a new direction

we've been cleaning things out, packing boxes, filling up the recycle bin and the trash can -- all in preparation for putting our house on the market

one of the things I found in this clean up was a tub full of mohair birds from another artistic lifetime --- still very cute stuff, just not what I do anymore

I've started putting these out on my Etsy store at very reduced prices in hope that some of them at least will "fly away" to new homes

if you're interested, you can use the link to my Etsy store there at the top right side of the blog

even though we're deep into those house projects, I have managed to get some other things done too

this hat for instance, which will be a Christmas present

last night I finished the sleeves on another Christmas knitting project

and I'm very close to finishing the quilt top I've been doing the applique work on

yesterday I spent time waiting for my van to get new tires -- I haven't put tires on it for a long time, and we decided that we wanted to go into winter not worrying about the tires, so I used the money I recently earned doing an organizational project to take care of it

while I sat there I finished another one of these afghan squares

today, when I go out to run some other errands, a box of those afghan squares will be going off to be made into afghans by Close Knit Hugs

and the box that has these hats and mittens in it will go off to the Cheyenne River Reservation

feels good to have these ready to go!

time to get to all those other projects

The birds are back

the past couple of days after the hose runs I've noticed that there are about half a dozen juvenile robins hanging out, looking for worms

it occurred to me that I hadn't seen any of the usual robins, wrens, finches and woodpeckers since about the middle of June

then the brain actually kicked in and I realized why

there is a reason miners took a canary down into the coal mines

the birds are the first to be alarmed by bad air

the Waldo Canyon Fire created a whole lot of that

I'm really happy to hear the wood peckers squabbling again and to see the robins strutting around in the damp grass pulling up the worms

welcome home

new things, old things

yesterday afternoon I got back to this

it took me a bit of fiddling with the seed beads to figure out how to arrange them around those bugle beads

nice progress

a while back (ok, over a year ago!) I spent some time playing with needle felting

at that time I did several birds and combined them with wood bird houses that had been painted or antiqued and felted flowers added too

when we stopped doing craft shows, most of this stuff just got packed up into plastic tubs and put away

recently I have started going through things and I found this piece

so, I put him in my Etsy shop -- not the one where I put all my bead work, but the OTHER one

and since I've decided to start putting my fiber work and mixed media pieces out there in that shop, you'll see a new link over there on the right side of the blog, so if you want to go check out what's out there you can use the link

on Wednesday the DH had his surgery -- originally scheduled for 1 pm, because of issues with the scheduling ahead of him, he finally got into surgery at about 2:30 pm

it made for a very long day by the time he had 2 hours of surgery, then 2 hours in the recovery room before they put him in a room for the night

lots of time for me to work on portable projects

like making this entire hot pad for my daughter (she told me when we were at her house at Christmas that some of the ones I had made her a few years ago had begun to wear out), and start on another one

when you sit in the waiting area of the surgical center of a hospital and you are paying attention you see both ends of the spectrum of what happens there

during those 4 hours there were 6 babies born (the hospital plays Brahm's Lullaby on the intercom for each one) and a family was told that their loved one didn't make it through whatever the surgery was (I'm thinking that has to be the part of the job that doctors must most hate)

the DH came home yesterday afternoon -- the Bionic Man -- he has a new shoulder joint made of metal and plastic -- now begins the long slog toward healing and rehab --

keep those prayers coming please!

Yellow Bird

I finished up the yellow bird, and he's all ready to go onto the green birdhouse.

I'm totally amazed by the way these seem to look like disjointed bits of fluff then suddenly they are birds!

Decorating this bird house will be a bit different than the red one was -- I'm thinking about doing flower petals to go all around the opening of the bird house (so the hole would be the center of the flower) -- we'll see, I'm in the "thinking about it" stage

And here you can see that I have begun working on the flower seller's cart

Before I painted, I had the DH cut a small piece off the bottom of the "peg" that supports the front end of the cart -- I wanted it to lean slightly that way because it would tip back toward the handle when I put things in it otherwise

See all those pots? My plan is to make each one a bit different as I paint them -- I think I still have some paint with texture stuff in it even


Of course then there is the question of what do I put in the pots to support the flower stems?

This is an actual block of oasis (that cool stuff that florists use to stick real flowers in) -- I had this still on hand from some other long ago project (clue to why I don't throw things out!)

And that tool that looks like an apple corer is just that

But it was the perfect size to cut the "plugs" for the 4 big pots. Unfortunately I'll have to cut all the others free hand with a knife

Aside from finishing the yellow bird and working on the flower cart I also stuffed another animal that the DH had jointed a while back but I'd sort of forgotten about. I'm hoping to get the rest of that project finished today.

Also finished the bezel band for the next Rocky Mountain Beach Glass necklace and worked on the Unidentified Christmas Project


oh, yes,

and fiddled around a bit with the paper crafts and created this cute little bunny basket

The Easter Bunny in our neighborhood was wearing a rain slicker and carrying an umbrella this morning as it is raining, but we're glad to have moisture that doesn't require me to go out and shovel it out of the driveway!!

Happy Easter!!

A Finished Object (at last!)

It seems like I've been working on this project FOREVER!

Yesterday afternoon I glued down the last of the flowers and proclaimed it FINISHED!!

This was an interesting excursion into new ways of mixing medias.

I've done wood projects for quite a while, and beads are my old friends. The needle felting, however, was a whole new deal.

And while I had a "vision" in my head of what I wanted this to look like, I was just not sure I could make it happen in the "real" world.

That is perhaps the biggest challenge of any artist --- to make the visions in our heads become something tangible for others to see.

I am very, VERY, pleased with the way this came out. So now it's on to the next bird house --- probably the green one with a yellow bird. Yes, and possibly orange flowers (which means there will be more wool washing!)

After much fusing and counting I have finally gotten the "netting" between the malachite/azurite/turquoise stones completed.

Yesterday I started on the beadwork that will be the necklace part of this --- across the center (to support the stone "structure") I'm using size 11 beads and from there to the back, including the toggle clasp, I'm using size 15 beads. All of them are the same shades of blues and greens as the stones, and I'm working the famous uber-flexible right angle weave.

Once I get the necklace part finished and the stones attached I'll start on the fringe. There will be a lot of fringe. It will start on the sides at the top and "flow" off of every stone down the sides.

(picture isn't great, but there are little pencil lines on the paper behind the stone that give the general idea)

This will not be branched fringe, but it will be made up of seed beads, bugle beads and stone beads to give it some "weight". And I'm expecting the fringe will take as long to do and the whole rest of the necklace (mostly because as I do the first side I need to count and record so I can refer and count to make the second side match).

Just have to show off one of my birthday presents.

The DH got this for me

It's a BIG mug (for a cuppa whatever while I'm at my computer in the mornings)

It's nice pottery with a great handle

And don't you love the puppy paw prints?!

Oh yes, and that would be my grandchildren are dogs --- I have TWO grand dogs and they are adorable (most of the time).

Yesterday we went back to the doctor for a follow up on the DH and the wound on his hand. She was pleased that he has so much feeling in it, but still concerned about infection given that it was wounded with a circular saw. So, he has another course of antibiotics to take. The up side of this? She gave him samples so we didn't have to pay for another prescription. I LOVE this doctor!! We'll keep an eye on it, and if it still looks "icky" after these anitbiotics are gone, we can go back for another "look see".

Being that it's Spring, we had another snow storm blow through here yesterday afternoon -- and now everything is covered with ice -- I'm just going to work indoors today!

Cardinal Complete -- almost

Ok, everything except legs!

I used some tiny (3mm) beads for his eyes

I'm just so delighted with this little guy I can't tell you

So today we'll be moving on to flowers to adorn the bird house!





While I am working right along on the Unidentified Christmas Project, I have also begun working on the leaf project.

This is the very first piece of the first block

I know, it doesn't look like much, but like I said, it's just the first piece




more later ya'll

multi tasking again

For whatever reason (call it a character flaw perhaps, or maybe it's just from 30 some years of HAVING to do it in corporate jobs), I do not work on just one thing at a time.

Yesterday was a particularly busy day.

Having ripped out the first go at the chain for this project, I'm now much happier with the color blend (I added 2 additional brown tones), and now it's moving right along.

The first piece is about 6 inches long, so there are another 2.5 inches to do on this side, then the other side.

ah, much better

Now that I have a card back that I'm happy with, I did some work on the letters and numbers that will be on the fronts of the cards.

(Yes folks, I'll be creating the drawings for all 54 (got to include the jokers!) cards in this deck)

Oh and those little drawings at the bottom will be the suits -- mushrooms, flowers, lady bugs and snails

I haven't decided yet on color schemes and of course there are all the face cards still to create, but it is moving along





Since the bird houses are basically done except for the embellishments, I really need to get the birdies done!

This is the little cardinal that I had started on Wednesday

I still need to put in the little beads for his eyes and the DH is working on some little wire feet

The next thing for this birdhouse will be some red and white flowers

I have to say this is one of those "did I do that" moments -- I was sure that needle felting a bird was just beyond my abilities, but I'm really, REALLY pleased with this attempt.

Next (after the flowers that is) will be a yellow bird (for the green bird house). I printed off a bunch of pictures of yellow birds to refer to this morning (gotta love Google Images!)

Do you remember me talking about the leaf quilting project?

These are really poor pictures (sorry!), but they are the first pencil drawings of the designs for this 3 panel project.

This morning I was making color copies of the leaf scans so I have colored patterns to start working from.

While I was working on new design ideas I did a design for a new beaded bracelet. There is a competition for a beaded piece that uses only the 3 secondary colors (purple, green, orange), so I decided to give it a try. Pictures in good time my pretties!


As is usual, when I spend a bit of time on the phone (especially if I get to wait on hold!), I do a bit of doodling.

These are the latest additions to the collection.

Lookie, they aren't birds! Nope, they're four legged critters

Giraffe! Gazelle?

They may show up in the playing cards -- who knows!


Then there is this little issue.

See the middle finger? See how it isn't as flat to the counter as the rest?

Yup, that's because I can't really straighten it out

Once again yesterday afternoon this finger started bothering me. In fact, about 12:30 this morning I got up and got a gel ice pack and wrapped my fingers with it to cut the pain so I could sleep.

This morning it's still really sore and stiff, but at least the stabbing pain has gone away.

I'm glad it's my left hand, but it does still slow me down -- nuts!

ok, enough babble for today --- time to go get something done!

felting and drawing and knitting (OH MY!)

The stain on the bird houses dried (and "de-stinked") enough to bring them into the house and give them a coat of clear acrylic sealer.

Glitter and other embellishments will be next!






Meantime, I started working on the first of the birds.

On the left is the basic "bird" shape in the white base wool, and on the right is the bird with the first of the cardinal red wool over the base and the beginning of the special shaping (the "crest" on the head of the cardinal makes it look sort of like it has a pointy head).

I had fussed about (and put off) working on this because I was afraid it would be a lot more difficult than it turned out to be. (go figure)


So I got out the colored pencils yesterday and did the blue card back

And then I did a second one with more patterning in red

So, which one is better?

I've started working on the lettering and numbering masters too


There are no new pictures of the Milky Way necklace --- I finished the fringe, which I am pretty happy with, then I started on the right angle weave --- worked about 3 inches and decided the colors were just not right and tore it all out ----- ah yes, the trips to the frog pond (rip it, rip it) are still with us.

Perhaps today's work will go better, I added a tube of shiny rootbeer colored beads to the mix and I think that will help.


And the giraffe now has 2 front legs

The second one went a lot quicker, and I'm starting to get a better grasp of making the patterning chart and the shaping increases/decreases work together

So tonight I'll be casting on and starting the first of the back legs

I've pretty much decided that the legs of this critter need to stay soft and floppy, but I'm also pretty sure I'll need to insert something in the neck so it isn't floppy --- I'll be raiding our scrap pile of PVC pipe --- I figure a small diameter piece wrapped in some batting will work

we'll see





Yesterday I was watching the Martha Stewart show while I ate my lunch, and she did a whole segment about Lilly Pulitzer and the fabrics that are developed under that name. I remember those prints! And interestingly enough, some of them really resemble some of the doodles that I've done. They're all really stylized representations of shapes (like shells and flowers and one with a monkey on it), done basically in one or two colors on a white field.

So now I'm thinking it would be fun to create some fabric from my own designs. This morning I went on line to our local library and requested every book on that subject that I could find. Time to do some research!!

Crystals and Birdhouse Paint

The first real "color" coat of paint is on the birdhouses.

A bright spring green, a shade of blue the color of the painter's tape and a pale pink that I mixed and probably won't be able to match again

The DH and I had a long talk about what the basic shapes are that I need to make the little felted birds.

The next layer of paint will be added today


All of the crystals have their netted bezels (I left the working threads attached so I can just pick them up and use them to do the attachments later.

This is the basic layout I'm going to use for the necklace, and now that I have the actual materials laid out I like it even better than I thought I would.

Next step is the herring bone cord to go through the leave and attach to the big crystals


Yesterday I sold another item from my Etsy store --- so today I'll be setting up the machine to embroider another dog toy or two.

odds and ends before a show

like I didn't have enough to do, yesterday morning we decided to make one more of the smaller dodos

this is Darkwing Ditto

cute huh?

actually it was helpful to learn that when I have all of the materials right in hand I can actually make one of these in about 4 hours -- and he's all hand stitched









since I had finished the previous bird quilt block the day before I pulled out the fabrics for the next one

and I've already begun working on it -- all of his tail and about half of the body is already appliqued







The box arrived!

No doubt you're thinking "box? what box?"

This weekend at our show we will be taking orders for Intercal Trading Group -- the people I have bought mohair for my animals from for over 20 years. Since their sales rep can't be at all shows at once, we're trying something new -- this box is full of sample pieces of their fur so you can actually put your hands on the fur before you place that order.

It should be interesting

Here are the details of where our show will be:

5th Annual Berthoud Doll, Toy & Teddy Bear Show
Ivy Stockwell Elementary School
175 Fifth Street
Berthoud, CO
hours: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday, September 27

$3 admission, children under 12 free with parent

mention this blog post when you purchase any single animal over $20 and get a 10% discount (discount does not apply to fur purchases -- there are other price incentives for those)




and just because I can't seem to get myself to any show without some mishap

last night I ran into a door jam

notice the lovely red mark and the blue swelling on the toe

when I hit it I heard the "pop", so I probably broke something

there will be the applying of tape support and the wearing of socks (and probably some limping) Bring on the ice and the advil

So today we'll be loading up the van and heading off to set up -- hope to see some of you at the show!

feeling "goosie"?

Meet Grace

having completed the duck rework, we just slid right into the goose (must have been that mess on the floor that did it!)

Lovely isn't she -- stands 10 1/2 inches tall on sturdy (wire) legs

she's a looker!

(and hopefully a flyer -- as in right out of the booth this weekend!)

Originally this was supposed to be a bigger bird, but I decided that a life sized goose would just be too much of a transport problem (what, I need to build wire pens now?!), and I wasn't sure that the wire we use for bird legs would support the weight of a larger bird (you'll notice there have been no turkeys here)

now that I've done Grace, I am considering a really ornate rooster -- one of the odd breeds with all the fancy feathers -- we'll see

along with the goose, I finished the piecing of the senegal

you probably can't tell from the picture, but the entire outside edge of this is raw because eventually the white will all be cut away and the bird appliqued to the stripping part of the quilt top

I have one more of this style bird to do (a red eclectus) that faces the other way -- these two will be on either side of the center block (which will be the last one I'll do)

According to my little piece counting chart I've got 2/3 of this put together --- WHOOO HOOO!! Moving right along






So the plan for today, as we are nearing that nerve racking "pack the van" stage is to work on things like photos for the picture book we always have in the booth, and signs for the show (like, how many shopping days there are until Christmas) , and other odds and ends. I'm also still working on jewelry for the Holiday shows we'll do later -- yes, there's always something to do!

time to go get some of it done!

I'm working -- honest!

just no pictures to show for it today

here then is the list of what I did yesterday:

*three loads of laundry -- all washed, dried, folded and put away

*mending -- if this doesn't happen when I think of it, it never gets done -- when I did the folding I found a t-shirt that needed the underarm seam repaired and a hole in the elbow of the DH's favorite flannel shirt -- mission accomplished, the t-shirt seam has been stitched and both sleeves of the flannel shirt now have nifty contrasting flannel elbow patches (remember the wool sweaters with leather elbow patches? like that, only flannel)

*finished stitching the body parts for the goose, wrapped the wire for the feet and gave them the first coat of paint

*put a coat of glaze on the face of the Grizzlie (pictures to follow!)

*finished the hood of the sweater I'm making as a Christmas gift, leaving only the front button band and the sewing up left to complete the project

*finally figured out the set up row on the other knitting project I'm doing for Christmas -- YEAH! (Ok, now I don't feel so stupid about it!!)

*worked on a piece of jewelry that needed a bail, some fringe and a chain -- looking good

*downloaded some pictures for ideas to design a piece for a Mardi Gras competition

Yup, I was busy

time to go and be busy some more!

Gotta fly now

or not

okay, we know that dodos were FLIGHTLESS birds

we are still hoping that these 3 will fly right off the sale table this coming weekend!

We've done the two bigger ones before (that would be Darcie on the left and Darkwing on the right.)

The DH says we should name the little one Ditto -- that one is a 75% size of the other two and uses tiny little 4mm eyes -- the smallest size I've ever had (anything smaller just gets black beads)


and how does your garden grow?

the green beans are about done and the tomatoes are slowing down, but these two (along with another acorn squash and a much smaller pumpkin) are still chuggin' along

The pumpkin in particular is a big surprise since the plant we bought was supposedly a sugar pie pumpkin which would be smaller than this one is -- just confirms my idea that perhaps next year we will entertain the idea of planting from heritage seeds

Yesterday I went to the bead society meeting and spent a lot of time explaining my "drag and brag" objects. Interesting group of folks -- it should be fun getting to know them

Today, being Monday, means there is laundry to do, and then I'll be working on the goose and some "tweeking" to some other animals and maybe even work on some jewelry

onward!

1 cute bear, 3 blind birds

"AAAAWWWWWW!"

Isn't he cute?

He wasn't bad before, but with the new nose and some trimming around the eyes and ears, I think he's a much cuter bear.




And then there are these (so who let Lil' Orphan Annie's cartoonist in here?!)

each and every one having been filled with polyfil and beebees

and the whites of their eyes painted on -- a task which was no easy feat since the jar of white paint I had been using has mysteriously taken wing and was no where to be found, necessitating a quick trip to the local Hobby Lobby in mid afternoon on a Saturday (something I try to avoid!)

So, we have wingless, feetless, eyeless birds -- awaiting the next step in the process -- setting the eyes

perhaps today

perhaps not

I'm going this afternoon to a bead group meeting (you remember me, I work with beads not just fur?) anyway, that should be, mmmmm, interesting