What a nice and modest commemoration tonight at the Domplein in Utrecht: "Liebe überwindet hass" Organised by Utrecht Queer Culture Festival, we commemorated the victims of the terrorist attack at Berlin Pride last Saturday, but we also reflected at what it does for our queer community.

Yesterday I had the pleasue of meeting my friend @quiltcarl.bsky.social again and give him a tour in my hometown Utrecht. We started the day with some coffee together with my husband, and after that I showed him our city center, and of course I gave him a private tour of my quilt expo.

Block 27 for my The Shape of Japan quilt was a relatively easy one to sew: "Bamboo". It's always fun to find a way to use the striped fabric in a block. Design by Kumiko Fujita #quiltsky

Block 26 for my The Shape of Japan quilt is "Lucky cat". It's an abstract image of a maneki neko or beckoning cat. This cat figurine is supposed to bring good luck to it's owner. Another fun design by Kumiko Fujita. #quiltsky

Another milestone: 25 blocks finished, so I can show you a 5 x 5 grid of all the blocks. Latest additions are "Soba", which is a bowl with noodles and chopsticks, and "Abacus", or soroban. Haven't decided how many blocks I want to make, so my next goal is 30. Inspired by Kumiko Fujita. #quiltsky

Beautiful exhibition at the Centraal Museum in Utrecht about the figurative art by the Utrecht born artist Frans Franciscus. I was fortunate enough to see the expo this morning right after the museum opened, so I was alone most of the time. Highly recommend to go and see this one!

Block 23 for my The Shape of Japan quilt is called "Four rice balls" or onigiri, which consists of steamed rice that is pressed into a triangular, square or round shape, sometimes filled with savory filling, and wrapped with a piece of nori (dried seaweed) Thanks again Kumiko Fujita. #quiltsky

Picture this: Utrecht, July 12, 1997. Björn and I had arranged our first blind date, after writing letters to each other for a while (remember: this was last century and all pre-internet and pre-mobile phone) I had to drive for nearly an hour to get to Utrecht, so I decided to leave a bit earlier ->

The colours look a bit like classic Minnie Mouse, but they do of course fit perfectly into The Shape of Japan Quilt. This is block 22: "Throwing Star", or shuriken, which is used in martial arts. Thanks again Kumiko Fujita. #quiltsky

A fun and sunny afternoon at the Queer Market XXL at NDSM island in Amsterdam. First time the marked was outdoors, lucky the weather was cooperating 🌞

Finished 2 Dutch books this week. First one is "Vanilla" by Ype Driessen. A story about the slightly neurotic and inexperienced Jip, who goes on 12 Grindr dates after his boyfriend dumped him. Second one is "Queer Geschiedenis van Nederland", this book constructs our Dutch queer history. #booksky

Block 21 is this "Sumo Wrestler". I'm making all my blocks 20 x 20 centimeters, and this block has some intricate piecing in the head of the wrestler, but it was fun to make. Thanks again Kumiko Fujita for the book and inspiration. #quiltsky

A few weeks ago I visited the Nederlands Fotomuseum in Rotterdam with a friend, to see a temporary exhibition. And today I revisited the museum with my husband, to see the rest of the museum as well. Nice to see 2 photos by Erwin Olaf plus an installation by @prinsdevos.bsky.social

A nice and interesting performance tonight about neurodiversity, queerness and fantasy and fairytales. F*cking Fairies at Pleintheater in Amsterdam.

The latest additions for my The Shape of Japan quilt are: "Karakami paper for screen doors" and "Three-storied pagoda in Koufukuji Temple", which is in Nara, also well known for it's deer population. Block design by Kumiko Fujita. #quiltsky

"T-Fags" by El Hardwick and Orion Isaacs is a beautiful photobook about trans men who reclaim the term (trans) faggotry for themselves. I backed this project on Kickstarter, and as a thank you, my name is featured in the book, plus it's autographed by both creators ❤️ #booksky

This block "Daimonji Okuribi" shows one of the bonfires, and the yellow sign is the kanji character Daimonji, meaning "large" or "great". Because the fires are lit in the evening, I chose a black sky around the mountain. 2/2 #quiltsky

Each year, August 16th, the people in Kyoto celebrate Gozan no Okuribi. It's the culmination of the Obon Festival, and on the surrounding mountains 5 giant bonfires are lit, each representing a kanji character or a familiar shape. 1/2 #quiltsky

I finished another block for my The shape of Japan quilt. This one is called "Middle length long-sleeved kimono" and it's the first block I made without any red. But it does have the accent yellow. I love how the striped fabric creates this shape of a kimono. #quiltsky

Latest read: "The wedding people" by Alison Espach. Phoebe decided to check into a hotel to end her life after her divorce, only to find out she's the only outsider in the hotel, which is filled with wedding guests. I did finish it, but it's not my most favorite read lately. #booksky

The next block for my The Shape of Japan quilt is called "New year's spiced sake". The O-Toso sake is poured in the 3 cups and family members drink if from the top, often starting with the youngest family member. Block design by Kumiko Fujita. #quiltsky

I had a corporate Pride event today from my employer ISS Facility Services, hosted by Accenture at the Amsterdam Zuidas. An interesting panel talk between leaders from ISS, Accenture and ABN Amro about pride and inclusivity on the workfloor. Hosted by the fabulous queen Dina Price 😍💖

Our exhibitions at the Bartholomeus Gasthuis are a success obviously, because my first batch of flyers was completely gone. Time for a refill, and an opportunity to read the lovely messages in the guest book. Thanks to everyone who already attended and the people who are planning to go see it.

Well, didn't expect to see this in Japan, I wonder what they serve here... 😆 (for the non-Dutch speakers: it translates as "F*ck Cafe) It's in episode 8 of the Netflix series The Boyfriend.

For my The Shape of Japan quilt, made with blocks designed by Kumiko Fujita, I've finished 2 new blocks. First one is called "Rake" and it's based on a wooden zen garden rake. The second one is not in the book, but I made it myself and it's the "Nisshōki", the national flag of Japan. #quiltsky

Of course I attended our yearly Utrecht Pride this Saturday 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ Together with a few lovely friends I watched the parade on the Utrecht canals from the second half of the route, the "quieter" part of the parade. As you can see plenty of people here, and it was a lovely day to celebrate our queerness 🪅

Last Friday our duo exhibition "Verandering in Quilt" (Changes in Quilts) opened in my hometown Utrecht. After my opening speech, I did an impromptu tour with some of my guests along the quilts, which was really fun to do. The expo is open until September 25th. #quiltsky

This block is called "Stepping stones of Tenjyu-an at Nanzen-ji" Tenjyu-an is a small temple at the large temple complex Nanzen-ji in Kyoto. These stepping stones can be found in the gardens. For reference, I found a photo online from these stones and I love how these are represented in this block.

Important day today: this morning Maria and I started setting up both our quilt exhibitions at Bartholomeus Gasthuis in Utrecht. We managed to do most of the work today, tomorrow we'll return to have a second look and maybe do a bit of finetuning. But for now I'm very pleased with how it looks. 1/2

Two new blocks for my The Shape of Japan quilt with designs by Kumiko Fujita. First one is called "Gasshou-style houses" and it's a traditional Japanese farmhouse, famous for it's pitched thatched roofs, designed to resemble two hands pressed together in prayer. 1/2 #quiltsky