Liz Nutter shows discharged fabrics to Craft Coordinator Gloria Gregorich.

Sally proudly shares an outfit created for her new grandson Oscar.

Sally, Elaine, June and Liz wash out Shibori pieces.

Off to West Virginia

I leave early tomorrow for a Quilting Retreat in West Virginia. I'm really excited about teaching a four-day class on surface design at the beautiful Cedar Lakes Conference Center. Other instructors are: Mimi Dietrich, Judy Lilley and Darlene Christopherson. It should be great fun!

I'm hoping our bluebirds will return while I'm away. Be safe 'til we talk again!

The Gift of Life

Without the gift of a new heart, this day would not have been possible. Our son Matthew and his bride Suzie on their wedding day, 11/11/05, at beautiful Emerald Isle, NC.

Yesterday I posted three possible designs I was considering for my brochure cover. This one won hands down. Not only does it have my favorite images - heart and hands - but it seemed so symbolic of organ donation. My son Matthew's life was saved over 14 years ago because of this gift. The beat goes on!

This is my most favorite from my marathon dyeing session. And I love that the colors are unlike anything else in my stash. Although I made notes on my formula, it's the serendipitous quality which makes dyeing so much fun for me.

I love this wonderful coral-red color, don't you?

After much hard work, I have 25 yards of hand-dyed fabric. Since I was so low on many of my frequently used colors, I did big two-yard pieces of yellows, reds, turquoise and blues then had fun doing a few "double dyes." I've uploaded a couple of my favorites.

The hardest part of dyeing is rinsing and washing and rinsing and washing. Each fabric color was run through three extra long washes in the machine with increasingly hot water and Synthrapol, then double rinsed. Now everything has to be pressed. Whew!

Brochure Art

Today I decided to redo my brochure. Classes, show and teaching credits need updating. I've also been using the same cover art for a couple of years. It's time for a change!

Shown are three drawing possiblities for my new brochure cover. I'll tell you tomorrow which one I chose.

Resist dyed.

Completed fabric ready for ironing. This is my favorite from today.