Return from Market

Aloha!

I have returned from Minneapolis after two days of pounding the cheap carpet-covered pavement. Over the next week I'll compile my notes and gather photos from other attendees to post here. In addition, the JEEBER HEAD has started a post of his own on Blogger, and soon he'll be blogging about his life as Leader of the Jeeber People and his experiences amongst a world of humans.

Light at the End of the Tunnel / Leaving on a Jet Plane

WHEW! A little over 24 hours before I board a plane for Newark Airport. Still haven't packed; still doing laundry, dishes, watering the plants and getting it all together for Spring Quilt Market in Minneapolis on Friday!!

Here's a sneak peak at some of the item's I'll be promoting at market... weeks of work that I hope will pay off! I'll keep you posted... no pun intended!

JEEPERS CREEPERS Collection or HEEBIE JEEBIES

The bag is made from all four prints in the JEEPERS CREEPERS Collection. The "white" fabric, the eyes, and the skeletons all glow-in-the-dark. The inside is lined in the new BLACK color of my Rock Candy, and the inside pocket has one of the Skeletoons characters embroidered on it. The pattern is the MESSENGER BAG from Hoodie's Collection, available online.

MARK'S SATCHEL

I have had the two fabrics -- the lining which is a vintage barkcloth and the iridescent home-dec outer fabric for years -- and finally I realized my vision. The addition of the toffee colored suede was a last minute inspiration when I was considering the third fabric to compliment the first two. This piece truly met my expectations and went way beyond my vision -- I just DIG when that happens! Pattern is Hoodie's Collection Messenger Bag.

A TRIO OF BUCKET HATS

The hats, an infant/toddlers size, are an original pattern that I drafted. The top hat is a piece to coordinate with the Blast Off! vest that was posted earlier on my blog. The sea turtles -- or HONU -- are from my Surf's Up! collection by Michael Miller Fabrics. I can't wait to show these to some of the boutiques on the island as an exclusive product that will be available only here on Maui!

This hat is lined in pinwale corduroy, and all have been washed to distress the garment and to fray the edges for a pre-worn look.

Trick-or-Treat Bag (or Jeepers Creepers! Where'd Ya Get Those Peepers?)

Here's another little sample "I threw together" the other day. Sue of The Needlework Factory, is the digitizer who is taking my designs and translating them into embroideries. She sewed out a number of the Jeepers Creepers on 6"x6" blocks. I am trying to make the most out of these samples, so I created the reusable Trick-or-Treat bag. Although you cannot see the lining, it is my Candy Corn print, so the bag is always full of candy!, and the eyes and white fabrics Glow-in-the-Dark!

Blast Off! Boy's Insulated Vest

Here is the cotton flannel vest I made from my Blast Off! group. I used a commercial sewing pattern found on the internet, and with a few tweeks, of course... I think it is quite impressive.

I am fascinated by things that shine -- like stained glass and mirrors, by metals, oxidation and metallic finishes, neon, glow-in-the-dark, and by reflective objects. When I haphazardly stumbled upon Pearl Trim on the last day of the Quilt show in Pittsburgh last year, I was giddy with all the safety trims, reflective tapes and piping, and neon webbing they were showing. I am thrilled that I finally found an excuse to utilize them!

Fabrics: outer shell - Blast Off! (flannel), inner collar - Ray Gun Strip (flannel) and lining - Galaxy Quest (sheeting). Neon orange taped armholes and reflective stripe on back.

A Preview for Spring Quilt Market

Here's a picture of the quilt I finished for promotional purposes at Spring Quilt Market in Minneapolis next month. The 8 blocks of skeletons and the center block are all embroidered. These designs are from the Jeepers Creepers machine embroidery disc being sold by theneedleworkfactory.com. Sue, the digitizer and owner, stitched out the blocks and eyes and webs in the corners, and pieced the blocks together. I added the candy corn, eyes and webs in fabric, and quilted the piece. I think both collections, the fabric and embroidery, will be a big hit at the show. In another post I'll show all the embroideries available on the disc!

A Side Trip to Sonoma

I recently made a whirl-wind trip to New York/New Jersey (I just returned this past Tuesday). I spent a week in New Jersey with my parents. There I rummaged through the remnants of my possessions in the storage unit, sorting through stuff one last time, making the decision what I would keep, what would ship to Hawai'i, and what would become garage sale items. Then it was a week commuting back and forth to New York, visiting with people I work with, doing a bit of shopping, and the highlight and main reason for scheduling the trip when I did, was to see the Tim Burton exhibit at MoMA. If you can find images online, I highly suggest checking it out because the exhibit was incredible, and the man is a genius!!!

To end the trip back to Hawai'i I made a side trip to Sonoma to visit my friend Kathy Miller, accompanied by our mutual friend Marinda Stewart. It was then three days of wine and olive oil tastings, chocolate, strawberries, artisan cheeses and wonderful, creative conversation. My camera didn't come out until Sonoma, and here are some pics that I took.

This is a tree in a very eclectic garden, antique and artist center. It is covered with blue plastic christmas balls. I love how the sky has such a lavender hue compared to the balls.

These were taken on Kathy's property. This is a shot of the studio... studio??? I could live there!!

Wisteria outside the main house.

If you enlarge this photo you can really see the wonderful texture in the fence post and the rusty barbed wire (rust is one of my favorite finishes -- real or faux).

These are 100+ year old grape vines. These twisted shapes -- very Tim Burton -- remind me of the invasion of man-eating plants in the original "The Day of the Triffids".

Mark: The Sequel -- Classic Designs Revisited

Here's a great happening. I have 11 of my previously printed designs reissued by Michael Miller Fabrics. Check them out!

http://www.michaelmillerfabrics.com/MMF/WebPage.cfm?gId=1218

Tsunami Saturday

While sitting and watching the local news station for constant updates on the approaching tsunami -- I decided to edit photos. Here are a few I took while whale watching the end of last month.

Whale Day

Last Saturday was Whale Day, kicked off by the Whale Day Parade to raise awareness of Maui's most distinctive winter visitors, the humpback whales. The whales travel from the frigid waters off Alaska and travel south to give birth to their calves and to mate, with the population breaking off into three smaller pods. The largest, approximately 60%, end up in the waters off the shores of Maui (the other two head to Baja or islands east of Japan).

Here are some pics of the parade... the last is a life sized float of a humpback that brings the parade to a close.

A Long Awaited Post

Aloha!

It's been quite a while since I wrapped my head around publishing a post. Not that there hasn't be much to post about -- it's that there has been quite a lot going on.

Welcome to the Mark Maui Resorts!

What an influx of guests! From the end of November to the beginning of February, I have had 5 guests, with the shortest visit lasting 10 days to a marathon visit of 2-1/2 weeks. I love to entertain, so nothing else mattered, and the time has finally come that I have settled down to business...

Blast Off! and Jeepers Creepers

Here's a look at my two newest collections for Blank Quilting: Blast Off! and Jeepers Creepers, and a nice surprise...

This is Blast Off! and is available on quilting cotton and flannel.

Blast Off!

The Final Frontier

Mission Control

Galaxy Quest

Ray Gun Stripe

The Milky Way

Here's a quilt designed by fellow Blank designer Heidi Pridemore using all of the above plus additional fabric from her own collection. The pattern is a free download on the Blank Quilting website!

This is Jeepers Creepers. It is a reprinting of one of my first fabric collection about 8 years ago. Aside from being a fun and whimsical group, the motifs Glow-in-the-dark!

Skeletoons

Eye of Newt

Candy Corn

Here's the quilt for this collection, once again designed by Heidi Pridemore. I think she's an incredibly talented lady! Thanks, Heidi!

Another great thing regarding Jeepers Creepers is that I recently signed a licensing contract with The Needlework Factory and the motifs -- skeletons, eyes, webs, and candy corn are being digitized for machine embroideries, so these images will be available to coincide with the arrival of the fabric. Here's a sneak peak at one of them (NOTE: these are only for reference and do not represent the quality of the actual embroidery.)

Sue, from The Needlework Factory, and I are working on many more of my designs to be interpreted into embroideries. Stay tuned to see how things progress!!

Mark