Amy Designs Musings

Islands of Genius

2012-01-27T12:52:00.002-06:00

Today I'm thinking about the coalescence of some ideas this week. When speaking with the director of the place where my son with Down Syndrome works/lives, she commented that people with special needs tend to only be able to do 1 thing really well at a time. I remember read a book on child development when my son was little that talked about "touch stones." The concept was that as little children are having developmental spurts learning to walk, or talk, or potty train, or grow their fine motor skills---whatever---they tend to backslide in other areas of their development. If, say, a child was potty trained, and then started wetting himself again, it was important to look at other areas of his life: was there some new developmental milestone or touchstone? I shared this with the director--she'd never heard this theory before, but it certainly fits with what she experiences with the adults in her facility.

From my Amazon wishlist, I received for Christmas

"Islands of Genius: The Bountiful Mind of the Autistic, Acquired, and Sudden Savant"

and am reading it now. It's a look at the fascinating condition of a very narrow area of brilliance in an otherwise (frequently) developmentally disabled person. This can also happen after some kind of brain injury, and is usually limited to just certain skills---music, art, math, and calendar counting mostly. This rare condition reveals an otherwise unknown extraordinary talent that cannot be explained. It makes the scientists (and me) wonder if there is this "island of genius" inside all of us.

So, aside from that whole topic being interesting unto itself, it leads me to think about the 8 intelligences, another developmental/learning theory I learned about when my son was little. From Wikipedia:

"Gardner argues that there is a wide range of cognitive abilities, and that there are only very weak correlations between these. For example, the theory predicts that a child who learns to multiply easily is not necessarily generally more intelligent than a child who has more difficulty on this task. The child who takes more time to master simple multiplication 1) may best learn to multiply through a different approach, 2) may excel in a field outside of mathematics, or 3) may even be looking at and understanding the multiplication process at a fundamentally deeper level, or perhaps as an entirely different process. Such a fundamentally deeper understanding can result in what looks like slowness and can hide a mathematical intelligence potentially higher than that of a child who quickly memorizes the multiplication table despite a less detailed understanding of the process of multiplication."

Well, all this leads me around to my HSHB course and our FB group, which is the closest to heaven that I've ever been! There have been comments about every aspect of ourselves, but today I was particularly thinking/dreaming about the advice that we should try to do just a few things well. Many of us artsy-types want to try so many different ways to express ourselves, or think we SHOULD try other things, that we kind of scatter our energies and focus, diluting our own power. It's not the trying that isn't good, but trying to be really excellent at a lot of things, rather than letting them go, or asking for help only lessens our chance for success, when we think the opposite is the truth

2012-01-23T21:47:00.002-06:00

Dad and Jack

I've documented my process here on my blog and it's finally finished!

I used the dark blue from the bottom of the quilt on the back.
I put a rod pocket across the top and I added a couple of other special touches. I added a pocket to hold the copy of the photograph. I also added a label for the name of the quilt, my name and date, and that this quilt was a gift for my father's 85th birthday.

I absolutely loved working on this project. It was like a jigsaw puzzle----I kept thinking "OK, I'll just add this one more detail" before I could get out of my studio.

The fabric pieces were an interesting challenge. I love using hand-dyed and batiks, with all kinds of variations in color and tone. Finding just the right piece can be overwhelming, but having my fabrics sorted by shade to start with really helps. I keep in mind that I will be doing some stitching where needed for extra detail.

And the stitching===it's so meditative. I do free-motion stitching throughout. Sometimes when I do these quilts I use fine clear thread, but on this piece I used colored thread, changing as I needed to. I don't worry about matching the fabric exactly---a little contrast adds interest.

I'm looking forward to doing more portraits and landscapes in fabric. I think this may be a new direction for my business!

Portait in Fabric: Almost Done!

2012-01-23T12:11:00.000-06:00

DAD AND JACK:

This photo shows the background I chose. First I had chosen just the dark blue (at the bottom) but I realized the figure was just floating in space. When I looked at the original photo, I saw the ground/sky line---EXACTLY what was missing in my picture! So, I found in my stash a nice mottled light blue "sky", and used the dark fabric for the ground. I loved the angle of the ground in the photo, so I tried to emulate that in my picture.

Here is my picture with the boarder on. Using my color wheel, I found the triadic complementary colors for my red/orange (sepia) hues were red violet and teal. I seem to have an affinity for these three colors---I've discovered several projects from workshops where I used this exact same combination!

Anyway, I found this nice batik with all three shades in it, which I like very much. Also notice that I let the dog's tail come outside the frame. It really helps bring the whole figure forward, I think. I'm not used to adding the border before I've even finished the picture, but it was necessary in this case so I could finish up the stitching on the tail. I really like doing it this way.

Here is a close-up of the face. I was not happy with something about the face as it was. I realized I didn't have the shadow on the forehead or along side the nose quite right before. Here you can see I added a bit of fabric on the right side of the forehead and narrowed the shadow on the face so there is better definition of the cheekbone (it's evident on the original photograph.)

I guess I could spend another week fiddling with little things---I've torn out other stitching, added more here and there---but this must be finished up today! This isn't perfect, but then neither am I!

I will post later about the back of the quilt. I'm doing a couple of special things there, too!

Fabric Portrait: Cutting out the pieces

2012-01-18T17:46:00.000-06:00

The previous posted ended with my decision on color for the figure of my dad (age 9) and his dog, Jack. "Sepia" is what I'm calling it. More thoughts on my color choice: I thought if I went with black and white, it would give the impression of an old photo, yes, but I didn't want to be caught up in trying to exactly match all the shades of gray. I know, it might be easier that way, but I guess I'm just too independent minded to take the easier route. And I really think lifelike color could have made the whole thing too contemporary--my dad's turning 85, the photo is 76 years old, I want my art quilt to tell that part of the story. So, that's that!

I had my pattern all traced on (taped together) tracing paper. There are many ways to create the fabric pieces from this point. Some of the choices depend on just how exacting you want to be. I rather like to allow myself to be "in-exact" as this is, after all, ART, not another photograph!

Creating an art quilt which has sewn edges is a whole other creature, which we'll not get into today! I'm doing raw edge applique. I love fabric, I don't mind my pieces looking like they're made of fabric, and fabric is made of threads. So, there are going to be some threads, or edges, evident. In fact, I like to use those textural possibilities in my pictures! This is Fiber Art!

One nice method for raw-edge applique is to use fusible webbing on the back of all the fabric pieces. Steam-a-Seam is great, the pieces can be moved around before they're ironed down for permanence.

My thought here was, I just didn't want to be bothered with all the ironing of the Steam-a-Seam. I've done this type of quilt before (tho never a portrait) and have used another method successfully. I put my tissue pattern on my light box, anchoring it with some scotch tape on each side. Then I placed my chosen fabric over the area and trace my piece's shape directly on the right side of the fabric using a sharp pencil or very fine point pen. This is quite easy, of course, on light colored fabric. You can see, though, that I have quite a bit of dark fabric. I still traced it this way. I drew with a light gray chalk fabric marker (any light colored marking pen or pencil is fine.) And I re-drew, darkly, pattern areas where I couldn't really see my lines through the fabric. I also flipped my fabric back frequently to double-check where my pattern lines were.

Where the pattern areas were quite large (like the dog's body, the boys' coat) I used a couple of pins to anchor the fabric to the tissue. You can also tape the fabric piece to the tissue, then carefully peel the tape away when you're finished tracing. I left those large pieces pinned to the pattern for quite some time as I worked on getting pieces cut.

Pieces have to be cut with consideration for overlap. Edge-to-edge piecing can end up with lots of gaps. Think about what piece laps over which and add a little (1/8" to 1/4") seam allowance in those areas for glue.

Some considerations about cutting the pieces:

I use small, very sharp scissors (some Fiskars, actually). It's usually best to turn the fabric as you cut, rather than the scissors. That way you keep your hand and scissors at about the same angle and can keep control and precision.

I've learned from experience that, though I think I'm drawing a fine line, it's still best to focus on cutting on the outside of my drawn line. It does make a tiny bit of difference, which can be a big difference when you're putting it all together.

And it's OK to re-cut a piece. Give yourself permission to get it the way you want it. It's not like you're wasting a yard of fabric! This all takes time, and it's a bit tedious sometimes, so be patient with yourself.

After I cut a piece, I lay it right over my pattern to see if I've got it about right. You can lay it under the pattern tissue as well (this works especially well for piece placement.)

You can see I started in the middle, with the dog's body. I'm not sure it matters exactly where you start, but starting with a large piece makes things a bit easier.

I did have to be careful, and re-do a bit, with regard to the dog's nearly white body and all the darker fabric around it. Sometimes I thought it would look nicer for the dog's body to overlap another piece, but sometimes you could see through the white too much, so I had to make very small seam allowances, or change the lap.

The way I attached my pieces to each other was with some watered down craft or fabric glue. I pour a little out in a little plastic lid or something and use a toothpick to dab glue under the edges I want to glue to other pieces of fabric. I did not glue all this down to the tissue! A bit did stick here and there, but I could easily pull it off.

To be quite honest here on my blog, I'm posting a couple of pictures of Dad's face as I worked on it. This was definitely the hardest part. I had very small pieces to shape and place, and fabric choices were kind of difficult (though I find that part really fun!)

Here's the face when I played with some fabric that had stones on it. I was using the wrong side for its subtler colors. I liked how I could get the highlight on the tip of his nose and the shadow at the bridge of his nose. However, it just wasn't an improvement over what I'd done before. Kinda weird looking, actually. :-)

Another change in this photo is the mouth. Previously, I'd gotten the lips too dark and they looked too big (tho they were the right size according to the pattern.) It all had to do with fabric choice. This time, the upper lip is just a shadow, and the bottom lip is, well, there isn't a bottom lip! What I've done is just place a little piece of fabric that creates a pale shadow under his bottom lip, creating the effect that his lip is there.

There comes a time when I know I better leave well enough alone. So this is it. I did cut out some "whites" of his eyes and some little dark pupils. They are not glued down--more just to play with. I may use them, or I may paint or thread paint the pupils. Just don't know yet. But overall, I'm satisfied.

So what I've created is a big applique piece that I'm going to put on a background piece, which is yet to be discovered! When I get going on all the thread work (thread painting, quilting), this piece will really come to life!

Next post will have a background and some (if not all) stitching done.

Thanks for reading!

Creating a Portrait in Fabric

2012-01-13T21:40:00.011-06:00

Dad's 85th birthday is coming up in a few days. I wanted to create something really special for him, something that he wouldn't expect. I've had this photo of him at age 9 on my bookshelf for a long time. A couple of days ago I was finally inspired----to create this photo as an art quilt!

I have begun the project and will chronicle it here. My first consideration was color. The photo is in black and white. I could copy this, but aside from not being very inspired, I don't think it would reflect what I want it to. I want the piece to be interesting and reflect his long life. I

thought about doing it in life-like color, but I don't know what color Dad's hat and coat actually were. I have been looking at challenging myself by doing a monochromatic quilt, focusing on shade and tint, texture and line. I have decided to do the picture in sepia tones. This will give it an old-fashioned look, yet being a very contemporary style of art.

Next I had to enlarge this photo to a size I could manage. The original (something like 4X6") is too small to replicate. I used my photocopier to enlarge it (in sections) 200%. The main figure itself is now about 24" X 14", so it will finish to

about 30" tall. This will be manageable (I can finish it in 10 days) and large enough to be substantial (otherwise, why bother, right?)

The next step is to create a pattern. I have laid tracing paper on top of the enlargement and traced areas from

which to create fabric pieces. I kept in mind that I can't have pieces too small to cut and place successfully. I also know that I will thread-paint details, so that will take care of some of the small issues.

Now......fabrics! I keep my fabric sorted by color, so it wasn't too hard to pull out lots of shades of brown. I didn't bother to research "sepia" to authenticate my color choices, instead I'm choosing shades and tints of yellow-orange. I've learned something about the importance of contrast to add interest to a piece, so I tried to find my very palest and very darkest pieces. I did discover that I have some browns that are more green-brown, and some are more gray-brown, so I tried to keep with the yellow and red-browns. I also got out a bit of solid black. There are a few prints with other colors in my piles....you never know, they might be interesting somewhere in the picture!

More to come.................

Gift Certificates Available!

2009-12-13T11:12:00.002-06:00

Gift certificates for my shop are now available!

See my Artfire Blog for all the details!

Organizing Tips for a Sewing Room

2009-11-23T17:47:00.005-06:00

I love great organizing ideas!

I do a bit of every type of sewing, so I have yardage (for garments, quilt backs, and
upholstery) plus tons of little scraps of hand-dyed and batik
cottons, commercial print fabrics, trims, art supplies and loads of books and patterns.

I have reads loads of articles, books and blogs about how to get organized. It's a lot more fun to read about it than do it, that's for sure! I also like to recycle and reuse what I already have when possible. I must admit, from experience, that it's sometimes better to buy something that will really work for you rather than waste time looking for something (every time you need it) that you stored in a container that you already had but isn't really very functional. That was a long, awkward sentence to say your time is valuable, your materials are valuable, and you are wasting both if you can't find something easily!

Keep in mind about stacking: tall stacks of folded fabric become very messy, very easily. Many short stacks are much easier to grab fabric out of. Most shelving units I've owned had shelves that were really too far apart to make usable stacks of fabrics in and not waste a ton of space.

This is where boxes come in: uniform boxes with lids that stack well can be the best answer. When you find a size of box that fits your type of fabric or materials and stacks well in your shelves, try to buy enough of them to hold ALL of whatever it is. Clear boxes can be the best, though I use several types of boxes that are NOT clear and work very well for what I use them for.

Here are some organizing tips from my studio:

Comic book boxes are great for holding patterns--you can even put
in dividers for different types of patterns

Mug racks--those little stands that are a vertical "stick"
with 2 horizontal cross bars to hang your mugs on. I have
found 2 at garage sales. These little things have finally ended
my habbit of losing my scissors and rotary cutters under all my stuff while I'm
working! The scissor handles are so easy to slip on the rack and I've
tied a little loop of fabric on my rotary cutters so I can hang them,
too. Small scissors on the lower racks, long ones on the upper
bars. I've made loops and hung other gadgets on, too.

Baseball card boxes--I use these to organize fat quarters and all
smaller scraps of my landscape fabrics, grouped by color.
They're all folded and stand on their folds so I can scan across them
quickly. When I'm working on a landscape or other type of applique, I lay the open box out on my table til I'm done. It's not fabric I use every day, but when I want it, it's easy to grab ALL of it and quickly find pieces (and replace them) as I work.

Plaxic shoe boxes--I store all my commercial cotton prints (fat
quarter & smaller) that read as solids in these, grouped
mostly by color, then I have a box of novelty prints, a box of
florals, a box of brights. I stack 'em 3 high on some book
shelves, and I can see into the end of each box so I don't have to mess
with labels.

Library card boxes or drawers have been a great way to store
things like trims, zippers, velcros and rolls of bonding agents,
bindings, etc. I have about 8 of these and it's great to just
pull out the drawer and leave the holdidng box on the shelf.
I've labeled each so I can grab the one I need quickly.

I've tried sorting and packing up ALL of my fabrics but I can't stand
working (or daydreaming/designing) without being able to look up and see my stash! So I'm
now using a hutch with glass doors on top for my main fabric
yardage.

I've realized over the years, however, that I don't need to
see all of my plain solid cottons so I keep them in deep drawers--black
and white in one, other colors in another (I would use big plastic
bins if I didn't have drawers). Another deep drawer/plastic bin
holds interfacings, stabilizers and batting scraps.

Plastic drawer units-- I a few of these use for all my art
supplies, glue guns, etc.

Printer's drawers (from antique shops) are a great way to organize
my (tons of) buttons. These are the big, shallow drawers divided into many little sections of different sizes. The drawers can stack under my shelving unit, on
top of a dresser or can even slide under a bed (I put a piece of
cardboard over them to keep out the dust--not that I have any dust in
my house! Ha!

Cute mugs with broken handles find their way into my studio to
hold pens, pencils, marking supplies, screw drivers, paint brushes, and other tall
objects.

I would love your comments and ideas, too!

Christmas is Coming!

2009-10-27T08:48:00.005-05:00

I posted earlier about finding this Grandma Moses barkcloth on ebay. Well, I think it made some really cute Christmas stockings! I've made quite a few different ones for markets this fall. The one on the left has a cuff made from vintage chenille and fringe. Doncha love that curled-up toe??? The other (traditionally shaped) stocking has a cuff made from a vintage napkin. I sewed a bunch of fun buttons on it for accent.

Here are a couple of other fun uses of vintage materials. These 2 jackets are from the same pattern---they look so different! My friend Maria is wearing a jacket I originally designed for myself. I took it to a market before it was finished, just in case someone came along who might be interested in this type of jacket. Well, Maria came along and wanted THAT jacket! She came over the next day to pick out buttons and I finished it up for her. You can tell from her big grin that she loves it! So I went ahead and created another jacket for myself, pictured on the right.

I am frequently asked, "What IS barkcloth?" Barkcloth is a cotton fabric with a rough, nubby weave, thus the name. It was popular in the 1930's, 40's and 50's, primarily used for curtains. Because curtains don't get much "wear", they have survived in great shape. There were several popular pattern styles---tropical, asian, floral and "scenic". The colors are different than what I find in contemporary fabrics (like that funky lime green) which makes it hard sometimes to find coordinating materials.

My Pursuit of Happyness!

2009-09-21T08:34:00.010-05:00

Lots of people like to window shop online. It's fun, free, and your feet don't get tired! The main thing I shop for online is fabric. The types of fabrics I find most interesting and inspiring are mostly vintage materials, which I find on ebay or at estate sales (when I'm lucky enough to be able to get to one!) The hunt for authentic barkcloth, in a pattern I like, at a reasonable price, is a favorite break-time activity.

I just love my most recent barkcloth finds and thought I'd share some of them with you!

This fabric I've already used for beautiful purse (custom order) and have cut out a jacket for another order.

I found this pretty grey/pink color way of the same fabric I just used for the messenger bag! One of my sons' girlfriend has already ordered the messenger bag in this one. Just need to find some great lining fabric!

I'm not sure if this one is really barkcloth, but it's the same type of texture. The little country scenes are so cute--can't wait to applique some of it on some denim pieces!

This is my grand prize (for now!) Some real Grandma Moses "Springtime on the farm" panels. It hasn't even arrived in the mail yet, can't wait to see it! It will be great for jackets. I'll have to see it in person to really formulate some ideas.

Barkcloth florals are pretty easy to find, but the rural, farm-type scenes are much harder to come by. So finding and using them in creative ways has become my little "niche" in the handmade market.

Barkcloth laptop bag/diaper bag/tote!

2009-09-17T19:10:00.008-05:00

This summer I was given the opportunity ( by another Artfire artisan) to submit something for a silent auction at the American Business Women's Association convention at the end of this month. Paula was collecting Artfire items to put in a bag---I jumped at the chance to make THE BAG!

I've been buying some gorgeous vintage barkcloth this summer and thought the brown and turquoise would be beautiful for fall. I did buy some commercial cotton for the lining because I didn't have anything to match.

I designed the bag around the print on the fabric. This created a rather large bag, so I measured my laptop to make sure it would fit, as long as it was going to be that large. The bottom of the bag is firm and padded, so it's "laptop friendly". It's also a great size for a diaper bag or just a general tote.

There are pockets inside and out and the top zips closed---should be very nice to use.

The button on the flap is my favorite button in my collection--it's from my grandmother's estate. It just looked TOO GOOD to not put on this bag!

I'm very pleased with the results and have posted it in my Artfire studio, as I can create more such bags if they are custom ordered.

Old Fabric and New Bags

2009-07-08T09:34:00.010-05:00

I'm so enjoying working with my collection of vintage fabrics. These are the only 2 "big" bags I've made with them lately, but I love them both. The first bag I designed completely around the fabric print. I love that wrought iron gate behind the flowers, so I created an arched shape for the center of the bag. Then, to give the bag a more "girly" shape, I cinched in the sides with a little belt. I'm really happy with it.

The second bag has been brewing for a while.........I had the barkcloth with the red and pink leaves for quite a while. I hadn't been used to working with red and pink together, so that took some contemplating. Plus it's a really large scale design. Then I had this little remnant of what I guess was a tablecloth--the piece with the big peonies. Same colors.....hmmm........had my red and white pillow ticking in my big pile of working materials.........and then it all came together! I like the different scales of the graphics, and the contrast of stripes with floral. I think it works. Because of the shape of the table cloth piece, I was kind of stuck with a square-ish shape, and the bag became a big tote. I can't leave well enough alone, so I pleated the outer corners a bit. It needed some type of large closure piece, so I played with my vintage buttons til I found this stack. I added lots of pockets inside and a little one on the outside (I love those for keys or phone) and it's done. I like it!

If you want to see more pics, go to my Artfire Studio. They're both for sale on my Artfire site, but if they don't sell, I wouldn't mind keeping them!!!

Crazy Piecing Tutorial continued

2009-05-30T11:38:00.003-05:00

Crazy Piecing (continued) Be sure to check out the first part in Previous Posts

Here I have started Fabric 3, laying a straight edge right side down along another raw edge of my base piece. I drew a pencil line with a ruler because my base piece wasn't exactly straight. I'm laying my top piece along that pencil line and stuck in a pin so I can get it under the needle in an orderly fashion.

After sewing along the straight edge, I flipped the Fabric 3 over, right side up. I finger pressed the seam, stuck a couple of pins in along the foundation edge and turned everything over. Now I will trim away the excess Fabric 3 along the foundation piece edges.

Here's the crazy piecing now. We have the large flowered base piece, the painted fabric (Fabric 2) and the striped silk (Fabric 3).

Next I decided to audition a new piece. I want to get the flowers pieced in without too much getting chopped off, so I lay the fabric on top, folding under right where I want the seam line to be. I finger pressed this fold to give me a sewing line. (This way you don't have to worry about cutting, allowing for an exact seam allowance, before you sew.)

Ok, I stitched my piece on, leaving the dreaded "L"---2 raw edges to fill. Not to worry.

I sew my next piece along 1 raw edge and, after turning right side up, fold under the raw edge covering the other side’s raw edge.

I stitch very close to the folded edge. This is where embellishments can cover a multitude of sins! A little embroidery stitch or ribbon will look great here. And a button or other cute doodad at the corner completes it.

This new "fabric" will be used to make a handbag that I'm giving away to the 7th visitor today (or whenever). Haven't actually made the handbag yet, but will in the next day or so and will publish a photo of it when I'm done!

CRAZY PIECING TUTORIAL

2009-05-29T20:05:00.013-05:00

To be a truly "crazy" piecer, you have to be a little crazy!

Here's a shot of my studio Friday as I was starting to do this project! I've been doing a lot of different things, so EVERYTHING is out, and little Dickens finds the piles of fabric to make a lovely nest!

Crazy piecing starts best with a 5 or 6 sided piece of fabric.

Here I've started with a 5 sided piece. I usually do my crazy piecing on a foundation piece of fabric. Here I'm using some duck cloth. I like it because it's quite firm, so when I get ready to do embroidery or embellishments, I don't worry about using stabilizer.

If you're crazy piecing to make a garment (like my vests), cut out your pattern with muslin, using EXTRA WIDE seam allowances all around. Here I'm just making a couple of rectangular pieces to make a handbag with.

Next, pick 1 edge and lay another piece of fabric over it, right sides together, with straight edges even.

The top piece DOES NOT have to be exactly the length of the bottom edge, just BE SURE it's AS LONG.

Now stitch along the straight edges with a narrow seam allowance.

The seam allowance DOES NOT MATTER! (Hello, Quilters! Did you hear that! ; ) What does matter is that you sew a STRAIGHT line.

When you've finished, flip the new fabric over. Press (or finger press) the seam open.

Now you can put a pin or 2 in to secure your outer edges together if you wish--depends on how big a piece you're working on.

Next flip the foundation piece over and trim off the excess of Fabric 2, even with the edge of your foundation.

Now turn everything right side up again.

Looks good!

This is the basic idea. You keep adding fabrics going around the edges of your original 5 sided piece, then piece around those until your base is covered. Because I use scraps that are oddly shaped, I sometimes draw a straight line with a pencil on my foundation piece to help guide me in sewing the straight edges.

I have tons more photos and wanted to write A LOT more, but formatting photos in Blogger is insane!!! Tutorials need LOTS of pictures and this site is not designed for ease of inserting photos. So this is to be continued...........

Well, I've found Windows Live Writer to help with blogging, so the rest of the tutorial is posted on May 30. Please post your questions here and I'll answer them promptly.

Garden Flowers

2009-05-28T15:57:00.003-05:00

WELCOME SPRING/SUMMER!

Here in north-central Illinois, the winters are long. And just when we thought winter would never end............Spring arrived!

The WETTEST SPRING ON RECORD!! *sigh*

We haven't particularly enjoyed the rain, but the flowers sure have! Combined with last year's good dose of fertilizer compliments of our horses ; ) our garden has burst into bloom.

Thought I'd share a few bright pictures until my next tutorial (which will be VERY soon!)

The Sew What Blog Tour is visiting soon, so I've got to do some work!

Fabric Postcard / Party Invitation

2009-05-09T09:07:00.003-05:00

I just found this cute idea and thought I'd share it with you all. Artist's Trading Cards (ATC's) have been around for quite a while, but this is a much simpler way to create an "artsy" postcard. And if you're creating invitations, that's what you need--easy!

I also like that this idea would be perfect to use with the other 2 techniques I've done tutorials on.

Broderie Perse applique could be featured on the postcard, rather than a printed fabric---a cut-out motif bonded to a solid background would make a perfect little picture! You could probably even find fabric with a motif or design that relates to your party theme!

This is a great little project to practice your thread painting! Simple highlights on your fabric would really add a lot. Try out some of those special threads in your collection!

Here's the link. I get the newsletter from this site--they have some great ideas:

http://www.craftstylish.com/item/46433/how-to-make-a-fabric-postcard-party-invitation

Intro to Thread Painting

2009-04-21T10:45:00.006-05:00

Thread painting is being featured in a lot of books and classes recently. I think many people see the word “painting” and think “Oh my gosh, I can't paint!”. The fact is, thread painting is basically the same thing as free-motion embroidery. Free-motion embroidery is just sewing without the feed dogs up on your sewing machine. It's not very hard, really, and like anything else, you can improve with practice.
Thread painting can be used to add detail to projects that would be too tedious to applique. It can also add nice highlights to pre-printed fabrics and works as a quilting technique. Layers of thread can be built up to resemble textures like bark and fur.

I have some suggestions for getting started with this technique. Like my tutorial on broderie perse, let's use the fabric designer's talents to make our work easier and look great!

(Click on any picture to enlarge it if you cannot see details.)

First, the machine set up:

Put the feed dogs down. If you cannot do this, put tape over the feed dogs. You need to be in control of the direction the fabric goes.
Use a regular 80/12 needle or embroidery needle. Have extras at the ready and allow for the possibility that some might break! if you plan to use shiny threads, like rayon, be sure to use embroidery needles.
Take off the regular sewing foot and attach an embroidery foot. Open toed embroidery feet are nice because you can see where you are going better.

Thread your machine as usual. The color or type of thread isn't really important to start with—regular or embroidery threads will work fine. Use the same type in the bobbin. I'm using black in this tutorial so it can be seen more easily.
Thread tension can be adjusted so that the TOP tension is LOOSER than normal. You don't want your bobbin thread to be pulled up to the surface of the fabric. If you loosen the top tension a little, the top thread will be pulled under the fabric by the bobbin thread. (If you don't want to try this, be sure to use matching top and bobbin thread colors.)
Set a straight stitch. Length doesn't matter because you will be controlling that aspect.
Needle stop down, if you have it.

The fabric:

Pick a piece of fabric from your stash that has a large graphic design like a floral, leaves, etc. I've had fun with Laurel Burch fabrics, which have cartoonish cats, horses, etc. plus foliage and graphic designs. We want some graphics that are at least 1 ½ inches across to start with.

Make sure the piece of fabric is at least 12 inches across, so you have plenty to hold on to.
Under your fabric you can add a layer of thin batting if you like. This will give your stitching more impact and texture.
On the bottom you want a piece of stabilizer. There are many on the market to choose from. Sometimes I just use a piece of cotton canvas. If your stabilizer is not iron-on, you can use spray adhesive.

If you don't have spray adhesive, try this: Lay your stabilizer flat on the table, your batting (if you're using it), and your fabric on top. Pin your layers together all around, then stitch or hand baste around the edges to secure everything together. You can even baste a big “X” across the center of your piece—the basting can be removed when you're done.

Ready? Let's sew!

Slide your fabric under the needle and put the presser foot down to engage the thread tension.
Choose a graphic detail---say, a leaf. Let's outline the leaf. Take a couple of stitches in place at your starting point on the leaf edge. Some people prefer to take a stitch and pull up the bobbin thread, then stitch a couple of stitches and cut off the bobbin thread. That way you don't get any tangles on the back. Personally, I rarely have this problem so I rarely bother!
Make an “L” with your fingers and thumbs and place your hands around your chosen design with your thumbs about 2-3 inches apart.
Now you're ready to start stitching. You'll have to experiment with how fast to stitch and move the fabric. Believe it or not, when you stitch/move a little faster, you can make smoother lines. It's kind of like riding a bike. When you go really slow, trying to keep your balance, you're more likely to wobble around. So don't be afraid to step on the gas!
Outline your leaf (or whatever). You can move sideways and backwards, so you don't have to spend a lot of time stopping to rearrange your fabric like when you stitch with feed dogs. But if you can't see what you're doing, turn the fabric so you can!

Deep breath.....exhale.....relax your shoulders, elbows and wrists......
Now go around again! One thing I love about thread painting is building up lines of thread. And any little “wobbles” can be smoothed over with another line or 2 of stitching.

DON'T AIM FOR PERFECTION!! And needles sometimes break! I've broken A LOT of needles doing free-motion work. It happens, it's OK. Just put in a new needle and keep practicing.

Now that that's established, move on to another part of the design. If you're doing a leaf, try the veins. On a flower, try the stem/leaves.

REMEMBER: when you're ready, you'll probably use matching or blending thread colors. This time we're just concentrating on moving around.
You can practice stitch all over your fabric. This is a nice technique for quilting those printed panels used for pillows and wall hangings.

Here's a "before and after" on another section of my fabric. I used thread colors that blend with the design. The difference isn't dramatic, but it isn't supposed to be. What we're doing is embellishing, enhancing a design.

Before:
After: the next 3 pictures:

Next time we'll look at how color is used within an object in the design and focus on highlights.

Some of My Favorite Notions

2009-04-12T20:55:00.011-05:00

ONE OF MY FAVORITE GADGETS: Desk Needle Threader by Clover

Has to be one of my absolute favorite sewing accessories! Discovered this last year at a quilting conference. It's a little desk-top gadget. You put the needle in the hole, eye-end down, lay the thread across, push a lever, and pull the needle out---threaded! I didn't need this when I was younger, but this has come around just as my eyes are failing. It's made by Clover, available at various sites online or check your favorite fabric or quilting shop. (If they don't carry it, tell them they should!)

POCKET COLOR WHEEL

I have sewn all my life—the first 35 years I sewed primarily clothing. But in the last 15 years I have been exploring “art quilts” of different types. I've always felt like I had a pretty good eye for color, so I didn't really worry about color theory and such.

In January I went to a quilting conference and an artist/teacher I studied with was a big proponent of color wheels when choosing colors for a project. She pointed out that these color theories were developed over the centuries by the Masters---because they work! She was a painter before she was a quilt artist, and extremely talented. I thought, “If she thinks this is such a good idea, it probably is!”

We did use the wheel in some of our exercises and one thing I found was that it helps me make decisions a lot quicker. Mainly what I use is the back side because it shows at a glance the complementary, split complementary, triad, and tetrad, color combinations. I'm not a trained artist and I've chosen my colors “by eye” for such a long time, this has been a bit of a revelation. I still don't make traditional quilts and I've trained my eye to see colors in nature, so for some things I don't need to worry about split complementaries. But now when I'm choosing colors for a handbag or an arts-y quilt, I'm enjoying consulting my color wheel for some good advice!

This one is pocket size, available online and at craft stores like Hobby Lobby. (about $4)

Final Results from our Fund Raiser

2009-04-09T09:08:00.003-05:00

Here's my most recent accounting of our donation results for NADS:
My sales (4) $80
Donations thru my studio (2) $16
BirdysKnits matching donation & purchase $40
Sneakers donations $192.50
TOTAL: $328.50

Well, isn't that a great figure coming from a bunch of "starving artists"? I'm still basking in warm fuzzies--hope all of you are too.

Many asked about Dean's Bday: He had a great day. He worked at the sheltered workshop, then went to Special Olympics Bowling. Then his older brother, Ryan, (with whom he lives) and a friend took him out to eat at Chilie's. Ryan used to work there & a group of waitresses bought Dean one of those molten chocolate desserts. (Dean has the girls wrapped around his stubby finger wherever he goes!)

Sunday we celebrated Dean's Bday at our house with his younger 2 brothers. Hubby grilled cheeseburgers and I made a chocolate cake. I started showing Dean the Bday wishes as they were already coming in on Sunday and will show him all the rest this weekend. I've been telling him about them on the phone in the meantime.

So who's up for a Juvenile Diabetes fundraiser when my son #3 turns 21?!!!!

Love all of you!

Today's the Day!

2009-04-07T12:20:00.003-05:00

Today is Dean's 21st Bday and we've had a wonderful start with 2 items sold! All the support, blogging, twittering, bumping, etc. has just filled me with joy and gratitude. I've got lots of "pay back" to do, that's for sure!

We celebrated Dean's Bday here at our house Sunday, with presents, cheeseburgers and chocolate cake. Monday morning I took Dean back to work and got some incredible feedback about him from the supervisors there---they said he's the highest functioning person with Down Syndrome they've ever seen! Way to go, Dean! And they admire his kindness, generosity, and good manners. So I'm a proud mama today!

After work, Dean will go to Special Olympics Bowling, then his older brother, with whom he lives, and some of their friends will go out to dinner. We nixed the strip club!!!!

I'm trying to get a couple more things posted in my shop today. Man, isn't there always some techie issue to deal with?

Anyway, once again, thanks to you all!

More "how-to" blog posts coming soon!

Dean's Birthday: 100% Sales Donation

2009-04-04T18:06:00.003-05:00

I Dreamed
by Amy Cavaness

I dreamed he'd be born beautiful and healthy.
He was.

I dreamed he'd tell me that he loves me.
He tells me every day.

I dreamed he'd be bright and funny.
He is - his humor is wonderful.

I dreamed he'd ride a bike, catch a ball and wrestle with his big brother.
He does and his brother loves it.

I dreamed he'd have big birthday parties with lots of friends and cake and presents.
He's had six.

I dreamed he'd one day get on a bus and go to kindergarten.
He did it yesterday - my heart full of love and my eyes full of tears.

I dreamed he'd make us proud.
He has and he's inspired us.

Dean has Down Syndrome.
I never dreamed that.
************************************************************************
It's been 15 years since I wrote this poem. Dean turns 21 on April 7, 2009 and I couldn't have dreamed what kind of man he'd become. He's still funny, he's very bright, and he still loves cake. He continues to make us proud. I continue to be grateful for his presence in our lives. And I love him dearly.

In honor of Dean's 21st birthday on Tuesday, April 7, I will donate 100% of my sales to the National Association for Down Syndrome. This organization offers wonderful support to parents and their kids, and we were so glad we found them when Dean was born.

Broderie Perse (a fusible applique technique)

2009-04-02T09:34:00.013-05:00

FUN WITH FABRIC AND THREAD

“Jack of all trades, master of none” sort of describes by relations hip with fabric and threads. From tailoring and bound buttonholes to silk ribbon embroidery by machine, I have tried just about everything! Some techniques I enjoy better than others, some have become more appealing with age and patience.

In my blog I'm going to talk about different things to do with your sewing hobby. Some things aren't even sewing, but the results are something you can use when you do sew.

Broderie Perse is a technique that you may already be familiar with. It dates from the 17th century and it was originally cutting flowers out of chintz fabric and appliquéing them to a quilt top. With today's fabrics and the wonderful fusing agents and appliqué techniques we have available, there is no end to the creative things you can do!

In my Sew Many Pictures wall hangings, I have used this technique quite a bit. For example, in my Flower Basket, all the flowers were cut from different fabrics, arranged, and fused in place.

Then I finished them by thread painting (topic for another blog!)

There are so many benefits to using this technique:

The fabric designers are fabulous artists! Why should I try to draw it/paint it when they've done it for me???

It can be used in place of machine embroidery at far less cost and time.

For landscape quilts—so many fabrics are coming out for this popular style! You can make a beautiful landscape with ease.

Here are the basics:
Pick out the element you want to use from a piece of fabric and rough-cut it out with about 1 ½ inches border around it.

Then cut a piece of Steam a Seam II or other fusing material, a bit small than your piece of fabric. (trace the fabric piece, then cut ¼-1/2” inside the lines.

Apply the fusing material to the wrong side of the fabric.

With good, sharp, small scissors, cut out your element.

Continue cutting out your elements for your picture til you've got everything you need and arrange things as you like on your background fabric.

Note: sometimes I fuse little sections together on a piece of parchment paper or fusible backing paper prior to arranging the bigger picture.

Finally, fuse everything in place.

You're done! Or, continue on with thread painting or whatever further treatment you choose.

Playing with fabric paints

2009-03-21T11:32:00.005-05:00

Well, I got out my Shiva Paintstix and rubbing plates the other day and these are the results. I like most of them pretty well. Now that the paint has dried I need to press these, but I wanted to get them up for you to see. Now I have to decide what to do with them!

I'd love to use some of them on handbags--for outside pockets, maybe. And a couple of them would make nice collars or lapels on a vest or jacket. I thinks little pieces would look great in some crazy patchwork. Well, I'm still pondering. Let me know your ideas!

Does being online count as working???

2009-03-18T10:57:00.002-05:00

As I try to get my little business up and running I find myself spending HOURS & HOURS online! And da#($it I started all this because I wanted to really work at my fiber art! How does that happen? Well, I know how it's happened because everything I read says you MUST chat, blog, post, etc. besides all the work of actually getting something posted on Artfire. Well, OK, I'm trying to do it, but there is quite a maze of online handmade sites that I had no idea existed and still have no idea exactly how they interrelate. It's really impressive, tho, to see all the fabulous and creative art out there!
So, today, we'll spend some dedicated time in the studio and let the online community bumble along without my comments for a while. : D

No Sewing Machine! What ever will I do???

2009-03-16T22:50:00.002-05:00

I'm taking my sewing machine into the shop tomorrow. I'm a sewer. And, I'm ashamed to admit, it's been years since I had my Pfaff serviced. It's quite a trek to a Pfaff shop, but we're going that way tomorrow and I'm going to bring the old girl along for a check-up. Not sure how long they'll keep her, but I'm already thinking about what I can do without my machine. I'm actually looking forward the time!

Making wall hangings and other projects with fabric doesn't necessarily require sewing anymore. First I'm going to get out my Shiva Paint Stix and rubbing plates and stencils and create some "art fabric". The paint stix are such fun and I haven't really dedicated much time to using them. I'll post some of my results here, later. I'm hoping to use the resulting fabrics in wall hangings, but also want to make some artsy looking handbags.

Speaking of handbags, I have a number of original designs---they're really cute!--and I'm going to dig thru my stash and cut out a couple of bags to put together later. I want to offer handbags on my ArtFire studio.

I love Steam A Seam II !! I use it for my picture quilts. If you haven't tried it, you can attach this bonding agent to the wrong side of the fabric and, after cutting out your shapes, the pieces will temporarily stick wherever you put them, until you permanently bond them with the iron. So, I can do some more designing and putting things together, leaving the quilting til my machine comes home.

And then there's the mess in my studio...I could always work on cleaning it up.........maybe!

Idea Books

2009-03-15T21:12:00.000-05:00

I was just going thru my pile of magazine & catalog clippings. I tear pages out of all kinds of media for future ideas and keep them in a folder or basket. Then on evenings like this I clip and trim and paste them in my various binders and journals.I love all kinds of crafting, sewing and decorating. Of course, my mind's eye envisions WAY more than I'll ever accomplish! But I love looking through my books when I'm wanting to start something new.I have a little journal with clothing ideas from catalogs---I paste the item on the page and jot down next to it what it was that I particularly liked--the neckline, the use of trim, etc. Then I have my own personal catalog of fashions to design from. I use Wild Ginger Pattern Master Boutique to design patterns that fit my full figure beautifully.I have another journal that I draw my handbag ideas in, then note changes, etc. as I do them. This really helps when I write up the directions, or want to go back to the original design.I have a fat binder with home dec stuff, organized by season. It has Xmas stocking ideas, spring floral arrangements, stencil designs----just about everything!Then I have my book of drawings for landscape quilts and tapestries. I find my 9 X 5 journal pages to be less intimidating to start a drawing than a big sketch book. I didn't have much training in art, but I find that them more I sketch, the better I get.The bottom line is that I really love looking at my books. After all, every page is something that I like and it's great to go back through them, as I can't remember everything that's in them. (Actually, I can't remember a lot of things! Which is another reason I need my books!)Since I've just started blogging, I think I'm going to start a book of blog topic ideas................................!