Category Archives: Hand work

Childhood Memories, Scrap Happy Quilts, Squares a Dancing, Uncategorized

Moving Slowly

Hello,
It seems like the my world is moving slowly. I have spent so much time out in the garden and yard that there is not a lot of action in the studio.   Eric and I did come across a surprise on our walk on Monday.   Eric put his foot in the shot so one could see the size.   He was in the middle of the road. Eric carefully moved him to the side of the road in the shade. By the time we got back about thirty min later he was no were in sight.

I did go and dye with Liz on Tuesday. These two pieces got washed out yesterday and there are two more pieces in the washer at the moment.

 

 

 

 

I sorted the fabric I had altered and as these stacks show I really do not need to make any additional pieces.   But is is so much fun that I am  am not going to stop now.   I pulled out and set aside pieces to do two new starts while I was sorting. The cutting table is clear now and I am ready to begin.

 

 

Progress Report: Scrap Happy I need to do the last bit of quilting on this work and it will be finished. This is the fourth one this year and I already have a home for it.

 

 

Mayan Series # 3- Eagle Priest I am doing the outline and detail stitching now. There are lots of part in this work.

 

 

 

 

 

Layers This work is moving forward. I need to create a few more mazes and stitch all of them down. It is beginning to come together.

 

 

 

 

 

Squares a Dancing I finally have a name that I am happy with for this project. I got busy doing hand work on this project this week as there was no new project for Stitch Club. I now have 35 squares done and about 10 started. It is pleasant work.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Childhood Memories- Greeley, Colorado

In Dad’s continuing push to improve himself, he and mom decided to get more education. So we went to Greeley Colorado for two summers so they could work on  Master’s Degrees at the College there. We lived in a trailer in a park that had about 55 units. Ours was number 22. Our lot was near the narrow end of the pie sliced shaped park and the Rail Road ran along the back side. I recall hearing it at night many a time.  We  kids  tried to flatten pennies on the rails, but never found any after the train had passed. Mom and Dad both took classes and Gene and I went to summer school in the mornings. It was lots of review, but we also learned Spanish. I can still count to twenty, know the days of the week and the months of the year in Spanish. As well as how to say” I do not know how to speak Spanish”. I remember setting out under the olive tree on our plot and making a diorama of irrigation for one of my class projects. As I said before, my skills at reading were below grade level so I took special one on one lessons. The teacher used a reward system to get me to read more outside of our time too. I was given an Annie Oaklie paper doll and could earn a new dress for her with each book I read. She was a special type of paper doll as static cling electricity was the method that held the dress to the doll- no tabs.   At this time I also discovered Classic Comic books. I often got one at the grocery on our weekly trip. I remember “Green Mansions” and “the Moonstone” very vividly. I was into model making at this time too. I did several monsters like Frankenstein and the Mummy. I also did one of Perry the   Flying Squirrel- from a Disney movie. In the winter that year I did the Invisible Man and later the Invisible Woman.

There were lots of kids in the park so there were always lots of folks to play with. In the trailer next door lived a girl named Silvia. She was a Seventh Day Adventist. I recall Mom explaining to me about how folks believed different things about religion. One Saturday I went to church with Silvia. In the church school class they were having a biblical knowledge contest. I was the only one who knew that the Ark landed on Mt Arrowwrat. The teacher was impressed and a bit annoyed at the other kids that an outsider knew that information. Two tailors down in the opposite direction lived the Donally family. The dad was studding Biology  like mom . They had three kids, and  the boy was Gene’s age. The two girls were younger. I often helped the Mon get the three year old to sleep at nap time. In the evening we often went along with the family  for ice cream stand for Dilly Bars.   They were ice cream on a stick that was dipped in chocolate.   Some sticks were stamped with “Free” on them.     I never got one but I recall Gene getting a free ice cream two weeks in a row.     To entertain and keep the kids engaged, Mr Donally made up a car identification game. For example if one spotted a Jeep, one would sing out” Beep beep, there goes a Jeep” – or “Wee I see a Volkswagen”. We laughed a lot too. This is was also the time I became aware of popular culture and begged for a Hula Hoop. When I finally got my yellow hoop I played with it for hours. I finally wore out the staple that held the circle in place by back spinning it too much on concrete. It was also the time dad made a concession to near bare feet in the form of Thongs- or Flip Flops as they are now called. After the blisters between the first and second toes healed up, I wore yellow thongs until the button on the bottom wore off the bottom. By then it was winter and I never got another pair. My only other big memory those summers was playing dolls with Silvia and Sally. Sally was the owner’s daughter and we played “ Barbie” on her screened porch. I had   my Betsy McCall of course and although they traded dresses and they played at jobs and balls. I was quite content to play the little girl  with Betsy and have fun. The experience really confirmed my feelings that being a grown up was not something I wanted to rush forward toward.   It was a good way to spend summer.

Enjoy the season and Keep Creating

Carol

 

Big Pop, Blue Corn, Childhood Memories, Curvie Cuts, Drawing, Experiments, Queen Ann's Lace, Re Work, SAQA Blocks, Scrap Happy Quilts, Thread Painting

Working Away

Hello
I hope all are doing well. I see more and more evidence of spring every day with daily changes in my garden as well as the trees see blooming on my walks.   It is wonderful to see the world filling in with green.

 

 

 

I spent a beautiful Sunday afternoon assembling stuff in the yard. My grandson gave me this windmill for Christmas. It moves beautifully in the light breezes now.

 

 

 

 

Then I moved on to this swing. That took three hours and really was a two man job. Eric came and helped at the end.   I need to seal it now.

 

 

 

There was one last challenge do for  the Textile Artists Stitching group this week. I will move on to it when I finish the folk art challenge from the week before. I have used this project as a chance to do some exploring with stitches and techniques I have not tried in along time. I am making progress even though it is slow.   Sense there is no dead line for this , I am enjoying the exploration.

I did finish my SAQA entry for the auction this week too. It is 12″ X 12″ and called Spring is Coming. I enjoy doing works for this great group and have done so for many years.
I will ship the last of my masks to the Navajo Nation this week too. They put out a call and I am glad to do this.

 

 

Progress Report: Big Pop This piece is 30″ w X 41″ t . We have been eating a lot of popcorn and I have always loved it so it seemed appropriate to make a bit of a tribute. The corns are appliqued on top of the curie cut  base unit.

 

I added paint to the kernels to add interest.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blue Corn- Rework This piece is 40 “ X 32″ and is a rework of a older piece. I changed the orientation to horizontal and appliqued the corns on top. It was an okay piece before but this helps I think.

This is a shot of it before additions were made.

 

 

 

Ethel always said I made beautiful backgrounds. So when I was painting kernels for the first piece I just did additional ones in a smaller fashion for this piece. It was enjoyable and now the piece is out of the dark and will go somewhere I hope.

Queen Anne’s Lace Tiles This work is my attempt to try a project from a Quilting Arts Magazine article by Julie Hirota in the Oct/ Nov 2007 issue. I have only really applied the tiling and the attachment technique she suggested. The grommets attachments  are  a slow and some what frustrating process. It takes me about 15 min. to do each tile. I will finish it but doubt I will use this technique again. As my Dad always said” It is just as valuable to know what you don’t want to do as to know what you do want.” It’s part of learning.

 

Mayan Project I did do my first drawing for this project and then I enlarged it. It is early in the process. But I am looking forward to moving on it.   I hope there will be six panels when it is complete.

 

 

 

 

Thread Painting I decided to do some more birds for my next project  thread project. The Red-winged Black Birds will be a warm up  of sorts. The true challenge will be the Heroin as it is so large  with very little color change.   They are drawn on wash-away  and ready to go into the hoop now.

 

 

 

Drawing I did a lot of sketching this week but not a lot of the drawing.

 

 

 

 

 

Scarp Happy I am done assembling the top and I am working on the boarders now. I have two  borders on all four sides.    I plan to add  one more before I add  the binding.   The work also needs some additional quilting.

 

 

 

 

Childhood Memories- Grandfather Howard stories

Not only did Grandfather Howard collect coins and rocks he had lots of other interests. He sold Hudson’s and ran a SUPER 8 S station, The cars were mostly used ones. He was always quick to laugh and play jokes. He told this  story about how he fooled one of his dealership friends.   It seemed he took the engine out of one of his cars, then hauled it to Muskatine.    At the top of the hill they disconnected the tow rope and giving the car a starting push rolled down the hill where Grandfather skillfully “drove “ into the dealership. He got out and his friend came out and walked around the car looking in the windows and such. They went in to the office and completed the deal. When they came out the car was still setting out front even thought the dealer had told his mechanic to pull it into the bay.    Only when the mechanic laughing said he couldn’t did the joke get revealed.
Grandfather ran a Essix Super 6 gas station in town during the depression. He discovered that someone was stealing gas at night as he noticed unexplained shortages. So one night at closing time he put some rice in the nozzle of the pump. A few days later a man came to him with an ailing car.    Knowing what to look for, Grandfather quickly had his thief.     He took many things in trade for gas at that time. One of the best things he said was family photo albums as folks usually came back when they had the money to retrieve them. Years later when I helped Grandmother Ruth clean out the flour house one summer, we still found lots of those albums and I still have one of the more interesting ones full of strange faces and tintypes.   In the basement was a little green safe on wheels that we often played with as kids. We would wheel it about and try for hours to “crack” it. We were sure it was full of valuable stuff. The year I was a senior, at Christmas time,   when the family was gathered in the basement and enjoying the fire place – Someone asked Grandfather to open that safe. He did and I wish he had not. It was full of IOU’s mostly of folks who were long dead he said as he tossed then into the burring fire. Grand father closed the station in town as the new highway passed west of the main street. He built a new station, a Phillips 66 and diner there. Mom told stories about making pies at night to sell the following day at the diner. She was also a waitress  there and said she hated that job. Twice a year the a gypsy family would migrate through. The dilapidated vehicle would pull into the station, then folks would pour out, scattering in all directions. The leader would stand respectfully next to the pump and talk with Grandfather as he put in the gas. When the car was serviced the leader would shrilly whistle and all folks who had not returned before pilled into the car and off they went. Then Mom, Grandmother Ruth and Grandpa would see if they could discover what was missing- be it a wrench or a bottle or two of soda pop. Grandfather would laugh and say” Well they must need it more then we do.”
Eventually Grandfather sold that station and built a new one diagonally across the intersection. It was a DX station. He also built some tourist cabins there and did quilt well with that venture. The cabins were simple- a bed, a sink , a stool , and on the out side a car port of sorts.     He was successful at that venture.

Childhood Memories – More Grandfather Howard

My grandfather Howard was fascinated by electricity and gadgets. He wired all three of the houses that he helped build for my family and built one for himself and Uncle Dale and his family too. He even set up a wireless for Grandmother Ruth’s students so they could hear a broad cast by the president in her classroom. Grandfather purchased the first television I ever saw. It had a round screen that was about 6 inches across. It only got one channel- out of Chicago and was very snowy! He purchased a record recording machine when I was about 7. I recall cutting a record about the wonders of the park in Columbus Junction and I still have it somewhere. He did taxidermy for a while and I recall a owl that hung in the basement for years. The glass eyes fascinated me. He also stuff a three and half foot alligator from his Pecan Farm in Georgia. We played with it for a while then it disappeared when he discovered how dangerous the arsenic it was stuffed with was.  There was also a tanned fur rug of a badger that he as credited with creating.
He was a skilled wood worker. He built a little cabinet for me with doors and drawers. He then a few years later built a much more elaborate one for my cousin Tracy. I also was the recipient of a wonderful doll house that was a copy of the floor plan for the house in Carroll. It even had the stairs to the attic. It was to scale for my Betsy Mc Call. I had fun with mom collecting furniture and  doing curtains and rugs for it. I still have the dolls and the furniture, but the house went back to the Grandparent house when we moved to Muncie. It was in the basement for years turned on its side so one could use the walls as shelves to store other stuff on.       Grandfather  was in World War II in the Navy. When I was a teenager he gave me one of his old blue wool uniform shirts. I wore it with pride until I wore holes in the elbows. He had a great Macrame Belt that was made of small nylon cord done in square knots. The letters U S NAVY were part of the design. It was amazing to me.
He taught me to eat a baked potato when I was 6, with lots of butter, pepper and salt. He introduced me to lots of exotic cheeses. That became a game of sorts    and he would often pick up something especially strange just to test with me. I remember Coon Cheese- it was awful. One year at Christmas, I was dressed in my new white lace blouse and black and white plaid wrap around skirt and he gave me my first Pomegranate. It was love at first bite. It was also quite messy and I ruined my new blouse with the red juices, but it was worth it. I still look forward to my first Pomegranate of the winter and think of him when I eat it. He was always experimenting with food. The first year Eric came to Christmas with the family, Grandfather made turkey ( from his farm) with pink rice dressing. He had soaked the rice in Hawaiian Punch.
Grandfather was a justice of the Peace . I remember when I was in third grade he let me number the pages in his court book. I was so very proud. We had to play quietly out doors when he was holding court. In is capacity as Justice he married my cousin Russell to Donna in Whisky Holler on the Bell Farm. My cousin Danny, the oldest grandchild, could drive. He was bragging that now he could speed and get away with it as Grandfather was the judge. To that Grandfather said” You better not- I’ll throw the book at you!”   I had a wonderful grandfather and I remember him with great fondness.

Stay safe and keep Creating

Carol

Agitated Aggie, Childhood Memories, Curvie Cuts, Drawing, FAD (Fiber Art Dames), Granite, Hand work, NEW, Pomegranate, Re Work, SAQA Blocks, Scrap Happy Quilts, Sisterhood of the Scissors, Snow Dyeing

Getting Warmer

Hello,
Spring is winning the battle for the weather. I see more and more evidence of new growth every day. My Blood root for example is doing beautifully and Betty’s flowers are also blooming.

 

 

 

 

 

I continue to work away on the Textile Artist stitching challenges. This is my applique piece. It is not at all the assignment – I could not get logged on until Friday so I will do it later.

 

This weeks is folk art and I am started as this shot shows. Again I am stretching the piece to fit what I wish to accomplish.    I will incorporate as much of the instruction as I can.
My Fad group meant on Zoom again this week and it was good to talk with them.

 

Progress Report: Agitated Aggie This work is 38″ w X 41″ l. It is my solution to the Sisterhood of the Scissors Canada challenge. Many of us purchased the print fabric and the challenge was to use it. I have only seen one other work doing the challenge.


 When I was in Florida I came across more material by the same artist so I added a second piece of material to my piece. It’s the same artist and meant to go with the first. It is the colored background piece here.

Granite I keep doing the hand work on this project during the news.   This is a close up.

 

 

 

 

 

Re Work Self Challenge I was cleaning and came across this piece in the process and although it is okay, I decided to use it as a base for a new work. Stay tuned.

 

 

 

Popcorn I spent an afternoon this week playing and decided to paint giant kernels of Popcorn. They came out fine so I built a curvy cut base to applique them on. It is pin basted and ready for quilting now.

 

 

 

 


New Sea Floor A long time ago I painted some fusible inner facing. In my cleaning this week I uncovered it. I thought it looked like something I could use as a abase for a small underwater piece. Pulled some shells and found a bag of yarns and ribbons. More play in my future.

Queen Anne’s Lace When I was painting I also did this little piece. I had reread an article in Quilting Arts from Oct/Nov 2007 and it got me thinking about a tiling technique of quilting. This may or may not work. But Experimenting is always just taking a chance.

 

 

Mini’s    I cut up one of the quilts that I discovered in my cleaning and made these little starts for use on cards.   Only the one on the bottom right is done.

 

 

 

Scrap Happy   I finished the first of the pieces that I started at the beginning of the isolation.   It is a queen sized piece.

 

 

Drawing I was influenced by the Sketchbook Revival class and so I did some clean the brush painting on a few pages of the sketchbook. This is what the page suggested to me.

 

 

I went back to my herb book and while I was on the phone I drew this Dill. It may have influenced the Queen Anne’s Lace I did later too.

 

 

 

 

Popcorn- well we have eaten a lot of that of late and it too was on the desk when I was waiting on the phone.    It grew into the later work.

 

Then I just opened the sketchbook in the middle of eating my orange and did this drawing.   I see know that it needs strengthening  the green was too intense for this subject sense I did not draw with a strong enough pen.

 

 

 

Snow Dyeing  I actually did this last week but was in the process of washing it out last Friday.  The two dark pieces are from this summer and were in the bottom of the bucket.

 

Childhood Grandfather Howard

Grandfather Howard was a wonder filled inquisitive person. He often went to Auctions and other places and purchased boxes of books. Then he read most of them. One of the other things he collected was coins. He build a wonderful display that hung in the Den for many years. It held a pounded metal curved blade, brass collars, strings of shells and beads, strange little stamped metal pieces as well as many other odd items that were used as currency and trade goods in Africa.
I remember one summer asking Grandmother Ruth for some dress up clothes and she went to the attic to look. I was allowed to climb the stairs and wait near the top. I spent the time slipping my hands into the space between the flooring and the ceiling were lots of small stuff had be placed. I explored and I pulled out a heave cigar box. It was filled with three rows of silver dollars lain end to end. I called to grandmother “ Look what I found.” “Where did you find them she asked ?” I pointed as she took them form my hands. She carried them up into the attic and they were never seen again as far as I know.
Grandfather collected rocks all his life. He built shelves in the basement from floor to ceiling and displayed his collection there. He also fronted the fire place there and at the cabin with wonderful rocks and geodes. Uncle Paul even carved a pink sand stone dinosaur with a green stone eye, that was featured as part of that fireplace. There was also a part of the basement that was a workshop. There was a rock tumbler that was always running and as a result there were baskets full of Michigan Agates all over the place. The space had a lot of cutting and grinding tools as well as buffer and polishes. He kindly showed me how to use all of those tools and I spent many happy hours working away at carving and creating little works of my own. I still have a stone rabbit and tiger eye “arrow head “ I made.
There was lots of new highway construction in the 50’s and 60’s. We did lots of traveling by car as did lots of Americans. When Grandfather was along , one could count on many stops at the raw cuts along the road side for a bit of exploration. I recall one time when we stopped and collected about 100 petrified Hor Coral. They polished up beautifully and two of them ended up in that fireplace I mentioned.
Grandfather won ribbons for his rock creations . He designed and built three swag lamps that had shades made from sliced beautiful rocks that he suspended in fiber glass. When the light passed thou the stones it was beautiful. Of his two big hobbies, he said that Rock Hounds were much more fun. At Grandfather Howard’s death his collection was given to the University of Iowa and they were glad to have it. My cousin Tracy also took some of the stones to use in her classroom as she was a Science teacher.
Mom too became a Rock Hound and many was the time we carried rocks home in the car. When Mom retied to Tucson, I would visit every February break and we would go to the Gem and Mineral show. I purchased stone beads and she bought more rocks of course.

Stay safe and keep Creating

Carol

Agitated Aggie, Childhood Memories, Drawing, Granite, Linen Shirt, SAQA Blocks

Coping

Hello,
I hope everyone is coping well with the social isolation. I find I am focusing more on my art although I do not seem to be producing more.    I continue to do my daily walks and find that the time I spend moving and being out of doors very good for my overall feelings of healthiness.    It is a good time to be out in nature as it is changing so much now too.

I did complete the Sketchbook Revival program this week.
Chiara Mazzette.   She directed  us through a water color landscape. I like what she had to say, but feel my work is really lacking this time.

We did water color sun flowers with Olga Soroking. I found this class very enjoyable.

 

 

 

 

 

Cartoon character development was the goal of the workshop with Ildiko Karasy. Her relaxed style was easy to follow and enjoy.

 

 

 

 

Melissa Lee did a strong little exercise on simple one point perspective. I am glad that I did the exercises and feel I am moving forward in my own sketchbook as a result.

I got a slow start on Textile Artist – stitching challenge this week. It is about applique and this is my layout.

 

 

 

I continue to make masks like many quilters. I delivered 20 on Tuesday.   In my process of cleaning
drawers I did discover yesterday some  elastic so I am sure I will make a few more.     This is really helping cut down on my fat quarter collection too.

 

Progress Report: Kites and Flowers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This work is 43″ w X 44.5″ t.   It is the final piece from the Regina  complete it challenge. 

 

 

She gave me a piece white piece o fabric with stenciled kites on it.   I first dyed the fabric yellow and then I used it on my work.    (upper left here)      I have  added the hand painted floral- very old- and built the quilt. 

 

I really enjoyed this challenge.

 

 

 

Agitated Aggie I am done with the stitch in the ditch part of this project. I am now doing free motion outlining of the characters. The second is the back.

 

 

 

 

Scrap Happy This project is moving along.   This shot is of one corner.   I am adding the boarders now and have two on all four sides. I will add one more boarder and then add a binding.

Shirt I stated adding hand stitches to this   linen shirt this week.    I am trying to keep it simple.

 

 

 

 

 

Granite This project continues to move along. I am beginning to see the end of work in some areas.

Drawing As I said earlier I am working at the sketchbook a bit more. I pulled on of Mom’s old books out and I am drawing from the flower photos in it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

12 X 12  I did a little exploring for this project.  I got out a stencil I had cut but never used and tried it a few times.   The one  exploration was on metallic fabric and really like how that appears.    More to follow.   Then I tried it on the  project.   I am ready to do some free motion work on it next. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Childhood Memories- Museums at the University of Iowa

Dad always believed that education was the way to better and more fulling life. I recall him taking Saturday classes at the University of Iowa. Grandpa Howard, a reinnance man himself, often took classes at the same time. Grandfather even took a class in Spanish. Grandfather was so outstanding in his geology classes that when he had completed all they had to offer, they asked him to come and work for them. Grandfather laughed and thanked them saying “ You can’t really do that- I didn’t graduate from high school.” He was a very smart man!
On several occasions Mom, Gene and I rode along and went to the Museums on campus to entertain ourselves.
My favorite was the Museum of Natural History. There were great displays there. I think that those experiences influenced Mom when she later did displays for Ball State. I have a very vivid memory of the Hall on Mankind. There were lots of ethnic costumes, mostly Native American. My favorite was of a crouching man in a solo cabinet. He was dresses in a beautiful carved and painted wooden raven’s head mask that was about 5 feet long from the shoulder rest to the tip of the beak. It was colored in black, red and white in the beautiful patterns of the North West Coast Natives. I spent most of my time in that room just studying the that figure and I tried to draw what I remember when I got home. The were rooms of sea creatures in jars and shells as well as rooms full of mammals. There was a room full of drawers where one could carefully open the drawer to revel rows of stuffed small birds lying on there sides. There were always three examples of the species, a male, a female and a adolescent. I few had wing spreads, a nest and sometimes eggs. Mom carefully controlled what we looked at each time and we both got to choose two drawers. She would read the outside first to see if we knew what we were about to see and she used the geographical to encourage or discourage our choices. She also got to choose two drawers and would choose two species that we knew to check out. She was always teaching.
There was a second room of drawers that were full of insects. There were lots more examples of each type of insect in each of those drawers. Mom did not structure our learning there so carefully. I do remember a drawer full of bees and a second full of enamel beetles. The beetles were amazingly colorful.
On one of the visits we went to the Museum of Art. It was very enjoyable to me of course. But my most vivid memory was of going down a stairwell, turning a corner and coming face to face with an eight foot red poppy. It was a Georgia Okeef. I was awe struck and stopped point blank on the stop. It was so very beautifully intense and I was in love and  I have loved her work ever sense.

Stay Healthy  and keep Creating
Carol

Childhood Memories, Drawing, Hand work, Kites and Flowers, SAQA Blocks, Scrap Happy Quilts, Sisterhood of the Scissors, Solo Butterfly Flight

Contrast

Hello
Mother Natures and old Man Winter are playing games wit the weather here. Wed I took the flower picture and it was a glorious day  sunny and warm. This morning I got up to cold, snow on the ground and all  over the trees. It is a time of contrast.

 

 

 

 

I spent a lot of time working on the Textile Artist stitching challenges this week. I did finish Sue Shane’s assignment from week one. I will work on creating more simple patterns using only strait stitches in the future.

The assignment for this week was from Richard Mc Vetus and it was to do four different ways of couching. I added it to the fabric piece from last week. This morning I though of one more thing I want to try so I drew another circle to fill.

I did more of the Sketchbook Revival projects.   Melany Rivers did a fun exercise where we drew with our left hand and then finger painted in the drawing. It was enjoyable.

 

 

 

 

Noah Scanlin gave us a challenge were we were to put 100 dots on a page and then connect them to create and image. The crazy clown with the deflated balloon came out of that. The we added to the image using the same blokish style. I good way to loosen up.

 

 

Ryana Campbell did a collage and paint piece with us. Her approach uses more paint on top to join the image and build it up then.  I normally do  not add much paint when  I  collage, so I learned a new tool to add to my   creative tool box.

 

 

 

Progress Report: Place Matts I have now completed all 17 of the place matts. They are all in a the bag that Joyce gave them to me in and I will deliver them to her front poach on Tue. The new rule that says I am ,as an even year birth date , only be out on Tue, Thur and Sat.   That does limit me. But I will use Tue to do lots of little errands like deliver masks and    go to the post office and mail some of my cowls to friends.

Solo Butterfly Flight This work is 22″ X 22″. The blue and pink background is from Regina and one of the completed it challenge pieces that she gave me.
I finished this free motion drawing part and added the butterfly yesterday.

I looking at it today I think I will add a bit to the butterfly as it seems a little dull to me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kites and Flowers This work is also a part of the complete it challenge. I am finishing up the facing part now and the yellow and orange on the right is that section. I did reflective quilting after I quilting around the kites and flower.

 

 

 

Agitated Aggie When I went to the Canadian Quilt show last fall with the Sisterhood of the Scissors group we created a challenge using the graphic fabric with the women holding the scissors. I am finally getting around to working on it and having a great time.

Marble This is my hand work project for now. I am just trying to mimic some floor tile that I took a photo of.

Drawing I only did one drawing this week.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scrap Happy This is the start of the assembly of this one  quilt. It has taken longer then I expected to put together the backs. That reflects the same problem I encountered before- trying to do three at one time is just a lot slower then doing just one. I will not do it this way ever again.

12″X 12″   The call came out this week for the Surface Design Quilt Association   auction entries.  This is my start on that challenge.

 

 

 

 

Childhood Memories- Des Moines

The move to Carroll was made because Dad got a new job as Principal of the Public High School there. It was a much larger school with about 2 75 high school students. One of the new things that the job offered was his  participation in the Iowa Administrators Conference that happened in Des Moines every year on the Saturday  of the week following Thanksgiving. We went along with him and spent the day in the city while Dad went to the meetings. It continues to be the biggest city in the state and it seemed huge to me as a kid. Mom started her Christmas shopping at that time so we went to the big department stores, J.C. Penny’s, Sears and Roebuck and Gimbles. Mom let Gene and I pick out an ornament for the Christmas tree every year. The first one I selected was an orange Santa with a real fur beard and arms that were attached by springs so they wiggled. He could be separates at the belt to reveal a opening in the middle were Mom hid a special treat every year to be opened on Christmas morning. One year I selected a blown glass blue bird with a long tale that was like a paint brush. There were lots of shoppers, so to keep us together Mom always held Gene’s  hand, while I held onto her coral colored coat  sleeve and often carried a shopping bag. Mom gave us a few coins with instructions to donate to the charity buckets that were manned along the street. “ We need to be thankful for out blessings and share what we can,” she told us. Gene did not want to do that and I think he kept a few of the pennies, but he did put something in the pot too. As we walked from store to store, I kept looking at all the different people. We walked past two dark blue black men who were talking. They were the first live black men I had ever seen and so much darker then the brown King in our nativity set. Mom corrected me for my staring- but it was not the color  of their skin that captured my limited childhood mind- “ But, Mom they were talking in tongues!” In my world I had jumped to the conclusion that they were doing something religiously amazing sense the only time I had ever heard that one could not understand the words of another was from the Bible. She laughingly  explained to me that they were just from a foreign country not from the Bible. I was so  naive.
The last even of the day was a stop for dinner at a big smorgasbord, called Bishops. Mon carefully took me all though the line and Dad helped Gene. She let me look at everything before we started to fill the plate so I would not take more than I could eat or fill that plate with too much of one type of food and want some of an item further down the line. It was a very pleasant meal and we followed that ritual every year that we went to the conference. At the end of the meal a waitress brought Gene and I balloon’s that had  Bishop’s printed on them  and with   little cardboard feet so they sat flat. I remember bouncing the feet on my hands in the car as we started the long drive home.   The family followed variations on this trip for four years.

Stay safe and keep creating.

Carol

Drawing, Hand work, Kites and Flowers, Scrap Happy Quilts

Slow Spring

Hello,

I took this photo of the daffodils on Tuesday it has rained  every day sense then and then today it is set to snow.     The temperature has fallen from 50 this morning  to  29  this evening.    Mother Nature can’t seem to make up her mind.

 

 

 

I am still working on the Textile Arts Stitch Challenge. This week Emily Tull did a demo on how to stitch an eye. Mine is okay for the first try – but I think I need more practice. I am still working away on the week one piece from Sue Stone.

Sketchbook Revival is still giving me lots on stimulation. Nina Rycroft built an Easter Bunny wit us. It would be a cute card.

 

 

 

 

David Drazil worked with lettering. Lots of potential here.

 

 

 

Wendy Holler who works for the Botanical Gardens in NYC worked with us on how to paint a petal. I went on with the idea and did a flower.

 

With Stephanie  Lee one worked on personal responses to the meanings in quotes.   It is an usnusal use of a sketchbook.  I see it more as a note book myself.

 

 

A Wild Garden was the lesson that Karen Stamper lead one through. It is wild and very freeing.

 

Juliet Meeks did a floral display with us. I am having fun and it is nice to explore new ideas outside quilting.

 

 

 

 

Progress Report: Masks I just keep making these. I passed on eight this morning to a friend who wanted to send them to her children. I have requests for more too so there will be more in my future.

 

 

 

Kites and Flowers  I finished the free motion drawing around the kites and flowers yesterday. Now I need to decide on a pattern for the rest of the quilting to finish this work up.

 

Place Matts I have finished five of these now. The rest all have there nylon netting on both sides but I have not done the stitch in the ditch quilting to bond the four layers together on the rest. Then there is the binding to do too. It just takes time.

Scrap Happy I am making progress on this project. I am building backs Now so I can do the assembly to the units.

 

 

 

 

Regina Challenge. I fused all the parts down last week and now I am doing free motion drawing on top to hold things all together. I plan to make a free motion drawing of a bird or butterfly to add to this work for a center of interest.

Drawing I have been drawing every time I spend time on the telephone. I had
Several long conversations this week.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cowls I did more cowls this week. Now I have made 23 of them. I am down to small bits of yarn now and I feel good about that.

 

 

 

 

Childhood Memories– 3rd Grade
I went into the third grade the fall we moved to Carroll. The elementary school building was built in 1952 and seemed very modern and new at the time. It was a long low L shaped building with a wide hall that ran down the center of each the two levels with classrooms branching off both sides and stair wells at the ends. The short leg of the L connected to the high school building that was three stores high and much older. The new gym was attached to the north end of the high school and it had a stage on one side and permanent seating across the basketball floor in the center. In the elementary the kindergarten was on the south side and faced the playground. Gene was in that room in the afternoons and I picked him up at the end of the day
and we walked home together most days as my class was just across the hall. I do recall one Tornado  Drill in that hall where all the kids sat on the floor with our knees up, our heads down and are arms over our heads in the dark. I am sure it did not last long, but it seem like forever to me as kid.
The play ground was on the south side of the elementary building. It was a huge pea gravel lot.
A wide cement area was next to the building and ran all the was across the front of the building. Lots of jump rope space.
The swings were along the east side and the south side had two slides, several see-saws, and a double sized jungle gym. I spent a lot of time at the top of that structure in third grade. The west side had two  ball fields that overlapped a lot. One was used mostly by sixth grades and the second was for the forth and  fifth  grades.
My memories of third grade are few but I do recall some . I remember laying on the floor on top of a big piece of paper and the teacher tracing around me She did that for  all the students. We then drew in the details and colored our life sized selves to sit in our seats for open house in early October.     In Dec we made a class Nativity scene in ceramics. I made a very simplified figure( modern I though) of a Shepherd- my assigned figure.    When they were fired we painted them and set up the display.   When I brought the figure home, it became  a part of our family Nativity and appeared for years. Third grade was the first time I ate school lunch.    I had carried Dad’s old black round top  metal lunch pale a few times in second grade before we moved. The lunch room in Carroll,  was directly below my class room in the basement. I remember standing in line on the stairs waiting for the hot lunch many times.
I recall too the day when Mrs Fister , the high school art teacher came to our room to do Art Appreciation. The big reproductions that she showed us was Grant Wood’s “Stone City”. She told us he as a native Iowan.   The painting has a  corn field in the foreground with a farm behind and a huge windmill, a road that winds between hills to the horizon.   There are lots of round trees that are all uniformly green .    When asked what I saw in the painting I said” Pea Trees”- and got a lot of laughs from my peers.   I was embarrassed but  Mrs Fister did not make a fuss.   We had a similar lesson every year in elementary.  In Jr high when I had Mrs Fister for  seventh grade art  class, she rewarded my talent by doubling the time I got to come to her class  for art and so  I went every day.   I did my first stitchery in her class.  It was an underwater landscape with lots of fish and  bubbles that were cut circles of blue fabric with a pearl  button on top of each circle.

Stay safe in these trying times and keep creating

Carol

Beyond, Birds, Birds, Childhood Memories, Chinese Exchange, Curvie Cuts, Hand work, Talisman Pouches, Thread Painting

Vernal Equinox

Hello,
I hope everyone is doing their best to stay safe in these trying times.
The days are in deed getting longer and the nights shorter with today being the real start of that effect in a way we can really mark as the equinox is the time when the day and night are the same leanth .     Enjoy the awakening of spring.
I did go and visit with Liz and Angela last Friday. We all sat across the room from one another, talked and shared our work and worries. Liz is doing lots of hand work in preparation for a class in Ohio later this spring.

 

 

Angela is working on a piece where she is using quotes from folks about memories where they wish they were invisible or felt that way.

Progress Report: China Exchange This work is 15″w X 21.5″ l. It is the first of the challenges that Regina and I are doing. We traded three works we had started but did not know how to finish. Regina sent me this one with only the background done. I added the glove and gold work, plus the Chinese coins.

 

 

 

Beyond This work is 39″w X 35″ t. It too is part of the exchange with Regina too. She sent me the printed pink  dyed fabric with the lace pattern. I added the curvy cut fabrics to create the background. Then I embellished with the pink circles that were added with free motion work in a metallic thread.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Talisman Pouch: This work is going well and I am almost done adding handwork on the outside. I will add a lining and close the sides and then  be done.

The stone button is the closure.

 

 

 

 

Cowls I just seem to keep creating these guys. I think I am done and then I find I have pulled out a new mixture of yarns to try. I did send two off to some friends this week as well.   I am enjoying the process .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Exploring Blue This project is nearly done. I have been adding buttons to break up the surface a bit. I am at the “look carefully” stage  toi see if I am done.  Then I will  I do the final work.

 

Thread Painted birds. I have added the birds to a background now and I am just about ready to stretch the work. I do not have the correct size stretchers so I will put it on hold until I get them.

 

 

 

 

Felt Dryer Balls I saw an article on line about how to build these guys. I have three of my own and I love how they work so I am trying to see if I can use up some of my roving to create some for my friends. These still need a lot of rolling and “water shocking ” to get to the stage of completion.

 

Painting  Fabric    This is the last piece of fabric from the Regina exchange.   It was too plane for me so I added paint yesterday.    Now to use it as a jumping off place for the last piece.

 

 

 

 

 

Childhood Memories-  My Bed Room  in Carroll

The House in Carroll was designed by Mom and Dad. They did research in the form of visiting lots of open houses and collecting lots of house plans from magazines. They then drew up their own plans based on what they liked and what they wanted.    It was a great house for us.
To approach the house,  you would climb the stairs on the north end of the lot and follow the cement path to the small  poach and front door. The house was sided in cedar shake shingles. I loved the smell and even though they were stained red they faded to a beautiful rusty gray color with time. Upon entering the front door one would see a door to the left that opened onto a cloths closet for coats. The next opening  was an entry  to the den where Dad had a built in desk and we kept the new stereo. The third opening on the left lead to the kitchen. If you continued froward past the piano you would enter the living room. Opposite the piano was the door to the basement stairs followed by a hall that lead to the back of the house and the bed rooms. Gene’s room was the first room on the right. The next door was to Mom’s sewing closet and that was followed by the door to my room on the front north corner of the house. If you continued to walk forward you entered the bath room. Across the hall from the bathroom door was the door to the attic stairs. Lastly  and on teh right,  was the door to my parents room. They included a small bathroom with a shower in there plans and it was rather cool I thought.
My bed room was above the garage so I always heard Dad come home late at night when the electric door went up and down. My room had light yellow walls with a coral red ceiling. I loved it. I had a corner room and had corner windows looks east and north . The east window look out a cross the front yard and across Adams Street to an apple orchard. The north window looked out across our dive, the ceder trees and the picket fence to the Lightings house. They continued to live in the finished basement for many years and I had an unrestricted view down the street past two houses and onto an open field.   Mom made curtains with ruffles for the windows in a pink and whited stripped fabric. The bed spread was made with the same fabric. She also make pillow shams with a solid pink center and the ruffles there were in the pink stripe. That bed was long the left wall as you entered the room. Next was the book case, under the north window. My chest of drawers was along the east wall. Dolls had a place of honor on top as well as a black lacquer musical  jewelry box that I had gotten for Christmas. The closet was around  the corner followed by Dads old desk. It got a coat of yellow Emanuel for my room. I loved the desk and did my homework there. I stored lots of paper doll in one of the four   file drawers. The desk had a center compartment where Dad’s typewriter had been stored.   I used that secret compartment to hid my candy from Easter and Halloween there. It was a room where I did a lot of day dreaming too.

Stay healthy and keep creating

Carol

Birds, Childhood Memories, Drawing, Hand work

Spring Forward

1 Comment

Hello,
I keep seeing and hearing signs of spring. There are lots of Robins around now. It is great to walk and hear all the songs.   I am not adjusting to time change very well.  Having trouble getting to sleep at night and over sleeping in the morning.  I hope this settles soon.
This week has been quiet as the Diva meeting got canceled due to the fact that Kendell, where we meet was closed to visitors. This pandemic is having an impact.

Progress Report: Bags This project is done now. I made 19 grocery bags for Elizabeth for her project. I am sure folks with use and enjoy them, They all took about 25 min a piece to finish.

 

 

 

 

Beyond This is my second work where I am completing Regina’s start. She really made it easy as she just gave me the fabric with the circular print on it. I did the wavy cut insertions and I am now adding the pink circles on top with free motion stitching to hold them in place. It is a fun project for me.

Talisman Pouches I saw an article in Quilting Arts that suggested this technique. I have done most of them before so I saved some felt- the base and went to work. They both need lots of embellishment.

Cowls I just keep working away on these. I have pulled yarn for two more and then I will stop. I will pass them forward to my friends.

 

 

I”m in  real blue themed thing at the moment.

 

 

 

 

Drawing  I am challenging myself to do a bit of non objective drawing due to Barbara’s influence.  It is fun and colorful

 

 

New Work This too is one of the pieces of fabric that Regina gave me. I think it was to be used with the first one- but I am not going that way. I have fused down a lot of cut ways from my class with Betty Busby from last summer for this project. I will do hand work on this too. I seem to have piled up a lot of that sort of thing lately.

 

Birds    I am all set now to do two Warblers for my next bird piece.

 

Childhood Memories – Carroll Yard
The yard played a role in my life in the house in Carroll. Out front and to far south of the lot was a large triple trunk-ed Mulberry Tree. Gene and I had great fun climbing experiences in that tree . We enjoyed the fruit when it was ripe too. Dad teased us about our climbing by saying” If you fall out, be sure to land on your head- then you will not do any permanent damage.”
Along the southern boarder between our yard and the Feltons’s was a wonderful hedge of Lilac bushes. One could walk out the kitchen door and onto a little poach and smell them in spring. They remain one of my favorite flowers and we have lilac bushes in our yard today.
The back yard had three terraces. It also supported 5 black walnut trees in that part of the yard . On the second terrace was a log cabin/play house we inherited from the Annabergs. The logs were small about 4″ wide and cut in half nailed to a frame. It was about 5 feet square with a door opening on the north side and big open windows on the other three. One could climb to the roof using the window openings. We defended it form “invisible “ invaders in the form of Indians, Pirates and Spanish Conquistadors.
On the next terrace level was the one that surrounded the patio outside the basement door. One climbed four steps from the patio to the ground level and there was the T close lines. My assignment was to take the clothing out of the washer and hang them on the lines before I waked to school. I recall taking frozen clothes down from the lines after I got home too. I knew about freeze dried long before I herd the term in advertising.
On the last terrace layer was Dad’s vegetable garden with as strawberry bed running along the back. The house behind us was owned by two sisters, Edith and Helen. Their huge Rhubarb patch was along the boarder line between our lot and theirs. I was given free rain to eat as much rhubarb as I wanted. It was a great “bitter” treat in the spring.
All along the north side of the property was a white picket fence that Dad built. I remember helping Mom paint it. At Thanksgiving the first year we lived there when we went to Grandmother Esters’s house for the feast. In the morning before we ate Dad, Mom , Gene and I went out into the big pasture and Dad dug up about 75 small cedar trees. Gene and I held open grain bags that Mom placed the trees inside. We took them back to Carroll and planted them along the picket fence on our side . It made a great hedge by the time we move away. I did the same type of thing for our home in Muncie, Indiana. Grandpa did not miss the trees at all.
The only other bit of landscaping I recall was the planting of a Blue Spruce outside my window on the north corner of the house. For several years Robins built a nest just a my window level and I could watch the eggs hatch and see them feed the young. Beyond the tree was a light post and steps that descended to the drive. The face of each step had a row of bricks placed vortically along the front edge.
Keep Creating
Carol

Break Up, Childhood Memories, Exploring Blue, FAD (Fiber Art Dames), Ice on Vincent, Quilt Exploration Group (QuEGs), Shows

Warming?

1 Comment

Hello,
The days are growing longer and the Snow Drops are up. I did  spot a Robin on my walk and heard one singing this morning. Spring is on its way.

 

 

 

I did lots of running around last week starting with the Art show at Cazenovia  College. Sharon is teaching there now so of course she is in the show. I like this mix of photo plate imagery and fiber work.

 

 

The RATs meant last Friday at Barbara’s again. It is good to get together and talk. This image is one of her newest works.

 

 

I had my opening at the Broad Street Gallery on Sat and it went well. I talked non stop for two hours and came home on a real high. I took photos of all of the work that is hanging and these are just a few of them as there are 49 works in the show.

 

 

 

 

 

This work is  Brier Patch.   

 

 

This work is called “Ice on Vincent St.”

 

 

 

The first Tuesday of the month was this week so the QuEG’s group meant too. Corrine is going great guns with her books. Her leather is so soft.

Sue Ellen had three works to share. This is a One Block Wonder table runner that she made.

 

 

 

Them FAD meant here yesterday. Sharon is nearing the end of her work on number seven in this commission. Lots to look at in this work.   Sharon has done a good job hiding lots of little images under and around the plant life in this work.

 

 

 

 

Progress Report: SAQA 10X10 Because I did not have big stretches of time to work this week I did lots of little clean up and small tasks. This is my entry for the SAQA auction for this year.

 

 

Bags Plastic bags have now been banned in New York state. My friend Elizabeth asked me if I would make a few from some apolstry samples that she had collected. These are the 5 I have finished. There is a stack of yet to be completed ones too.

Scarves I had so much fun making these that I have made more. I gave away three at the RATs meeting on Friday and then four more at the FAB meeting yesterday. I also gave one to a neighbor who admired one that I was working on. It is fun to use up little bits and pieces of leftover yarns from various projects. I have made possible collections of yarn combos for at least two more . I am loving having the space in my yarn bin too.

 

 

 

 

 

Exploring Blue I gave this work a little attention this week. There is so much happening on the surface that I feel I need add more contrast to make it work.

 

 

 

 

Break Up I like the idea of this work- but I am very unsure of what I am doing so it is not going anywhere at the moment.

 


New Work This is my beginning work on Regina’s second “trade and finish ”  challenge piece.  The pink painted fabric is hers.

 

 

 

 

 

Childhood Memories -Building the house in Carroll

We moved into the basement of the house in Carroll as soon as it was habitable. The house was built into a hillside with three terraces in the back. The front south east corner was level with the top of the hill. By the time the  yard reached the north west corner of the house one could walk out the basement door onto a patio that was surround by  rock walls on two sides. The rocks were carted in from the farm where the twins lived. The walls also head back the soil on those two sides. There were also two terraces on the north east side that did the same to hold the soil back from the drive into the garage.
I remember Mom, Dad and Grandpa laying black and white tiles in the big room in the basement  and building a long set of cabinets on the north wall of the great room in there. The fun part was the special banister they built along the stairs. It was designed so we could slide down it with ease. I even learned how to do that slide in a  side saddle fashion .
I recall the day they came and pored the cement for the drive too. The forms were all set and Dad and another man used a big long 2″X 4″ to level the drive. They started at the edge of the opening for the garage and worked out to the where that part of the drive meant the strait run. Then they started at the street and kept sliding the board back and forth past the section to the garage and all the way to the end of the drive. Dad let Gene and I make hand prints in the cement at the far west end of that turn around section of the drive.
Grandpa Howard was our electrician. He and Mom built cornices for all the windows in the living room and they installed indirect lighting behind them. They found some cool new light switches with rocker plates in them. One day Grandpa broke one of those switches and there was a bit of mercury in it. The living room floor was done in oak boards that had been sanded but not yet sealed . The afternoon after the break when  I got home from school,  Gene and I had little races down the living room floor with our balls of mercury. We finally used it to shine up some pennies and a couple of dines. I don’t remember that the shine stayed too long. After lots of sanding Mom and Grandpa sealed the north wall of the living room and installed a photo mural of the Tetons. It made a great statement in that room.  We took lots of photos in front of it over the years we lived there.

Take good care and enjoy Spring.

Keep Creating

Carol

 

25 Million Stitches Project, Childhood Memories, Creative Assistants, Owl, Scrap Happy Quilts, small god

Happy Kwanzaa

 

Hello,
I hope the holidays are being filled with joy and delight for all of you. Kwanza begins today and for those who celebrate it, enjoy. This time of year one  takes stock of all the people who mean something to each one of us. As I write each holiday card I think of old friends and miss those who are on longer part of my life.

This week was full of many for me with lots of family events and for that I am truly grateful. I did finish Nick Quilt on Tues eve so I really meant my goal.


Progress Report: Owl quilt for Nick This queen sized quilt proved to be a struggle when it came to appliqueing the owl down. It is difficult to roll the quilt tight enough to fit under the arm of the machine and still be able to turn it to do the machine work. Nick and Haily did seem to like it however.

 

 

 

 

 

Small God      This work is 23″ W X 28.5 “ long. I found the blue woven fabric when I was pulling fabric for the back of Nicks ‘s Owl and set it aside.

So it did not take long to add it to the sides of the already stitched piece.  I did the drawing for this work over two years ago.   Sometimes I just have to wait for the fabric to show up to complete the task.

 

Scrap Happy I just keep inching along on this project. I surely will finish it soon.

 

 

 

 

 

25 Million Stitches Project

I am working away on the figures now and only need to add the work HOPE in the center of the circle and complete the figures.

 

 

 

Creative Assistants These little guys just keep rolling off the work table. I will need to stop and count sometime soon.

 

 

 

Childhood Memories: Yellowstone Critters
Mom was a continuous explore and   constant teacher. We learned the wild flowers in Yellowstone just like back in the Junction. I could quickly identify Bear Grass, Fire Weed and Shooting Stars. We walked up the high way one day and spent the afternoon exploring a lily pond. Gene just wanted to throw in rocks, something he seemed to driven to do with any body of water. One day we saw a solo Buffalo in a small meadow off the road. Mom charged us to take note of how high the buffalo was in relationship to a small tree there. On a later day we stopped the car and walked across the meadow up to the tree. I realized that my sense of scale was way off as I could only reach the branch that seemed to be level with the buffalo’s hump, if Dad boosted me a bit. They are very big animals!

On one of our outings we saw a Porcupine. He was very shy and ran away before Mom could get a photo.

One of our hikes revealed a Fire Ant mound. The nest was built of pine needles to help it suede water, Mom said.  The mound also made it possible for some of the aunts to weather the winter.  The mound  was so tall it reached about Gene’s waste and was three feet across. The bite of those ants hurt a lot too.
One of our outings  was up to a fire lookout station. The station was above the tree line and one could see across tree tops and peeks in all directions. There was a large brass device in the center of the room that cold be turned in any direction with a little window that the ranger then lined up with smoke so the fire could be pinpointed. The Range also gave us his binoculars and pointed out a Balled Eagle nest with 3 young all brown birds in it. They do not get white head feathers until they are three years old.   They were only six weeks old he told us.    Yellowstone  was a great experience for me as a kid.

I am stating to think about my goals for 2020.

Keep Creating

Carol