I was no less productive in 2009 than in years past, it is just that I posted all of my earlier quilts in one "fell swoop" at the end of 2008. The two recent Tidepool quilts were the focus of my attention at the beginning of the year but once they were finished, I switched to the "Senegal" travel poster in time for the Coastal Quilters Guild Challenge in June. August was happily spent in the cabin at the family ranch in northern Colorado spent making three queen size quilts to add to my stock pile. Trouble was that no sooner were they in it then they were out - my brother relayed the wonderful news that both of his daughters have either married or are about to be. The third I had mentally set aside for Toby since the only "large" quilt I've ever made for him was twin-size. He and his lady Lauren picked out a very colorful creation which will be posted next year because the back has yet to be made. Their quilt will be two-sided with the second side made of Senegalese fabrics Toby brought back to me after each stay there. Meanwhile, I've been whiling away my time making graduation presents (June is fast approaching) and next year's Guild Challenge.
Perhaps the most exciting thing about this year has been getting my work shown. Over the years I have hung quilts at the local Coastal Quilters Guild biennial show "Harvest of Colors" but these are not juried exhibitions. "Tidepool Souvenirs" was my first juried exhibit; it was shown at Road to California in January. Its successor, "Tidepool Souvenirs - Littoral Memories" was juried into Pacific International Quilt Festival in October. December marked my first ever one-person show at The Health Gallery here in Santa Barbara.
This year's quilts are tucked away under the rubrics: Tidepool Quilts, Watercolor Wash, Pyramid and Landscape.
