Quilt Making for Hope

Close up of Aria's Quilt

I'm a quilt maker, a mixed media artist, & Nia dancer.  I love making things with my hands; I love dancing my body to music; I love walking and being outside.  

My newest art was to create two baby quilts for my newest great nieces, Aria and Emery born January 28, 2020.  Their Mom, Jen, contracted COVID 19 at her work as an RN in a hospital in Souix Falls, South Dakota.  I was so concerned for their health and welfare, I decided to create something out of love to help her heal and send love to the babies and her husband and my sister.  This project began around the end of May, 2020.

Here are a few pictures of the journey.

 

The blocks were cut and laid out in a color way that I liked.  Then they were stitched together with a 1/4" seam.

I have the colored threads laid out choosing which color to use for the machine quilting.

 I'm quilting the three layers together.  The big safety pins hold the three layers together as I stitch.  As I come to the pin, I remove it and stitch forward.

Quilting Emery's quilt--very up close and personal.

 Pinning the binding on Aria's quilt

A view of some of the quilting on Aria's quilt

Stitching on the binding with the even feed foot.

Oh, oh, two rumpuses slipped in when I was not looking to be sure the quilt was going to be just right for Aria.

 Emery Rose' quilt complete
37" x 55"

Labels for the back of the quilts 

Aria's Quilt

Aria Jean's quilt complete

37" x 55"

The back of Emery's quilt with label

Quilt label close up

 

 A bit of quilting detail, close up

 Aria's Back of Quilt

 Aria's label

Aria's quilting close up

Tara keeping a close eye while I'm photographing.

I machine washed and dried the quilts before I shipped them off to the babies.

Off into the mail they go.  An update on Jen's health: she was a lucky one with a mild case and she is doing well.  The doctors thought that babies probably contracted COVID 19 as well; they showed no symptoms.  My sister, Lori who had been visiting and needed to quarantine there for two weeks did not contract the illness and showed no symptoms.  This was true for Jen's husband, Austin too.  All are healthy.  Deep gratitude for their health.  A box of quilts coming their way creating a couple smiles on arrival, I hope.

Spring is Bursting into Summer

Flowering trees fill the air with fragrance and delight the eyes

 Bridal Wreath Spirea

A bridal wreath grew near our house when I was growing up in 

Sleepy Eye, Minnesota.  I found this beauty on my walk in 

the neighborhood this spring. It's blooms are overflowing with promise.

 Inside the Iris

It smells like grape.

Such beautiful symmetry inside the flower.

 White bleeding hearts

 Pink bleeding hearts

 Ferns and violets

Clematis coming into their glory in my friend's garden.

Lilacs--one of my favorite fragrances

Tulips Life Cycle

May 1, 2020, the tulips are beginning to bloom in my yard.  Not much else is green yet.

About a week later, there were frost warnings.  I decided to bring in some tulips to enjoy before the frost whisk them away.  Look at the beautiful black and yellow faces inside the tulips.

As they dried and the petals fell off the stems, their colors intensified and they made beautiful shapes before composting back into the garden.  Thank you tulips for all this beauty.

The World is Quiet; the Flowers Bloom

This little six inch woodland jack in the pulpit lives in my neighbor's garden down the street from me.  She give me hope.

These multi-toned tulips live on Hamilton Street and shine brightly in their soft colors when I walk by.

Tulips and daffodils have no worries.

Here are some beauties from my yard before all the wildflowers come into their glory. The bi-colored tulips are intentionally in focus while the area around them is soft.  I'm playing with the attention the eye goes to with the flowers and also to see deep into the throat of the red/yellow tulips.

 Daffodils seem a little shy, from Sharon's garden at Wiscoy.

Midland shooting star

The early spring flowers remind us to be in this moment.  This is all we have.  Hope is in this moment.  Take a breath, enjoy the flowers and this moment.

Thoughts and Musings in this Time

As I reflect on all the things that I love to do and share, a great realization that many of my posts are about the beauty of people and friends gathering.  I've felt a deep grief for all of these loves of my life needing to do social distancing or being on a pause for a time.  Farmer's Markets, theatres and live performances, getting together with friends, and teaching children in schools are just a few.

I get to have these feelings and I'm learning how to have another way to think about this time: a re- frame my thinking.

Some additional powerful language:

Let's be compassionate with ourselves and one another.  Let's show kindness to all beings.   And when we need to reach out to others for support, go after that support.  Let's trust in ourselves and one another. Let's remind ourselves that this will pass and we'll come out stronger together.

Walks to see Water

Moving my body, getting fresh air, feeling good--all to find some balance in these times of the Corona virus. Here are some images of water walks to Lake Winona and the Mississippi River. I took these photographs a few weeks ago when the ice was almost melted and open water was dancing.

The transparent ice parts are dancing in the waves on Lake Winona.

Seagulls sitting on the ice ledge on Lake Winona with open water in the background.

Mississippi River--misty morning.

Clear and sunny day on the Mississippi--still a bit of ice along the bank.

Sunny walks are my favorite.  I'm finding pleasure in the foggy or cloudy day walks as well.  I bring along a pod cast for listening pleasure or a spoken word story and I'm on my way taking in the beauty of the waters around Winona.  I feel blessed.