Category Archives: Drawing

End of September

Hello,

I can’t quite believe we are at the end of this month.  The time seems to be flying by.    Fall mushrooms are appearing in yard now.  I so enjoy coming across these little treasures.  This one, although not colorful as the many orange yellow ones or the white puff balls I see scattered across my lawn, I find specially dear.   Perhaps that is because of the splits that are signs of ageing and growth or because of the scale changes in color.  I am not sure, but I am enchanted.   It’s like a faded flower in some way too.

This week was busy with a FAD  and Pixie meetings.   Judy is busy working away on small quilts to use up her fabric stash.

 

 

 

 

I also made progress on my work for the Joyous Embroidery class.    Fleur Woods gave us lots of ways to add texture to our work this week.     Making Pompons was one of them.  I tried doing it with out the tool first and that is were the big ones came from.  Then yesterday I got the tool at Michaels  and those pompons are much better.     she also suggested that we do some free crochet  to make little mounds or tuffs.   I think I need to keep playing with that idea.   She is inspiring me a lot however.

Progress Report: Imagine    This quilt is 32″ w X 53″ t.      It is the last of the split compliment pieces.  I have some other ideas of projects using the many yards of solids that Liz gave me, but not with color study being the emphasis.   I have learned a lot about color doing these exercises.  And I have learned a bit about quilting too.

 

 

 

 

Ethel Scrap project   I just keep working away on these bits and pieces building more and more 5″ squares.

 

 

Basket    I joined the SAQA Strolling along challenge again and so I am putting in an hour every other day on this project.  It takes me about 40 min for every trip around the out side at this point.  I am on row three of the build up of the sides.

 

 

 

Lap #15  I alternating  the  work  on  the  basket  with  work  on  a lap  quilt.  This  one  is  extra  long   because  I  making it for my cosine  Mike who is over  6 ft tall.     It is pin basted now and I will start to quilt it later today.

 

 

 

Lap # 17    Seeing that I will soon finish # 15, I pulled these fabrics for the next one this week.

 

 

 

Blue Sea- Felt  I made seahorses I made last week were too dark for this work so I made new ones.    They are still dark, but they do work  on the surface  of the project.

 

I will add eyes and stretch it and move on I hope.    There is another work down the road using the seahorses that did not work for this project too.

 

 

 

Drawing.    I did not do a collage this week , but I did draw these dragon flies and frog instead.

Enjoy the cooling  weather and changing color.

 

Carol

Moving Along

Hello,

Fall seems to be a time of lots of action. I continue to be in my clean the nest mode and I finally got to the fabric stash this week.    I sure have a lot of raw material.   I have been putting in and hour  plus  every day  this week and I am a long way from done.   It is good to put all the like stuff together and I am sure I will be glad when the job is done.  It is just that progress is slow at this point.    The desk is totally covered, so there is not turning back until the job is done.

      I helped hang the Associated Artists Show on Saturday .    My good buddy  Barbara won Best of Show this year for this dramatic piece of pastel work.

Carol  A was also a part of this show  with a new metal piece.

 

 

 

One of the newer members,  is doing this wonderful high relief fabric sculpture too.   She told me there is no thread work involved   just ticking the self designed  and printed fabric into a sold backing.     I need to consider this process a bit.

 

 

 

I entered Wildfire in Whisky Hallow for this show.   Liz add two great little drawings, but my shot of them is blurry.

 

 

 

 

FAB meant this week as did the Pixies.  I did a Mud Dobber for my insect this time.

 

 

 

I did the Joyful Embroidery class this week too.  We painted fabric for a color base as the assignment this week.

 

 

 

 

Progress Report  Scrap assembly   I will add another strip to all the little parts later today and cut more squares from them tomorrow.  It is just at the building stage now.

Split Compliment Green  I am building away on this project.  It  is proving to be a challenge and although the progress is slow, I do enjoy it.

 

 

 

 

Handwork   I worked away on this project through the many zoom meetings I had this week as well as at the FAD meeting.  I  seem to need to keep my hands busy.

I hope everyone is enjoying cooler weather as fall builds strength.

Keep Creating

Carol

 

 

 

Beginning Fall

  Hello,

The moon was full last week and already it is waning to less then half- the time is flying.     Because I spent 32 years of my life teaching School and  fifteen years before that attending school, I always see Labor Day as the start of fall and new beginnings.    My life is full of everchanging patters as are most folks.

It has been a busy week for me starting with the opening of the Members’ show at the Schweinfurth last Friday evening.  It was glorious and full of the work of many friends.

The Quilt Divas were well represented with this work by Thresa  as a starter.

 

 

 

 

 

Mary presented one of her African pieces.

 

 

 

 

My old fellow art teacher, Carol, entered one of her metal sculptures.   I love the shadows here too.

 

 

 

 

 

Victoria  showed a wonderful new conglomerate sculptures .  She always dose such delicate work.

 

 

 

 

Liz was proud of her quilt too and was asked to explain  her process by  a passing visitor.

 

 

 

 

 

There was also a Diva meeting this week were Barb shared her hand dyed pieces from QBL.

 

 

 

Alice showed off her newest quilt too.

 

 

 

 

 

  I am at week three of  the Joyful Embroidery  Class.  We were introduced to the teachers favorite stitches this week.  Because I like to work big  I did two  a samplers along with the class.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The pixies also got together on Zoom this week.  They all survived the hurricane with mostly downed frons and small branches.  The storm  came a shore  north of them.   This is my newest collage with a Katydid as my insect.   We seem to be staying with the insect thee for a while longer.

Progress Report: Earth Works    I think I am done with this work, but I can’t decide what way is up so I can’t add a sleeve.   I did tap Sharon’s  brain as to how to get a good frayed edge on the piece, but I had already done the quilting so I could not use her method.  But it is good to know there is more than one way to do it.

The blue lines on top are adapted from the tangle of power cords on the floor of my class room at QBL.

 

 

  Ethel Scrap  I came across the box full of scraps that Ethel had started.  I think most of the strips she originally cut have be incorporated by now and I am working with mostly my own narrow units, but I have decided  to push forward and complete several more bed quilts with her stuff.    These are the  Mini squares  that I completed this week.

Felted project   I started working on the top layer of this project this week.  First I made some thread painted/roving fish in the method we explored in Amanda’s class at QBL.   ( the little blue ones at the bottom)  After cutting them out, I cut some bigger ones from some of the metallic fabric that Noel gave me.    I am so lucky to have such generous friends. Then I made the sea weed  from some metallic yarn in the stash.    It is ready for some stitch down and additions I think.

New Split Compliment    Marty kindly gave me the beautiful red yellow fabric I was looking for to start this last of the Split Compliment projects.   I though I would try some additional shapes with it too.  In the past I have used the precut curves as my start, but there were none of them among the colors I am using this time.

 

Linen Shirt     I am still working away on adding handwork to this shirt.  It  got lost and the time to wear it is almost over.   So I am pushing forward on the area around the neck.

 

Handwork   I listed to the SAQA lecture on Wed and worked on finishing up this bit of hand work at that time.

 

 

 

As the days grow shorter and the weather cools I am sure I will put in more time on my art.

Keep Creating

Carol

 

Moving Along

 Hello,

Summer is moving along and the world here continues to stay green and lively.  While I was trimming the hedge on the west side of our house I spotted these tiny mushrooms.    The are like little beads.

This week I had two meetings.   The Quilt Diva’s meant on Tue.  It was a lively meeting with lots of great work.

Alice shared more of her bottom line works.

 

 

Tis is her thirteenth piece in this on going series.   

 

Cheri has now finished her piece for the “Together We Move Forward ” challenge.     I like her solution.

 

 

 

The Pixies also meant this week.  Our challenge for this month is to do work with letters.  This is my solution  for the first week.

 

 

 

 

 

Progress Report: Prepared  I have now started to quilt this project.  All the purple areas are done and I and now doing meander quilting on the yellow orange and yellow green areas.

Scrap Happy   I am now building the scrappy back for this quilt.    I am really using up my leftovers.

 

 

 

 

Blue Beach    This work is now complete. It is very heavy  with all those buttons.

 

 

 

 

 

Handwork   I am now doing a new handwork project as Blue Beach is done.

 

 

 

 

 

Felting   I only put in a mi mum amount of time on this project this week.

 

 

 

 

 

 

New work     Well, I have good intentions here.   Hopefully I will get  going soon.  It will be another lap quilt.   Only a few more pieces from the  SAQA 100 Day Challenge left.

 

 

I will be going off to Quilting by the Lake this week so there will not be any posts for two week.  I am looking forward to seeing old friends and getting some new ideas.

Stay safe

Carol

 

Crazy Weather

Hello,

Mother Nature sure has put us through our paces this week.    We had these ice balls one morning and   then we had a 70 degree day.     The warmth  sure has pushed the buds to open on the trees  and the flowers as well.     There is a bit of a cozy feel as the trees become more and more solid with leaves.   One can only dress in layers to remove as the day goes forward.   The sun is around longer too and not setting until after 8 in the evening.  It is a time of change!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Associated Arts meat on Saturday and  we had a workshop on Artist Trading Cards.    I had a good time and did not want to stop when we got to the  end of the  meeting. My only other meeting this week  was with the Pixies  and that was good as well.

Progress Report: Analyze   This work is 34″ w X 44.5″ t.  It is the first in the Split Complement series.      I did all the quilting in a  blue metallic thread with a zig zag stitch. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Circulating ( formerly Fractured)   This is the second in the Split Complement series.   Liz kindly gave me a lot of solids that she had left over from  her bulls eye quilts.  That means there are lots of curved pieces.   I find it fun to sue them as a starting place.      Therefor I have changed the title as I am concentrating on curves and I really can’t thing of anything that fractures in curves at all.    Red is the primary and yellow green and blue green are the other  colors.  I seem to have lost my emphasis on red with this one.

Circus Grounds   The 100 Day SAQA challenge ended on Monday.  This it the last work that I started as a part of that challenge.  The top got completed Monday.  It got pin based  and I have done a lot of the stitch in the ditch work at this point.   Now I  need to fill in with some fun quilting.

 

 

 

Take Off  This is a curve cut project.     I am just about ready to add the birds.   I am using Inktense  colored pencils to add the detail colors here.

 

Blue Beach     I just steadily add more buttons to this project.  It is getting a bit heavy and I need to pay attention so it hangs strait.

 

 

 

 

Scrap   After discovering another box of units, I am finishing up the  cutting of the strips.     I am sewing the strips together now and making what I call wheels of 2.5″  strips .

 

 

 

 

= Voice  The Quilt Diva’s have a new group project.   We are building series of units that will hang together for Together Women Rise.   We will build our independent sections with lots of limits so they work together and can be auctioned as sections or independently.    I  have started and made one of my sections.    I plan to cut this up.

 

Drawing    I did a little drawing this week.   I admired one of the gals work in the SAQA challenge and I tried some similar stuff this week.  She started her work with a bit of paper, then did some paint on top and drew on top of that.   I did have fun with this formula, but mine do not look at all as strong as her work was.

I hope you are enjoying the change of season and being a bit creative too.

Carol

April 2023

Hello,

There were lots of meetings this week as it is the first week of the month.  The QuEGs  had a Zoom meeting and although the attendance was low we had a good time.  The Diva’s had a real productive meeting too.

This is Ann’s  piece based on her trip to Yellowstone last summer.

 

 

This is Cheri’s work for the up coming show at the Unitarian Church in Ithaca.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Noel is honoring her grandmother with this piece as the gloves were created by that lady.

 

 

 

Next is the work of  Terri

 

 

 

 

 

I love this felted work that was then cut up and put back together again.   The artists is Denise.

 

 

 

 

 

The Pixies had there usual meeting yesterday as well.  This fun painting is by  Laura.

 

 

 

 

 

I continue to do the SAQA challenge and I am now working on a piece I call  Circus Parade.    I also listened to the SAQA Lecture yesterday.

 

 

 

 

 

Sketchbook Revival is over as far as presenting new material, but I am still playing catch up.  This portrait was directed by Irene Ruby.

 

 

 

 

This water color fox  was directed by Tamora Laporte.   This is the second year she has been a part of this program.

 

 

 

 

 

Progress Report: Imagine Purple    This work is 37″ w X 44″ t.   It is the last of the monochromatic series.   I  have learned a lot about color doing this group of pieces and they do look good together.

The metallic inserts were a fun addition as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tigers in the Ring  I am quilting circles on this project.   It is one of the SAQA 100 day works .   I place the paper circles on the surface were I think they are needed and then machine quilt around them.  I am using the for different sizes as you can see to add interest.

Blue Beach    I just keep stitching away at this project.   I got lots of positive feed back on it at the Pixie meeting  as I was stitching on it during our Zoom meeting.

 

New Work   Sense I finished the monochromatic series, I have decided to try some Split Compliments.   This is the first one using primary blue and yellow orange and red orange.   I am using the shades and tints of the all of the colors too.

 

 

 

Stay Safe and Keep Creating

Carol

Longer Sun Filled Days

Hello,

The natural world is responding to the longer sun lit days.  It is wonderful to hear so many birds and see so much green on our walks.     I do not mind it being light until after dinner time either.

There was an Associated  Artists meeting this week and we had a  demonstration.  Her trick is to use that fiber” spider wed” stuff that one can purchase at Halloween to attract the paint on the surface.  She then rubs the fiber off the surface and the lines of paint remain.   I asked for and she gave me the fibers and they were the start of a new felted piece for me.

 I think it will be a new nebula thing of some sort.

 

 

 

 

 

There was also a Pixie meeting and the Sisterhood of the  had a great zoom meeting even though there were only four of us.  Scissors.

I keep working away on the 100 Day SAQA challenge stuff too.  I started a new top yesterday using the Tiger print as my jumping of point.

 

 

My wonderful and  generous  friend, Liz, passed forward lots of beautiful solids to me too.   They were in storage, so now I have a lot of laundry to do.  I see that as a chance to really get to know what treasures she has given me and I can  sort of plan my next projects.

 

 

The spring Sketchbook Revival started on Monday.  I love the little challenges it provides- but that is usually about 2 hours a day to complete the drawings.    I like the starch  it provides me.

As a result I did not spend as much time in the studio as usual, but I am still working.

Progress Report: Collection Greens   This is the total top for this next 100 Day Project.   I did start the quilting using free motion yesterday.

 

 

 

 

This step will go quickly I think  and I hope to finish it this week.

 

 

 

 

 

Blue Beach   I am still adding buttons to the surface here.  I also did finish all the work on all 20  Creative Assistants as my second hand work this week.   No photo of that project as it is all put away for the next QBL already.

 

 

 

Imagine Purple    I finally finished all the hand work on this project on Monday.  I started the machine quilting to fill in all the spaces between the running stitch lines.  There is lots of stop and go on this step so the going is slow.

I hope you are enjoying spring and staying safe.

Keep Creating

Carol

 

Into the New Year

Hello,

I hope the new year is treating you well.   I am moving forward with my many projects and working hard to prepare for my solo show that I will hang on the 14 of Jan.      I spent Tuesday judging for the Scholastic Art competition.  I helped judge Film and Animation this year.    There are lots of great  programs going on and the work was strong.

The Pixies meant on Wed.  I am playing with the new markers that Laura sent me  and shared my image’s with that group. 

The FAD group also meant this week.   Sharon generously gave all of us one of her hand made scarves.   She also shared her newest work in progress.   We had a good time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am doing a five day drawing challenge as well and enjoying that too.   It is good to stretch out those mussels some times.   The assailment for this one was ” Bunny,  Flower”.

 

 

 

 

I stopped at my friend, Barbara’s to drop off a lap quilt for her and she surprised me with a gift too.  She gave me two boxed of her fabric to use or pass on.  What fun.

Progress Report: Forbidden Fruit    I keep stitching away on the extension of the curves that I built into the work.   I am moving along , but it is slow.

 

 

 

 

Blue Horizons    This work is all layered and pin basted.  I did stitch in the ditch quilt in  a few places, but it has not gotten any attention beyond that this week.

 

 

 

Presume   I got going on the mono chromatic color scheme thing with greens this week.  Most of the units are built now and I only need to put them together  so I can move to the next step.

 

 

 

Creative Assistants  I did lots of faces this week and added the backs and arms to those little dolls.  They are turned and stuffed now too so I can add the squeezie paint to them today and  then the pin backs.   All the body bases now have their trim so I can move onto the hair step with them now.

Scrape assembly   I just keep putting in the hour a day on this step of this project.  I can see that there is less in the basket- but it still seems very slow work to me.

 

Handwork   I did a little handwork during a Zoom meeting this week and this is the result.  I think it will go off to the Rochester 6″ X6″ show later this year.

 

 

I hope that the new year is only presenting the types of challenges you want to deal with.

Keep Creating

Carol

Beginning of Fall

Hello,

It is September and I see that as the start of fall after so many years  of beginning the school year at this time.   This milkweed seems to be agreeing with me as it has started to change its summer color for the fade of fall.  The seed pods look good.

I had a mixed week with only the Pixie meeting this week, and a Dentist an Dr appointments.

The big event was a field trip with the Sisterhood of the Scissors yesterday.  We me meant at   the Memorial Art Gallery on the University of Rochester Campus.   The show was Ubuhale, and it was of seed bead work from seven women from an area in South Africa.     The works were all large mostly  8 Ft by 10 ft and all done with beads.    By the end of the show one could easily identify the work of each artist.

 

 

This gal did not mix her bead colors much, but I love the effects she got.

 

 

 

This woman liked trees and even in her work with the cattle she had a tree as part of the composition.

 

 

All the works took about a year to produce and they were specular!

We all went away  happily inspired.

 

Progress Report: Coy Fish    I finished the binding on this work yesterday evening  and I am now ready to begin the hand detailing.  I did the applique with a metallic thread and a gold colored thread both fed through a big eyed needle.

 

 

 Frenzy   I have built all the fish I want to use on this piece.   But in taking this photo I realize they really do not work for what I wanted to say.    Back to the drawing board…

 

 

 

Reaching    I added the spider web and have started on the leaf forms here.

 

 

 

 

 

Hand Out  I haves started to stitch down the leaf shapes on this one.

 

 

 

 

 

Three Witches   I keep filling in the hand stitching on this piece.   Again the photo helps me see were I need to add more shadows.

 

 

 

 

Drawing    This is the drawing for the third witch.  I think she strikes the correct note for the work.

 

 

 

 

 

Lap Quilt    I have done all the stitch in the ditch work here and I am now adding free motion work in the big areas.

 

 

Cut away blocks    I keep exploring with this technique.  I am doing two blocks every day so this is just a sample.

I hope everyone is enjoying the close of summer and ready for a new school year.   Stay safe.

Keep Creating

Carol

 

 

Busy Summer Time

Hello,

  As the title suggests I have had a full week.    I ran the Finger Lakes Fiber Artists meeting on Sat.  We had a lot to talk about and share.   I am  sharing  this  work of Bev’s because I think  she   took  a real  chance  here  when she burned the edges  of  this  work  with  a blow torch.   The  effect  really  works.

We had a lively and productive meeting.

There was also  a Creative Strength Training on line meeting , a Pixie meeting and a meeting of the Sisterhood of the Scissors.   I have spent a lot of time setting at the computer.    In addition to that I spent a day at the Schweinfurth helping take down the Fiber Arts show on Tue and I went with Sharon up to 1.000 Islands in Clayton on Wed to pick up her art work from the show there.     Its all been very stimulating,  but it sure eats into my studio time.

  Progress Report: Circling Circles   This work is 69″ w  X 64″ l.   I have stitched lots of circles in this piece and feel it is stable at this point.  It is most certainly a bed topper  piece.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spider’s Weds  I am done with the hand work on this piece now.  I think I want to frame it  as it is so very fragile.

 

 

 

 

 

Contemplation    I am all done with the quilting step on this work now.  I started to square it for binding when I realized  that I wanted all the works in this series the same size and I did not know how they would all trim down yet.

Consider  I am almost done with the quilting on this work.   I think I have about one more hour and it will be done.

 

 

Ponder   I have taken a page form my class with Paula for the quilting on this piece.  She called these bump quilted l stitch lines fence posts.

 

 

New Work   I pulled these fabrics for the next lap quilt that I hope to start this week.

 

 

 

 

 

Three Witches    I did this drawing to prepare for the stitching of the second witch.    I have transferred the drawing to the surface and I have started the stitching.   I just keep adding stitches to this.  It is building slowly as hand work always does.

 

 

 

I am enjoying all the activity of summer and hope you are as well.

 

Keep Creating

Carol