Fabric Painting

I ordered fabric to make a bag the other day.  Unfortunately I didn't read the fine print on one of the fabrics, which said fabric may not be what is pictured.  It was the focus fabric for my bag.  I looked everywhere and could not find it, so I tried a painting experiment.  I painted fabric the colors I needed and then places ferns and ginkgo leaves on the wet paint and sprinkles with salt.  Then it sat out in the sunlight until dry.  The results were alright, but the leaves were a little hard to see.  I used prisma color pencils to darken around the leaves and for details.  I also used fabric ink to draw and stamp over the cloth.  Here is the result.

close ups:

 

Rust Dyes - June

I left my rusty materials from last year set out and rust some more over the winter.  In June I soaked scraps of fabric in white vinegar and water. Then I wrapped them around the different objects.  Some I let set all day and others only an hour.  I did not wrap them in plastic this time.  The gray or blackish ones were then dyed in tea. Here are the pictures of the fronts and backs

 

Working or Not?

I have been working hard, but not much to show.  I'm working on way to many projects.  I am working on the sketchbook project. sketchbookproject

Thousands of sketchbooks will be exhibited at galleries and museums as they make their way on tour across the country. After the tour, all sketchbooks will enter into the permanent collection of The Brooklyn Art Library.

My theme is Below the Surface.  My book will mostly be made of fabric pages, sewing and collage.  I have decided that every topic I do will be illustrated in the above methods.  One page or half page is dedicated to every subject that I think of for my these. Each idea will also be accompanied by poetry in the form of Haiku, Senryu, or Tanka .  I am sticking strictly to 5 -7 -5 syllables  to challenge myself more for the Haiku and Senryu.  Senryu is similar to Haiku, but is not as limited on subject.  Tanka is like Haiku but with two extra seven syllable lines.   Being obsessed with the Gulf spill, I have had to add some paper journal pages to include more of my writings about it. 

Will post some pictures soon.

 I have more rust dyed fabrics to post about.  Finally found the camera charger after two weeks!!!  (It was right in the camera bag. Yeah, for being blind to things write under your nose!

Friday Night Sew In

Just joined the Friday Night Sew In group.  The link is here and in the sidebar.  Come join the fun.  Next sew in is Friday May 21st.

Star block

David's graduation quilt is made of star blocks.  Here are some pictures.

Around the Block Quilt

I have finally finished the top for Paul's college graduation quilt. Here are some pictures of it.

Fabulous Fiber Arts Workshop

The last weekend in February I was able to go to a fabulous fiber arts workshop.  It was held in the Opera House in Winchester, KY.  The instructor was Jennifer Reis.  The work shop was on hand-worked textile assemblage, including embellishment, embroidery, surface design, shrink art, and non-traditional quilting and appliqué. Click the link to check out Jennifer's art! http://jenniferareis.com/
A bonus to the workshop was that the owner is a superb cook and fixed wonderful lunches for us.
My piece "The Bead Lady's Loose"

Quilts for Kids

Here is a picture of the quilt sponsored by downy for children in hospitals.  The quilted hearts in the black and white squares glow in the dark.

Quote

You are not here merely to make a living. You are here in order to enable the world to live more amply, with greater vision, with a finer spirit of hope and achievement. You are here to enrich the world, and you impoverish yourself if you forget the errand. - Woodrow Wilson

Rip it! Rip it!

The frog chorus could be heard loud and clear in my sewing studio today.
I think I was a bit tired from our trip north, everything seemed to go together wrong.

Had a great time at my niece's wedding in Maryland.  Best of all we were in PA Friday without any obligations or plans.   I got to go to my first AQS show in Lancaster.  The quilts were really wonderful.  I tired out my husband and daughter, but they did enjoy themselves and took lots of photos.  I also tried out several long arm quilt machines.  I have to say I was impressed with the Handi Quilters machines.  My daughter took to it like a fish in water.  Her free flowing drawing style showed through superbly.