Winter sky

Our light snow was light and turned to rain in the afternoon.  That means that the roads were slippery this morning but I went out with the camera to catch the glorious colors of the sky.

Sky and cotton candy clouds.

In the south the sky was clearing and it looks like it's going to be a beautiful day.

In the north our local mountain was hidden behind some pink snow clouds. 

There's supposed to be a large mountain back there but Mt. Nantai was surrounded in a gauzy, pink haze.

There were a few cars braving the expressway, headed for the mountains for some skiing or maybe snowboarding.

The plum orchard waiting out the winter.

And my favorite photo shot of a lone tree near the rice fields.  I don't know how many times I've taken a picture of this tree... old time blog friends probably recognize it by now.  Here it stands hardly ever admired by anyone else, on a backroad of the countryside.  It makes me realize how many jewels of photography are unrecognized and ignored around the world.  Keep your eyes open!

A light snow (hopefully)

It started to snow in the middle of the night and this morning the roads an trees were white.  It is still snowing but I just got a phone call from my friends who said they are willing to brave the snow and come for their patchwork lesson.  Good for them!  I'll get the coffee started!

At the crosswalk, though we didn't have to do any snow shoveling yet, the bamboo fronds were already beginning to bend with the weight of the snow.   This is going to be a great day to put in some extra stitches!

Though my friends are confident of their snow driving skills, I am NOT.  You are not going to catch me out of the house for the rest of the day.  It is left-overs for us tonight.  And I'm skipping the swimming pool too!  Who would want to swim in this cold weather?  Tetsu...  He's planning to go to the pool after work.

Sweet Vel

Of all my 6 cats, only one, Vel gets the privilege of exploring the natural world outside our front door.  Vel is 16 and doesn't move very fast nor is he very adventurous.  It is true that he is fast enough to slip out the front door when Tetsu leaves in the morning (and I am right behind them both, waving goodbye to my samurai heading off to work) but once Vel is outside, he wanders past the dead flowers and garbage cans to sniff at roots and spiky branches.  I will occasionally just leave Vel outside while I finish up chores in the house but I've been known to head out to do errands and be surprised by a cat in my yard.

"Oh no!  Not another stray!"  Oh... no...  It is only Vel whom I've forgotten is outside!  Sorry Vel!"

Vel will also come back when called, hurrying in his creaky way, eager to warm his paws again by the living room heater.  Vel is so skinny I don't think he has much body insulation to protect him from the freezing weather, but still he wants to check out the world.

And on somewhat warm days he will just sit and soak up the sun on our front door mat.  My sweet Vel, getting the most out of life that he can.
 

Focused

After all that beautiful quilting handwork at the quilt show, I'm afraid I have to go back to blogging about the mundane.  It is nice that the world of quilting isn't just made up of artists and semi-professionals.  The rest of us half starters and Works in Progress Collectors are still included!

And one of those fledgling quilters is Yuma-kun who is still aching to try new things and still conniving ways to get out of his English studies to get up on my sewing machine.

At the end of last year, Yuma-kun announced that his music room at school was colorless and needed some perking up.  As usual, he wanted to make something.  He forgets how much time he spent making his bed cover last year...  I suggested a wall hanging, and I have various kits he could chose from or books that we might be able to find a pattern from.  But even for patchwork Yuma-kun's attention span is short.

"You could make a Happy Village quilt.  Then it could be as colorful as you like...  Ah... But when you were in 2nd or 3rd grade you made a small version of a Happy Village and I recall that you didn't particularly take to that project...  Maybe not."

"No.  I can do it now.  I want to make another Happy Village."

So we got out the Karen Eckmeier's book and some fabric and Yuma-kun cut out geometrical shapes.  I think that was as far as we got that week.

On another day Yuma-kun got his pieces laid out and glued down and then he added roofs and stairs and whatnot.  And last week I sat him down at the sewing machine, explained the theory of how the freehand foot works and with his fabric collage encased in tulle, LEFT HIM TO IT!  I'm not quilting this for him this time.  He likes using the sewing machine anyway and though he wailed that the machine wouldn't go the way he wanted (don't we ALL say that at first?) I assured him that by the end of the quilting he'd be a pro.
Yuma-kun spent only about 30 minutes quilting on Thursday but it was INTENSE quilting.  He'll probably be working on this for another few weeks...

"Whew!  I wish I could be this focused with my studies.  The villiage is going to look great in the music room!"

Ah, I'd forgotten he was making this for his school...  I so love that about Yuma-kun.  Even with all his hard work he is still willing to give it away.

By the way, I used Yuma-kun's scraps to make a mini-Happy Village for my mother's fabric postcard this month.   I hope my Happy Village makes her happy!

Tokyo International Quilt Festival and more things to try!

Part Three of the Tokyo International quilt show.

This year's featured quilt theme was Laura Ingall Wilder's Little House on the Prairie and there were a few dioramas of the interior of a cabin and many frontier flavored quilts.  I don't think anything was authentic but the quilt committee made a lovely Prairie atmosphere cabin... though I have a feeling the real cabin wasn't as bright and cheery!  And someone cleverly made a covered wagon out of Wagon Wheel blocks.  The prairie grass was a layout of a hundred or so green braided mats!  A lovely centerpiece for the quilt show.

Another section of the show was given to Japanese quilter/designer Kathy Nakajima.  In browsing the exhibit, Julie and Carin and I ran across a few of the famous quilters busily greeting people and autographing books.  Kathy though really seemed to shine out with her bubbly personality.  Julie is a big fan of Kathy's.

 "Kathy is always smiling and graciously talks to everyone all during the long days of the quilt festivals.  I really admire her for her personality and for making all her quilts by hand."

Julie and Kathy chatted as if they were long lost friends.  Maybe they are...  Kathy was probably THE quilter who introduced Hawaiian applique to Japan and she also has a beautiful rose applique technique that I've always wanted to try.  In her corner this year was an eye-catching display of quilts made by her students.  Such a striking display bending around a curve, the color changing from pink to orange. The quilting was awesome too!

Oh dear...  Here are some miscellaneous quilts that I liked a lot...  A snowy Japanese applique scene made from indigo cottons.

This was an amazing HAND-QUILTED white work piece.  There must be some trapunto in there...

And though I can't say why, this pretty fish quilt just stuck in my head.  This was only a small part of a much larger quilt with all sorts of different fish and sea vegetation being appliqued in a Mola style.  I want to try to do some Mola too now!  (That's a log cabin technique, a rose applique technique and now a Mola technique that I want to dabble in...)

Can you believe, I didn't take a picture of the Grand Prix quilt this year?  That's because I liked the second place quilt better!  And it was THIS one.  Such a ABSOLUTELY, STUNNINGLY, GORGEOUS quilt!  I'm no judge of quilts but I wondered about how the judges choose...  Detail?  Design?  Construction?  This quilt would have won in my contest, hands down!

And that's the quilt Julie and Carin and I chose to stand in front of for our threesome photo...  By the way, this is a good time to point out some of my friend's own handwork....  Though the show was a bit too warm for Julie to wear her Scout Poncho, I remember last year when we met and she wore her poncho, Julie had people stopping her and fingering her wearable art.  She was a show stopper last year.

And THIS year, it was Carin who attracted interested visitors to her wearable art.  Carin had JUST finished embroidering her red vest with different Swedish embroidery stitches and she topped it off with her beautiful Swedish embroidered collar and removable cuffs that she made herself!  (I see she had taken off her cuffs already in this picture.  Check out the photo of Carin in first post about this year's quilt show).  I love the edging on her collar and cuffs!

So...  What did I come back with from the quilt show?  Let's see...  Some silicone thimbles.  Some basting glue...  AND a calendar and a very small quilt kit.

Julie and I stumbled upon this quilt designer's booth. The designer's name is Kenshi Yonekura.  Actually I had stumbled upon the booth LAST year too and ended up buying a few post cards...  I have been a fan of this man for many years, when someone first gave me a children's book illustrated with his applique scenes.  LAST year I drooled over the kits too but I'm not much of an appliquer and they were a bit pricey for me...  I bypassed the kits and was happy with my post cards.  But I've always regretted not at least TRYING.

This year I was happy to find the booth again and went through the same tune as the year before.  Thumb through the kits.  Sigh at their beauty and at their price.  This very little bit of fabric at that price?  I went back to the post cards but then decided to buy the calendar. 

"I don't need to spend money on a kit that I might not even be able to do (such tiny pieces!) and besides, shouldn't I try to be more original?  I should design my OWN applique!"

It's never going to happen...  And when purchasing the calendar my hand just reached over and pulled the smallest kit out of the bin. 

"I'm never going to know if I can do it or not if I don't try!" 

I paid my money and came home feeling guilty and elated at the same time!  This is another someday project.  You probably aren't going to see any finish for quite awhile.

But this was the little piece that rode home in my bag that warms my heart the most!  Carin made a needle case for me and one for Julie too! 

It is decorated front and back with Carin's Swedish embroidery and the little tab pulls down to reveal the sweet felted needle holder!  I will treasure my new needle case!!!

So there you have the Tokyo International Quilt Festival 2015!  I had great fun and I hope I'll be able to meet up with Carin and Julie again for NEXT YEAR'S!  I think I can get to Tokyo on my own now!

More Tokyo INTERNATIONAL Quilt Festival

Here we go!  Continuing with the Tokyo International Quilt Festival.
I'm not sure what section we were in when I took these pictures...  Contemporary?  Traditional?  Japanese?  Teacher's?  It was easy to get lost and it would take a few minutes before I'd realize I'd gazed at the same quilts a few minutes before.

Julie and Carin and I commented on the number of quilts using circles and dots in the show (and I love circles, but as previously posted, steer away from them whenever possible.)  This pretty Double Wedding Ring quilt was wreathed with appliqued circles.

And this quilt was such a beauty with all the BILLIONS of points and quite a number of appliqued circles there too.  I really wonder how long the quilter spends making one of these quilts and how many hours a day she spends sewing and quilting.  Don't you think that is a life work there?  Yet some of these people exhibit a quilt every year at this show...

So...  Lots of circles at this show, lots of yellow flowers, and lots of Colonial knots!  This was a quilt from afar looked like it had been made of yo-yos but actually they are very small octagons and even smaller connecting squares.  The BORDER was all Colonial knotted!  Whew!

And here we go into the Japanese fabric section.  Some things made in cotton, some in silk.  And some (which I didn't seem to get a photograph of) in vibrant reds and oranges and golds.  I gained a new appreciation for Log Cabin quilts and this one made use of cotton fabric very nicely.  The upper and lower border even had some cut-out work.  (Even some Colonial Knots there.)

Many, MOST of my quilts are scrappy quilts and I do very little planning.  But looking at the log cabin quilts made me think twice about organization.  It is all very well to grab a scrap and sew it into a quilt and let the quilt form itself.  It gives a sort of joyful surprise when the end product is revealed, to the quilt-maker herself (himself)!   But planning and organizing and drawing things out or fiddling with computer programs turns out some spectacular quilts.  Could I ever get my act together enough to make a color organized quilt?  Log Cabins might be the place to start...

Here was another gorgeous Log Cabin.  Carin (or was it Julie) said the quilter manages produces a new quilt for the show every year and her quilts are REVERSIBLE!  Sure enough.  This was one side, and...

... this was the other.  A special framed wall was made for this quilt so that both sides could be seen with an extra step or two.  Organization folks!  Organization!  And determination, and patience, and TIME!

Okay... Rest your eyes here at this nothing photo.  When Julie and I walked into the quilt show, Carin, who'd arrive an hour earlier gave warning to Julie.

"The labels are all in Japanese again...  Your efforts didn't pay off..."

Last year Julie and gone to great lengths (gotten her husband involved) to write up a "suggestion" for the Tokyo International Quilt Festival producers asking them to consider adding English information to the quilt placards.  This IS an INTERNATIONAL quilt show remember, but there is very little there in English... or any other language except for Japanese.  Thus the many foreign visitors are left in the dark about the stories behind the making.  Some quilts had English titles but most didn't and though this quilter's name was in "English", most weren't.  Some quilts seemed to have won awards but except for the main awards Carin and Julie and I didn't have a clue as to whether a quilt was an honorable mention or a judges' choice or whatever.  We labored over a few placards,

"Ah... I think it says that this person has been quilting 10 years."

"This was made by a 6th grade class!"

But all in all we gave up trying to decipher them...  It would have taken us a few more days or years to read all that Japanese.  I'm with Julie, if Japan and the Tokyo INTERNATIONAL Quilt festival is claiming to be INTERNATIONAL then they need to work on that aspect a bit more.

Aggh!  This post is getting too long too!  More tomorrow!

Tokyo International Quilt Festival

I had quite an adventure yesterday!  But not without help.  I went to Tokyo yesterday, specifically to the Tokyo Quilt Festival, to meet up with Carin and Julie, both friends whom I've met through blogging.  We spent a whole 30 minutes together last year so this year I made arrangements to spend the day at the festival with them.

So....  Lots of pictures!  If you don't like quilt photos you might as well skip this post.  I  haven't spent so much time quilt gazing in ages and with Carin and Julie I learned an awful lot!

First of all, here are the three musketeers... 

And here is what we battled through most of the day!  The Tokyo Quilt Festival isn't for the fainthearted!

I think it was on Carin's urgings last spring that I decided to enter a block for the Partnership quilt project.  The theme was "Sweet" and I thought I was being so original making a honeycomb block and adding bees.  Ha!  There were bees and honeycombs all over the place! 

My block is somewhere on the left but look at all those bees at the bottom of this quilt!  Though I didn't seem to take a photo of myself in front of my own block in the quilt I did take a picture of my name there on the placard...

 And here is Carin showing her Swedish Christmas candy block.

And Julie's block in another quilt was way up high...  A hummingbird sipping nectar.

It was great fun to look at all the partnership quilts and see how people interpreted the word "Sweet".  And it was interesting to see how whoever was on the committee decided to put together the blocks to make the quilts. Some quilts were mostly ice cream, some were tropical fruit, some Japanese sweets.  One had a Christmas feel (I think that was Carin's) and some had dolls and teddy-bears and animals.  There seemed to be lots of groups that made the same block with each person's color arrangement thus lots of the same bows and cups and macaroons...

Think about it...  There are 120 blocks in one quilt.  I think there were nearly 70 quilts of this size all around the festival walls.  That's how many blocks to sort through and put into some order?  And then to sew it all together...  And by the way these were all hand quilted!  Egads!  I have trouble getting my OWN quilt hand quilted!  How would you like to do all that work (and usually it seemed to be a single quilter to a single quilt) for a good cause?  Though all these blocks get sort of lost next to each other, it would be impossible to try to put a lattice in...  Carin pointed out that one of these quilts would be great in a hospital waiting room.  The patients could just sit there and find new discoveries that would make them smile and forget their worries for awhile.

Take a breather...  Okay... On to medallions.

There were breathtaking applique medallion quilts all over.  The quilting on this one and the soft colors used made this one special.  And look around the applique blocks.  Those scalloped edges were Colonial Knotted in a pattern that matched the sashiko pattern in the background.  Now that's detail! 

Some of the quilts caught our eye because of the quilting, or the applique of course.  This one made me dizzy thinking of appliquing all those dots!  When I have to applique ONE circle on a quilt I grimace and think of the twisting and turning of the quilt (and same with quilting AROUND the circle!)  Aggh!  This would never get out of the planning stage in my book!   Actually I liked the way some of the leaves were embroidered within all the applique...

And we all spent a lot of time trying to figure out if the background fabric had been dyed in one piece on this (four large triangles were pieced together... whether it was dyed before or after the piecing I couldn't say.)

This was another beautiful medallion quilt and the variegated blue/purple background really set off the yellow flowers.  A plain background wouldn't have been half as eye-catching.

But actually I really liked this asymmetrical pieced background on this medallion.  It just made it different from all the others (and by the way, many quilts used that taupe background seen in that second medallion quilt.  There must have been a class using the background.)

Whew...  I'm tired!  I think I'll continue this tour tomorrow.  Did anyone notice that I've forgotten to change my watermark year....  We've already been into 2015 for three weeks and I hadn't realized that...  Well, I'm not changing this right now...  I think the Festival photos will just have to be watermarked WRONG!  Sorry about that!