Arrrrr! I received some pirates treasure!

I have been missing for sometime now. I guess I needed to take some time off for myself. I spent the month of November in therapy 3-4 days per week. With the driving included it was about 3-4 hours per day. Seemed like a full time job at the time. It helped me tremendously though and am very glad I was able to take the time to do it. Since it was so helpful I have been able to walk without as much pain. So, I have been walking and now have started using the "ellipti-kill" too. I made some great friends through the Biggest Loser website who are very encouraging and keep me going in the right direction.

I haven't been doing too much creatively the past few months. So I needed something to nudge me back into adding a little more balance into my life. I joined a yahoo group of Mixed media artists and have signed up for two exchanges. The first exchange is an altered tin, like the altoid tins. I have never done this before but have wanted to for awhile, so like the Nike add "Just do it" came into my head and I signed up. The second is for fabric paper. I tried making this before but wasn't very happy with my results. They have generously given, those of us who are new to this technique, some instructions. I can't wait to make both of these.

I received my altered tin in the mail yesterday and I am thrilled. You are supposed to fill the tin with little odds and ends of things and have a theme for your tin and items. Sue Cox sent me the tin I received and it is amazing. I can't believe how much she managed to fit in such a little tin. Her's has a pirates theme and I received quite a treasure! Here are the pictures. The whole thing was wrapped in the large scarf.

The baggie of items was on the bottom, probably to protect the legs she added to the bottom of the tin. The baggie and the tin were inside the burlap bag tied with twine. Everything else was in the tin itself. I know I will be able to use the items she sent in future projects. Very fun exchange!

I have two different ideas for my tin and may make them both. I'll keep you informed. I have also started to make some zentangles lately. They are kind of like potato chips. You can't make just one. Fun to do when I need a little time to sit and relax. My pad for this is very tiny only about 3.5" x 5" so they are quick to make.
Have a Creative Day
Janet

"Oh, the places you'll go"

Dr Seuss was a big favorite at my house when I was little. My dad would read the stories and have these wonderful voices for all of the characters. Memories, those special little joys that pop into the mind every now and than when you least expect them to. My son received 'Oh, the places you'll go" for a graduation gift from a dear neighbor. It's about a boy starting of on a Great Journey, fresh and excited about his latest adventure. Well today we are going to take an adventure to some places I have found lately that inspire me....

Stephanie Forsyth, who is always inspiring to me, has the blog "The Fiber Nation" lately she has started adding video tutorials to her blog. This one on making angelina beads is great. I've made beads from fabric before but not angelina, so that will be fun to try. She also has a free BOM going so be sure to check it out as well.

I was recently sent a link to Janet McTavish's(Karen McTavish's mom) latest project "Peace Labyrinth." This is just an amazing project. She is trying to create a three dimensional labyrinth of quilts. People will be able to walk the labyrinth at quilt shows. You can watch a short video that tells about the project, and/or read more about it here. I think anything that shows how we are all 'more alike than different' is worthwhile.

I have been hearing a lot about zentangle recently. I don't know a great deal about it but now I am intrigued. I get an email update from a site called Chica and Jo. They have really fun ideas for parties, holidays, gifts etc. Not necessarily quilting or even sewing for that matter, but I find their ideas refreshing. Good site for things to do with kids, or for kids. They posted a photo of a 'zentangled' (is that a word?) pumpkin that you just have to see.

The last post I came across has nothing to do with quilting or sewing but is something women everywhere need to embrace. It has statistics that are frightening and we need to change this. Be sure to watch the links at the bottom of the post if you have time. They are very powerful. Mary's blog is "View from the Seat" and is a very well written post about National Fat Free Talk Week.

Have a creative day everyone
Janet

A Common Thread

The Textile Center in Minneapolis has a show every January called A Common Thread. If you are a member of the Textile Center you can submit work for this show. The photo submissions and information had to be submitted by the first week in October. Whew! I made it in time. Last year was the first year I entered something. It was a very small piece, I don't have the exact measurements handy but it was about the size of a piece of computer paper. I was very surprised when the check came in the mail because my piece had sold. I am hoping for a wonderful surprise again this year, but even if it doesn't sell, I am proud of myself for pushing past the fear factor and entering the show. Here is a photo of last years piece.

That fear quotient holds me back a little more than I would like, but considering how new I am to this whole fiber art experience, I do OK. It's easy to be confident when you have done something for a long time and you know you are good at it. At this point in my career I wonder if I should hold back until I learn more, if it is even worth the trouble. But than I sit back, really look at what I have done, and say "How will you learn more if you don't keep trying!" and "Of course it is worth trying!" I can see growth in my work with each piece I finish. Some may be baby steps, some lateral steps, and occasionally some feel like giant leaps, but each is progress in one form or another. I don't have any set type of art that I do. I am still experimenting at this point. I like to try everything, which makes for slower progress at times but it makes this journey richer and full of adventure.

This is a photo of the piece I submitted. The frame measures about 23" x 19." I shibori dyed, overdyed, beaded, hand quilted, and used swarovski crystals and other embellishments. I than framed the piece. I like this one. So, if it doesn't sell I am fine with that too. It is called 'Sunspots." A big thank you to Nancy Eha, I learned how to do much of the beading techniques from her book called "Bead Creative Art Quilts" Her explanations are very clear with lot's of beautiful photos.

I will also be changing my profile photo soon. I changed my photo on facebook, but it isn't a great photo of me, so I'm hoping to get a better one soon for my blog.
Have a creative day
Janet

Beads

I've been trying to learn a little more about adding beads to my quilts. I have a book by Nancy Eha called Bead Creative Art Quilts (if you go to this link you can enlarge a photo of the beaded coil from the book, it is stunning). Beaded coils add dimension and texture to a quilt so that is one of the techniques I have been trying. They're kind of fun, it's relaxing to sit and work on this project.
Nancy's book has so many wonderful photos, when my eyes need a rest from beading I page through her book again trying to decide what to try next.
I'm not sure what I did to make the color so different in these two photos. They are both the same quilt. It's really about half way between the two. I did take the photos in the evening so the light wasn't the best. Maybe I used the flash on one and not the other.
Have a Creative day
Janet

Play Ball!

I'm having fun with my daughters' softball t-shirts. She wanted them made into a quilt. I did sew them together several years ago but didn't do the quilting....this is a long time coming, but it's finally getting finished.

It's fun to see the backs of the squares.

Still a lot to do but it should be finished soon. Hooray for my longarm. She wants the name of the team on each square. Her first t-shirt from kindergarten was a little smaller than the others so I had to add a little extra fabric to make it the same size as the other squares. They were called the strawberry shortcakes.
My meandering is not to great but hopefully will get better and better. I didn't want to spend a huge amount of time on this so I made it pretty big and found that was more difficult for me to do. Also discovered I work best left to right, and back to front. Moving the machine right to left and front to back results in crazy lines. But, I can already see some improvement there so eventually it should all come together.
Have a creative day
Janet