A few days ago, I met with my small quilt group and one of the members, who like me only makes it to meetings occasionally, brought her Mola in progress from the class I taught about a month ago. Yolanda is a talented quilter and skillful at hand applique and she chose a horse as the design focus on her Mola.
Way to go Yolanda! I can’t wait to see it finished.
I teach a lot of classes every year and I’ve been teaching them for many years. Much of the time, my student’s work flies off like fledged birds that make their way out into the world without a backward glance but every so often one returns, all grown up, for a visit.
I got two such visits in the last week, one never flew far from home as it is still waiting to fully develop its wings in a friends studio who I see on a regular basis though this little bird has been modestly out of sight the days I’ve spent there sewing with my friend; I had to ask her to coax it out so I could take this photo; this is my friend Jane’s Mola of a Navajo pot; I created the pattern but she is the first person to actually make it.
Then, just the other day I was teaching a machine quilting class at the Montavilla Sewing Center in Gresham and one of my students had brought in a quilt she made from a class she had taken from me a few yeas back. Here is Rita’s ‘Let Sleeping Cats Lie’ quilt.
Kudos to both Jane and Rita and thank you for letting me share your work with everyone.
Folklore and Mythology is rich with references to The Green Man. Known in many cultures, he is most prevalent in Celtic mythology. The Green Man is the male aspect of Mother Nature, he is consort to the Earth Mother Goddess and their union is the foundation of the Pagan May festival of Beltane.
The Green Man is portrayed as a hirsute man whose locks and facial hair are represented by leaves and branches. Sometimes he is pictured with horns like a stag.
Once a month, I hold an Art Journal Quilt class in which we explore techniques and design a bit more in the artistic realm than those usually found in quilting classes. A couple of months ago, the assignment was to create a collage of the Green Man starting with a printed or traced face and embellishing it with a collage of fussy cut leaves and flowers. At the last class, a couple of students brought their completed Green Man quilts for ‘Show & Crow’ and I’m posting them here for your enjoyment.
If you are curious or interested in the Journal Quilt classes, we meet monthly at two locations in Portland – The first Friday of each month at Pioneer Quilts in Milwaukie, and the last Friday of each month at Sewn Loverly in Wilsonville. Contact the shops for details or to register.
