Words are not the enemy

I'm trying to understand HOW a person can make words work for her/him -- when reading and writing seem the enemy. Yesterday's Diane Rehm show on NPR, The Dyslexic Brain,  has some insight. Listen.

Beach Walk
Cedar Key Quilt Show
January 2012

This is what the Judges' Evaluation said about Beach Walk:
Overall Appearance: "Great color choices, you really feel the water & sun going down."

Quilting: "improve finishing around edges and you have got a winner."

Additional Comments: "Really creates a mood of walking on the beach -- cold -- darkness or storm approaching -- very creative--"

That wasn't so hard! I don't know if I'll continue making evaluations public (there is a tiny public out there, isn't there?), but I want to. I am thrilled to be part of the Cedar Key show. I learned at Quilt Surface Design Symposium that the finest quilt artists have work criticized and even rejected sometimes. I'm at a point where I actually can learn from others' observations, as I  follow my own creative instincts. And I want to share. This is what it's like.

Here's more from Cedar Key. Unfortunately, Virginia Stevenson's lovely silk piece was not on the wall when we were there.

Angel Food Cake for Clark

Clark's birthday cake

It looks like a giant doughnut, but it's really Clark's birthday cake -- always angel food cake for him!

The recipe is from the Gourmet cookbook.

Angel Food Cake

1 cup cake flour (Don't use all-purpose.)
1 2/3 C. sugar
1 3/4 C. egg whites (usually about 13) Room temperature is best.
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cream of tartar
 1/2 tsp vanilla

for Glaze
1 C. confectioners' sugar
2 T. fresh lemon juice

Put rack in middle of the oven and preheat to 300°.

Sift flour 3 times (it says -- I don't), then sift together with 2/3 C. sugar. (I just mix the two and fluff them up with a fork.)

Beat the egg whites until frothy. Add cream of tartar and salt and beat until whites barely form soft peaks. Beat in remaining 1 C. sugar 2 tablespoons at a time. Add vanilla and beat until whites hold soft peaks. Add the flour mixture, 1/4 at a time, and fold in gently but completely after each addition.

Spoon the batter into ungreased tube pan (If you grease it, the cake will not cling to the sides and it will be a fallen mess.) Smooth the top with the spatula and then rap the pan on the table a couple of times. This is fun and is supposed to burst bubbles.

Bake 1 1/4 hr. Invert on counter and cool for 2 hours.
Optional: make a glaze by mixing the confectioners' sugar and lemon juice and spreading it on top of the cool cake. Serve with berries, whipped cream, ice cream or nothing.

Winter 4: the bird saved it

Winter
14 1/2" wide x 16" long
cotton, purchased and from used shirt, cotton batting 

Winter is finished, and I love its control and symmetry.  Didn't know I had that in me! For a time I hated the quilting -- I carefully designed the stitching and then all at once I loathed it! The lines on the pines seemed dangerously dart-like. I'd used heavy #12 thread, as Jane Sassaman does. I brooded awhile, and one gloomy day I decided to rip it all out, at risk of messing the piece beyond use. I crazily took my little orange scissors and snipped wildly at the right corner. I worked outside because that makes me calmer. I was snipping madly, not getting very far because of the close stitching, when a big wet plop made me stop. The ultimate insult: a bird flew over and pooped on my quilt! I ran inside and washed it off. That's when I realized all I needed to do was rip out the heavy threads. The rest was fine. Now the quilting is all in regular thread, which is right for this piece. Thanks, bird!

Turned-edge applique

1. Cut out shape from ShirTailor. Leaf pattern is first cut from 70 # paper (below).
2. Iron ShirTailor onto wrong side of fabric.
3. Cut around shape, about 1/4" outside the edge.

4. Make little slashes along curves, right down to ShirTailor, but not cutting into it.

5. Turn the edge inside and glue it down with UHU glue.

6. Sew it onto your piece, using either machine or hand applique technique. For this, I like hand applique.

Winter 3

First I sewed the designs onto the front, using a straight stitch close to the edge (photo below). Next I sewed a close zigzag stitch around the edges, covering the straight stitches. Then I held my breath and cut the back layer out. I taped the piece onto the lamp so you can see it (above). I skipped the smaller pieces, which are attached with double-sided adhesive bonding, and then sewn around the edges. This is machine applique, but hand-applique would also be beautiful, and you would treat the back the same way. This avoids layering for a lightweight, flexible top.

Winter 2

This is the design I'm making.

After I chose 3 shapes, I cut them out from fabric (here, all cotton) backed with Pellon ShirTailor. That's a light-weight stabilizer. I also ironed ShirTailor to the back of the base fabric, a mahogany-ish Kona cotton. This looks (and is!) an ultra-simple design, but settling on it took me lots of time and fussing. Maybe a week. I made the shapes from other colors and shades as well. I'd arrange them and then let the design sit for hours or days -- moving this and that a quarter-inch or so, stepping back, squinting. So many options! I stopped when it felt right. Then I added the circles. "When you have an empty space, put a circle in it," Jane Sassaman told us. I took a photo and then traced the design onto big paper, numbering the pieces to show which would be sewn on first (dark green bases onto the pine triangles, violet swirls onto base), second (black limbs), third (triangles), fourth (circles).