Boulder County Flood Quilt to be Diplayed at County Courthouse

            This quilt is a very special one indeed.  It a collaborative effort by many people to remember the flood that devastated Boulder and surrounding mountain communities last year.  As I told the Longmont  Times Call photographer that came to visit my studio:  Everyone has their own flood story, this quilt helps to tell some of those stories.  In the weeks following the flood, the people of our community really came together to help one another.  Much like how this quilt was created.
     A call for blocks was put out earlier in the year.  Sadly, I missed the deadline.  Just two days after the deadline though, I received an email wondering if I might be interested in quilting this magnificent piece.  I leaped at the opportunity!  I so wanted to be a part of the project and am so happy they choose me.  I tried to enhance and honor the blocks without adding to much.  The sashing and borders however were my playground.  In the sashing, I quilted jumbles of pebbles and flowing rivers everywhere.  In the darker brown borders, I did some flowing blue columbines.  It is now off in the hands of the volunteer that will bind it.
     Once finished, this quilt be on display at the Boulder County Courthouse for all to view.  I think the installation is to be a permanent one as well.  The plan is to hang it in time for the 1st anniversary on September 11th.          

Boulder County Flood Quilt

Moments at Mountainjoy

 It has been a busy month.  The weather has been unusually wet and raining causing the rivers to flow and the flowers to grow.  The moose have been visiting on their annual tour.  The two picture here are bull moose, one we nicknamed Mickey because his growing rack looked just like Mickey Mouse ears one day.  Therefore, "Mickey the Moose" he became. 

 

We have had tragedy in the community.  Too many recent deaths, but truly saddest was the loss of young Sophia Dubose.  She was taken by the raging river in Boulder Canyon one day.  The community had a benefit for her family and the tree quilt was my contribution to the silent auction.  I found out later that friends of mine who were very dear to Sophia as well purchased this quilt. It all makes me very happy when my quilts go to great people.

Speaking of happy, I was delighted with the way the Mariner's Compass came out.  I put a lot of planning into the quilt designs and it really paid off.  If this quilt gets to grace the walls somewhere in the Supreme Court as planned, I will definitely let you all know.

I have been doing a lot of spinning lately.  It is hobby I pick up on annually, but the bug really got me this year.  It's all I want to do.  I make deals with myself - so much quilting then so much spinning.  I am also quite pleased with my new position as Fiber Director at Mountain Flower Goat Dairy.  Along with all my other day jobs, I get to turn kids on to fiber at a 3 day camp this summer!

Beautiful Quilts, Beautiful Week

Nana's Hannah

 This is Nana's Hannah.  I quilted it quite heavily with all sorts of free motion designs.  I actually photographed them all and will be compiling them on my website at some point in the future.  I was really happy with how this quilt came out.  It was hand pieced by my  paternal grandmother and I got to quilt it.  How fun to be able to pass along such a treasure carrying the generations of a family working together.
I was also able to finally finish a quilted wall piece that has been around a while.  It was an inspired day when my husband handed me this piece of hand-dyed fabric.  I just saw the landscape.  Moonlit Mystery is the first in what I hope to be a long series of landscape quilts.  I find them so peaceful, tranquil and inspiring both to create and to gaze at almost in meditation.  I am not he only one who loves this quilt.  It was unfinished but on display at my open studio tour.  I had several offers for if I finished it.  It was on hold while I did all the other quilts recently and then I had a day to finish.  It was easy to decide who to call first with an offer.  I was struck by the last woman to visit my studio that weekend.  She had obviously been having some health issues and just wanted something new (she also wrote down that she wanted it with her phone number on my mailing list).
Years ago, I was told by an amazing woman that I should/needed to be making healing quilts.  It has been tickling my brain as to what these quilts would look like, not just the healing intentions sewn with the threads that hold the quilts together.  Maybe I have found them in the landscape quilts.  Healing is an ever going, ever changing process.   My one wish today is that all people have the strength, courage, and support to heal themselves and this beautiful earth we all call home.

Our Foxy visitor this week