tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-101808742011-09-01T11:17:16.652-07:00Things are getting more and more eccentric at Casa de la Swain. Changing styles in my textile work, falling in love again with painting and photography...and then there is the ever illusive quest for continuing creativity through working with Eric Maisel. Still on the road teaching, posting now at the Ragged Cloth Cafe and taking the pledge to keep handmaiden up to date.gabriellenoreply@blogger.comBlogger1314125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-35951333054571429382008-08-23T21:01:00.000-07:002008-08-23T21:01:24.821-07:002008-08-23T21:01:24.821-07:00

Hello everybody! Just when you thought it was safe, I am back. Thanks to everyone who has emailed, asked about handmaiden in classes and called to see how things were going. It has been a busy summer. I haven't been making quilts but have been teaching tons. I also got to spend time with most of the family.Pictured above from l to r: Jace, Gaia, Jene and Jayden. Gaia is Craig's daughter; the

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-7373455046237586572008-05-10T10:21:00.000-07:002008-05-10T10:37:23.605-07:002008-05-10T10:37:23.605-07:00

Okay, having dated myself by quoting a James Cagney gangster movie....here's a partial list of things to do from my beady, little mind.If I was on top of the world:No one would be hungry. There would be food for everyone on the planet.No one would be thirsty. Clean, pure water would be available from the smallest village to the largest city.No one would be homeless....self-explanatory.Now that

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-51064993461587535652008-05-09T08:32:00.000-07:002008-05-09T08:39:47.377-07:002008-05-09T08:39:47.377-07:00

Taking a bold move yesterday, the best colorist in the world, Tanya of Toni and Guy fame, decided that my choice to go back closer to the natural color of my hair was a good thing. After all, change is the only constant. Also, it would be interesting to see just how gray I am.Certainly there is still some red on the tips, but look at the roots (shown below) and note how brown they are. Tanya is

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-38412068599551992642008-05-03T07:47:00.000-07:002008-05-03T07:47:24.944-07:002008-05-03T07:47:24.944-07:00

Spent the better part of the week in the studio...see results above and below. Started on Monday with enlarging the first of the designs for the cliche series...the thing with the hearts and the big "m." Started to work on it that day and have results.This is a very different series for me but will lead to some more abstract letter forms soon. As a former calligrapher and a lover of all things

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-78108824208562103722008-04-28T06:27:00.000-07:002008-04-28T06:27:33.653-07:002008-04-28T06:27:33.653-07:00

Finally near the camera cables to post a few of the snaps from Paducah. Please note no quilts....again out of respect for the quilt makers. All of the photos are published in a great catalog from AQS if you would like to see who was in the show.Being in Paducah was truly an experience of renewal for me. Coming home is good especially if you come home with a great sense of renewal and

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-64102588488911643622008-04-26T07:17:00.000-07:002008-04-26T07:32:50.435-07:002008-04-26T07:32:50.435-07:00

Diane D, asked in a comment on the New Rules post how judging categories based on technique instead of style would effect the judges task. Thanks, Diane, great question.For myself only, it is good news since I hand quilt. Having said that, there are a few categories that are already judged in this same way. Group quilts and mixed techniques categories both include a variety of styles from

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-47033479930445886152008-04-25T07:59:00.000-07:002008-04-25T08:12:31.781-07:002008-04-25T08:12:31.781-07:00

This is the year of new rules for both Houston and Paducah. If you are in Paducah, you can pick up the entry form and see for yourself. For those of you who will have to wait, here is a brief synposis.Large Quilts (called the Bed Quilt Category1. Hand Quilted2. Home Sewing Machine quilted3. Long Arm Machine Quilted4. First Entry in AQS show...not necessarily your first quilt, just the first time

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-51944941570333845072008-04-21T07:20:00.000-07:002008-04-21T12:26:54.807-07:002008-04-21T12:26:54.807-07:00

This is a picture-free post since I left my camera cables sitting just where they belong on my desk at home. Having said that, being in Paducah is such a treat. Life is definitely slower here than at home. Almost nothing open downtown on Sunday....not to be deterred, Donna Wilder and I found a great restaurant yesterday. A full bar and good steaks and salads. Ahhh!The judging went well. Finished

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-21263853920807174972008-04-11T08:12:00.000-07:002008-04-11T08:13:34.937-07:002008-04-11T08:13:34.937-07:00

North Central Texas in spring and early summer can be a rather lively place. Not that many other states aren't in the same weather pattern. This week we have been in the path of the cool air meeting the warm air.....perfect conditions for the dreaded Severe Thunderstorms. The winds really take their toll. The leaf above was blasted onto our front porch. Since the leaf was wet from the rain, it

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-63699593995226457542008-04-07T09:24:00.000-07:002008-04-07T09:24:52.710-07:002008-04-07T09:24:52.710-07:00

For a few weeks I have been noticing the onslaught of pollen...feeling tired...sleeping late...and of course, the muddled brain. Ya know what I mean. You think you are clear headed and then you do something totally whacko. My Saturday in the studio being a fine example. Everything I touched went splat. However, at the time of touching, they all seemed like good ideas.Please note the ginormus bags

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-36028433093287481042008-04-06T17:52:00.000-07:002008-04-06T17:52:35.148-07:002008-04-06T17:52:35.148-07:00

Quickly an update on "Last Leaf"...yesterday was so frustrating. Almost fell into the trap of too much color yet again. Finally woke up to simplicity and chose three fabrics. Darkest for background, medium to do the line work in the background and lightest for leaves.This gorgeous sateen, hand-dyed by my bf Barbara, is just to gorgeous. Great color change....lots of places to cut for leaves.Busby

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-22511171250581379892008-04-05T08:49:00.000-07:002008-04-05T08:50:23.621-07:002008-04-05T08:50:23.621-07:00

Some faithful readers might remember "Last Leaf"....design shown above. This was the quilt that I slaughtered with color. Way too much color. What was I thinking? Or better yet was I thinking at all? Occasionally, in your quilt making career you will do something so off that you surprise yourself. So be thankful for do-overs. Thank you quilting gods.So I woke up early this morning with do-over on

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-83718658256813956882008-04-03T09:05:00.000-07:002008-04-03T09:05:48.478-07:002008-04-03T09:05:48.478-07:00

The joys of having an established garden are amazing. Stuff that was planted last year is blooming and thriving. However, there are some plants that shouldn't be. Behind the ground cover are mums...you got it. Fall mums with buds on them. Summer temps in Texas are bound to fry them to a golden crispy texture. They have no idea the fate that awaits them. Poor babies.They are happily growing

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-53795763685422763742008-03-31T09:12:00.000-07:002008-03-31T09:29:53.814-07:002008-03-31T09:29:53.814-07:00

Okay, I admit the title is ironic since I am sitting here blogging....but let's ponder this for a moment. Everyone is one the internet....YouTube, Blogger, WordPress and too many other places to name. Handmaiden used to get lots of comments; now very few. In part, this is due to my sporadic posting. On the other hand, many of my favorites aren't getting many comments either.Have we saturated the

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-20796909475585486042008-03-29T13:24:00.000-07:002008-03-29T13:26:38.289-07:002008-03-29T13:26:38.289-07:00

After appearing in several dvd's, Busby has acquired a rather large fan club. Many people ask after him when I am traveling and teaching. While I don't want to give him a more massive ego than he already has, I do share their best wishes with him. All that being said I still cannot abide the amount of white hair he disperses around the house.We don't have dust bunnies. We have Busby bunnies. On

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-69676511138926702612008-03-28T06:44:00.000-07:002008-03-28T06:45:50.135-07:002008-03-28T06:45:50.135-07:00

The creative spark class is still going strong. We have covered tons of information and they have done some amazing work. One of the assignments that I gave them was to set up a still life, with or without shadows to help develop composition skills. The great thing about this exercise is it makes you appreciate all the art teachers who set up those stil life compositions for you and artists who

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-71080170992448678182008-03-24T07:49:00.000-07:002008-03-24T07:53:49.366-07:002008-03-24T07:53:49.366-07:00

Sweet Ronnie's WorldI hope everyone had a delightful Easter. Since all our brood was otherwise engaged with family or friends, we spent a quiet weekend with each other. My only error was going to the grocery store on Saturday...thinking the shopping would already be done and the marauding hoards would be at home. Bad planning on my part. You know you have made a mistake the minute you hit the

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-42968542150779255512008-03-19T12:57:00.000-07:002008-03-19T13:08:35.031-07:002008-03-19T13:08:35.031-07:00

Two posts in one day...I am doing the fine art of piddling. To piddle being the intransitive verb or if you prefer a nice non-committal swear word...Oh, Piddle!Anyhoo, between calling my creativity students and working in the studio and front yard I found this:The Recipe For Gabrielle3 parts Talent2 parts Ingenuity1 part DaringSplash of IntellectShake vigorouslyWhat's the Recipe for Your

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-958684852093632392008-03-19T07:09:00.000-07:002008-03-19T08:41:42.705-07:002008-03-19T08:41:42.705-07:00

The year I graduated from high school is long ago and far away. We were told we were among the youngest, best and brightest. Many of us prepared to go off to university. For me, who had just gotten married to the husband "lovingly" referred to as the revolving door, images of being free from parental control loomed large. Having gotten married to get away from my mother, dreams of domestic bliss

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-13370713811402137342008-03-16T13:10:00.000-07:002008-03-16T20:01:28.591-07:002008-03-16T20:01:28.591-07:00

I don't pretend to have an assistant or many assistants. So it shouldn't shock you when I say I am playing catch-up most of the time. Thanks to my loving sons and their partners I have stayed on top of things for several years. Now it is all down to me since they have busy lives also. The nerve of them to grow up and become responsible adults....sigh.The picture above is me taking a picture of

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-75274555417058944662008-03-13T15:49:00.000-07:002008-03-13T15:49:42.990-07:002008-03-13T15:49:42.990-07:00

Sweet Ronnie is a Lou Dobbs fan; me, I am exhausted by all the political rantings from everyone. So what is one to do until Lou Dobbs signs off for today. One could finish the enlargements for two new quilts. Or get out the design for Last Leaf and start reworking it. Oh, I didn't tell you? I tossed away the finished, layered top even though I had already started quilting it. What? You gasp.

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-29149329341130855932008-03-12T12:17:00.000-07:002008-03-12T12:20:52.241-07:002008-03-12T12:20:52.241-07:00

Working to stay ahead of my students from the Creative Spark class is stretching me as well. Thanks to one of my design students from Phoenix, I was reminded of the original concept behind my leaf work...take the ordinary and make it extraordinary. This particular student from Phoenix brought a claw hammer as her design element. She had helped build her own studio and this design was to honor

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-77307386059223994932008-03-10T09:30:00.000-07:002008-03-10T09:32:40.286-07:002008-03-10T09:32:40.286-07:00

As promised, here are the photos from Williamsburg...whew! Blogger finally decided to co-operate. Above is a shot of the local shops across from William and Mary and down the block from the hotel. Great food and gorgeous setting.Some of my students hard at work on their surface design. Note that we put drop cloths under everyone...just in case we had a Jackson Pollack in the group...or an errant

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-3246747104774586672008-03-10T07:58:00.000-07:002008-03-10T08:42:35.051-07:002008-03-10T08:42:35.051-07:00

Hello everyone. I am still breathing and trying to work. Just tried to post pictures from Williamsburg but they were sent to the dead posts department of blog world. Will try to post them again later. Moving on....here's the skinny on what has been going on from coast to coast and in-between.My lack of posting is due to simply being too busy...accompanied with an the overwhelming desire to not

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10180874.post-30447812428039498482008-02-18T18:59:00.000-08:002008-02-18T18:59:42.750-08:002008-02-18T18:59:42.750-08:00

First, I cannot believe how long it has been since I have talked with you. Poor little handmaiden has suffered from neglect.....but I have been incerdibly busy. I know that is no excuse but it is my story and I am sticking to it. I spent a wonderful 6 days is the heart of northern California...visiting Redding and Chico. The Redding guild shown above and a wonderful quilt from Carol in Chico,

gabriellenoreply@blogger.com5