I feel like I haven't done much this summer in terms of quilting, but these are pictures of what I have done. We are back from all our vacations as school starts next week.

Each day I go for a walk on a path along a prairie restoration area, and 3 of my quilts are inspired by the colors in different lighting that I have seen when I walk. The green quilt is more subdued, but it is the first one I did, and is a more literal view than the others. Sometimes when the sun is bright, and there have been many flowers in the grasses you realize how many colors there really are on the prairie. On our vacation in Wisconsin we walked along a marsh, and there was a big open are of grasses and prairie flowers that were beautiful.The last quilt is maybe the first in another series as I try to use basic shapes that are larger and fewer colors. Now I am looking forward to seeing where these lead me.

music

I have been gone a lot this summer, which is nice but now it seems hard to find my groove. I have cleaned, put away, done laundry and finally decided it was time to get started on a quilt project. I am trying a second quilt in an idea I had for prairie grass. The first used subdued colors, but now, after seeing the grass in the early morning bright sun, I am using brighter colors. Once I am not so frustrated, I will post a photo.

Sometimes I listen to music as I sew. Other times it is too distracting. But when I got home I turned on the CD player and have been listening again to Edgar Meyer, a string bass player who has some CD's with YoYo Ma, as well as Joshua Bell. I am listening to his solo CD, where he has written all the music, and is playing all the instruments himself. He uses some interesting meter changes, other times it only sounds like the music is in an odd meter. It is wonderful to hear his lyrical pieces on the piano, and it is amazing to think he is playing it all himself. He shows how beautiful a string bass sounds!

Sharing a Sketchbook

My sister and I have sketchbooks that we share. Of course, I have a sketchbook I keep for myself, but it is interesting to share one with another artist. She is a watercolor artist, and we find we share the same joys and sorrows in our art! I write something in my sketchbook about what I am working on, then mail it to her. She writes something, often reacting to what I have written and sends it back. We started this several months ago, and have really gotten a lot out of the process. We write about what inspires us, what frustrates us. Of course our entries include things cut out of magazines we think the other person can relate to, pictures of something we are working on, something we remember from the past that relates to the present.

My main problem is that I need to have it sitting out so I see it, then I remember to write in it! I am finding it interesting to look at what I have written as I get better as an artist, and it is fun to hear what someone else thinks. Is there someone you can share a sketchbook with?

I have been making some small quilts this year as I work on quilts for the book Robin and I are working on. My goal is to make a large quilt using few shapes, colors, and few but significant quilting lines. As I work on any quilt now, I am realizing it is easier to make a quilt using many colors and shapes, but using fewer makes it harder. Doing these small quilt studies gives me a lot to think about!

I had a wonderful time at the SAQA Symposium, and learned a lot at the workshops. It was so nice to meet Robin; she is just as nice in person as she is on her blog! We were both inspired at Quilt National. It is so amazing to see the quilts in person. You come home with a feeling of inspiration. I am trying now to get back on track with what I was doing before I went to Ohio. I have started a quilt inspired by prairie grass, and I want to continue in a series with this. Maybe I can post a picture of this soon.

This quilt is one I recently finished. Sometimes it is funny what inspires you when you start a project. This time I was at my yoga class and someone in the class was wearing a sweater with horizontal stripes of many different colors. It did not make an impression on me until she took it off and threw it on the floor and the stripes were going different directions. Two of the colors were red and tan and that got me thinking...and starting a new quilt! Now I am finishing piecing a quilt, and wondering what I will start next. Nothing has come to me yet but I know something will inspire me to start something new.

I made this quilt recently as a practice for a bigger quilt. I chose a few colors to start, then added as I sewed. I love the colors, and was happy to find another way to use a log cabin block. At first I tried another more curved quilting line, which really detracted from the lines of the quilt. I had to take it all out and stuck with the uneven grid pattern I have been using recently. I really feel I am finding my color palette!

I really need to dye more fabric, so I tried Melody's method for the first time. I really like the way the fabric turned out, and it was so easy to do! The color was fairly even, like I wanted it. I don't know if there is an advantage to using more water and adding soda ash later. Does anyone know? I hope to do more tomorrow. When I first started making art quilts, I was sure dyeing my own fabric was not something I was going to like. But I am addicted to it now!