Ke Ono

How delicious!


I had been hearing how yummy and interesting Ono Pops are. Today we went to the Haleiwa Farmer's Market and had the opportunity to try some.

Left to right are Lilikoi 50/50, Green Gingetanical, Pineapple Li Hing, and Creamy Pink Lemonade.

So what does this have to do with Twelve by Twelve? It's that Green Gingetanical. It's made with the unlikely combination of fresh ginger, honey, thai basil, sea asparagus (AKA sea beans or glasswort for Chopped and Top Chef fans), lime, and maybe a few other interesting ingredients we can't remember. Also on the menu was a Yellow Gingetanical which replaces the fresh ginger with candied, the honey with cane sugar, and the lime with lemon. The important part though is that the maker of these treats said these two flavors were inspired by the liqueur Chartreuse!! I'm not clear as to whether he was under the influence of Chartreuse while inventing these pops, or if it was just the color he was emulating, but what are the chances of a Chartreuse reference at all during our challenge?

Now I am considering how to incorporate popsicles into an art quilt...

Book Release Celebration! Introducing Chapter 12: Deborah and Twelve

I'm closing down this party! Yes, I'm introducing the last chapter from our book Twelve by Twelve: The International Art Quilt Challenge. Thank you so much for reading our twelve posts and celebrating with us! We have enjoyed your insightful comments so much. You'll have until midnight PDT on Thursday, March 17 to comment on any of the Book Release Celebration posts for a chance to win a copy of our book. The book drawing is closed.  Stay tuned for the winner details.

Twelve by Twelve Theme Series by Deborah Boschert

When Terry announced "twelve" as the last theme in our original series, I originally struggled with the idea. Actually, throughout the project, I found myself wrestling with how closely I should adhere to each theme. I didn't want to make quilts that were too obvious, nor did I want to make quilts that appeared to have no relation to the theme. I think I found a good balance with Seven Houses, Five Trees. I wrote more about this struggle and the process of creating the quilt in my chapter in the book.

Seven House, Five Trees by Deborah Boschert

So, for the last day of celebration posts, please tell us: How do you celebrate when you've completed a project?

Book Release Celebration! Introducing Chapter 11: Passion and Terry

Today is Day Eleven of our giveaway to celebrate the publication of our book Twelve by Twelve: The International Art Quilt Challenge. You know, by now, how this goes. Each day, for twelve days, we are asking you a different question. For a chance to win a copy of our book, just leave us a comment on any of the Book Release Celebration posts with your answer to the relevant question. Feel free to play every day! At the end of the twelve days, one lucky winner will be randomly selected. We will need to know how to contact you if you are the winner, so be sure to include an email address if you aren't linked to a blog or profile with that information. The book drawing is closed.  Stay tuned for the winner details.

Twelve by Twelve theme series by Terry Grant

Terry Grant here. The chapter I wrote for the book was about the theme of Passion, proposed by Kirsten. Yikes! That was such a hard theme to come together in my mind, and yet it turned out to be probably the most ambitious of all the pieces I made for the theme series. My chapter talks about why I chose Frida Kahlo as the subject representing Passion and the research I did to create her portrait, as well as the varied approaches the rest of the Twelves took to Passion.

Passion and Pain by Terry Grant

One thing I determined early on was that for quilts of this size I seldom liked using a traditional binding to finish the quilt. It seemed too heavy for most of mine. Some I backed with a pillowcase backing, some I faced and some I finished using a technique I figured out that was essentially couching a piece of heavy perle cotton or cording of some kind around the edge (see Terry's online tutorial). For my passion piece, I tied little knots in the cording at each corner. So here is today's question:

What is your favorite finishing technique for art quilts?

Book Release Celebration!Introducing Chapter 10: Identity and Terri

Today marks Day Ten of our giveaway to celebrate the publication of our book Twelve by Twelve: The International Art Quilt Challenge.  For a chance to win a copy of our book, just leave us a comment with your answer to our questions. Feel free to play every day! At the end of the twelve days, one lucky winner will be randomly selected. Please be sure we have a way to contact you if you are chosen to win a book. The book drawing is closed.  Stay tuned for the winner details.

Twelve by Twelve Theme Series by Terri Stegmiller

Hi everyone!  Terri here.  My chapter is about the theme Identity chosen by Helen.  This theme challenged us to think about who we are, our relationship to those around us, our contributions to society, and much more.  What identifies us?  What identifies you?  For my Identity quilt, I chose to portray the prominent roles I play on a day-to-day basis.  I started making a list and my key words (mother, daughter, wife, sister, teacher, cook, artist, quilter, friend) found their way onto my quilt.  These words are sewn into the spikes of hair.  The crazy sort of character on my quilt portrays how we can become overwhelmed at times trying to play many roles at one time.

Identity X9 by Terri Stegmiller

When I think back to when I was asked to join this group, I remember that I contemplated not joining.  I thought that perhaps I wouldn't have the time for it and I wasn't sure it was something I wanted to do.  Luckily I decided to join and I've never regretted it.

If you could join a group like this, would you? If so, what appeals to you? 

PS: Check out the Friends of Twelve by Twelve in the sidebar.  If you have been inspired by Twelve by Twelve and have formed an online group, let us know if you would like your group to be added to this listing.

Help Kelp

Living at a beach, we have a house rule - no breakfast unless you've had a walk and/or a swim. Whether walking or swimming, it's not unusual to come across kelp. On the seashore, the kelp tends to be brown and gnarled. In the water, it is a magical waving mass of golden chartreuse clinging to the rocks with small fish darting in and out. Yesterday, the surf dumped me into some floating kelp.  It was kind of scratchy but since it was close at hand, I brought some home to photograph.

Book Release Celebration! Introducing Chapter 9: Window & Kristin

Today is Day Nine of our giveaway to celebrate the publication of our book Twelve by Twelve: The International Art Quilt Challenge. As you undoubtedly know, each day, for twelve days, we are asking you a different question. For a chance to win a copy of our book, just leave us a comment on any of the Book Release Celebration posts with your answer to the relevant question. Feel free to play every day! At the end of the twelve days, one lucky winner will be randomly selected. (By the way, it is REALLY helpful if your comment is linked to a profile or blog that includes your e-mail address so that we can easily contact you if your comment is selected.) The book drawing is closed.  Stay tuned for the winner details.

Twelve by Twelve Theme Series by Kristin La Flamme

My (Kristin's) chapter is about about Window, a theme chosen by Gerrie. This challenge offered up an image to me right away, but other challenges were not always so clear. Much of our book is about our individual thought processes and how each of us approaches the same theme but in different ways. It is fascinating to see not just one way of approaching a design challenge, but twelve! The variety of approaches to this specific challenge was wonderful, and I write about each of our reactions, and how I went about making my own vision a reality in fabric.

Defenestration by Kristin La Flamme

This small quilt takes advantage of machine stitching, highlighted with paint, which was a new technique for me. But sometimes hand stitching is more appropriate, as with my zen-ish piece for our latest Colorplay challenge - Bonsai Tree of Life

So, which do you prefer, hand quilting or machine quilting?

Book Release Celebration! Introducing Chapter 8: Chairs and Gerrie

Oh, look! It is my turn. I almost didn't get this done on time. I am the last minute Twelve!! My name is Gerrie!

And, by now, most of you know the drill. I am going to say a bit about my chapter and then pose a question for you. If you leave a comment, you will get a chance to win a copy of our fabulous book Twelve by Twelve: The International Art Quilt Challenge. Did you know that it is getting rave reviews? Just check out one from the list in our sidebar. The book drawing is closed.  Stay tuned for the winner details.

Twelve by Twelve Theme Series by Gerrie Congdon

When Deborah announced the theme of Chairs, I immediately thought of the stack of turquoise chairs that I had photographed in a salvage shop. I had so much fun creating this piece. It allowed me to use several different surface design techniques.

Salvage Chairs by Gerrie Congdon

Before I pose my question, I want to take the opportunity to say that this has been a most interesting and exciting adventure that I have taken with the other eleven women.

I changed my question. I was supposed to ask you what size quilt you would like to make in an online challenge such as this. That seems rather limted to me. What I want to know is, what size art quilt are you most comfortable making or if you do not quilt, what size would you like to have hanging in your home? I have loved working in the 12 X 12 format. It has become very comfortable for me. I am currently working on a 36 x 48 inch quilt, and it is much more difficult for me to wrangle under the sewing machine. I usually try to do very simple quilting on a large quilt.

I am looking forward to your answers!

Chartreuse is a Neutral?

No pretty pictures of chartreuse things from me. And it looks like I'm going to have to get out my dyes and make some fabric for this challenge (I have half a bolt of solid green, but I think it's too lime, and too solid to work).

I did however, spend some time contemplating Gerrie's directive to use chartreuse as a neutral.

Webster's says neutral is "without hue, achromatic." What audacity to treat a color so specific and intense as chartreuse as neutral! I love it. Gerrie, you have caught my attention.

The more practical definition though is "matching well with many or most other colors or shades." And I'm pretty sure this will be my jumping off point. I will attempt to show that chartreuse goes with everything and is therefore a neutral.

Just for fun, I looked at other definitions of neutral -- to see if they sparked any related ideas.

• Chemistry: neither base nor acid, as distilled water.
• International Relations: like Switzerland (I could do the Swiss flag in chartreuse and white instead of red and white -- how fun would that be?!).
• Linguistics: neutral gender, ie "das" in german, which, along with the feminine "die" and masculine "der," I never did get good at remembering what words it belonged with.
• Mechanical: disengaged gears. Hmmmm...
• Electronics: the ground wire (that's usually brown in color though).
• Philosophy: like International Relations, not taking a side in a controversy.
• Network Neutrality: today's hot topic.

I've got a few ideas for where to take this. Does this kind of "research" or word association inspire others as well?

Chartreuse - cheers!

I was interested to learn that the color is called chartreuse because it is the same color as a liqueur called Chartreuse.

Isn't that beautiful? It is made in the French Alps by monks from a secret mixture of herbs. I have never tasted chartreuse, but I'd like to. I wondered if chartreuse was the same thing as absinthe, which is another liqueur of the same color, also made from herbs and quite famous in art history.

I googled around and learned that they are not the same thing, but I kept seeing them referred to as "cousins" so I am assuming there are similarities beyond the color. Absinthe has a very scandalous reputation. It contains small amounts of a hallucinogenic drug, derived from wormwood, as well as alcohol and gained the reputation of being very addictive and the ruination of many a good soul. Some sources say that Chartreus contains the same drug, but modern testing has shown that the amount of the hallucinogenic, in both liqueurs,  is so minimal as to be totally ineffective. Absinthe was actually banned in many countries, including the US, for many years, but has recently been absolved of its ruinous reputation and is now available in the US again.

I am a huge fan of Degas and have always loved his painting, "The Absinthe Drinker."

 

Is that not a testament to the evils of absinthe? What a face. A lost soul. But, just look at that lovely glass of absinthe. Beautiful chartreuse color. I was even more interested to discover, when I Googled the painting, that there are several other paintings by the same name, including a really great one by Picasso.

So, here's to Chartreuse. Bottoms up!

Laundry Day

I couldn't resist posting my latest chartreuse discovery.  I don't think I will follow this line of inspiration, but it added a smile to my face as I'm trying to catch up on the lack of underwear in the family's drawers.

Book Release Celebration! Introducing Chapter 7: Mathematics and Helen

Greetings from the UK!

;I bet you know how this works by now don't you?
There's a question at the end of this post. If you comment, giving us your answer, you go into a draw for a free copy of our book. And you make twelve quilters ridiculously happy to know that you are actually reading our blog and communicating with us! But please make sure that your comment includes a way for us to contact you in case you win or we shall be all sad not to be able to send you a nice glossy book. The book drawing is closed.  Stay tuned for the winner details.

Twelve by Twelve Theme Series by Helen Conway

Given my inabilty to add 2 and 2 without a calculator, it is ironic that I get to introduce the Mathematics chapter. Although thinking about it, my quilt was inspired by an adult learning late in life to count change, so maybe it is not that odd. It was also about the Obama election and how people's votes were being counted - with some people participating in democracy for the very first time. Really our Twelve by Twelve project has worked so well not just because of the participation of the members but also because of the participation of readers in commenting and setting up their own spin off groups (see Friends of Twelve by Twelve). So thank you!

Change by Helen Conway

Anyway, we are all enjoying totting up how many comments we get in this series of Book Release Celebration blog posts so why not answer today's question for us:

How much time do you spend every day (every week) reading art quilting blogs? Do you spend more time reading online than reading books?

Chartreuse Cactus Flower

Chartreuse inspiration

I took this picture in Kyoto last summer. I really like it and am thinking of using it as starting point for a 12x12 quilt.
But then, when I hear 'chartreuse', I also think of Stendhal and of his novel "La Chartreuse de Parme" and I feel like reading it again.

Book Release Celebration! Introducing Chapter 6: Shelter & Karen

Today marks the half way point in our  Book Release Celebration series of posts. Remember, EVERYONE who joins the discussion by leaving a comment in answer to today's question will go into a draw to win a copy of our book Twelve by Twelve: The International Art Quilt Challenge. The book drawing is closed.  Stay tuned for the winner details.

Twelve by Twelve Theme Series by Karen Rips

Hi everyone, this is Karen, and I'd like to talk to you about my chapter in our book Twelve by Twelve: The International Art Quilt Challenge.  When Terri gave us the theme Shelter my mind went everywhere from park benches to home and hearth.  After trying out a few sketches that were totally unmotivating to me, I came at the issue from a different view point and using my travel photos as inspiration, I went on to depict Machu Picchu using painted interfacing and thermofax screens.  If you'd like to learn more, Gerrie and I both talk about the thermofax process in the book.

Lost City by Karen Rips

I started out quilting about 30 years ago with traditional quilts, and didn't really make my first art quilt until 2005.  I haven't looked back, and rarely make traditional quilts anymore.  I'm wondering how many of our readers are art quilters, and did you follow the path I did, with traditional quilting first, or jump right into art quilting?

Book Release Celebration! Introducing Chapter 5: Illumination & Brenda

The celebrations continue here at Twelve by Twelve and we invite all our readers to join the party by leaving a comment on any (or all!) of the  Book Release Celebration posts. Each comment counts as a separate entry in our celebration giveaway.  You could win a copy of our new book Twelve by Twelve: The International Art Quilt Challenge. The book drawing is closed.  Stay tuned for the winner details.

Twelve by Twelve Theme Series by Brenda Gael Smith

Greetings from Brenda in the "other" Copacabana in Australia. Improvisational piecing is my preferred quilting MO but being part of the Twelve by Twelve project has encouraged me to experiment with a variety of techniques.  In fact, despite having once declared that I would never do shibori again, I went on to incorporate shibiori techniques in four of my pieces in the Theme series.  This includes Radiance, the lantern-inspired feature quilt in chapter five of the book which looks at the Illumination theme in addition to setting out twelve compelling reasons to blog.  

Today's question is: Are you (or were you) inspired to try a new technique from any of the Twelve by Twelve quilts? If so, which one(s)?