Going up in a balloon at Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta

It is great to have friends with interesting hobbies. I’ve known Clayton for years, and he has always said, come ballooning. So finally this year we made arrangements to go to Albuquerque. Unfortunately, Joel realized he had a very important engagement here in town, so I went with my friend Becky instead.Clayton is in the green and his wonderful partner Jared, who I just met this week is in the red. I think you can figure out which one is Becky.Up at 4:30 in the morning, going out to the field and preparing the balloon for flight. It was freezing, standing around till almost 7 am, frost on the ground, I’m not built for that kind of cold.You better believe I stood close by when Clayton tested the propane.The balloon itself, named Finish Line, is laid out, ready to fill.First a fan is used to fill as much air in as possible.Jared is holding the line attached to the top, stretching it out so the balloon fills evenly. No way can one do this hobby alone, it takes a number of people.Once it’s pretty full, Clayton turns on the heat.Those flames are hot.Into the basket we go, a quick picture before liftoff.Then, we glide up into the air.Looking back at other balloons who are preparing for their own ascent. The view from the air is incredible. It was a little too windy, so not many balloons made it up. They aborted the lift-off for many balloons.  I didn’t notice how strong the winds were until it became apparent that we were over the city, rather than out into open space.

We landed twice, hard. Clayton is an excellent pilot, he knew we had to get down quickly when it’s windy, it’s hard to get a smooth landing, so down we went into a newly plowed field. Just to have someone run out yelling that we can’t land here. We had landed, bounced and the basket tipped over. So we straightened up, calmed the guy down and back up we went, just another few blocks to an empty lot and once again, hard bouncing landing. People immediately ran to help. Most people in Albuquerque love the balloons. I didn’t get any pictures of the landing, I was busy getting bounced around, but you can see,  trying to land in a city isn’t easy.Two more balloons landing right next to us.The Albuquerque balloon had their chase crew at the ready, about 4 guys grabbed the tether and pulled the balloon down gently. Unlike our basket, can you see it toppled over practically on that log?  Luckily we were dumped out before the log then it got dragged further. No damage to us, basket or the balloon.Wrapping up and getting ready to pack everything up.

This is long enough for one post, more balloons soon.

 

 

Leah

Judson Glass studio

What alerted me to the South Pasadena Art Walk was a post on the Judson Studio FB page. I love this 130 year old family owned company. I especially love the fact that they continue to develop and grow. They recently took on a major project, a massive Stain Glass wall in a Church in Leawood Kansas. Here is a short video of part of the process. Throughout the years of this project they shared photos and videos on their FB page, worth going back and taking a look.

Because of this project they needed more space, which they found in walking distance from their century old headquarters.Leaded glass as door decoration.The Leawood church forced them into a whole new way of creating stained  glass. Working with an expert they moved into the realm of fusing glass, not just painting. This allows for a whole new world of color and vibrancy.This piece does not need the separation of the lead, but combining the old techniques with the new is part of what Judson is doing today.

They get all kinds of commissions, from private homes, Churches, large public installations. They are often called in to repair old stained glass. The lead gets very weak after 100 years. What is fun is that they have gone back to repair work they had originally installed.

A project they are working on now, for a monastery in Wyoming. The monks are building it all by themselves. They sustain themselves with a beer brewery and a distillery, in Europe it used to be wine, so why not update the spirits here.This is 100% traditional stained glass technique. Each piece of glass will be separated by lead, first,they draw in the shading with gray or black,  they paint in the colors. In some cases, the glass is colored glass upon which they paint in the shading.Not only are the techniques very old, the subject matter is very traditional. When completed this will be transported to Wyoming and from that point on, only monks in the monestary will be able to enjoy this beauty.They had a full scale cartoon on the wall, this is a large commision. One piece is already complete and was hanging in their window.

On the second Thursday of every month they lead a tour of both facilities. I can’t make it in August but most certainly will be going in September. So look forward to an even longer disertation about glass and this wonderful family run business here in Los Angeles.

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Leah

Japanese cultural village

Have I mentioned how much I love LA? Always something new to discover, often with the help of the Atlas Obscura.

On a gloomy Sunday in June, I went off the the Arts District downtown for an adventure.Waiting for everyone to arrive, I started taking pictures of the surrounding buildings. The Arts District is famous for it’s murals and street art. Little did I know that we were headed inside this building... to be greeted by 5000 square feet of this.Since this was an industrial building with high ceilings, Peter built an interior roof.Now we get to why I love cultural appropriation – as it is called today. (in my youth we just called it the melting pot and celebrated the fact that we were all welcome to share in one another’s culture). Peter Lai is a Chinese man from Hong Kong. For many years he was quite the flamboyant designer, once here in America, he left his family tradition of designing for Chinese theater and TV and designed high-end couture for a clientele in San Marino. He also developed a love for everything Japanese, especially the Kabuki theater.  So he built a miniature Japanese village in his loft. He is an avid collector, here showing us an old store register, listing the inventory and what has sold.Everywhere one looks there is stuff! I realized quickly that his inspiration is Japanese theater – not the sparse simple design we associate with Japan. In the fall he is going to take a practical exam to become an official Kabuki dancer. He has been dancing for 17 years, his Mentor is 95 years old, if he is going to pass his exam, he has to do it soon.A Temari ball caught my eye. He tends to collect many items, this was the only such ball that I saw.He did have a basket full of Darumas.  A few words about Kabuki, traditionally it was performed only by men, in the early 20th century it opened to women as well. Guess what happened? The men left, today there are hardly any male Kabuki dancers, so when Peter becomes official, he will be the first male Kabuki dancer in his studio in a very long time.

A few words about Kabuki, traditionally it was performed only by men, in the early 20th century it opened to women as well. Guess what happened? The men left, today there are hardly any male Kabuki dancers, so when Peter becomes official, he will be the first male Kabuki dancer in his studio in a very long time.In this space there is of course, a theater for performances, I think it can hold 45 people. In front of some of the seating cushions, were bento boxes wrapped in the Furoshiki technique, a delight for the textile crafter in me.Peter isn’t a purist, he is theatrical! Behind him is a Chinese opium bed. He is holding the original high heel shoe – for a man! Next to him is a Chinese garment, turns out he found the skirt but couldn’t find a matching top, so he removed the bands off the back of the skirt and incorporated them into a matching jacket. A purist would cringe, but for Peter, unless he is taking the Kabuki exam, anything goes. He has performed his dances for local audiences here, and as long as he doesn’t call it pure Kabuki, he feels he combine what he wants. I like his attitude!There is a dressing and makeup room, full of wigs, hair ornaments and face makeup. I zoomed in on the many combs used for the wigs. He even modeled a young man’s wig as well as an older mans’ wig. This one was gray and had a large bald spot on the top!I think Betty Boop loves her new costume!  Most of the kimonos he owns are for the theater, not street wear or even wedding kimonos. I could tell because of the garish colors and the heavy use of gold and silver thread. All this is very necessary on stage, but would be considered gauche in everyday life.From early teens until late 20s’ Peter worked in the family theatrical costume workshop. It was then sold and went out of business, so Peter has had to buy back costumes the family made. He should be a consultant on any production of Chinese movie made here in America, he knows the difference between all the dynasties and what they wore. While he still had his clothing store in San Marino, he would often remove such a dragon and put in on a lovely evening jacket.What a workroom! For him this is small, he no longer is making clothes but is still updating items and making a new costume here and there. He is selling off fabric, buttons, and trims.It was so nice to see a solid industrial Juki still at work.Anyone who visits the studio is welcome to buy one of his creations for a very steep discount.Just to show you how eclectic he is, this steampunk mask would sell for a very nice price!  I don’t think this was for sale.

 

 

 

Leah

The Mosaic Tile House

A known fixture in Venice California, the Mosaic Tile House. I went with Atlas Obscura, but anyone can get in touch and visit the house. Here we have Cheri and Gonzalo inviting us in.Here is Gonzalo behind the gate.

This is one of those, sensory overload kind of places. So much to see, too much to absorb. Cheri makes many of the clay and glass tiles herself, Gonzalo makes the mosaics, paints and creates some very interesting sculptures. To say that color is the most important aspect of their surroundings is an understatement. Every surface outside the house is either covered in mosaic or painted. The  outside of the large studio in the back is painted. The wood wall wouldn’t be able to hold the mosaics. The second story is ‘just’ painted, they are now beginning to add mosaics inside. I’m wondering how the structure holds up with all this concrete and tile. When they don’t like something, they don’t tear anything out, just add a new layer.In no particular order, I am going to recreate a little bit of the experience. These are a small portion of the pictures I took, I realize, editing is necessary, I hope for your sake, I have edited enough.A small portion of Cheri’s massive studio. Making glass tiles.That are then affixed to the exterior of the bathroom window. If one falls off and breaks – no big deal – she has plenty on hand to replace them.This is half of the sliding glass doors that connect the house to the studio.A view into the kitchen. I LOVE mosaic, no way could I live here. I am thankful that they can and that they share their surroundings with other. It all started with a bathroom, twenty some years ago and hasn’t stopped.These clay objects are all destined for a mosaic surface.You can see some here in the wall, along with the cups from a Seder plate. I think I have a similar plate. Cheri collects ceramics from all over the world. Here you also see shapes she herself made, the ice-cream cones, the lizzard. What? Plain wooden floor? And a carpet? What I love is the chair, not one that they painted, but one that gives me ideas.  Not sure I’d ever paint a chair, but who knows?Exterior stairs get different treatment.If you have a kiln, and they have many, slumping glass bottles is easy.  Gonzalo is the welder, if you are missing a piece of silverware – check out this house, you may find it. You won’t be able to remove it.They sell as much of their artwork as they can, what doesn’t sell ends up being used.These reminded me of the Dali painting The Persistance of Memory. I am sure he would approve. Gonzalo said that Simon Rodia, the creator of Watts Towers is a great inspiration to him. I’m sure Rodia would be jealous of all the color and materials here. Here I am, in the artwork. Gonzalo has figured out the perfect location to have you stand and he captures the image in one of the mirror fragments.

My visit started on a cloudy day – which is good for photography, it ended with the sun coming out. Every thing is  shiny and sparkly, but a little harder to photograph.  As fun as it is to take these pictures, just being there, experiencing the space is really what it is all about.

Leah

PMX, or why I love Cos-play

I went to a craft show in Pasadena this weekend. I wish I were a millionaire, so I could support the many creative people who make their living from making amazing things. From jewelry, furniture and art clothing. All I could do was walk around, admire and encourage these artists, I do what I can.

The show was at the Pasadena convention center, where another fun event was taking place. PMX,  a con, for cosplay, anime, music and fashion, with emphasis on characters from Japanese anime and games.img_5896Not only did these nice people pose for me, they tried to explain what their costumes are about. Can I just say I LOVE cosplay, it is such a creative way to express oneself. It doesn’t have any hoity toity affectation of the art world – it’s creative, it’s community, it’s fun!img_5897I wasn’t going to ask everyone who they represent, I just watched, enjoyed and took pictures.

img_5898This character looked out of place, but what do I know? Most of the costumes were full of color.

img_5899One thing I love about Japanese anime, or even cosplay is the strange juxoposition of fierce and cutesy little girl ethos. I can’t explain it, I don’t want to explain it, I just want to watch and enjoy.

img_5900img_5904img_5905It would be a lot of fun to have a hand in making one of those costumes.img_5901Now this guy is all fierce, his weapon alone is a thing of beauty. No, I’m not talking about the guy in the foreground. One of the cosplayers told me that sometimes these weapons come to life and become characters themselves. This is a world that is completely foriegn to me, but I was thrilled to get a glimpse into it.

img_5903Love the image here, cosplay in the forground and people on their social media in the background.

America, it really is a great country.

Leah

Print Lab, another Atlas Obscura adventure 

This time the adventure was in my back yard, in the industrial area of North Hollywood. Visiting factories is fun, of course the Obscura society made it more so by having us acrTively involved 

Tommy Galinas, the founder of this T-shirt printing company. American ingenuity at its best. What started as a way to make a few bucks without working too hard. Has become a large production enterprise that employs family and 60 other people as well 

 Son Shane is one of the graphic designers. Our project as to approve a design for a t shirt, we would follow it from inception to finished shirt. The front would have the Atlas Obscure logo, the back, the gps coordinates and the unique date of 16.6.16

Examples of shirts, from simple 3 screen, to 14 screen.  Using half tones it is possible to achieve photo realism. 

I am always impressed with the ingenuity of businessmen. Using a printer designed for the large banner industry, adapting it to screen printing purposes. Our first transparency is created. 

Things moved along quickly, a screen is shot and cleaned. 

Tommy is all about efficiency, colors are chosen with the Pantone color chart, so he has all the colors made up ready for immediate use. That takes a lot of time, but allows him to produce samples quickly. 

Choosing the red.

Comparing reds 

The actual printer 

Watching another job. Printing a sleeve, since it’s a dark shirt, first they lay a white background 

Adding the red 

Printing done, it gets baked in a very hot oven and then is ready to be packed and shipped. This is a full service shop, once the shirts are done its up to Print Lab to see the order gets to its final destination. 

The Obscura logo gets its first white underlay.

Red over white.

We were offered either black or grey shirts. On the right is the red over white underlay, we all agreed that the logo looks better without he white 

It was necessary on the black shirt. The gold would have been lost otherwise.

Interesting day and I got a nice new t-shirt. 

Leah

A most unusual wedding

IMG_4691The reason for our quick trip to Israel was for my nephews’ wedding. A rather blurry image of him putting on the ritz.

A few years ago Meir met Sophia, he is a native Israeli living in Tel Aviv, she is an immigrant from Mexico. Since then he got a job in Barcelona and off they went, it was clear that the wedding would take place in Jerusalem.

IMG_0309With my mother and two brothers. The taller one, Yaacov is the father of the groom.

I have been to all kinds of weddings, this one took the cake for being out of the box. Not in creativity, but in the people involved.  My brother’s family is modern Orthodox, Meir, the groom is secular.  All we knew about Sophia is that her family moved en-mass from Mexico where they converted to Judaism.

Yaacov had commented to me how different Sophia’s family are, good simple people. I know, as a family we are intellectual snobs, it’s not about looking down at people who aren’t highly educated, he was simply stating a fact that this family is very different. Most of the Jews in Central and South America are refugees from Europe due to WWII. Actually Mexico has a large community of people rediscovering their Jewish roots, they fled Spain with the expulsion of 1492, unfortunately the Inquisition followed and many became Conversos- Catholics, who still held on to strange traditions like lighting candles on Friday night or not eating bread one week in the Spring.

Anyone who lives in the southwest is familiar with the many different types of people from Mexico or central America. When I hear someone is from Mexico City (where Sophia’s family originated) I visualize the Mexican who is a blend of the many cultures that settled there.IMG_0311Sophia is gorgeous. I had met her before and she is lovely. When her family converted and moved to Israel – they too became very Orthodox,  much more so than my brother. She like Meir is now secular. But one thing that caught me by surprise is the family as a whole.p184lpnn1d1mjl1fpq1rla1pgasim4I didn’t take many pictures at the wedding, all of the pictures are thanks to Joel pulling out his phone. I found this image online and I’m sharing it here, the two little girls in the bottom left are cousins of Sophia. In LA, this ‘type’ of Mexican is part of the landscape, these are not Conversos, these are native to Mexico, long before the Europeans arrive. How they learned about Judaism I don’t know, but there is now a large community in Cochav Yaacov  in Israel.  Israel is the most amazing country in the world, it really and truly is the most diverse nation outside of the US. Unlike the US, it is a tiny county. There is a pull for many people to become Jews and to move to Israel, on the settlement that this family lives there are immigrants from the US, Europe, Africa, India, South America. The one thing that unifies them is that they are Jews – either by birth or by choice.IMG_0251As I mentioned, not a lot of photos, so I’ll share what I have which is mostly family. I’ll get back to the interesting story as well, since it didn’t stop,  My nephew, his wife and sister, yes I have a very good looking family.IMG_0246On the left my brother and sister in law with her sister and brother in law.  Pay attention to the backdrop, this is the real deal, the wedding was overlooking the old City of Jerusalem, so those walls in the background aren’t some painted back drop.  Of course the breathtaking setting added so much to the atmosphere.IMG_0253I’m glad Joel handed me the phone so I could get a picture of him.IMG_0269I can’t explain why these two are in most of the pictures. Sure handsome couple, but they aren’t the only ones.IMG_0275All the cousins in one shot. I love how the groom and his brother (who is married but no kids yet) are holding the baby who belongs to the couple to their left. Yes, mom and dad can’t wait till you have one of your own!! (more than one really). One nephew couldn’t make it, he is still in the army and couldn’t get out to join in the festivities.IMG_0273Great looking kids against a beautiful backdrop.IMG_0353And then the wedding returned to surreal. As I mention, my brother is modern Orthodox, but because Sophia’s family is much stricter, there were some interesting things happening. First of all, the dress covering her from head to toe, the large opaque veil – that wasn’t her choice that was honoring her mother. Here she is walking down the aisle with her mother and grandfather. Unfortunately her father has passed away.IMG_0365Traditional Chuppah. I just wish the photographer and videographer weren’t right in there, they blocked out view.  So for the first time in almost 40 years, I am at a wedding where the couple is secular, and men and women are asked to sit separately. Not one family on either side, women on one, men on the other. I had to comment to the lesbian cousins that they lucked out, they could sit together.

The Rabbi was very interesting. These days the ministry of religion which is responsible for marriage, has become an awful, power grabbing, domineering entity. There is no civil marriage in Israel, but there is a concept of ‘known as married’, which is practically the same thing. Almost 40% of Israeli couples are going that route. This wouldn’t be the case here with this wedding.  Enter Tzohar, a wonderful organization that is trying to return Judaism to the people and wrest it away from the Rabbinate that is creating so much antagonism to Judaism in the land of the Jews. So the Rabbi performed a lovely ceremony that I would have expected from a moderate religious wedding. He also really took the time to get to know the couple over Skype, it felt very warm and personal.

And then we went in to hall, where we found that our side of the family had mixed seating, her side were separated from us by a curtain and then separated out, men and women.

Initially when the bride and groom came out to the dance floor it was not only separate dancing but once again, the men were behind the curtain. When my niece married the first dance was separate circles of men and women, but that quickly broke down. Here all the excitement was on the women’s side, the men didn’t dance much. Later it was pretty much the groom’s side that danced the ‘regular’ secular dances.

At one point a Rabbi who is part of the Mexican community gave a Torah sermon, not something we usually see at weddings. I’m happy to say I understood the Spanish quite well, he then repeated it in Hebrew.  It was tying the week’s Torah Portion to the concept of marriage. What was interesting was that the portion was all about the sacrifices one brings to the Temple – so utterly different from what Sophia’s ancestors from long ago were doing in Mexico, where not only was animal sacrifice par for the corse, but so was human.  One of those things that struck me as miraculous, from the  journey from jungle, through modern Mexico to Jerusalem.IMG_4692And at the end of the evening, the very proud parents of the groom. Another kid married off! A job very very well done.

Leah

Luke Haynes Part II

Log Cabins of Donald JuddI thought I’d mostly be showing the backs in this post, but I still have a few fronts to share. This is the mirror image and reverse placement of the quilt Luke and I are standing in front of. The one I started the previous post with.Log Cabins of Donald JuddLog Condo with a stronger use of red.P1130805I think I see old fashioned TV screens.P1130815And now for the backs, as you can see here, bright big patches made out of old sheets.P1130824Yoch and Leah were thrilled to find Voltron, a reminder of their childhood. They told me that Voltron is for the poor kids who couldn’t afford transformers. You learn something new every day.P1130821If you are buying old sheets, it is no surprise that many of them reference kids shows. I wish I could find this one, my new Grandson will have a space themed room, this would be perfect.P1130810One of the fun things was peeking through the backs of the quilts to the fronts on the other side.P1130834Or through the fronts to this wonderful Disney Sheet, one Aytan and Shira would love to have.P1130823The backs with plain sheets yielded some very interesting information. All the light quilting lines are vertical and the dark ones are horizontal.P1130817This would be a quilt with very few dark stripes.P1130816I had fun with this one trying to find the hearths, since they were always left un-quilted.P1130808The daylight streaming through gives the quilts an etherial look. Luke isn’t known for ironing, one can see the wonky seams inside, so what?  P1130833And here we have a sheet that actually had holes in it, he still used it in a quilt.P1130826It is the backing of the quilt he made in honor of all the people who worked on the project – using their leftover blocks.The Luke Haynes label quiltLuke has made quilts with his name writ large on the surface. Accuquilt made him this die and using only plaids, he made quite a signature quilt.P1130832Two things, I like how they are affixed on top of the quilting. I also really like how here and there the lines aren’t straight. Even working on a long-arm machine, it is a human who is doing the work, not a robot.  Also nice to see the human hand. Did the phone ring, did she get distracted somehow and only notice later?  Either way, I love this.

I know Luke is working on getting the show in other venues, if it comes anywhere near you – run! Go see it.  This is a unique way of looking at both old and new in quilting and I for one applaud his efforts.

Leah

Luke Haynes part I

Here I go again, too much information for one post. So I’m splitting it up.

On Sunday I went to the exhibit The Log Cabins of Donald Judd.  Wow! Luke mentions that people will be overwhelmed, I was in a good way. The quilts are amazing, the way he hung and displayed them is new and unique. He likens the experience to walking through a Richard Serra Sculpture, he is right, but this is better, it’s fabric, not iron.Luke Haynes, the Log Cabins of Donald JuddAside from the works themselves, Luke is a delightful young man. He was more than happy to talk about the quilts, he also has great fashion sense – note those shoes!!!  Only to be found in DTLA, perfect for the ensemble.Luke Haynes, the Log Cabins of Donald JuddLet’s start with a traditional basic log cabin quilt. This layout is called Courthouse steps.  If you look in the lower left corner, you will see the standard log cabin block.  Starting with a red square – signifying the center hearth of the home, strips of fabric of equal width are built around it, two sides light, two sides dark.  Then you play with the layout of these blocks and here is one version.Luke Haynes, the Log Cabins of Donald JuddSide by side, on the left another very traditional layout of the log cabin block. I probably did this myself on my first log cabin quilt.  On the right, Op Art!  Those four large blocks are built the same way, but the width and layout of the colors has changed, and so has the effect of the quilt.P1130789Here he has taken that idea to one large block.  This is a close up, because the strips get so long and wonky, the quilt won’t lie flat – that is the nature of this one. A word about the fabric, Luke buys old clothes and sheets by the pound at Goodwill and uses as much as he can.  I love how the pocket remains from this shirt.  This isn’t an original idea, but it’s fun to see whenever a quilt maker veers away from traditional quilting cottons.  Also, as the strips get longer, each one is composed of many fabrics pieced together.Luke Haynes, the Log Cabins of Donald JuddHere we have the Richard Serra affect, creating a spiral of hanging quilts to walk through. First you see the fronts, then go around again looking at the backs. Luke Haynes, the Log Cabins of Donald JuddThe hearth is centered, the strips are of equal width, but he has played with the placement of darks and lights.Luke Haynes, the Log Cabins of Donald JuddI know this block well – Log Condo, this is what he taught us at Quiltcon. We used these dimensions, in a later post I’ll share that block.  I love how the red is playing a more dominant part in these quilts.Luke Haynes, the Log Cabins of Donald JuddInstead of the block being a square, how about changing it to a rectangle?P1130807There is a lot of play where the light and dark strips are very different proportions.  As well as using the Courthouse steps layout or simply stacking the blocks.Luke Haynes, the Log Cabins of Donald JuddThe other other Leah is studying a quilt.  A nice thing about this show, Luke had no problem with us touching them – which is something every quilter wants to do!  The fabrics have already been through a lot – it’s not like we’ll destroy them. Although these are displayed as art, they are quilts that Luke sleeps under.  I get frustrated when the art world treats ephemeral art like an Old Master. Sorry, some things need to be preserved and others, not so much. Luke Haynes, the Log Cabins of Donald Judd
Luke is bridging art and craft so well here. These quilts live very comfortably in both worlds.  So here is our Log Condo block again, look closely, the block itself is a square, by alternating colors and placement we no longer see the square. The batting is wool, which is much lighter in weight than cotton. One of these days, I will use wool batting as well.Luke Haynes, the Log Cabins of Donald JuddLog Condo again, this time the darks and lights do not switch places. The block with the narrow light and wide dark was used in the previous quilt – to a very different affect.  Luke is also an architect – it certainly shows!Luke Haynes, the Log Cabins of Donald JuddThat’s it for the first installment.  Another post tomorrow.

Leah

Quilt con part III

#LAMQGatQuiltcon #quiltcon2016 #lbmqg Long beach meets LA

A photo posted by Alicia Czuzak (@alicuz0608) on

We had a fun meet and greet, here are members of the LAMQG with overlap to the Long Beach MQG.

Thanks for coming @leahkab @oocmom @tamikenrom @sewnatty @jaradomile! #quiltcon #ctmixandmingle

A photo posted by The MQG (@themqg) on

Of course we enjoyed drinks along with our fun and laughter.  I met a number of people that I was hoping to see there. We spoke but no pictures.IMG_4327I took a class with Luke Haynes, called Log Condo. Btw, he designed that fabric, I think I might need some when it is available for purchase in April.P1130734Here is mine. I learned a lot in this class, people love this block. I’m not so sure. I grabbed colors not because I love them but just because. I may finish this, as in practice some of my FMQ, although with all the crazy seams it won’t be easy. So it might just be walking foot quilting instead.IMG_4644Speaking of color, this brightness I really like! Maybe because it is contained within a pattern. Sort of like my solid challenge quilt, I think the bright colors and the improvisational nature of my block are just a little too much for me.IMG_4326There is a formula for creating these slabs of fabric, one I may use again with much subtler fabrics.IMG_4632I am attracted to color as well as bold graphics.IMG_4622Two designs that are monochromatic.IMG_4615Others that go for high contrast.IMG_4607IMG_4631Or a lot of bold bright clean colors.IMG_4621And then there are the optical illusions. The more I look at this the more I like it. Not something I would ever make, but the joy of being a modern quilter is the joy of being exposed to so many different styles. Quilting truly is a way of sharing one’s personal creative expression.12771715_1254607971222455_5043304232600083760_oI love how Yoch calls this: A Leah sandwich.  But which one of us is just Leah and which one is the other Leah?P1130730I collected a lot of buttons this year, I need to go through and see if I have any duplicates from last year. Handing out buttons is quite a thing. This year it seemed like the merchants were doing more of it than the attendees.P1130733Some of the swag.  I also bought some fabric and tools. I really enjoyed just talking to people. Some were local friends, some were friends from last quilt con, some were new people. Like Monica Raven from Australia.  I go to knitting and quilting shows whenever I can. Quiltcon is the friendliest, I think this has to do with social media. We follow one another on different platforms and are very excited to meet in real life.  I don’t think I will be going to Savannah next year, but when Quiltcon is on the west coast, or even if it were to go back to Texas, I’m there!

Leah