and I got to attend an “invitation only”  reception put on by Karey Bresenhan the Director of the Int’l Quilt Festival. Being at the reception felt a little like the time I sat in the Czars box at the St. Petersburg Opera with Placido Domingo it evoked that same feeling of delight to be in such elevated company. However, the quilt artists reception had a lot less paparazzi! 🙂

Here are a couple of quilts that caught my eye and I’m sorry I did not record the makers with the single exception. If you know the artists please let me know. The captions are just mine unless the artist is named.

09.20.09

The premier of “Lauretta Crites Designs”

"Cuddle Ewe"

Yesterday was a wonderful day at Gingers Quilt Shoppe, I premiered my new pattern “Cuddle Ewe” during Ginger’s 3rd anniversary celebration. It was such a fun day seeing so many wonderful quilting friends. It was great to catch up with so many of you. Pattern sales went very well and I am so happy to have this first “birth” out of the way. Its now time to let this “baby” out into the world and see how she does. I think Miss Ewe is as cute as can be and I sure had fun making up the quilt samples. Brenda, one of my fabulous students asked a question which prompted an addition to the pattern instructions. Which does prove, the teacher can be taught! Follow the link under patterns to find out more…

"Cuddle Ewe" hot off the press

03.20.10

Empty Spools Retreat

I’m back from a wonderful session at Empty Spools retreat. This was my second year and once again I was lucky with wonderful weather. The retreats are held at the Asilomar conference center, in Pacific Grove, California, right on the coast.

 This year I actually walked down to the water! Last year I never looked up from  my project but this year I took a friend and a more relaxed attitude.

My instructor this year was Susan Carlson and we worked from her collage technique. I did a still life of winter squash.  Since her technique involves cutting out small pieces of fabrics in just the right shades and pattern I now have a large collection of  fabric which looks like swiss cheese.

I still have some adjustments and additions I want to do but its getting close to where I want it, but then I will have to figure out how to quilt it!  I had a terrific group of classmates who were funny and friendly and very generous with their stash.

The conference grounds are extensive and the smell of pine was intoxicating. The deer were wandering around and I had several close encounters when I did not have my camera on me, drat! I did get this picture shot thru my bedroom window.  I now have yet another project to finish and am a week behind in my 52 project challenge, but, it was all well worth it.

01.07.11

Happy New Year

This year started out with a bang! actually lots and lots of them… after several delays due to rain, on January 5 they tore off the roof.  Now 3 days and a lot of dust and noise later taa daa… um well ok not done but we are getting there.  I guess I shouldn’t be in too much of a hurry to see the roofers leave, once they do I need to start prepping to paint. Yuck.

One of my new year’s resolutions is to “embrace technology” and to that end I am promising to post more than a couple of times a year (though I don’t vouch for content…whatever am I going to talk about?) and I am going to sit still and learn my EQ6 program (since EQ7 is out and 8 is no doubt coming). Those resolutions join with spend more time sketching and painting and … so we shall see.

With the help of my folks who came for a week after Christmas I designed and built my dream cutting table. It still stinks of spar varnish but it is a thing of beauty and exactly what I wanted. Pretty slick huh!

My snazzy new cutting table

And to welcome in the new year (OK, I was escaping the roofing  noise in the house if you must know) I put a fresh cover on my pressing table. Now my studio is so clean I don’t know what to do. It seems so wrong to make a mess. Oh well, that won’t last.

I do have a couple classes coming up at Gingers Quilt Shoppe, Feb 5 is my new purse design the miPhone bag and on March 5 is the Cutting Mat tote bag class. You can contact me or Ginger’s for more info.

02.18.13

Happy Valentine’s Day

Wishing you all a very happy day I hope you have something (or someone)  sweet to celebrate it with.

I’ve been taking a watercolor sketchbook class taught by  Desiree Habicht it’s once a month and we have such a fun time.  During this months class we painted valentine cookies… it was so hard to wait until after we painted them to eat them, one gal couldn’t wait and her painting has a cookie with a bite missing!

02.24.13

Yet another use for selvages…

trellis strings poised and waiting

Yes, February is spring in southern California, some of our very best weather is now especially for working outside.  I’ll be inside the studio hiding out from the heat over the summer but during this time of year I spend as much time as possible outside.  One of my favorite uses for selvages is as “string” for my sugar snap peas or green beans.  I especially like the long ones from quilt backs and lengthwise cut borders.  Sometimes I get 2 uses out of them, on the trellis above I have a combination of reused  and new selvages.  I use my more colorful ones like ribbon to tie things together but the less interesting white edges usually ends up in the garden.

03.17.13

St.Patrick’s Day (already?)

Radishes are so fun, I love how they almost harvest themselves

 I don’t know about you but I can’t believe how fast this year is going!  I intended to post every week this year and if you look at my log you can see how well that is going… My son told me it’s OK to post about whatever I’m up to, it doesn’t always have to be about quilting, so I will be posting more often but time will tell about what.

It seems everyone around me is working thru the same issues. We all seem to be finding it hard to focus in on the things that will bring us the most satisfaction in our lives.  As I was recovering from surgery I read an assortment of books on organization and time management but I am already pretty organized.  2 problems I have are; I spend too much of my time doing repetitious things that will never stay done and I try to do everything.  The book I found that best addressed those issues is 18 Minutes: Find Your Focus, Master Distraction, and Get the Right Things Done by Peter Bregman.  Peter reminds us there are only 24 hours in each day and 7 days in each week and it is not and never will be possible to get it ALL done.  So with Peter’s help I am focusing in on my 5 things for this year.  I’m saying NO to trauma drama derailing me from my goals.  Are you with me?  ARE YOU WITH ME!!! Roar, cheer, lets hear it for us and creativity!!!  OK , now go out and have fun.  Play with your toys and create something that makes you smile and have a great week!

04.07.13

OMG! its official

OMG!

My quilt was announced on Wednesday as a finalist in the Quilting Arts Magazine reader challenge. The challenge theme was “Text Me!” I had several ideas on the theme but this is the one I chose to develop (OK, I wanted to do all three then send in my favorite, but…) I wanted the idea of illuminated letters but using the short hand of today. The quilt was whole cloth painted with mostly seta color paints. I took a class with Judy Coates Perez in January at Road to California Quilters Convention and fell in love with painting on fabric this way. Look for more to come using this technique!

06.07.13

“Winter Squash” takes Blue Ribbon

Last Saturday I was lucky enough to win the 1st prize blue ribbon for my latest quilt “Winter Squash”.  I started this quilt 3 years ago at an Empty Spools seminar with Susan Carlson. The top was about 85% finished when I went home but, as these things go, it got set aside (not exactly forgotten since it was taking up valuable real estate on it’s own design wall) until the time for the Nite Owl Quilt Guild  Quilt Show rolled around.  It was the closest thing to finished that I felt was worth entering into a show. The best part (aside from the ribbon and admiration) is now its completed, its back from the show and I have hung it on my dining room wall and the design wall is freed up for my next creation.

06.25.13

2013 Quilters Run

It’s Quilters Run time again! This year I am delighted to be invited to participate by sharing my latest pattern, a purse I call the “miPhone bag” along with my other patterns at The SewNSew in Glendora. Shelly and her team at The SewNSew have really gone all out with the decorations and preparations to make your experience on this years Run extra special. Make sure to stop by. Quilters Run continues this week Thursday thru Sunday. Don’t miss the fun.

09.24.13

Life is good

I really admire people who can keep up with their website, social media, family and work… however I’m not one of them!

I have been really busy but its all good, I  hope to give more details later but just to catch you up:

My husband and I were given a cruise in the spring to the Netherlands with Uniworld cruise lines. The trip was wonderful and I fell in love with Amsterdam I’m sure there are those who would argue with me but to me it’s like Paris only they speak english.

My new pattern “miPhone bag” premiered to great success  during our So. Cal Quilters Run

I’m teaching “Cutting Mat Tote Bag” at the Quilt Loft this Saturday September 28th

My quilt “OMG!” appeared in Quilting Arts August/September issue.

I’ve started an Etsy store – Rettabugs

Life is Good, Hope you feel the same!

12.02.13

Road Worthy

I am so excited to report that both of the quilts I entered into “The Road to California Quilt Show” were accepted.” Road”, as it’s known to us quilters is a very prestigious international quilt show which I especially like since it is close to my home.  Road is a really great mix of the best traditional and art quilts being created today. This year they are adding a “modern” category. I am quite interested to see what will be displayed in that category.

All quilts must pass through a rigorous  jury process based on photographs in order to be accepted and displayed at the show. So, just having a quilt accepted is a big deal.  Then the quilts are shipped to the show, once the quilts arrive at the show they are then judged.

Road to California is January 23-26, 2014 at the Ontario Convention Center in Ontario, California.

 Keep your fingers crossed for me, I’d love another ribbon from Road!

“Winter Squash”

“Too Soon To Tell”

12.09.13

Old Broads, New Adventures.

My buddy and I are teaming up as “A Couple of Old Broads” we will be taking our patterns, kits and “Old Broad” attitude on the road. Our first show is  in February and so I have a lot to do designing and building new samples. This is what gets me excited.  I am in the studio creating new patterns and fun projects that I hope you will enjoy making and will love for a long time to come.

I really enjoy timeless design and am inspired by the current modern trend (as much as the card may look to the contrary, ;-)) I love the graphic quality and how well they work with our more pared down interiors.

I’m making my son a quilt. Naturally its a design I want to make into a pattern. The danger is, if I like the finished product too much, he may not get to use his quilt ’till I’m done using it as a sample. Ah, the fate of the designers child.

Gotta go, sew have fun.