Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Traveling & Teaching in Arizona

My recent travels to Arizona were spent sharing my new book with everyone at the Bernina Connection in Phoenix, and to teach workshops on Fast-Piece Applique and 10 Different Ways to Embellish.

The drive from LA to Phoenix was quiet and the desert that lay between these cities can seem desolate, but the fact that I had tons of ideas swirling around in my head continues to support my belief that cre
ative possibility is everywhere.

Along the trip I began to see for the first time the mountainous desert hills in a new way. Ridge after ridge seemed to appear like faces looking skyward. Welcoming the warm breezes that made everything look dry... withering almost. The quick sketches I jotted down on the journey hav
e already turned into a new design. The colors of the desert jumped out at me as well, (looking mostly like very dark chocolate). I am looking forward to selecting just the right fabrics to go in it.

An earlier trip along I-10 last spring introduced me to those watchers and at the time one in particular became the inspiration for the piece here.


I-10 Watcher (copywrite 2008)

My hostess in AZ (Sandee) was amazing and I will be forever grateful for the wonderful time I had with her. Not to mention the incredible Italian food she cooked up!

The workshop attendees were great as well. Everyone walked out of FPA with their quilts underway and I am looking forward to sharing some of these with you in the near future. In the second workshop everyone got to try their hand at lots of different ways to embellish their quilts. Sharing with each other was not only fun but enlightening as well, for everyone brings a little bit of themselves to each embellishment type.

Laura and Julie
playing
with lots on ways to embellish

The trip across the desert was lots of fun, and my own sketchbook has several new pages of ideas, and I'm looking forward to getting into the studio and trying them out. ~Rose

When passing through Phoenix don't miss stopping by the Bernina Connection. For info on the store go to:

http://berninaconnection.com/

For info on my lateset book (Dream Landscapes: Artful Quilts with Fast-Piece Applique) go to
:
http://rosehughes.com/




2 comments:

natalie. beyond the reef said...

Oooh, I wanna go next time, I wanna go....
Thanks for putting the info on the blog to hook us up for future class and event schedules!!

TALL GIRL said...

Isn't the desert just magical? I remember not so long in the distant past when I thought... ugh, the desert! Now, I just love driving through it, and absorbing the way light creates shadows. Plus there is no traffic!!!