Photo of the Week

Photos of the Week - Week 8

Critique Group Challenge:

Week 8, Time

Photo by Clark Poppleton

Click to view larger image

Clark says:

We have been taught that TIME is linear and never changes. But we all know that the perception of time is a different story. That is evident by a few of the phrases we’ve grown up with such as “Time flies when you’re having fun” and “A watched pot never boils”.

Recently I acquired a Lens Ball so I thought I’d see what fun perception effects I could come up with using it. I’ve lost count of how many images I captured. Funny that we depend on the auto focus so much, yet with the Lens Ball, I found that you can’t. You must look THROUGH the Lens Ball, and focus on the image in the ball, which meant manual focus. I was also using a handheld light source that only highlighted parts of the image because I didn’t want the light to reflect off the surface of the Lens Ball. Moving the light source around like I did, also meant changing the shutter speed from 1/60 of a second into a 10 second exposure.

Well, time was distorted when a 1/60 of a second exposure took me two hours to get something I was satisfied with.

52-Week Photo Challenge Class
Week 8 - Mirror

Week 52 Photo Challenge:

Week 8, Mirror

Photo by Marci Stokke

Click to view larger image.

Marci says:

Originally a large painting displayed at a very fun nursery in TriCities WA. Cropped to the most interesting swirals, mirrored and there he was, staring at me. Love the color mix and original design; love the outcome. Wish I was this talented! I enjoyed mirroring several images but liked this outcome the best.

Smart Phone Photo Challenges
Week 8 - Liquid

Smart Phone Challenge:

Week 8, Liquid

Photo by Carol Huston Lindow

Click to view larger image.

Ricky's Challenge Photos

Smart Phone Challenge:

Week 8, Liquid

Photo by Ricky Tims

Click to view larger image.

Ricky says:

Bubbles come from liquid. Right? I blew some bubbles in a blue bowl. This was then edited in Picasso. I enhanced the saturation.

Critique Group Challenge:

Week 8, Time

Photo by Ricky Tims
from the 2021 Critique Group

Click to view larger image.

Ricky says:

Recently my first year class learned mirror image and I decided to have some fun with an antique clock face in my studio in a montage with one of my raven quilts by Judy Alborn, the pocket watch indicates it is almost midnight - time is running out. I then duplicated the project and in Topaz added a filter - but then back in Photoshop I erased some of that layer so the magic drifted in an out rather than being one static filter over the entier image.

Add new comment

Featured Quilt: Bending Tree

Click on quilt for full view.

Bending Tree by Ricky Tims

My dear friend Libby Lehman (prior to her stroke in 2013) was known for a wonderful appliqué technique. She called it Pot Luck, but she also explained it as being a sort of “excavated” appliqué…meaning that the pieces were not applied on top of the background, but rather they were applied under the background and then the background was cut away, exposing the fabric underneath. These fabric pieces were not shapes, like leaves, or hearts, or flowers, but rather, they were simply odd-shaped pieces of fabric. The cut away of the top layer is what created the shape. The layers have a single stitch holding them together, and then the edges are stitched with a lovely machine stitch to create the amazing and beautiful result.

Bending Tree is made using Libby’s method and the pattern is meant to be a symbol of faith. The message is… bend, don’t break. Life can present plenty of challenges, but we must withstand the storm. My thoughts at this time are with my friends in Ukraine and I pray they they will withstand the attacks, and most importantly, retain their fighting spirit.

What is happening in your world…or with someone you know… who might just need this small wall quilt as a visual reminded to ‘hang in there’? Hey, you might learn a new fun appliqué technique too!

Pattern - $24.98

TRY THE JIGSAW PUZZLE

Choose your own difficulty. Click the 9-patch grid to change number of pieces. Click the circle arrow to make the puzzle pieces rotating instead of stable orientation. Also, there are tips under the "?" on the upper right of the puzzle. If you'd like a full screen version, click the button below. Have fun!

Jigsaw Puzzle

Add new comment

Pecan Cake & Coffee with Cream Cheese Icing

Hugo Strikes again...
by Hugo Dos Santos

I am a big fan of coffee!

I like coffee without sugar, like many wine aficionados and quilt addicts, I must admit that coffee is one of my passions. I LOVE coffee (don't tell Ricky).

I also love sweets...Who doesn't? So I searched for a recipe that combined sugar and coffee.

This cake is a perfect combination and has a lot of flavors.

This recipe's so easy to do, I saying that because most of you don't live on the mountain where high elevation baking is challenging.

Have fun!

Serves 6-8 people / Prep time: 30min / Total time: 1h and 15min

Ingredients:

Flour | 4 cups

Sugar | 1 cup

Brown Sugar | 1 cup

6 eggs |

Cinnamon | 1 tsp

Milk | 2 cups

Shopped Pecan | 2 cup

Coffee (brewed, liquid) | 1/2 cup

Baking Soda | 1 tsp

Baking powder | 1 tsp

Melted butter| 4 oz

Cream Cheese Icing

Cream cheese | 8 oz

Powdered sugar sifted | 1 cup

Coffee | 10 tsp

In a bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon
In a large bowl, beat together eggs, sugar, and melted butter.
Add half of the flour mixture, add the coffee and the milk and add the rest of the flour mixture.
Fill greased bundt cake pan evenly with batter. Bake at 375˚ for 40-45 minutes until a cake tester come out clean.
While the cake is cooling, beat together the icing ingredients until smooth. Fill a Ziploc bag with the icing (cut a tiny hole in one corner) and decorate the cake, or you can decorate using a fork.

Add new comment

Tarte au Flan or Custard Tart

This...from Hugo

A pastry flan is a dessert that presents flan on a shortcrust pastry base. The flan can be compared to Portuguese pastel de nata or a British custard tart. It can be personalized by adding caramel, coconut, or even chocolate.

Custard tarts or flans pâtissier are a baked pastry consisting of an outer pastry crust filled with egg custard.

This recipe is very easy, trust me! This is not like a quilt.

Serves 4-6 people

Ingredients:

1 Puff pastry.
2 1/4 cups milk
3 large eggs
6 Tbsp sugar
4 Tbsp Cornstarch
1 1/2 tsp vanilla total needed (divided 1 tsp and 1/2 tsp)

Line a buttered and floured (or non-stick spray) 9" cake pan with the dough, prick the bottom and the edges with the tines of a fork.

Refrigerate while you prepare the filling.

Preheat oven to 350˚F

Using an electric mixer or whisk, beat the eggs with the cornstarch, 1tsp. vanilla, and 1 cup of milk in a bowl.

Pour the remaining milk into a saucepan, add sugar, 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract. Bring to a boil. Using an electric mixer, pour the boiling sweet vanilla milk over the egg mixture.

Pour everything back into a saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Do not let this mixture boil. Stir mixture for 1-2 minutes, no more. The mixture must be slightly thickened.

Pour the mixture in the pan with the previously prepared dough. Bake for 40 minutes at 350˚F. During the last 5 minutes, choose convection mode (if possible) to brown the top just a bit.

Let cool completely before unmolding, slicing and enjoying. Keep refrigerated.

1 comment

Featured Quilt: Delightful Daisies

Click on quilt for full view.

Delightful Daisies by Susan K Cleveland

In April 2013, quilting legend and beloved quilt teacher, author, and designer, Libby Lehman had a brain aneurysm and subsequent stoke. After months of dire prognosis and being kept on life support, they slowly tried to wake her. She was there…but she was not there. Gradually Libby was able to begin therapy but it wasn’t long before she communicated that she wanted to die. She stopped eating. There were consultations with the family and the doctors. They agreed to put her into hospice care. After about six weeks of minimal food intake and depression, Libby, with laborious effort, said to her sister, “This dying thing isn’t working out. I want to live and I want to go back to therapy.”

It was during these dark days that Clara Lawrence organized a celebrity quilt auction to raise money for the mounting medical bills. The fund-raiser quilts were on display at the International Quilt Festival in Houston. I made a quilt for that auction, but I also bought a quilt…this quilt! It is made by my dear friend, the uber talented Susan Cleveland—the piping hottie herself.

Libby continued her recovery and eventually was able to walk on her own. She continues to improve. And while she no longer is able to quilt or teach, she and her husband Lester enjoy living life to the fullest. Libby, who has always been inspirational—still inspires us today.

TRY THE JIGSAW PUZZLE

Jigsaw Puzzle

Add new comment

I'm Just Sayin

Photo of the Week

Photos of the Week - Week 8

52-Week Photo Challenge Class
Week 8 - Mirror

Smart Phone Photo Challenges
Week 8 - Liquid

Featured Quilt: Bending Tree

Pecan Cake & Coffee with Cream Cheese Icing

Tarte au Flan or Custard Tart

Featured Quilt: Delightful Daisies

More Articles ...

I'm Just Sayin

Photos of the Week - Week 8

52-Week Photo Challenge ClassWeek 8 - Mirror

Smart Phone Photo Challenges Week 8 - Liquid

More Articles ...

52-Week Photo Challenge Class
Week 8 - Mirror

Smart Phone Photo Challenges
Week 8 - Liquid