My big event was purchasing a high-quality printer, a Canon Pro-200S.  It can print on heavy weight fine art paper, up to 11 x 14 or longer.  The directions are unintelligible, but the Canon people are very helpful on the telephone.  I am slowly learning how to get the results I want.  My first success is a limited edition print of a hamsa that I had quilled previously.

I also commissioned a piece of equipment that I needed.  It is a vise, made to hold a stack of quilling paper at high pressure so that I can edge-gild it.  

I look forward to working with both of these tools!

My talk and class at the Cherrydale Library went well.  I currently have two pieces in an exhibit with the theme “Paper” at the Falls Church Arts Gallery, the “Chess Set” and the “Hide Us“.  

The Falls Church Arts gallery staged an exhibit entitled “Light and Dark” – a photography show.  I entered the maximum allowance of three pictures and, much to my surprise, they were all accepted.  These were all pictures I had done myself, in the days when I had my own darkroom and equipment.  From rolling the film to printing the resulting pictures, I loved it all.  Two of those photographs are on the wall behind me, and as of this writing, the top one has sold.

Here I am at the opening of the Falls Church Arts show, with the theme “Vivid”.  The picture is a silkscreen I did a while ago, in a class I was taking.  The biggest crowd I have seen came to the opening. 

Here I am at the Falls Church Arts gallery show, “Flora and Fauna”.  My accepted entry is a pen and ink study of a snail.  I created it in an illustration class I took some time ago.  So yes, I can do some types of traditional art.   Photo by Judy Ortiz.

The Society of Gilders was invited to exhibit the work of its members in a juried show at the Polasek Museum, in Winter Park, FL. The opening reception was delightful, and attended by myself and a number of other members, as well as a huge public turnout.  The show is incredible – some of the finest gilding work you will see.  I was honored to have two pieces in it.

The picture on the wall to the left is my quilled “Tikveh (hope)”   The piece in the case is something new – a Guipure lace bowl covered in 18K gold leaf, with an accent of 6K gold.  This is not on my website, but here is a closeup.  By the way, I made the skirt and top I am wearing in the picture – with Guipure lace!

We had a wonderful conference in Asheville, NC.  At the reception, it was announced that I was stepping down as President of the Society of Gilders, after 8 years.  As a surprise, they had commissioned these candlesticks, with gold leaf supplied by my dear friend and past-President, Peter Miller. 

Later in the week, I was again surprised at being presented with this framed photograph of me, surrounded by loving wishes from many of my gilding friends.