Backyard Memories

These chairs have been around for most of the 47 years my grandparent's house has been in exisistence. My grandparents are gone now but this photo evokes my memory of them. I wish the chairs could talk and tell me all of the gossip and stories they have heard over the years

8x8 Challenge Piece #1

This is my first piece created for a challenge project. Two other artists and I plan to create pieces that are 8 x 8 inches square and then trade them every month. We will take the piece we get from the other artist and use it as a jumping off point to create our next 8 x 8 piece. My aim is to be more experimental and try not try to make each piece perfect. It is a sketchbook assignment for myself. One that I can draw upon for elements to use in future work.
The 8x8 area is light colored and is photographed on a black background. It is a fabric stitched background with paper elements collaged on top. Comments are always welcome. What does this evoke in you?

Delivery Time!

I recently delivered this necklace to it's new owner and I know she will enjoy it with gusto! She is an artist too! I first said I would make her another one that was similar. But really now! You have to let your babies go when the time comes!

Back Where I Come From

Over the holidays my Mother and I went through some things left to us by my grandparents. Some of it needed to move on to other people. Some things needed to be pulled out and put to good use. Some things needed to be honored and cherished. These embroidered pillow cases, made by my grandmother, fall in that last category. It made me realize "where I come from" like the country song title says.

I come from a line of women who worked with their hands and created practical items with beauty. My grandmother made wonderful quilts, embroidered pillow cases and crocheted doilies. My mother has sewn many a garment for me since birth. I am grateful for the skills they have passed on to me and for the love of textiles that I have inherited. And yes, as Alan Jackson's song goes...cornbread and chicken were also a part of "where I come from."

New Year - New Blog

The new year brings with it a new blog for me.  My previous blog of the past year and a half disappeared into the ethers as the computer world tends to do sometimes.    Rather than re-upload everything, I decided to start fresh on blogger.  So the posts below are just a few highlights from 2008.   I look forward to sharing my creative ventures with you here in 2009.   Oh and the feature in the sidebar to "twitter" is just too cool.   Check that out.

Jane Dunnewold Workshop 2008

A real highlight of this year was taking a workshop with artist Jane Dunnewold. She was invited to give the workshop in conjunction with the Museum of Texas Tech's exhibit "Sum of Parts."--Surface Design Association membership show.

The workshop was on simple printing with soy wax. It was so much fun! Did you know soy wax is non toxic and water soluble? Here are a couple of my fabric designs. The second one I call my i-pod fabric.

Circle Journal 2008

The concept of a circle journal was new to me.  I was invited by a friend to participate with six other artists.  Three of us were local and four were out of state.   Each of us created an art book based on a theme.  Then we passed each other's books among us and created a page according to that person's theme for each other's books.   My book's theme is Mandalas.  So I created a book that opens up to create a circular design like a Mandala.  The cover is an original machine embroidery design I created with butterflies.  I then needle felted colored wool on top of the embroidery and embellished with beads. Each page was like opening a Christmas present when I got my completed book back.   

Day of the Dead 2008

Dia de los Muertos is a fun theme to play with.  As a friend of mine commented when someone asked why there is such a popular craze for skulls.....they said...because we all have one!   How true!   I made this quilt in a rush.  It is about 14 inches wide and 36 inches deep to fulfill the dimensions limit for the Buddy Holly Center's Celebracion exhibit.    

The deadline slipped up on me but I also was selected to serve on the jury of a criminal trial that lasted the 3 days before the deadline.  I was sewing sequins on it in the car just before I turned it in for the exhibit.  This piece sold to a collector of fiber art!   And the jury ended up being a hung jury! 

5 x 7 Art Scholarship Benefit

The black area of this piece is 5 x 7 inches and was created for the 5 x 7 show. Proceeds went towards art scholarships for Texas Tech University. I titled it "Illuminated Grid" because it reminded me of ornate illuminated manuscripts but in a modern grid layout. This is made from my stitched fabric pieces with stitched cording that I make on the sewing machine.--embellished with beads of course! This was made entirely with scraps left over from other projects.

Milagro Heart for 2008 Heart Ball

Milagro Heart was created for the American Heart Association Heart Ball as a silent auction item.  It is made with pieces of stitched thread fabric that I make by stitching and stitiching and stitching again.  Then I cut the different color pieces into shapes, sew them together and embellish with lots of beads.  

lllustration Friday Submissions of 2008

In July I read about the Illustration Friday website where they post a different word each Friday. You then you can post your illustration of that topic up until the following Friday. I decided to give it a try and to create illustrations using fiber techniques.

Here are my illustrations for the words

Foggy - Canned - Sour - Enough  - Poof!