A Busy Weekend

The Weekend started on Thursday. It almost promises to connect through Thanksgiving. This is a busy, busy time of the year!

Thursday was Vista Lights night. The crowd was steady and in great holiday spirits. Stephen Chesley came late and left early; as I mentioned before, this really wasn't his "scene". Later, however, he talked positively about a family visiting his studio. The father was quite interested in the artwork but nicely more interested in the opportunity to show his young children how artists work, think, and create art.

I have to remind myself, from time to time, that this is a far better reason to present oneself to the public than selling. Outreach, fostering understanding, education, and an opportunity to touch others while sharing art is so much more important. Yet, I did manage to sell three small pieces, one from the Life Everlasting Series. I also made a trade with Andrew Weber. He fell in love with one of my earlier "NO" pieces, the one called If I've Told You Once, I've Told You a Thousand Times!

The Blues pieces and the Stained Glass pieces seemed to make my biggest impressions. Maybe it's because they are the biggest pieces? Whatever! I had plenty of nice conversations. Steve stayed with me for the most part. Alex took Erica to most of the other art galleries. At 10 PM there wasn't much to clean up. We didn't serve any popcorn. This is what tends to make all the mess. So, at 10:05 we headed up the street for Wim Roefs' new gallery. Steve hadn't seen it yet. We stayed only for a few moments.

Friday was a big day too. After tackling the paperwork/applications for Columbia Open Studios and the Verner Art Sale, I got to the studio early and worked until nearly 6:30. At home, we were all preening infront of mirrors for the black tie gala. (I wore my vintage kimono with the micro mini-skirt/sweater set underneath.) We picked Erica up and made it to the State Museum just after 8 PM. The food was great, especially the jumbo shrimps. The atmosphere was festive. The trees and wreathes were beautiful. We say lots of people, many were former clients whose names I've quite forgotten. Everyone looked lovely though. We bid on one wreath but weren't successful. My platter looked great. We don't think Alex's tree got a bid, but we weren't expecting it to get one!

Saturday continued the "big" days. I was in the studio before 10 AM and worked steadily until 3. I managed to find some old heat activated paints and created sixteen new designs for future "Elements of Architecture" pieces. In fact, I ironed one onto polyester and took it with me to watch the mighty Ohio State Buckeyes. With all the hype surrounding the OSU vs. Michigan game, I figured that it couldn't possibly live up to its own fanfare. I was wrong. It was truly intense. I stitched furiously through a win that wasn't quite secure until the very end. Then I continued through the later games. In fact, I actually finished all the handwork on this new piece. I've never embroidered with such speed and determination!

Steve called Mathias on his cell phone to announce the Ohio State win. Mathias was at a friends apartment. From the noise in the background, it had to have been a party. Both Steve and I felt pleased and happy that Mathias was out and having fun on a Saturday night.

Today, Sunday, I applied all the free motion machining to the latest "Elements of Architecture" piece, ironed the other fifteen to polyester, and worked on collaged papers for the Archeology Project. Alex spend most of the day, as always, at CMFA rehearsing for Nutcracker. The company has moved into Township Auditorium for the coming performances. It seems more than a year since last Thanksgiving when Mathias came and danced the Sugar Plum Cavalier.