Harbingers of Spring

We have begun to see signs of Spring all around, but one knows for sure spring is here when the crocuses have bloomed. When I was a wee lass growing up on the prairies, we would watch for the wild ones to know that spring had arrived. I remember them as such a pretty purple colour, a colour which I greatly love to this day. I have a number of the beautiful cultivated varieties in the yard, but none are as lovely as I remember the wild ones being. I'm willing to admit it could be a memory thing, but perhaps not. Plus, they remind me of my mom, who knew all the names of the wild flowers I brought home, and surely loved seeing the crocuses, and any other sign of spring, too.

Also in our yard, we have a willow tree, that grows an abundance

of catkins, or pussy willows. We had these on the farm, too, although we had to go hiking through the fields to find them around the big slough. Again, the wild willows were more delightful than the "tame" one we have now. Then, as now, they are a treat to cut and bring inside.

There are more signs of spring to come, but these bring hope and joy to the changing of the seasons.

A Little Outing

So we've had a warm winter and early spring here in Southern Ontario, and the swans (tundra, I think) have arrived early, too. They usually migrate early April, from Chesapeake Bay to the Arctic, but this year they overwintered on Lake Erie. They stop on

several local lakes, and we went to see them here near Cambridge. Very exciting. Many people just stopped on the road, but we hiked from the road to get a better look, and I got better photos from the other side of the lake. While we were standing in the forest, we also saw quite a few woodpeckers, and

I managed to capture this close-up. It was a very nice adventure. A little nature is just as inspirational for me as sewing and quilting is, really.

One of a Kind for Inspiration

Yesterday, I was in Toronto for a meeting with a group of women I know, and I stopped by the One of a Kind Christmas Craft Show and Sale. I went for a big hit of inspiration in general, and to see the fibre artists specifically. I came away with much more that I anticipated.

I had a nice little chat with Maggie Vanderweit, whose wonderful work you may see here. She works out of a studio in Fergus, and I saw her trunk show at our Guild meeting last March. Her journey and work are amazing. I've seen her and her work around the region, but usually in bits and pieces. Seeing a large number of her pieces yesterday in her booth really gave me a sense of what is possible for a fibre artist.

There were a few other fibre artists as well:

• Diane Stewart glues various bits of fabric onto a background into a landscape. Though she uses no sewing to accomplish her work, it is really something to see.
• Kalyna Pidwerbesky uses felting, beading, handstitching and wonderful colours to create pieces from her heart and soul. Her work is featured on her website here.
• Valerie Page actually had quilts for sale. What a treat. She uses vibrant colours to create warmth under her quilts. And she's designed a tea cozy to keep your pot of tea warm for three hours.
• Noelle Hamlyn does a variety of fibre art, which you may view on her website, along with her very cute pocketbook purses. Very clever.

Several other artists also caught my eye:

• Andrew Collett's landscape photography is very striking and beautiful. Photos of beautiful scenery from all over Canada. Makes me wonder how he gets those shots. His work is right up my alley.
• Stephen Yau paints nature in a slightly dreamy style that I really enjoyed looking at. I was looking closely at his technique to see how I might use it in my own work.
• And finally, Marie-Joel Turgeon, who makes ceramic quilts. See them here. Fantastic artistic interpretation of quilts in a ceramic version. I loved it.

Stained Glass Inspiration

When I was driving through Parry Sound a few weeks ago, I learned about a public art collection at the West Parry Sound Health Centre. I went in to have a look. Many great paintings and a quilt were on display, which changes as the artworks are sold. What a great idea! To have such a public place as a venue that reveres local art, in such a beautiful setting to boot. Click here.

My favourite piece there was a stained glass Mandella by local artist Mary Jane Zissoff. I love the colours in it to begin with, which is what first attracted me. And for some years, I have had a keen interest in stained glass, and have been known to go out of my way to see it, in buildings both secular and non, public and private. It seems clear that she used the surrounding natural world as her inspriation, and I really like the way the window is stylized and repeated in a circular way, set slightly off vertical alignment to make it very interesting visually.

And here's another photo of the natural beauty that is plentiful in the area between Parry Sound and North Bay. A little camping there with my sister was a great way to reconnect with nature, amongst the windswept pines. We sat by this lake to watch the sun rise up and clear off the morning fog. A very magical moment.

It's Been a While

I've been doing some other things, and haven't been blogging, for a while now. I just got out of the habit, if you can believe it. I've promised myself I would get back to it. So here goes.

I did another postcard, this one of my yoga sister. I had printed this onto cotton fabric, then simply did some stitching and yarn for trim. I suppose I could do some sparkle and colouring in, but it may stay like this for all eternity.


I've also been slowly adding thread painting to another photo. This one is printed on silk, which I think gives better results than printing onto cotton. I took this photo in our garden last summer, and used mostly purple threads to "paint" in the flowers. You can see here how I have it in an embroidery hoop to keep it taut. It will still need some blocking to smooth it out. So far, I'm pleased with the results, and I'm thinking how I can finish it.




I've been doing a lot of camping and nature stuff this fall, too. Being out in nature is just as important as quilting. Yikes, did I say that out loud! Anyway, camping near Parry Sound, near North Bay, and near Peterborough. And hiking along the Bruce Trail near Orangeville. All good for the soul. Sitting by the fire at one point, I was inspired by these power animals to guide me, so I stitched them into a postcard quilt. They are cut out of Laurel Birch fabrics, and appliqued onto a background. Nothing complex, but I do like it.

A lot going on

There has been a lot going on, I just haven't been writing it down. I was on holidays last week, and I had a long to-do list for myself. I did most everything I wanted. I did some serious sewing, I went camping, spent a day adventuring with my family, went to a couple of quilt stores, went to an air show, went to my quilt guild meeting, spent some quality time on Georgian Bay. Feeling the water, the fire, the sky, the stars, the rain, was good for my soul.

From my tailoring training way back, I am able to draft my own patterns for clothing and other sewn items. This has always been easy for me. So one of the things I did last week was create a jean-jacket style vest pattern for myself. I've had an urge lately to make some clothes for myself. Tailoring my shirts for work hasn't been enough. Now I want something different when I'm not at work, something other than my usual jeans and t-shirts. Very interesting, this new desire to present myself in a different way to the world!

I've been also working on my printed fabric landscape quilts, too, though this isn't progressing as much as I'd like. I guess I need to focus more on it, but there are only so many hours in a day! I did get some printing onto silk, with fabulous results. The colours just seem so much brighter than on the cotton. There is a tiny bit of bleeding, and I have a couple of ideas to work out.

And anybody who knows anything about me knows I love raspberries. Strawberries are in full swing around here at the moment, and I'll go out picking at a local pyo, but with all the hot weather and rain we've had, the raspberries are coming already. Feels like berry heaven. I was just out today to check on the wild blackberries that grow around here, and collected enough to get a good feed. And now I'm wondering about blueberries, which are also excellent for health. Might have to go to the farmer's market to have a look-see.

So you see there is a lot going on.

Success at Last

I've been working on something for a while now, and I finally have a result that I'm happy with. I've been figuring out how to use my photo printer to print on fabric, then turn the fabric into quilts, no colours washing out. I know, I know, you're thinking this is nothing new, this has been done before. Sure, many other quilters and fibre artists have successfully used this technique.

But for me it's new, and it's very exciting to see my own photos transformed into another artform. These are small pieces, 4x6", and have thread painting. I am thinking of other possibilities, like larger pieces, adding painting, embroidery, beading, applique, yarn couching, and many other embellishments.

Louis C. Tiffany

Last week, I went to Montreal to see an exhibition of Tiffany's work, nearly 200 pieces, all spectacular. Seeing his work was like being hit by a bolt of lightning, in terms of inspiration for me. In particular, I was moved by his interpretation of nature, by his use of just the right colour and texture of glass, and by his appreciation of the artists around him.

I was also impressed with his ability to assemble a large workshop, where he hired people to create works of art in his vision. He had many people working for him blowing glass, creating lamps, drawing church windows, spreading his art work around the world.

To see a master's finest creations is an inspiration for me, to move forward to create my own finest pieces. Check out the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts .

If you scroll to the small print beneath the above image, you will see that this magnolia window is actually in the possession of the Hermitage Museum. It was loaned to the MMFA for exhibition. The detail image is reprinted here with written permission from the Hermitage Museum.