finished and begun and an announcement

 pressed, bound, complete!

this piece served two purposes --- test run for the Hoffman Challenge, and the assignment for the Visioning Project regarding "scale"

(and the next sample that is a closer test for color for the Hoffman Challenge is ready for the machine work now)

apparently the triangles and the circles are still with us

the next assignment for the Visioning Project is one about balance and color

I did this little drawing last night, and when I get back into the studio I'll be pulling out the fabrics to create this piece

you may remember this piece, titled "Warning Sky",  that I did back in the fall

yesterday it went off as a donation for the Studio Art Quilt Associates fundraising auction

when that starts, I'll put up a link here so you can see how it does

when I did that piece I could sense that I wasn't done with that whole idea

I did this little sketch last night, but I'm now thinking that I might want to try a vertical version too

we'll see where that all goes

I'm pleased to say that this piece took second place in the challenge that I entered it in

after entering pieces almost every month for nearly two years, this was the first piece to even place

I'm thrilled

I consider it evidence that my word for the year is working --- being BRAVE --- last night in my reading I saw this quote:  "what would you attempt if you knew you could not fail?" -- yup, be brave!



 

ready for "framing"

the stitching is finished and this piece is now ready for some aggressive pressing and a binding

and I learned one more thing about what I want to do on the final piece by finishing this stitching -- I want to use a thread that is an exact match to the background on that piece, so the quilting other than the feather works just fades into the background

I've started the applique work on the sample I'm making with the actual fabrics, so I should get a chance to test that approach soon

the DH says I should title this one "Feather Duster"

 the making of bezels for all the crystals is finally done!

now the little pieces of "chain" need to be done so I can start putting this all together

the chief of security and head nude model for the studio is just hanging out -- sharing the footstool with the DH --- his feet are on top while she uses it for a pillow

cute

time to get to work on the projects for the day
 

stitching, cleaning

after doing a lot of stitching with the new rayon threads I'm feeling pretty good about how this is going to look

I will finish this up with more stitching all the way up each feather

meantime, I need to do a sample with the actual materials that I plan to use so I can see how that looks

this chair frame is ready for me to start doing the covering

the DH spent some time in the garage yesterday cleaning up and rearranging some things

so the chair needed to come in and I need to start working on it a little bit every day like I did when I upholstered the stool that goes with it

 

new threads

in the end I never got into the studio yesterday afternoon, but I did get to the store and got this lovely array of rayon thread

I just love the glow!

and today I will get in there because we're not going to be out running around!

and I just wanted to share this photo, taken by Kristin Nicholas, and appeared on her blog  Getting Stitched on the Farm yesterday -- I've been reading Kristin's blog for a while now because I really enjoy her photos -- especially the ones of the lambs!

I love this photo -- and I see a quilt in there -- so I wrote to Kristin and got permission to use it as an inspiration point for a piece of art

(yeah, I know, another piece into the mix!)

this should be a lot of fun

peacock feathers evolving

exercising my word for the year -- being BRAVE -- doing machine quilting!

beginning with this smaller piece to test this out has been a good thing because it has allowed me to test the technique without so much fear

here we have the stitching of the very first feather

 and here some of the stitching has been done on the second feather

I really like the look of the stitching in those places where it intersects

in doing this I learned a couple of things that will be useful for the final project that I'm going to use this on

first, the size 12 thread (which is generally intended for use in hand stitching and is considerably heavier that the size 30 and size 50 that is normal to put through the sewing machine) runs through my machine (with the proper needle) without issue -- a good thing

second, I'd like to experiment with some rayon thread to add some "glow" factor to this stitching -- I have considered using metallic thread, but my experience with it is not pleasant, and I don't want to press my luck for this piece if I can get a suitable look with some rayon

I need to make a trip to the local quilt store that carries the thread I like to use and see what I can find

third, I think the rachis of the feather (that long "stem" that holds it all together) should be a slightly lighter color than what I have used here -- so in the big project, I think I'll be using the gold toned part of the challenge fabric (and that may mean I need to do one more little sample piece -- smaller even than this one)

when I was in elementary school, I colored and drew a lot

a bad experience in a high school art class convinced me that I wasn't any good at it

fast forward over 40 years --- over the past couple of years I've come full circle --- back to working on "art" projects

and increasingly in the last few months, being unafraid to put pencil to paper to create some representational image of something either imaginary or real

yesterday as I sat in my recliner working on the bead project, I glanced across the room and saw the dog asleep on the couch with her chin resting on the arm -- this little drawing was the result

I think I see a quilt in there

it will be fun to work on something totally different that what I usually do

today we need to run some errands, then I hope to get back into the studio and work on projects

two steps forward, one step back

just when I was getting pretty smug about how well this was going, I started having real issues with making the piece flow in a way that would actually be wearable

at issue was the big oval crystal that I had added even though the original drawing didn't include it

so I picked a lot of it apart and moved things around -- this arrangement will be much better (and closer to the original drawing)

uh, when in doubt, stick to the drawing!

it's ok -- I've already done another drawing to use that big oval crystal

this may end up being a pin --- not sure yet

this piece is a small block (12x12) where I'm testing out a design idea

right now this looks like long skinny handled spoons full of blue puppy paw pads

the question is how to proceed -- I want to do thread painting to turn these into what I actually want them to be, but the question is do I do that before it has a batt and backing or after

I need to do some research

this morning I need to go get dog food and some groceries for the people that live here -- time to get moving!
 

just a little project

not much to show you this morning

except this little project from the sewing machine

a while back my daughter bought me this most awesome heavy hooded sweat shirt

and I used it quite a bit

but I knew that I would use it even more if it had a zipper in it so it was easier to put on than pulling it over my head 

so I splurged and purchased a 24 inch red separating zipper about a week ago, then I went on line and found an instruction to do this

which wasn't as hard to do as it sounded in the instruction

ta da!

now all I need to do is pick up a long shoelace for the hood (don't ask, I don't know what happened to the string!)

I know this sweat shirt will get a lot more use now!!!

 

Things to do on a stormy day

yesterday was cold, windy, snowing (a little) and just not a day you wanted to go outside at all

fortunately, there were lots of projects at hand to be worked on

 

 the first of the (now) three pieces for the motion lesson of the Visioning Project  -- this one is titled "Mesmerized"

piece number two is titled "Dropped Ball" (with a "thank you" to Alison, who left the comment that gave me the idea for that title)

the third piece I created after I thought I was done with this lesson when someone pointed out that it would be interested to see what I could do by playing more with the triangles

this piece is titled "Follow the Arrow"

aside from the lesson on creating a feeling of motion with shapes, these are also the first of these lessons that I quilted on the machine, and I used the quilting to "echo" the shapes to emphasize the motion of each one

I'm pretty pleased with them

the quilting of the sky on the far left side of the trees piece is done --- there are still all of those aspen leaves to be quilted (I plan to outline each one and quilt in the veins of the leaves)

this is moving right along, but I still can only work on it for at most a couple of hours a day because I'm hand quilting it and the fingers on my left hand get too sore for me to do any more

 

this is moving along nicely

when I did the first drawing, I didn't have that big oval crystal, so that space in the drawing was two smaller round crystals 

I like that big oval one -- but I'm having some issues with creating the bezel for it -- I worked on that some yesterday, but have not yet figured out the exact adjustments from the round bezel to the oval one

it'll come I'm sure

here is the latest sketch of what to do with that round metal tag

yesterday I ordered some glass beads that are spike shaped to put into this 

yet another piece that is totally different than anything else I've worked on -- and if I can manage to get it done by the deadline in May, I may put it (and a couple other of my steam punk pieces) in a local exhibit

 I'd like to say a word or two here about the last few drawings that I've done for the jewelry pieces

in a recent issue of a jewelry magazine that the DH gets there was an advertisement for this newly available book on drawing for jewelers 

it's a hard bound book that was originally released in Europe (it's in that cool longer, narrower format that is the standard for papers there), and it's pages are high quality color that will stand up to being used over the long haul

when the DH saw the ad, he said "see if you can find this book and order it"

those new and improved drawings I've done lately are the result of reading (and some practice scribbling) from the first three chapters in this book

WHOO HOOO!

the phrase "I can't draw" is slowly being eradicated from my vocabulary!!

It's time to vote

the voting for this Inspired by Faberge challenge begins this morning 

you can use this LINK to go and view all of the pieces that were made for the challenge and vote for your favorite one

the second donut  has been installed there in the bottom loop of "chain",  that bright orange crystal at the top right is attached in there now, and two more bezels are done

I worked for a while yesterday on trying to build a bezel around the very smallest of the crystals, that did not work out (it was actually TOO small); so I'll be going back to that today

sometimes inspiration comes in strange places

the round object there on the left hand side is a stamped metal plate (that has a number stamped into it) -- sort of like a dog tag -- that I found

this little sketch was my first idea of how to include it in a piece of jewelry, but as I wrote this I thought of a whole other approach!

stay tuned, I'm obviously not done fiddling with this

as I write this morning, the snow is falling -- it was supposed to start between 2 and 6 am, but it really began about 7:30 -- and so far isn't much -- but it is much colder this morning

time to get busy

Spring forward!

this  will be an eventful weekend

on Sunday we will "spring forward", setting our clocks forward an hour for daylight savings time (which, I admit, I like once I adjust because it just seems like I see more daylight -- I know, it's probably all in my head)

before we get there, however, we are supposed to get snow -- depending on which "weather witch" you listen to here, either an inch or a foot 

reality is probably some where in between

meantime, this morning I noticed these little daffodils pushing their way up out of the bare ground next to the front door

look out little plants, there's still a little winter coming!

it's growing

two more bezels complete and a new little piece of chain begun

this is growing on me -- I like it better the more I work on it, and I think it is going to be even better than my original drawing was

remember these two pieces?

after I finished them, a conversation with someone made me think that this was an idea that wasn't quite finished

so I created this one

I've already done the quilting (on the machine!) of the first two, and I hope to get the quilting of this one done today, as well as getting the binding stitched on and ready for that last hand work

time to get to that

more progress

spent some time stitching and some time planning on this project yesterday

the 3 "petal" carnelians, the crystal and the "donut" on the right hand side are all stitched together now, and I've arranged some of the other pieces there on the mat to get a feel for what will go where next

I've started building the bezels for the other crystals - a process that will take a day or so to complete

I think this piece may get entered in a challenge titled Shades of Scheherazade -- it does kind of have that feel -- that will happen if I get it finished in time

today we're going to clear out a pile of things we have been setting aside to donate -- time to get moving! 

more parts and pieces

the first length of "chain" is all  ready to be formed around the little carnelian "donuts" -- the first couple of inches took a while to create, but after that it got a lot faster

you may remember this piece that I created a while back

this morning I registered it with The Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative (AAQI)


in a week or so I'll get the proper information to send it off for their auction that helps raise money to fund research on Alzheimer's -- in 2009 I submitted a small art quilt that was part of their Houston show and fund raising


when I originally created this piece, I did so with the idea that it would probably go to this worthy cause --- it just took me a while to get it registered!






I also took a lot of pictures yesterday of two quilts that I will be entering in a competition on April 1 --- since I had good light to do the photos, I figured I might as well get them done!


lots of projects to get to today --- time to get to it

moonscape snow fall

strange snow yesterday afternoon

it began as a sort of wet pellet snow followed by a couple of hours of heavier wet snow

an inch or so accumulated

but out on the grass -- it's weird

it looks like a moonscape

almost like little ice stalagmites all over the grass --- inverted icicles formed over the dry grass? 

like I said, it's weird

but I just might use some of the pictures I took of it to create a quilt piece for my Visioning Project lesson that has to do with "scale"

 

so while Mother Nature was creating her little snow landscapes outside, I was working on this project inside

each of those petal shaped carnelians are now bezeled with beads and backed with soft leather

next step will be to create the long tube to form the "s" curved "wire" that needs to be between these pieces

I hope to get that part done today

time to get to work

parts

more pieces for the necklace

these are pieces of natural carnelian that I've worked bead bezels around

there are 3 more of these pieces to do, then I'll back all of them with leather and they'll be ready to add to that necklace

looking good


I actually got to the sewing machine yesterday afternoon and did the quilting on one of the two pieces for the Visioning Project -- YIPPEE -- it is possible for me and the machine to play nicely together!   and the second one is in process -- which means these two pieces should be totally finished in the next couple of days

Onward!!

beginning a new project

in order to make the necklace that I did the drawing for, I needed to teach myself a couple of new techniques 

that crystal edged bezel was amazing to create -- you sort of build a bead "pocket" with the crystals out on the edges that the bigger crystal slips into

now that I've built one of those, I want to try making a couple of changes when I make the next one -- I want more of the face of the big crystal to show, so I need to "tweek" the design a bit

the tube of beads there was an interesting exercise -- the technique is called Cubic Right Angle Weave -- or CRAW for short, and you basically build little connected blocks of beads -- the end result is essentially the same as what I've been doing for quite a while by making a long flat piece of right angle weave and then "zipping" it up the side to make a tube -- so now I know how to create it two different ways

now that I know how to do both of these techniques, I'll be creating some more bezels and some more tubes so I can start putting the necklace together

 and since there are LOTS of those orange/golden crystals here on hand, there will be several pieces made out of them

this is the drawing I did last night for a bracelet made out of some of those pieces too

pretty exciting!

Challenge piece finished!

the last glue is dry, the last stitch taken

there is actually another week or so before the deadline on this piece, but I'm happy to have it finished and entered

inspired by a Faberge egg, I'm pretty pleased with this piece

there are more pictures on my Etsy store if you want to take a closer look, you can use the link there at the top right of the blog

this piece is now really finished too

third time was the charm!

the body of the sweater is finished and off the sticks!! 

now on to the sleeves



the mail man has been here already --- my box of supplies has arrived so I can start on the next bead project

but first a quick trip to the hardware store, the office supply store, the fabric store and the grocery (YIKES!)

time to move along here

working while traveling

off to Denver yesterday morning to take down a quilt show -- I was worried about the road conditions after a day of blizzard conditions just prior to our little journey, but the roads were not a problem 

some of the drivers? a whole 'nother question entirely -- as we sat in a traffic jam for over an hour 

that much time on the road means a lot of afghan square knitting however 

two more for that box
 after the quilt take down, we went by my sister's to pick up the computer for the DH that my brother in law (our family "Computer Doc") had repaired for him

she also gave me this pattern (and two others that will fit Mr Cute) -- picked up in one of her excursions to the second hand store --- cool! 

and there is a new box of yarn for the yearly Christmas sweater sitting here just waiting for me to start on that project
 the next two pieces for the Visioning Project are now ready for the quilting 

this lesson had to do with repetition and how shape can tie a piece together while still conveying action

I've decided to exercise my word for the year --- be brave --- and do the quilting on these two on the machine

 

something new

 
the beaded box is in the final stages, so it's time to think about the next piece

this is the first drawing --- I have to order a few things to have everything to make this happen, but I'm excited about it!

have to go to Denver this morning to take down a quilt show --- time to go!

practicing the frog stitch

as in "rip it, rip it"

I'll be taking that quilt top apart again

if the reason isn't apparent from the picture to you, I'm happy to hear it

otherwise --- well, the seam removal continues