The Marin Needle Arts Guild usually hosts the season's foremost local quilt show, with cash prizes for top entries. But this year, they handed the show over to a vendor, and filled the fabulous Frank Lloyd Wright hall with a slightly different show: an expanded set of booths selling fabrics, patterns, embroidery patterns, and other wonders; and quilt exhibits from smaller groups. The Mount Tamalpais quilters had a fine display, a group of friends showed off their "fire" quilts (they plan, in successive years, to show earth, air, and water as well); there were some lovely small journal quilts. One of my favorites was by Maureen Nass, describing old age. Another nice set showed photos and then small quilts based on the photos: here are four. The artists are Pat Dicker, Ancella Toldrian, Joanne Berry, and Maureen Nass.


I spent a lot of time the rest of the weekend working on my own quilt designs, and came up with this wall-ful of ideas (most based on Craftsman-era textiles). These won't be finished until I add some embroidered details to them; then each will be separate, used as a pocket or in some other isolated way.


-- Rachel

Upsala Parade

My father, sister, and I went to Upsala, Minnesota, where he was born, in mid-August. We loved the 2-mile parade through the 1-mile town to celebrate Upsala Heritage Day. We also had a great visit with my cousin Ted at the cabin his father had built in imitation of traditional Swedish log cabins. The weather cooled off just as we arrived, so we never swam in the lake next to the cabin, but we enjoyed several evenings in the screened gazebo, watching the sunset.
-- Rachel