The Reprieve

The last couple of weeks have been like a whirlwind and I’ve rarely come up for air. I signed up for an art quilt workshop at the National Quilt Museum in Paducah nearly a year ago and wondered if there was any way I’d be able to take the time to attend in light of all that has happened, but MH said “GO” and I took him up on it. You know what they say about looking like your passport photo, don’t you? Well, I’m looking like mine and I needed the break. It was a wonderful reprieve. I have a precious friend from Phoenix, Luan, who went with me.
Our class was taught by a gifted and famous art quilter, Carol Taylor. We learned lots of piecing techniques, many of which allow you to take advantage of even tiny scraps. She taught us that where quilt design is concerned, color gets the credit and value does the work. Having a background in garments, getting the concept of the use of color and value to carry the design is a bit of a leap for me, but I’m coming around. In addition, we learned numerous piecing techniques. This is one project I do intend to finish. Now it could be several months down the road before I get back to it, but you will see it someday. I had every intention of writing a blog post every single night while in Paducah, but the internet reception where I stayed was slow to non-existent, so I had to wait until coming home before I could write again. That terrible inconvenience made me really, really want that 3G iPad.

The quilt shown below is one of Carol’s art quilts that the Museum recently purchased for their permanent collection. My photo does not do it justice. It is a beautiful work of art.

Now I’m back to the real world. But I had a nice surprise when I got back home. My Stella D’oro lilies are blooming like crazy and they are prettier than they’ve been in several years. I took several photos that showed the masses of lilies I have in my flower beds, but I love to take close ups and when I can get a little bokeh, as I did in this photo, I really love it!




There is lots left to do in terms of getting the family business back on its feet, although we’ve managed to keep it limping along. Another big project with me is getting a capital campaign underway for the new library that my county needs so desperately. There won’t be any grass growing under my feet this week.