I'll Have a Tequila Sunrise...

Coming of age while living in Ft. Lauderdale - I certainly have had my share of Tequila Sunrise.  Every tiki hut, beach bar, pool bar, patio bar, club - claimed they made the best Tequila Sunrise.  Served in fancy glasses, hurricane glasses, tall glasses, plastic glasses, thermos cups... you name it.  But the secret, the real key to a perfect Tequila Sunrise is to serve it in a tall, plain glass - no cherry, no umbrella, no froo froo - just ice  - so after it's poured, you can witness the colors slowly run,  pulling red into orange, into clear - settling at the bottom  - like a beautiful watercolor painting.

Oranges, yellows, pinks, reds - Tequila Sunrise Colors,
Indian Summer Colors, California Sunset Colors -
all represented quite nicely in my fabric stash - and begging to made into modern quilt blocks.  Looking at them as they are piling up - makes me happy  (and thirsty!)

What I'm going to do with them - I'm not exactly sure.  A quilt, a wall hanging, patio table placemats??? Not sure yet.  The only thing I AM sure of..... I'm gonna make some  more!

OH!  and in case you're interested THIS is how you make the perfect 

TEQUILA SUNRISE....

A Tequila Sunrise can be made  two different ways, the original and MY favorite - is made with  tequila, crème de cassis, lime juice and a spritz of soda water.  The  more popular concoction and home version, is made with tequila, orange juice, and grenadine syrup.

Originally served at the Arizona Biltmore Hotel,

(I never knew that) the

cocktail is named for the way it looks after

it has been poured into a glass. The denser ingredients (cassis or grenadine) settle, creating gradations in color that mimic a delicious sunrise.   Kinda like these blocks here.

I think I'll have another!

Modern Quilt Monday!!!

My Janome has been in the shop for the past week.  I've had it for over two years and have never had it serviced.
I clean it all the time - but it was starting to squeak, and act silly so off it went to Quilts Like Crazy (a Janome certified service center and quilt shop extraordinaire) in Wake Forest for a little pampering and R&R.

To get me by - I dusted  off my not so old standby - a little Brother machine that works like a peach  for piecing and garment sewing.  A cute little machine that eventually will be going off to college with Sabrina in a few years. 

Modern Quilt Monday(s) - begin TODAY. First order of business - I added to my stash to incorporate some bold, bright colors and prints.  Everything got washed, pressed and neatly folded ready to be incorporated into the already existing stash.

Second order of business - I joined a local guild that focuses on modern color schemes and technique.  I am so happy I found this group.  The Modern Quilt Movement (incorporating  Improvisational Quilting) is taking the quilting industry by storm.  Fabric lines, patterns and techniques specifically adapted to this bold and colorful  art form are popping up all over.

Tonight - I've got to figure out my color scheme for my first mod quilt.  I can't decide if I want to do white with blues, greens and purples, or white with reds/pinks, oranges and yellows.

For now  - I'm just really happy sitting here sipping my St. Ives Tea,  looking at all of these beautiful colors, contemplating design - and enjoying the fact that Gizmo has taken it upon himself to keep my feet warm!!

What a guy!

Alone Again.......

Naturally.  I need to get organized.  I've got so much stuff swimming around in my brain.  I always thought that when kids got older - it got easier.  WRONG!  There is so much to remember, so many things to do, places to be, deadlines, applications, meetings - eek - it just gets to me after a while.  I know I'll miss it now with Sal heading off to college and Sabrina only 3 years away.  But still - it's overwhelming.

I decided that since Blaise was going to Atlanta for a boat race that I couldn't go to because Sabrina had school -- that Friday, we'd play hookie, pack up the jeep and head over to the Carolina Coast for a little R&R.

In the middle of nowhere - that's where it feels like you are when you are on Topsail Island, NC.  A far cry from the uber crowded and noisy beaches of South Florida where we are used to spending our beach time.  Miles and miles and miles of desolate, peaceful , immaculate beach where all you hear is the sound of the waves and the call of the birds.  These pictures were taken on Friday and Saturday - can you believe how unpopulated the beach is?

It was nice to have a few days to relax outside. No chores, no television, no computer, no phone, no e-mail, no facebook, no blogger, no doorbell and lots of quality time with my girl.  And while the beach was devoid of humans, we made plenty of other friends...I did have to lure this guy closer with fish (pretzel goldfish!) but he had no problem coming right up to our blanket and gobbling them up. 

What's also cool about this place is you can bring your dogs.  We didn't know this or Tobie and Gizmo would have been right there with us.  We saw quite a few dogs including a corgi that loved playing in the waves. I really liked it here - very unpretentious.

When we first drove up and saw the outside - I know we were both a little unsure  - but upon entering our room , we found it to be  charming, very beachy and most importantly - immaculate.  And the view from all windows was beautiful --  framed with crisp, white curtains.

We're back home now - the jeep has been washed and vacuumed (it gets really, really dirty inside with the top off), the bags unpacked, the laundry washed and put away - and now it's business as usual.  Blaise still isn't back from his boat race and Sal is working all day so we have one more day of peace and quiet.  Sabrina is on her bed reading, and I'm in the studio working on some WIPS (two needle cases, a gothic baby quilt (yep, that's right)  a cape cod table runner and a few other odds and ends that are cut out, partially stitched together) that I intend to finish up this week before starting any other projects.  My goal is to get them ALL done by next weekend.  I really want to start my MOD Quilt!

I know I am a self-proclaimed "mountain girl."  But I do miss the ocean.  That was the ONLY thing I loved about living in South Florida.  The ability to go to the ocean whenever it beckoned - which was almost every day.  I'll leave you now with this beautiful sunrise of Topsail Island. 

Have a great week!  And by the way - what WIPS do YOU have laying around? 

Groovy Baby! Mod Quilts....

I've discovered something new (at least new to me)  - Mod Quilts and Paintbox Quilts.  It was love at first site.

In my travels across the internet I stumbled upon Oh Frasson! and there -- before my very eyes were quilts created from the the most striking  color pallettes I've ever seen.  Using black and white, white or Kona solids, this gal mixes color and hue like a master.  And the way she finishes the backs of her quilts - perfection. 

I'm not gonna lie -  I've always  loved old fashioned quilts - applique, traditional piecing, Amish, etc. but I love them even more when the old meets the new -- traditional piecing or applique that uses uses bold, contemporary prints and bright colored fabrics.  Double that with contemporary design piecing AND the wild color schemes -  and THAT is something that gets my attention.

I want to make a color + white quilt  myself.  So I  bought two gorgeous selections of fabric - one of Kona classic solids, by Kafman, and one called "Gallery" by Kaufman. Both of which I think will compliment the batiks and prints I have on hand.  Oh Yeah - I love these intense colors! 

There's a  Fresh Modern Quilts flickr group if you're interested in seeing some really amazing eye candy.  And Oh Frasson's! website has some great patterns and tutorials utilizing really cool color combinations for bold "out of the ordinary" results.  I just love looking at them.

Today and tomorrow I'm finishing up some WIPs and upon the arrival of my new purchases - I will be starting my own version of a Mod Quilt. 

Oh the possibilities! 

"A Book Must be the Ax, for the Frozen Sea Within Us..." (Kafka)

There is no better cure for creative block (the frozen sea!) , than an inspiring book (the ax!)  In the market for a new book, after researching about 10 books, I decided to purchase the next in a series of books I already own written by artist/author, Sandra Meech - Connecting Art to Stitch.

I already have Contemporary  Quilts and Creative Quilts: Inspiration, Texture & Stitch: - both written by Meech, and I can't tell you how many times I have gone to both of them for inspiration or instruction.  I knew by purchasing this most recent book - I couldn't go wrong.

This new book (copyright 2009) is laid out very similar to her other books with a section on, "Using this Book",  as well as five additional sections outlining various techniques and procedures, discussing materials, use, providing examples, and in many cases - "exercises" that really drive home the points she is trying to make, while reinforcing basic design principles.  Yay!

Hey - do you have a favorite "go to" book in your art/craft/quilting/mixed media library?  Do tell.