Happy Birthday to the RI Modern Quilt Guild!

I had an excuse to break in my beautiful new Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer this weekend (isn't she a beaut in green apple?):

The Rhode Island Modern Quilt Guild celebrated our first birthday!  When I started the group last year, I wondered "Could there be one or two other people in Rhode Island who are interested in modern quilting?"  Now, we have a mailing list of nearly 100 members, and draw about 20 people to each of our monthly meetings.  Even on gloriously beautiful beach days.  In Rhode Island, that's really saying something.

Convening with a creative community is so powerful.  I have grown so much this year as a quilter because of the inspiration, resources, and accountability that are available to me as a member of this group.

As a thank you, the guild's co-leader (Tara) and I baked us a fancy birthday cake!

And would you believe it?  Those sweet, thoughtful members made me a surprise wedding gift!  A collaborative quilt!  Members made blocks, Tina pieced them together, Sue quilted it, and Tara did the binding.

 

Not only does this community bring me all kinds of creative inspiration - it also helped me find my new friend Tara.  It's been a long time since I've made a new friend.  Tara came to one of our meetings, and we immediately hit it off.  She makes the most incredible custom quilts through her creative business, Ewe Have Me in Stitches - you dream it, and she makes it a reality.  Check out her fabulous Etsy Shop here.  

Happy Birthday, RI Modern Quilt Guild!  May year two be even more fruitful and amazing than year one!

Creative Community

my first cathedral window, for the pincushion swap, from this tutorial

Over the weekend, the Rhode Island chapter of the Modern Quilt Guild met for our monthly meeting.  I started the group back in June, and it's one of the weekend activities that I most look forward to.  We had seventeen people in attendance, who all brought projects and tips to share with each other.  This month, we did a pincushion swap - so everyone came away from the meeting with a handmade gift.  

I learn so much from everyone in the group, and always come away from the meetings ready to spend the rest of the weekend in my studio sewing.  

Isn't it lovely to be part of a creative community?  It's like recharging my inspiration battery.  And of course, sharing my own energy and excitement for quilting with others.  

Quilt Camp | My Classmates

The most wonderful part of my week at quilt camp was meeting the other talented and devoted quilters.  I may be the youngin' by about twenty years, but we had a great time, and I learned so much from these women.

Unfortunately, the only photo I have of the whole class is a little blurry, but here we all are!  

From L to R: Donna, me, Susan (teacher), Viola, Beverly, Lori, and Janet.

Beverly's bajillion squares and half square triangles were coming together to be a baby quilt.

Lori finished up the quilt top for a really large and impressive queen-sized wedding quilt.

Janet created a couple of really beautiful quilted landscapes.

Viola worked on these incredibly pristine log cabin blocks.  She put together a dozen, and has many more to go to make a queen-sized quilt!

Donna designed this very personal quilt for her sister, who is a potter.  She took photos of pieces created by her sister, and printed them out on fabric.  Down on the bottom are some photos of her sister's hands as she is throwing pots.  I love this quilt!

More tomorrow on my teacher's work - amazing quilts!  And later on this week: a finished quilt by me!

The Fine Art of Recycling

A few weeks ago, I hinted that I was working on a BIG project that involved lots of milk cartons.  Here's the full story:

National Grid, in partnership with the City of Providence and the Environmental Protection Agency, is proud to announce the 'Fine Art of Recycling' art exhibit, designed to encourage citizens to save energy and money by recycling their old refrigerators. Start practicing the fine art of savings today by recycling your old fridge. Then visit all eight decorated refrigerators in downtown Providence. Each refrigerator was given a new life using paint and creativity from local artists.

There are eight fridges total, transformed by local artists and on display around downtown Providence through October.  You can see all of the designs online, and download a walking map at the Saving is an Art Website. You can also vote for your favorite design, and enter to win an energy efficiency gift basket.  Visit the site to vote!

Here's my fridge!   

My sculpture is called "Windmill Whimsy."  Here's some of the thinking that went into my design:

I am a crafter/quilter and I enjoy transforming repurposed materials, vintage notions, and patterned fabric into decorative and beautiful art.  In this piece, instead of using new fabric, I collected colorful, recycled milk and juice cartons and used them as "fabric" - I cut them up and reassembled them into "quilt blocks" covering the fridge.  The quilt blocks are a traditional pattern - a windmill block - which reminds me of the possibilities for renewable energy.   

It's in a great spot - right next to the river downtown!  Stop by and say hi!  And don't forget to place your vote!

Playful Aprons and a Collaboration

A few months ago, Nikole from Uhuui (yoo-hoo-ee) contacted me about a fun collaboration. Nikole created her own fabric line inspired by the simplicity and freeness of children's drawings. She sent me a stack of her beautiful, playful fabrics, and in exchange I created a set of children's art utility aprons to help her showcase what her fabrics can do!

She even sent along this way-cute set of notecards in the same designs as her fabrics - so cute!

{ pink and purple dots }

With some of the remaining fabric, I've created some more children's art utility aprons and listed them in my Etsy Shop.

{ rainbow stripes }

{ rainbow scribbles }

{ blue scribbles }

{ blue scribbles with pink and purple dots }

All of these aprons are available for purchase in my Etsy Shop. Check them out! And if you're interested in purchasing some of this fabulous, playful fabric, visit Uhuui's shop to learn more!

Creating in a Community

My friend, Brittney, is a professional photographer. She's been building her indie business, Poppy Photography, as I've been building Connect the Dots, and I am just in awe of how she is barreling forward, taking care of business, and learning along the way. She is one creative lady!

She stopped by to take some product photos of my work in exchange for a Connect the Dots original iphone case. I love trading services with other artists - for me, there is such joy in creating as a part of a community, and helping each other out makes me feel really connected to that community.

Here are some of the photos she took:

Thanks Brittney! I am so thrilled to have these photos in my portfolio! See more of Brittney's photos in my flickr photostream.

This is Awesome: My First Zine & GIVEAWAY

I turned 25 on Monday!

It felt like a big milestone - this has been a big, wonderful year. So I wanted to celebrate with a party and all of my dear friends in one room. Here's a shot of my divine chocolate cake (which, fortunately/unfortunately, appears to be my breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the next six days since everyone is so sugared out from Christmas)!

For the party, my creative friend Alice helped me to make my first zine (a small, self-published work). It's called 25 Things I've Learned About Myself in 25 Years, and I made it as a gift to myself, to my friends, and to you, dear reader. That's right, I want to send one to you!

So, to get your copy, here's all you need to do:

Leave a comment below with something you learned about yourself by the time you were 25, or something you *hope* to learn about yourself by that time. And don't forget to leave a way for me to get in touch with you (email or address, etc.).

Here's one from my zine:

#16: I like going to the library to pick out books more than actually reading them.

Can't wait to read yours! Thanks so much, dear reader, for a great 25th year! Here's to year 26!

An amazing studio sale

The Cardboard Pankakes Studio Sale on Saturday was so amazing! Emmy & Andrew covered their apartment in brown paper and cardboard (even lamps and rocking chairs!), and 12 local artists packed the walls and tables with our colorful creations.

Each artist, as an entry fee, brought some form of food to share. All varieties of cookies, brownies, and vegan biscuits were scattered about the apartment and made for wonderful, sweet treats throughout the day!

It was incredibly well attended! It felt like about 200 people came through the apartment, including lots of friends - like Jess and Alice! And some new friends, like Greta who came by my table and told me that she reads the blog. It was so exciting to meet a reader that I didn't know!

And lots of people bought some super fabulous gifts for their friends and family (myself included!), and for themselves too! Here's Tali showing off her new pair of Connect the Dots earrings.

It was so cozy and comfortable and it really felt one part sale, two parts celebration of being artists in this amazing Rhode Island community. Andrew was even selling pizza strips (totally a Rhode Island thing - pizza minus the cheese - I call it "saucy bread")! And Dylan and Dan from New Urban Arts were jamming in the front room to add to the festive atmosphere.

But, listen, don't take my word for it. Check out this totally amazing slideshow of photos taken by Jori Ketten. She really captured the magic of the event!

Thanks so much to Jean, Emmy, and Andrew for making such a wonderful day happen!

Studio Sale this Saturday!

I'll be taking part in this studio sale on Saturday, alongside some pretty amazing Rhode Island artists. Check out the facebook invite for more information, and I hope to see you there!

It's Here!

Remember a few weeks ago when I announced that my creations would be included in the 2010 Brown Alumni Magazine Holiday Gift Guide? Well, it's finally here!

If you're not a Brunonian, fear not - the full article and all the photos are available online. Check out these beautiful spreads of things created by Brown alumni! Can you guess which ones are Connect the Dots creations?

I'm so honored and excited to be part of this diverse roundup of unique creations!

I'm going to go ahead and count this as satisfying Goal #10 of my 10 Things in 2010: Participate in a Holiday Craft Sale. The orders have been rolling in through my Etsy Shop, so be sure to put your holiday order in soon while there are still lots of designs to choose from!

This is Awesome: Artsgiving

At New Urban Arts, the open after-school art studio where I'm an Artist Mentor, it's an annual tradition to gather together for Artsgiving this time of year.

The concept is simple: everyone puts their name in a hat, and everyone chooses a name.

You have 1 1/2 hours to create a piece of art for your person.

The studio is buzzing - there are glue guns, paints, crayons, markers, scissors (if you can find them!), fabric - everywhere, and anytime someone announces how much time is left everyone freaks out a little.

Everyone has a bag on the wall, and you have to stealthily sneak your gift into their bag.

Then we sit in a circle, each opening them in turn and revealing the artist behind the gift.

You give a little something, and you get a little something.

It's warm and fuzzy and one of my favorite parts of being in the New Urban Arts community. (And an easy thing to replicate anywhere else in the world...maybe even with your fam at Thanksgiving?)