Remembering Dawn Tonoili, a creative and wonderful person

Can you believe this is made of buttons? Isn't it wonderful? Think what you could add to any quilt or textile in the form of buttons...delightful!

I adore this photo because so many of you are dear and I have known you for a long time....I am thankful for classes because I have made many wonderful and lasting friends.

Here is a small COW by Dwn Tonoli. Dawn passed away last week and she was a lsting and wonderful friend who I met years ago in a retreat and we kept meeting at my retreats and California when I was there. I am going to miss Dawn and her wonderful sense of humor and fabulous creativity. She always amazed me and it was fun to go on an artist trip with her as she came up with great ideas. Many of my students and friends remember her ondly. Here is more of her work.

MoochoVilla

MooeyChristmas

Dawn earing lunch outdorrs at my retreat in Idaho

Moolah

Dawn belonged to my block swap group and here she was working on a bird quilt

Dawn's story quilt drawing for her daughter in law...she finished this wonderful quilt

I know I have more photos but I cannot find them. You can see that she was fun, pretty and creative and a wonderful friend to many. I will miss her alot.

YOU HAVE IT! So now just USE it! (Imagination, Creativity, Originality)

Today's post is just ideas to run with in creating something fun and creative and wonderful...you have to please you and who cares what someone else thinks? Get over pleasing others and you will please them just the same...fun and energy in art translate across the board and you will find others love your energy and your work! Hope these things inspire you to do something great. I am teaching across the US this Fall and hope to see you in one of my classes...let's create together!

This saying above all others should move you to create, share, be kind and count your many blessings friend.....

The simplicity of a child's drawing inspires us if we let it...kids from 2 to 19 should do drawings to inspire us if we can get them to create! It is a wonderful thing to have a notebook of drawings from kids!

It is very creative and fun to turn one thing into another...can you try?

I adore clothes lines and think of the possibilities in quilts and paintings! The whole gist of this post is to get you to think "Outside the Box" like my books suggest you do....the world of art is so much fun and YES! you are an artist whether you want to admit it or not....create and don't be shy. If you want to be creative just try...that is all it takes!

Getting Inspired by Little Things

When you get ready to make cats in a quilt as I did with this quilt from the Out of the Box with Easy Blocks book think about why a cat has to be brown, black or gray...isn't a cat better with color and prints? I sure think so.

Quick! Name three things that blessed you today! Now try to name seven more....

I think maybe this is true....

And we complain about carrying our machines to our workshops...am I right? And she is smiling too!

I am always inspired by different things I run into. Today Connie my neighbor and I were looking at a quilt made a couple of years ago by someone who had seen this I guess. It was pretty close. I am thinking myself that I would like to do an American flag bright colors and fun shapes different than this but this led me to think of new things. Pinterest does alot of this for me. :0) Can you think of a flag (American or not) that you might do some change on? This is what invention is all about.

Someone in my Hoity Toity Houses class in Florida started this quilt and I just loved how her nest looked with the colorful fabric and texture. FUN and is going to be a super quilt!

I was just taling about solids today and how they differ from prints...I think they show every little goof up and detail. I had someone send me this photo and I think it is very cool and so easy to do the hoochy method way too.

Speaking of solids, look at this painting...wouldn't it be cool in some small patterned prints? Very happy and whimsical and colorful too!

This map made me laugh because it is so silly. I got this from Facebook....

I loved this photo from my library because it looks like an Edwina Hughes piece..she has inspired many of us with her wonderful style

This quilt is by Roxanne- Roxanne has one of the BEST quilt shops in the world...go to Carpenteria and you can spend a day there! Ask anyone. Great people, great fabric and great fun and she inspires you with her ideas too! And finally here is a gift to you to listen to and be blessed. It is so true and a nice thing to listen to before you go to bed.... http://www.wimp.com/simplegratitude/

Mary Lou's Work and Grants Pass,Oregon Workshop

I will be teaching Grants Pass Oregon the 8th through the 12th of Sept- it is going to be here in a blink of the eye! I am teaching Hoity Toity Houses and it is a class that is really fun and everyone has different houses and ideas and it is easy and whimsical and you can include address's people and animals you love etc. Very creative and very easy using the Hoochy way of piecing! Contact jansjet1@yahoo.com to take the two day workshop. The little quilt on top is a house short story I did with Timeless treasures Fabric. It is a good example of doing a smaller project with a house and fun things to support the story. I am putting these photos here because a number of people in Oregon were not familiar with my work. This gives a smattering of what I do. I have lots of new things but none quilted and embellished yet...stay tuned!

This quilt is the perfect example of a hoity Toity house....it is for my Grandson and has the entire family in different windows including the family pets and all of my Grandchildren in the sky including my Granddaughter who has a pin on that reads "made in Canada (she was born in Calgary,Alberta. These quilts are so much fun to make and they make excellent stories that will be kept for generations. Fun and historic too.

The quilt here is of my Grandparents place in Wardner British Columbia... house and things surrounding... whimsy and love all in one.

The quilt above is an old photo of a quilt that is on loan right now but it is the "Quilter's retirement Home." Very fun and has all kind of quilters in the windows and rapunzel, cinderella's shoe and other fun things as well as the royal storehouse that will have everyone's stash for making quilts. It is very fun. Below is my angel block of the month. This is an example of a great quilt done by Carol from Panama. She did such a nice job on this. It is a good chance to make a fun quilt and include names of the angels in your life. This is not a Hoity Toity quilt but it is a good example of what I love to design and do.

It is always fun to show students work and this lady from Florida did a quilt for her Grandson with the Hoity Toity method and she has all kinds of fun things and she named it Garrettville" for him. I love this don't you?

For more fun work by Mary Lou check out her other blog at Mary Lou and Whimsy Too-(google this)