now from Studio Nysha

Connect the Dot Design Samples

2012-02-07T12:32:00.000-08:00

This past fall at the Uncommon Threads Quilt Guild's Annual Retreat I launched a new class, Connect the Dot Design, a class where design is made a simple as a connect the dot picture.

The class was a success. After finishing teaching it the first time I decided that more samples were needed than just drawings on paper.

So I pieced one. Nice black and white for contrast (un-quilted at the moment).

As well as a sampler. (detail)

It is easy to see who else was at retreat. Our national teachers was Susan Cleveland.

http://www.piecesbewithyou.com/

She is the "Piping Hot Binding" lady

http://www.piecesbewithyou.com/patterns_pipinghotbinding_detail.htm

Her work is pretty special. I have loved seeing images of it, the chance to see it up close was even better. I love her simple, graphic approach to design. One thing she shared was a nifty use of a thicker thread like her 12 weight thread, Spagetti, from Wonderfill

http://www.piecesbewithyou.com/patterns_threadspagetti_detail.htm

what was so interesting about using this product is that she suggests using a top thread (like the 12 wt. Spagetti from Wonderfill) in a contrasting colour and matching the bobbin thread to the background fabric. Adjust the tension so that a little pop of bobbin thread 'breaks up' the line of the top thread. The look is more like a hand stitched line.

Nice.

If you know Susan's work you will also see that the choice of solids and graphic background is also a nod to her work. Thanks Susan for your inspiration.

Also - this is one of the first times I have used the beautiful fabrics (that I have had for years) from Carol Bryer Fallert. I loved the graduation of colour - and then wondered what to do with them. This was a good choice.

http://www.bryerpatch.com/cgi-bin/Store/store.cgi?cart_id=8198167.12054.s0&product=Btex_Gradations&productid=2046_11&sales=0&lastmenu=

This class is available for your guild or group. Just let me know!

And yes! it is for complete beginners as well as those with experience in design.

From the Mouths of Babes...

2011-12-14T17:32:00.000-08:00

No one is born homophobic.

Homophobia is learned, sexuality isn't.

(reblogged from http://tumblr.com/ )

Quotes

2011-11-20T12:20:00.000-08:00

I am a new subscriber to Lynda.com

This is a terrific site that is all about software training. I purchased Adobe Illustrator and the training at Lynda.com has been invaluable.

There are also documentaries. The last I have watched is on logotype designer Doyald Young --

"I have always liked helping people learn to draw. It is better to give than to receive. I think that teaching is rewarding. It (teaching) helps you decide what you believe in and what the real principles are that satisfy your aesthetic."

"I'm still learning how to draw. There are no secrets to what I do. All that I do is hard work and observation. Really! and doing things over and over until you're satisfied with them and think they're right." This says the eighty year old of the craft he has practiced since youth.

Thanks Doyald and thanks Lynda.com

Connect the Dot Design

2011-09-13T13:13:00.001-07:00

UnCommon Threads Quilt Guild Retreat is coming up in November. My class, Connect the Dot Design is filling up fast! This is a little information about the supplies... plus a visual aid (love them!).

Connect the Dot Design

Supply List

Fine Tip Sharpie

Ultra Fine Tip Sharpie

Pencil (mechanical pencil is preferred*)

Pencil sharpener (for 2 mm mechanical or wooden**)

Straight Edge or Drafting Ruler

Eraser (pink rectangular with angled edge)

Notes on Supplies --

*I prefer a 2 mm Mechanical pencil (often labeled Drafting Pencil) as it is a little thicker than the 5 mm or 9 mm pencils. This preference id due to drawing with them and having a heavy hand that breaks finer leads. Use what you have, or is most available/cheap!

**When you choose a finer/thinner lead there is no need for a sharpener. With a 2 mm or a wooden pencil there is. These two require different sharpeners. No matter which you choose if it does not have a built in container to capture the shavings please bring a small container for that purpose!

ALSO - a drafting ruler or straight edge (Some times labeled a Grid Ruler) is a good tool to have. Rotary cutting rulers work, but the thickness of them is cumbersome. Using other items, like the edge of a pad or book also works -- seeing through the straight edge is invaluable!

***Don’t let anything get in your way! A pencil with an eraser will suffice. The other supplies just make it simpler and more accurate.

Kit Contains

Copy Paper

Card Stock

Tracing Paper

Layout Grids and Graph Paper

Things you will need to do more at home

*Exacto knife (with new blade or extra blades) or Box Cutter

Small cutting mat (12 x 12 or similar)

Square Rotary Cutting Ruler (9.5 x 9.5)

Screw Punch or Hole Punch and Hammer

I will have Punches in class for use and sharing - if you have one bring it.

Layers

2011-09-07T17:08:00.000-07:00

Going to a class with Carol Soderlund at the Crow Timber Frame Barn in a couple of weeks. The class is "Layer upon Layer" ad we have been asked to find images that we are inspired by of layer. Here are some of mine....

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Connect the Dot Design

2011-08-31T11:46:00.000-07:00

Connect The Dot Design

Remember as a child doing connect the dots and pictures would appear. This is that simple.

From a couple of simple dots will come lines and from repeated lines will build blocks

Blocks that can be just a block, can be used in multiple to create layouts for a whole quilt.

Or perhaps they will be the inspiration for a whole cloth quilting design...

This is a simple workshop that will take you though the basics of designing; a block a layout for blocks or quilting. You choose!

All this with no math!

Tripping Fest Begins

2011-08-19T06:47:00.000-07:00

I just got a new iPad.

I like it.

THEN I was asked what apps I liked.

My reply was that I was not really into apps.

But I did NEED a drawing app -- so I went looking.

And found TRIPPING FEST!

What a great thing!

I lost yesterday.

But here was what I found.

Some I created on my own, but most were collaborations. First with Christopher then Lydia (she is three and awesome!) and then Tripping Fest the Game was born and Christopher, Dana and I all played. FUN!

Let me know what you think.

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Derailed

2011-07-09T11:04:00.000-07:00

I love hand dyed fabrics.*

Like most quilters I love them and buy or make them and then don't know what to do with them.

THEN I watched an episode of Design Matters TV with Laura Kemshall

http://www.lindakemshall.com/DesignMattersTV.html

She took a piece if hand dyed fabric and made a rail fence block and then quilt. Interesting, imaginative and simple! Not to mention that it makes perfect use of those multi coloured hand dyed fabrics that you don't know what to do with.

This is the fabric before cutting it up.

After cutting it into 4.5 inch strips the width of the fabric then 1.5 inch strips it was sorted into groups by colour. A lengthy process that really is a great exercise on colour and decision making! Then four strips were sewn into a block and blocks arranged -- another lengthy process requiring making up my mind. Easier said than done!

This is the resulting layout all sewn together

I love the way the mottling of the fabric when cut makes the colours sparkle. The mixed vertical and horizontal nature of a rial fence lay out adds another layer of texture to the surface.

Now on to quilting it. More decisions!

Make sure to check out Design Matters TV!

*Love them enough to take Carol Soderlund's class on dying. Two classes coming up this fall at the Crow Timber Frame Barn; True Colors and Layers upon Layers. I am looking forward to them!

http://carolsoderlund.com/

http://www.nancycrow.com/HTML/barnworkshops2011fall.html

Quilting the quilt

2011-07-07T11:14:00.000-07:00

I have been working on a huge service quilt. Huge for two reasons (a) I have been told my lap quilts are too small and (b) last fall after renovation I moved things around and now have a larger design wall. Larger space = larger work. Or so it would seem!

I though I would share some of what I have been doing in the quilting arena.

I created a stencil with my domestic machine.

There is no thread in the machine and an old needle is being used to perforate a piece of tracing paper. The paper has been cut the size of an area that I want to repeat the same quilting in several areas. Just a simple design that outlines some areas for circles and another for cross hatching.

Tracing paper is good if you want to see what is under the stencil. Newsprint also works - cheap, but no seeing through it.

This is after laying the paper down and using a pounce pad to mark. The chalk goes through the holes in the paper leaving a line of dots to follow.

The finished area.

Here is another area. It was my intention to do less quilting on this project. I didn't like the results so I did more.

Better!

If you would like to take a class from a great quilter I have news for you! My friend Sanrda Ciolino, who is an awesome quilter is teaching a class at the barn. If you are not familiar with The Crow Barn it is a beautiful facility to take a class at. Relaxing and invigorating! Sandra's quilting designs are simple and effective and her calm manner makes her a great teacher. (I know as she has explained several things to me in classes we have taken together when I was a little slow on the uptake...) Best it is a three day class so there is plenty of time to understand the ideas and try them out! Also this is contemporary quilting design. Check it out!

http://www.nancycrow.com/HTML/barnciolino.html

Happy quilting!

Size Matters?

2011-06-07T07:04:00.001-07:00

Once the corners and boarders were applied to the half square medallion quilt top the next issue was what to put on the back!

At 92 inches square I had not many options. I don't have many wide fabrics and those I have are not right for this piece. I don't love piecing a back as a vertical seam builds up on the take up bars of the long arm.

What to do?

Another option for piecing occurred to me. What about taking a foundation piecing approach to the back and follow the edges of the center? This is what I did.

I began by putting the top backwards on the design wall (seams facing out). I did this almost as if I were blocking to make sure it was square.

Next I sprayed adhesive (505 by ODIF) on the top and applied a layer of batting.

Then the center got sprayed down. The first corner was pinned to the sandwich and flipped, stitching in the ditch to secure. I pressed it open and basted the edges. On to another corner.
Like an over scale square in a square - only on the back!

Now on to quilting... do I hear some bobbin work calling to add to the interest of the back? Perhaps...

Half Square Medallion

2011-06-01T09:36:00.000-07:00

Yesterday's work began with only a dozen seams to sew to complete a project. Then I noticed an area where two little blocks were oriented incorrectly. fixing that required ripping open five seams and restitching them all with the blocks oriented properly.

At the end of the day there were still four seams to complete - each at this point being eighty plus inches long, so no small task. I did think ahead to block the top (make sure it was square) while it still fits on the design wall...

Today I look and there is an area that is rippled and needs attention. It is not horrid, but if I ignore it and put the final borders on it will not be better. Perhaps it can be quilted out, but why go through that when I can spend another day ripping things out and fiddling? YEAH!

So begins the task for today... fixing one tiny area in hopes it is all worth it in the end.

Just some background. This piece was started at UnCommon Threads Quilt Guild retreat in November on 2009. I wanted to add borders, but kept trying things -- nothing seemed to suit. Until recently I turned the whole thing on an angle (making the center diamond) and it works! I thought sewing the corners and subsequent borders would take a day. Three later I hope to finish today.

Then on to the task of quilting...

2011-05-21T06:16:00.000-07:00

Thought I would share some fabrics I have dyed in the past year or so and the ways that I have used them!

Create your own free photo slideshow

I have also just finished a whole cloth piece that I died a while ago.

Rorschack Mountain

There is loads of machine quilting as well as a little hand quilting.

Optical Quilt Finished - almost!

2011-05-10T05:20:00.000-07:00

Last fall at the UnCommon Threads Guild Retreat I took a class from Vanessa McCallum on her optic quilt, a circular checkerboard pattern. Vanessa sews two sets of strips, one light and one dark and cuts them using a 10 degree ruler for wedge shaped pieces that are then put together.

The piecing went together easily. I was finished a couple hours after class ended.

At home I decided it needed corners. And I discovered I did not have enough fabric. So I ordered some from http://www.hancocks-paducah.com/ and waited...

And after the fabric came and was laundered it took weeks to get inspired to put the corners on... then took a while to begin quilting it. But I finally began last week.

THEN I had issues with my machine. I was trying to place long curvy lines, but could not get them smooth. Partly it was not having enough dexterity and there are two places on my quilting frame where there are bloop zones - the machine suddenly goes contrary to my movements...

After ripping out for an hour I returned to my Bernina and quilted some.

Then inspiration hit - I have a sit down table for my Handi Quilter! I drug it out of the attic and took the machine off the frame and am newly in love!

Since finishing the quilting portion I have started the painting portion. It will be a lengthy process as I can only stand the tedium for an hour or so at a time and can not do it for the entire day. It will be a great time to work on other things as well -- as if I were ever too focused for too long!

I will post some detail shot of the painting soon...

Here is the address for the creator of the 10 degree ruler.

http://phillipsfiberart.danemcoweb.com/

2011-05-09T13:15:00.000-07:00

There are two great artists, Linda and Laura Kemshall. They have regular shows on different things relating to fiber and art. Linda did a series on Altered Books. I have been working on one for weeks now - a slow process, allowing for each layer to dry on each two page spread.

Here is what I have done so far. Most of the spreads (46) have not even gotten a coat of gesso. Only 9 have had something done to them and of those I think only a couple are 'finished'.

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I hope you enjoy looking - I have really enjoyed the process!

Here is a link to the Kemshalls

http://www.lindakemshall.com/DesignMattersTV.html

2011-04-19T14:16:00.000-07:00

These are some images of things I have been working on...

Apart from everything else; the reno, lecture at IQF show in Cincinnati... There are no images of 'Because' until after the Knoxville show... then I will share it all!

2011-01-12T12:52:00.000-08:00

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Thought you might enjoy some photos of the renovation, before and after...

2010-12-17T06:26:00.000-08:00

The piecing is finished on the new Irish Chain. Can you see how the lines run throughout? And see the idea of relationships intersecting?

It was an interesting construction process because I was trying to work ahead of myself. So I would not have as many bumps along the way -- made me realize why so many quilters like a pattern. DIRECTIONS!

I did try some new things with pressing that I hope will make quilting it easier. I pressed all the seams of the light pairs open which I hope the hopping foot will glide over and the rest to the darks. I plan to stitch in the ditch around the darks and not quilt inside them and hopefully the pressing will allow that to proceed smoothly.

Now I am thinking about the quilting. I want to quilt each colour with a repeating motif, but some areas I want to treat as one large area, those where several lights squares are adjacent. That would be in order to show off quilting. Is that the point though?

We shall see... I may put something else on the frame and let this marinate for a while.

Then again...

Oh -- if it looks like the exterior row of blocks is larger they are. I find the edges of the quilt, on the frame, to be insufficient. This is the first time I have built in extra room to make getting the top on the frame simpler. Another idea yet to prove itself worth while!

If you are interested in more information about the history of the traditional Irish Chain

http://www.womenfolk.com/quilt_pattern_history/irishchain.htm

2010-12-12T10:05:00.000-08:00

There has been progress, though yesterday I could not tell. See all the bits on the left -- that is all the stuff I sewed that I can not use. Wrong colour, wrong lay out...

The center started out simple. Everything to a certain point is symmetrical. Then it is not. I continued to construct as if it were still symmetrical. I needed mirror images and redid things to create that. That seemed like all I did yesterday.

REDO!

Today has seen progress. I have only the parts on the top and bottom to put together and then rows can be assembled.

One thing new with this project are the start and stops... I used to use a scrap of fabric folded in half to sew over and the end and beginning of each seam. This is common in chain piecing and keeps everything tidy.

I recently started using small squares, placed together at the beginnings and ends. So far in the process of piecing this top I have pieced this pile! A good start to another project and with little effort!

2010-12-07T04:53:00.000-08:00

Portions of the Irish chain are complete.

The construction seems slow.
In the past I just plowed ahead sewing two squares together then pairing those and so on. The result was seams that did not fit together -- a mess!
So this time I have attempted to be more methodical. I create one quarter, pressed in to make sense, repeat that for each quadrant, then place it on the design wall seams on top. This way I can see them for pressing the adjacent blocks.
This was all fine until last night I realized I had sewn a 12 patch backwards. The whole thing, every seam on the wrong side.
All complete and corrected. Lets try and NOT have that happen again!

Here is a backwards block and the right way up block. Love doing things over!

One thing I though was smart. The little pieces of blue painters tape are to let me easily see the yellowish green squares distinct from the green squares. They are very close in colour, intentionally. And I really want to keep each in it's own place. This was my simple solution to manage the colours at a glance.

You can see here the green square to the right of the diagonal row. Looks the same in the photo -- looks similar in person!

2010-12-05T16:56:00.000-08:00

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Had some bad news today -- a friends son passed away. I was thinking about the tragedy of a mother loosing her son and all the relationships in ones life that are effected. All of the sudden I saw new Irish Chain.
I stared with four colours. The cross through the middle is black. This represents the son.
Next is a red square that morphs with extensions. This is the son's wife, red for the passion of that relationship.
Then comes the blue, representing the father, and the intellectual connection I witnessed between the two. It begins as a square coming in from the edges, then I move it to surround the red and again extending to the edges.
Finally there is a dark green, a nurturing colour representing the mother. This row we only can see connecting at the bottom -- most of it is out of the picture plane where it remains unseen, because that is what Mom's do, they bear a lot where no one can see.
I am not sure how to support my friend, but I hope that spending time thinking of her in her time of grief somehow sends comforting energy her way.

Praise for Carol

2010-09-25T10:29:00.000-07:00

Last week I returned home from Whidbey Island, Washington, a short fairy ride from Seattle. It is a charming little coastal area in al the ways one would expect.
I was there to take a class from Carol Soderlund http://www.carolsoderlund.com/
She is a genius who teaches about colour. I took 'Color Mixing For Dyers'. A terrific introduction to color, dying and how to get predictable and repeatable results.
I say she is a genius because, well it's true. The reason is her mind. She not only has a colour theory that opened my eyes to colour in a new way and answered many questions I had, but her method of problem solving is phenomenal. Talk about a beautiful mind!

The other terrific outcome from the class was a swatch book. Swatches we dyed in class for over a thousand colours. A beautiful thing. Now the only thing that remains is to dye some fabric!

2010-05-04T13:43:00.000-07:00

I have been working for a while on motifs for Nancy Crow's "Sets and Variables" class beginning next Sunday. After piecing a few different blocks or motifs yesterday I decided to take a simpler approach... ink on paper. I created 5 motifs on 2 inch squares of paper and then moved them around and photographed the results. Here they are for you to see.

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2010-04-19T09:01:00.000-07:00

I posted these Contour Drawings earlier, but have had several questions so I thought I would write about them more; what the process is, what the objective is..

Contour drawings are all about learning to see - observation!

Begin by choosing an object. It might be a simple object like a doll (my first image) or a photo (the second image) or another drawing (third). Choosing a simple object to start is best, clean lines,minimal detail.

Place this object in direct view, but away from your drawing surface. If you are quilting then the machine is in front of you and the object should be to your right or left or perhaps above you (the doll and photo were about 18 inches in front of me and just slightly higher than eye level). They should be in a place where looking is easy not strained.

You are going to move your eye slowly along the edge of the object. Meanwhile you are moving your hand at the same rate you are moving your eye (thus the slow motion of eye!). Keep moving your eyes and following with your hands -- not looking at your hand/drawing. One discipline is not looking.

A contour drawing should be done for one to five minutes. All that time you are focusing on the object and NOT looking at the drawing.

The drawing will not look like the object. People who are deft at this and practice a lot still have drawings that look amateur. The resulting drawing is NOT the point. The act of looking IS!
When I did the first drawing I used all white thread on a black ground. The second and third I began with a thread that blended more with the fabric. Did a second drawing atop the first in a slightly more prominent thread and then did a sighted drawing (looking at object and drawing) with a contrasting thread. This way I was using one quilt sandwich and getting several contours out of it! You can do the same thing with drawing - I have used coloured pencil on paper and used a pale colour, then darker then darkest. Then I can differentiate the first attempt from second and so on.

Give it a try.
Remember the objective is LOOKING!
Your drawing might not look like the object! And that is fine!

2010-04-18T17:11:00.000-07:00

I could not believe it until I saw it with my own eyes! Yesterday my neighbor called to say she had seen a peacock in her yard. This may not strike you as odd if you know we live in the country. To me it was a shock. I had no idea that peacocks would live around here... In Tennessee?!
Today she called again, "He is headed down the hill to your place."
Out the door I flew with my new "Flip Mino" and shot this video.
The video is five minutes long. About two and a half minutes in the peacock moves and he strolls across the screen
I still can not believe that I saw a peacock in my woods!

2010-04-05T18:57:00.000-07:00

I have spent this afternoon playing with Lino Printing.
I got some "Speed Ball" blanks, a carving kit and created a group of blocks. I used the printing as part of the pre-class exercises for the upcoming 'Sets and Variables' class I am taking with Nancy Crow. We are supposed to play with a motif. I am playing and having too much fun!
Here are shots of my sketch book with my motifs.

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2010-04-03T10:22:00.000-07:00

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Spring is really here. The cold weather has subsided and the trees and plants are budding... we have new tulips, muscari and daffodils coming up (Thanks Chris, Brenda, Zachary and Rebecca for the great Christmas gift!). As well the Cherries we planted a few years ago are blooming beautifully for the first time since planting. New crab apples and red buds are displaying great color as are the forsythia -- love that yellow!
Now for the pollen sensitive allergies to subside...

2010-02-10T12:32:00.000-08:00

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We had a great trip to New Orleans recently. Enjoyed great visual feasts and awesome culinary ones as well as finding great people with terrific spirits and the stories that come with them...

In the culinary world we went to Muriel's, Stanley, Stella and Irene's. Interesting that they are all people names. The food was at least good and at best mind blowing. Stanley has THE Gumbo of Life! It is the flavor you are looking for in the world of gumbos. I then had a version of 'eggs benedict' with soft shell crab that was so yummy. Our waiter at Stanley was Nate. Nate is a great waiter. The kind of waiter who spoils you for any other. Knowledgeable about the menu and passionate about food and the whole of New Orleans. That night for dinner he waited on us at Stella (Stanley's big sister). At Stella we had a culinary experience that included tasting things I THOUGHT I had had previously, but their preparation made me question that -- Foie Gras and Marshmallows (not together). The former had a completely different texture and taste than I had had before, the latter literally melted in my mouth. The entire meal was a culinary orgy of delight and new flavor couplings. The staff was friendly, courteous and beyond efficient.

Our last night was the trip to Irene's, a little Italian place which fulfills every picture you have of that "little Italian place." Great Crab au gratin, a caesar that was what cesars are meant to be, and osso bucco. Need I say more?

We meet great people like the woman at 'The Idea Factory' (http://www.ideafactoryneworleans.com/) or the proprietress of The Magic Box (http://www.magicboxneworleans.com/) or the weaver at Louisiana Loomworks (http://customragrugs.com/). Great people and terrific merchandise.

Hope you enjoy the images from the trip and visit some of these places on your trip to the French Quarter.

2010-01-19T18:03:00.000-08:00

I though I would share some of the work I have created over the past several years. From portraiture to abstract, from artsy to traditional there is a thread woven through it all!

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Isn't SmileBox great!

Contours

2010-01-09T05:59:00.000-08:00

In an effort to increase my aptitude in drawing I thought I would turn to a standby, Contour Drawing.

For those of you who have forgotten or blocked it out of your memory - in elementary school we drew our hands without looking at them. That was called a blind contour drawing. It produces weird drawings that rarely look like the object that was drawn. The idea is not recreating the object but rather to study and look at it, especially the edges. For me trying to move my eye and my hand at the same rate is the challenge. And on a domestic sewing machine so I am in effect moving my paper...

If you are thinking that it looks good that is because after doing three blind contours I did a contour drawing looking at the object. Here are the first three. (above is three blind contours and a drawing)

From an etching book. Three blind contours and then coloured pencil

A tulip from a magazine ad. Three blind contours, a drawing and then fabric paint. Seed stitching fills the background.

2009-10-01T06:59:00.000-07:00

This Summer has been busy.

A new irrigation system was installed just before the rainy season...

I gave a presentation of my work to Uncommon Threads, my quilt guild in Memphis (actually Germantown) and as Challenge Chairperson I gave a class for all participants of the challenge.

Amidst all this a few friends and I got together and dyed fabric. Twenty two yards is what I dyed that Saturday.

Pictured at right is Marge laying her purple graduations out to rinse on Arlene's awesome rinsing rack! What an ingenious way to rinse.

One thing new I tried was a 'parfait' from Ann Johnston's book "Color by Accident"

http://www.annjohnston.net/

This parfait was done with first one yard of fabric in a bucket with red dye then a second yard and blue and finally a third yard and more red. Each colour sat for twenty minutes before the next was added and no stirring occurred until the end producing mottled and varied cloths.

I took those three fabrics along with white and made a quilt for Quilts of Valor. They give quilts to all returning service men and women.

Check out their website

http://www.qovf.org/

2009-09-13T06:40:00.000-07:00

Here is the second figure that I made in our class with California 3D Quilt Artist Susan Else. She (figure) in only pinned together at limbs right now -- going to play with her gesture a little before committing to a pose...

Here are the creatures we made... (from left to right) my little mole guy, Jodi's green horned creature, Christopher's dragalope and Susan's creature melding into the background at right...

2009-09-05T05:37:00.000-07:00

I recently attended Quilt National at the Dairy Barn in Athens Ohio. The trip overall was terrific. The whole point was to see Quilt National before it closed. I am so glad I went. Here are some links to artist work I saw and was inspired by. These few pieces out of the whole lot of awesome work spoke to me in a very particular manner about my work...

Leisa Rick has a beautiful piece, "My House Is Built On Sand" whose playfulness and line drawing was very cool.

http://tinyurl.com/kv8hrx

Marianne Burr, "Spin Out". I had seen her work on the cover of American Style Magazine and was captivated. Seeing this work in person made me pause. The dense hand work used to make this piece -- it was humbling. And yet the impact had nothing to do with that, rather just the sheer beauty of the movement and shapes, especially the rhythm created by the repeated stitches.

http://tinyurl.com/l9w4w5

Nelda Warketin, "Meadow Pine". I am captivated by images superimposed upon each other. Her use of materials, thread and paint created a subtly undulating surface of layers to be seen through.

http://tinyurl.com/mhbaet

Inge Hueber takes the quilt inside out with her "High Tide/Low Tide -- Broadstairs, Kent 1". With seams meticulously created and put on display on the exterior front of the quilt her colour work not only recreates her experience of a place and time, but placement of those colours create a movement reminiscent of tides coming and going.

http://tinyurl.com/kss6wl

Mary Louise Learned, "Street Dance" at a distance has movement you would expect from a piece with a title about dance. Upon closer inspection however a whole world of texture opens up. The lines are given feeling with wool roving, or wool before it is spun into yarn. The surface is a riot of textures that begs to be stroked and experienced (yet alas there is not touching the art!).

http://www.mllearned.com/

Margery Goodall's quartet, "Earth Suite: Saltland, Pindan, Dune, Fire Ash" created with tiny pieces cut from pieced fabrics sewn into stripes with mottled yet solid fabrics create these sparkling surfaces that compel you to look closer. Stunning.

http://tinyurl.com/nn9wb5

Daphne Taylor's "Quilt Drawing #9" was the simplest most elegant thing... A lithe sinuous line of black slicing through a cream silk surface with tiny black stitched lines placed so close to one another as to create a block. Emerging from under the block is a mass of flowing cream lines dancing out from behind the grid. So simple yet so beautiful.

www.daphnetaylorquilts.com/

Lastly there was Kathy York whose piece "Little Fish in a Big City" was brilliant and poignant. A statement about dependance on the oceans and out need to protect them still has a sense of humor and great visual interest from little geometrics quilted into the indigo ocean to the 3D buildings and fish taxis.

http://tinyurl.com/lt4gcl

All told the biggest lesson learned is seeing in person is vital. I have seen images of some of these featured artists work. Despite the deftness of the photographer the subtle nature of a quilt is diminished. Standing in front of them was something magical and inspiring. Definitely worth the drive!

Another note -- sorry for the lack of images, but these are working artists and their images are their property. I did not aquire permission to use them here so I did not. Please respect others and get their permission before pirating images from books or on-line. Thanks

2009-08-13T09:20:00.000-07:00

Listening

Listening is something that anyone would argue they do. Most people listening to them argue would probably say the speaker does not listen. Indeed most of us do not have the experience of being listened to.

Yesterday I posted on Craigslist to advertise a class I am hosting. On all of their postings the viewer sees a statement about not contacting the posting part for solicitation. What sit he first response to my listing? You guessed correctly: solicitation.

Now you might be thinking to yourself, "But if he is listing there he should expect that!"

Sure I will give you that. And what about other places and occasions? How often do you speak to a customer service person and all you hear them saying in response to your claim is they are sorry and can do nothing. This is because they are not really listening to you. They hear every word you say, but more often than not they are concerned about what is happening in their life not about your issue.

More frequently the people in our lives don't experience being listened to because we listen through our history of them. When I ask a friend how they are I already know that they are having aches and pains and a rough day because that is how they are. So when one day they are excited about something I miss it because I know they are miserable.

If I expect to be listened to I need to practice listening.

Who have you not listened to today?

Collage

2009-07-08T13:06:00.000-07:00

Colour is an amazing thing. It can also be a tricky thing.
That would be why we study colour.
I have begun a program at City and Guilds (on line). It is a certificate programme in 'Patchwork and Quilting'. This course is headed by the Kemshalls, Linda and Laura. Check them out at http://www.lindakemshall.com/Linda.htm
One of the exercises in the first unit is collecting items in a similar colourway.

Blue
Green
There are plenty of natural greens, but other than grass and trees other hues are challenging to find.

Yellow
Yellows tend to be light so I used creative licence and moved into the golds and oranges.

Orange

This is a great colour that has a bad rap!

Red

Great practise for composition.

This was a great exercise. Fun to execute and learned a lot!

Let there be light!

2009-06-14T12:42:00.000-07:00

Some days are more illuminating than others.
Today it one of those days.
I have nice ceiling fans with light kits. They provide a nice about of light, but there are areas. One such area is my ironing station. a while ago I covered a banquet table with canvas and batting (thanks Sharon http://sharonschambernetwork.com/).
It is awesome having a 30 x 60 space rather than a small ironing board -- well you can imagine!
The light however could be better. Where I stand the light is behind me and I cast a shadow on the surface.
What to do?
I looked for track fixtures that plug in, I've seen them on line, but not in stores.
Then it dawned on me. I have a half dozen clip lights that I used in my studio in Miami now living in a box.
Today I took a simple and inexpensive ceiling hook, installed above the dark area and voila, LIGHT!
There are four lights illuminating the ironing surface, my cutting table and each end of my HandiQuilter.
Another trip to the hardware store and I will have more light on my drafting table, serger and sewing machine.
Can't wait!

What the...

2009-06-13T09:18:00.000-07:00

Are you as amazed as I at the lack of vision and myopic nature of corporate business today? In the wake of the financial crisis it seems that too many are scrambling to keep up just because the NEWS says things are bad.
I was in Krogers this morning: my local grocery store, a chain from Cincinnati, Ohio. I have been a Kroger Shopper for many years when I lived in Memphis. Now in Somerville I have found this store to be great. Wonderful selections, whole food section, quality bakery and florist, great customer service.
That is until recently...
Walmart moved in less than a mile away. In the past couple of week I have noticed changes. Things that appear as if Kroger is competing with Walmart.
What is absurd is the idea that they are on equal enough footing to compete. Walmart is the huge discount store that competes with NO ONE. They bully vendors into lower and lower prices so their profit margins are high. Not to mention pushing out competitors. Krogers remains a large grocer whos focus has always been providing the local communities with food stuffs and sundry items.
Now they seem bent on matching the prices and quality of the big retailer and are sacrificing the customer in the process.
I will spend a few cents more to have the quality I desire and the customer service I expect.
So don't sell yourself short -- too many do that and then you are left with only one alternative...
Shopping at Walmart!

2009-06-08T11:22:00.000-07:00

The Kemshalls are a brilliant mother and daughter team who create great art, specializing in fiber, write books and have an on line degree programme. I have just enrolled in their class on Patchwork and Quilting for City and Guilds.

One of the first assignments is a paper about colour.

I love colour -- of course I am an artist!

I am fascinated by how colours interact with each other. So I have taken a piece I did a couple of years ago and photographed it on several different backgrounds.

Primarily made up of blue and green fabrics with orange threads I wondered how would it appear is different settings?

On white (top picture)

On soft Blue and tan print (second)

On a blue, green and tan batik (third)

And finally on a soft red and cream check (last)

How do you perceive them differently? Some backgrounds blend into the quilt more while others stand out and detract. Interesting which does what!

The implications are interesting... what colour have you painted and does it really set off your art, that rug?

2009-06-05T07:13:00.000-07:00

Trees are an important part of modern living. We use them for shade, for protection, to beautify. We cut them down for timber as well as for paper -- even if we are doing this less and "being green".

I have been on a mission to eradicate junk mail from my mail box: those extra catalogues I receive after ordering one thing two years ago, or mail still coming for the previous owners. Not only saving trees, but also company resources...

I have been amazed at the difficulties associated with getting off a mailing list. I have contacted AT&T a dozen times to get off their mailing list after firing them as a phone carrier and Internet provider eight months ago.. Perhaps this last call dealing with a supervisor will have done the trick.

Funny that I left because of not feeling appreciated as a customer and when I communicated I don't want their mail they don't seem to care or perhaps are not competent to do so. Maybe the confirmation code for cancellation will mean something. YA THINK?!

More paper is coming from the insurance companies and medical labs. I just opened an envelope from the insurance company with four sheets of paper. Each page was a separate "Explanation of Benefits from two providers on the same date. Three of those pages contained a single line from the same provider. (Did I mention everything else on the page was identical?)

That provider happens to be a lab that creates a different customer ID for every transaction. That seems logical doesn't it?

So perhaps in an effort to heal our Medical System's problems we will address the billing and paper trail. Or perhaps just eliminate the insurance companies all together... that would save some trees!

2009-05-26T06:26:00.000-07:00

Just a few weeks ago I attended Nancy Crow's class "Improvisations: Let's Experiment". It was a two week class at her Timber Frame Barn in Ohio. An awesome experience to be had by all! Make the opportunity and GO!

During the class we used several different methods of construction and composition...

This Black and white was the first of it's kind.

Nancy uses black and white as it's high contrast more easily creates figure/ground.

This second piece is multi-coloured; blue greys and red-violets.

Here the figure is the lightest grey (appears white on the screen).

At home I began this composition in blues and greens. The lightest green (appears grey) is the figure although it is not a clear one. Somehow it must be resolved...

And finally when I was composing the 'Opposites Attract' challenge I made strip sets that ultimately I did not use. This weekend I got them out and pulled them into a composition. Quite a departure from the solid colours and languid lines of the other pieces here, but I think a similar light. What do you think?

Finally DOing IT!

2009-03-04T08:39:00.001-08:00

How exciting is the moment you ACTUALLY do what you have dreamed of?
Very!
I have owned a HandiQuilter for three years (purchased at Quilt Show by the Sea 2006)-- the purchase was made to draw with my needle. It sat in my studio for a while jut taking up space... then in a box. Last summer I pulled it out and purchased the table, FINALLY!
This year I have committed to learn to use it or to get it out of my studio (it's large!).
So far this year I have quilted five lap quilts. Utilitarian in nature to get my feet wet and learn some basics about my machine...
Well I decided enough was enough and have started a drawing... (Based on current drawings from Contemporary Realist Academy)

So here she is in process... to the right, on top, is a slide show of the process of creating the head (really just her hair).
What fun!

Please let me know what you think!

2009-02-13T06:51:00.000-08:00

Colour...
There are only so many colours.
Or are there?
When I returned to the Contemporary Realist Academy for this winter session my focus was colour. (Is we are half way through.) So I set out doing Colour Studies. That is to say a 'sketch' where the primary focus is colour. So no drawing is done (the form is represented, but there is no effort to make the form accurate -- note the disproportionate arm on the right on the first example versus the third) only an effort to find colour.
This is a useful step (a) to learn to mix colour, especially in oil, and (b) to learn to see colour (the colour that is actually there, not the colour you think it is...).

So the first example is in oil -- my first attempt. It is crudely drawn (as this is not the point) and that ended up being my biggest headache. I was quickly reminded of why I am not in love with painting -- finding colour!Second I used coloured pencil, Prismacolor brand.

A note... the first example in oil is not well photographed. There is shine impacting the image you see. This example is grainy. So I am not a professional photographer. Here is proof!

Third is Tsudeneko Permanent Inks on cotton fabric.

This was exciting. working from life, not a photograph, and creating realism on fabric.

If only it were larger it could be quilted! Alas this image is about 9 inches each direction. Though now that I have done it once I see that I could do it again larger!

We shall see what comes next! Stay tuned...

Don't...

2009-02-05T10:26:00.000-08:00

Don’t allow others to dictate who you are.
Don’t let another’s opinion stop you from your self expression.
Don’t let your miss-spoken words keep you from trying to say it again.
Don’t stop your voice because your ego wants to be liked.
Don’t move into inertia because of fear.
Don’t stop living life because the current lesson seems hard
Or you make up that you are a bad person.
“Pick your self up
Dust yourself off
And begin again”
These words spoke from our President
Along with an apology
Give us faith that we can
“Begin Again.”
From wherever we are
Whoever we are
No matter out past
Our seeming future
Nor the circumstances that we seem to find ourselves in
Don’t
Just DO.

2009-01-09T12:30:00.000-08:00

In November I traveled to Paducah, Kentucky where I took a class from Nancy Crow ( \http://www.nancycrow.com/ ). It was an awesome experience.

This class was her beginning class, The best of Strip Piecing I and II. It was fascinating. Cutting solid coloured fabrics into strips, sewn together, re-cut and re-sewn... We worked on a design wall -- which I have done, but really working at looking at each step from -- in a vertical orientation from a distance. Funny the things you know yet don't do and their impact when you start!
I am currently working on a version of strip piecing for a challenge quilt. It's image will be revealed after the acceptance or rejection of it (Summer or next month!). I am very excited by the process. I am anxious to show and get feed back, but am following the guidelines...

Speaking of guidelines -- or perhaps just common sense... I am hoping the public is not falling for this!
I was working in the studio. The television was on and here comes an advertisement for "High Fructose Corn Syrup". The first commercial for HFCS got an audible laugh from me. Subsequently I have grown ever more irritated.
THEN I found this article talking about the environmental impact of HFCS. You should check it out!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/06/AR2008030603294.html

Let me know what you are up to or what you find irritating.

2008-12-29T11:55:00.000-08:00

Eighty! Can you imagine eighty birthdays? That's a lot of cake, candles, gifts, days, everything! My Father just turned eighty this month. He is quite the musician; playing the sax, tuba, and saw amongst other instruments. I recently purchased a dulcimer and have had so much fun I thought it might be something he would enjoy.

So this is his present for his eightieth. The base clef sign (for the sound hole) is in honor of his sixty-fifth year playing tuba with the Cedar Falls Municipal Band. Underneath is a patchwork bag I made and quilted to hold the instrument while not being played.

My pal Kate, at right is such a joy... for a holiday gift I made her a pillow with a stumpwork initial, beading and quilting. Not the radiance that she portraits, but lovely none the less.

And speaking of radiance...

Yesterday Christopher alerted me to the impending beautiful sun set. He could not have been more correct... and here is one shot of the sky filled with colour.

So how were your holidays? What gift were you the most proud of giving? Did you make something as a gift? Please share...

Stripping...

2008-11-09T05:54:00.000-08:00

Nature and Decay
Why are we so interested in these things?
I was at a party last weekend at a friends farm. This structure was on the property adjacent. I was fascinated not only by the whole, but the parts -- Ghosts of the past immortalized in the barns...

And this has the look of a pieced quilt. Linear, repeating with variation. Quite interesting.

What in your world excites and stimulates you visually?

This piece: a top that is pieced but not quilted yet...
Has a similar quality.

Here the light filters around smaller objects. Perhaps the Sun rising or setting viewed from behind a, iron fence or prison...

This is a present in process. I am hoping that the recipient will not see it. I had to share it as I am SO EXCITED that this little bag (it will be) has it's points matching. And I only redid two seems. Not bad!

After this election I decided I could try anything!

If someone knows what this manner of setting is called -- please let me know. Streak of lighting? Or is that only with 'Log Cabin'?

Visual Splendor

2008-10-13T14:35:00.000-07:00

This weekend was spectacular…

Most of you probably share my opinion about spiders: I don’t like them. However during the past year living in the country I have grown to appreciate and understand them. They must have had a convention over night because when I took the puppies out for their morning walk around the pond Friday there were the most beautiful spider webs all kissed with dew. Thankfully no spiders were in sight!

Saturday I was introduced to the Ghost River. It is part of the Wolf River basin. There you will find a beautiful boardwalk over a swamp. The diversity of plants; berries, leaves, lichen, bark were all visually intriguing. And the light – the light filtering onto the plant filled watery surface was spectacular – a few rocks, trees with knees and buttresses, a turtle and the occasional water lily.

Where have you gone that you were inspired by what you saw?

2008-10-07T09:45:00.000-07:00

The portrait is finally finished or at least the embroidery part is finished. Now the question is what next... perhaps a layer of trapunto and then a painted layer under that to give more dimension like in "Icon". Here is a closer look at the 'back stitch'. In an earlier post there was another version of this image done in 'chain stitch'. I was not please with the ease of manipulating the stitch. Another embroidery artist, Michael Aaron McAllister (http://www.michaelaaronmcallister.com/) suggested the 'back stitch' was more suited and his preferred stitch. I love the ability to create lost and found edges with this stitch.
After a year in Tennessee I went to a Quilt Guild meeting. There I met a group of art quilters who have a bee. I so miss my bee in Florida, BeeArty. Now I have a new group to play and learn with. This is the tart of my version of the current challenge. The challenge, a cliche...
Can you guess what mine is?
Whether it is cliche or not the autumnal colours are breath taking. And best, they are just beginning. This year I promised myself I would not miss photographing the change. Here is one if the first bursts of colour.

There is new wall in town...

2008-09-20T08:09:00.000-07:00

There is a new wall in town. Last week I took down the smallish flannel I used as a design wall and replaced it with a new one. Larger and pin-able it is terrific to work on!

I started with a layer of insulation board. Two pieces that I cut and wedged into place. The outlet and the light switch were cut out and the whole was wrapped in 'headliner' (the stuff used for the ceiling of your car, foam on one side and a knit fabric on the other). It is perfect to pin to and large enough for a couple of projects at once or one really large one.

BeeArty, the quilting group I belonged to in Florida has been including me in a number of their projects. The current one is the annual "Zippy Challenge". That is where you take a number of items, fabrics, trims, etc, and put them in a Ziploc bag to exchange for another person's. This is what I made the machine lace for in a previous entry...

This is the fabrics that I received. After studying them I saw something... can you guess what it was?

This is an image of the piecing. Now I must determine how to quilt it. I will let you see in an upcoming post...

Being

2008-09-01T07:14:00.000-07:00

I had the opportunity yesterday to just 'be'. I was outside sitting for quite a long time. I noticed all the various greens of plants, the crystal blue sky as it reached from one tree lined horizon to another, the quiet and solitude of the country...

Then I noticed the grass. There were a few blades of grass where I was sitting that were taller than the others. I watched them shiver in the wind. Then it occurred to me -- what if they aren't shivering, but dancing, swaying. Firmly rooted in the soil they are free to bend and twist with the whims of the wind without consequence or harm.

It was a beautiful realization. For how often have I looked at my life as something at the effect of a force outside myself. What if it is all perception? If I am rooted in my values and goals life may happen around me and yet I am strong. My family and friends give me strength and grounding to enjoy the winds life blowing at me.

If I pay attention that is...

Decorating walls and more...

2008-08-25T13:22:00.000-07:00

Tape. I hate taping when I paint a wall. Over the years and dozens of rooms I have developed great skill at cutting in, partially in an effort to avoid taping. Why then you might ask would I undertake a panel effect that requires miles of tape per wall. Maybe insanity or perhaps laziness... Sounds illogical? Not when you consider painting a rectangle around a wall is simpler than painting the wall! And the look is dramatic... What do you think? Perhaps I should finish hanging the art and ask again!

Portraiture -- that is a topic I am passionate about. And somehow I have not felt the freedom to create one. I guess I have been waiting for the magic 'feeling' that I was ready. So I looked at some source material and started one of a friend. Of course I chose to execute it in embroidered back stitch, a slow process I seem to not be motivated to work with... I may finish this sometime before the end of this millennium.

This weekend I went to a friends house and next to her garden, full of beautiful Zinnia's was a calf. The little guy was born with his feet turned under, thus his proximity to the house. (He is doing fine.) He was so cute. I have never seen such eyelashes (that didn't come in a package), so long and thick! The joys of living in the country.

What experiances have you had with animals, either wild or livestock?

Lacey FUN!

2008-08-15T16:22:00.001-07:00

Machine Lace, or fabric made from bits of yarn, thread and fabric trapped between two layers of water soluble stabilizer sewn into a fabric. It is loads of fun and simple.

I created this piece (about 8 x 11) in under an hour. Not bad if you consider that I can create what I want, combinations of color, a specific texture or pattern, basically from scratch.

Here is how: lay a piece of Water Soluble Stabilizer on a work surface. Spray with 505 (temporary adhesive) and sprinkle shards of fabric, yarn, threads onto surface laden stabilizer. These shards are easily cut by laying down small pieces of fabric (You know those bits you cut off of everything; squaring up a block, bits left from fussy cut projects, even botched blocks...) and cutting with rotary cutter. Just roll blade forward over fabric and back again, angling at each pass to create smaller and smaller piece.

Spray a light coat of 505 over the top of fabric and threads. A second layer of stabilizer goes on top. Press lightly. Transfer to sewing machine and stitch. I start with one line of stitching down the center and then going around the circumference. From there you can do whatever. If you don't feel comfortable with free motion the is great practice just drop those feed dogs and go for it! Just remember that you need lots of crossing lines of stitching and it will all distort in the end.

Drop the completely stitched piece into hot tap water and swish about for a minute or so. I usually drain and add more water and then rinse (not the manufacturer's directions, just what I do, you should start with the manufacturer's directions.). I dry like fine knit wear, roll in a bath towel and then kneed. This will leave it damp. You can let it air dry -- I use an iron an medium (watch your fabric and thread content here) and finish drying.

Now you have a beautiful element for to use however your heart desires.

Here is another. I added the machine lace to two quilted pieces layered atop each other and beads.

Drawn to the spinning skies...

2008-07-13T06:07:00.000-07:00

Another week -- another artist date. And this one was AWESOME!

Remember those spin art booths at the fair when you were young? Well Crayola makes a spin art creator. It is fun! I have enjoyed it so much it had to be sequestered so I would return to other things at hand...

Some are the spattered dripped things like we created at the fair...What I find really intriguing are concentric circles. I have used coloured pencils, inks, markers, brush tip markers, various paints and brushes.

I also like the way the paper does not sit perfectly flat. So as it spins it is heavier in areas and lighter, or nonexistent in others.

Another project was cleaning and organizing the studio. I had hundreds of drawings in pads and portfolios -- at one point I purchased a nice archival box to store the ones I wanted to keep. Months later I determined: that particular mound of clutter had to go.

Sorting through them was very cool. I was shocked at what I have created since I started in 2001. Some good drawings, some laughably juvenile, others flat out bad and then the special ones. It is interesting to me what I find I like. Some because they are finished or a portion is finished -- others just struck me as an interesting pose the model was in. Funny what we are drawn to...

I had forgotten about this little ink drawing from a class on hands with Abdon Romero. I love the line quality and hatching.

I love summer. Not because of the heat, rather the skies. This was taken in the evening last week. I love the sliver of the moon surrounded by the spectacularly coloured clouds. The only drawback to the whole love of the sky are the moments of shear and breath taking beauty WHEN YOUR CAMERA IS NOT WHERE YOU ARE! So I am pleased to have captured this...

Drawing, Pick your tool...

2008-06-22T12:40:00.000-07:00

There are few times in life that things seem to flow, work together in the manner you intend. This is one of the times it has for me.
This is charcoal on paper of a model at the Atelier, finished this month (15 x 11)
I love this image. Bathed in soft light the figure sleeps (she really did fall asleep) unaware of being watched. Subdued shadows define the form resting on the draped bed.
What does this make you think of? Perhaps it looks familiar? This is the same pose as an older post, but from the other side of the room.
I am in the process of doing the "Artist Way" by Julia Cameron. Part of the process includes weekly 'Artist's Date' or a time each week when you do an activity designed to feed your Inner Artist. This week I got finger paints and had a blast!
Here are three of my favorites:
First swirled on with no fingers, Next swirled on, finger swirled on half the sheet of paper then folded over to create mirror images,

and a Mono-print (made by swirling on paint, finger swirling and then placing paper on top of wet paint).

This date was so much better than last week when I purchased a few toys from the dollar store. One was a gun that shoots ping pong balls whose trigger broke on the first shot. Expensive toy!

And last, but definitely not least is out new puppy. Isn't he cute! And looks like a handfull at the same time, no?

Watching the figure. Anyone else not?

2008-06-08T12:07:00.000-07:00

So the season of bathing suits is upon us. I for one will not be donning one this season. My mouth has taken control of the waist-line and, well it's just not a go for this year...
I have been watching other figures however . Want a peek?

There are faces and there are faces. These are the three faces of Mary... (These are in Ink on cotton)
The first (center) is 'Drag Mary'. "She looka like a mah(n)" Miss Swan.
Next we have 'Fake Tan Mary' (left). She felt bad being so pale and went nuts with the bronzer.
Last we have 'Serene Mary'. She is soft focus and beautiful, but awaits her appointment to get her brows fixed. Note though that 'Serene Mary' is the only one with her left eye showing. Wonder why? CAUSE I SCREWED THE OTHERS UP... this was not an attempt to copy Warhol, just an attempt to get it right. Perhaps 'Serene Mary' can indeed have her brows worked on otherwise She will be a quartet.

Bet you are wondering what purpose Mary serves in my work and on my blog! You will have to stay tuned to find out... (dun dun dah!)

This is Sue. Perhaps more accurately a depiction of Sue... I am trying out stitches for a 'drawn' portrait. Here 'Chain stitch' is employed to mixed results. I have been advised to try 'backstitch' and that will post upon it's completion. (Note: there is a janky spot in the drawing. I know it's there and I know you know it's there -- just proves that drawing really does count.)

This is a drawing, or rather drawings from the Atelier: The Contemporary Realist Academy in Memphis where I have been studying. This is on the pose currently underway.

This drawing was created using a variety of graphite (hardness's) in paper and two layers of velum. The paper layer is dedicated to the contour or outline of the model. The next vellum layer is dedicated to the space around the model, background and foreground. The final layer is the shading of the model.
It was done for specific purposes and the effect is lovely...
Designed in this manner to give me references to work from when I translate this to fabric. Something else you will have to check back to see...

Curious? Me too!

From me Lovinger-ly

2008-05-31T05:46:00.000-07:00

Months ago I was reading an e-mail digest when Margot Lovinger's name came up. I clicked the link and went to view her site AMAZING. Not much longer I learned of a class with her. You can guess what happened next!

I trekked to upstate New York to the beautiful town of Greenville and the Greenville Arms. The Arms is a charming B and B with art classes/workshops. For five and a half days Margot lovingly supervised our efforts and shared her techniques. She is a most interesting person with a truly great eye and spirit. I enjoyed her as much as the knowledge.

To start I took a picture or some beets. Well it was supposed to be a simple image. I thought two beets were simple. I ended up cropping it down to one whole leaf and part of another. Simpl-ER...

Layers of tulle tacked down all creating light and shadow whose colors shift as the viewer moves slightly giving life and depth to the piece. Not the quickest stuff and yet breath taking. Well at least hers is -- I have some time to put in to the technique before mastery!

So here is my beet... can't wait to get started on a figure!

Prize Winner...

2008-05-06T12:53:00.001-07:00

The challenge quilt at "Quilt Show by the Sea" for 2008 was 'War and Peace'.

I knew I wanted to do the challenge -- well, because it was a challenge.

I thought and thought about what approach to take. At first I wanted to do a portrait of Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto after she was assassinated. As pumped as I was I could not secure rights to a photo of her in time to complete the challenge...

What to do?

I was looking at the three fabrics whose use was required in the challenge and the country-ness struck me and I started thinking about children, specifically the red reminded me of a school. Could a nursery rhyme be a catalyst?

Then it occurred to me that political leaders are like Jack and Jill. Going about their own business with little regard to consequences. And the victims of their selfish ploys (war) are the next generation and the hope they embody.

Jack and Jill the challenge quilt was born...

When my hill was pieced and the schoolhouse appliqued I turned to stump work (a form of embroidery that is raised).

Jack and Jill have shisha mirror faces. Reflecting the ones culpable...

The background quilting on the border repeats icons of war and peace; dove, nuclear symbol, heart, missile, star, pentagon, laurel wreath...

The poem is written around the border. It reads:

Jack and Jill
went up the hill
to kill off all the peace
Jack fell down
and broke his crown
and Jill thought it a joke
up Jack got
and down they trot
with all their ammunition
and when again to aim at hope
to doom this generation

Not a very uplifting sentiment and it makes you think. What part do you play in all that goes on to create war? How do you contribute to peace? Making you think -- one image at a time!