Stillness

Outside the snow is gently falling,

cloaking the landscape in serene stillness and 

a monochromatic mantle.

Indoors, our home smells of freshly cut pine and 

sparkles with the colorful bokeh of holiday lights and ornaments.

It's looking like time to enjoy family, friends, fine food,

and the blessings of the season.

Wishing you joy and happiness

during the holidays!

I'm taking a holiday break.

See you back in the New Year.

Comments are off while I help Santa wrap  presents :)

Sightseeing

It's a mountaintop forest?  Maybe.

It's a miniature forest?  You're closer.

It's a miniature frost forest?  You're much closer.

It's a miniature frost forest on top of a Subaru?  You've got it!

I kinda love my macro lens

because it opens up a whole tiny, tiny visual world 

for me to explore.

Feeling a bit like Gulliver, today.

Hope your world is filled with wonders,

both big and small!

Thankful

Wishing you happiness and blessings

 on Thanksgiving Day!

Comments are off while I enjoy time with my family

 and lots of delicious food :)

This is a Test!

Last Saturday, I was grocery shopping.

With a full cart, and this banal chore almost done, I zipped into the checkout line

 expecting to be back home in no time.  It was then that I noticed the woman in front of me.

She was moving reeeaallly, reeeaallly slooooowly as she placed her groceries on the counter.

I looked for an escape route behind me, but two women already stood in line

(why is it most of the grocery shoppers are women?  Don't men eat?).

Trapped, I turned to watch the sloooow woman.

As I watched, my frustration turned into fascination.

Under her hand, all like-height cans stood together.

 These cans were also sorted by diameter size, with all labels facing one way.

Similar shape fresh veggies and fruit were grouped together, etc. 

Then came the bread... 4 loaves of cheap, gooey white bread

(ok, I admit I'm a bit of a bread snob since I like to make healthy bread in my bread machine).

Oh my God, one bread end was facing the wrong way!

Luckily, this was quickly rectified and all the butt-ends were matched up.

I bet you get the picture - 

this woman had a serious case of OCD!

So, here's the test - How are your OCD qualities looking these days?

1) Can you match or top this woman when you go grocery shopping?

(not me!)

2) Do you compulsively keep all your pencils sharpened to the same length?

(true story - a guy at my husband's old office)

3) Do you only drink coffee at pre-set times of the day

 and only from a freshly brewed pot?

(another former co-worker)

4) Is your clothes closet arranged by color family groupings?

(I confess, that's me.  After years of messy closets,

 I decided mine could at least look like an attractive rainbow)

5) How about your spools of thread, beads, or any other item you collect - 

obsessively arranged by color, size, or some other quantifiable  characteristic?

(bet you can guess my answer when it involves color!)

6) Do you sit in the same seat on the bus each day?  Pew at church? 

Chair at the business meeting table?

(hmmmm...)

7) Is your work or studio desk/table perfectly organized and 

continually kept that way?

(guess that's not me...my beading table currently looks like a bomb hit)

8) Do you always park in the same lot at the mall,

 preferably in the same relative spot?

(pass on this one, no malls in my world)

9) Finally, here's a fill in the blank question.

What's your favorite OCD activity?

(tell us please... we won't think you're nuts -  

apparently mine is picking out colors for the word OCD) 

Life's crazy, so why not channel a little OCD-ness today!!!

Happy, crazy day to you :)

November Dawn

It was early, and crisp.

Mist was swirling across the lake as golden 

light cut through the haze.

A magical bit of lighting,

there one moment and gone the next.

Wishing you great light,

if only for a moment!

Trick or Treat!

First the trick, these aren't designs on paper or canvas,

 but rather drawing and marbling in royal icing on cookies!

Although cooking and baking don't generally qualify as fun in my book,

making fancy holiday cookies does.

Guess it's because I get to draw and make something beautiful,

with the added bonus that these cookies taste amazing!

If you're interested, here are two other posts that talk a little about the how-tos ~

here and here.

And while you're at it, check out the ultimate cookie queen,

Sweet Sugar Belle.

She's got all the answers!

Finally, a couple images purposely defocused with creative color,

just for fun.

Happy Halloween!

Hope your day is filled with treats :)

The Changeling

In my last post, I mentioned that while teaching at ISQSC

I had a free afternoon to walk around town with my camera.

I spent part of the time chasing reflections,

which is kind of like playing with a changeling ~

magical, elusive, dancing this way and that.

Should I shoot straight on or at an angle?

In full light or shadow?  Low POV or high?

High contrast or low?  

Look for vivid color harmonies or subdued?

Question after question arose, as I tried to find logic within the

light, angles, colors, and shifting shimmer.

Yes, indeed......like playing with a changeling!

Design Framework

Whether making a photograph, art quilt, or piece of elaborate beaded jewelry,

 I first seek out, or design, a solid framework for the artwork.

The framework is a combination of tonal values and lines.

This is the base that all other elements,

 such as mood, color, story, and meaning,

rest upon.

While teaching textile and beadwork at ISQSC in Fargo, ND,

I had one long afternoon to myself.

So, I walked the downtown streets and alleys with my camera.

I think the design framework is particularly apparent in the geometry

 that I found within the urban landscape.

Wishing you a creative week!

The Latest

A couple bits of goodness ~

Recently, I was featured in the Impossible Project's Analog Travelog Series.

This is the Polaroid version of my summer trip to the city,

 taken with Impossible film.

Hope you can check it out - here.

Secondly, I just got back from teaching at the 

Indian Summer Quilt Show & Conference.

Many thanks to Muriel, Marcia, the friendly guild members, and all

the enthusiastic students that I had the pleasure of working with.

It was a delightful week!!!

Wishing you joy in creating.....

it's a wonderful way to live.

Reflecting

I've mentioned that I have a thing for reflections.

Maybe it's because reflections toy with visual reality. 

They are like fact, fiction, and fantasy all woven together.

Oh, and throw in a little magic also.

Reflections are visual magic!

I'll be away teaching next week,

probably looking for reflections in my off hours.

Wishing you a creative week!

Cattails

Summer is winding down and gracefully starting to fade.

I've been wading in the shallows with my camera and tripod 

seeking simplicity, balance, and harmony 

among the cattails.

Hope the last days of the season are treating you well!

Guess What?

In July, I mentioned that we've been very busy getting our home ready to sell.

Well... it's listed!

Picture a house on a quiet 175 acre lake with no public access,

 loons calling, woods filled with deer and other critters, 

plus friendly neighbors.

So, if you know of anyone looking for a gorgeous, year-around lake home

 in the Midwest's northwoods, please spread the word.

You can email me at avq@centurytel.net 

and I will get you in contact with our realtor.

Well, I think I hear my studio and the great outdoors calling :)

How about you.....

what have you been up to this summer?

City Folks

On my trip to the city, I did a lot of people watching.

I spied a cell phone using couple...

the revolving door man,

a ghostly apparition wearing white tennis,

a resting man,

a wavy couple,

great legs,

and speed walking Docs.

All in all, quite a variety of characters!

I hope you're enjoying the last days of summer.

Comments are off.