Category Archives: FAD (Fiber Art Dames)

3X3, Collections, FAD (Fiber Art Dames), Icarus, Linnen Jacket, Scrap Happy Quilts, The Grandfathers

Birthday Week 2019

Hello,
It was my Birthday this week and Eric got me these beautiful spring flowers a great card and took me to dinner.  I had dessert and ice cream with the FAD gals, some cards from my aunts came in the snail mail, got lots of emails, a great phone call from my daughter and a text from my grand daughter. It was a great day for me.


The FAD gals meant and we had  a good time. Sharon was doing the hem on her quilt – Moon River in the Rain.   I like the way ones’s eye roams across the surface with this quilt.


I made a vow at to try to do a follow up on an idea from one of the magazines I get every month. This month I tried cheese cloth painting from Julie Booth’s article in the April May issue in the  Quilting Arts magazine. It was fun and messy. I was trying to build up some more material for my next wild fire piece. I also just played- something most of us do not spend enough time doing.

 

Progress Report :   Jacket 
I just keep working during the news on this project. I am adding the Turkey work on the last patch. It will be evaluation time again before I know if I am done or not.

 

 

 

 

Tee Shirt Quilt I am now starting to build units with this project. I cut 2.5″ and 4.5″ strips of various blues, browns and greens and connected them to the sides of the squares from the clothing. I do not want the work to have an up or down so I am placing the blocks together with the text reading from both directions. All the small units are built and now I am adding things together.

 

Scarp Happy.     I am done with the assembly of the rows for this   Scarp Happy quilt,  But I am out of the strips of scarps that I use for the edges and boarders.   Here is one of four bags full  leftovers and “cut aways ”  that I have to make those  new strips with.  So I  guess I will have to get going and put some together for this quilt in order to finish it.

  Blue Squares  I was doing a bit of spring cleaning and I came across this stack of 42   squares. I do not remember what my intentions were- but I think I got frustrated when I reached this point because the squares are not all the same size.    After giving it thought, I think I will make 45 more squares using the same theme and put them together as nine patches. I will make them all the same size by cutting down the big ones so everything goes together smoothly.  All the new squares will be this new size to start with too!  I guess this will be my new Daily Practice for a while.

Collections VI I have started stitching a few things to the base on this project. It is not getting much attention at the moment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Icarus I put in a lot of time  in on this work this week. I fused the body and legs to quarter inch batting.  I have done colored pencil  drawing and free motion thread painting on he work to create  the shading. The top half is done. I have stitched down the wings so I am playing with position for the head and trunk at this point. The legs need the thread work before I can trim away the extra  batting and add them to the surface. I am happy with the progress.

 3 X 3 -Circular Thinking 

This is a shot of the back of the work.   I am done with the most of the embroidery work on this piece now and have moved to assembling the rows into a nine patch.     The yellow with the red and blue print is sashing.  The center row shows how the back of the work looks before I fuse a solid print onto it to stabilize the work  and finish it.  There are 27 sides to stitch down to finish this piece.   

Childhood Memories- the Grandfathers This project keeps evolving as I work on it.   I have been looking at slides and photos of when I was a kid  and noticed that mom seems to have dressed me   in  red a lot, so I will use that to help identify me in the works from now on.     As the title suggests this piece is about my grandfathers. Grandpa Howard was my Mother’s father. I remember him always wearing Carhart pants and shirts in forest green. He had a very inquiring mind and a good sense of humor. He helped my parents build three of the four houses that we lived in as I grew up. He was helping Mom on the house in Columbus Junction, Iowa, the year I started Kindergarten. I come home from lunch every day. After eating together he and I would set in the red and silver print chair in our living room  and he would read one chapter of Alice in Wonderland to me before I ran back to school in the afternoon.
Grandpa Merritt was a farmer. Except for Sundays, he always wore gray and white striped overhauls from Oskash and a woven hat. I remember enjoying running in the furrow of the plow behind the tractor. It was a red International Harvester. The feeling of the rich dark earth between my toes and the powerful earth smell always delighted me. I can’t remember how many springs I followed him as he plowed that 160 acre filed, planted it and harvested the bounty when fall came. He lovingly rotated his crops to keep the fields rich too.

Keep Creating
Carol

3X3, Childhood Memories, Core family, FAD (Fiber Art Dames), Mom VI, Scrap Happy Quilts, Sea Stars

Spring Flowers

 

Hello,
It is so nice to walk out the door without boots, gloves and hats.   The early spring flowers are making their appearance in central NY as well . That is always a good sign.


The FAD group meant this week and the talk was lively.  Judy shared her newly completed sweater. She was working away on the next one all during the meeting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sharon has been busy at her machine and she had three quilts to share. This one is a commission where she tried adding pines in the background for the first time.   That layering adds a lot of depth.


Progress Report: 3 X 3 Circular Thinking I finished the last square this week and I am now in the process of connecting all the squares together. The first row of three is stitched.  I now need to go back into the work and add a bit more stitching to complete some of the circles.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sea Stars I have stitched down the stars now and I am on to the coral. I did the coral by machine. The coral is cut from hand made paper that I purchaed at The Art  Store in Rochester last spring.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jacket This work goes forward now that I have a new direction. I have added Turkey Work to three of the patches to integrate them into the jacket. I think it really pushes them back and anchors them too.

 

Icarus Here I am working on creating feathers for the wings. It takes a little over 12 min to do each one, but I think it is worth the effort.    I have created  16 feathers so far.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Collections I keep pining items on the surface as I come across them. I am just about ready to begin stitching on this project.

 

 

Scrap Happy I looked  again at the box of fabric that Angela gave  to me and found more of the fruit  bathers in a much bigger format. So I cut the 4.5 in strips from  it and added the sides. These new blocks  plus the leftovers from the first fruit swimmers  quilt will go together to make a second.

 

 

 

 

Childhood Memories This is a new venture that will be my  weekly project. This square is to introduce the core family characters. The memory connected with this work is one that happened every in our house  every Christmas as I grew up. My parents were married on Christmas eve and my Mom put on her wedding dress on that night every year.  Dad took a photo of my brother Gene and myself in the folds of the gown. I loved the dress as it was a beautiful silk double weave of a star pattern.   When one grows up one dies not realize that every family has its own traditions.   I  was Jr high before I realized no one else’s Mom dressed in her wedding gown on Christmas eve for a yearly photo.    The idea of celebrating an anniversary by dressing in the wedding  gown was just something my family did and it  had nothing to do with Christmas.   What childhood “traditions” where particular to your family?

Next week I will be trying to represent my grandparents in a new machine drawn  collage image.

Keep Creating
Carol

3X3, FAD (Fiber Art Dames), Label Cards, SAQA Blocks, small god, WAVE

Final Day of February

 

IMG_2849Hello,

I know I though that I would not be posting today, but due to the heavy wet show Liz and I stayed home instead of going off to a play day.    Regina said we would try again later in the spring.  IMG_2850     I did take advantage of snow and dyed some this morning .    After the last batch came out so pale I really added more dye this time.    I will post the results next week. FAD meant yesterday and Sharon had a lot to share.  She is doing a commission  of six quilts made from a woman’s clothing .   I’d say it was a big challenge.   This is the first.

Progress Report: Starfish II IMG_2861I continued to work on this second  starfish piece.this week.    The first is all packed and ready to ship to the SAQA auction  some time next week.     I may or may not finish this work any time soon as it is not due until next spring, but I always like to have a little project that I can pick up and work on  if I need some think time.

small god I finally got going on this piece.  It is based on a photo that I took in the museum at Monty Albume on my trip to Oaxaca.  I have drawn out all the patterns  and now need to cut  them out in fabric  and applique them on top.

IMG_2855Wave  I am ready to start a new text piece.   The word pattern is done( the white with green lines)  and I made all these blue and aqua curie cut sections to cut the words from.

3 X 3 A-3  Tuesday I finished this block.   So I moved  right on to the next block.

3X3 C-2    This is the fifth block so I am half way along on this project now.  I was a bit panicked as I thought the completed project  was due at the end of March- but I learned it is not due until the end of May.   IMG_2867I am enjoying the process.

Capture ScarvesIMG_2875I got busy on some new scarves when I realized that March is starting tomorrow.   I am off to visit with Chris, the woman who sells these for me and so I need to have some to pass her way.  These still need the fabric neck units added to them.

 

Label cards: Little Know Our world is so very vast I feel overwhelmed some times.  There is so much I do not know about so many things.   One needs to keep exploring and expanding one’s mind.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sewing OperationsI was writing out the steps for how to use the sewing machine for the girl scouts and I realized that there are many little operations in doing simple sewing events.   This is a card to honor that idea.

Keep Creating

Carol

3X3, FAD (Fiber Art Dames), Killdeer

Valentines Day

 

IMG_2804Happy Valentine’s Day,

I hope it turns out just the way you want it.   I received these three valentines.  One from Judy, one from  Tanya  and one form Marilyn.   I set out a parcel of them myself.  I always have fun playing IMG_2772with this shape and trying some new form of using bits and pieces of things  to create them.   I had a FAD  meeting this week and folks had stuff to share.  Nancy is getting ready to stretch this wonderful bit of stitchery that she brought back from Cuba a few years ago.     It is so very colorful.   IMG_2776Patti is knitting away on a scarf that she will give away to some homeless person.    Judy is pulling out old projects and completing them.   I love the antique fabrics she used here.     We had a good time as always.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Progress Report: Killdeer    This piece is 18” X  13”.    The Killdeer  were   machine drawn and then attached to the felted IMG_2809background and stretched.

IMG_2810

3 X 3- block  3-C I keep doing my daily practice on this  project.   I think this block in almost complete. Just a few more rows around some of the circles and I  will move on to the next block.

IMG_2782Nylon net scarves   I am off to visit my friend Chris at the end of March.  She sells my capture scarves  and so I cut the nylon netting to begin making some to take with me on that trip.   This shows ten  of the   cut starts and there are five more.

Scrap Happy IMG_2800I  visited Angelia a few weeks ago and she gave me a box of fabric that she no longer wanted in her stash.  I pulled these two out of the collection and cut them to be the centers of  the next scrap happy quilt.  The are in 4.5” strips now and I will add 2.5” strips of scarps to both sides and then cut them into 8.5” blocks to create the rows of the quilt.

IMG_2798Beaded Bag   I found this old project in my cleaning this week and it only needs the neck unit to finish it so that will be another of the projects that I work on this week.

Label Cards- Red      In this time of gray and while, I am thinking about color.   So I did a red card.

           

 

 

 

Beauty Awakens   I like the idea of this message.

Keep Creating

Carol

Aplique, Collections, FAD (Fiber Art Dames), Label Cards, Meadowlark, Noogora/Cockelburs, Plants, Shows, Totem Fox, Waterfall, Wildfire

Everson Show

Hello,

The big event in my life this week was the opening of the Everson show: (Re)Generate.   It is a show of women’s work from  gals all over 60 years old.  I was invited to participate and this is my Wildfire piece that is there.   The show is up until Jan 15.   I am very happy to be a part of this show along with so many friends.     The other event this week was a FAB meeting.  We went to Nancy’s new home.  It is wonderful with great views and splendid rooms.   In the basement there is a wonderful old pool table and some very old billiard   balls.BillardsI could not resist this colorful shot.

Progress Report: Noogoora/Cockleburs   All the parts are attached now and I have even done additional quilting in the form of more branches to fill in.  I will add the facing and finish it this week I hope.

Totem Fox IMG_2452I continue to do the quilting on this piece.   I am just about half way done with that step now.

Waterfall   I added the painted dryer sheet for the water fall yesterday and a bit of silk paper.   I will now free motions quilt it all down.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Meadowlark IMG_2444 All the base machine drawing is done now and I am ready to wash out the stabilizer.   Then on to the  felted  base.

Jeanne’s Project    I keep building away on this project.   It is slow because,  I audition a piece of fabric, look and then decide if it should be stitched on.     The if it works I stitch and move on to the next row.   I think she will be happy when it is complete.

IMG_2451Collection VI    I started a new work in this series this week.   There is not a lot on the surface yet but the building is part of the fun of these projects.

Cards: Inspire Be aware and open to the world around you.

IMG_2438 We never Know      One never knows what will spark a new direction or work.

I hope the holidays bring you joy and delight.

Keep Crating

Carol

Collections, Daily Practice, FAD (Fiber Art Dames), Friends, Scrap Happy Quilts, Wildfire

Fall Color

Hello,

IMG_2092Fall is all around me here in central NY.   I love all the color  although it has been very rainy so leaves are being pulled off the trees and there is little full color display here.   One needs to enjoy what is available.

FAB meant on Friday last week and  Sharon shared her completed commissions.  She sure can build a great  depth in her work  and all the seasons are represented.

IMG_2083This week I went with the Associated Artists  to visit an artists  studio.   Chris Baker ( his work is in the photo) was very open and gracious to us answering question after question.   It was a good learning experience.

Progress Report:  Wildfire This work is 33” w X 34” l.   I have so enjoyed working on this project.     I used a lot of the information that I learned in the transparence class at QBL last summer .  IMG_2108 I also used some silk paper that I had created to build up the color.   IMG_2109Everything is sewn  and quilted  together with free motion work.   I enjoyed  working on this one.

Friends- collections 3 This work is 16” w X 24”l.    There are so many little memories for me in this work.   Many of the objects are gifts from friends.   the Artists trading card here is form my friend Sharron  and the black glass button came from Jenny’s button box.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Machine drawing    I did a lot of machine drawing of birds this week.     Two Blue Jays, two Killdeer  and three Cedar Waxwings make up my efforts.     The last Waxwing is about half done.    I want to add them to the felting that I did last week.   Hopefully they will be a part of the  12X12 show at the Broad Street gallery in Dec/Jan.

 

 

Scarp Happy workIMG_2111These are three of the panels that I am building for the back of the scarp happy quilt.   I tried to limit the pallet so it hold together visually.

 IMG_2098Halloween Cards It is the season and I had a good time playing with paint and stickers one  day this week.

New work   The base is all done for this new project.  I want to build some burrs to add on top of this base.

Dyeing  and Indigo IMG_2096   Last Thursday I went to Regina’s and she encouraged me to use her Indigo dye pot.  I did these four  pieces at that time.  I think there is a lot of white because  I am not sure I soaked them in water before  I dipped them.   Mistakes are often made when one is learning.   IMG_2116Part of that learning included the fact that I stitched and wrapped some fabric before I went to Regina’s.   But it was soda soaked and one dose not need  to have soda soaked fabric  for indigo.   So this week I used some premixed dyes from Ethel’ stash on this fabric.   It came out pale again because I did  not know what I was doing.

 

Daily Practice  I keep working  away on this project.  I feel I am  almost  most done with the flow lines  around the outside of the fabric shapes.

 

Keep Creating

Carol

Birds, Creative Assistants, Crow Calls, Daily Practice, FAD (Fiber Art Dames), Feed you soul, Felt Work, FOX, Label Cards, Sisterhood of the Scissors, Thousand words, Wildfire, Word Forms

Good News

Calling Crows 49″wX 34″h

Hello,

This work is in the Quilts unlimited Show in Old Forge NY.  I got a letter in the mail this week that told me this work won a Judges Choice award.   I am delighted.

Other events happened this week as well.   Tanya came to visit and we talked of dyeing.  She is working with silk and experimentally dyeing with different materials.   I love the colors she   The big event was yesterday and it was my first meeting with the Sisterhood of the  Scissors.  It was a play day at Regina’s house.    Everyone just did their own thing. 

 

 

 

 

Wendy spent her time at the meeting working on shome stitchery.  Several gals worked on their weaving.

They both had handmade looms.   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

one can see the image of her dog under this weaving.   It will be great.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Regina is mixing her indigo dyed doily and a rust dyed one.I dyed with shaving cream and put a few items into Regina’s Dye pot.  We had a good time and d to the next meeting.

 

Progress Report:   FOX  This work is 25.5” w X 4hhh.   I am finally finished with this work.    I used some of my hand dyed.

IMG_2051The modeled orange red here is that fabric.   The background with the greens is one of the fabrics I inherited from Ethel.   Her influence just keeps going in my life.IMG_2052

Wildfire-  I am now done with the free motion quilting on this piece.  It sure seems to give the work more of a flow  pattern across the surface.

IMG_2046Friends   I am done with the hand applique  and directive stitch work on this piece now.    The glasses are from my friend Mary and the copper belt buckle is  from my mom.   I now need  to purchase some additional stretcher bars as I did not mark the outer edge of the size and I filled the space allotted.    So I will purchase some 16” bars and finish this work.The wool is from Tanya and  the leaves from  Pam.   I got the buttons from a big tin from my friend Sally.    Folks are so very generous.

 

 

 

 

 

Daily Practice  IMG_2045  All  the fabric pieces are attached now and I am working on stitching to pull them together.

IMG_2054Felting    I went a little crazy when I got the felting machine out and did four bases.IMG_2056    IMG_2057Then I ordered more roving as I did not have as much blue as I wanted.IMG_2058

Birds   The felting lead me to do some machine drawing and the Blue Jay and the Killdeer are the result.   I will build a few more birds to

apply to the backgrounds.

 

 

 

 

 

New  Work   I started a new background using lots of my hand dyed stuff .

Creative Assistants    I watched a little football this week and built a few faces along the way.

IMG_2064Label Cards Thousand Words    I think this is a true and powerful statement. IMG_2066Feed Your Soul    For each and everyone of us that idea is unique.   Color, texture and exercise are some of the things that feed my soul- but I am sure that is not true of everyone.

Keep Creating

Carol

Collections, Creative Assistants, Daily Practice, Dance, FAD (Fiber Art Dames), FOX, Friends, Label Cards, Natural Elements, Wildfire, Word Forms

Dye Class

IMG_1946Hello,

I took a dyeing workshop at the Schweinfurth for three days last week.   Pat Pauly was the teacher.      This was my second experience  with this teacher doing a similar class and I learned a lot.   My first class was shortly after I had inherited powered dyes form my friend Ethel.   It was also my first time dyeing where I  had to mix  the dye.  When I dyed with Ethel, I would show up and we would play.  She had done  all the prep work

IMG_1951before I arrived on the scene.   So I learned a lot that first time  about those steps in the process- But not a lot of what the teacher was  trying to impart to us  about application and techniques of using the dyes effectively.   This time I feel I got what she wanted us to learn.    IMG_1953There was lots of variety in what folks did in class as this shot of Jacquelyn with her work behind her shows.

   Up stairs at the Schweinfurth   there is a great show of stitchery and weaving by a Mayan family.   It is beautiful and I would encourage any one at all interested in visiting.

   On our way home Liz and I stopped and took a bunch of photos of this beautiful old barn.    I hope to use it as a jumping off point for a new piece.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have washed out some of the fabric- 30 pieces so far.   I am quiet pleased at the colors and textures that I got from the class.   I feel that because I had class with Pat before that I managed to put my own stamp on the work I created and did not just mimic Pat’s techniques.

IMG_1995 FAB meant here yesterday.  It was good to see everyone again.   Sharon shared this   nearly completed quilt that is part of a triptych that she is making for a friend.    I lone how she added just a small amount of snow on the branches.

Progress Report:   Wildfire   This work is going forward.  I feel I am ready to now add batting and backing and begin to add the free motion stitching to give detail to the work.

 

 

 

 

 

FOX    All the parts are now stitched down with nylon thread.    It is pin basted and ready for the satin stitch work to unite all the parts and move toward finishing the work.IMG_2010

Collections- Friends IMG_2006   I am adding the individual  parts to the surface of this work now.    I called this work Friends because I am putting little gems  that friends have given me together in this work.   This  trading card is from my friend Sharron.

Daily Practice   I m still adding the satin circles to the surface of this piece.

 

 

 

Creative Assistants  IMG_2015  It is football season so I am working on Creative Assistants.   These are ready for pin backs and  squeezie paint embellishments.

IMG_2003New work  I am ready to start a new piece and I have pulled these fabrics to cut and sew together to be my new base.   I want to use the cutaways from several of my text  pieces in this work.

Label Cards

IMG_1999   Dance – Life is movement so thinking of it as a dance is a normal reaction.   Sometimes we forget there is no real pattern that fits everyone.   This is a reminder that  we need to relax and go with in our  personal direction listening to our unique theme.

Dream  Dreams change as we grow and change with the events that shape our lives.   We need to keep revising and believing in our dreams.

Keep Creating,

Carol

PS-  I will be traveling next week so there will not be any Blog for Oct 4.

Baby Quilts, Collage, Dad's Barn, Daily Practice, FAD (Fiber Art Dames), How

Busy Season

1 Comment

Hello,

I am enjoying the flowers of summer now.  I   Day  Lilies   bring a smile to my face , even though they do not last long.  They are so cheerful!

IMG_1404I have enjoyed a full week.  Last Friday I went up to Old Forge to the View to the National Pastel Show with my friend Barbara.    She had five works in this judged show and won the Prize for Best Use of Color with this work.   She also sold one of the other works to a fellow artist.  I am so very proud of her.  We stayed over night and took our time driving home  and stopped at the Broad Street Gallery in Hamilton.  It was full of wonderful art and the gallery owner asked Barbara to show there.    Barb left one of her works with the gallery and it is  in the front window.   She is doing well.

Tues the FAB group meant and we had a good time.    Sharon shared her newest work.  She is teaching a workshop on how to create this type of work at  Calico Gals.    It is full and she will teach it again in the fall as there is a waiting list.

Then on  Wednesday I went to Liz’s and we did a little dyeing.IMG_1421This year I plan to do two layers of color on all the works I create with dye.  So these are only half done.

Progress  Report:   Dad’s Barn   This quilt is 25” X 17”.   The background is one of Ethel’s starts that was in the bottom of one of my boxes and I loved the two colors together.IMG_1438I did the trees and  bird as free motion thread painting.     This barn was on dad’s last farm and falling down.   IMG_1437I enjoy doing free motion birds and though this swallow would go well with the barn.   I do remember a few flying around there  when I visited.

Ravens

I am glad I added to the quilting on this piece.  It hangs much better and is flatter too.IMG_1441

How I keep working with the text idea and in this case the word is HOW.   This is Ok but I am not happy with where it is at this time.  I need to do a lot of thinking and planning here.

Baby Quilt  IMG_1431I am working away on this project.   The week as been so busy that there is not a lot of progress.   This is the background and now I can start to add the animals to the surface.

IMG_1433Daily Progress  This project just moves along slowly.   All the orange cording is attached now and I will move on.

Collage

This is OZ inspired of course.  I am having fun.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Label Card   Tribes is about respecting Mother Nature and all she represents.  Native American’s  close ties to the land and  made for a healthy attitude toward our earth and it’s resources.   We need to keep this in mind as we pursue our lives.

Enjoy the wonders of summer.

Keep Creating

Carol

Carrol Iowa, Dad's Barn, Daily Practice, Diva Meetings, FAD (Fiber Art Dames), IV, Modern, Perception, Persuasion, Quilt Exploration Group (QuEGs), Ravens, Self Knowledge, Word Forms

Taking stock

 

Hello,

We are beginning to enjoy the wonders of summer.   These poppies are in Susan’s garden and look wonderful.    This was the first full week of June and I had three meetings.   QuEG’s meant on Tuesday morning.  It was a small group but folks had lots to share.IMG_1191Linda  C  is working on a baby quilt for her niece.   Elephants are the nursery theme.  Liz is working on her transparency piece and it is looking good.   IMG_1199Sue Ellen is playing with her collection on non cotton fabrics. IMG_1192 And there is a row by row project in the works too.

I went from the meeting to Moravia and spent a wonderful afternoon working with Susan.  We then went off to the Diva meeting where more things were cooking. IMG_1207Donna has a new batch of mirrors that she has completed.  She sure knows how to use Fimo effectively.     IMG_1209Lori is creating portraits with her needle now.     Noel is doing portraits too- but with quilt a different bent.   Her fabric faces are stretch and very whimsical.

IMG_1216Yesterday I went off to the FAB meeting.  Judy and Patti are knitting like crazy and Sharon has finished her Relative quilt now.

Because of all these meetings I spent a lot of time in the car alone.   This plus sorting through work looking for a specific piece brought up some issues.     Susan wisely said of reworking pieces one is “playing with your younger self.”   What a grand way to look at the process of redoing works that do not quite make the grade.       Time away from work allows one to look with new eyes at the pieces and I often see things I wish I had done differently.    I can spot the problems in some cases too.   In my sorting and musing I have decided I will return to some works in the hope of making them stronger.

Progress Report: Perception Daily    This work is 30” w X 46” l.   It is a part of the text series .     One of the challenges that Liz and I made for our selves this year was to use some of the fabric that we hand dyed.   All the material except the dark turquoise fabric in the background is something that I altered.    IMG_1255   I did reflective quilting around all the words after I had raw edge appliqued down the words. IMG_1258

Daily Practice I   I finally stretched all the finished Daily Practice work  this week.   This piece is 18″ w X 24″ l. IMG_1238   The base of this one is a piece of fabric that was a wipe  up cloth at one of my print sessions last summer.   The lace is from grandmothers collection and I hand dyed it last summer as well.IMG_1239

 

 

Daily  Practice II       This piece is 16″ w X 18″ l.      The base for this work is several  trimmed tans that  looked good together.    IMG_1232  This piece has lots of buttons on it for textural contrast.IMG_1233

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Daily Practice III      This work is 18″ w X 24″ l.   The purple background is a commercial fabric and all the other material added on top is some I have altered.   They are also scraps left over from other projects.    IMG_1247  I have always been fascinated by negative space and in using those negatives this way they become positive spaces.   Stitches and pompoms are the textural elements of this piece. IMG_1246

Daily Practice IV 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The  orange part  base of the  background isone of the  shibori projects Liz and I tried last summer.   The metal flowers are from Carol.

Rocky Shore I worked forward on Water – the class assignments this week.   The hand painted   sky and  water have been stitched down and the three different types of foam have also been applied.IMG_1227    One foam is made from Angelina, a second is florist plastic that was painted with opalescent paint and the third was a textured plastic ribbon that I ironed.     I will move on to the next element next week and finish all the elements at the end of the class.

 

IMG_1261Mulberry Memories    This work has become a problem for me.  I tried to put too much into the top for the size of the piece.     It has become impossible for the viewer to “read”.     Therefore I have decided to scarp this  particular  work and start again using the same ideas plus a few others and create two or perhaps  a  three units  to represent this time and geography  of my life.     We lived in this location for 5 years and there are lots of memories.

Ravens  I thought that this work was finished last week and I presented it as such.  But a  second study this week as convinced me that it needs more quilting.   The gals at QuEGs pushed this idea too.   So I am taking the time to make these additions.

IMG_1251Persuasion I have been busy doing pebble quilting on this  text piece.   I am ready to start reflective quilting on it now.

Dad’s Barn  I came across the orange and yellow base in one of my boxes from  Ethel.  I pinned it to the pin wall and it hung there for several weeks.  In thumbing through a sketchbook I came across of the old barn on Dad’s Farm and though I would like to do a work about that.  The two came together.  I also wanted to do some more thread painting  so I drew our some swallows on wash away and started them.IMG_1185   After the backs were done I added the chest and beaks.IMG_1187   I have learned that I do not need to do the legs as they are so slender that they do not hold up well after washing and they seldom are in the position I want so I add them when I put the work together.     The birds are washed and dried and ready for mounting on the image.  I need to decide how I am going to add one of them to the work now.

 

 

 

New Work IMG_1225I am trying to pay attention to shape and contrast with this work.  It is made up of mostly the cut-away’s  of several  older pieces.    Again my love of the negative spaces.

Label Cards Modern    I became weary of the word Modern when I was about 10.  I was helping Mom and Aunt Marci clean grandfather’s cabin.  We were taking  The books off the shelf sorting and dusting them.     I came a pone  one called “ Modern Science” and I flipped it open.  It revealed a drawing of  all of the parts of atom with the Neutrons, Protons and Electrons labeled.   Knowing there were more I decided to always  be wary of things labeled as “Modern”.

Self Knowledge     One develops an understanding that they are unique entities separate from others at a  young age.    But the real development of self acceptance takes years and for some never occurs.

Keep Crating Friends

Carol