Category Archives: workshops

A Week of Yardwork

     At the end of the week, I stopped to wonder where did my week go?   I finished that small piece on Halloween but hadn’t sewn since then.  I spent the majority of the week cutting down my perennials , shrubs and grasses and raking up leaves. I had high hopes for lots of after school assistance from my able bodied teens. However , they had winter sports practices starting already so that didn’t help me out…oh well.

     I did venture to two fiber arts lectures or meetings. The first one was last Saturday and I heard a three hour lecture from Terri Watson and Beth Ann Williams on machine quilting covering both domestic and long arm quilting. It was nicely presented and they had oodles of luscious samples. I wouldn’t hesitate at all to have Terri quilt one of my pieces in the future. Very talented women and I enjoyed it.

     The second event was a meeting of the Lakeshore Fiber Arts group in Holland. They were doing a mini workshop on various surface design techniques: gelatin mono-printing, crayon rubbings with various plates and a bit of Notan using black and white paper. I didn’t get to try the techniques as I needed to leave early but plan on trying them next week. Very enjoyable just to spend a few hours with friends from Holland and new to me fiber artists from the area.

     So, at the end of the week as I finally ventured upstairs  and opened up the blinds, I am still caught by the beauty of the sun shining in on my fabric. Such lovely sunshine and such lovely color at the end of the week and I am glad I stopped to breathe and appreciate it.

And clean it up to start  again.  Many things in process but need to make progress.

The yard will be done this weekend so hope to return to sewing next week. I picked up something fun and want to do it next week.

Be creative, my friends!

Soaking It All Up and Inspired

     I did. I just soaked up every minute of the Barn last week for the Improvisations class given by Nancy Crow. It was a tough class for me-quick paced and some of the art concepts were obviously things I hadn’t really thought of fully before I design a quilt. Or even knew.

   Nancy divides the class into a series of exercises which need to be completed in a specific amount of time. Some of the exercises are done in black and white and some in color. I was really worried about this class but went into it with this attitude:  each exercise given to us to- was just an exercise. Not a wonderful quilt that I would produce but an exercise I would learn from. I did complete most of the exercises but failed miserably at the middle one. Obviously one I need to re-do here at home. I won’t tell you  more about these specific exercises but I will tell you this:

1. I learn more at my one week workshops at the Barn than I ever did in a semester of college. Ask others and they will say the same.

2. It is absolutely wonderful to share time with others who have the same goals and interests. And laugh with them. Making art is lonely and a sharp contrast to what I did before with people every minute I was working.  I didn’t realize how lonely I was!

3. Nancy, her family and Margaret Wolf work together and give above and beyond to make this a great learning experience. Nancy spent a considerable amount of time with us and for that I am truly grateful.

4. Yes, I did sew spending from 7:30 am -10pm  there working away. Uninterrupted time except for meals. Wonderful meals.

Working on a black and white composition
another  work in process 

5. Carol Soderlund was teaching a surface design class there at the same time. It was a treat to see what that class did and see Carol’s happy face. I think one of Carol’s classes will be next in line for me.

6. Set aside comparing yourself to others and what they are doing. You can’t be at any other place than where you are currently are at in your artmaking.

     I am grateful to have had this opportunity. If you have a chance to go to the Barn, don’t hesitate to go. The experience will exceed your expectations. And that expectation should be about learning as much as you can and not about producing the miracle piece.

     Be inspired, my friends- I am over the top inspired. And a little tired.

The End of The Week

     I am going to bed and hoping some how and some way a little finish fairy will visit my work station and promptly complete another exercise assigned to us this week at the Barn. I am assuming that it is due around 2pm tomorrow. This is piece number 6…(this is a very fast paced class not for the faint of heart)

       Lots of strip pieced fabrics which need to be cut up. They are curved pieces which I hadn’t done before…slow poked along I did, I did. And by the end the pile of fabric was way too high. And it needs to probably be cleaned up by 2 as well!
   
     I have been here for 14 hour days. My right brain hurts-but it has been a good hurt. Coming here is a gift which I don’t take lightly.

     Off to bed to try to sleep- I usually am too keyed up to sleep much. But I will try.

     Don’t stop being creative, my friends and stretch a little bit. It really is good.

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.

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!