A Lovely Day in Lowell - Whistler House Museum of Art

After our visit on Saturday to the New England Quilt Museum, we walked over to the birthplace of artist James McNeill Whistler which is now the Whistler House Museum of Art . Presently there is an exhibit "Out of the Blue: Art Quilts 2015." 

Before viewing the exhibit which is housed in a separate building, we decided to tour the house. There were a few things beside the artwork that caught my eye . . .

What do you think this is? I'll show you at the end of this post.

 I've never seen a copper-lined tub.

In the yard there was a wonderful birdhouse replica of the main house.

Here's the answer . . . a box to store your top hat!

One of the art quilts which received an award is Koi  by Sarah Ann Smith from Maine.

I loved her use of beading and the machine quilting on this piece.

That's another thing on my list . . . learn to machine quilt. They claim that you just need to practice for a bit every day, but when oh when would I fit that in???  I believe Koi  received the award for viewers' choice and now you can see why. It was wonderful!

On the way home we stopped at Piers Park in East Boston where I took this shot. The lighting wasn't the best, but I took this record shot anyway.

Alongside another pier was docked the Nantucket Lightship.

All in all, it was a full, lovely day out and about.

A Lovely Day in Lowell - The New England Quilt Museum

This morning I headed to the New England Quilt Museum in Lowell, MA, to hear a Gallery Talk by Caryl Bryer Fallert-Gentry. The museum is exhibiting a retrospective of her thirty-year career as an art quilter. She spoke about her design inspirations and detailed her process of working. Her talk was truly wonderful!

I have seen many amazing quilts at other shows and at the Houston Quilt Festival, but none more magnificent than hers which are on exhibit through October 31, 2015. For me, her most iconic piece is On the Wings of a Dream.

Just look at this incredible machine quilting.

Click here,  to read the story behind this quilt.

Above is Celebration #2.  As you can see, Caryl Bryer Fallert-Gentry's quilt are a glorious symphony of form, design, and exuberant color. If you live in the New England area, it is definitely worth traveling to Lowell to see this amazing exhibit. If you can't make it to the museum, then be sure to visit her online gallery.

While in Lowell, we also visited the Whistler House, the home of the artist James Whistler. More about that visit in my next post.

Emma's Sparkling Personality

Emma and I just returned from a long walk this morning.  She went to the groomer on Tuesday, so she is still sporting sparkly green bling on her ear tips. They are stuck on and will easily peel off when I wish to remove them. For now, they just look cute and match her sparkling personality.

I've been making headway on my hand appliqué piece begun in the David Taylor class and hope to finish a quilt top this afternoon, but I am admittedly very easily distracted. :-) I always have good intentions, but I just flub dub along from one thing to another and don't accomplish a whole lot. Oh well, the summer is going way too fast and I'm determined to continue enjoying every last minute or it. 

Morning Glories

My neighbor's morning glory vine is beginning to cascade over the fence. This might make a good subject for a little quilt piece. Perhaps I will add it to my ever expanding list of things to do . . .

This and That

Friends have remarked that they haven't seen as many butterflies fluttering around this year. I'm fortunate that they have been steady visitors to my garden. This was a quick shot taken the other afternoon with my iPhone and rendered in the app, Moku Hanga.

Last night, I took a class at Heart in Hands quilt shop in South Weymouth to make this Honeycomb Zipper Pouch from V and Co. Isn't it cute!!! This pouch is 9"x13," but you may also make a 6"x9" size with the pattern.

Finally, are you looking for a way to jazz up the curb appeal of your house? Check out the garage door at the Village Quilt Shop in Berwick, ME. 

Another "Quilty" Getaway

I headed up north to the Center Harbor area last Thursday. Why was I on the road again so soon after my Maine getaway ? I was attending an all-day quilt workshop on Friday with the very talented David Taylor. I have long admired his amazing work and was fortunate enough to be in attendance at the Houston Quilt Festival last year to see in person his "Beneath My Wing" which won first place in its category. If you are not familiar with his work, take a moment to visit his website and view his gallery of prize-winning quilts.

My friend Laurel also attended the workshop, and we both had a wonderful time.  David Taylor was a fun, excellent teacher who shared his process for making his hand applique quilts. 

The workshop was sponsored by Keepsake Quilting, one of the largest quilt shops in New England. This weekend was their second annual QuiltFest.  On Saturday morning, a sales representative from Wilmington Fabric presented an outdoor trunk show of quilts featuring the company's various fabric lines.

It was interesting to see how the choice of fabrics could completely change the appearance of a particular pattern. All three quilts above were made from the same pattern. Here are a few of the other quilts. 

Speaking of patterns, if you click on Wilmington Fabrics and look under the "Projects" tab, you will find many free patterns including some for the above quilts.

There were other quilts made by customers displayed along the porch along with sale fabric and kits. Let's just say I scooped up a healthy supply of bargains. :-)

To add to the festive atmosphere, the King Arthur Flour truck was also in the parking lot. I loved the giant rolling pin on the front bumper and the spatula and mixing bowl on the roof. . . very cool! The truck travels across the country attending fairs and other events. They were offering warm, delicious oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. Donations received would then later be donated to a local charity. To find the recipe for these positively yummy cookies, click here.

A Visit to the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens

This gorgeous dinner-plate size dahlia was photographed at the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens in Boothbay. As you approach the parking area, keep your eyes peeled for some truly amazing twig sculptures.

There are also wonderful kinetic sculptures throughout the various gardens.

I'm definitely going to try to add some of these spectacular dahlias to my garden next year.

 This obliging poser reminded me of Jiminy Cricket. 

Whatever you do, be sure to visit this magical place when in the Boothbay area. It's a gem!

"Row by Row-ing" in Maine - Part 2

On Tuesday afternoon, we had stopped at On Board Fabrics in Edgecomb. Our first stop on Wednesday morning was Attic Heirlooms in Damariscotta and then it was on to Alewives Fabrics and Maine-ly Sewing both in Nobleboro.

Since it was still early, we decided to head on to Rockland to check out Quilt Divas. Isn't that a fun name!

After a late lunch along the way, we headed to Camden to visit some gift shops and view its lovely harbor.

 

We arrive back in Boothbay Harbor in the early evening and since the sky looked promising, we walked down to pick up dinners from the Lobster Wharf and brought them back to our deck and waited for sunset.

What a show!