Back To Sewing

     I have finished the Color Theory class and only need to upload photos to the class group list. So, I was really excited to start sewing today. And not a bit frustrated last night when I realized my two current pieces were going to take longer than planned.

     Hand stitching seemed to suit the piece better with some hand dyed floss. I want to be happy with it rather than race to the finish with this one.

     And the next one has sat on my wall for the past week but I knew it wasn’t right. We went away to Traverse City this weekend and after returning, I decided to re-piece sections of it and introduce a new color. What started out small and something I wanted simple, is neither of those things.

  

      But that’s ok.

    Nice to be back sewing again and not working on homework.

     Be creative, my friends!

Early Morning Painting

     I have always been a morning person. I love a cup of coffee and the quiet of the mornings when everyone is still sleeping and even the dogs are snoozy yet. And this week is no exception. It is rainy and dreary here so my kids-on spring break- are sleeping in.

    With the extra time in the mornings , I have been working to finish up these last class assignments. I only have two more assignments for the Color Theory class and I want to finish them by the end of this week and have all assignments posted. I am really ready to transition back to sewing.

  
     It looks so easy to mix paint colors but getting an accurate color is really difficult. This palette on the left is a really beautiful color palette with raw sienna added.

     I can’t bear wasting textile paint so I would paint a piece of white cotton with the leftovers on my paint tray. I have a pile of these fabrics now.

     To think I  almost washed the paint down the drain. Even after ironing, the paint remained a bright color and the Setacolor paint left a really soft hand to the fabric. Unlike diluted acrylics.

     All in all, a great way to spend my early mornings with a cup of coffee.

Trying Some Arashi Shibori

     This past week’s lesson in the  online shibori class was on pole wrapping or arashi shibori. I took an old piece of pvc pipe and wrapped my fabric around it. I methodically and slowly wrapped the pole in about 1/8 of inch increments and then dipped the pole in colorhue dye. Instant color.

For these four pieces of silk,  I used the color eggplant and rose which I really did not like. Maybe I will try overdyeing this.

That’s what I love about dyeing-you can always change your results-until you get mud….then you just start fresh with white again.

Let’s see what else I can sneak in this week while they are sleeping in.

Be creative, my friends!

How Do You Organize?

     I have spent some time re-organizing and purging my studio the last week or so. I feel like I do it every few months but I am now actually getting rid of supplies I know I won’t need. I moved some tables around and it just feels better now. And more room, of course, makes room for more fabric I will dye this summer. But the kind of re-organizing I need to do now is the kind I really don’t have a good system for-a good record of completed pieces. Sure, I have managed to loosely organize my photos but need things like measurements, dates completed, etc. The stuff you are looking for when you go to submit a piece to a show.

    So, my question for you is -what are you currently doing to organize your record of completed pieces? Just on your computer ?

    My kids are on spring break starting tomorrow. We have been left behind in Michigan where the rest of the population has left for Florida. Seriously, I am always wondering why it doesn’t just fall off and into the ocean with all the people that will be there from Michigan. We decided that rain, snow and 45 would be lovely instead.

   How do you organize that info? It would be helpful for me to know!

   You might have to be creative for me for the next week…I feel like every time I get going there is an interruption lately.  My kids told me that this week’s creation up on my design wall looks like a beach blanket. After a day or so, I had to agree. I am taking sections of it apart.  I don’t think beach-like is exactly what I was after. That’s life, my friends.

    I suspect I will be in and out the next week.

Catching Up

     First, let me thank you for your comments on my last little piece. Orange feels more comfortable now.   Not a like but definitely more comfortable.  

   Back at it again this week after a quick trip to Connecticut for a funeral. I had so much fun catching up with old friends, enjoying Connecticut scenery and eating some great New England clam chowder. It is a place I easily slipped back into despite the sad circumstances. Hard to leave.

      I came back with a clogged tear duct which needed medical attention. It has happened before so I hope I caught it early enough….just something odd to deal with while playing catch up. Bothersome more than anything.

     I ended up spending the last few nights catching up on my shibori class. The stitching for these small exercises is time consuming. But just like everything else that takes time, the results are really pretty. Everyone keeps asking me what I will do with these samples and I have decided that the successful ones will be part of a class sampler-all included in one piece once the class is done. Two more lessons are coming my way in the next two weeks.

      
     I didin’t realize that there are different names for different stitching techniques and this  blue one is makiame.

Oriniui example-this one was the most time consuming.

Another makiame. I thought the heart could be for a special bookmark.

A few nights work. When I think of the beautiful kimonos I have seen, I am in awe over their patience with stitching such intricate designs.

 Now waiting for another lesson to come today.

Be creative, my friends. Off to take down Christmas lights. That is really pathetic.

A Little Orange

     I like orange but never have really used much in any of my pieces. So, in the wonderful quest of self improvement and art improvement that I am on,  I chose orange. ( Yes that was a little sarcastic but I did choose it because I wanted a  little challenge.)

                                                                    Colorplay #3
                                                                       14×20

     Funny how I go back to simple strip piecing and am happy with it.

     I continue to like tight dense quilting. It just looks crisp and clean.

     I had a proud mom moment this week. My son Ben won an award at the speech meet. He recited the JFK inaugural address without an one mistake-boldly and confidently. I was beaming. The pictures were all blurry so I am waiting for another mom to send me some of hers. Which led me to schedule an eye appointment for today! I kept noticing how blurry everything was I was taking. Ughh… I hate missing kid photo moments.

     The sun came out after the ice storm . All my class fabric samples from the last month and it captured the sunlight so beautifully.

     I am off to Connecticut this weekend for a funeral of a dear man and pastor of the church we used to attend.  I haven’t been there for a visit in a long time. It will be a time of re-connecting with old friends and memories. Must pack and get the kids ready for the weekend. They are staying home with Dad.

     Appreciate those you are with, my friends. And be creative.

Aliens and Shibori

     I was taking some pictures before I dipped the last few pieces of silk in the dyepot and my son said-“what are they-aliens?” I agree it is kind of bizarre looking but this is how the silk is after I have stitched a pattern in with upholstery thread and pulled everything tight.

     They are all bundled tight and placed in water before I stick them in the dye.  And then after a quick rinse, the pulling out of the stitching begins. And the reveal is made. Better than opening a present.

  

     The first one on the left was from a  previous post and the thread had broken when I was removing it.
The other two purple pieces are finally a little better results. The lower right are a few itajame pieces but I still can’t get clear results and I suspect my results might improve with a smoother silk versus the more open and nubby weave.

     Don’t ask me what I will do with all this beautiful silk yet because I don’t know.

     Another storm warning for tonight and this time  calling for ice. But first we will sit in the slush for the first soccer game of the season. 🙂 Oh boy.

Be creative, my friends!

The Softness of Silk Continued

     I am really happy it’s Friday. I am even happier that I am done with elementary school carnival volunteering. Tonight was the last for me. I will miss lots of things about elementary school but not the dreaded carnival…. a big sigh of relief …ahhh…my feet are up and I am relaxing.

     I really do love this silk. This week we are working on actual shibori- stitching and then dyeing.  I have a new respect for the amount of time it takes to stitch intricate patterns. I had trouble tugging on the thread too hard so hours of stitching were lost with a broken thread. But I did come up with a lovely piece of fabric despite that.

     I have two more small pieces in the works so hope to dip them tomorrow. The reveal when you undo it is just too much fun. One thing I know for certain is that I love to dye fabric of any kind. (I need to figure out how to post on the class site….)

    Also, snuck in another small piece. I am trying to not post until things are finished but just a little peek.
I made myself use orange. And I am liking orange.

    
     Whew, I am glad it’s Friday, aren’t you?

Be creative, my friends!

Glimpses of Things To Come

    When someone blogs consistently and then they are gone, just what are they doing? Don’t they know I am waiting to see what they are doing? And why don’t they show me what they did today? I think I blogged about this before. Where am I this week?   I feel kind of gone from here- this little blog-right now. On temporary leave.

      Well, quite typically I show you everything. The good , the bad and the ugly. And I even tell you when I ziplock things.  Bags of thing that don’t work.  But right now, while I am processing all this information-from three different classes- in my old brain, I just feel quiet. And kind of vulnerable. Because what comes with knowledge, is just how much you really don’t know. Really don’t know.  Part of me prefers the ignorance and the absolute abandon that comes with ignorance. But part of me is tired of ignorance and wants to move on.

      By no means am I stuck. My mind is just full of what can be. And different ways to do it. Just figuring out why some things work and others don’t. And figuring out what I may want to work on.

    And figuring out how young I really am in the whole scheme of art and quilts. Not at all depressed about it-by any means. Just realizing it -that’s all.

     Tomorrow-stitiched shibori and my son’s speech meet. His voice is changing and I hardly recognize it.

     Be creative, my friends! It’s almost spring and time to take off my quilt in the snow from my winter banner.

Just Doing

     That is what I am -just doing the work right now and thought I’d come up to share a few things with you. I was using my little internet surfing to try to read information  on silk dyeing. And I found this wonderful and comprehensive list on dyeing and mixed media. 15 pages worth of books and websites all compiled by a wonderful artist Lu Peters. Which is why you didn’t find me here yesterday. I am in the midst of research as I told my family.

     In between finishing up with winter sports and spring sports-the overlap- and drivers ed….I am persevering. Nice to have the time change and the snow melting. I am piecing and dyeing silk today. Striving for crisper edges with my itajame on silk. It dries so quickly that it makes it a really rewarding process. I need to try a heavier concentration of the Colorhues dyes.

    Be creative, my friends!