The 52 Week Photo Challenge…

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I’ve written about Ricky Tims’ photography class in previous posts. I’ve been in the class since January 1 and it truly is the best present I’ve given myself in a long time. I have learned so much and have become a much more confident photographer. Even my iPhone photos are better!

Ricky has begun the registration for next year’s class and there is a significant savings if you sign up before December 10. Click here for more info. This is not a class for quilters only—it’s a class for anyone interested in photography.

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If you want to get the most from the class, it does require an investment of time. And if you don’t have a good digital camera and Photoshop, you’ll need those as well. But if you are interested in becoming a better photographer this is an excellent opportunity.

A shopping adventure with Elanor…

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I made a promise to Elanor last year that I would take her on an overnight shopping trip to Dallas to celebrate her 13th birthday and the big day came last week. I booked a room at a NYLO (New York Lofts) hotel because it’s hip and trendy! Lots of concrete and exposed pipes and ducts, cool furniture, nice art—definitely not the usual hotel look.

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Elanor thought the all-black elevators were creepy, but I liked them. Industrial, functional, clean lines, fun textures… what’s  not to love?

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The rooms had tubular ‘mood lighting’. I was surprised that the light actually was good once it got dark outside. I thought it might be very orange, but it wasn’t.

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The bathroom, however, was the most fun. I can’t remember ever seeing a corner commode.

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The spare toilet paper had this fun cover. I am still pondering what sort of emergency use it could be put to :-).

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We shopped at Northpark Center both on Thursday afternoon and Friday. We found everything on her list (jeans, shoes, and boots). Some for her birthday, some for Christmas (because CHRISTMAS IS COMING!).

Besides the excitement of shopping, we had fire alarms in the night. They went off at 12:30am for a few seconds and then they stopped. After looking in the hallway and listening, it appeared to be an alarm problem. When they went off an hour later we went to the front desk to be sure. This was not a new problem and they were very sorry, etc.

Elanor, who was freaked out by the first alarm, was beginning to get over it. Good thing because they went off 4 more times, about every hour or so. To help us get over our lack of sleep, the hotel gave us complimentary breakfasts, which is better than nothing.

Instead of looking at the negative, we decided to embrace this as a positive experience. Elanor learned what an alarm in a place like a hotel sounds like—and what false alarms are like. She learned to always be aware of where the exits are (we had looked when we first got to our room). She learned to react swiftly and remain calm.

So, all in all, we had a really nice time eating out, shopping, and having a hipster hotel experience!

Wool quilt auction…

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If you get my newsletter, you already know that Linda is auctioning off many of the quilts that she made for our book, Wool Applique the Piece O’ Cake Way. She doesn’t have room for them—that’s hard to imagine, isn’t it? I’m writing this post for those of you who may have missed the news.

The flower basket, below is on auction. It’s one that didn’t make it into the book so you have not seen it before. It’s pretty! To see all of the quilts, and to find the instructions for bidding, you can click here or on the link in the menu bar. Happy bidding!

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Quilts from the big show…

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The quilt show side of the International Quilt Festival is amazing. So many quilts to see! And I only had 1 hour to see them! I didn’t take many photos but if you search social media I suspect you will find hundreds of pictures.

If you go, you will find quilts that were entered into the judged show and exhibits with different kinds of quilts. This quilt hangs near the front and I love it! It is called Daisies and Dogwoods by Fiona Lindsay from Australia. It is hanging in the In Full Bloom exhibit sponsored by Prym Consumer USA, Inc.

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Vermeer Meets Fassett by Lynn Czaban is just lovely. It is a small quilt entered in the judged show.

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There were several applique quilts entered into the judged show that were just stunning. I didn’t have a good way to get a good picture of the whole quilt. In most cases the detail shots are better. (FYI: Winners won’t be announced until Wednesday evening.) This is Magnolia by Fusako Takido. Isn’t it great!

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My Sweet House with Kirara by Ayako Kawakami is another amazing quilt. I didn’t pay close enough attention but I think both of these are from the Handmade category.

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Ben’s Midnight Garden by Barbara Korengold is another quilt that is both lovely and masterfully sewn.

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So many quilts have details that are beautiful. The piecing and subtle applique in Where Love Goes by Miyuki Hamara work so well together.

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I really loved the simplicity of Little Farm On The Prairie by Enid Weichselbaum. The quilting adds so much to what is already a great design.

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The quilts in the different exhibits are not part of the judged show but are just as much fun to look at! There is an exhibit of the quilts from Victoria Findlay Wolfe’s book Double Wedding Rings: Traditions Made Modern. This one, Deconstruction, is one of Victoria’s own quilts.

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The antique quilt exhibit was also fun to tour…

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Click here to go to the Quilt Festival home page. I suspect that you’ll find a link to the list of winning quilts there by Thursday.

Images from my quick visit to Quilt Market…

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I stopped long enough to take a photo of the construction in the daylight. Downtown Houston has been looking better every year. It’s more crowded, bustling, cleaner, and there is a lot more that is interesting to look at. I suspect that next year the Convention Center is going to look better than it ever has.

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I took the next two shots before market opened so the folks you see here are vendors. It will be a lot more crowded once the doors are open and shop owners start walking the floor. It will be even more crowded when Quilt Festival opens. The booth occupants will change, the floor plan generally remains the same.

The opening in the far, white wall goes to the quilts. Aisle 1 starts there…

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Turn and look in the other direction and wayyyyyy down there is aisle 29. This is an event that requires good, sturdy footwear.market-03

C&T had our new book, Wool Applique the Piece O’ Cake Way, prominently displayed!

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I didn’t stop to photograph many booths because I was moving fast. I did stop at Art Gallery Fabrics because of this wall:

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The fabric designer showcased here is Maureen Cracknell. I was lucky enough to get to visit with her for a little bit. She is a lovely young woman who has designed some wonderful fabric. She also has a great eye for display!

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It’s not just that the butterflies are pretty, it’s the way the colorless butterflies flow into the colorful ones. They enhanced the fabric that was displayed with them.

In a similar way, RJR used origami cranes…

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I didn’t know until just now that there is an RJR Quilt With Love blog! Click here.

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If you go on social media and look for #quiltmarket you’ll find lots more photos. Tomorrow I’ll post a few quilt images.

Look out!

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I live in Texas and I am here to tell you that this state is all about road construction. And, in most cases, Texas focuses and gets the job done in good order. But sometimes crews focus on one part of a road, get that done, and then move to the next stretch so it can feel like there is never progress. 

I have been coming to Houston in the fall for 21 years and there are always streets torn up downtown. There are fewer this year but there is a huge amount of new construction in progress.

This year the construction that quilters will notice the most is in front of the George R Brown Convention Center. (I took these photos early this morning before the sun came up.)

  
Entrances at ground level are few. The buses are dropping off at the parking garage next to the Hilton where you can ride an escalator up to the walkway on the 2nd floor to the convention center. It works well. 

  There is remodeling going on inside as well. It may be a little inconvenient this year but I’m looking forward to seeing the changes next year. Truly, this city is prettier every year.