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Consideration, Find Ecstasy, Hand Bags, Insect ology, Minion, Pock Marked, Rejoice, Uncategorized

Travel Log

May 21, 2015 admin

Hello,

I am home from a wonderful trip and I still seem to be flying along with lots of new experiences. Maine was/is beautiful as it too awakens to spring. I enjoyed the tulips in Barb’s yard and took lots of pictures. There are so many wonderful colors. We visited two artists with studios on this trip. The first was Elizabeth Busch’s place. She is working on a new commission for the state capital building in Augusta. This is a shot of the models. She is building in her wonderful weaving on bird netting.She carefully explained how she used her photos of different parts of Maine to build the landscape that she wanted for the project. She refers to them often as she works with the weaving to keep the colors close to the natural look she is building. She has a large collection of printed and painted strips of plastic to choose from when she is working. Elizabeth sometime weaves as many as four strips into one section to create the color she wants for rocks, trees, water and other natural elements. She is working on all three panels at one time so they will flow into one another as they spin from the three eye beams in the lobby. The job needs to be completed by September so she will have a busy summer.

The second Studio was that of Nanci Kohn She is a photographer and paper Mache’ artist. She too was very willing to talk about her process and work. I really love this song bird that is covered in sheet music.

We then stopped and looked at a welded sculpture of an Osprey on a bridge on our way to Portland. It was an enjoyable and stimulating trip as travel always seems to be for me.

Tuesday the FAB group meant here. Patti had nearly completed this happy little wall hanging. I like how she used buttons and beads for the eyes of the kittens.

Judy was busy working on a new sweater. She is doing hand embroidery stitched flowers on it now to add more interest. I like the soft colors she is using.

Progress Report: Paper Quilt- Consideration

I am done working on the surface of this project. I want to add a sleeve in a different manner than I have with previouse paper quilts,because it is so wide. I want to make the slat removable for this one. The papers that I started with were from a Gelli print play day last fall. I have enjoyed doing all the stitching on this one and adding textures

I added painted and melted tyveck for that texture. I used both sides so some areas have the bubble up and some have the bubble down.

Hand Bag I made a new hand bag out of some of the wonderful fabric that Regina gave me a few weeks ago. It is time to switch to a summer color so I put the old one( it was browns and blacks) away.

Place Mats When I was sorting through the material for the hand bag I pulled fabric for place mats too. These are the newly finished batch. I have stacks two more sets setting on the cutting table.

Pock Marked I am working on the free motion portion of the quilting on this project. It is going slowly as I am trying to find lines to follow for all the stitching and it is very complex in some areas.

Insect Ology I am to the free motion quilting on this project too. It is a much different process than Pock Marked- much more a reflective process. It is good for me to switch from one type of free motion work to the other.

Flag – Rejoice For the experiment on this flag I drew on the surface with magic markers and then stayed it with rubbing Alcohol. I hung it on the line so it would run down as it dried. Not all the makers ran because they were different types of markers. The “Sharpies” rand the most. The quote is” Rejoice in the common place.” from an unknown source.

Flag- Find Ecstasy This flag does not have much in the way of experimentation. But when I found this quote l knew I had to use it. It is from Emily Dickenson: “Find ecstasy in life – the mere sense of living in joy is enough.

More Minions I am now finished with the last four minions. I will pass them along to friends who need a lift as I come across them.

I hope summer is on everyone’s door step.

Keep Creating

Carol

Canyon de Chilly, Insect ology, Memory Map Quilts, Minion, Paper Quilts

Spring advancement

May 7, 2015 admin

Hello,

I am so delighted by the changes Mother Nature has wrought this week. From small buds last Thursday to four and five inch leaves this week. It is a wonder that we take for granted. I ate my breakfast out doors after I brushed the fallen maple blossoms off the table. It is an amazing transformation and I can’t get enough.

I have had a full week. I went to the Spring Weekend Retreat at the Schweinfurth Art Center were the new Barbara Fenstein Make Room was dedicated and open for use. Her quilts lined the walls and her sister Emily found this beautiful top among the stash as she sorted things. Some folks knitted, such as Kitsy, Donna and Linda here. Some sewed and some did a bit of both. Linda also did some beautiful thread painting of a on tree she had painted. She had the most extensive thread collection I have ever seen owned by an indivigal. Nancy finished off this little quilt. One she hopes to use as a teaching tool in the near future. I started two tops- one both days. We all had a wonderful time and hope to do it again next spring if not sooner.

Tuesday was meeting day for me. Both QuEGs and Divas meant as it was the first Tuesday of the month. Linda is taking a on line class and having a lot of fun with it. She is turning out a small quilt each month. This is her line assement.

Corinne is making baby blocks for a baby quilt. This one has wonderful thread work in it. I like how she created the shadows on the elephant in the center.

The Divas also had great work to share. Donna has completed this wonderful mirror. The frame is done with black Fimo.

Cheri is to the quilting stage on this wonderful piece. She is machine drawing / quilting out on to the boarder in the form of the white leaves. She also used the colored leaves as quilting line inspiration on the surface. ( you can see the white quilting lines on the purple boarder) It looks great.

Ruth has reached the quilting stage with her quilt too. This is one powerful graphic. She has discovered that quilting with dark blue in the black areas adds a special interest to the surface. Cool thinking!

Cindy is working small as she is still teaching. These are book pages that she will sent to friends of an exchange group. But even working 6” X 6” , she finds she can spend four to six hours on a page. They are all magnificent.

Progress Report: New Work

This is the first top I did on the week end. I used fabric from the Deconstructed Screen class I had taken last fall for the start of this project. I added fabrics I had stenciled and stamped as well as one wipe up cloth . It is ready for quilting and a title.

Insect ology This is the second top I started at the retreat. Funny how the name just came along with the process this time. I created and printed the insects a while back. I used oil sticks for the printing with this project.

Paper Quilt I am still struggling away with this project. It is made up of two pieces of paper that I printed with the Gelli plate last fall. A little of the Tyvek I melted last week is a part of this work. Some parts of it seem to work a lot better then others. I think I will add some additional paint to the surface as Carol Weibe recommends at this point and see if that helps me move forward.

Memory Map- Canyon de Chelly This project also seems to be only inching along. I did add Rosalie and Marty to the image however…… I am thinking this work might benefit from some paint too. The paint could unify sections and take the sharp edge off some areas. It is not holding together too well for my taste yet.

Minions As this picture shows I am still in the process of assembling the Minions. None of them have eyes or legs yet, but each evening I get a little closer.

Place Matts I was drooling over the wonderful fabric that Regina gave me a few week ago when I realized they could become place mats. I now have two new sets and I love them both.

Label Block And the stitches go on. I am enjoying this project as I read the labels- one thing I never really do when they are in clothing.

I am off to visit my friends in Maine next week so there will be no posting for the 14 of May. I will post again on the 21 of May.

Happy Mothers Day to all.

Hugs

Carol

Arches, By the Shore, Freedom's Joy, Label Blocks, Minion, Paper Quilts

Buds Opening

April 30, 2015 admin 2 Comments

Hello,

I have noticed as I have been walking this week a daily change in the environment. Not only is the grass growing but flowers are up. I also see that spring flowers are different here than in mid west. These white violets are a good example. ( I have purple ones in the yard too) Every day the shadows cast by the trees changes as the buds explode out into the sunny world. I find it exciting to see the major changes from one day to the next. I spent Monday playing with Cheri in her studio. She was busy creating freezer paper stencils, ironing them down and then painting over them them. While she did that I worked on adding a layer to the puppet heads that I made at Varna last month. I added paper clay over the two human heads and the dog head as I was happy with the forms. I then built up the bird head with more paper Mache’. I moved from that to building a mask with a cardboard base. The mask seemed to take on a life of it’s own as I started out trying to create a lion- but it seems I have a horse instead. Cheri suggested a different type of Mache paste and so I added the paper layer on top of the cardboard. I like what is happening even though it is not were I thought I was going. Then the third 3-D project this week was to start to create a new batch of Minions. I seem to be exploding with my own creative push as I also pulled out and sorted stacks of fabric for six new projects this week. This shot shows four of the piles. I only have eight yellow tubs for separated projects and they are all full, that along with the 3-D stuff and I have a lot on my hands to work at for a while.

Make Visible 23"X 29" $235.00 — Make Visible
23″X 29″
$235.00

Progress Report: Make Visible I am done with this quilt now. This project started last summer when Susan and I were playing with all her different mark making tools. I did several different quotes with the tools and I am now getting around to finishing them off. I quilted the words Make Visible seven times on the surface of this quilt . Some times I did them in block letters and some times in cursive. Then did reflective quilting to finish it off. I used the obi that I got from Ginny in this project too.

Regina’s Blanket This project is made from some of the wonderful designer samples that Regina gave me a few weeks ago. It was fun to try her techniques with her fabric. It is great to snuggle under too.

By The Shore I was looking at my photos of the trip to Arcadia with Barb and Marty from a few years ago. Among the pictures was a great shot of the basalt along the shore. So I decided to use it as the start of my next Foundations piece. This is just the pin up.

Paper Quilt I came across some papers I had done as Gelli plate prints. Two of them seemed to go together so I started this work in the Carol Weibe technique. It has two cuts in it. I had also melted the tyvek that Cheri and I had painted from the week before. Now there is lots of that to play with and I may add a little of that texture to the surface of this paper quilt too.

Flag- Arches I am using these flags as a place to really play with things I do not normally try. In this case I used Caran D’ache water soluble crayons to add color. Then I spritzed it with water. The word “Arches” is written in broad line Liquid Copper magic paint marker by Deco Color. It did not bleed when I sprayed it with water.

Flag Freedom’s Joy With this project I stamped a bird with a foam stamp that I had made several years go and then I used colored pencil on top to enhance it . I also used the colored pencil in the lines to add motion. The words are done in permanent marker.

Label Block I am doing my daily stitch work with this project. Every little bit adds up.

Keep Creating

Carol

Baby Quilts, Dive In, Label Blocks, Machine Drawing, Make Visable, Ribbon Work, Running Red, Stretch Daily

Victories

April 23, 2015 admin

Hello,

This week has been a week with several little victories. The first was last Thursday evening when I went to the Prevention Network banquet. Just by chance I sat next to Carolyn and she wanted the quilt I had donated to the cause. As this picture suggests she was successful in her pursuit of that goal. I was as delighted with her achievement of that goal as she was and the Network got the benefit too. Friday was the Towpath Quilt show and I attended that event. This is Victoria’s finished work. I have watched her struggle with this piece and I think her solution is great.

Another event in my week was a trip to the SAQA meeting on Saturday. The group was small but full of exciting ideas. My friend Chris showed two of her framed works. It made me think again about working in that direction.

On Monday I went to visit with another quilting buddy Regina. We had not seen each other sense fall so she had lots of new works. I really like this one were she used discharged paste and then embellished it with lock washers. She had also completed four works from the

Carol Soderlands class in Soy Wax printing that the both of us were in at QBL II. This shot is of the wonderful potato smasher that she brought to class and we all used to print with wax. This shot is a work in progress but she also had four she had completed. They were wonderful insect type pieces that I truly enjoyed. Then because I just can’t seem to get enough play time with other creative soles, I went to play with Cheri yesterday. We had fun painting on Tyveck. I now have a new pile of altered material to add to my stash. I will do the melting of some of the surfaces tomorrow. Ans as Cheri suggested one does not need to melt all the Tyvec to use it.

The Big success of this week was saving the Baby quilt I had ruined. At the Towpath show I talked with Angela about the problem of my marker marks. I told her of the methods I had tried and she listened very sympathetically. Her suggestion was I try Oxi Clean. I stopped on the way home and got some at the grocery store. It did not take all of the marks out on the first run( the fifth wash) but it did diminish them. I air dried it and Sue Ellen looked at it on Sat before we went to the SAQA meeting. She said they barely showed and suggested I repeat the process again. So I did. To my delight when I went down and took the work off the line yesterday it was clean. I only took six washes to do the trick. I will give the quilt to the expectant mother and tell her that I know it will withstand lots of washing. I am so very thankful for my encouraging friends. They pushed me forward on this project until it was a Success.

Running Red 39" X 46" — Running Red
39″ X 46″

Progress Report: Running Red I am delighted with how this quilt finally came out. The curving quilting did prove to be a big challenge for me, but I think it works in the end. I used a variegated thread and that proved to be a good idea as well because some times it faded into the background and other times it stood out.

I used silk from an Obi, taffeta, and old table cloth I had done deconstructed screen printing on and cotton in this work. The quilting pattern of the swirls came from the Obi.

Make Visible I had so much success with the circular quilt pattern in Running Red that I tried a variation on that idea with this quilt. I am going to write the words in the quilting pattern on the surface. This shot is of the letter patterns I will be following.

Flags: Stretch DailyI am working away on the flag challenge too. What a great place to try new things and explore. This time I did a little trumpto on the dark green figures. I added green plastic to give more interest and I cut new bigger stencils that I then spray painted on the work. Lastly, I added the letters. They are cut from a photograph and stitched down. My talk with Susan made me feel that adding paper to the work was okay.

Flags: Dive In With this flag I took the paper idea even further. The week before I had been dyeing with Ethel and I put paper under the work so the wax would be absorbed and I left it under when I dyed too. So I had several pieces of beautiful papers on the desk when I was playing with this project. I traced the painted sections of the flag on the papers and cut them out. Then I stitched them down.

Ribbon Work This work is moving along- but I have hit a snag with the fact that I have used the whole spool of yellow ribbon now. I need to live with it before I decide what will be my next move.

Label Block The nightly work goes on with this project.

Keep Creating

Carol

Baby Quilts, Fabric Collage Constructions, Flag Challenge, Label Blocks, Machine Drawing, Make Visable, Name Game, Patti, Running Red, Spring Grass, Vernal Equinox

Mistake- Lesson Learned

April 16, 2015 admin

Hello,

I have had a mixed week. I spent Friday morning last week helping my friend Nancy and her Grand Daughter Jaelyn do a little stencil work. They were making a back pack and Jaelyn wanted her name on the flap. We had a pleaset time stenciling and as soon as she was finished, Jaelyn pulled out the feather weigh and was ready to get back to assembly.

The upsetting thing this week was a gift project. I was making a baby quilt for a friends grandchild and I was nearly done. I only had to add the strings for the balloons that the bears were holding and I would be complete. I thought I really wanted to the strings to be strait so I pulled out a marker and drew the lines on to follow. I was excited as I could see the end of the surface work for this project. I did not take time to test the marker and that was my down fall. When it came time to wash out the marks I found that I had picked up the wrong tool and the marks will not come out. I have tried several of the ways various folks have suggested from the inner net, but no success. The quilt is ruined as a gift of course. The pens do look similar, but that is an excuse. I can go and purchase a gift, but some how that will not be the same. I have no one to blame but myself for my haste. I am disappointed with myself. I am certain I will not make that mistake again.

Progress Report: Name Game III- Patti This quilt is 14” X 26” . I am so enjoying this process as it really challenges my design skills when it comes to putting the blocks together. One change in direction can change the whole movement of the work. I like all the texture of the raw edges too as they seem to add a different type of movement to the final work. There is also the challenge of using letters as a starting point because the shapes of letters involve strait lines and curves in ways I do not think of drawing usually. This shot is of the work before I cut it into pieces. I am dreaming of a new challenge using more then one name. This could add to the spice of the project.

Vernal Equinox This work is 22” X 25”. I call this building process fabric collage. I used lots of fabric textures in this work. There are velvets, valures, satins, cottons, corduroys, and brocades here. The wading and folding adds its own texture to the end product too. I was trying to fill the surface with visual interest and I feel it was successful.

Running RedI am to the quilting stage of this project so I am only showing a detail this week. I used the pattern on the red silk as my inspiration for that quilting pattern. As it is turning out the double knit on the old table cloth( on the left here) has some woven patterns in it that are similar to the swirls of the silk pattern.

Make Visible is the title I have chosen for this new work. I spent and afternoon with Susan last summer trying out all her mark making tools and in doing that I wrote lots of different quotes. I had pulled out a bunch of fabric last week and this piece seemed to go with one of the collections. This shot shows how I star the assembly of this type of quilt. I lay out were I want the big blocks and then I begin to fill in the spaces around them to create the top using 2.5 ” and 1″ strips.

Flag- Spring Grass I got a call from Susan this week. She too is struggling with this flag challenge that we created. We agreed that for both of us, starting with the central image or center of interest first- is not the way either of us works. I am not comfortable filling in around the graphics we are both working with. But I will persist as that is how growth takes place. I only finished this one this week. I am still struggling with the text as a part of this challenge too.

Label Block The beat goes on with this project.

Keep Creating

Carol

Diva Meetings, Label Blocks, Name Game, Patti, Running Red, Whip Shock Hill #2

Spring Effects

April 9, 2015 admin

Hello,

I will admit that the weather and the sight of spring flowers does effect me. I have been on real “start new” push of late. I have also been a little upset with one of my pieces- but more on that later. This week was the Diva meeting and I was very excited as I have not been to one sense Oct. The winter has been a bad one and it really kept me home. But before the meeting Cheri, Noel and I went to see Alice’s show of her accordion fabric books in down town Ithaca. They looked wonderful on the walls. There were several I had never seen and so I am glad we made the effort to go and check the show out. There was lots and lots of new work at the Diva meeting too .Alice is getting ready for the Spring Art Trail and so she had this pillow among other things to share. This one along with several others that will be for sale on the trail.

One of the things that Lorrie does, is deep layered hand work and this is the one she is currently working on. She builds so many stitches on top of organza and other fabrics to create great depth. A different sort of collage fabric effect.

Cheri is doing wonderful canvas work were she starts with freezer paper masks and builds paint layers on top and then stitches by hand and machine on top. The layering is amazing to me. Like me, she always has many things going at the same time and this spider ( in progress) is and example of her 3-D work. I had given her the fabric that she used for the legs and body and I think that is why she brought it along. Liese did this soft “Island Garden “ as her entry for a garden completion. The plants that she stitched are ones that could grow under the sea/ tide/ wet conditions of the area. Quilting can expand your horizons in unusual ways.

Anne had this specular work to share too. I really enjoy how she cuts up her photo graphics to use as strong jumping off points for her work. I find this piece wonderful!

Noel showed us several works and among them were these two quilts for the Rainbow Challenge for the Tow Path Quilt Guild. These two along with 22 others will be on display next week end at the guild show in the Manilas Library. Ruth has finished her quilt about Kemo Treatment and it is wonderful. I am sorry that my photo of the full work is not sharp enough to post- but this close up shows how powerful her stitching is. She has such strong skills.

Then Wednesday, I went and spent the day playing at Batik with my friend Ethel. We had a grand time and I now have six new pieces that will be starting off places for more work. She has a wonderful piece on the pin wall and I took a shot of it too. She uses her hand dyes so very well. I have been watching this one develop over the course of this year. She keeps moving the pieces about as she develops the idea.

Progress Report: Whip Shock Hill II This work has given me a mix of emotions this week. I had worked so carefully on mimicking the photo and I liked that portion of the work. I am done with the stitch work and all the textures are down. But- it does not work for me at all! So I roll it up on Friday and decided to take it to the Diva meeting and ask for help. I am so very glad I did! One can easily get trapped in there own head and not “see” how to get out ad solve a problem. When I put this work on the wall next to Whip Shock Hill I the group could see it was not working too. But they helped with an easy suggestion. Flip the new piece and add it to the other side. I love the results and I can now add the sleeve and complete the set.

New Start All the frustration I was feeling about Whip Shock Hill and the effects of spring pushed me to pull materials for a new work. I think all of these fabrics play well together and will make a nice piece. It will be my next project.

New Start Running Red I pulled these fabrics at the same time. I created the red and white fabric in the Deconstructed Screen Class last fall and I really wanted to use it so I started with that stack. There is some silk kimono and taffeta in this work too. I think the frustration I was feeling also effected me a bit so I wanted to do something that I felt sure about. It is coming along nicely now.

Name Game III- Patti This is how this work looks before I started to cut it up. A little planning will help the next time I do this technique. And that planning is in the size of the work. I was so concerned with getting the letters to fit that I was not careful with the size of the base. In the last two pieces I stared with 22” squares and made 5.5” squares when I cut up the two layers. This time I made the base 24 “ and had to make 4.5” squares and I lost some of the image from each row because it did not cut down to even units. One needs to make the mistakes to grow. I then pinned the blocks to the pin wall And stated arranging them. That step took a while and I took many photos of the many layouts as I went along. This is the one I settled on. Now I will join them and quilt them together.

Ribbon Work This work is growing slowly. This is a case were not having a per plan may get me in lots of trouble as I go forward. I have been just adding one hour’s worth of work on at a time. But at this point I have no feeling for were I need to go next. So I am just looking at the work.

Label Block 3
The hand work goes on with my evening TV work.

Keep Creating

Carol

Foundations Series, Heart of Gold, Label Blocks, Patti, Relaxed Energy, Scrap Happy Quilts, Vernal Equinox, Whip Shock Hill #2

Spring

April 2, 2015 admin

Hello,

The trees are still bare, but the sun is shinning and I have spotted several Robins while I have been out of doors, and I even ate my lunch out side today. This shot not only shows the tree but is also shows an aspect of line. A line can change its thickness as well as it’s direction. The more I pay attention to lines the more I am aware of how vestal they are. Lines can be used to express a wide array of emotions. They can be sad, nervous , silly angry, graceful, calm, excited and dancing to name a few. Our culture uses them to communicate with words and images. They are every were when one starts to look for them.

I made Easter Cards one day this week. I took a heavy card stock and on top of that I placed ribbons, yarn and plastic twist. I kept the pallet limited to light spring like colors and then stitched in many directions across the surface to attached the materials. When I felt that the surface was strong enough I cut out the egg shapes. I added pipe cleaner ears and a pome-pome tail to create little rabbits. Then I glued them down to the cards were I had drawn some grass with a green marker. I did leave some of the eggs as just eggs and glued them into nests so I had two different cards. I had a good time and I hope my friends enjoyed my spring fling.

Progress Report: Whip Shock Hill II I am still working away on this piece. I like adding all the texture to the surface of the work. It makes for nice soft color changes is some areas. I am sure I will complete this piece this week.

Scrap Happy 6 &7 The only thing I needed to do to complete this quilt this week was add the binding. That takes me about an hour. This one has center blocks that are all in grays and black and whites, with a few center blocks that have browns in them.

I also completed Scarp Happy # 7. This one has deep red center blocks and gray center blocks. The scale of the prints is much smaller than # 6 so it is not nearly as busy.

Verna Equinox This is the newest piece using the Fabric Collage technique. I am trying to add lots of different fabric textures along with the wrinkle and wad stuff that I have been working on. This piece has cotton, valure, taffeta, silk, double knit, organza, grow grain ribbon, and wide whale corduroy in it. The fabrics alone are lots of textures. I hope I can make it work.

Name Game III – Patti This shot shows the first cut from the brown and gray fabric. The top image is the negative in brown and the bottom image is the positive in brown. I have been very careful in my documentation of this process this time and I will put up a tutorial of the process this next week. Hopefully I will be finished with the work too.

Ribbon Work I stared this new piece trying to play with the same ribbon application technique that was on a piece of red fabric that Susan gave me. The process is slow and I cannot seem to work with the closeness the example has– but I do like the effect. My ribbon is much wider then the example. I am still trying to stay true to my New Years resolution of not purchasing any thing new so I will continue to work with the ribbons I have here.

Flags: Heart of Gold I am continuing on the Susan’s Flag Challenge. This week I tackled the purple stencils. Susan did the rib cage that is on this work. I added more color with various fabric markers. The heart is a small bit of gold fabric that was remaindered from some other project as it was just pinned to the wall.

Flags: Relaxed Energy This is my purple stencil. I selected this pose from Susan’s book because I was surprised that many of the exercises that the physical therapist gave me for my back are also Yoga poses. I added a beautiful glittered nylon net that Susan had purchased in Mexico and given me as a part of this flag. I was also thinking about negative space when I made the stencil and when I cut away some of the netting.

Label Blocks 1 &2 I need to have a hand work project for my evenings. So I stated doing these label blocks again. I did my last label quilt in 1988. Some of the labels I am using are left overs form those works. But I will soon be using only current labels. They are much harder to find now because many labels are printed on the fabric as apposed to added units. If you have any you can send them my way.

Enjoy the days as they get longer and warmer.

Keep Creating ,

Carol

Flag Challenge, Lexi, Magic, Name Game, Spring Onion, Whip Shock Hill #2

Mud Puddle Luscious

March 26, 2015 admin

Hello,

My world is headed toward spring. I heard and then saw geese flying north yesterday on my walk. Today it is raining and I am reminded of a line from an e e cummings poem were he described spring rain as creating a world that is “ mud puddle luscious and the goat footed balloon man wanders far and wee” . I will not be walking today for that reason- too much mud in every direction. This week has been as full Saturday I went to a play day were all sorts of things were going on. Noel and I worked on making puppet heads out of paper Mache’. Some folks painted like Annie while others sew on quilt projects and dolls.

At noon we had a little show and tell were June showed off this fun doll. She was working on it the last time we got together. I like the use of the antique wood block as the front of the body. The hair is cool too.

This quilt is a group challenge project by the Modern Quilters. Each person go the same colors and the background fabric. They all made a row that they then assembled. Marie showed us what she has started last time too from the online class she is taking called 100 Sheets of Cheep Paper. This is one of the works she did.

The Social Art Club had a art show this week and the work was wonderful. This piece is a fiber work by Kathleen Simpson. I displayed my chickens as a part of the table decorations for that affair.

I gave two quilts to my local Public TV Station this morning. One was one of those Scrap Happy that I have been working on sense January and the second was Golden Weeds. I will be watching the auction and hoping to see the sales of both works.

This is also the time of year that

Quilt Surface Design Association calls for donations for their auction so I did a work for that too.

This work is a small 12″ X 12 “. Easy Flow is ready in the box for shipping and I will go to the post tomorrow and send it off.

Progress Report: Name Game II – Lexi, For this quilt I used my Grand Daughter’s nick name as my starting point. I used the same sew and cut method that I employed last week with Carol. The big change this time was that background fabric was a plaid taffeta and that added a different design problem. I did the quilting on the background just like before with silver thread. This time I also made the work bigger before I cut it into blocks. As a result I have squares that I did not use for this quilt so there may be a smaller one later. I want to try this type of construction one more time so I can try for a writing text instead of a printed letter form.

Whip Shock Hill II This work is to be a partner with the first Whip Shock Hill and is based on a second shot of the same rock face just further north. This images is a close up as I do not think the full work is very interesting at this point.

Susan’s Flag Challenge: Spring Onion Susan and I both have a dozen flags with the same images on them. How we choose to finish the works will be a fun comparison study when we get together again in June. There is crayon drawing on this work and some beads were added to represent soil under the plants. I learned that one can not add stamped letters over a seam and get a smooth image with this project. The word onion had to be stamped on a second cloth and added on top. Experimenting with new materials and methods is one of the goals of this challenge. The stamped letters on fabric is a new thing for me.

Flag Challenge- Magic This flag uses my stencil of hands . I added the crayon drawing of the swirls and stars then pressed the fabric. I then washed the whole thing in the blue. My test this time was done with magic marker.

New work This work is the next one in the fabric collage series . There is not a stitch on this one yet- just lots and lots of pins. It will morph and change as the stitching and addition of ribbon, yarn and paper goes forward. I look forward to working on this one.

Keep Creating

Carol

Canyon de Chilly, Carol, Flag Challenge, Hand work, Lexi, Memory Map Quilts, Nail Castings, Name Game Quilts, Whip Shock Hill #2

Warming up

March 19, 2015 admin

Hello,

We are starting to see the melting of the snow around here. It is beautiful in its own way. But it can become very dirty and discolored before its gone. With the longer days I find myself spending more time cleaning and sorting. I seem to have the clutter rule of “ One thing in one thing out” well under control in my closet and dresser drawers. But that is not the case in my studio. I have piles of stuff all around and I need to do some serious culling. I know that a clean and clear space helps one get going on the creative work and I do love to walk into that sort of setting. But I have been traveling and working with others so much of late, that I have let the materials pile as I rush from one play date to another. I have done a good job a voiding going out and spending money on new supplies and materials however. I have kept my spending sense January at less then $35. Not bad for two and a half month I think. But it is the gifting of stuff from those friends that is getting me into trouble. I did spent yesterday with my friend Ethel doing screen dye printing. It was great to play with the rich colors. Now I have all the rinsing and washing to do today. She also gave me a couple of yards of white duck…… I am hopeless!

I did work a little on the Challenge Project Susan and I started in Florida. I added a blue wash to this piece and think I have decided on the text that I want to add. I can already see that the word part of this challenge will be the most difficult for me. I plan to add some beads tomorrow when I go to see my friends at Turquoise Street studio.

Progress Report: Nail Castings This project started as a result of finding the white plastic units that hold nails in electronic nail guns. I was fascinated by the shapes of the things. I have enjoyed working away with thread out of Grandmother Ruth’s needle basket and exploring differenttypes of stitches.

Name Game 1-Carol Now I know I say that words are not my strong suit- but I do love the shapes of letters and the spaces around them. To build this top I first printed out my name in very large letters. 22″ tall and 22” wide in fact. Then I stitched around the letters and cut away the negative space. I stitched the negative spaces shapes to a second pieces of light blue that was also 22” X 22”. I found that the letters them selves created units of the turquoise that were too big. So I cut just inside the stitch lines and then added those new shapes to the negative space piece on the second fabric. Next I cut both pieces of fabric into 5.5” squares and began playing with the blocks. Some I turned side ways or even upside down, always paying attention to the relationships of one square to the ones next to it. This play part took me a long time and several days. When I was happy with it I sewed the blocks together. This is such a fun and challenging design project I started a second as soon as I had the top all assembled.

Name Game II – Lexi This second top went a lot faster as I knew were I thought I was going. I made this one more complex by using a plaid taffeta for the background fabric. I also made more blocks and will not use all of them in this project. I think this will create a stronger piece in the end. In this shot some of the blocks are sewn to one another.

Memory Map- Canyon de Chilly I added the Spider Women’s Towers to this project. I really enjoy working on these Memory Map projects, but they as all very slow in there development. The ruins are also attached now too.I am still trying to decide what other elements I want to add to the work.

Whip Shock Hill II I want to enter a show where one needs two quilts that relate to one another. I have been thinking about how much I enjoyed the work on Whip Shock Hill. The first project shows less then half of the hill so I though I would use this challenge to do the second half. This is just the roughed out

Whipshock Hill Foundations XXI 44" X 35" — Whipshock Hill Foundations XXI
44″ X 35″

stage. But I do not think I have shown this step before when it comes to these type of collage projects that I do. The base fabric is only pinned to the buckrum at this point and no stitching has been applied. This second shot is of the first piece.

I am keeping myself busy as the Spring season gets going.

Keep Creating,

Carol

Boiling Point, Carol, Fabric Collage Constructions, FAD (Fiber Art Dames), Hand work, Nail Castings, Name Game, Owl

Florida Holiday

March 11, 2015 admin

Hello,

I am home from a week in Gulfport Florida. I really enjoyed the new sceanry . There was so much to look at my eyes could hardly take it all in! From the shore with lots of bird forms to the sky and the plant life- I was a shooting fool when it came to taking pictures. I just love how this split pine looks and I am sure it will turn up in some work at some time. Then there was all the art. We went to a show of work by Geoffrey Gorman. He builds wonderful found object sculptures of animals and birds that include wire and canvas that he has aged with rust. His work was wonderful.

Susan took me to an opening at the Florida CraftArt Gallery, where both Oiseau Sisters had pieces. This shot shows Susan with her birds. She and I played in the studio every day. I did Gelli prints with Lora on Tuesday. I used one as a base when we went to drawing on Wed eve. Susan and I designed and then started a flag project. We each made six stencils and printed two of each. These are my images. At the end of the week we traded one of each of our images for one of each of the other person’s works. Now we will both work on the flags as we see fit and when we meet again at the June Diva meeting we will compare how each of us has altered all the images. We designed it to be an open exploration project- trying new materials and techniques. It will be fun I think.

I worked away all week on this owl stitchery project. It is nearly complete now. I had intended to work on a piece that I brought form home, but I did not do a stitch on it. The first day Susan pulled out one of her bins of fabric and I got inspired. Something about some one else’s materials I suppose.

Tuesday was a FAB meeting and after a month of not seeing folks we had a lot to talk about. Nancy is making great progress on her bed quilt( this shot shows the center section folded up as it is all the stripes. ) Now she will build more images on top.

Progress Report: Boiling Point

Boiling Point 16" X 20" $225.00 — Boiling Point
16″ X 20″
$225.00

This project went together quickly just before I left. I am still using the fabric collage technique that I used with the Foundations Series, but it not based on any stone this time. I also did all the work on canvas this time and then stretched it around to the back of the stretcher bars before tacking. This first close up is near the center of the work. I used red, rust, gray and dark green velvet in this work as well as satin and silk fabrics. The more I play with the layering and folding of the various fabrics the more I enjoy the process. This second shot is near the middle on the right. A little copper paint adds fun.

Raw edges here add another texture to the mix,

Name Game 1- Carol I cut the work into 6″ square and then reassembled it. I am only going to show this close up this week because the only step that remains for completion is the facings and I will complete them for next week.

Owl I am showing the completed owl that I did in Florida as I am going to send it off to the framers this week and shooting through glass is as strong as a strait shot. I really enjoyed working on this. I tried lots of varieations on the fly stitch on this work. The vanes in the leaves are fly stitches all connected to one another. The tree bark is that same stitch on its side and interlocked with its neighbor. The wing tip is shown here and it is made from a pair of textured panty hose. The pin feathers on the chest are woven copper ribbon that has been tacked down with open fly stitches. The claws are made from fake leather that was frapped. The found objects that started this whole work are the chroched rings that are the whites of the eyes. The orange is a bit of bias tape and the black is a sequin held in place with a french knot. The beak is created from the same fake leather as the claws.

Memory Map- Canyon de Chelly I am still strugling with with were this project is going. But I feel closer then before. Adding Spider Women’s towers ( on the left) will help anchor the work I think.

Nail Castings

I am still fasinated by the shapes of these plastic parts. I enjoyed tacking them down with lots of different types of stitches. the shapes just tickled me.

Keep Creating

Carol

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All posts by admin

Travel Log

Spring advancement

Buds Opening

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Spring Effects

Spring

Mud Puddle Luscious

Warming up

Florida Holiday

Creative Fiber Collage Artist Carol Boyer