Updates [Newsletter]

February 8, 2024

I spent a lot of time in the freezing cold chaining up trucks, and driving said trucks thousands of miles through ice and snow and wind.
I’ve been stepping away from social media, except for sharing info, events and resources relating to Israel’s genocide on the people of Gaza and resistance efforts.
I wrote a couple poems, out of desperation for feeling all of the feelings about the current violence being waged on the people of Palestine with our (USA) tax dollars.
I started helping with fundraising for a nonprofit that is very dear to me for uplifting Balkan cultural activities in my city. If you’re in town, there will be a lovely dance workshop tomorrow, February 9th. See details on Podkrepa’s Facebook page. I highly encourage anyone to attend, whether or not you identify as a dancer. It will be so fun!
I joined a local group of natural dye nerds, and have already made some great connections. I joined some new friends to dig and process madder roots, and am involved in the planning stages of some cool events surrounding natural dyes in the Portland Metro area.
I’ve been trying to focus more on rest and recovery, including getting my sleep in order (to the best of my ability given my wild work schedule). And this means not getting to do as many things, and it is a continual practice of letting go of expectations.

I finished two huge quilts:
- Morning Star, the biggest quilt I’ve made yet (9ft square), a commission for a dear friend.
- Celestial Garden, a birthday quilt for my dear partner, based on the Folk Garden pattern by Sara Buscaglia of Farm and Folk, plus embroidered planetary magic.
And finished 3 kid quilts. I’ve come to realize that I can be the quilt fairy, spreading beautiful quilts around, and that starts with quilts for the little ones in my family.
I made two little zines for friends which I gifted along with sourdough starter babies. I plan to make some digital zines to share here when I have time!
I still have 4 quilts basted and in line to be quilted, 1 in the beginning of the piecing stage and about a million more dreamt up…along with 2 quilts that are surely but slowly being hand-pieced (probably over the course of the next 10 or 20 years)!
I had a tiny quilt in a tiny gallery show with Angelica Kauffman Gallery. This is curated by the lovely Elaine Luther, and it is my second time being featured in a show here!
I started making some improv pieced quilted bookmarks, inspired by Ali Homan, and it is turning out to be a super fun way to spend interstitial moments. Check out Ali’s one minute quilty bookmark tutorial!
I am doing a major reorganization of ALL my fabric. It is very exciting and refreshing to move things around, and also let go of some things that are no longer inspiring me.

Honing in on real, in-person connections and the activities we can do together with or near to other humans. Collaborative brainstorm sessions, long walks, deep talks, all the things!
Thinking and imagining things in relation to post-apocalyptic value, community care and resource sharing. How will we care for each other in the end times? How are we doing that now? We don’t need to wait for the inevitable collapse. “We must carry each other. If we don’t have this, what are we?” -Anne Michaels, Fugitive Pieces.
Podcast: Seamside. I am a huge fan of Zak Foster and this podcast is so good for quilty and non-quilty folks alike: asking and exploring some of life’s big questions.
Book: The Icarus Deception: How High Will You Fly? by Seth Godin.
Song: Shaking as it Turns by Lula Wiles.
Playing with sourdough again!

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