weathered treasures

and you'll have to come back and see what this is all about.

a peak . . .

. . . at a finished project intended for a book.

. . .of a Fiberaction piece

 (the reveal is May 15th and there is still much to do)

. . .  of a sketchbook page.

(i think i'm going to transfer this to silk and try painting it, here i've used colored pencils)

. . . a pencil sketch . . .

. . . and then painted to try with Lesley Riley's Transfer Artist Paper.

. . . and that's just a peak at some of the stuff going on here. 

ribbons of hope

I participated in the Machine Quilters Expo Charity Challenge this year and ribbons of hope was my entry.

The challenge was sponsored by Sew Batik and  supported the RI Coalition For the Homeless.

I love a good challenge, but also felt strongly about supporting the Coalition. 

Homelessness is such a sad realization of today's society.

Challenge requirements were to use the tropical shades of blues, greens and yellows from the fabric kit and a non traditional border and binding.

My quilt was faced with a cording which I covered with silk organza ribbon and beaded. 

I loved this finish and am going to experiment more with it. 

I had fun filling the open space with quilting designs.  I didn't have a plan when I started, I just added stitching as I went.

I like to play with the fabric ribbons and weave them together into the design...

 much like I did with rays of hope, below.

and just to keep it all real - yep that is a basketball hoop plastered on the tall, hall wall!

it was a long winter.... 

(at least he matched his duct tape to the colors in the quilt. sort of)

Happy Weekend!!

binding together

This week Deb, Vicki and Vicki's mom Glenda, were in New England for MQX.  SueB planned a get together at her studio and showed us how to make books.

Kathleen and Susan also attended.

You can see photos of all of our books by visiting SueB's blog site.

The outside cover of my book is shown above.

I used plain white signatures in my book and will use it as my new take with sketch book.

 Randomly, a few decorative papers were added throughout and I love how it looks.

Using the scraps from the cut down pages, envelopes were made to collect treasures, add notes or small drawings.

I stuck several throughout the pages of the book.

 I think it will be fun to go back and flip through and find all the hidden secrets.

On the inside cover there are two pockets. 

One has an ATC that I've already decorated, on the reverse side of it has my identification... just in case.

Below, a sketch and a doodle already added. . .

I don't want to rush the process, but I'm going to love it when it is completely filled. I know I will.

And the best part  -

I made it from the start to the finishing lines!

Happy Creating!

spring has sprung

I loved thinking about this piece and working on it during the long winter months.  It seemed fitting to post the finished pix today; as it really is beginning to feel like spring around here.

This was commissioned work and now resides in it's new home.

Enjoy your weekend and thanks for stopping by!

tis the season . . .

. . .  for wings and feathers to appear.

Thanks for sticking with me while we wait for spring's arrival and I finish up some work.

I've been working on a few projects simultaneously and have nothing  finished for pictures. 

Then, I was reminded I hadn't posted anything recently . . . 

(nor mentioned the long awaited MLB opening day.)

[thanks honey] 

. . . so I'm going with the bird theme for today.

These pix aren't new, except for the bottom one. 

I love adding birds with feathers to my work, 

almost as much as I love stitching them.

Yep, the Sox opened yesterday in TX and lost. But hey - there is a whole season ahead of us . . .

Have a great weekend.

:)

when friendship, art, work, and inspiration meet it all spills over.

it's good. 

all good.

-yesterday the susans and the ks met at sueb's studio and we had our second sketch-in.

-we are as much alike as we are different and it's fun to sit side by side with such talented gals and share.

-just to keep it from getting too serious i worked my sketch with my smencils.

-nope, that wasn't a typo. smencils are scented pencils.

-they are great, fun, # 2 pencils made of recycled paper.

love them!

-after that, i met up with a freind/client who i did some quilting for.

-our eyes nearly spilled over as she shared a story with me and i'll be thinking about her today.

-then i did some last minute work on the garden quilt.

-nature spilled over into the sketchbook and then onto fabric.

-with only a few thread deatails left this project will be finished.

-and then i got together with some more talented gals and the quilting inspiration was spilling over in all directions.

-all bring something different to the table and i love it all from those who can sew perfectly straight seams  to those that can match color like nobody's business. 

-love it and glad to be part of it.

-i messed around with an applique pattern i want to start.

-i used the magic mirror and sue's templates to work out some ideas.

-on the tips of the tree this morning i noticed the tiniest of buds.

-soon they will be spilling over with leaves

and

i. can't. wait.

-happy spring.

almost the final stage

The quilting and decorative stitching are complete on the garden quilt.

Below you can see the quilt being blocked.  I don't want the piece getting soaked, so instead I heavily steam it, pull it into submission, square up the sides and corners and pin it.  It stays pinned until completely dry.

It will get bound before the 3-d applique elements and beads are attached.  Once everything is in place, it will get blocked again.

don't judge a book by it's cover

because you never know what is inside

Today is  the Fiberactions Challenge Group reveal day.  Our theme word was impression.

This is a two sided quilt.  The front, meant to look like a weathered book of plants and flowers. The back  meant to look like a page from inside.

Again, I went with seed pods.  This time I created 3d seed pods which were lined with green silk.

The fabrics of the book were painted, over painted, distressed, inked and made to look like leather.  The label was was hand printed onto white fabric, distressed and the edges were burnt.

I took pictures of drawn flowers from my sketchbook and used them to hand paint white cloth. 

The flowers were stabilized prior to cutting and then stitched onto the background fabric.

I loved making this piece.  Out of all my Fiberactions pieces this is probably the most representational of  the type of work I love the most.

Head on over to the Fiberactions blog and see how the other talented artists interpreted the theme.

Thanks for looking!

spring break

I've added the thread detail.  Here is the Clematis, it will get attached when the quilting is finished.  The petals will remain loose, with minimal tacking on the tips.

More color and thread were added to shovel and gloves. 

They will be added at the end also.

Here is the front of my machine with quilt attached.  I stitched around the elements and then quilted the border.  Lastly, I went and added the fill behind the flowers. 

ed note:

*I know the pix are blurry, but if I'm messing with the photos- I'm not quilting......

and I have a lot of quilting to do....so I'm going with the blurry pix.

*Big kid comes home today on spring break and it will be good to have him back.

*Most of our snow is melted and we are all watching/waiting for spring.

*MLB opening day is soon (can't wait).

*Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by.

:)