Yearly Archives: 2010

INDIGO STAR – QUILT OF THE MONTH #2

July 15, 2010

I have always loved quilt tops and have collected them for many years from thrift stores and yard sales. The problem with these beautiful hand-sewn tops is that it is impossible to use them until they have been quilted as the delicate woven fabrics fall apart when washed. Not so with our 100% organic cotton jersey, Alabama Indigo and Faded Leaves Jersey fabrics.

Our quilt this month is inspired by one of my favorite antique quilt tops and sewn to be the perfect lightweight cover. Made with our cotton-jersey in a single layer and a range of our Indigo, the quilt is sewn with our floating seams – described in both Alabama Stitch Book and Alabama Studio Style which give the effect those antique quilt tops. However, this technique eliminates the need to finish raw edges which will roll beautifully with the first washing.

The back of the is also very beautiful with the clean finished edges:

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THE MAP AS ART

July 9, 2010

Just as I am designing the new collection, a treasure of a book arrives on my desk from Princeton Architectural Press.

I have always been a fan of You Are Here: Personal Geographies and Other Maps of the Imagination.

And now Katharine Harmon has compiled the most beautiful collection of images and ideas in her newest book The Map as Art: Contemporary Artists Explore Cartography.

Quilts, installations, illustrations, photography… sitting with this book is like traveling while sitting at my studio table.

 

Katharine Harmon: The Map as Art: Contemporary Artists Explore Cartography

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CHEF’S PRESS

July 7, 2010

We were lucky when last in the Bay Area to be able to sit down and visit (eat) with Chef Bruce Hill at Restaurant Picco in Larkspur. Partner to our dear friend Kim from RedBird in Berkeley, Bruce is one-part chef, one-part entrepreneur and one-part inventor.

When he could not find what he deemed an appropriate chef’s press, he invented a set of his own. The set is clever in that they are designed with vents to allow moisture to release during the cooking process, they are stackable that you can choose the perfect weight for your recipe, they clean easily and are just beautiful objects for the kitchen.

Honestly, I had never used a press in cooking before and am delighted with my new found tool. I have been using mine for everything from French Toast (Maggie’s morning favorite) to the sausages (shown above) that I made last night. The best part about using the press set is that they save electricity by reducing cooking time – perfect for hot Alabama summers.

Chef’s Press by Bruce Hill

*Butch still says that our meal at Picco was one of the best that we have ever had in the Bay Area – not an easy feat in that food-rich community. Looking forward to our next trip.

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REFUELED VISIT

July 6, 2010

Thank you to Chris @ Refueled and all his family for coming out to celebrate Independence Day with us here in Alabama… they say that they are planning their trip for next year – hope it is true.

And thank you to my Uncle George for hosting one of the best parties of the year. The event – in it’s 13th year – has become just like an old-time “Dinner on the Ground:” good food, good friends, good music and great stories.

Someone said that the day was “just like a family reunion – with family that you like”…

Visit Chris for his whole Deep South Road Tour: http://refueledmag.blogspot.com/

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MORNING WALK

July 2, 2010

I have missed having a camera handy in my pocket these last months since my point-and-shoot was hijacked in the studio.

Last week I broke down and bought this Canon PowerShot. Little did I know that I was going to have to fight Maggie to keep it in my pocket.

Here is her document of our morning walk. You can tell that she is already obsessed with nail polish, shoes, things on the side of the road and flowers – a girl after my own heart.

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SEWN NEWS

July 1, 2010

Thank you to Sara  for showing me the work of Lauren DiCioccio and a new way to look at the everyday.

Artist Statement:

My work investigates the physical/tangible beauty of commonplace mass-produced media-objects, most recently: the newspaper, magazines, office papers and writing pads, plastic bags, 35 mm slides. These media are becoming obsolete, replaced by the invisible efficiency of various technologies. In some cases, this transition is a good thing- faster transmission and distribution of information, streamlined systems, openness to user input, less waste. But a hole is left behind by the disappearance of these everyday objects. What will happen when we no longer touch information? When newsprint does not rub off onto our fingertips? When we no longer write longhand?

The tedious handiwork and obsessive care I employ to create my work aims to remind the viewer of these simple but intimate pieces of everyday life and to provoke a pang of nostalgia for the familiar physicality of these objects.

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COFFEE + ATTICUS FINCH

Butch and Maggie built me a beautiful bird atrium for Mother’s Day this year and my surprise came complete with a Finch pair. Maggie named them Whitey and Blacky (although I loved the name Atticus Finch from my favorite book – and movie: To Kill A Mockingbird).

The two got busy building a nest as soon as they moved into their new home. Maggie has been collecting grass and twigs for their building adventures over the last month and Whitey has already begun to lay eggs.

I love to drink our morning coffee on the back porch in these first few days of summer and watch the two lovers frolic around their atrium.

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