Cigar Box Purse POP UP Shop during Issaquah WINE WALK

Announcing my first POP UP Shop for cigar box purses 

in the Pacific Northwest!

Troy Salon (195 Front Street, Studio C, Issaquah,WA) 

is generously hosting me during the 

Issaquah WINE WALK on Friday, May 5 from 6-9 pm.

Come see a grand display of one-of-a-kind ANA cigar box purses. Each purse is a signed and numbered art piece.

The inside of each purse is just gorgeous - hand lined with fabric and matching gussets (to help keep the contents inside), velcro closure (for added security), tiny metal feet and an 

ANA ceramic logo tag. 

I use real cigar boxes and carefully select only the ones in the best condition to make into a purse. I try to preserve all labels too - except the smoking warning, those I remove when I can.

 Talk about a conversation piece! My purses have been sold in the Ritz Carlon Hotel, within resort gift shops and shipped individually to diserning buyers around the country. 

My kiln-fired ceramic ANA logo distinguishes my unique brand.

Pacific Northwest African American Quilters (PNWAAQ): An Exhibit in Issaquah

It was a love of fabric, design and quilts themselves that brought us to the "I Am: Pacific Northwest African American Quilters" exhibit and lecture at Blakely Hall in the Issaquah Highlands on September 12th.  

The Pacific Northwest African American Quilters exhibit showcased how in the right hands, fabric becomes art. Many of quilts were self-portraits that harnessed the power of computers to determine the light and shadow of the human face. That information allows the quilters to chose the color and pattern in fabrics to create their likeness.

The founder of the Pacific Northwest African American Quilters, Gwen Maxwell-Williams, shown in her self-portrait (above) addressed the group, thanked them for their support and spoke about her many years of quilting, connecting and expressing herself through the fabric arts.

Members of the group offered quilts for sale (above) and had a row of sewing machines set up and humming along, ready to give demonstrations.