DARE TO BE CREATIVE!

Thursday, July 31, 2008

My ATC on Channel 3


My Christmas 2007 ATC for a swap at Mystic Paper was shown on t.v. today. Terri O did a segment on Artist Trading Cards on Good Morning Arizona on Channel 3. Kim from Mystic Paper mentioned on her blog yesterday that we should watch and we might see one of our ATCs. I was so excited when she had selected one of mine to show on the segment. Of course she didn't mention names but it was right there in living color on t.v. Here is a link to the post I did back in December 2007. Wow! So exciting.

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Altered Couture Page 89


Here's a photo of page 89 in Altered Couture. This is my Going Green child's denim skirt. I think they did a great job. I had no idea that their Gallery section included a full page spread. I'm excited about also being selected for their upcoming Winter and Spring magazines. All Somerset magazines have such wonderful photos. I'm honored to be included.

I have a couple of similar skirts available in my Etsy store.

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Techniques on F.A.T.



I have started a techniques mystery on F.A.T. This is my first. This is a photo of the first part. We were to select fabric according to the directions (we are following the color wheel) and cut into strips free hand with rotary cutter (No ruler) We then sewed the strips together. Next we selected two additional fabrics. Those fabrics are in the second picture. We are to make oblique quilt pieces with the new fabric and strips of the piece we made the first day. Tomorrow we do something with black fabric. Fun to see what we do each day.

Goddess ACT Swap


Here is the A T C goddess I received in a Swap on F.A.T. Dove made this lovely Pink Goddess. She also sent a piece of beautiful velvet fabric. I posted my Goddess of Green a few days ago. Barb was the recepient of the Goddess of Green.


Fun swap with some really wonderful people.

Monday, July 28, 2008

Beautiful Clouds





My son asked me to accompany him on a short trip to Northern Arizona this past weekend. As we were driving, we came upon these wonderful clouds. I explained that I was seeing a quilt and that I would like to stop and take pictures. He said but mom there's a road sign in the middle of the picture. I explained that may things can appear and disappear in a quilt.


Aren't these lovely. I can indeed see a quilt. The weather was cooler up north and even had some rain during our trip.

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Felting Part Three


Here is an example of organza that has been texturized with the Huskystar ER10. I have tried to show the difference between the texturized part and the original piece of organza. This didn't take long and I really like the texturized organza. I can see many uses for this fabric. One possiblity would be fabric flowers. I plan to use this as a background for another felted piece.

More to come.

Felting Part II




The third layer was to cut out floral motifs from fabric and felt them onto the piece. I really like the addition of the flowers. The next layer was to add yarn to the flowers. I'm not too pleased with this. I guess I'm not very good at outlining the flowers with yarn. Maybe my motifs were too small or maybe I didn't have the correct yarn.


The final piece is going to be the front of a fabric postcard. I have already fused it to some peltex. Just waiting for an address.


Now I'm off to add texture to a piece of organza. I'll let you know how that goes.

Felting with Huskystar ER 10





I set some time aside today to experiment with my new felting machine. I purchased the machine in March and have used it only a couple of times. I have been inspired by some of the lovely pictures on blogs to get busy with needle felting. The first step was to felted fabric scraps to a piece of black felt with the machine. The next step was to add yarns and felt those onto the the top of fabric. Next post I will show adding flowers cut from floral fabric.

July ATC Swap at Mystic Paper


Just returned from Mystic Paper with these lovely ATCs from their July swap. Aren't they wonderful. You can probably figure out the theme of Red, White, and Blue. I posted a picture of my ATC earlier in my blog. If you are ever in downtown Mesa, Arizona, stop by Mystic Paper and visit with Kim and Jennifer. It is a wonderful place.

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

I'm being published in Altered Couture magazine!


I'm going to be published in the Fall issue of Altered Couture Magazine. It is due out in August. Today I found out that I will have a Retro Denim vest published in the Winter 2008 issue of Altered Couture and that at the present time I will have an item published in the Spring 2009 issue. The spring issue could change because it is so early but they have selected an item to include. I'm so excited. The denim skirt that will be in the Fall issue is the first thing I submitted to the magazine. The denim vest is the second item. Not bad. Two for Two. I did submit two additional items. I'm not sure which one they selected for the Spring issue. I'll post a picture of the actual page when I receive my copy of the magazine.
I'm still walking on air!!!!

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Goddess of Green




This is my ATC for a swap on Fiber Art Traders. I decided to use recycled products in my ATC.


The theme of the swap was Goddess. I had read people were using FedEx packages are backing for quilts and in other fabric art projects. The background is the Fed Ex package and the backing is soda pop packaging. I decided to use the theme of the fabric bags that we are encouraged to use when shopping. The bag is made from a scrap of green fabric. I drew the arms and legs. Check out the sparkly green shoes. I wrote Reuse but card still needed something so I added crystal Stickles. Not sure Stickles goes with the green theme but oh well, it's artistic. I don't know why the crystal has a pink tint in the photo. It is more green when you look at the card.




Friday, July 18, 2008

A little bleach!


Altered Couture magazine is having a challenge to use bleach in an altered garment. I have been working on this piece. Just put on the finishing touches today and I will submit to the magazine next week. Hope they like it. Can't show you the entire garment but here is a little clue.

Christmas in July



My friend Karen from Grannys Attic Quilt Shop in Kentucky is featuring Christmas in July in the shop this week. Just this week she sent me pillowcase dresses by the granddaughters and refused to accept any payment. (That's the kinda gal she is!) So I got her - I sent her flowers the first day of her sale.


You should have heard the lady at the flower shop when I called and requested a Christmas in July floral arrangement. She said she would do her best with what she had in the shop. Isn't this a lovely arrangement! To say the least Karen was shocked and her customers admired the arrangement. I do love the ladies in Kentucky. They are so friendly and caring. I love working with them when we are there. Karen sent me the pictures of the flowers and the shop in it's Christmas splendor. Wish I could be there for the party!


Maybe soon..........

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Patriotic ATC


This month's theme for ATCs at Mystic Paper is Patriotic - Red, White, and Blue. I haven't participated in one of their swaps for some time because we have been out of town. Since I had just completed a Patriotic Quiltie, I decided to participate in the swap. These are the ATCs for the swap. The image is from Dover it says "Work on a farm this summer. Join the US Crop Corp". The mesh is recycled from a tomato bag. I thought it was an appropriate use for the mesh. Green can be RED!

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Fabric ATCs


These fabric ATCs are for a summer swap on Treasure Art Trends. I have labeled them
"Sew Summer". It is a 5 for 5 swap. I cut images from a sewing themed fabric and sewed them to the brown background. I then added a button to each card and satin stitched around the edges. The fabric was from my stash. I believe I purchased it at a cute little quilt shop in Seaside, Oregon. When traveling, I buy fat quarters. They are wonderful reminders of great places we visit and I can use them in my art work. These will go in the mail today. I think this is my last swap before I begin a fabric book for a swap due in September.

Monday, July 14, 2008

July Patriotic Quiltie


The theme for July Quiltie in Fabric in Altered Arts is patriotic. This is my quiltie. The image is from Dover and the fabric from Granny's Attic in Kentucky. I decided to give it a rustic binding with red binding and machine zig zags. Both July quilties will go in the mail today.


I have enjoyed participating in these monthly quiltie swaps and have received a number of wonderful little quilts by return mail. Always fun to open the packages and see the great things fellow fabric artists create.

Vintage Fabric Postcard


This is a fabric postcard for a swap on Fabric in Altered Arts. I am Norma's partner this month. You can see Norma's western postcard below.


Last week a friend asked me to come over to see if I would like any of the items in her cedar chest (linens and things). She had asked family and they had taken what they wanted. I jumped at the chance. My friend is in her 80's and has traveled all over the world. I was sure there had to be some TREASURES that I could use in my altered fabric art or quilting. I hit the "Jackpot"! She had the most lovely vintage hankies. Many of them linen with tags still attached. More about these in a later post. I see a vintage hankie quilt in my future.


Back to the fabric postcard. I had covered some Peltex with brown fabric for the Olympic Inchies and decided to use it as the background for the postcard. I then found this lovely vintage hankie in the sack of hankies. I attached it to the brown background and added vintage trim (a find from the Salvation Army store a few weeks ago). The final touch was a vintage button (Goodwill) and satin stitch edges. The back of the postcard is a copy of a vintage picture postcard back scanned onto fabric. Hope Norma enjoys this little vintage fabric postcard.

Sunday, July 13, 2008

Thrift Store Treasure





This patchwork piece was one of my found TREASURES yesterday at the thrift store. It measures about 14" x 80". I assume someone began a quilt and didn't finish. "Their loss is my gain!" All the little pieces in such lovely colors. Wonderful vintage piece. This will be a great addition to my stash.




Once home I washed the piece and put it in the dryer. This morning I was searching for inspiration for a mini quilt for a Light Blue Themed swap. As I was ironing the patchwork, I saw the light blue star. Perfect for the background of the Light Blue Quiltie! The results are shown in the photo. An image from Dover and a little vintage rick rack (also thrift store) and my quiltie was on its way to completion. I embellished the image with Stickles and added backing and binding. I'm pleased with the little piece of art!

Saturday, July 12, 2008

Olympic Plus Size Inchies






A swap was recently posted on Fiber Art Traders (F.A.T.) for Olympic Plus Size Inchies. Plus size inchies measure 1 1/2" x 1 1/2". We were to make 4 sets of 5. One we keep and four we trade. I decided to use the theme OLYMPIC ART. I found these lovely painted vases dating from 300-500 B.C. on one of the Olympic websites. Vases show events still in the Olympics today (Boxing, foot race, distance race, and two wrestling) I have identified the event on the back of the inchie.


Photos were sized and printed on fabric sheets. I used Peltex as a base. The background is brown cotton fabric. Photos were fused onto background fabric. The edges are satin stitched in black thread.


This is my second swap on F.A.T.

Friday, July 11, 2008

Cowboy Themed Fabric Postcard




This is a postcard I received in the July Fabric Postcard swap onFabric in Altered Arts yahoo group. This lovely card was made for me by Norma who lives in Southern Arizona. Norma does excellent work. I'm very pleased to have received one of her postcards. You can view Norma's work here. I plan to have her postcard ready to mail by the first of next week. I'm thinking of using a vintage hankie.




I mailed my One Fish, Blue Fish to my swap partner today. Can't wait to see what I get in return. The photo looks wonderful.

Needle felting class Janome






I attended a "free" class on Tuesday at Mulqueen's Sewing Center in Mesa. It was sponsored by Janome. We felted fibers on organza with the Janome felting machine and then used the Janome 11000 Embroidery machine to applique the felted fabric onto a piece of wool which had been felted with fibers. We used a leaf pattern. We were to make a small pillow but of course, I didn't make the pillow. I brought my fabric home and gave it more colors. The wool background was white and wasn't as colorful as I would like. I painted it with fabric dye. I also added more needle felting with a very sparkly lightweight fiber that I purchased at The Fiber Factory (don't remember the name of the fibers). The ladies at the Fiber Factory weren't sure if the fiber could be dyed. I was able to dye them a very light color and then added them to the piece to give it some sparkle. I plan to use the piece as the center of a wallhanging. I found a piece of tie dye in my stash that I think will look great as a background. This will be a next week project as I am swamped with projects at this time.

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Another "Apron All"




A week or so ago, I posted about an idea I had for recycled/altered overalls for children. I did a sample one and posted the picture here. I have since added vintage rick rack on the apron edge and removed the buckles from the straps. I made buttonholes and sewed on vintage green buttons. I will be listing it on etsy.




The "Apron All" above was made from a recycled overall and a vintage children's apron. I removed the pocket from the apron and sewed it to the top of the overall. I then cut the apron to a shorter length and gathered to a new waistband cut from the left over skirt. I shortened the ties and attached to the waistband. On this garment, I left the buckles as they were. This item will also be listed on etsy.

Sunday, July 6, 2008

Apron Pattern



I went shopping yesterday looking for apron patterns that I could use for aprons to sell on etsy. The four corner apron that I am so fond of is copyrighted with no authorization to sell on etsy or ebay. I am able to sell them at boutiques or privately with their permission. After looking at a variety of patterns and seeing nothing that caught my fancy. I can home and began drafting some patterns for half aprons with ruffles. So far I've made two variations. The same concepts could be used for making little girl's ruffled skirts.


The pink and lime green dotted apron is made from what I call a double layer. Three tiers show but it is actually four tiers with one attached to the bottom of the upper tier. May sound complicated but it really isn't.


The green and turquoise apron is a triple tier apron. The fabric is called Playing in Spotzville. I put bias binding (a retro look) on the bottom hemline.


I will be listing these on etsy later today.

Friday, July 4, 2008

Happy Fourth of July


This picture is of the Fourth of July 1976 in Page, Arizona. Son John (waving flag) was just a toddler and he and two of his friends walked the entire parade route. They were on the front page of the local newspaper that week. Would love to know where his little friends Chris and Carrie are today.


This morning I spent time just remembering some past 4th of Julys. There are those with family in Kentucky. The annual 4th of July parade in downtown Campbellsville. Hauling a quad (four wheeler) 2000 miles across country so our son Paul could ride in the parade in the summer of 2002. Evenings at the park watching the fireworks. Watching the tractor pull in the high heat and humidity. (Wiping sweat!!!) Buying fireworks in Missouri and Tennessee and having our own "illegal" fireworks in the country. The list could go on and on. Fourth of July has always been a time of family fun and I pause to remember those family members who are no longer with us. I especially miss our son Paul and my dad. Both loved the 4th and fireworks.


Once I watched fireworks over Lake Michigan in Chicago while chaperoning students to an annual convention. That was quite an experience. So many people!!!!!!! Fireworks were beautiful as they reflected off the lake.


Today we will celebrate the Fourth with over 40,000 other people at the Diamondback game. We are promised the "coolest" place in town to watch fireworks. After the game they will open the roof and we will watch fireworks launched from the roof of the garage across the street. We will be sitting in the perfect location behind home plate upper level. We have been season ticketholders since the first season. Love our Diamondbacks but they have been struggling lately.

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Out of the Blue Mystery Trade



I joined a new yahoo group recently, Fiber Art Traders (F.A.T.) and this is my first swap in their group. The Trade is called "Out of the Blue Mystery Trade". We were to use the following items: fabric in some form of blue, recycled piece of plastic, thread or yarn, something from nature, and a circle.


I called this art piece "ONE FISH, BLUE FISH". The fabric is shades of blue wool that I found in a bundle at the thrift store. The bubble is both my circle and recycled plastic. The seaweed and waves are made from various yarns. The twigs are from the orange tree in the backyard.


I cut the wool fabric into strips. I then used a weave pattern and attached to a piece of canvas with my felting machine. I then added the yarn waves and seaweed with the felting machine. The fish pin was added and circles were cut from plastic packaging. I embellished the circles with Stickles and attached with Diamond Glaze. I also used stickles on the twigs and glued them to the piece with Ultimate Glue. I then added a backing and binding. I'm quite pleased with this "little work of art". Hope the group likes it.

Art Quilt -Mixed Media


This is an art quilt I made for a swap on Fabric in Altered Arts yahoo group. The background quilt was a demo piece I used over a year ago. I gave a short demo on Scrapbook Quilts at the grand opening of Granny's Attic in Campbellsville, Kentucky in 2007. I decided it was time to put the cute little quilt to use. Quilt fabric is reproduction fabric from Granny's. The photo is a mistake. I decided to try photo transfer using a transparency and it didn't work. Maybe for a variety of reasons (one being, I had no idea what I was doing!) At any rate when the transparency didn't transfer, I just left the transparency and sewed it onto the quilt. The background is distorted because of the failed transfer but I liked the look. The photo is from one of the free image sites on the internet. The embellishments are from my stash. All purchased at my favorite thrift stores.

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Jo Morton Quilt



I've set this week aside for UFOs. This is a quilt from the Jo Morton "Jo's Little Women Club". I joined the club at a local quilt store this spring. However, with our travel schedule, I have been unable to attend most of the meetings. This quilt pattern is from the first meeting - Patriotic Broken Dishes. The fabric is also Jo Morton. As usual, I made adjustments to the pattern. The mini-quilt measures about 17" x 20" and is machine pieced and quilted with stitch-in-the ditch.


I haven't done alot with traditional quilting recently. I completed the quilt top while at our vacation home in Kentucky in April and just today added the binding. Now I'm adding the backing and binding to another mini quilt made of Civil War fabric.