| Photo of the Month | 
My Christmas present from my sweetie. He assembled it from a downloadable pattern by Steven Wintercroft at Wintercroft.com, then collaged it (I'm so proud of him) with torn paper pieces! A removable red nose was Tom's special seasonal addition! |
susancarlson.com
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 Serendipity Quilts | |
by Susan Carlson
Signed by the Author
8.5 x 11 inches, 96 pages
$27.95 plus S&H
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Process
Happy New Year everyone! It's been an interesting start for our family as we have a senior in high school this year and January has so very many deadlines involved with college applications. What a process! Next deadline, post my January newsletter!
 | | Wolf Moon, before. |
This last week in Maine has been very weather oriented. We got a blizzard, and now another snow storm. School has been cancelled 3 out of 5 days, and for this part of the country, that's saying something right there. But it's this sort of weather, and the changing of the seasons, that inspired native peoples to give names to the full moons of the lunar cycle.
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Wolf Moon, after.
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This sort of stuff interests me and I did some research. One of the names for January's moon is "Full Wolf Moon", named for
this time of year when the land is covered in snow and the figures of the wolves stand out in contrast under the reflected moonlight. Sounds like inspiration to me! In my Feb/Mar 2014 newsletter I shared the above "before" version.
I always saw this as the beginning of a series of moons, and while the rest may not have materialized yet (pun intended), Wolf Moon is now completed. Part of the creative process, at least for me and what I teach, is to review my work and make revisions. I won't repeat what I wrote previously about first, second, and third drafts (from Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird book, see newsletter archives Feb/Mar 2014), but when I stood back, squinted, took pictures, compared shots, I saw things I wanted to add, adjust, and remove.
First, the nose. Hmmm (train of thought to follow)... where'd I get that shape from? Probably a great little design in the fabric, but it isn't really a wolf's nose, is it? Should I change it? It doesn't match my original design. Does that matter? It's my interpretation after all. What would I do instead? Do I like it better? Does it say more about the wolf? Etc., etc., etc..
As you can see, I did change the nose. And his mouth and muzzle (it was looking too pointy). I liked the spotted fabric around his ears and forehead, so I brought in more of that alongside his muzzle and a little bit more near the eyes. And his ears should be dark in the depths, not light, and he needed to look wilder and be windswept.
Now, you may not agree with all my changes, that's fine, I don't mind. He's mine and I like him. To me, he now looks less dog and more wolf. Best of all, I'm free to move on to February's Snow Moon. Inspiration for which is falling outside my windows this very moment.
Stay warm, stay healthy, have a amazingly creative New Year!
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Social Media Survey
  Social media. You either love it or hate it. Personally, I have to accept that it's part of my life and business. And I'm starting to have some fun with it too. You? For years I've wanted to find a private forum for my students to share updated photos and add comments with their new quilting friends, divided up by class dates and locations, with as little as possible work on my end. Plus a public forum where those interested could see examples of past student work (with permission of course). Oh, and I want to post photos of my teaching travels and classes in progress, kinda like a blog but also as an archive. Too much to ask? There's Facebook, but that involves creating an account just to see what's posted. I have a younger cousin that has never and will never join FB or any other such group. Tom tells me this cousin is an exception and that people don't mind signing up to these things. I don't know about that. What do you think? Tom's now done some asking around for me and has come up with Bonfyre. It still involves setting up an account but with minimal questions. If we build it, will you come? There's a quick and easy survey that you could fill out and give me a few of these answers and a few other questions. You'll have to follow the link below. No personal questions involved and the answers are anonymous and confidential, which means I won't be able to thank you personally, but you will have my gratitude for taking the time. Thank you. |
2015 Harpswell Quilting Retreat Dates...
... Plus new dates and venue added!
 I've been getting sign-ups for this year's Harpswell, Maine two-day and four-day quilting retreats at the historic Harpswell Inn at aptly named Lookout Point. Thank you!
And now a head's up that I'll be adding a five-day (been having requests for that) retreat but on the "other side of town" at another gorgeous location (tba) in Harpswell. The dates will be from October 4-8, 2015. I picked those dates 'cause 1) it's a beautiful time of year and 2) you could actually have almost two weeks of instruction if you combine with the Leaf Peepers retreat (see below)! Just trying to give students all that they ask for! I don't have the particulars yet, like schedule or price, but if you email me your interest you'll be first to know when I get all that figured out. Hopefully within the next month. Otherwise, you'll hear about it in a future newsletter for sure!
At all my Harpswell retreats the participants enjoy a smaller class size (maximum 12) giving more one-on-one instruction, have class in view of and easy walking distance to the beautiful Maine coastline, good and healthy meals provided, chair massage(!), and great camaraderie with their fellow students.
Find further information about these 2015 retreats by following these links:
Thurs. and Fri., May 7-8, 2015 Tues. through Fri., June 9-12, 2015 Sun. through Wed., October 11-14, 2015 |
Where in the World is Susan Carlson?
Teaching Schedule Preview:
In February, next week actually, I'm off to visit a familiar part of the world, suburban Maryland, just north of Washington, DC and south of Baltimore. I grew up there and am looking forward to visiting some old friends between two lectures and two days of teaching. Thanks to the ladies at Faithful Circle Quilters of Columbia, MD and Four County Quilt Guild of Mt Airy, MD for inviting me back home! Special Announcement for "local" classes:There are three upcoming classes at two Maine/NH locations just added for March through June! A 3-day Fabric Images class and 1-day Spiral class at Portsmouth Fabric Company in Portsmouth, NH, and a 3-month on-going Celestial Portraits class at Quiltessentials in Auburn, ME. See Upcoming Classes bar at left for more info!   
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