Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain

Continuing to be brave here and post more of my exercises from the Drawing From the Right Side of the Brain book and Workbook.


Here is my "From Memory" pre-instruction drawing of my oldest son. Sorry, Bry!

The last pre-instruction drawing is of a corner of a room. I was thinking that the foyer would be less complicated. Why didn't I move that chair with a myriad of wicker curlicues out of the way first? And I never realized there were so many lines in our crown and baseboard molding.


Next, some practice drawing lines in the styles of master artists, and then to experiment with our own marks, both fast and slow. I loved this exercise and it was easy for me.



Then, on to my next series of drawings.

After Schiele Seated Woman

After Picasso Portrait of Igor Stravinsky
After Anonymous-Frontal View of Horse

After Anonymous-Horse and Rider, German 16th century drawing.

The title designation "After" is used for a copied drawing. Did you notice anything unusual about my signatures on these drawings? All are upside down. Yes, all the drawings were copied upside down. The purpose is to allow the visual mode or right-side of the brain to take over. Doing these exercises is similar to using a grid to enlarge a drawing...but without the helpful grid.

I have also finished the contour drawing lesson, but will spare you from viewing the scribbles of the veins of my hand.

Today was my first day off from school. I have been fighting a chest cold since Tuesday, but am looking forward to some basking in the sun and relaxation over the next week! And perhaps inspiration for some new sunset quilts!

My Idea of "Altered" Books

Well, as an old English major and school teacher, I am a big reader and an advocate of reading to children. Our little granddaughter, Lily, will turn three during our vacation to the beach. I spent some time doctoring up some cute books that I bought for her birthday.

The first is 1001 Things to Spot in Fairyland. I collected lots of pictures of Lily and other family members, resized them to fit the illustrations, and hid them among the fairies, princesses, and castles in this book.


Sometimes I replaced the head on a drawn figure, and sometimes had them popping out of the scenery. I drew in a few wings and antennae or other little additions to match the drawings on the page.
The next book was Zinnia's Flower Garden, which has cute illustrations amid gorgeous garden photographs. I added some shots of Lily with my zinnias and other flowers from summers past.

The last altered birthday book is A Rainbow of My Own, by Don Freeman.

Lily's head nicely replaced the little boy's head on the title page picture.

Another excellent choice is Oh, The Places You'll Go, by Dr. Seuss. I doctored this book for son Dave when he graduated from high school. We had many, many pics of Dave making faces and wearing funny things on his head, and they fit in perfectly.

I have used acid-free glue-stick, clear contact paper, and gel medium to adhere the images. The contact paper still looks great after ten years. The gel medium made some of the pages a little sticky, but will probably adhere the longest.

I will let you know if these projects were a popular gift!

Symposium Report #7: Wearable Art

I was not able to attend the fashion show at Symposium, but I spent some time in the Wearable Art section of the quilt show. They really did not have room to showcase these lovely garments. Most of them were hanging from a rod and you had to ask someone to hold them up for you to view them. A few were on mannikens. Fellow Carolina Longarm member Neyla Bond was on duty in the garment area and held up many of these "Wearable Art" creations for me.

The Award winners for the garments were not included in the program for the quilt show, and the numbers/makers were not easy to read from the small tags attached. However, I will do my best to match the garments to the seamstresses. All descriptions are from the quilt show program.

Best of Show-Tribute to Hiroshige, Vicky Clontz. Vogue V7916 was used to make the woolfelt jacket with quilted cotton cuffs and lapel. A needlefelted scene is featured on the back. Inspired by an 1800's woodblock print by Japanese artist Hiroshige. Scene is done in wool fibers, silk yarn, silver rose studs with blooms snipped off to depict flying sea gulls. Original pin design.

Honorable Mention went to Roberta Morgan for "Black on White." Jacket from Folkware Bolivian pattern, blouse and skirt Simplicity. The white wool felt close-fitted jacket has a black lace overlay embellished with hand embroidery stitches highlighted with beads and sequins. The black blouse is lace and taffeta. The black taffeta asymmetrical skirt has a ruffle embellished with black trim and beads. All of the lace was recycled from a nightgown found at Goodwill.


"Picking Daisies," by Peggy Forster. (Sorry, out of focus a bit.) This jacket was pieced from a collection of black and white print fabrics. The daisies are machine appliqued with the stems done by hand. The flower centers and stems are beaded.


My personal favorite: in my colors and featuring my beloved hummingbirds! I think this one must be Birds of a Feather by DeLane Wyatt-Rosenau. Swing Coat AB005 Akaska Clothing pattern used to make this coat. five individuals created one block for a "birds of a feather" themed round robin. These blocks were pieced with dupioni silk and cotton fabrics to create the fabric for the garment. Piecing, applique, thread painting, stamping, hot fix crystals, and hand beading are used.
I could not find a good description in the program for this coat. Does anyone know the maker?

Here is a vest I also could not identify.


This lovely oriental design is most probably Kimono Serene by Pat Thomas.

My best guess on this one is "Left-Overs" by Cindy Atkins. Vogue 8430 was used to make this jacket. It is a felted wool base with needle felted embellishments. Made from wools and yarns left over from ther projects. Embellishments include yarns and woolroving.

That's it for my Symposium reports, from purses to purchases to quilts and wearable art. It was a great experience!

The Quilt Pattern Shoppe

Today I am taking a short break from my postings about the North Carolina Quilt Symposium, to bring you information about a new way of downloading quilt patterns.

Occasionally, I am asked to review a product or service that is quilting related. Often I do this for new books or products I have purchased. However, I am being paid for my time to review this site and blog about it.

That being said, I can see where The Quilt Pattern Shoppe offers a unique service to those who like to make quilts from patterns. All 200+ patterns on the site are from various pattern designers, and all patterns are downloadable -- you buy and print your patterns instantly. There are no shipping charges and you can begin working on the patterns immediately.

I am not affiliated with the site other than agreeing to review the site on this blog. My first negative criticism of the actual website is this annoying large block of white space in the upper right of the screen. This should be easily fixed by someone who knows web-building software. The viewer should not have to scroll down the page to view the content.

A quick look at the Terms and Conditions page indicates that you must download your pattern within seven days of purchase, and you get three attempts to successfully download. Here is something that does not sit too well with me: you are licensed to make only one copy for yourself for each pattern you download. That is a turn-off for me. If I find a pattern that I like, that is easy to use and makes a pretty quilt, I might make several in different colors and fabric styles. Oh, yes, and there are no returns and exchanges once you purchase a pattern here. That is understandable due to the nature of downloaded files.

Aside from no shipping costs, the site offers the opportunity to earn Shopper Reward Points from your purchases and receive free quilt patterns , thread, and fabric from our partner stores. Partner stores? I could not find any listed on the site unless they are the links under Related Services. Perhaps that is a work in progress. Or, possibly, information is provided once you make a purchase.

I checked out the "Free Patterns" sidebar link, and found a hearts and daisy table runner which I was able to quickly download in a pdf file. The directions seem clear and easy to follow. That was the only Free Pattern currently listed.

There is also a Free Newsletter offer. I personally am already inundated with advertising e-mails disguised as newsletters. This one is outdated with a give-away offer that ended May 25. However, if you like this service, they can update you about new designs and special offers.

Okay, on to the patterns. You can browse by designer, skill level, technique, and type of object such as purse, baby quilt, or home decor. I have not purchased any of these designs for download from this site or from any other source. There is an opportunity to provide product reviews if you log in as a member of the site.

I think that this site might be very helpful if you need to make a quilt in a hurry for a baby shower or other gift, since there is no shipping or ordering delay. Also, it might be a good way to get started if you wish to market your own designs. If you try it out, I hope that you will be satisfied with the service.

Symposium Report #6: Quilt Show

More eye candy from the North Carolina Quilt Symposium show, held at Peace College the last weekend in May.

Wildflowers, by Deborah Whitehorne, Quilted by Neyla Bond, 79 x 104, Honorable Mention, Duet quilt

An amazing group quilt depicting Motherhood, 72 x 36, made by Delane Rosenau and Pandora's Bee.

Beautiful quilting on a large log cabin, Kuma no Ikaoi Basho, Made by Kinko Spencer, Quilted by Sarah Porreca, 83 x 83, 3rd place, Duet Quilts.

You know I love mountains! This is Great Smoky Mountains Memories, by Paulett Graham, 76 x 94.

A gorgeous applique quilt, Rose Sampler, Baltimore Album, 69 x 83, made by Carolyn M. Cesare.

This one was a show-stopper, but unfortunately was not hung in the gymasium with most of the quilts. It was on the wall at the end of a hallway.

Fatal Attraction, by Sandy Curran, 42 x 53, 1st place, Large Wall Hanging

Rotary Madness, detail, by Janet L. Hall, 87 x 71, Judge's Choice, Large Wall Hanging.

Some small wall hangings

Detail from Rushing River, by Lois Griffith, 22.25 x 25 (slightly out of focus, sorry!)

Some wall hangings at the show

My friend Jean Houghtby's Chocolate Bunnies, 52 x 54, Honorable Mention, Large Wall Hanging

Dressing for the Performance, Tina Schwager, 39 x 55.5, 3rd Place, Group quilt. This is one of those "slice" quilts with different people each completing a section of the quilt, which is based on a photograph.

I could not figure out which quilt this was, but it depicts a bride getting ready for the wedding.

A section of wall hangings, featuring two egret quilts side by side

Remember the autumn leaves collage I purchased at Collage Mania? Here is a quilt by the same artist. Yellowstone Falls, by Annette Rogers, 20 x 25.5

Next time I will post some of the beautiful garments from the Symposium quilt show.

Symposium Report #5: Quilt Show continued

I have spent a beautiful morning on my front porch, watching a new pair of bluebirds prepare to nest in the birdhouse, bumblebees feeding voraciously on my six-foot diameter lavender plant, and listening to the concert of mockingbirds. It is very cool and partly cloudy. What a nice morning!

Today I bring you more quilts that I photographed at last weekend's North Carolina Quilt Symposium show.

This "crazy quilt" took the award for Best Embellishment. It is by Susie Williams, 18 x 11.25, "Morning Glory: A Crazy Quilt in Circles."

Another "Morning Glories" wall quilt, this one an original design by Kiyomi Carter, 42 x 35

Love Bubbles by Gail Reilly, 48 x 48, Best Use of Color Award



Jewels in the Garden, detail, by Eve Agee, 42 x 48


Raiding Mom's Stash, detail, by Jill Struble, Quilted by Jan Struble, 56 x 90, 3rd Place Duet Quilt

Irish Rose Triptych: Netted, Tidal, Loopy, details, by Susan Brown, 36 x 18, 2nd Place, Studio Art Quilt. I loved seeing a needle-felted piece in the show! Dyed silk bolt, plus wool, silk, ribbons, yarn, thread.

The Duchess, detail, by Leah Day, 64.5 x 66.5, 1st Place, Large Wall Hanging.

This wholecloth quilt sparkles with over 700 crystals, forty yards of lace, and thousands of glass seed beads. Leah hired me to quilt two small pieces for her a couple of summers ago. My question is, if she can quilt like this, why did she hire me? Maybe she was too busy quilting this beauty, or perhaps she has since purchased a quilting machine herself. Note: after being contacted by the maker of this quilt, I discovered that there are two quilters named Leah Day. I have not met the maker of this quilt! But I would like to! Visit her blog at http://www.daystyledesigns.com/.
Lei Nahelle, (Woodland Lei), by Amy Takaoka Lasordo, 49 x 42, 2nd Place, Jane Hall Challenge.

Amy was working on this piece at a CyberBee meeting, and said that although she was raised in Hawaii, she did not know how to do Hawaiian applique until she took a course from Jane Hall of Raleigh.

My Iris Garden, detail, by Beverly Cochran, 116 x 92.

Bev was my roommate at Machine Quilters' Expo in 2007, and we had a grand time together. Love this quilt!

Fall, details, by Mary Louise Parks and Rhoda Osher, 70 x 96, 3rd Place Duet Quilt

This very unique quilt has 3-D leaves and lots of artistic embellishment on log cabin blocks.

Eileen's Star, by Jan Struble, 34 x 34, 1st place, Small Wall Hanging

Jan is a member of Carolina Longarm Association and lives nearby in Durham.

I finish this morning of porch-sitting and bird-watching with a pair of beauties: Romeo and Juliet, Grand Strand II, detail, by Judy Lilly, 22 x 28, 3rd Place, Small Wall Hanging

Machine Piecing/Applique, fusing, tulle, fabric paint, prismacolor, thread painting

That's all for this addition, but don't worry, there is more quilt show to come!

Wish me luck on the last week of school, always a challenging time to work with children! But we have a fifth grade picnic Monday afternoon and an assembly Wednesday for fifth grade "graduation," and then I just work half a day Thursday and I'm done!