Enchanted Home

I've moved my blog!

2011-09-12T22:28:00.005-07:00

I've created a new home on the web for my blog! It's gawgeous! And it has oodles of additional yum!

Come check it out, tout suite!

The Sweet Spot

See you there!

xoxo!

~Claire

“This beauty just keeps shaking me…”

2011-05-12T09:09:00.000-07:00

To borrow a line from an Indigo Girls song: “Everywhere I turn, oh, all the beauty just keeps shakin’ me…”

Our veranda, just now…

Rivershore poppies, a la Languedoc

2011-04-29T11:48:00.001-07:00

Springtime in the south of France reliably brings carpets of wild red poppies. Photo taken from the shore of the Orb River, looking north up into ‘our’ little village of Roquebrun, France, Languedoc.

O darling veranda

2011-04-20T10:12:00.000-07:00

Through the screen door, from the bedroom (facing south-southeast)

The nun’s bed, for those hot Sonoran nights (facing southwest)

A little mood lighting (facing west)

Door to kitchen on left, door to hall that leads to studio and Ken’s bathroom on right (facing northwest)

Taken standing with my back to the kitchen door (facing east)

Looking south-southeast

“Everywhere we are is Sacred Space…*”

2011-04-19T09:22:00.001-07:00

Last night’s sunset

This morning’s sunlight

Fountain view laptop perch (bedroom)

“Everywhere we are is Sacred Space…”
--Marty Weiner (1943-April 17, 2011)

Roquebrun illuminé

2011-04-19T07:19:00.000-07:00

Our village, Roquebrun (Herault, Languedoc) with its magic apparent.

Laundry day

2011-04-18T12:45:00.001-07:00

Alfresco dining at home, full moon, candlelight

2011-04-18T10:52:00.001-07:00

Full moon from our covered porch

2011-04-17T21:42:00.000-07:00

Apricot Bath

2011-04-15T07:12:00.000-07:00

I have deemed this bathroom for BATHS only. Literally. This way, a soothing bath is only a few moments away at any given time. No shower grime to clean, no hard-water-stained shower curtains to wrestle. Just a sweet cottony cascade and a long sheer swag, a decadent collection of bath salts ever at the ready!

My friend Peggy gave me this flying bare-breasted Balinese goddess many years ago. She said this is how she felt after one of my massages!

Framed island art from Etsy:

Here’s the view out the window:
On the left, thrift store mirror. Oh so French. Jewelry hang-y thing that I created by re-purposing a shelf from a broken plant stand. Formerly-ugly bookcase painted bright white…

Photo below taken while standing in bathroom looking toward hall (the hall that leads from the kitchen to the living room).
Framed art from one of my oldest and dearest friends, Carrie Tasman, Tasman Studio. Framed quote from Mary Anne Radmacher-Hershey. Mini-painting of a brown Labrador in the bathtub by Angie Ketelhut.

Little window in hall above looks out on the covered porch, fountain and cobblestone courtyard (click to enlarge):

Fountain-side alcove sleeping, via shaded south colonnade

2011-04-14T19:44:00.000-07:00

Our walls are silky, sanguine, incandescent ‘Magic Hour’. Our sleeping alcove is matte ‘Soul Sister’. Both are luminous full-spectrum paints from Citron Paint here in Tucson.

Here’s the description of ‘Magic Hour’ from Citron’s website:

As the sun slides down in Tucson, the light gets sideways and golden halos transform the desert. Ordinary trees become glowing sculptures and mountains become epic. The drab curtain of the day is parted, and you can glimpse the beauty that's always there. My family calls it magic hour.

Arched door leads directly out onto the cobblestone courtyard. Here’s an exterior shot of the covered walkway; the first purple door on the left is the bedroom. the second door is the laundry room. The entrance to Indiana’s part of the house is down at the very end of the colonnade. (Colonnade! I love using that word!)

That’s Bella, a sweet girl we’re sitting for until the 23rd… her parents are in Hawaii. I’m thinking everyone got a good deal!

Below is a view toward the bedroom door, standing in the kitchen and looking through the covered porch.

The fountain is almost directly outside this south-facing door!

This north-facing window looks out onto the Santa Catalina Mountains – the place where Magic Hour really happens! We can see the mountains sitting or lying in bed!

The bedroom is reached either from the colonnade, or internally by going through Ken’s bathroom and this closet-lined hall and arched doorway.

A few other angles of Ken’s bathroom:

Mountain views from the commode!

Our Blue Heaven

2011-04-14T10:08:00.001-07:00

A few exterior shots… this is the west side of the estate. It’s a large, private fenced area that is ours alone. It will be a perfect place to watch sunsets and have fires, plus it’s a wonderland of smells for Roxy’s many daily patrols.

This doorway leads into the kitchen.
I am imagining that Indiana Nelson, our dee-vine Lady of the Manor, chose this particular blue because it nearly matches the rich Cerulean blue of the Sonoran desert sky.

Click to enlarge. Image above shows which portion of property is ours, highlighted in pale blue.

Sweet-crazy-happy little kitchen

2011-04-14T09:12:00.001-07:00

Some “ïn-progress” photos of our sweet electric-yellow kitchen! So yellow, it almost vibrates… at first, we thought we’d paint over it, but it has really quite grown on us!

The French doors face due west and are essentially our front door/main entrance. The floor is concrete stained a rich deep earthy brownish-red.

Click any image to enlarge.

In this first photo, the orange hall on the left (with the blue & white floor tile) leads through to the aqua living room. My bathroom is off the hall – it’s the same orange. Actually, it’s more of a bright apricot in person.

This arched door leads to the covered porch.

Here’s the view standing in the kitchen looking out onto the covered porch. The purple door left of center is our bedroom.

Here, the doorway in the center of the photo leads to a short hall – more of a passage than a hall -- where the fridge resides. Oh, and Roxy’s “station” is there, too… dawg food dish, kibble bin, water bowl, hooks for leashes, collars, etc.

We managed to insert this darling little green metal table in just the right spot so that it actually works, even though the layout is essentially a galley and a major arterial through the house. Enough room for one chair and a wee wrought-iron stool, too.

Note the absence of a dishwasher and microwave. Also, no garbage disposal and there is some mysterious short in the fridge that allows the inside lights to work only on, er, every 40th time you open the door. And having the fridge in the hall makes for an awkward work triangle. All that being true, the space is magical nonetheless and sings with happiness.

Ken is on a thrift-store hunt for a microwave, but I could easily live without one and hardly miss it. The only thing I use it for is to warm plates and for the occasional bag of buttery popcorn.

Now, to figure out how to hang the scallop-edged mirror over the stove without marring the masonry-covered adobe walls. Hmmm…. purple ribbon?

Aaah… Luxuriating in our new Tucson universe

2011-04-13T14:59:00.001-07:00

Even though we are a mere 3/4 of a mile from our old house – and happily dug out from under an avalanche of boxes -- it feels like we are in an entirely different and magical parallel Universe over here on Sierra Vista Drive. And we are LOVING it!!

Here are some “Before & After” pairings, wild and joyous chaos transforming into Hacienda Bliss.

Covered porch:

Living Room:

My Studio:

I took the Before photos on Day 2 (Friday, April 8) and the After photos today. As you can see, significant progress has been made! Going from 2200+ square feet plus a double carport, to a sanely-preparing-for-our-move-to-France 1000 square feet, we of course have a-ways to go. But I always love seeing others’ journeys – Young House Love and Fibermania, in particular -- as they transform a house into a home, so I’m excited about sharing the steps along the way! Tomorrow: kitchen, baths & bedroom.

Floorplans for our Sanctuary/Playhouse

2011-04-07T06:53:00.000-07:00

Of COURSE, I had to play around with the floor plans while fantasizing about living in our new place!

Click any image to enlarge.

Living Room plan:

Studio:

Bedroom:

Covered Porch:

Au revoir ‘Casa Encantada’!

2011-04-06T10:32:00.001-07:00

Tomorrow, the movers arrive! In preparation for our Big Move to France in almost exactly 13 months, we have happily sold our beautiful home, Casa Encantada! Whee!

Casa Encantada, our home for almost exactly 3 years since we moved to Tucson. She will now be home to a lovely friend of ours for whom we’ve dog-sat… Rover & Misty Blue. Here’s what dog-sitting them usually looked like (fuzzy cell phone pic – didn’t want to disturb them by getting up to fetch my camera):

That’s my dog Roxy down at the end of the sofa, Rover in the middle then Misty Blue nestled up against my tush (see my red slipper?) I know, as if you could tell the difference between the three of them!

We have been extraordinarily happy here! May Tina and Rover and Blue be just as happy! We bless this house for giving us sanctuary and a container for our love, creativity and connection!

Now, on to our lovely interim chapter! We are renting a delightful guest house just under a mile from Casa Encantada – we will be a block north of The Arizona Inn.

Pics to come as we move in and create a fresh Enchanted Home. In the meantime, here’s the Google Earth satellite view:

The owner of the main house, artist Indiana Nelson, calls this house The Sanctuary. We are renting the western third of the compound – 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, 250 square foot covered porch, indoor space equals about 1000 square feet.

The house is an old 1920s hacienda-style estate. You know this style of house I’m referring to… rooms built around a central courtyard, with each room opening onto the courtyard with fountain — so excited!! I love old homes with soul! I imagine that ties into why I am drawn to Europe – and France in particular.

We’ve tentatively named our guest house The Little House of Play, (or Little Playhouse). Though after spending a week taking a load over every day, and spending two afternoons painting the master bedroom, I am inclined to agree with Indiana. This place is magical and feels like a true sanctuary.

(WARNING: Amatuer-video alert!) Here’s a video of the central courtyard (that’s my hunny-hubby Kenny!):

And the Living Room:

And the kitchen leading on out to the covered porch:

The Master Bedroom:

If you would like to see a few more short videos, click here go to my YouTube Channel.

More “Before” pics and “Progress” pics to come!

‘Waiting for April’ quilted!

2011-02-07T14:16:00.001-07:00

Waiting for April
$250
Machine pieced and quilted
Commercial cottons, 15 x 20 inches
©2009, T. Claire O'Connor

‘Taffy’ is quilted!

2011-02-04T14:22:00.001-07:00

$350
Machine pieced and quilted
Commercial batiks, 35 x 36 inches
Adapted from an Amy Walsh pattern
©2009, T. Claire O'Connor

Celebrating Expat Women

2011-01-17T14:02:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday to one of my favorite websites! ExpatWomen.com has been a great resource for me as Ken and I make our plans to move to France next year.

It’s the largest global website helping women living abroad. The site displays 1,000+ content pages, 1,600+ expat women blogs, 300+ readers' stories, invaluable country resource pages, interviews with successful expat women, loads of motivational articles and an inspirational blog and newsletter.

By popular demand! The Cosmic Cafe teleclass series!

2010-10-27T15:16:00.001-07:00

Beginning November 18, join me and the friendly tribe of Enchanted Lifers for an amazing experience in honing your manifestation skills on a whole new, more efficient level…

The Cosmic Cafe: Your Enchanted Life Manifestation Catalyst

Click here to learn everything about the teleclass, including the Fr*ee Sampler class I’m offering on Monday, November 1, where you can get a taste of some of the tools we’ll be exploring in the full class.

We’ll be placing our orders with The Cosmic Waitress! C’mon! The kitchen is hoppin’!

Questions? Click here to email me.

Announcing a new teleclass! “Your Enchanted Home”

2010-09-05T05:42:00.000-07:00

Starting September 22 and running for 4 consecutive Wednesdays, I am offering a dee-lish tele-seminar called Your Enchanted Home: Transform Your Space to Support Who You Are -- and Who You're Becoming.

It’s chock-full of fun, powerful and sweet experiential exercises to amp up the spiritual/energetic nutrition quotient in your home.

We’ll play with tools such as: Feng shui, design psychology & floor plan flow dynamics, therapeutic color, letting go of stuff, energy clearing, guided imagery, collaging, journaling and so much more, including, most importantly, your OWN intuition!

Check out all the details here and sign up before September 12 to be eligible for the Early Bird discount.

Commissioned Hand-Dyed Improv Quilt is DONE!

2010-08-26T12:21:00.001-07:00

Ta-da!! Here is the finished hand-dyed improv quilt that my friend and mentor Katie Hendricks commissioned recently. I got to hand-deliver it to her in Santa Barbara this past weekend and she squealed with delight!

The quilting is done in wavy organic diagonals to enhance the motion of the design.

It measures approximately 60 x 65 inches, and is made with organic cottons and silks, hand-dyed with natural dyes by ME and my hunny Ken. The teal-blue border fabric is the only “non-conformer”: a gorgeous multi-hued commercial Carolina Chambray by Robert Kaufman.

Showing off! Naturally-dyed, hand-painted/stamped silk scarf

2010-08-25T10:44:00.000-07:00

Here are two images of this fab scarf – my first experimental foray into stamping and painting on silk. This scarf is one of the Habotai silks Ken and I hand-dyed recently using natural dyes – in this case, marigold, tesu and indigo. The indigo was layered on using an ancient Shibori technique.

Click either image to enlarge.

I’m showing you the enhanced photo image (left) as well as the original (right). The enhanced image shows the details of the paint detail better; the original shows the true colors of the scarf better.

This scarf has been sold, but I am taking orders for our next creative dye weekend here at Casa Encantada. Let me know if you’d like to commission a custom creation!

Prices ranges from $30 to $60. Just to give you an idea, this one sold for $45. Scarves measure 13 x 56 inches, a perfect length for a variety of draping approaches. The weight is perfect for summer or winter wear. It has a beautiful drape and flow, along with a lustrous and luxurious shine.

Email me at claire@enchantedstudio.net or give me a call at (520) 444-1847 (Pacific Time).

Hand-dyed/hand-painted organic silk scarves forthcoming!

2010-07-29T06:34:00.000-07:00

Here’s a sneak preview of some of the many organic silk scarves Ken and I hand-dyed using natural dyes. Many of them will also have surface design elements added – you can see the scarf on the very top has been stamped. Tres fun!

Once we’ve finished them all, I’ll photograph them individually and get them up for sale on my Enchanted Studio website! I’ll keep ya posted!

A paper mock-up of the hand-dyed improv quilt

2010-07-28T13:30:00.001-07:00

I wanted to get a sense of where this process might be taking me, so I took photos of the four panels and printed them out, then cut into them, rearranged and taped the pieces back together. Voila! Finished size will be 60 x 65 inches. (This little mock-up is about 14 x 14”.) Hmmm… I LOVE it. I wonder, though, about the yellow vertical line center-ish…?

Improv quilting – preparing the panels for subcutting

2010-07-27T10:13:00.000-07:00

These are the panels for a new quilt I have been working on. They are approximately 34 x 30 inches. Today, I am preparing to layer and subcut to see what new compositions and colorplay emerge. The final layout of the quilt will not look much like what you see here…

With the exception of the dark teal and one of the deep apricots which are commercially dyed shot cotton chambrays, ALL the other fabrics are hand-dyed organic silks – some organic cottons, too – that Ken and I dyed here.

Quote of the Week – July 26, 2010

2010-07-26T06:28:00.000-07:00

"We cause as much pain by taking offense, as by giving it."

-Eleanor Roosevelt

A toast to Kirby the Kitty

2010-07-24T12:49:00.001-07:00

After 2-and-a-half years of the exquisite pleasure of Kirby’s presence in our lives, he peacefully transitioned into pure consciousness yesterday morning at 11:30.

At age 7, he succumbed to lupus, after enjoying a two-year remission in which he happily ruled his kingdom here at Casa Encantada, vigorously scaling 6-foot adobe walls in a single bound and luxuriating in a diet of grain-free roasted bison and wild salmon – not too shabby!

We loved his sweet, laid-back royal demeanor, his easy rhythms and his open affection for our dawg Roxy. Feeling waves of love, sadness and soul-deep appreciation…

Celebrating my 5000th blog visitor!

2010-07-23T09:21:00.000-07:00

Whoo-hoo! This blog has reached a fun milestone – my 5000th unique visitor! From 72 different countries! And this is my 220th post. And I’ve re-designed it a couple of times – here are the three generations…

Thanks for commenting, following, reading along -- and for your all-around support, good vibes and conviviality! The “blogosphere” has proven to be yet another creative outlet where we get to connect around many shared passions. Salut to all of us on this strange and wonderful frontier!

Afternoon relief

2010-07-21T17:12:00.000-07:00

A monsoon cloud sweeps through violently, leaving a 20-degree temperature drop in its’ wake.

Bastille Day in “our” little French village

2010-07-20T15:23:00.000-07:00

Ahhh… I feel so happy knowing that experiences like this are in our future! Roquebrun, France, in the Languedoc region. (Photo credit: Campotel de l’Orb Facebook Page).

Feux d'artifice à Roquebrun le 13 juillet 2010!

Quote of the Week – July 19, 2010

2010-07-19T06:46:00.000-07:00

"When you start working, everybody is in your studio -- your past, your friends, your enemies, the art world, your ancestors, your inner critic, and above all, your own ideas -- all are there. But as you continue painting, they start leaving, one by one, and you are left, completely, gloriously alone. Then if you're lucky, even you leave."

--Philip Guston quoting John Cage in The Artist's Mentor, by Ian Jackman

Semi-final palette for new art quilt commission

2010-07-17T07:56:00.001-07:00

Though, we did remove the grays and browns, and add a teal and a deep apricot!

These are all my OWN naturally hand-dyed organic silks and cottons. (Well, mine and Ken’s!)

Top row: heavy raw organic silks; middle row: organic cotton muslins; bottom row: is a mix of mid-weight organic Fuji silk broadcloth and heavy raw organic silks. SHLURP!

TODAY is the day I begin cutting into all this lusciousness and start sewing! I am both excited and a bit nervous!

Ahhh… breathe…

YUM!!

Exploring surface design

2010-07-15T06:40:00.000-07:00

Another couple of days of our two-week fabric-dyeing intensive was spent exploring and sampling the huge world of surface design. We took our layered hand-dyed fat quarters and played with adding even MORE layers!

We played with stamps, stencils, silkscreens, resists, discharges, dyes, paints and more. Iron, indigo, bleach, and more. Here are a few examples! Click to enlarge any image.

The applications are endless, but I see myself making some gorgeous scarves – (photos of a few of those to come soon in a separate post). Is an etsy.com shop in my future? Hmmmm…

Wild hand-dyed silk samplers

2010-07-14T15:16:00.000-07:00

This was one of the fun things Ken and I did during our two-week fabric-dyeing intensive with Gail Denton at the Natural Dye Studio in Boulder in June!

We spent a couple of days exploring the interplay of the dyes with layering, double and triple-dipping, folding, fanning, tying, clamping and otherwise torturing the silks.

These samplers are fat-quarter-yard size (18 x 22 inches). Click on any image to enlarge.

The idea here is that these techniques can be used to make silk scarves and/or to cut up and make into quilts, and/or to create a base for layers of surface design – painting, stamping, screen printing, stenciling, surface dyeing using a thickening agent, etc. Some photos of THAT step to come tomorrow.

In the meantime, vote for your favorites!

Also watch for a blogpost later this week devoted to just our silk scarves.

A Color Study of our hand-dyed silks

2010-07-13T12:52:00.000-07:00

Here is the line-up of naturally hand-dyed 100% organic silks for our headed for our color reference binder. Aren’t they GORGEOUS!? (Click to enlarge.)

The two rows on the far left are Fuji broadcloth. The next two rows to the right are heavy silk noile. We did the same color study on each of the fabrics to see how the dye behaves differently on different fabrics

Quote of the Week – July 12, 2010

2010-07-12T06:05:00.000-07:00

"Sell your cleverness. Buy curiosity, wonder and bewilderment."

- Rumi

The monsoons begin!

2010-07-10T10:24:00.001-07:00

A little late, but this weekend marks the official arrival of our dramatic and exhilarating summer monsoon season!

As with the other four seasons, this “fifth season” is one of the many reasons I LOVE calling the flowering desert my home. The air smells and feels sensuously intoxicating. I feel deeply nourished by the daily rhythms and sounds of this place.

Wave-a-licious + Curve-a-licious

2010-07-08T11:27:00.001-07:00

More curve play!

Yummy fabric palette for my next commissioned quilt – all organic hand-dyeds

2010-07-07T12:24:00.000-07:00

Here, my dears, is THE most luscious collection of “my” own brandy-new naturally hand-dyed organic fabrics – in a specially selected palette of happy colors for my next quilt commission! I’m getting started on it by doing some fun warm-ups with improvisational curved piecing. Whee!

Warming up with curves

2010-07-06T16:05:00.000-07:00

An interesting technique called top-stitched curve piecing… running through some exercises the last 2 days to see if I can find a better way to piece deeper curves. So far, this one, pictured above, is my fave. The above “block” is approximately 18” x 20”.

Now, more practice!

Quote of the Week – July 5, 2010

2010-07-05T06:03:00.000-07:00

"The trick is in what one emphasizes. We either make ourselves miserable, or we make ourselves strong. The amount of work is the same."

-Carlos Castenada

My new natural-hand-dyed fabric stash!

2010-07-04T12:27:00.000-07:00

All gorgeous 100% organic: cotton muslin, sueded muslin, cotton sateen, Fuji broadcloth (silk), raw silk, dupioni silk, heavy noile (silk), silk charmeuse, and more. YUM!!!

Quote of the Week – June 28, 2010

2010-06-28T06:02:00.000-07:00

"Now I am light, now I fly, now I see myself beneath myself, now the divine dances through me.”

-Friedrich Nietzsche

Hand-dyeing with natural dyes!

2010-06-26T12:26:00.000-07:00

Happily expanding my repertoire and diving into fuller creative expression with hand-dyeing using eco-friendly, all-natural dyes on organic cottons and silks! With my hunny’s help – Ken has been dubbed my Color Master!

More videos and photos to come of our 2-week learning intensive with master dyer Gail Denton at the Natural Dye Studio just north of Boulder, Colorado.

Quote of the Week – June 21, 2010

2010-06-21T06:57:00.000-07:00

"Now and then it's good to pause in our pursuit of happiness and just be happy."

-Guillaume Apollinaire

Quote of the Week – June 14, 2010

2010-06-14T07:55:00.000-07:00

"It's got nothing to do with being a perfect, goody-goody, selfless, sacrificing, spiritual saint. Blah! That whole characterization was meant for a different audience at a different time, and they really had issues.

It's got everything to do with being yourself, trusting the magic, following your heart, dreaming big, and having fun. Rock on!"

-Mike Dooley

Quote of the Week – June 7, 2010

2010-06-07T15:52:00.001-07:00

"What if you experienced life as a series of tosses to you, moments of the universe asking you to play? The phone call to answer, the bill needing to be paid, the irritable waiter or unruly co-worker could all be opportunities for you to take the ball, place your unique spin on it, and send it back out onto the field. This means you are a co-creator, not a victim; a willing participant who has fully stepped into your life."

-Julie Colwell

Quote of the Week – May 31, 2010

2010-05-31T07:32:00.000-07:00

"Is something taking up residence in your mind?

If so, b r e a t h e to create space, inviting it to ENTER and roam around in your body.

It's within where we find the EXIT."

-Frank Gjata

Enchanted Studio video panorama

2010-05-26T09:12:00.003-07:00

Playing with my new little video cam! Fun! This is a short panorama I just made of my studio this morning.

French Blues Ade

2010-05-25T08:45:00.001-07:00

A curvy improvisational quilt-in-progress up on the design wall this week. Filled with Provencal-inspired commercial prints.

Who knows what this will morph into, as I have pretty much run out of these fabrics. Time to leap into incorporating a fresh stream of fabrics.

Hmmm… I wonder what wants to happen next?

Quote of the Week – May 24, 2010

2010-05-24T06:34:00.000-07:00

"Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things that you did not do, than by the ones you did. So throw off the bow lines, sail away from the safe harbor, catch the trade winds in your sails, explore, dream and discover."

-Mark Twain

A little video of our front yard

2010-05-22T13:14:00.002-07:00

A short video of our front yard – at high noon, not the best light and a little breezy, but you’ll git the idea!

Quote of the Week – May 17, 2010

2010-05-17T11:27:00.001-07:00

“Nothing feeds the center of being so much as creative work.

-Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Quote of the Week – May 10, 2010

2010-05-10T06:51:00.000-07:00

"Read these leaves in the open air every season of your life... dismiss whatever insults your own soul, and your very flesh shall be a great poem and have the richest fluency, not only in its words but in the silent lines of its lips and face and between the lashes of your eyes and in every motion and joint of your body."

-Walt Whitman

Quote of the Week – May 3, 2010

2010-05-03T07:43:00.001-07:00

“Opportunities multiply as they are seized.”

Sun Tzu

Cactus Forest Loop Scenic Drive

2010-04-30T21:03:00.002-07:00

Today, after a hike up and back on the Ridge View Trail in Saguaro National Park East, we succumbed to this month’s Sunset Magazine article on the wonders of the 8-mile Cactus Forest Loop Scenic Drive – well worth it! Quite yummy with blooms ablaze in all directions! You can see why they call it The Flowering Desert!

Peach and yellow blooms on the same prickly pear plant.

Roxy the Wonder Dawg loves goin’ for rides:

Quote of the Week – April 26, 2010

2010-04-26T11:06:00.001-07:00

"He told me one time he forgot himself and his heart opened up like a door with a loose latch and he tried for days to put it all back in proper order but finally he gave up and left it all jumbled up there in a pile and loved everything equally."

Brian Andreas
www.storypeople.com

The Yes Breath

2010-04-21T09:17:00.002-07:00

“One shift in your bodymind can get you unstuck faster than anything else we know of. The Yes Breath also solves the central human dilemma: How can I increase my ability to give and receive more love, positive energy and appreciation from myself and others. The Yes Breath is a skill that simultaneously takes the brakes off and opens us up to more possibilities.”

-Gay Hendricks
The Hendricks Institute

My latest little quilt!

2010-04-20T15:47:00.002-07:00

My latest little quilt! (Approximately 8x 10 inches, hand-dyed cottons and commercial batiks.)

160 visitors through our garden yesterday!

2010-04-19T10:32:00.003-07:00

We participated in the Jefferson Park Neighborhood Association Garden Tour yesterday. It was a fund-raiser for our neighborhood’s historic status nomination process.

I expected maybe 50 to 75 folks to come through and was pleasantly surprised to see that we had 50 in the first hour, for a total of 160 visitors!

It was fun and a great catalyst for getting our winter cleanup done, and I’m glad it’s done! Phew!

Here are some images of the garden that I took between visitors:

Also, you can click here to see some fun “before” photos.

A gorgeous metal sculpture designed and created by our dear friend, Tucson artist Marla Ruane:

The bird of paradise obliged by blooming as if on cue:

Kenny the truly-good-sport, who not only agreed to this crazy idea, but put in MANY hours pulling it off!

Kirby the Gatekeeper:

Six gorgeous blooms on the bird of paradise!

Our “outdoor room” filled with the heady fragrance of jasmine and magnolia! Yum!

Roxy the mild-mannered docent , who patiently observed most of the proceedings from the WRONG (to her way of thinking) side of the dining room screen door:

The path to the backyard:

And I even got to put some of my art out for sale to benefit the neighborhood! My first official semi-public showing!

A little peek at the backyard which was not quite up to snuff, in my opinion, to be “officially” included on the tour:

Quote of the Week – April 19, 2010

2010-04-19T06:36:00.000-07:00

“To find our calling is to find the intersection between our own deep gladness and the world's deep hunger."

-Frederick Buechner

Place your order with The Cosmic Waitress!

2010-04-13T07:39:00.002-07:00

How good are you willing to let your life get?

Join a group of amazing and open-hearted women as we practice the art of pulling magic out of our own hats in a 6-week teleclass I’m facilitating!

2 spots left!

Many of us drain away our manifestation power through some combination of chronic inner criticism, self-sabotage, relationship conflict, paralysis, and/or a lack of clarity within ourselves.

In this deeply experiential program, you'll:

Change the results you produce by getting better at reliably opening the flow of love and energy within yourself
Create friendly, playful shifts that dissolve crusty-old-stuck places more quickly than you may have thought possible
Without strain or effort, step into the clarity that may be eluding you
Experience how to open up your feeling of aliveness while opening up to allowing and receiving what you most want

We'll be placing our "orders" with The Cosmic Waitress.

Click here to learn more, to read testimonials from previous participants, and to sign up!

The kitchen is hoppin', so come on over to the Cafe and join us!

New Springtime photos of studio

2010-04-12T14:25:00.002-07:00

A day of Spring cleaning in my studio presents the perfect opportunity to snap some fresh photos!

Cutting table:

Fabric stash:

Pressing table:

Design wall:

Yoga spot! Roxy spot!

Quote of the Week – April 12, 2010

2010-04-12T06:05:00.000-07:00

“In times of change, learners inherit the earth; while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.”

-Eric Hoffer

New Article: Commitment to Creativity

2010-04-07T11:40:00.001-07:00

I’ve been invited to be a Contributing Writer to the new website Quilter’s Choice Network.

Check out my first article on Commitment to My Creativity where I talk about taking The Big Leap by claiming space for my home studio! The article is entitled “A Happy Leaf on the Wind: How One Quilt Artist Catches the Breeze”.

Also, check out more Enchanted Studio photos by clicking on the Studio Tour link near the top right of this page.

Prickly pears bursting into bloom

2010-04-06T13:07:00.000-07:00

A patch of prickly pear in the front yard next to the driveway burst into bloom sometime between yesterday afternoon and this morning while I was not looking.

There are just 4 blooms open… though they are rather large – about 6 to 10 inches across! Yum!

I wonder what tomorrow will bring!

Quote of the Week – April 5, 2010

2010-04-05T06:17:00.000-07:00

“I want to do my best to savor every moment of life. I want death to catch me having a good time.”

-Gay Hendricks

Getting ready for the Spring Garden Tour

2010-03-31T06:47:00.001-07:00

Here is the front porch bed all tired and overgrown from the winter…

In progress…

I spent many hours tearing out the adorable but invasive vinca minor (periwinkle), and adding a bunch of annuals and perennials (lavender, marguerite daisy, verbena, a low ornamental grass, a cordlyine) – with a few more to come next weekend. I also pruned all the suckers and extra heads on the gorgeous sego palm – much bettah!

And here it is all spiffed up for our participation in the Spring Garden Tour on April 18…

You can see the baby Neon Rose Wave Petunias in the photo above. This color Wave petunia won’t be on the market until NEXT Spring, but I entered a contest on the Wave Rave website and WON! Six 3-inch Neon Rose starts, and six 3-inch white Angelonia starts! I get to be one of their little “test gardeners”.

I am a huge fan of these high-performance babies! I’ll post some pics in a few weeks and you’ll see why! Each little start should produce waves and waves of bright blooms –around a six-foot diameter per plant – EVEN in the desert.

Go here to become an official fan and maybe you’ll win stuff, too.

Above, Kirby and Roxy, always at the ready to “help”.

Quote of the Week – March 29, 2010

2010-03-29T18:15:00.000-07:00

“I learned this, at least, by my experiment: that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavours to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.

He will put some things behind, will pass an invisible boundary; new, universal, and more liberal laws will begin to establish themselves around and within him; or the old laws be expanded, and interpreted in his favour in a more liberal sense, and he will live with the license of a higher order of beings.

In proportion as he simplifies his life, the laws of the universe will appear less complex, and solitude will not be solitude, nor poverty poverty, nor weakness weakness. If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.”

-Henry David Thoreau

Mourning dove love

2010-03-28T06:40:00.000-07:00

These two sweeties sat quietly in this same spot for over 30 minutes right before dusk last night, even tolerating me out there with my camera… EVEN accompanied by Kirby the curious cat.

The reason they are so peacefully complacent is that they have just finished an intricate mating dance, followed by, well… the actual mating. From the kitchen sink window, I was able to witness the entire thing beginning to end, unwilling to risk missing a beat by fetching my camera at the back of the house.

Yet apparently, I still had plenty of time, as they remained perched there for the duration, the male standing alert while the female rested.

Perhaps they were held captive by the heady aroma of the jasmine in full bloom?

Final photos of commissioned quilt: Big Blue

2010-03-27T07:44:00.002-07:00

Now on its way to Amsterdam, I got some last photos of Big Blue Moonlight Serenade. Which turned out to be right on time, as in the meantime, the new owners of Big Blue had decided to get married. April 27th is the Big Day!

I love knowing my first international commission became an unwitting wedding gift for my dear friends and tribemates Odeke and Berry! Whoo-hoo!!

Finished size 100 x 113 inches – that’s like 8 x 9.5 feet! Larger than a California King! And each of those little squares is about an 1 inch by one inch! But it was way fun!

Enlarge photo above to see the stunning quilting detail, done by Mary Vaneecke of El Sol Quilting.

If you are interested in commissioning a quilt, check out this page on my website…

Here are the rest of the blogposts (with photos) that document the whole process of making this luscious giant of a quilt:

Quote of the Week – March 22, 2010

2010-03-22T06:17:00.001-07:00

You don't take 'baby steps' for the distance they cover, but to put yourself within reach of life's magic.

Just like you don't hoist your sails to move the boat, but to put yourself within reach of the wind.

-Mike Dooley

Quote of the Week – March 15, 2010

2010-03-15T11:14:00.002-07:00

No end, no end to the journey
no end, no end ever
become the sky
take an axe to the prison wall,
escape
walk out like someone
suddenly born into color
do it now.

-Rumi

Consider treating yourself to a painting holiday in southern France!

2010-03-14T10:32:00.001-07:00

On our trip to France last autumn, Ken and I had the great pleasure of developing a friendship with English artist Nicola Blakemore, now happily living and working in Quarante in the French Languedoc. It was one of those times where I felt I’d met up with a long-lost sister.

I attended several of her enjoyable painting classes. These were hosted by innkeeper Sarah Over, at her beautiful rural bed-and-breakfast, Bigno Garrigo in Barres, a little hamlet just outside of Quarante.

Based on the success of these painting classes, Nicola and Sarah have put their heads together and at come up with the idea of running week-long (and weekend-long) “painting holidays” at the B&B, taught by Nicola!

I invite you to click through here and have a look – and perhaps start dreaming of taking yourself to rural France to dive into your inner artist! Painting Holidays with Artist Nicola Blakemore.

So you think the desert is brown…?

2010-03-13T17:47:00.003-07:00

This morning, 15 minutes from home, in the Tucson Mountain Park…

Quote of the Week – March 8, 2010

2010-03-08T06:20:00.001-07:00

The truth must dazzle gradually or every man and woman be blind.

-Emily Dickinson

Riding the Waves

2010-03-05T06:15:00.002-07:00

I think I will call this little guy “Riding the Waves”. I made it as a study for a quilt I want to make for our bed. Wouldn’t this make a cool quilt?

Riding the Waves
Watercolor on paper
5 x 7 inches
Copyright 2010, T. Claire O’Connor

Stained glass or quilt? You decide…

2010-03-04T09:47:00.002-07:00

I was re-photographing this small quilt to use on my new business card, so I took it outside this morning and taped it to one of the north-facing studio windows and got my shot (see below). Then I came in the house for something and on my way back out the door, the photo above is what I saw. Cool, huh?! Hmmmm….

The clear winner!

2010-03-03T08:32:00.001-07:00

Many thanks to all who voted via email and Facebook – and an acknowledgement to those who suffered my technical incompetencies and who were not able to view the 4 choices. Choice #1 was the clear winner – now I just need to get a higher-res photo of that quilt and I’m off to place my order with www.vistaprint.com!

Vote on my new biz card design…

2010-03-02T14:24:00.001-07:00

Hi all,

I am just about to place an order for new business cards and I can’t quite decide which of the following 4 cards I like best. Help me decide by casting your vote, either by emailing me directly at claire@enchantedstudio.net, or by posting your vote in the comments section below. Many thanks for your input! I’ll let you know which one gets the most votes!

Option 1:

Option 2:Option 3 (front):

(Back side of Option 3):

Option 4 (front):

(Back side of Option 4):

Babies rule!

2010-03-01T09:36:00.002-07:00

Purdy hysterical…

Quote of the Week – March 1, 2010

2010-03-01T06:21:00.001-07:00

Look at the tree in the front yard. The tree doesn't seem to be doing anything. It stands there, vigorous, fresh, and beautiful, and everyone profits from it. That's the miracle of being. If a tree were less than a tree, all of us would be in trouble. But if a tree is a real tree, then there's hope and joy. That's why if you can be yourself, that is already action.

Thich Nhat Hanh
Answers from the Heart

Quote of the Week – February 22, 2010

2010-02-22T06:23:00.001-07:00

In those days,
we finally chose
to walk like giants
& hold the world
in arms grown strong with love
& there may be many things we forget
in the days to come,
but this will not be one of them.

-Brian Andreas

A walk in the park

2010-02-19T23:02:00.002-07:00

Tucson Mountain Park, that is.

Today… a long morning hike: 3 hours. Minutes from home: 14. Cactus pokes: zero. 75 degrees of heaven.

A happy bunch o’ saguaros.

Look east, young man.

The first ocotillos opening their bright red-orange bloom “flags.”

Saguaro can look so small and innocent from a distance. In reality, they range in height from 15 to 50 feet.

90 Candles

2010-02-17T09:31:00.002-07:00

Happy 90th Birthday to Les Plattner (Ken’s pop)! May you have many more happy, healthy birthdays, surrounded by friends and family (and a pyromaniac son-in-law)! Who knew that German chocolate cake could handle so many candles!

Au fil de l’Orb

2010-02-16T08:59:00.002-07:00

Au fil de l’Orb (Over the Orb)
watercolor on paper, 4 x 6 inches
Copyright 2010, T. Claire O’Connor

La maison de nos chers amis de Jean-Noël et Martina (avec Ken, ci-dessous) à Roquebrun, France, surplombant la rivière Orb.

The home of our dear friends Jean-Noel and Martina (with Ken, below) in Roquebrun, France, overlooking the Orb River.

I joined a five-month Professional Art Practices group at The Drawing Studio in downtown Tucson. My goal is to develop a body of work in fabric art and watercolor, with the intention of selling it. And since we are moving to Roquebrun in two years, ultimately, my vision is to support myself as an artist IN FRANCE! How’s THAT for moxie!? Wheee!!!

Last month, I committed to the group – and more importantly, myself, to a 20-hour per-week studio practice. This month, I further committed to create, each month, 5 small paintings, 5 mini-quilts (fused) and 5 small quilts (fused). Since I am a true fledgling, and in all that delightful, tender fledgling-ness, need I say, this is BIG!

FLEDGLING = a young bird that has just grown the feathers needed to fly and is capable of surviving outside the nest.

So, Au fil de l’Orb is my first installment!

More to come!

Queen Mary 2, here we come, dawg and all!

2010-02-15T08:51:00.002-07:00

Ken and I (meaning I) have pretty much decided we are not going to put Roxy and Kirby in the cargo hold of an airplane when we make our big move to France in 2012.

We have discovered that the only other tragic option (NOT!) is to sail on the Queen Mary 2 for an iconic transatlantic adventure of epic proportions! Whee!! This is going to be sooo amazing! you can read about the Queen Mary 2 on Wikipedia. My friend Kathie says it’s immigration in reverse. That feels about right to me. I have an image of my ancestors coming to Ellis Island from Ireland and Poland, sailing past Lady Liberty. Though, uh, I don’t think they sailed under the Verrazano Bridge since it is only about as old as I am.

We were quite surprised to learn that this is the ONLY transatlantic ocean liner that offers what they call a “Kennel Programme.”

Check out the video below to see the posh accommodations our dear kidlets will be enjoying! (They will be sharing a lower kennel.) Too cute!

We won’t be able to bring them up to our cabin, but we can go visit them pretty much any time. There is an indoor and outdoor area for the pets, complete with a 24/7 Kennel Master.

Luckily, there are some relatively affordable cabins in steerage. And the fare for the kids is actually comparable to flying them. Just kidding about the steerage part.

Though I have learned that Cunard is the only cruise line out there that still adheres to the class system – at least when it comes to dining anyway. The folks who have the fanciest, most expensive cabins can dine in certain onboard restaurants. I think there are three tiers of restaurants. Riff-raff allowed only in the “lowest” tier. Too funny.

Either way, I can feel the purchase of a ruffled parasol and bustle coming on!

Modern steerage accommodations shown below:

And here’s a cool image I found comparing the relative size of the Queen Mary 2 with the Titanic and a few other things like a bus and an Airbus 380. The Queen Mary 2 is the light gray silhouette in the background.

Here are the unsuspecting royal passengers in a quiet moment. Need I say more?

Oh, to live in a world where these sweeties can travel with greater ease! I think there is a HUGE untapped market here! Surely, I cannot be alone in my doting-ness!

Yet another bonus point for the French, as their public transit system frowns not on canine companions. To wit, even the fancy-schmancy, lightning-fast – 170 mph -- TGV (bullet train) allows pets. Yay France!

Quote of the Week – February 15, 2010

2010-02-15T06:24:00.000-07:00

Space and time are modes in which we think, not conditions in which we live.

-Albert Einstein

Massage anyone?

2010-02-10T07:08:00.000-07:00

Here is our sweet little massage space at Casa Encantada! If you live in Tucson, I invite you to consider scheduling an appointment! It’s a yummy space: very warm, happy colors, good smells, soft surroundings.

I had a professional massage practice for 16 years –- from 1990 to 2006, in Corvallis, Oregon and then in Flemington, New Jersey -– and I love the chance to do a few massages here and there. I have several clients a month and would love to add 1 or 2 more.

Think about treating yourself and give me a holler when you’re ready! (520) 444-1847 or claire@enchantedstudio.net.

QAWM: Expanding my options

2010-02-08T10:34:00.001-07:00

Well, I consciously broke the cardinal rule of the Quilt-Along-With-Melody quilt challenge, which was to use only fabrics from one’s own stash. I have decided that Melody would understand, given my paltry beginner’s-size stash. To wit, here is my ENTIRE stash shown below, 98% of which are fat quarters.

So I took myself over to the 25%-off 6th anniversary sale at Bella Quiltworks on Friday and supplemented with the four fabrics above – 3 solids (blue, yellow and pink) plus an orange-yellow stripe. Then in an effort to quiet things down a bit, I proceeded to rip many seams and replace 14 centers. It feels a bit better.

Then I went to sleep and dreamed that I ripped MORE seams and removed all the large black strips. I admire quilters who work so magnificently with black. This is my first quilt using black – and lately I’ve been feeling it will be my last for a while, LOL!

I’ve gotten some great feedback from Melody, Wanda Hanson, Sheila from Scotland, Gail Baar, Lesley and Marlene. I plan to make up a few more blocks using the quieter solids, perhaps incorporating them into the existing blacks, perhaps subtracting a lot of black. All along, my big intention is to make this feel art-quilty, so I will be abandoning this traditional setting but here are the doctored blocks:

Quote of the Week – February 8, 2010

2010-02-08T06:26:00.000-07:00

The way I go is
marriage to this place
grace beyond chance
love's braided dance
covering the world.

-Wendell Berry

QAWM: Cast your votes

2010-02-05T12:12:00.001-07:00

Here are 3 setting options for the Quilt-Along-With-Melody quilt. Which do you like best? Lettuce decide… ;-) I am also open to any suggestions!

Setting 1: Small squares centered in blocks

Setting 2: Small squares on outsides of blocks

Setting 3: stacked/stair stepped

QAWM: Day 4 -- Moving along

2010-02-04T08:29:00.001-07:00

Day 4 of Quilting-Along-With-Melody. These blocks are approximately 10 inches square. They are not sewn together – I plan to let them percolate for a while and I’m sure I’ll play around with a few other settings first, with and without sashing.

QAWM: Oh dear, too…

2010-02-03T10:55:00.001-07:00

These blocks looks much nicer individually than they do all together. Ugh. Teetering on feeling not-so-hopeful about the outcome of Quilt-Along-with-Melody, LOL! And I did not even bother to photograph the first two setting attempts because they were so bordering on awful. One setting actually struck me as garish. Imagine! Now I am thinking it would have been entertaining for you to see them after all, haha!

How does Wanda Hanson of Exuberant Color pull it off? By “it”, I mean fearlessly combining wild prints with fabulous outcomes. I am sure it is practice/experience, a really good design eye, AND a monster stash of amazing fabrics – and being willing to fall flat. I present my case for falling flat – at least temporarily!

Time to let these puppies percolate for a few days. No answers are coming at the moment. I want to eat some chocolate. Though, when I cut into the big blocks to make them into four smaller blocks, I felt I wanted to keep them at the half-block stage, so maybe I will sew them back up and try setting them again as rectangles. And last night I dreamt of adding curves somehow. I also have some more blocks to make with some coordinating fabrics, so that will change everythin’ too… hmmm….

Quilting-Along-with-Melody this month…

2010-02-01T09:39:00.001-07:00

My fabric stash, above

One of my creative heroines, Melody Johnson, has issued a fun quilting challenge on her blog for February… she’s calling it QAWM – or Quilt-Along-With-Melody. The idea is to make a big dent in our commercially-printed-fabric stashes.

Melody is famous for using (her own gorgeous!) hand-dyed fabrics for her quilts. Fabric dyeing is something I fantasize about evolving into over the next year or so as well. Given that, there is a growing tendency to overlook the stash of brilliant commercial fabrics within easy reach:

…so this challenge is designed to remedy that! Part of the deal is to post our progress and Melody will share participants’ reports on her own blog.

I plan to start with this mix of greens since I have been hankering for green lately!

Quote of the Week – February 1, 2010

2010-02-01T06:27:00.000-07:00

The knowledge I'm interested in is not something you buy and then have and can be comfortable with. The knowledge I'm interested in keeps opening wider and wider, making me smaller and more amazed, until I see I cannot have it all -- and then delight in that as a freedom.

-Heather McHugh

Amber’s Quilt top done!

2010-01-28T15:42:00.001-07:00

I am making this for my oldest niece Amber. She lives in New Jersey and she’s 8 years old. Since we are both born under the sign of Cancer, and since I love home so much, I imagine she will as well. (Or is it just projection?) Hence the house in the center and the log cabins blocks around the perimeter – with a few nine-patches thrown in for good measure.

Now on to 6-year-old Cassidy’s quilt (Amber’s sister) – I plan to finish all the tops, then get into a groove and do all the quilting at one time. Here is 3-year-old Kristina’s quilt (Cassidy and Amber’s sister).

Here’s a close-up of Amber’s border:

Working on strips for the house quilt border

2010-01-27T17:18:00.001-07:00

I (think I) have decided to turn the quilt in my last post into a top instead of a back. It will need some lively help around the perimeter, so I spent the morning piecing strips of leftover fabric from the last two quilt tops – see above. Tomorrow, I’ll sub-cut these into a narrow-ish border – maybe 2.5 to 3 inches wide. The light in my studio is quite yellow, especially at this hour of the day, so the colors came out a bit more muted than they are in real life.

I think/hope I will have some leftover strips to launch into the next quilt top, as I would like to do a trio of nap quilts from related fabrics as gifts for my 3 nieces in New Jersey, Cassidy, Amber and Kristina (left to right) pictured below with my gorgeous sister Colleen.

Is it a quilt back, or a quilt top…?

2010-01-27T05:35:00.000-07:00

Originally intended as a back for this quilt, I’m thinking that with some sweet borders, it may stand on its’ own as a quilt top…