In less than two weeks the registration will be LIVE for Craft Napa: Uncorked at Home–35 workshops over the course of four days with 19 teachers in January 2021. As this will be the first virtual event we are hosting, I have been doing a lot of research into the best formats, and also taken a lot of online workshops myself to see what it’s like to be a student. For me, it’s been awesome. I love being at home and having all my stuff right there (and the voyeur in me likes peeking into other people’s studios). 😉 

I have also decided–once I get the registration up for Craft Napa 2021–I am going to teach an online workshop (or two) later this fall. It’ll be a surface design class that I have taught in the past in the barn that I’ll adapt to an online format. I feel as though if I am going to ask teachers to work at achieving the best lighting, Internet, audio equipment, etc., well then I should dip my toes in the water and do it too so I understand and can help them problem solve anything well before January.

So here’s my question: In prepping for a fun and meaningful virtual (live) event where you’ll learn something and also still feel a sense of community, I ask you…have you taken any online workshops? How has the format and experience been for you? What has worked, and what do you feel could use some improvement? Did you go away feeling happy and you got what you wanted from the class? No need to go into specifics re: teachers, just the general format and experience.

Thanks for taking time to answer, if you are able to.

Stay safe out there!

Pokey

I can’t believe our 5th edition of Craft Napa is over already! Has it really been five years I have been doing this? It doesn’t feel like it. This past retreat went super well, and I am so happy that people overall seemed to have a great time. I am truly honored that people invest their time and discretionary funds at Craft Napa to start the new year off, and I don’t take that for granted. I try and make this annual retreat the best it can be, and I thank you to all who came and continue to make this retreat so special!

Some quick stats: this last edition had 41 workshops, led by 17 teachers over the course of five days with about 250 attendees. We held classes in everything from modern quilting and mixed media jewelry to surface design and encaustic work. All in all I think it was our biggest edition yet. Having said that, the facilities–the Embassy Suites/ Napa and my art barn (just a couple miles up the street from the hotel)–meant there was still an intimate feel to the retreat, and that will always be important to me.

A few additional pix of collage work, indigo dyeing, art quilting, free-motion quilting, among other disciplines:

Now that Craft Napa 2020 is completed, I am busy working on a micro-retreat schedule for my barn this year (look for an upcoming notice in my Crafting a Life e-newsletter for a retreat I am soon to announce for next month). I am also posting the 2021 Workshop Proposal form on the craftnapa.com site, so if you are interested in pitching a proposal, please go download the form. The receive-by date for the form is April 1, 2020, but the sooner sent the better. 

Lastly, save the date! Our 6th edition of Craft Napa will take place January 13-17, 2021. More info to follow in the next couple of months, and registration will open June 1, 2020.

On a more personal note, last month I invested in a used Airstream for both recreational and safety purposes. For recreation, I can leave for a night (or two or three) to go camp in NorCal. The advantage of living here is that within three hours or less I can be in Lake Tahoe or on the coast to Santa Cruz or Monterey, as examples. If I venture a little further  I can be in Yosemite, or if I want to stay close to home, within one hour I can be in Bodega Bay (yes, home to Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds”). In an emergency situation I can retreat to the Airstream during a wildfire/evacuation or an extended planned power shut off–both of which I have experienced since I moved here.

The start to my 2020 has been to learn how to hitch the tow, safely tow and drive, get her ready for camp, and to overcome my anxiety when something isn’t working and I need to problem solve without letting my nerves get the better of me. I get anxious at times when I can’t figure something out or something is very heavy for me to lift (both can lead to a lot of swearing), but the achievement I feel when I problem solve is so gratifying. It’s just like working through a design problem on an art piece you want to throw away in frustration but you save it and you make it work…and I know all of you can relate to that. 🙂

My airstream at Bodega Bay.

Here’s to a challenge- and creative-filled 2020,

Pokey

I’ve been a little MIA since the last time I blogged here, which I know, I know…was in February. I have a couple of good reasons though.

First, I’ve been getting everything ready for the next Craft Napa to take place January 15-19, 2020. I can’t believe it’s our 5^th edition already!  I contracted 17 teachers for a total of 41 workshops over the course of five days.

I am a one-person company, and it just takes a lot of work and double-checking to make sure I don’t make mistakes in the scheduling, the contracts, editing all of the info. for the site, etc. It takes me a year to pull this event off.

Springtime is probably the busiest time planning for Craft Napa, at least until I open registration in early June. My spring looks something like this:

• Gather and study the workshop proposals. I don’t make these decisions lightly or alone—I vet them by a group of artists, quilters, and crafters and they gave me their honest opinions on each one.
• Negotiate (or in my case re-negotiate several times) the host hotel, catering, and meeting space. This past time it took several rounds of contract revisions, and frankly, a lot of time.
• Meet with BERNINA and Meissner’s Sewing and make sure they were happy with the previous year’s event with the number of machines they brought (and sold), and make sure that they want to sponsor again!
• Contact the accepted artists and double check their schedules to confirm availability and times. Also make sure I don’t overbook the rooms requiring a machine per student (easy to do).
• Contract the artists for said days and times (and don’t make a mistake and double book them).
• Schedule all the workshops for the meeting rooms and in my art barn for each day and evening.
• Schedule special events and book talent (i.e. wine tastings, special luncheon speakers, wine train, or artists’ market as examples).
• Start planning and price out any special event or session that requires catering, and figure out a reasonable cost per person.
• Edit all of the above, gather all of the images, and load everything onto both the main Craft Napa website and also the sister site for registration (CVENT) for launch in early June. In my case, I open registration six months prior so people can plan for the new year. 
• Plan an e-newsletter and social media schedule.

This spring while choosing, contracting, and scheduling the above, I also completely overhauled my company’s website: craftnapa.com.

Why?

I met with several website developers in early spring, and I was told the same thing by each one of them: a business website’s functionality and branding should undergo a makeover minimally every three years.  This makes total sense to me, given how fast technology changes and the functions of a site become outdated.

Take for one, the slider (also called a carousel): not only does a slider kill your SEO on a front/homepage, but it is also considered, shall we say, pas de la mode. My front page consisted of a slider, so I 86’d that, and replaced with what I am trying to publicize at the time: right now that’s Craft Napa.

Other functions I wanted to be able to feature included making every image on the site Pinterest-able, and every materials list for each workshop printable with a printer prompt. 

The overhaul took weeks, but I am pretty pleased with how it looks. Some snaps of the site:

Above: A smaller image of the top of the home page. There is a navigation bar at the top (not shown).

Scroll down a bit on the home page and there is the option to view featured workshops:

Above: I wanted the ability to feature workshops and rotate them out to give prominent airtime for each. This also gives me the option to feature workshops outside of Craft Napa down the line.

This page (below) is a snippet of the overall Craft Napa Workshops page where everyone can preview images of all of the 41 workshops offered at one time for this event:

I also switched ecommerce services from Shopify to Stripe which has great functionality and is less expensive (if you have an e-commerce site and want some info about Stripe, feel free to email me). And I continue to use CVENT for all of my registration needs, which I have been using since 2015 with huge success and ease of execution.

With registration open now, I can breathe a little easier and plan some other ventures, which I will announce in the next couple of months. And now that the summer solstice is just about here and we are entering the second half of the year, I still have a full plate of things to do for Craft Napa including:

• Order merchandise and the totes for the swag bags.
• Plan for a SUPER fun 5^thedition and scheme up some memorable and community-building offerings throughout to commemorate it.
• Reach out to companies for swag and door prizes. This is a hard thing for me to do (asking for stuff), so I try and give as many shout-outs as I can (pre-, during, and post- Craft Napa) to the generous folks who take the time and investment, and send goods for Craft Napans to play with and read about.
• Plan on some elective activities that people can add to their registration line-up (like wine tastings or a visit to the Culinary Institute of America chapter downtown).

On another note, in a couple of weeks I am heading to Monterey to go to the Monterey Bay Aquarium to take some photos and gather some information to promote Craft Napa’s soon-to-be-announced fundraiser. I don’t have the name or the particulars defined yet, but I will give you a clue as to what it’s about: how to help save our oceans and get away from single-use plastics like water bottles, which are beyond devastating to our environment and sea life.

Until next time, which will be in early July (I promise) have a happy start to summer!

Yours,

Pokey

Happy February everyone! I have finally cleaned, sorted, and put everything away after Craft Napa retreat last month and guess what I have extra of…SWAG BAGS! I thought I would give a Craft Napa swag bag away once a month for the next six months.

UPDATE: Patti Kaplan, you won the swag bag! I will email you to get your mailing address!

This swag bag is full of great swag from some of the best quilting brands and companies in the industry:

Another angle…

The loot is from the following companies:

• Quiltfolk Magazine Thanks to the publisher, Michael McCormick, Craft Napans received a complimentary copy of Quiltfolk! Want to subscribe? Use the coupon code CN19 for 15% OFF at Quiltfolk.com. It’s “CN19” and can be applied in the cart. 

• UPPERCase Magazine– And more thanks to Janine Vangool who also provided magazines, and has a special discount for Craft Napans and friends, too: Receive $15 CAD off UPPERCASE subscriptions, gift subscriptions and renewals with this link. https://shop.uppercasemagazine.com/discount/craftnapa?redirect=%2Fcollections%2Fsubscribe

• Quilters Select—MANY thanks to Alex Anderson, Quilters Select, and parent company RNK for generously providing all of these incredible supplies! Visit https://quiltersselect.com to see all of their offerings!
• Dharma Trading for generously providing surface design supplies for class use and selling supplies most of Craft Napa. They are running a special discount just for Craft Napans and friends. Visit https://www.dharmatrading.com.   Use coupon code CRAFTNAPA10 to receive 10% off your order!

• Craft Industry Alliance—This is an informative and comprehensive networking trade organization for professionals in the craft and art industry. They also have a wonderful online magazine that offers tips for developing and expanding your business. Use code craftnapa2019 to get a discount on your membership! https://craftindustryalliance.org

• Havel’s’ Sewing—This is personally a favorite scissor, rotary cutting, and mat company of mine! If you have not tried their products yet, I recommend doing so ASAP. They cut like butter. Visit https://www.havelssewing.com.
• C&T Publishing & Jennifer Sampou for generously donating door prizes and patterns! https://www.ctpub.com  and https://www.jennifersampou.com
• RJR Fabrics for providing complimentary charm packs for all by CRAFT NAPA teachers Leslie Tucker Jenison, Jamie Fingal, and Victoria Findlay Wolfe. https://www.rjrfabrics.com

• Robert Kaufman Fabrics for providing door prizes of gorgeous fat quarter bundles. http://www.robertkaufman.com
• SOAK Wash for generously providing spray jars of FLATTER, which makes ironing your fabrics for quilting so much easier (and smells great too!) https://soakwash.com 

HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN THE SWAG GIVEAWAY:

Please answer the following question in the comments area below, and I will randomly select a winner next Wednesday (February 6th). I apologize to our international friends, but because this bag is heavy and expensive to ship internationally, I can only ship to those who reside in the United States. 

QUESTION:

I was honored to be asked to give the opening keynote at the annual SAQA Conference this upcoming April in San Jose, CA. The theme of the conference is Threads of Innovation. I have been thinking long and hard how what I might say may have relevance to anyone in the audience–mostly enthusiasts and professionals in the quilting industry. In the context of this theme…what would you be interested in hearing or learning about from me? 

Hope everyone has a great start to February,

Pokey

I can’t believe our 4^th edition of Craft Napa has come and gone!

This year was a lot of fun, thanks to our teachers and all who attended. 16 teachers taught 38 classes over the four-day period, in everything from surface design, modern quilting, free-motion, collage, encaustic work, batik, indigo and shibori, printmaking, screen printing, monoprinting, making dollies and monsters, appliqué, stenciling, and watercolor. We introduced a welcome dinner to Craft Napa this time around, and had a special luncheon lecture with Jennifer Sampou, which was incredibly inspiring.  

Our Artist Market was a hit (some vendors sold out in the first 5 minutes…note to vendors…bring more stuff!), and we held our first- ever movie night!

We also raised more than $2300 for our Stay PAWSitive fundraiser, which benefited animals that were displaced, hurt, or surrendered due to the Paradise fires. I still have a lot of postcards as donations came pouring in at the last minute. To raise more money, I am going to bundle the fabric postcards I still have on hand, most likely in sets of 5, and offer them online on the Craftnapa.com site starting February 1^st.  

Some fun class and event pix:

Sandra Johnson sharing her latest indigo-dyed fabric she made in her Indigo, Dye, and DIY workshop.

Students in Leslie Jenison’s Mark-Making Potpourri workshop getting good and messy in my barn.

Teacher and author Gina Lee Kim with her son Steven working the Artist Market.

Frances Holiday Alford coming to night class in her pajamas. (If you know Frances, this isn’t a surprise.)

Teacher Libby Williamson helping a student free-motion a painted fabric collage piece.

Student working on her Picture This! Faces in Fabric portrait in Jamie Fingal’s class.

Soy was batik fabric by teacher Jeannie Palmer Moore that was laying on her teacher table. (It was very tempting to steal.)

Student work in one of Maria Shell’s workshops.

Pup portrait in progress in Jane Haworth’s Pet Portrait workshop.

Students working on their Polygon Play quilts with Jennifer Sampou in the barn.

This one is coming together spectacularly! (Photo credit Jennifer Sampou)

As is this one! (Photo credit Jennifer Sampou)

We were incredibly honored that Tim Jenison joined us at Craft Napa for a viewing of “Tim’s Vermeer,” and to host a Q&A afterwards.

We also learned what Tim has been working on for the last four years in Tasmania, and it is an equally ambitious project that he will be announcing to the greater public very soon.

And on a more personal note, I got to reconnect with a former coworker of mine, Amanda Schlatre (many may remember her when she worked in Special Exhibits at Quilts Inc.). I was delighted when I saw she had signed up for Craft Napa, and it was fun catching up and learning what she is now doing for the Houston Rodeo.

 Lastly Craft Napan, Jollyne Toste who had also attended Jennifer Sampou’s Polygon Play retreat last March in my barn, brought her finished quilt for show and tell. Look how beautiful it is! This picture was taken behind my barn. (Photo credit Jennifer Sampou)

Next year will be our 5^th edition, which I can’t believe has come so quickly. I am planning on some special commemorations, swaps, and gatherings for this anniversary and scheming a fun time. If you have ideas for special events, I am all ears—just email me at pokey@craftingalifellc.com.

Save the dates! CRAFT NAPA 2020

January 8-11, 2020

I want to extend super special thanks to our sponsors BERNINA of America and Meissner’s Sewing for providing sewing machines for classroom use, and being on hand  to help everyone use the machines.

Also special thanks to Dharma Trading for generously providing surface design supplies for class use) and selling supplies most of Craft Napa. They are running a special discount just for Craft Napans and friends. Visit https://www.dharmatrading.com.   Use coupon code CRAFTNAPA10 to rceive 10% off your order!

I’d also like to thank the following companies for donating swag to the totes and also providing materials for classroom use. Note that a lot of them have a discount code on their products (some expire soon) so check them out!

• Quiltfolk Magazine Thanks to the publisher, Michael McCormick, most (if not all) Craft Napans received a complimentary copy of Quiltfolk! Want to subscribe? Use the coupon code CN19 for 15% OFF at Quiltfolk.com. It’s “CN19” and can be applied in the cart. 

• UPPERCase Magazine– And more thanks to Janine Vangool who also provided magazines, and has a special discount for Craft Napans, too: Receive $15 CAD off UPPERCASE subscriptions, gift subscriptions and renewals with this link. https://shop.uppercasemagazine.com/discount/craftnapa?redirect=%2Fcollections%2Fsubscribe

• Quilters Select—Did you see all of the incredible goodies provided? MANY thanks to Alex Anderson, Quilters Select, and parent company RNK for generously providing all of these incredible supplies! Visit https://quiltersselect.com to see all of their offerings!

• Craft Industry Alliance—This is an informative and comprehensive networking trade organization for professionals in the craft and art industry. They also have a wonderful online magazine that offers tips for developing and expanding your business. Use code craftnapa2019 to get a discount on your membership! https://craftindustryalliance.org

• Havel’s’ Sewing—This is personally a favorite scissor, rotary cutting, and mat company of mine! If you have not tried their products yet, I recommend doing so ASAP. They cut like butter. Visit https://www.havelssewing.com.
• C&T Publishing & Jennifer Sampou for generously donating door prizes and patterns! https://www.ctpub.com  and https://www.jennifersampou.com
• RJR Fabrics for providing complimentary charm packs for all by CRAFT NAPA teachers Leslie Tucker Jenison, Jamie Fingal, and Victoria Findlay Wolfe. https://www.rjrfabrics.com

• Robert Kaufman Fabrics for providing door prizes of gorgeous fat quarter bundles. http://www.robertkaufman.com

Thanks to all!

Ah summer…to me this season means lots of time dyeing and printing fabrics outdoors, and this summer I’m trying my hand (for the very first time) at indigo dyeing. As someone who loves surface design and fabric printing, I don’t know why I haven’t played with this process before as it is extremely gratifying, fun, and easy!

And you don’t need the summer heat to indigo dye, you can do it in winter, of course, too. The picture below was taken this past January at Craft Napa in the outdoor courtyard of the Embassy Suites/Napa. We quite literally took over the entire hotel, drying fabrics indoors and out. Below are some images of fabrics drying everywhere at the hotel from Sandra Johnson’s Craft Napa Indigo & Shibori workshop.

We draped the bushes too…

And all of the outdoor furniture. (All were unharmed afterwards, I promise.)

This kit (below) is what was used for indigo dyeing, which I recently bought too so I could give a go at this process. It is a dye kit by Jacquard that we got from Dharma Trading, and it’s so cheap (only $9)! This kit includes all of the ingredients, conveniently measured so all you have to do is pour everything provided in the kit (wearing your protective gloves and gear) into a five-gallon bucket of warm water. This mix can dye up to $15 yards of fabric, too! There is a lot of value packed into this tiny box, and when covered when not dyeing, can last for days:

This is what it looks like when all of the ingredients are poured into a five-gallon bucket of warm water. The top of the dye vat has a bit of a film on it–it looks a little strange but it’s normal. And when you fold the fabric and clamp it (as shown below), everything emerges as green; it’s the oxidation process that turns the fabric blue.

Below are some first samples of mine drying in the sun:

They get bluer as they dry:

Below was a very simple, accordion and triangular folding process I used, but it yields such amazing, graphic results! (And note to dyers: if you are going to indigo dye, set aside a special dye bucket for this. I had used this same bucket for Procion-dyeing and evidently had leftover pink dye in it…hence the pink spot on the lower right side.)

I also bought a blank cold-shoulder t-shirt from Dharma Trading and tried my hand at what is called kumo (basically wrapping an object with rubber bands to resist-dye). I just used rocks from my gravel driveway for this experiment:

And then I also tried some screen printing of imagery on top to get more layered effects:

This is just the beginning of indigo work for me, and I cannot wait to really explore this process, and also try traditional stitched, shibori techniques.

A couple of Youtube videos for this process that I found helpful:

Sandra Johnson will be teaching not one but two Shibori classes at Craft Napa this next January, and you can find more information here! She still has a few spots left in both workshops.

I am also really pleased that Dharma Trading (in neighboring San Rafael) is joining the sponsorship team at Craft Napa by providing product for teachers and doing live dyeing and fabric printing demonstrations during all of Craft Napa next January!

Indigo Kit Giveaway!

To celebrate the love of indigo dyeing, I am giving away an Indigo Dye Kit (as shown above). Here’s how to play: Answer the following question (in the comments section for this post), and I will randomly select a winner this next Tuesday (July 17th). This is a global opportunity; everyone (within the U.S. and beyond) is invited to participate. On Tuesday, I will update this entry with the winner’s name. Good luck!

Question:

What have you learned lately (or maybe revisiting) that is fueling your creativity at the moment?

Happy Creating!

~Pokey

UPDATE: Congratulations to Sherri Cox–you are the winner of the Indigo Dye kit! Please email me at info@craftingalifellc.com and I will ship it out to you directly! 

Craft Napa 2018 came and went, and frankly, it was such an amazing time–so much so–I needed a little rest afterwards, and hence the late recap. For this past third edition, we had 17 teachers, 41 workshops held over four days, with 230 students–more than double the amount the first year.

Whether it was politics or natural disasters, most everyone came off a hard 2017. To be able to kickstart 2018 in such a positive, color- and stitch-filled, creative way, definitely felt incredibly gratifying.

We built a wall—a community Graffiti wall–where over the course of the four days people freely added their creative hopes, dreams, drawings, and doodles. (Special thanks to Dharma Trading for providing materials and paint supplies.)

Before:

During:

After:

We also hosted the Stay Pawsitive art benefit for Friends for Life, Houston’s premiere no-kill animal rescue that provided safe haven, triage and vet care during Hurricane Harvey at one of the largest emergency shelters (and home to Quilt Festival)—the George R Brown Convention Center. Through artwork created and purchased, we raised $4000 for them!

When I say Craft Napans took over the Embassy Suites, I mean, we took over the entire hotel, including outdoor spaces as well. Some shibori with the swans in the courtyard:

We offered 3-hour, 6-hour, 9-hour, and two-day workshops, both at the Embassy Suites and in my art barn. A copious amount of art was produced—from art quilts, mixed media, modern and improv quilts—to books, assemblages, dyed and painted fabrics, monoprints, and encaustic work.

On Friday night of the event we hosted an artist market with our teachers, non-profit organizations, local shops, and an extra bonus: a quilt guild raffle quilt. Our Artists’ View Luncheon went well, too, where teachers candidly shared ideas and inspired all to set the tone for a year filled with creating.

I see a lot of opportunity for growth for Craft Napa, and making this event even more meaningful, and so that is what I am working on right now for both next year and beyond for (gulp!) the 5^th anniversary edition.

I want to sincerely thank the sponsors, swag and door prize donators, because these companies proved themselves in gold for their generosity. I hope everyone who reads this blog will support them, check out their websites to see what they have to offer, buy from them, stop at their booths at quilt, trade, and craft shows, and follow them on social media:

Meissner’s Sewing (Northern CA’s premiere sewing and vacuum company that facilitated and provided the BERNINA sewing machines for classroom use)

BERNINA of America (My hands-down favorite machine!)

Dharma Trading

Pro-Chemical & Dye

QuiltFolk Magazine

Mistyfuse

Havel’s Sewing

Quilter’s Select

Craft Industry Alliance

Windham Fabrics

RJR Fabrics

Aurifil Threads

SOAK

Tacony Corporation

Lastly, thanks to all who made the trek to join us! It’s you who make this community come alive and make this event so special!

Next year’s dates for Craft Napa are January 9-13, 2019, and if you want to join us for our five-year anniversary, the dates for 2020 will be January 8-12, 2020.

I was really happy to go to Quilt Market and Festival this year, if anything, to get some respite from the aftermath of the fires in Northern California. I was not nearly as prepared as I would have liked to have been for Houston, given the disruption, but I was thrilled to go! I shared a lot of images on Facebook and Instagram, but for this blog entry I am culling the list down to just a few images that gave me great joy:

Leslie Tucker Jenison’s second fabric line “Urban Garden” with RJR Fabrics made its initial debut, and Leslie employed the talent of both Jamie Fingal and Deborah Boschert (to name just a couple) to make art with her line. This fabric line will be on sale at your local quilt shops in early spring, and I can’t wait to hoard some!

This booth below was a Market favorite, it popped up in a lot of social media feeds, and it is understandable why: “Foundation” by Shayla Wolf for Windham Fabrics.

Next up, Playful Fabric Printing co-author, Melanie Testa came out with her debut fabric line, “Floribunda!” with RJR Fabrics. If you like a jewel-toned palette coupled with unique prints with a personal touch, this line is for you!

Another quilt in detail:

I too had a formal presence and promoted “Playful Fabric Printing” in the Craftsman’s Touch booth at Festival. I was so happy to promote this book. It truly is a great resource if you are curious about creating your very own, unique fabric collection.

Below was a busy lady! Victoria Findlay Wolfe promoted her new Partial Herringbone Seam Quilt with tireless enthusiasm during the show. This class is sold out at CRAFT NAPA, and it is understandable why. The construction of this design is pretty brilliant. (Victoria still has a handful of seats for her two-day, four-ring double wedding class, though!)

On a quilting business note,  F&W and Quilts Inc. collaboratively came out with the latest Quilting in America 2017 survey. Survey says our industry is still doing gangbusters since the last survey was conducted in 2014, and the industry is seeing a strong buying power from people under 45. I mentioned to John when we discussed the study, though, that it would be nice if maybe next time, this study delved a bit more deeply into specific social media channels, time spent on each, etc. Anybody who is investing advertising dollars into paying ads on social media would find this breakdown helpful.

Back to quilts…this was my favorite one from the show. It is called “Home.”

This piece is by Kate Themel and her narrative reads, “My studio is where I feel most at home. It’s a place where I I can dance around, sing, talk to myself, swear, or drop things on the floor. I can express myself without worrying about having nice manners. I never need to dress up to spend a day I’m in the studio. Blue jeans, or pajamas, it’s all good.”

I agree. I came home, and took a hike in my neighborhood. Vineyards in autumn, my patchwork view:

I am definitely looking forward to cooler weather and hibernating in my studio. I, too, am getting ready for Craft Napa, which is just a few short weeks away, and ordering all of the loot for attendees. If you are thinking of coming, there is still space! Please join us! We also plan for a fun and unique opening ceremony to ring in a creative 2018.

In the meantime, it is raining here…what is not to love about this picture?

With gratitude,

Pokey

Mother Nature sure hasn’t been happy lately. With all of the hurricanes, wildfires, and earthquakes, it is hard to know how to help and where to make a charitable contribution.

Last week I was in Houston and saw some of the devastation from Hurricane Harvey first hand. Driving down the Hardy Toll from the airport, it was surreal to see street upon street lined with heaping mounds of molding mattresses, couches, and indiscernible bits of wood furniture in front yards. It is unimaginable to think what these people and their pets have been through.

While in Houston, I visited my old stomping grounds—Friends for Life Animal Rescue where, overtime, I got all three of my pups:

I spoke to some of my friends at the shelter, and learned that during Harvey and its aftermath, Friends for Life was the leading, go-to, disaster-trained shelter that BARC (the city shelter) and the George R. Brown called upon to spearhead intake and help rescue displaced families with pets from rising waters and flooding homes. (No one wanted a repeat of Hurricane Katrina where people were evacuated but told they must leave their pets behind.)

While coordinating pet triage in the George R. Brown Convention Center and with the assistance of South by South Vets and trans4mative, Friends for Life was able to provide vet care and services to animals sheltered at the George R Brown, NRG stadium, and surrounding rescue locations, accounting for approximately 3,000 animals saved (and that number is still rising). Click this link on NPR to see pictures and read stories about the amazing rescue effort at the GRB.

And FFL’s outreach didn’t end there. When Hurricane Irma hit Florida, Friends for Life reached out to rescue organizations in Florida to give advice and share their website model to coordinate vet techs and volunteers to save animals across the state.

But with such impressive rescue comes a price: Hurricane Harvey has significantly depleted funds and they need monetary help to keep handling and rescuing animals devastated by Harvey and beyond.

I want to support this organization that is a model for the nation in terms of successfully running a citywide, no-kill shelter, and how to handle relief efforts during a catastrophic natural disaster.

So here is what I am proposing:

The Stay Pawsitive! Art Fundraiser 

How to participate:

1. Make 1 or 2 (or 3, 4 or more) 6″x 6″ pieces of artwork to be offered online starting later this fall and at Craft Napa 2018 where all proceeds will go to Friends for Life Animal Rescue. These pieces of art can be made of fabric or paper, watercolor, acrylic, mixed media, quilts and stitch, metal, recycled bits, or even a combination of all the above.
2. Think theme! We are open to any theme for the artwork: they could be animals or fantasy creatures (unicorns anyone?), abstract works, depictions of dreamy landscapes and escapes, floral-themed pieces, mini modern quilts, graffiti-inspired work, or whatever your imagination dreams up! (Please, however, be mindful of copyright laws and create original art.)
3. These works do not need to be bound or mounted. Ideally we want to fit these works of art into 6″ x 6″ slim plastic casings for display, but if your work is thicker and won’t fit, we still welcome it!
4. On the back side of your artwork, please sign your name, title, and leave your social media info (i.e. website, blog, Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest handle). Contact information is optional.
5. We will sell the 6″ x 6″ pieces for $30 each at Craft Napa 2018 and online, and all of the proceeds will go to Friends for Life Animal Rescue.
6. The art should be received no later than Friday, January 5^th, 2018. Please note: this is a receive-by date! We will of course accept artwork during Craft Napa but want to have a large starting bank of artwork so would love it if you mailed them far in advance!
7. You can mail as many pieces of art as you would like, but please place them in a padded envelope. This way they will stay in pristine condition to be displayed at Craft Napa and online.

Please mail them to:

Crafting a Life

Attn: Stay Pawsitive!

PO BOX 10368

Napa, CA

94581

8. Come to Craft Napa or check later in the fall on the craftingalifellc.com site to buy as many pieces as you are able! Just think: if you bought four (or more) and had them framed, it would make for a very nice collection!

As soon as we start receiving artwork, we will post examples online and in social media channels.

Details for the online sale and also for a silent auction are forthcoming.

We hope you will get creating!

~ Pokey

P.S. While in Houston last week, I received another intake picture of my rescue pup Nellie. This was her when Friends for Life found her in the streets in 2012–malnourished and full of mange. Happy to say she is a stout little couch potato nowadays!

Last year  The Modern Quilt Guild approached me and asked me what I thought about partnering and launching the first Modern Quilt Masters retreat at my place in Napa.

I was more than game! I have found the board of the National Modern Quilt Guild extremely forward thinking and easy to work with, and when they pitched Denyse Schmidt as the teacher for the four-day retreat at my place, I was in! The 12-student, immersive four-day retreat sold out very quickly. BERNINA of America and Meissner’s were generous to provide sewing machines for student use, and I was able to secure an amazing chef in Napa to cook us lunch every day. We ate great food, drank some local/boutique wine, some hiked in the neighboring mountainside, others dabbled in a Sunday Fun Day with a Bloody Mary bar here in my barn, we enjoyed a pool-side BBQ with partners/spouses/friends, but most importantly, we created quilts…

Everyone was so prolific:

Another case in point:

We had plenty of critique time with Denyse who was so giving of herself.

And a special guest showed up…Jennifer Sampou.

More work in progress…

I am so grateful to have hosted this retreat. I did not get very far in my top, but I will. Craft Napa 2018 registration launches in a few days and I have been a bit busy getting it ready. This next Craft Napa event has grown a lot…17 teachers with …drumroll…41 workshops over the four days!

I want to thank the Modern Quilt Guild, Meissner’s, BERNINA USA, and Denyse Schmidt for such generosity and collaboration this past week.

Cheers to all,

Pokey