Kristin Shields Quiltmaker

A Visit with Salley Mavor

Sorry for taking so long to finally post this!  I guess I lost my blogging mojo for a bit, but I was also taken down with a bout of vertigo which lasted about a week and then had so many projects I was behind on, it took a while to catch up.  

Anyway, I was so thrilled to be invited to Salley Mavor's studio while we were in Massachusetts in July.  I was excited to be able to see the last days of a very special exhibit at Highfield Hall in Falmouth, MA.  The Fairy Houses of Beebe Woods was such a lovely way to experience this historic mansion.  Chloe and I went for a visit to see the fairy houses and were really enchanted by the whole thing.  Afterwards I sent Salley a message that I was so happy to have seen it and she asked if we would be able to come visit her studio!  Wow, what a treat!

Salley is the author of Felt Wee Folk: Enchanting Projects.  She has also illustrated many children books with her amazing fabric relief pictures.  Be sure to check out Salley's Etsy shop if you would like to see more.  She has a way with felt that is incredibly charming.  Come along with us as we check out the creative space of this fabulous artist!

Salley's studio is in a second floor space over her garage.  It's a large space, filled with creativity and inspiration and many of her older projects.  We spent about an hour, chatting, looking around at her work tables, current projects and her objects of inspiration.  Be sure to click the photos to see the details.

This is a detail of a the fairy house that Salley contributed to the exhibit at Highfield Hall.  That's a milkweed pod swing.

This is one of Salley's creations depicting herself and her husband at their wedding.

The bird display is a family heirloom.  She still has the trolls she played with as a child!

There are many lovely vignettes in her studio.

These are some of the dolls heads she is working on as she prepares to update and expand her Felt Wee Folk book.  The word is the updated edition will be published in 2015.

I hope you enjoyed that glimpse into Salley's studio.  She is just a warm and funloving as you'd imagine from looking at her work.  Thanks for the tour Salley!

The Snow Child Exhibit Opens Today!

This very nice article appeared in the Go! Magazine this morning.  I am so excited to see this exhibit.  If you are local, tonight's reception is from 5-7.  Tomorrow, QuiltWorks is having an open house all day and artists are coming throughout the day for an hour or two to meet anyone who stops by.

Dave and Marilyn are the owners of QuiltWorks.  They are great supporters of the quilting community.  I am so pleased to see two of my quilts with them in this photo!  My Snow Child quilt, called The Spirit of the Wood (being held by Marilyn), and my monochromatic quilt, the pink one on the right, called Not Your Grandma's Hanky.  The March exhibit came down yesterday and the gallery is now filled with about 60 Snow Child artworks.  There are quilts and other types of needlework and fiber art.  It's sure to be a great evening!

Mountain Meadow Quilt Guild

So, this post has some photos that aren't the best, but absolutely essential to show.  You see, I had my first paid speaking gig the other day at the Mountain Meadow Quilt Guild in Sunriver.  I think my hands were shaky and I still have a hard time getting a good exposure in a large, dimly lit room, but it's proof!  For a person who has been terribly shy in her life, I think I did all right in front of the crowd.  They were incredibly supportive.  I should have taken a photo of the huge pile of quilts I brought.  I called my presentation The Evolution of a Liberated Quiltmaker.  I showed my very first quilt and my most recent quilt and many in between!

I love all the smiling faces here.  I got lots of good questions and had fun telling the quilt stories.  I hope to do it again sometime.  This fall I plan to begin teaching and we'll see where it goes from there!

Freshening Up & Looking Ahead

Well, after a good two weeks of near total sloth, I am ready to start the new year!  I spent my holiday reading, drinking tea (and occasionally wine, beer and spirits too!), going to the movies, skiing (a little), enjoying a beautiful white Christmas, spinning, knitting and generally staying far from the studio and my computer.  It was really nice to take time away.  

Now, I have lots of new plans and projects, new ideas and a fresh perspective.  That all starts with a new look to the blog.  Below are some glimpses of new projects in the works.

A little something for the Inauguration.  Do I have time to finish it?

A project for the Modern Quilt Guild's 2013 challenge.

A brand new idea for the Novel Idea Quilt challenge for 2013, based on the book, The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey.

Finally, the most amazing thing arrived in the mail- the brochure for the 2013 Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show.  Even though I knew it was coming, it was still a surprise to turn the page and see me there!  I've got a lot to do in the next 6 months and I'll be sharing the behind the scenes here as I go along.  Wow- what a year this will be!

Still Green

I took this photo the other day and just had to share.  We still have some green nearby, though our street has mostly gone to gold.  We had a nice Halloween, though not too many trick-or-treaters.  Now that we're into November, it's really time to think about the holidays.  I've got some knitted goodies that I'm working on.  I'm also finally (seriously!) doing Ryan's' baby book.  Yes- he's an adult now, yes- he just voted for the first time, and yes- I think it's really time to get the thing done.  

My studio is a disaster with piles from where I've dumped stuff after the classes I had in October.  I now have scrapbooking supplies spread all over.  I have so much to do, but this has to take priority.  I think I'll be catching up after the whirlwind October I've had for a while longer!

The Witch is In

Happy Halloween!

I hope you are having a fun and spooky day!  We are ready for the trick-or-treaters.

I'll be wearing my witch hat and my lacey black cloak tonight.

Besides getting ready for the evening, I also spent a bit of time taking photos of myself for the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show website and promotional materials.  Gulp!  I have to get a bio ready too.  I liked this one of me and Scrabble.  Though I am not sure if he'll make it into the official stuff, I do think I'll put this photo on my About Me page.  Happy Halloween!

Breast Pockets

My breast pockets are done and will be sent off tomorrow.  The one on the left is made from a soft-as-butter vintage tea towel that is stained and worn.  I loved the printed butterflies and got it because I knew it would make some interesting additions to my slow cloth pieces.  I think it's perfect for this.  In my mind we are all beautiful even when our bodies are worn and stained through the rigors of cancer treatment.  I have the tattooed dots to prove it (required for radiation therapy).  The butterfly signifies new birth and what do you think about that little horse and carriage on the flap?  There was only that one motif on the whole towel, perhaps the maker's logo?  I also placed a vintage button there.  Anyway, I like this one an awful lot.  

The green one was created from some linen pants that never fit properly.  I loved the fabric though and have used it many times.  I was so happy I had enough to make a pocket.  Both of these are actual pockets and I will place a note inside like the maker of these beautiful pockets.

I got my mammogram results just now and all is clear!  Hurray!  That is great news, but it always reminds me that my cancer wasn't discovered by mammogram.  I found the lump almost by accident and even after we knew I had cancer, further mammograms didn't see the lump.  Mammography is a very helpful step in early detection, but it's not the only one.  You should also be doing your self exams and getting regular checkups.

Remember, this project is to highlight the women who have chosen not to have reconstruction after breast surgery.  In my case, I had a lumpectomy and so I am a bit lopsided, but not flat.  Melanie says, that's okay- everyone is assymetrical.  The truth is that if I had ended up with a mastectomy, I would not have had reconstruction.  I consulted with a plastic surgeon as we made the decision on what kind of surgery to have.  I knew immediately that reconstruction was not for me. I salute the flatties who have made a decision that goes against the cultural norm!

Before I made my breast pockets I wrote this page in my art journal, sort of to plan out the making ahead of time.  If this is helpful for you to make a pocket, or if you want to link to this page, go right ahead.  Remember, the deadline for mailing is the week of October 22!  Read about the project here: Breast Pockets.

October

October means the start of the autumn color, but it also means Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  Here I am 5 years now from diagnosis, feeling better than ever!  And, I had my mammogram today.  It seems fitting to me to do that in October.  That was my schedule before the big shake up and it's still my schedule.  However, I get a little tired of BC pink, so here you have a lovely view of the Deschutes River from our mountain bike ride yesterday.  It was so much fun to get out on the bikes again!

Today I finally have some time to make a breast pocket for Melanie's project.  Melanie Testa, author, artist, and breast cancer survivor is trying to collect 1000 breast pockets to highlight breast cancer survivors who decide against breast reconstruction.  Read more about it here.  I'll post a photo when it's done.  In the meantime, I challenge you to make one too.  The deadline is October 22 and you can email Melanie for info on where to send them.

AAQI for September

The big news for AAQI this month is that I have another quilt, Solar Flare, up for auction.  The auction closes on Monday, September 10 at 10pm CST. You might want to get right over there and check out all the other wonderful quilts too!  

Speaking of AAQI, I went on the site to check for quilts that I've sent in and haven't been put up on my $1000 Promise page.  I was surprised and delighted to find that one of my recent ones has sold, not only that, there was one from last year that never made it onto the page (my fault entirely, it's up to each of the participants to let them know when a quilt gets its photo and again when it's sold).  So, the really big news is that I fulfilled my $1000 Promise a long time ago!  

When the three new ones get put up on the page, I will have donated 22 quilts to AAQI, most of which have sold.  Included in that are two quilts that will be going to Houston without me!  I hope they find good homes there.

So, it's very exciting!  I've made my $1000 goal and have managed to complete my Quilt-A-Month Club duties every month for 19 months in a row.  The duty is to either send in a quilt or to buy a quilt each month.  Most of those months I sent in a quilt.  I have bought a few good ones though.  This month I decided to go looking for a good one to buy and discovered a new (to me) quilter doing some beautiful work.  Her name is JoAnn Stowell.  She's also soing the $1000 Promise.  She does a lot of work with Neocolor II crayons, inks or other art supplies on cotton fabric.  Her beautiful cloth paintings have given me some ideas to try and I bought this one of JoAnn's.  Oh, and JoAnn also has a quilt in the September auction!  Go ahead and take a look, you won't be disappointed!