Have been insanely busy for the past two weeks or so with this and that, but I’ll start with the best first:  Eli’s wrestling season has begun!   A week ago the team attended a 6-team pre-season meet and WON despite some early-season wobbles by some team members.  Eli is, for the first time, losing a bit of weight which is commonplace in wrestling.  Fortunately, this is carefully monitored by the governing body and the school:  you weight in a couple weeks before the season, you are limited to losing only a small percentage of your body weight, and you cannot lose it too fast (or you can’t wrestle), and total body fat percentage cannot go to low.  So fear not, folks!  Anyway, Eli is wrestling at 145 pound weight class.

Eli, back to camera, begins getting ready mentally by pacing the sidelines. I get ready mentally by taking a “good juju” photo of him pacing.

The team begins warm-ups.

Eli practicing at warm-ups with Connor (Eli is facing the camera)

Eli’s (in red) first match. Notice the ref smacking the mat to indicate he has pinned his opponent and won.

Second match, against Massabesic. Pinned!

Eli: third match: pin! Are you noticing a trend here?

Then this weekend, while I was doing a fundraiser at the concessions stand at the high school (so the Cross Country and Track and Field teams can buy two EZ-Up tents), was the first official meet of the season.  Eli wrestled both at his own weight class and up one, at 152-lbs.   He had five matches.  He won one by forfeit (no opponent in the weight class on the other team).  Eli won three on points and one by a pin.  The above are all pins.  When you pin someone’s shoulders for a full second (which lasts a lot longer than you’d think, and especially if someone is wiggling their shoulders on and off the mat a lot), the match ends and you win.  Otherwise there are three periods of two minutes each.  You get various points for take downs, escapes, back points, and so on.   If you win on points, you have wrestled all three full periods (with delays for nosebleeds, stalemates, throwing up –when someone puts a REALLY tight waist on, and so on).

Eli’s fifth and final match was against the kid from local rival Belfast, a town about 30 minutes north of Camden Hills.  Said kid placed third at States last year.   At the end of regulation (the third period) it was tied at 5-5.  In DOUBLE OVERTIME ELI WON 9-5!!!!!!   WOW!   So he is still undefeated.  We are looking forward to the season, tho I’ll admit Eli is already looking forward to eating as much as he wants once the season is over in March!  Yes, I am an unabashedly Proud Mama!   (And he’s Honor Roll, too!)

The winner of the video download from Lisa Walton’s portion of the bloghop is Jodie A, comment number 9 (thank you to random.org for providing the online random number generator between 1 and 17).  THANK YOU!

To order a DVD, visit my Store page here, or to order either the DVD or a digital download, visit Quilting Arts’ Interweave Store, here.

Make sure to enter the final Grand Finale Bloghop and Giveaway, here.  The drawing will be December 10th.  That’s SOON!

A quick addition to my bloghop-giveaway post featuring my friend Lisa Walton of Sydney, Australia.  Remember I mentioned she made fabulous stenciled /painted quilts…she sent me a jpeg of my favorite:  Orvieto Memories, inspired by a teaching tour she led to Italy.

Lisa Walton’s Orvieto Memories

Also, you can find Lisa on Facebook, here.  This is her Dyed and Gone to Heaven Page, and she’s really close to TWO THOUSAND LIKES!   Let’s help her get there, so go visit and LIKE her page!  Enjoy surfing.

This drawing is now closed!  The winner is  comment 9, Jodie A!   Congratulations!

One of the joys of the internet is making friends around the world!   I’ve even “seen” Lisa’s studio and hubby thanks to the wonder of Skype!  Today I’d like you to meet Lisa Walton from Sydney, Australia.   Her passion for dyeing fabric and art quilts has turned into a wonderful business, Dyed and Gone to Heaven, and career as international teacher (tutor in Australian), author, and artist.  She fell in love with beads and then with surface design, and you can see all of these skills in her work.   Lisa has reviewed  my DVD workshop on her blog, Fibre Inspirations.  Yep, this video again:

My video workshop.

To order a DVD, visit my Store page here, or to order either the DVD or a digital download, visit Quilting Arts’ Interweave Store, here.  And, of course, you can enter the various giveaways thanks to the generous quilt artists who are helping me give away copies!

Lisa is the author of a new book that features her hand-dyed fabrics (which by the way you can order, and postage and travel-time from Australia to the US are not too bad!), but you can easily make these fun and fast quilts–and gorgeous too–using batiks and other commercial fabrics:

Beautiful Building Block Quilts by Lisa Walton. Order from her, here.

I frequently think I need to loosen up, and Lisa’s book has me hankering to try one of the Building Block Quilts.  I’m also seriously in love with some of Lisa’s stencilled quilts, a technique she teaches!  She sells ArtistCellar stencils, too.  I think I may see a small splurge in my future!

Many of you may recognize Bushfire, which Lisa made with Nic Bridges, as it was on the cover of the AQS books catalog one season!

Bushfire by Lisa Walton and Nic Bridges

Then there is this beauty–don’t you want to just go dye fabric and then PLAY?

Crystallisation by Lisa Walton

One of these days I hope I get to Australia, then I can visit Lisa and Peter at home, and they can tell me all the fabulous places to eat–Lisa’s FaceBook photos of her meals around the world are enticing!

Thank you so much, Lisa, for taking time from a VERY busy season to watch and review my workshop!

Please visit Lisa’s blog to learn how to leave a comment and a chance to win a download version of my video workshop, Art Quilt Designs From Photo to Threadwork!

And before I close this post, I have to share Fields of Gold, a quilt made with a gift from Lisa of her fabric.  The yard ranged from rust to gold to green….it is Lisa’s fabric that TOTALLY made this quilt work!

Fields of Gold by Sarah Smith, made with fabric by Lisa Walton. This quilt went missing when a private exhibit curator lost it in autumn 2011.

Snow Buddies by Ruth Powers

I’ve got enough photos (the edited list!) for at least five separate posts of quilts and blurbs.  I decided that this year I would post both the quilt AND the signage from Festival immediately below it.  I just ADORE Ruth’s shaggy dog!  Good composition with the shepherd behind to set him off from the wintry background.  And notice the successful shadows to anchor the dogs to the earth since the horizon line is somewhat blurred on the left (as happens on a blustery winter day).

IQF signage for Ruth Powers’ Snow Buddies

Oh I’m SO IRKED! My friend Franki Kohler made this portrait of her beloved dog, and it is blurry AND I forgot to snap a pic of the signage! But it was too sweet not to share!

Kool in Ketchikan by Ingrid Catteneo.  This is a good sized quilt..maybe 40 inches across.  I totally love the dogs in sunglasses!  Think I’d like their humans, too!

signage for Kool in Ketchikan

Watch Your Step: Fall by Libby Lehman. 

Many of you have by now heard that back in April Libby suffered a ruptured aneurism followed by two massive strokes, followed by many, many seizures.   It is a miracle Libby survived the aneurism, let alone even one of the strokes.  Clearly, Libby’s indomitable spirit (and perhaps a greater purpose for her to remain with us) have conquered the first obstacles.  After a few difficult weeks in early Autumn, Libby is back in fine form and healing and improving daily.  If you are so inclined, you can follow Libby’s progress thanks to family and friends (known as Team Libby) at Libby’s page at Caring Bridge and can also make donations to help cover the costs of her care (which aren’t covered by insurance).  Here is what her family posted:

If you would like to make a contribution to the “Libby Lehman Medical Fund”, you may use paypal.com.  Just set up an account with paypal.com and donate to libby.medfund@gmail.com,  or send a check to her sister, Cathy Arnold at 2220 Stanmore, Houston, TX 77019 for deposit into a special account at JPMorgan Chase Bank.  For more details, please refer to the [ Caring Bridge ] Journal entry entitled “Contributions – Angels Needed”.

Signage for Libby Lehman’s Watch Your Step

I hadn’t seen any of Libby’s recent work, so was thrilled to get to see both old and new pieces on display.  Karey Bresenhan and IQA set up a display of Libby’s quilts in *primo* territory where folks could see Libby’s works (gathered from her holdings and those sold but whose owners lent them for the show), meet Team Libby (I got to meet her son Les and sisters), and make contributions to help Libby.   If you can afford just a few dollars, every little bit helps.  And sending prayers and healing light is free, and I swear it is working.  Libby’s recent improvements began just as things kicked into gear for Market and Festival–she KNOWS we are all out here pulling for her!

Jane Sassaman’s prize-winning quilt, Illinois Album, which garnered the Baby Lock Master Award for Innovative Artistry (on of the BIG prizes!).  The black border kinda disappears next to the drape, but it is stunning.  I got to say hello to Jane, and told her I didn’t know what thrilled me more, that she had won a top prize or that she was entering work again!  

I forgot to snap a picture of the signage (was too busy chatting with Jane and not trying to sound/feel like a dork), but at least I got this close up!

And here’s to the Maine contingent! My friend Pat LaPierre McAfee, of Supreme Slider fame, is a top quilter. She won (another!) first place ribbon for this beautiful work, Shades.

Signage for Pat LaPierre’s quilt, Shades.

Adagio by Dianne Hire, quilting by Pat LaPierre and Dianne Hire. I saw this quilt when it was at the top stage–Dianne had begun work on it well over a decade before I saw it a couple years ago. It had to get tucked away –work and life happen! But she brought it out and OH MY! Wish you could all see this in person. The colors and rhythm and designs make my heart sing!

And the signage for Dianne Hire’s quilt.