Category Archives: Stretch Works

100 day Challenge, Collage, College Life, Creative Strength Training, Daily Practice, Drawing, Hand work, Lap Quilts, Pixies Group, Stretch Works

Winter Continues

February 24, 2022 admin

Hello,

This has been a crazy week as far as weather is concerned. Snow and cold, then quite warm and back to snow again. Old Man Winter does not want to let with out a fight.

I had one two meetings this week. The Retired Art Teachers Zoomed as did the Pixies. The Creative Strength Training Class does not officially begin until the first of March, but she still has done lots of pre work with us. We had a lesson on altering a shape based on a tool. I selected a tape dispenser and this is my solution.

Being the practical person that I am I used the cut-aways from the project plus a leftover bit of blue to create a second composition.

There was also a drawing lesson on contour drawing from Creative Strength Training this week. It was a slow 5 min contour drawing. This is my solution.

My friend Joyce sent me a book “Inspired to Design” by Elizabeth Barton and I have been working through the exercises in it too. Of the five I have done this simplification assignment was the one I enjoyed the most.

Progress Report: Lap 7 I enjoyed piecing together this top this week. I will move forward on the next steps as the new week goes forward.

Lap 8 As usual I have pulled the fabric for the next lap quilt too.

Lost Habitat I was disturbed by the loss of over 500 homes in Colorado due to fire in the fall. I finally got going on my tribute to them. The parts are just pinned in place at this point.

Action I keep working every evening on this project. My goal now it to have it complete by the first of April.

Daily Practice This is the piece I am working on during the news every night.

Stencil work I ordered some commercial stencils from Stencil Girl in Dec and this week I finally got around to using them. This is a computation of three stencils that I though played together well.

Bits and Pieces I finished off and stretched this work this week.

College Life- The Indianapolis 500

I was delighted and pleased to see Eric when he picked me up from the bus station in Indianapolis. We went to Grandmother Butter’s apartment and she was her gracious, cheerful self. That also provided me with my first contact with Eric’s brother Dean. I got to meet one of Grandmother Butter’s sisters, Aunt Gretna, plus her two children, Carol and Dick, at dinner that evening, too. Everyone called Aunt Gretna Aunt Deckie, so I did, as well. It was a pleasant evening. Everyone but Carol was excited about going to the race the next day.

In those days the race was always on the 30 of May so it was a Tuesday that year. It was gray at 6:30 when we got up to go to the race. We all piled in the car– Grandmother, Aunt Deckie, Dick, Dean, Eric and I–and went off to the race track. It was cold when we joined the line of cars waiting to get into the track. At 8;30 we all tracked up the stairs of the main grandstand to row J in the section at the end of turn four and sat in our seats. Then the famous words came over the loud speaker, “Gentleman start your engines!” The cars growled to life and the crowd stood and cheered. The flag was dropped and the race was off. There was a new entry for the first time in 1967–a turbine car, and it immediately pulled to the front of the pack. When the turbine car passed our stands the sound was more of a swish than the roar like the other cars. Then a cold rain began to fall. The race was stopped after 18 laps and we, like most other folks, retreated to the car and waited for the restart of the race. It rained on and soon it was noon, so we ate cold chicken and deviled eggs and drank pop. We too finally deserted the track as we had watched many folks do through out the afternoon. Eric’s brother, Dean had finals to take on Wednesday we had to send him home, I called home and told my folks that I was going to stay for another day to see the race.

Eric and I went to Larry’s house and palled around with him and his current girl friend Connie for the evening. We went to White Castle for dinner. I had never had little square hamburgers before and we all had a good time. In the morning it was still gray and misting, so Grandmother decided to go into work at Wheaton Van Lines. Eric and I horsed around and talked until the phone rang. It was Aunt Deckie. She told us to look out the window and get hustling, as she was going to pick us up for the race. We hurried across town to Speedway. We were in the parking lot when we heard, “Gentlemen, restart your engines!” I think we missed seeing about two laps, before we got back in our seats. Again it was cold in the stands, but is was exciting. On the day before we had drawn the drivers names from a hat and we all had five folks we were following. Our seats were in a perfect spot to witness several wild crashes and I know I lost two of my drivers in the first one the first day. The turbine car led most of the way but broke down on the last lap of the race, and Mario Andretti won. Upon returning to Grandmothers we ate some lunch and called Larry and told him we would be picking up Connie soon. The three of us drove back to Muncie together where Eric dropped Connie off at her dorm. The Eric and I went to supper. After that we talked a bit more before he started for South Bend. I was very sad to see him go and felt that summer would be a long time, even with Summer school to keep me busy.

I am looking forward to spring and some warmer weather.

Stay safe and Create with joy!

Carol

Black Roses, Childhood Memories, Daily Practice, FAD (Fiber Art Dames), Felt Work, Pixies Group, Quiet, Raw Edge Applique, Scrap Happy Quilts, Textile Artist Stitch Club

Gifts

February 18, 2021 admin

Hello,
I feel so very fortunate to have such kind and generous friends. Last week I got a surprise package in the mail from my friend Patti. It was a paint brush organizer. So very handy and I put my brushed in strait away. I feel so flattered that she would share her time and effort to make and send me such a nice gift. People can be so very kind and it is doubly wonderful when it comes for no reason. It touches the heart. Such a small act can really lift the soul and raise one’s sprites. I will try to do the same in the future.
I had four Zoom meetings this week. The QuEG’s meant on Tue with the FAB and Pixies meeting yesterday. It so good to stay connected. The Textile Artists Stitch Club started a new project with Jude Kilgshott. I am still not done with the handwork on my leaf print, but I went a head with the new assignment anyway. Jude asked us to collage a bit with fabric pieces and then stitch them down. I am half done with that as there are suppose to be 8 pages. She was trying to help us see the beauty of the back of the stitch work as well as the front and the transparency of Organdy really does allow that. I will keep working and hopefully get back to the old project too.

Progress Report: Murder II This work is 36″ X 46″. I discovered that I had on older piece named Murder of Crows so I had to rename this work.

I did stitch in the ditch in the seams and around the crows. But I felt that was not enough so I added what I call “ wind lines” of quilting that run horizontally across the quilt in a wavy pattern. It works and the piece is stable now.

Scrap Happy I made a trip to the Dr on Monday and he said I was healing nicely and could go back to normal activity. That meant that I could lift things without fear of breaking the stitches on the back of my hand. So the first thing I did was quilt this queen sized quilt. It was hard to rustle about under the machine but I did it. Then I did the binding and it is done now.

Quiet- Daily Practice One of the other things I could not do with the hand , was stretch this piece. So I did that this week now that I have full use of my hands.

Black Roses The work is 38″ X 36″ . This is a rescue piece. The base was the original background for Three Sisters. I removed the figures and had the old background piece on the table. Next to it was black and white rose fabric . It was a gift from my friend Tanya. She often passes me interesting fabrics to play with. It just seemed to go together. And I had a chance to use my cording foot tht I had purchased for the machine.

I enjoyed this project.

Three Sisters So this piece got a new base and some additional build up. I think I am now ready to stitch the parts down.

After the Fall This work too had to be put on hold until I got the OK form the Dr. It takes about 10 min to stitch down each leaf and I find that I can only work for about half and hour before I begin to tire. All the stopping and truing the whole quilt to sew half and quarter inch sections is slow work.

Felted Backs I built these backgrounds for the machine drawn birds. I will get out the Felter and do the felt work this week so I can put it all together.

Daily Practice I am working away on the daily practice too. This is the new one with a week’s work of effort on it.

Childhood Memories- Dr Kunkel and Sailing
Moving to Muncie changed the lives of all of the family in different ways. Gene seemed to have had the most difficulty adjusting to a new bigger school. Dad said a new place was a great chance for a fresh start and I took it that way. One of the changes Dad did was he started using his real first name. When Dad was born one of his cousin’s was born across the county a day after Dad. Both boys were named James McElhinney. To keep them strait in the community, Dad went by his middle name of Howard. When we moved to Muncie and his diploma said “James” , he decided to go by that name. In October, I was really feeling my oats and that nearly lead to disaster. I was comfortably reading away in my room one afternoon when the phone rang. I go up and went down the hall to our only phone and answered.
“Is Jim there?” asked the voice. I said “No” and hung up the phone. I had just gotten settled when the phone rang again. This time it was the same question and same answer. I returned to my room and the phone rang yet again. As I walked down the hall I though, “ I ‘ll play a joke on this guy.”
“Is Jim there ? ” the caller asked for a third time.
“Yes,” I said. “But he is too drunk to come to the phone.”
“Is this Jim McElhinney’s home?” the caller asked.
I was not smart enough to just hang up, but said. “ Oh! I am so sorry. He is here and I will got to the garden and get him for you.”
After Dad got off the phone he gave me a bit of a dress down for being such a smart-allic.
“What if that had been one of my bosses?” he asked. I never did anything like that again. As it turned out the man thought the whole thing was quit funny. He was Dad’s office partner, Dr Kunkle. He and Dad got to be great friends and traveled all over Indiana working with teachers to develop curriculum programs. The two of them also went to Alaska to do the same thing with the Klincket Native American tribes off the coast. I also developed a connection with Dr Kunkle when I went to Ball State. He was the sponsor of the sailing club there. That is were I learned to sail and I became proficient enough to be a Captain. My friend Margaret and I went out in one of the club’s Windmill lots of times. On one trip with her I even swamped the boat and had to haul it back to the dock myself. It was a cold event. I only had one more experience with sailing when I was much older. I spent afternoon trying to learn to sail surf on Cazenovia Lake. I could not “come about” so I could “tack” north. I kept losing control and falling off the board. So I was slowly “sailing” farther and farther down the lake. Finally the owner came with his son and rescued me . The son sailed the board home and I rode in the cab back to the house. Gene got to be good friend with Dr Kunkle too and also learned to sail with him. Gene was a good sailor and the two of them went to lots of sail boat races on weekends. They eve won some cups.

Stay safe

Carol

Along the Shore, Blue Stone, Columbus Junction, Deep Jellies, Hand work, Label Blocks, Lion King- Cherrywood Challenge, Purple Pleasures

Blooming

May 19, 2016 admin

Hello,

My world is really alive with blossoms now. Blue bells, buttercups, violets, lilacs, as well as many I do not know the names of carpet the ground. Flowering crab apples and tulip trees color the air. The dandy lions are are in seed and they join the Oak, Maple and Beech as they dump there pollen on the wind- my world is awash with wonderful sensations. I am enjoying spring.

I did a little ice cube dyeing this week. I wanted to play with some oranges and that is a color I do not seem to have a lot of in my stash.

Progress Report: Blue Stone This work is on stretcher bars and is 24” X 36”. It is based on a photo of a rock face that I took a few years ago in Washington State. I enjoyed working up the color changes with yarn and threads on top of the scrunched fabric pieces. There is nylon netting, taffeta and silk paper in this work as well as a bit of flannel. I sure like mixing my textures.

Along the Shore This work is 20” X 15”. It started with the photo image that Ethel had transferred on to fabric. Not knowing anything about the setting I got to invent it to suit myself. I painted the edges of the photo on the fabric so it would have a softer edge and stitched across the edge as well to make it blend into the top.

The quote is from Vincent Van Goth. I find it to be very true for my life. Creating the pine tree branches was an enjoyable process for me as I have always been attracted to them.

Memory Map- Columbus Junction I am working on the details of this piece now.Adding the plants in the garden is just one part of this process. I am considering adding a bit of text to this work.

Purple Pleasures I am to the quilting stage on this work now. Deciding to quilt triangles was a good idea, but it is very slow work with lots of stops, turns and starts. I am trying to use the triangles in the piecing as my guides, but sometimes I am just filling in with that same shape pattern.

Lion King-Coming Home I have added the masks to the bottom of this work. Then I put the stamped lions on under that boarder. I think I am now ready to begin quilting on this work.

New Work I want to do a entry for the Layered Voices Challenge for SAQA. This is my base, using Valerie Goodwin’s base construction method. I am now ready to tack down the open edges by hand. I am also gathering images of my mom and my grandmothers to use as a part of this work.

Deep Jellies I saw a beautiful image of Jellyfish on the web and I was captivated by it . I started a piece based on the wonderful use of color and texture from this image.

Label Block #58 Working away on these little blocks sure reinforces the idea that the whole is bigger then the sum of its parts.

Keep Creating

Carol

Columbus Junction, Ethel's Trees, Green Grass of Spring, Label Blocks, Memory Map Quilts, Out the Window, Second Wall, Stretch Works, Stretched Works, Truquoise Street Studio, Uncategorized, Watakoo Wall

Spring get away

March 31, 2016 admin 1 Comment

Hello,

Before I left for Florida I was a part of a second show at Turquoise Street Studio on the week end. I even sold a piece and I am thrilled by that. Barbara is so kind to share her studio with us and help us all benefit from that experience.

The photos tells the story of how I started many of my days when I visited Susan and Carolyn in Florida. The sun rises were wonderful. The light was truly “golden” as Barbara says. A big reason for my trip was to see their show. I went through the door and was stopped short by the visual impact. There was so very much to see I could not get myself started. I think I was fortunate to have seem some of the work before or I think I could have been truly overwhelmed. In trying to decide my favorite I was struck by the variety and the powerful use of color. I really like this altered Barbie that has become a god. Carolyn’s Swing Clocks with the moving feet made me smile too. This picture is only two of seven different variations that were presented. Some works were small and intimate and others were bigger than life size like this red dress. I liked Susan’s piece that was based on Little Red Riding Hood too because it had so many parts that were all fascinating all by them selves and also worked together. It was a full and delightful experience for me. We went to the building next to the gallery and saw a second exhibit of the works of the collage faculty and staff. I was taken by this wonderful small weaving. Susan told my it was by the director of the gallery were their work was on display.

Susan and I worked in the studio every day too. This shot is of Susan painting on Tyveck for her project for the Diva 15 Show. We worked with wood and fabric as well and had a lot of fun. We went for a morning at the beach as our way of celebrating Easter. The day was a perfect one for our ramble with a clear blue sky, white sands, crisp ocean smells and a cool breeze.

I found so many fascinating patterns and textures that I took over 75 pictures. But I decided that this shot of Cyprus stumps is my favorite. They almost look like they could walk the shore them selves. I had a great visit.

Progress Report: Watakoo Wall This is another in my stretch works. I am getting better at trimming back the corners enough that they lay flat now. It seems I learn a new trick with every one of these projects. I put lots of fabric bits on the surface as I build up the effect I am after. This one even has some “plastic twist” on it to give it a bit of a punch. It has silk paper as a part of the texture and color as well.

Second Wall This work is a partner to Watakoo Wall. Both are from the same photo, but a very different part of the rock face. This is a very early stage and I am sure it will grow and change as I work on the surface. It seems to cry out for some light at the moment.

Out My Windows I am to the fun stage of the work on this piece. I am doing the free motion drawing part and I always enjoy that step. I did all the dark purple squares yesterday afternoon. They are all night views across the roof tops showing the bare trees.

Green Grass of Spring This work is another of the pieces that is based on a collage. It grew and changed a lot as I enlarged it from the 5”X7” card I did the collage on. I did try to keep the tones of light medium and dark in the same areas however. I have it layered together and it is ready for the quilting. I am just looking and thinking about that step at the moment as I have no real clear idea of how I want to do that.

Memory Maps:Columbus Junction I started this work after talking with Susan before I went off to Florida. She mentioned how much she liked one of the other Memory Map works and I realized that I had not done all the pieces I wanted to do in that series. So after checking my list of possible subjects I selected Columbus Junction the home that I lived in from Kindergarten to the end of third grade. Then I did a list of possible subjects and began some drawings. I built my base and then started working on top. This shot is of the map section with our house being the square with the blue roof. This shot is of the upper right hand corner of the work.

Ethel’s Trees I inherited lots of Ethel’s unfinished work and this is one. I am sure I will not not put my stamp on all of her pieces, but using it as a starting point is a good challenge for me. This started out as only the brown tree painted on the white cloth. I added the gray painted “wonder under” to build up the land and then found this second Ethel cut tree yesterday. I need to live with this work to know were to go from here. The gray tree is not stitched down so it may move before I fuse it down.

Label Block # 45 I worked on this as I waited for the connections flying back and forth. I did not want to get behind while I was away and the activity does not require a lot of attention and its small so it travels well. Susan gave me a new batch of labels so I have more to work with.

I am going off to Chicago to the Quilt Festival and a visit with my Friend Sharron Evens on Wed next week so there will be no posting for April 7. It will be another double shot when I get back.

Keep Creating,

Carol

Briar Patch, Creative Assistants, Label Blocks, Out the Window, Riverwood, Watakoo Wall

Green Day

March 17, 2016 admin 1 Comment

Happy St. Patrick’s Day. It is sunny and bright today and I am really feeling the wonders of spring. Notice the bee in the center of the wind flower on the left. So many trees have big fat buds I am sure they will open soon. I had no meetings this week so I got a lot done. I do have stuff coming up however. This Sat and Sunday I will be apart of the Spring Thing at the Turquoise Street Gallery. I will be there on Sunday afternoon from 1 to 4Come along and have so goodies if you can. My other news is I am off to visit Susan on Tues and I will not be back until the following Tuesday . So there will be no post next week. I am sure I will have lots to share when I get home as she already has lots of plans for activates for the two of us.

Progress Report: Briar Patch I have completed this work, but I do not feel like it is really done. It is OK- but it has no life for me. I will take it to the Associated Artists meeting this week end and get some feed from other artists on it. I do like all the textures and colors that the patch contains but it seems fall short .

Ribbon Rose Pillow When I went to visit Susan last spring I fell in love with a wonderful piece of red fabric that she had. It was topped with these wonderful ribbon patterns. It has taken me a year to study and then adapt the technique to my collection of techniques. I am quit pleased with this typeof embellishing. I will admit that it is not a surface that is comfortable to press against however. But the texture is wonderful!

Out the Window I have finished all the stitch in the ditch work on this piece. It is now stable enough to start the free motion drawing part. I Think I will make each block a different view. I plan to leave some of the “windows’ blank and all the white ones with purple blocks printed on them will be curtained windows. I am thinking that the deep purple blocks will be night scenes. This is a big challenge and I may change my mind as I go along. But that is my plan.

Riverwood This work fits all three of my monthly challenge criteria. It is based on a collage, has my altered fabric and some of Ethel’s fabric too. I changed the color when I went to fabric from red to oranges and from grays to browns. I am showing one of the early pin up steps of this work because I have realized that as I enlarge the work from the 4”X 6” collage to a larger size it takes on a life of its own and I alter the work accordingly. ( note the additional half circles. ) I have finished all the stitch in the ditch work on this piece too and I am now ready to add the free motion work. I am not sure what to do so I am living with it.

Watakoo Wall I started some new work based on photos of rock formations. This is the beginning. I always try to lay the wool out in a pattern that follows the lights and darks of the start, but it too takes on a life of its own when I change mediums. Is this what is meant by abstraction?

This is a second work from a different section of the same photo before I add any fabrics on top. It to has morphed from the photo to this point.

Creative Assistants I have been inspired again this week to get back into doing faces for my creative assistants. I have done about two dozen and I will keep at it for a bit longer. Then move on to the next step.

New work Here is another work that is fits the monthly challenge work. And it too seems to have pulled away from the collage with enlargement. I have broken things up and altered the sizes of color blocks as I have gone along. I guess I will just have to face that the changes are a natural part of my process. It is all a part of learning and creating as I go along. A natural part of the process for me.

Label Block #44 I like the label form my Minion sculpture Christmas gift ( upper left hand corner ) the best in this block.

Keep Creating

Carol

Autumn Leaves, Autumns Collection, Buffalo Bluffs A & B, Coastal Color, Label Blocks, Natural Elements, Stretch Works, William's Quilt

Reflection

December 31, 2015 admin

Hello-

We are coming to the end of another year and I have been thinking not only about my dreams for the future, but also reviewing what happened in 2015.

A Jewish Proved says it best:

The Quality of life is fuelled by our productive wealth.

With this in mind I can say I am very wealthy. For me it has been a very productive year. For the first time I counted the number of spools of thread I used in my work. All that machine drawing does add up and I finished off 65 spools this year. This is reflective of the number of works I completed and with Autumn Collection added today that number is 49. I do so enjoy challenging myself and the amount of work I do reflects this drive I have.

I enjoyed my travels this year and visited lots of friends. I went south to Susan in Florida in March. I took a trip to Maine to see Barbara and Elizabeth with Marty in May. I went to see Barb in Indiana in June. There was also loss in my life this year as two friends died. The WWII veteran, Fred Bishop, who lived up the street passed away in March. My good friend and mentor Ethel Whitmore died in August. I miss her greatly, but do to the generosity of her children I am wrapped in her fabrics and dyes that now fill my studio. I made a promise to myself that I would use some of her material in every work I create for a year. That will not be too much of a challenge as I already find her fabrics blending into my work with ease. She helped me grow so very much and all the joy I find in creating and using Silk Paper is do to her introduction to that material. I am thankful that she was a part of my life for such a long time.

Progress Report: Buffalo Bluffs This diptych is now complete. Both units are stretched and measure 16” X 20 “. I learned a lot about cutting up a unified work with this project. I had to make some additions to both sides when I sliced it to make each section work on its own as well as in tandem. I based the work on this part of a photo I took last summer. I enjoyed building up the surface with lace , velvet, cotton, felt, silk and organza.

I continue to use the fabrics that do the job texturally as well as colorfully to keep the piece functioning.

Autumn Collection This work is 37” X 30.5 “ With is quilt I finally used the silk leaves that I created with Cris in the silk paper workshop earlier this fall. The piece has lots of different techniques and fabrics in it. Not only the silk leaves but also leaves cut from cotton and organza fabrics. The trunk has some of the fabric that Marty and I spray painted after we came back from visiting with Elizabeth last spring. I also included some colored pencil drawing along the top of the hill to suggest far away trees behind the weeds. It was great fun to work on this piece.

Autumn Leaves I am now doing the quilting on this piece. I loaded the bobbin with thick cotton thread and did the outline of the leaf from the back of the quilt. Then flipped it over and drew in the vanes. I am happy with how it is coming along.

Coastal Color- Red Rock I have only just started the thread painting on this work. It is different to be building on top of a felted surface. This work is based on a small portion of a photo. I block off only the section I want to look at and use it as my starting point. This is the section of the rock face.

New work I built this collage a few weeks ago and it is the start of another work. I am not going to copy the colors – but try to keep the shapes and tones in the work the same. This is the first pin up of the fabrics I have selected for this project. Two of them are from Ethel’s stash, but most are ones I have altered with dye and paint.

William’s Quilt The top and back are now complete and I have the two sections united. I am doing stitch in the ditch quilting starting by quilting around all the photos and working out form there. This process is not fast, but it is enjoyable for me.

Label Block # 33 There is not rush here just slow and steady progress on this project.

May the 2016 bring you joy and delight.

Carol

Curvie Cuts, Dead Horse Canyon Rock Face, Grounded, Label Blocks, Stretched Works

Leaves

November 19, 2015 admin

Hello,

Leaves seem to remain a strong interest to me. Most of our local trees are stripped now, but as this photo shows some still have their fruit. I am still searching out places were I can walk through the piles of crisp fallen leaves and enjoying the crunch. I found a wall in the park where the leaves are piled deeper then my knees and I felt like I was six again as I plowed through them. There is still lots of colors in those piles too- pinks, greens, tans, browns, yellows and purples. So wonderful! The fact that I am printing leaves on one of my tops is part of the reason for my strong interest I am sure.

The FAB group meant here this week and we had a good talk. Judy finished tieing the bunk bed quilts she brought with her that day. Nancy has added two of her boarders on the quilt she is making for her daughter. It is great when we all make progress.

Progress Report: Grounded-This work is a part of the curvy cut series. I am stamping the leaves I made last week. The colors are not as strong on the brown as I would like. But I feel it will work out in the end. I am stamping from the largest stamp to the smallest. Each stamp is a different color combination. There is also a number increase with each stamp I am using. I started with five of the biggest leaf and moved to seven for the next one. I am increasing by two every time I change leaves to get a deep pile feeling.

Dead Horse Canyon Rock Face This work is going to be stretch. I think I am ready for that step as I have done all the free motion drawing and tacking of the parts. I am finding the small format a challenge. There are three more canvases so I will keep putting in the effort.

New work This work is one of my first pieces using some fabric from pile of hand dyed works I have been creating sense the beginning of Oct. In this shot there are about six units. I was happily putting them together this morning and I did not pin then back on the board every time after I pressed the seams. That was a mistake as I put an early connection together backward and did not notice that error until I was “done”. Now I have lots of seam ripping to do before I can go forward with this piece.

Label Block #27 The daily hand work goes forward on this project.

Keep Creating

Carol

Circuits, Hand work, Rustic Rambles I, Rustic Rambles II, Scrap Happy Quilts, Stretch Works

Sports Lines

February 25, 2015 admin

Hello,

I am still thinking about lines and although this is a shot of tire lines I think it shows one way we see them and do not really realize they are a part of our lives. When I made my list of line types I was surprised by how many were related to sports. Almost all sporting events have a starting line or beginning line and finish line. In Basketball there are center lines, free throw lines, foul lines, boarder lines, side lines. Foot ball has some of these lines and adds yard lines, front lines, boundry lines and line men. In auto racing you add fuel lines, break lines and checkered lines. Other lines in sports include kite lines, trap lines, bow lines and in horse racing you blood lines. I am sure there are lots of others I have not though of too and perhaps I am getting to the point were the lines have different meanings- but line is a very useful tool in art and sport. I went and spent a day playing with Cheri last week. She had some wonderful felted work to share with us. Colleen worked on this barclet for the day. It is more than half done now and I like the colors. Cheri worked on this wonderful spider. Look at the scissors near the top of the photo to get the scale of how large this project is . I spent my day working on my entries for 6X6 for the Rochester Contemporary Art Center fund raiser. Check out the web sight and see the work for sale at $20 for each one or even better send them one of your own little 6″ X ^” creations and join the fun.

Progress Report: Rustic Rambles I and Rustic Rambles II This is the first of the works new stretch series that I am doing. I wanted to try my collage technique on a stretch surface so I an enter it in a art show that is specifically asking for stretched works. I like the effect. There is no batting but I have not been using batting in most of my foundations works for over a year. This work also includes paper that I have done wax resits on. I used the same machine drawing work I have been developing for the last year. These two works are a set and flow into one another when they are hung with that in mind.

Circuits This project is completed now and is 20″ X 30″

This was a fun project to work on in the evenings while I did machine work on Scrap Happy’s during the day time.

I started this with the orange stamped shapes. I used the errasor end of a pencil for the stamp. When the paint was dry I stated to connect the rows of dots together like the welds on a circuit board. I added the orange beads as I tough they were needed to make the idea feel complete. The stitching and beading became more and more complex as I went along. I am very happy with the final results.

Scrap Happy # 4 I am still working away on these scrap quilts and finishing them as time allows. Scrap Happy #5 I gave one away yesterday to the Prevention Net Work. It is an organizations that helps direct high school kids away from drugs. I have starts for two more and then I will set this work aside for a while.

New works I am still struggling with how I want to finish this piece. But yesterday I looked at it and though of my trip to Canyon De Chilly again and think I will try to push it in that direction. This is another experiment I am trying. It really falls into my Graffiti play stuff so I am not sure at all were it is going. But when I give my self the Okay to play some good stuff can come out of that.

I will be away next week so there will be no post March 5.

Keep Creating

Carol

Circuits, Hand work, Pebble Pile, Rustic Rambles I, Rustic Rambles II, Spring Song, Stretch Works

Valentines Day

February 12, 2015 admin 2 Comments

Hello,

I have finished and sent my Valentines Day Cards. The making is the best part of the whole event from my point of view. It is always a fun excuse to get out the paper and play with it. I do not care if I get any response from doing these- the joy of making is all I really want anyway.

This week has been a full one for me as they all seem to be.I went to visit my friend Ethel and we spent a fine day playing with felting. I do enjoy the process and do not take time to do that very often. I started out making a background for the pebble like felted units that I made on the play day at the Blue Moon in the fall. Ethel suggested that I slice the units in half to add to the surface. I really like that idea and would not have even thought of doing that without my play time with her. Another point of view is always a good thing. After lunch I tried a whole new picture like image in felt. What fun. I ran out of energy and time before I completed it, but I am sure I will finish the bird and flowers later.

Ethel created this wonderful felted bag. I love the soft colors and the button she found is just perfect for its job here. It was a fun and productive day. We have set a date to do something similar next month.

Progress Report: Rustic Rampaging I & II I wanted to enter a art completion were all the work had to be mounted and framed so I did a set of pieces that would fit into that format. I thought why not try stretching my work on a frame like one does canvas for a painting. The first piece show here is Rustic Rampaging II – and it is not stretched. It is ready for that step as I did the two works at the same time, but I did not have a canvas so I could not do that step until I went out and got the materials. This is Rustic Rampaging I. The process is is all experimenting so I am learning things. For example -the next time I will make the piece just a bit bigger as I like how the side were I could rap the project all the way around to the back much better then were I just had to attached it to the side.

Circuits I am finally finished with the hand stitching on this project. It was enjoyable,, but a slow process. Now I need to add it to the quilt top. That portion will be a piecing project for this week.

Paint Play When Cris Winter came to visit a few weeks ago she gave me a little gift that was work on canvas and I really liked the look. So I did a little playing in a similar style this week. It too will get stretched around a frame when I am done with some hand work on the surface.

Old work Revisited I finally looked again at this work I had started last spring. This time I saw a way to go forward with it. The red on the side is added and now I will work on the embellishment to pull the work together. Sometimes one has to just set work aside for a while and look at it again later with fresh eyes.

Keep Creating

Carol

Cre-8

Category Archives: Stretch Works

Winter Continues

Gifts

Blooming

Spring get away

Green Day

Reflection

Leaves

Sports Lines

Valentines Day

Creative Fiber Collage Artist Carol Boyer