This is a quilt from the Tusheti region (northeast) of Georgia in the village Dartlo. It was made by Sido Chabukaidze to hang on the wall of her home. It is now in the care of her son Tengiz Miszashvili in Tbilisi. It was an amazing find of Nino Kipshidze’s in response to my plea [...]
I am just beginning to research the silk roads. The first thing I have learned was it was roads not one road. There is a map of the silk route in the Silk Museum in Georgia. I now understand more fully Nino’s comment about it being incorrect. In the beginning the silk road also had [...]
Re-entry is always difficult for me. I happy to be home but miss Georgia. I never accomplish all that I want to accomplish and returning means a tremendous amount of catching up. I must admit this time was easier but I have emails continually asking when I will return. I am working on a mostly [...]
There are two McDonald’s in Tbilisi. One is three stories and the other is two. I walk by the three story one almost daily. It doesn’t look at all like our McDonald’s but the smell that comes from it is the same. I understand when the three story and first one was being built there [...]
My first day in Georgia was the first day of school. Helen, Keti’s younger sister, and I had a running joke for my time there about when she was suppose to be in school. The first day she went on time (9:30) only to not have anyone else show up until 11. Second day she [...]
Georgia has taught me at least two things. Quiltmaking has power. Hope is fragile. For 13 years, Tata had a beautiful home with a wonderful garden. Her husband had a good job. All this has changed. Her husband lost his job with the wine company due to cutbacks. They were forced to move from their [...]
My friend, Nata, is an interesting woman. The title is one of her favorite sayings which makes us all laugh. Last night she took me to the ballet. Georgia use to have a world class ballet but it disappeared. Their most famous ballerina worked for the Moscow Ballet but she has returned to Georgia so [...]
Yesterday was a good day of lots of work. The group is putting together a fiber book to give as a gift. The personality of each person is coming through. I am excited about their work. We were gearing down when in walked Andrea Harris from the Eurasia Foundation. We had a great talk and [...]
Today I taught the quilt group free motion quilting. Lela caught on right away. I think she will dazzle the entire world with her quilts very soon. I am amazed at how far she has come in just two short years with limited resources. She does her own thing and it is wonderful! For many [...]
The workshops are going well. I had a brief reminder of times past when suddenly in the middle of the surface design workshop we found ourselves without water! Fortunately there were buckets of saved water for the toilet in the bathroom to tide us over and in less than an hour it was back on. [...]
Teaching here is always a challenge. At least this time I know what to expect. Although I was hope for a change. First, there was the challenge of actually getting to the workshop! They are now closing the main road each Sunday for programs for the public. Then we kept encountering closed roads. Fortunately we [...]
I spent the evening with an amazing graphic artist- Emir Burjanadze. He is 65 but looks much older. However, he has wonderful eyes which are full of life. He is an expert on Georgian ornamentation. Poor Keti had to traslate all the deep philosphical details which were not easy to understand. We were all tired [...]
I woke to more rain so we spent the morning working on Keti’s computer. Her anti-virus program was not working and we found 26 different problems. It is much better now. Having to get use to dial up is always interesting. It does make me appreciate what I have. This afternoon we went some galleries [...]
Things are improving here. There is still no water from 2 am until about 7 but I have yet to experience no water. I have noticed that things are more expensive but there is still not more pay for people. We are complaining about the price of gas but here it is even more. A [...]
The problems with the power point projector was solved so I was able to give my paper on quiltmaking. I am so happy to report that I was a hit! I love power point and realized just how important visuals are for presentations. Others at the symposium have read long texts which is truly difficult [...]
It is never an easy journey to get to Georgia but always worth it in the end.After 26 hours of traveling, Keti was there to greet me. I discovered that I did not need a visa. Rules are always changing for the better. The first time I came in 2003, I paid almost $300 in [...]
My dear friend Marti was getting ready to evacuate from Houston when her husband collasped. He is now on a ventilator and his future is uncertain. There was no time to go back to get her cats. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers. She is a wonderful quiltmaker and generous human being. This [...]
Keti is so much fun to watch as she marvels at everything. At first she was overwhelmed by all the choices we have. She is quickly adjusting. She’s also learning about coupons and sales. Loves a bargain just like the rest of us. We are having fun but the days are long and she’s so [...]
I could hardly sleep I was so excited. I felt like a child on Christmas Eve. Keti was waiting for me when I arrived at O’Hare. It seems visitors are processed more quickly than citizens. We headed home and she was full of questions. I love watching the wonder in her eyes. After a short [...]
I haven’t written because I have been preparing for Keti’s arrival. I can’t believe it is tomorrow and I have successfully cleaned my studio. Now I hope she helps me reduce my stash! I have on her bed things to get her started. I can’t wait to share. I’ll keep you posted. Karen