A Big "Ahh"

I'm feeling "light" now, since completing the last of three entries into QuiltCon. Good or bad, three quits are entered and I'm feeling relieved. Setting up for quilt photography is somewhat of a process for me.

Of course, I want the best light possible, with no shadows in the corners. 

• I clamp two shop can lamps (fitted with daylight bulbs) to two stands from my quilt stand
• I clamp a desk lamp with an arm to a tabletop
• I turn on two Daylight Slimline lamps
• I turn on the four overhead LED full spectrum daylight lamps in the ceiling
• I open the blinds on the four (bay) windows.

For picture-taking, I use my Canon camera mounted on a tripod, utilizing the three-second timer so there's no chance of me jiggling the camera when pushing the button. 

QuiltCon Entries

1) Pot Luck, 57" X 57" in the Group/Bee category - Sixteen quilt makers were involved in making this!

Though a photo of the quilt back isn't submitted to QuiltCon, I take backside pictures anyway. I like seeing how the this potholder method of quiltmaking looks from the back! Love it!

2) Infrastructure, 67" X 72" in the Modern Traditionalism category

The back of Infrastrure. In case you're wondering, that little circle (lower left) is appliquéd there to cover a spot where I accidentally clipped the fabric. 

3) Benched, 50" X 70", in the American Patchwork & Quilting Transparency Challenge category.

This is the design I came up with for the Central Florida MQG "Household Inspiration Challenge." I used the Adidas logo as my inspiration. You've seen lots of pictures of the quilting on this one. 

I'm especially fond of the back on this one. You will probably note that my faced finish is really obvious. I had NO matching fabric leftover from which to cut 2" strips and 5" squares for facing. I had to make do with other, not-quite-the-same colors. 

The Modern Quilt Guild anticipates the three-person jury will have made QuiltCon selections by early December. Every quilt entry will receive an acceptance and/or rejection email. Accepted quilts will be displayed next February at QuiltCon 2025 in Phoenix, Arizona.

I did my best. What's done is done. 

Though it has already been a busy week, I've turned my attention to a new activity. Since seeing Leanne @shecanquilt post pictures from a an online workshop with from Sarah @larkandbower, I have been closely following weaving classes taught by Sarah.

If you've been reading my blog posts for any length of time, you know how much I enjoy braiding rugs (learned from Ilka White @ilkawhite), and peg loom weaving (self-taught during the pandemic).

Yarn Wrapping is my new weaving interest. 

Sarah, who lives in the UK, offers online classes. When I discovered that her next virtual workshop isn't until May (I'm impatient to wait so long!) I contacted her to inquire about any other opportunity. She said that for the same fee she'd give me access to the video from the last workshop, and send a PDF of instructions.

After I found the wood board needed at the local Michael's, and a bodkin (needle) needed at a local shop: The Sewing Studio, I got started because I have the other supplies on-hand.

The most critical supply is embroidery floss which I have in abundance. Did you know, once upon a time, back in the early 1980s, when we lived in Iowa, I owned a stitchery shop? When I sold the business, I kept at least one of every DMC floss color. Since I haven't used embroidery floss for ages, it's time to put it to work! I like what I'm seeing! 

Another thing that saw me on-the-go this week was being interviewed for an article that is expected to appear in the local Daily Sun newspaper on Wednesday.

Maddie, the reporter is writing an article about the 31st anniversary of Quilting Guild of The Villages. She asked me and another quilter, Susan - an art quilter - to come to the Sun's photography studio for pictures of us with our quilts. Susan and I have very different styles, but that's what you'd expect in a guild of more than 1,200 members!

Interestingly, it turns out that Susan and I are "bosom buddies." We both had breast cancer. Have you scheduled your mammogram?

Book Recommendations

A friend suggested I read a book by Dandy Smith. One Small Mistake was the book I was able to check out, and it was good! 

Elodie has quit her marketing job to devote herself to her passion, writing. Though numerous publishing companies praise her writing skills, her storylines and plot suggestions are falling short. When Jack, her best friend since childhood, suggests she needs to experience something worth writing about, she agrees. So begins Elodie's "one small mistake." It escalates beyond her imagination into something she didn't even desire. 

Ada is Elodie's sister, who doesn't believe what others and the police believe. She must find out what happened to Elodie. Though the sisters have a strained relationship, love for one another overcomes their differences. 

Linda's score: 4.2/5.0

Daughter of Mine by Megan Miranda drew me in from the beginning.

Hazel grew up in Mirror Lake, North Carolina, and is now living and working in Charlotte, running a home renovations business with two college friends. Hazel is drawn back to Mirror Lake because of the sudden death of her dad, a beloved police officer. When Hazel learns she's the sole inheritor of her dad's property - the lake house and furnishings, and his truck - she senses the resentment of her two brothers, Caden and Gage, who are both Mirror Lake law enforcement officers. 

There's a drought, and Mirror Lake's water level is diminishing to the point that items are being discovered that probably weren't meant to be found. Two of them are cars belonging to women who were thought to be dead or have left the area. 

When Hazel's friend/sister-in-law goes missing, leaving her young daughter and husband Caden behind, Hazel begins to worry. She also senses that someone has been in her house. Items that were thought to have been taken away are found. Then there's the money. Gradually, she learns more about what really happened when her mother supposedly left her behind 13 years ago. 

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and was captivated all the way through. I knew who did it. Then I changed my mind. Nope, it was the other one. So engaging! I had to force myself to stop listening when other things needed to be done! 

Linda's score: 4.4/5.0

Linda