Snowman

We've already had quite a heavy dose of winter here in Billings, Montana. Basically, our entire fall was pretty much winter. We've had snow, but it has been too cold for a snowman . . . . until now! Airus had his own ideas about what it should look like. One eye, and a helmet on his head - those were touches he insisted on. (he has recently discovered super heroes and super villains)

And how about that haircut? His bangs whacked off in the middle. His silly mother (my daughter) was not paying attention when she was giving him a haircut. Fortunately, he is adorable no matter what!

WAV Holiday Gift Challenge

I am a founding member of WAV (We of Artistic Vision), a small art quilting group organized in 2003 or 2004 (? - I need to check my records). Since it's inception, our members have insisted on a Christmas gift exchange with a theme.

The theme for 2009 was "spiral" and "pockets". I opted to include both in my creation - a festive satin handbag. The hand painted satin was block printed with Setacolor paints.

Layered, and stitched - then sewn into a shoulder bag.
The recipient was Jeanne Knudsen!

The closing flap is embellished with vintage beads from my maternal grandmother's collection of broken costume jewelry!

Seattle Waterfront in December

Visiting the waterfront is another favorite activity when we visit Settle. This was Joe's home until I lured him away in 2000. Erin spent her first 10 years living in the Seattle area.
It was John's first visit.

A waterfront visit must include a stroll through Pikes Place Public Market - a feast for the eyes. I didn't take many pictures as we were distracted with the baby, but I did admire the huge displays of fresh seafood!

Seattle Skyline

The view of the Seattle skyline from Alki Beach is probably one of the best ways to get the view without having to board a ferry.

This is also a great place for a beach walk, which John and Erin took, while Joe and I sat in the car with Breckin, who was sleeping.

Experience Music Project / Science Fiction Hall of Fame

One of our favorite places in downtown Seattle is the Experience Music Project located at Seattle Center (where the Space Needle is).
The Experience Music Project provides wonderful hands on opportunities - Breckin's first encounter with a keyboard was really fun to see.
The special exhibit was a glass art installation.

It was rather difficult to photograph, so I took advantage of the shutter delay to get some fun photos of light in motion.

The Science Fiction Hall of Fame is a new addition to the museum - added since our last visit.
John and Joe are both Science Fiction fans - so they really enjoyed seeing all the memorabilia from favorite TV shows and movies.

Museum of Glass - Glass on the Plazas

This piece is called
"Fluent Steps" by Martin Blank

This installation is located closest to the museum entry.

Christmas Stocking

This is Breckin's first Christmas and lucky Nana got to make his stocking.
I made it out of the satin fabric stash owned by his great grandmother Margaret.

I never had the chance to meet my mother-in-law, but I was fortunate to receive her vast collection of satin bolts. She used to make satin pillow cases from all that satin.

I thought Breckin's stocking should be made of his great grandma's fabric.
I did a little hand stitched embroidery to embellish the satin strips.

Tacoma Museum of Glass - Installation

The outdoor installations at the Tacoma Museum of Glass are many.

This tall cone is the central core of the museum structure. It houses the hot shop, with the flue extending up through the top. When we visited, a Montana glass artist was doing the week long residency. The hot shop is set up with stadium style seating and there is a host who explains everything they are doing. Anyone can see this online because it is streamed live from the website here.

Tacoma Museum of Glass

The approach to the Glass Museum involves walking across a bridge that spans the freeway.
This bridge has been adorned with several art installations.

Enclosed outdoor shelf
each piece is an individual work of art. The colors are rich and vibrant.

Likewise the ceiling . . . . layers of blown glass.

Rich colors and textures.

A happy group in spite of the slow drizzle.

Lady in Waiting SOLD!

I have just learned that this piece sold at the "In Stitches" exhibit at the
Livingston Center for Arts and Culture!

Although this piece is a very personal expression of my angst over my daughter's pregnancy, I am not particularly attached to it.
The feminine image is inspired by an Egyptian tomb painting. All the fabric is hand dyed.
I sewed all these beads on while staying with my father during his recovery from knee surgery.

Museum of Glass in Tacoma

We were able to include some sightseeing in our trip to Seattle.
This was John's first visit to the area.
We stayed with Joe's sister, Rochelle in Puyallup. Wednesday was rainy, so we stayed in the neighborhood and went to Tacoma.
First stop was the Museum of Glass in downtown Tacoma.

The approach to the museum included some spectacular outdoor art glass installations.

Glenn St. Charles 98th Birthday Party

Joe's father, Glenn St. Charles turned 98 on December 15.
We flew into Seattle to celebrate this important occasion with him.
This is the first time Breckin (9 months) and Glenn have met.

We enjoyed visting with family members from the area, who gathered at Glenn's home.

left to right: Glenn St. Charles, Erin St. Charles holding Breckin Ingram and John St. Charles.

Greg Jahn Pottery

I mentioned a while back that I visited an Open Studio artist to replenish my mug supply.

Well, I finally have some pictures.

I especially love Greg's porcelain mugs because they are so very thin.

I just do not like drinking from a cup with thick sides!

I guess you could say I am a bit of a collector . . . I probably have 15 or so of Greg's mugs and I love them all! (I do have my favorites, though!)

Visual Journal - Another page

Visual Journal Entry #5

This is one of my favorites so far. Can you identify the face in the photo? I tried to make certain he would not be recognizable.