Mom is stuffed and Pop is too,
the turkeys not and what about you?
The kids are tired the house is a wreck,
for four solid days I broke my neck.
To fix a meal enough for twenty,
my gosh the left overs we have plenty!
So now I think I'll open that wine,
and on the left overs we will dine.
I told my kids as I raised my glass,
mom's checking out, she's otta gas.

Feathers and Leaves is finished and I'm pleased with the results. The fabric is from Indonesia, the feathers from oldest daughter Anna in New Jersey and the leaves are from some costume jewelry that I bought at a yard sale while in Florida in Feb 2008. So pieces traveled from all over to be a part of this fiber art.
Nj

A special piece of fabric is finding a new home in a new art quilt. There is still much to do but for now it's "resting" on my work table. It is heavily machine quilted and incorporates a feathered piece and some recycled costume jewelry. I'm very pleased with the way this piece is coming together.
Nj

Yippee! My collage, Leafless Not Lifeless, was acquired in the Collage Mania event sponsored by Virgina Speigel to benefit American Cancer Society this week. Scroll down to see a photo of this piece. We held a call for art on my Fiber Art Traders group many members heeded the call. It's heartwarming to know that so many people care to share their time and talents. Thank you fellow F.A.T.ties for all you do and thank you Virginia for your hard work for ACS.

Signing off for now.
Nj

I'm FINISHED! This year I headed up the challenge for the Clamshell quilt guild. I called the Challenge, "Family Values" and each participant had to use a photo that either themselves or a family member had taken and turn it into a black and white quilt. Hence the reference to "values" of black and white. The judging will take place on Wednesday 4/9. My photo was taken on our winter break trip to Washington, DC this year. I've attached a copy of the inspiration photo as well as the finished piece but WAIT there is a surprise behind the door. My quilt is called, "Beauvoir", meaning Beautiful View in French. here is the write up that I will share with my guild about this piece:

This photo was taken on a family vacation in February 2008 in Washington, DC by the artist. It is of a small unassuming door which leads into a chapel of the Beauvoir Elementary School which is affiliated with our United States National Cathedral. Beauvoir means "Beautiful View" in French and the school overlooks our amazing National Cathedral. In comparison to the immense cathedral this tiny red door seemed insignificant. However, it represents how I view my faith; a simple passage to a better place. This study in black and white also lead me to reaffirm that it is not what is on the outside that counts. For me, this small chapel door leads to the same place that grandiose door of the National Cathedral does, Heaven. It's not what's on the outside that counts, it's what on the inside. Once the judging is over for this competition I will reveal what is on the inside of my door using the latch that holds the door closed. The beading on the latch roped also have special meaning:
3- clear beads= the Holy Trinity
9-black and silver with large bead=Fruit of the Spirit
10- gray beads= the 10 Commandments
12- different beads= 12 Disciples

I don't normally get attached to my works but this one moves me spiritually. It was an amazing trip and a time of closeness that we seldom get as family anymore as we all lead such busy lives. This quilt will always let me go back to that happy vacation.

I hope that you enjoy seeing my 'Beautiful View'.
Hugs, Normajean

I'm thrilled that my friend Virginia Spiegel has accepted my piece titled, "Leafless Not Lifeless" for Collage Mania II. All the proceeds go directly to the American Cancer Society. This represents my moms battle with cancer and how, against the odds, she sprang back and is a survivor of 35 years. The piece has a pale golden art paper background with squares of silk, upholstery and sheer fabrics in tones of greens, rusts and browns, these are layered and quilted to the paper background. The tree is a copper foil that has been distressed and free hand cut into tree shapes and stitched to the layered fabrics. It measures 8" x 10" and is mounted on Bristol board to reinforce the piece. Please visit Virginia's site, http://www.virginiaspiegel.com to participate in this worthy event.
Nj

Wow what a wonderful and amazing surprise... Quilting Arts published my article early! This is my third article with them, the other two appeared in the QA Magazine. This one is called, "Trade Secrets" and is in their Embellishments E-Newsletter. It's all about running an Internet Trading group and the secrets that make it run smoothly. Of course my inspiration for this is my own group Fiber Art Traders, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FiberArtTraders. I'm grateful that Quilting Arts has allowed me to share my enthusiasm about Internet trading with their artistic community. The enrollment at F.A.T. has been incredible in the last 24 hours. Thank goodness I have some terrific helps on the group!

Well, my inner child hasn't had much time to come out and blog because I've been too busy in my other writing endeavours. Quilting Arts magazine has accepted another one of my articles and it will appear in their online e-newsletter version called, Embellishments. I love writing for QA and I seem to have found a real home there. As you know, I've been an avid fan of their magazine for years and to see my name in print with them is such a thrill. :-) Here's the web addy to sign up if you are interested: http://www.quiltingarts.com/qallc/eNewsletter_form.html

Thanks for tuning in. I'll try to be a better blogger this year.

Hugs, Nj