This one is one Gooma8x and I just finished up... called "Blue Skies." I love it because it's a real change for us in many ways, but especially in terms of color. You won't typically see a lot of blue from us. It's something we agree on. But, I had a wonderful time working with the softer blues in this one and building around four of our birdhouses. This lap quilt is larger than our other pieces, and I like that a lot. In fact, I tested it more than once as I worked on piecing the top, making sure I got it to a size I thought would be really usable... rather than just decorative.

I'm big on use!

As I've mentioned recently on the CMP, my new bird sketches are coming in handy with the range of projects I'm working on for Here2There. This pillow features a number of batiks I picked up on vacation in Oregon this summer. I bought a stack of fat quarters that day - and seeing how beautifully they work up, I wish I'd bought more! I love working with a full range like this. And, though this is a more subdued palette than I sometimes work with, it really speaks to me.

Something of mine has made its way into an Etsy Treasury - my first time! I'm pretty excited because it's very flattering to have a piece hand-picked to go with a themed grouping. This one is called "I Feel the Earth Move Under My Feet."

I'm excited to announce that to go along with our work with Here2There @ Etsy, Opal and I have started a joint blog where we hope to talk about collaborative fiber work, bird art, our studios, quilting, and more. I hope you check it out!

It's been many months, I think, since I've shown ATCs in progress. This feels like a good turn of events... that they are on the counter and being worked on this way. The theme for the Creative Mom Podcast ATC Exchange for October is "A Song." I hadn't decided what direction I was taking, and then I heard a song on a current favorite CD in the car last week... and it all unfolded in my head what I wanted. And... well... they're in progress.

Oddly enough, another song was playing on another favorite CD in the stereo at home while I worked yesterday morning... and when I heard it, I couldn't help but look over at this set of ATCs. It was another song that would have worked. Two songs, both of which would have led me to this painting, something at once sweet and whimsical and a bit sad and very symbolic... and something that always reminds me fondly of a childhood forgotten.

I'll share the two songs when I show the final cards. (Words from the song will appear on the cards.)

Got a guess?

I've got a small list of custom photo pillows I'm working on these days, in and around other things (like schools and job). The above is a snippet from a pillow I finished over the weekend. I think it may be my favorite yet. It's a first in a few ways, too. But, all in all, it follows the same approach I take to my patchwork pillows - a look that really is my own. This one, I love, and I love, love, love the black and white dots. For more about this pillow, see the Here2There blog.

But, the reason I'm really popping in today, other than showing off the tones of that pillow... which just make me crazy happy... is to let all of you know that we're doing a few shows in November and December... the first one is next weekend. What that means is that we'll be taking most things out of the Etsy shop...

We'll be working to replenish things there, but I wanted to let all of you know that stuff's gonna suddenly be moving around... and disappearing from the Here2There Etsy shop (as well as the OAmyOAmy shop).

Wish us luck!

(And, hey... we're feeling lonely on the other blog. Come on... be the first to leave us a comment over there.)

As I get ready to sort of say "goodbye" to a bunch of things I've worked hard (and lovingly) on over the last few months, I have been trying to pull together a gallery of sorts for Here2There. You know me, I love a grid, and so there was something quite rewarding about seeing this group photo come to life (courtesy, of course, of the folks at Big Huge Labs). I like seeing how everything hangs together in terms of line and aesthetic and overall feel. Whether I work with earth tones or brights or blacks and whites... there is something "me" in these pieces. Patchwork is patchwork, it's true. It's been around forever. But, I value the art of it... and I know personal voice differs from artist to artist no matter what medium you work in. I look at these... and I see me. I know they each bear my mark... my look and feel... my spin on color and line. And that... makes me happy.

By the way, thank you to Ann-D and Eva for letting me know there was an issue with leaving comments over at Here2There. Hopefully it's all set now... and we'll hear from you! I was starting to take the silence personally - and it was all my own fault!