Blue Bottles and Poison Ivy

I think that Autumn is starting to creep in....I do like the smell of burning leaves, although any more, most cities don't allow it.

I've lit my chiminea a couple of times and have been burning the dead sticks that constantly fall out of the giant maple trees; what is it about them, everywhere we've lived, they shed like cats!

I'm working on my blue bottle garden, though...I need to find some bolt cutters to use on my rebar, but dowels work fairly well for the shorter limbs. Sad, though, the tall ones bent right over from the rain. Yep, that's poison ivy peeking through the pine needles and snaking up the tree trunk. I'll have to deal with it soon, before it gets out of hand.

I've been collecting sculpture to fill in around it...Killer Bunnies that I bought from a graduating senior a few years back, and a turtle and cobra my brother Michael made me from parts when his engine exploded.







My father-in-law's dog is enjoying the backyard more, now that it is a bit cooler. Floyd, too, likes to sit outside and enjoy the antics of the squirrels and stray cats.





Lots of exciting things coming up for me, with my clothing line....Stay Tuned!

BATS!!! in my belfry

Apparently things aren't crazy enough at our house, but that we must now entertain bats!

Last Thursday or Friday, the 2 cats woke Ron from his sleep on the couch in the middle of the night, running to and fro, knocking things over. When he got up to yell at them, he was startled by the thwop-thwop-thwop of little bat wings, flying from the kitchen to the front of the house and back again. He opened the front door and THOUGHT it flew out into the night, and that was the end of it.

THIS MORNING, however, as he was leaving the house, he noticed a little bat hanging in the dining room window, between the storm window and the screen. The only way it could have squeezed in there is from INSIDE the house! So maybe the bat didn't really fly out the other night. (I tell myself this, because I don't want to imagine TWO bats have been inside my house!!

So here is the little bat as it trembled, squeaking, while the cats circled it from inside, and here is my Great White Hunter after his successful expedition to trap flying rodents!

Interview on the Internet

Well, it's been 3 months since our move to the new house! So many changes, good, bad, ugly, but we're still rolling with the punches!

Bottom line: I've still got boxes to unpack, walls to paint, and more stuff than ever has been moved to the barn "temporarily" and is in my way, but I'm sewing alot lately.

In June, Pam Spence interviewed me for an online Columbus magazine, The Artist's Interview. She had seen my Red Panty Clothing and was intrigued enough to want to learn more, and I was happy to oblige! Check out the link above; there are even a couple pics of me.

Here at the homestead, we are settling in. I've got pots of herbs on the back porch, perennials in the front, and I'm making basil flavored olive oil!


My father in law has now been with us for a full month, and thanks to my cooking, he's gained back some weight. I think he's tolerating us well; I know his dog, Lilybell, is enjoying the freedom of going out, coming in, going out, coming in ad nausea.


Here Ron is giving her a MUCH needed bath!

Art Barn - the disaster site

Well the move is complete....we are totally moved in to the new house, nothing remains at the old place (except some lovely herbs and some brick pavers). The new place gets homier every day...at the end of each day, we proudly point out to each other the boxes we've emptied, the pictures we've hung, the new plants we've nestled into their beds. Soon, very soon, it will be our HOME!

The Art Barn, well, that's another matter! As the final days approached and we were desperate to be finished, boxes and bags and items which we just couldn't make a decision on (keep, toss, donate, sell?) were all tossed into the barn. MY barn! and so Ana & I made the brave first step last week, to try to clean-sweep and make some headway.



Here is the Barn immediately after the move....Ana is standing near the side door, in the only free space available. Mountains of rubbermaid tubs, plastic bags, furniture that had to be emptied pre-move, and the boxes of contents that came from within. Plus knocked-down shelving units, the barbecue grill, a completely over-the-top wheelchair ramp that came from the University....we need to put a small ramp off the back porch for Ron's dad Floyd, who uses a walker, and the university was going to trash a ramp, so the B&G guys dropped it off.....14 feet long, 48" wide, built to carry a rhino! Serious overkill for our needs! so THAT'S got to go!


Ana & I managed to carve out a tiny workspace for each of us, and I've put together 3 shelving units....a bit rickity, we'll have to move them around again before we're finished, but it gets some of the clutter out of the way. We've moved bookcases around and filled them back up, creating a nice pile of empty totebags, "borrowed" post office carriers and some empty boxes....I can see a teeny bit of headway!


Yesterday I actually got the Bernina plugged in and turned on....yay! At this point I can at least do some work while we chip away at the big pile of belongings. I dropped off another 2 bags to Goodwill this morning on my way to work, and we'll continue to rid ourselves of this baggage, I'm sure. It can't possibly be healthy to cling to so many objects. But I do look forward to the day when my friends and I can gather in the barn, to create and collaborate!

Another Solo show of Art Quilts!

this time on campus here at Ohio Wesleyan, at Mowry Alumni Center! The Director asked if I'd be interested, and although I hesitated, I said yes, and now it's up for the summer!

Mowry is just around the corner from the museum, which also has a great exhibit of art quilts til July. I love the wall color and the setting, the quilts look really great. They are hung in the Lobby, then up the Grand Staircase on the second floor, and there's one tucked in over the fireplace in the Monnett Room, and 2 in the conference room.

We'll probably wait until September for a formal reception, but you are all welcome to see them early! Mowry is open daily during the week from about 9 til 4pm.

New House means lots of work!

In amongst the creative endeavors, I must make time to move! I do not like the physical moving, very difficult, but it must be done. This week I have dropped off 1 car load of things each day. Saturday, the parents came over and took 3 loads in the pickup, which sounds like a lot, but isn't a drip in the bucket.

I've got 2 more gallons of paint ready to use; Iced Lemonade (yellow for the kitchen) and Jericho (green for the dining room). The tan/gray color in the middle is Ashen, and I've already painted the living room that color.

I've decided not to paint the den; since it won't be my sewing room, it will take on a slightly more masculine air. I've got 3 white bookshelves in place to accept carloads of books. In our current home, we have a WALL of bookshelves, built-in on either side of the fireplace....I'm really going to miss them!

However, in consolation, I now have command of the Barn! YES!! The ART BARN! It is about 28 feet by 16 feet, I believe, and very tall. Heated and airconditioned, super great! Most of what we moved on Saturday was bins and more bins of yarn and fabric.

The walls are corrugated stuff, maybe fiberglass, I'm not sure. I'll need to figure out a way to surround myself with beauty, or it's going to look very garage-y! Someone asked me today if I'm planning a vacation this summer, and while I'm not going anywhere, I'll be busy!

New dresses from Old Skirts - Baby Doll Restyle

After finishing up all the new quilts for my next show, I have been busy sewing up new dresses for the Red Panty Clothing line. Go Figure Consignment is 1 year old today, and having a big celebration for the Gallery Hop in the Short North tonight. Sherrie requested some baby doll style dresses, so I did my best, and this is what I came up with!

They look absolutely adorable on a real person, and make you feel sensational! I made 8, but ended up keeping 1 for myself, I just couldn't help it! (last 1 pictured)Sherrie made over them so much when I dropped them off that when I left, she had the first one pictured here on, and was going to wear it for the party tonight! (Black and white with polka dots)



I am so happy they were a hit, and I guess I'll have to make more, in between moving to our new house!