Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Twelve by Twelve reveal day

I was late getting my Twelve by Twelve quilt posted, but it now up, along with the other 11 "eggplant, burgundy and emerald" pieces. It is an interesting reveal this time. I think a lot of us had a hard time with the colors and several of us gave it more than one attempt. I made two. This was the first one:

These are chokecherries, which grow wild in southern Idaho where I grew up. My mom made wonderful chokecherry jelly, but what I most loved, was the chokecherry wine my Dad made. It was his best flavor.

The colors were truly challenging. I know I should love all colors and combinations, but I don't love this combination. They are all fairly dark, which seemed to be the major challenge for everyone. I decided a light, but neutral, background would help. I created the background piece by collage-ing some maps of the area where we used to pick chokecherries, with bits of an article about chokecherries and some of my teabag papers. While there are elements of this piece that I like, I was not very happy with it once I finished it. It seemed too "typical" of my usual shtick. Also a little too tidy and prissy. Yesterday, when I got ready to photograph it I decided I just kind of hated it. It didn't make me think of picking chokecherries or their rich, earthy flavor at all. They looked like something in a greenhouse.

Late in the afternoon I started madly cutting leaf shapes from a pile of hastily chosen fabrics, some the same as I had used in the first piece, and by late last night I had finished "Chokecherry 2".



It felt more like what I was trying to do. A little wilder and earthier. A little more energy, I think. So this is the official Twelve by twelve response piece.

I was late in posting today because I ended up taking my baby grandson to the Dr. this morning with my son-in-law. Between their family and me, we have been sick for a month—one thing and then another. Poor Marco probably has a virus, but the Dr. sent us over to the hospital for a chest x-ray and lab tests to be sure he doesn't have a bacterial infection. It took hours and was all quite distressing to the poor, already miserable, baby. He came home with me for awhile so Cayo could get a little sleep. They've had some rough nights this week. I have a broken tooth and was supposed to go into the dentist this afternoon for a crown prep and missed my appointment. It was an hour earlier than I thought. Ugh. I hate days like this. Out of control. Now I think Ray is getting sick. Isn't January just a wasted month? I always feel like the crummy weather just makes everything more difficult. Am I whining? Yeah, I think I am.

On a brighter note, I found out yesterday that my bird-making class scheduled at the Oregon Garden later this month has enough students. I have a small class so far. Room for more! If you are in the area, I'd love to have you join me. Click on the birds at the top of the sidebar for all the information.

11 comments:

  1. Guess I'm too close to a realist..I like the first one better. We have chokecherries here in northern Maine as well. Well I remember the astringent feel of these things in my mouth...the hairy teeth feeling? This year, the crop was so abundant, that I put a bunch in when making my apple jelly. What a gorgeous hue they gave the jelly!!! I also tried making a cocktail from them, but haven't been brave enough to taste it yet...I left the seeds in, which I'll strain just before serving...hopefully without killing us all in the bargain...I think the seeds, if eaten have arsenic base to them?...

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  2. Okay, the part of me that likes realistic perfection--likes number one. And the other side of me likes the wild abandon of number two. BUT, perfection would be the background of one and the leaves and berries of two. Perfection and Abandon.

    Sick babies are so difficult to deal with--they just don't understand. It breaks my heart to see them crying. I hope it's something simple.

    G has his temp crown and ate a hard cookie and broke it--tomorrow another long session while they make another one. I made soft brownies for his desserts this week.

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  3. Boy oh boy, do I hope you and your family are getting better soon. Erica and family have been fighting something similar for well over a month now.

    I love the first version of the chokecherry you did but I see the the wilder and earthier side on the other. When I saw the title I thought immediately of my Dad. He loved chokecherry jam and jelly. Isn't it amazing how we each think of our parents when a little berry is mentioned?

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  4. I like the second piece better. I love all of the odd colors of greens and how the stitching/quilting on the leaves looks and I also like the irregular boarder. It just looks fresher to me.

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  5. lovely. I so want to take your bird making class unfortunately it doesn't fit in my schedule...wish you could come to Bend and show us on this side of the mountain!

    Anna
    www.wooliemammoth.blogspot.com

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  6. Terry, I really love the second one. It is just perfect in a wild way!! The first is nice but a bit to controlled for my liking. I hope everyone in your family is feeling better soon. Sick babies are so hard, you just want to make them feel better. :-( I am still trying to make things work for your class but with working now, things are a bit more difficult.

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  7. yes, I'm down with the cold, too. And the dark. Did I mention it is just dark??? And I live in TX!!! You poor souls who live up north.

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  8. I think both of your little quilts are beautiful, but for me I REALLY love the second one. As Connie already said it's perfect in a wild way :)

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  9. I like the first one ... and wonder if I like it even more with about two inches on the top and right cropped off? The barest white places? So some leaves are off the edge on the right, too?

    I like the second one, too. I like the looseness, and I like that you brought some lighter colors into the leaves and berries.

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  10. You show your amazing versatility with these two equally wonderful pieces. Your unique style, but with variation in 'feeling'. They are both "you".
    Hope your illnesses go away soon. I am hoping the evil bronchitis will not catch me this winter/spring. Wish you were here on the Central CA coast to enjoy the lovely sunshine. AND the quilts in San Jose.

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  11. I especially like your second attempt. I'm sad that I chickened out of the bird-making class when I was the only enrollee. Maybe you'll offer it again if this one is a success.

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