Judy Elsley

I went to get a latte while we were waiting at the airport, and on the way to Starbucks, I came upon an impromptu band with a semi-circle of passengers watching and clapping. The band looked like airport employees; I have no idea why they were playing. It was such infectious music, I started moving my hips, and before I knew it, I was dancing with the singer: "Spirit up, little darling;" So easy to move to Bob Marley. No photos; it's too hard to really dance and take photos

Beginning writers fall in love their first drafts. They’re amazed and impressed by what they’ve produced: it’s perfect just the way it is because they created it. More experienced writers know that the purpose of a first draft is to have something to cut up, play around with, rearrange, delete, add, change. The same is true with fabric work. It’s tempting to consider the first “draft” of a textile piece as sacred. We’re scared to cut it up in case we just make things worse. W

We spent the last week in S.E. Utah, a great expanse of pinyon and juniper, slick rock and canyons. Hiking is hard work in places like the Needles section of Canyonlands, Natural Bridges National Monument and Grand Gulch which means that fewer people visit than, say, Moab and Arches. I am always amazed by the stark beauty of canyon country, an uncompromising place where wind and water have eroded rock over the millennia. And the rock reminds me of the source of all creative

May 13, 2018 When I went out to the little free library this morning to tidy up the books and refill the bowl of dog biscuits, I found some wonderful hand-made book marks. I particularly liked these two: Thank you to the person who left these little blessings in the library. I also found a recent copy of “In Touch” magazine where I learned that Brad and Jen are getting back together. I realize that’s what we, the reading public want as a happy ending for two stars we like, bu

I was in the Park City Whole Foods bathroom today when ZZ Top’s “Sharp Dressed Man” piped through the audio system. As I washed my hands, I found myself moving from foot to foot in time to drummer Frank Beard’s driving rhythm. Gold watch, diamond ring, I ain’t missing a single thing. And cuff links, stick pin. When I step out I’m gonna do you in. There was no one else in the bathroom, so I just let loose and danced right there. They come runnin’ just as fast as they can Caus

For my birthday, Alan gave me a gift certificate to Maiwa, a Vancouver, Canada company that specializes in organic cloth, natural dyes and clothes made from hand woven fabrics. It’s a wonderful store we discovered on a trip to Vancouver last summer. I very rarely use other people’s fabrics in my quilts, and never use commercial fabrics. My wall hangings are almost entirely made from fabrics I’ve dyed and printed. However, as an artisan myself, I admire and want to support ot

I'm reading Barbara Brown Taylor's book, "An Altar in the World." She was a priest until the church wore her out, and now she teaches comparative religion at a Georgia university. She asks some interesting questions about church as a building: "Do we build God a house so that we can choose when to go see God? Do we build God a house in lieu of having God stay in ours? Plus, what happens to the rest of the world when we build four walls--even four gorgeous walls--cap them with

Artist Beverly Pepper said, "I go to my studio every day. Some days the work comes easily. Other days nothing happens. Yet on the good days the inspiration is only an accumulation of all the other, the nonproductive ones." Sigh. I'm just not that focused. All week, I've been meaning to go to my dye and textile studio to work on the pieces I made in Jane Dunnewold's class a few weeks ago. Instead of spending a few hours in the studio, I've sorted through my home sewing room, w

Yesterday, I went to the annual "Utah Quilting and Sewing Marketplace" show in Sandy, Utah. This is a huge event, mostly focused on machine quilting, with both quilt displays and vendors. I had three quilts in an exhibition of work by the Utah Surface Design Group, the organization in which I participate. Here's one of mine: The background is a hand-dyed black cotton that I've then discharged (taken out the color). I've hand embroidered spirals and sewn on shells that I picke

This looks like a perfectly good bowl, but I know it's a dud. Why? Two reasons. The first is that it should be a deep red color but the glaze is too thin. I should have dipped it twice. The second reason: Yep, it has a crack in the center of the bowl. That won't do. A cracked bowl is not safe to use because it's so hard to clean. So what can I do with this dud? I put it out in my back garden, along the Wall of Fame. It will gather water when it rains which may provide drink o