It Finally Snowed!

This piece (a very early work), Spring Thaw, was exhibited in several galleries and shows in Toronto and in Europe.

Spring Thaw, made in 2006, 73 cm x 77.5 cm
commercial fabric, organza, crinoline, gesso,
hand and machine stitched
(the cut out parts look pink here but are actually see-through)

It is a piece I originally did not like. It just didn't SAY anything. I had it sitting there for about 3 years and finally decided to play with it.

I quilted it heavily. Still not great.

I painted it with gesso. Getting better.

I cut it up randomly (that took courage!) and sewed it back together in a different way.

Now, I love it!

Spring Thaw, detail

Toronto is finally white with snow. I guess we ARE going to have a spring thaw.

Challenge Results

Our guild hosted a DIVA evening along with the Paint Chip Challenge works.

So many ladies wore costumes! I resurrected my blonde wig and a sparkly top from the kids' dress-up box.

one of the DIVAS

Members voted for their three favorite pieces from the Paint Chip Challenge. The three with the most votes (shown below) were awarded prizes.

This was one of my votes.
It was visually appealing and
very well done technically.

"Grey Morning" by our president
 in her DIVA dress!

Two artists that were in attendance that evening were Maggie Vanderweit and Clare Kirby.

Clare holding up her work,
"Belisarius and the Cosmic Astral Tyger"
hand dyed silks, hand quilted

"Cat Killed the Cardinal", by Clare Kirby
hand dyed silks, fused silk, feathers, beads, hand quilted

The executive from the Davenport-Perth Neighbourhood and Community Health Centre has asked me to contribute an art piece for their fundraising event in May and I have decided to donate my Paint Chip Challenge piece, Jungle Green. (to see the work click here)

Paint Chip Challenge

Our guild decided to put out a challenge to all its members.

We picked a paint chip out of a hat. The main colour of your piece had to be the paint chip colour and the title had to be the name of your paint chip. Mine was Jungle Green.

At first I thought it was green but realized there was quite a bit of blue
 in the colour.
I mixed up some paint and silk screened some leaf shapes onto
painted fabric.

Whenever I hear the word 'jungle' I immediately add the word 'book' after it. So I definitely wanted to have some text in my piece.

I also wanted a hint of orange to remind me of our walk in the rain forest of Borneo. We thought we were alone but as soon as the rain came there were flashes of orange high above our heads- the orangutans scrambling for shelter.

I used some painted lutradur for texture.

I did some photo transfers.

There was too harsh a line between the writing and the blue/green piece of fabric. To soften it, I added lutradur.

Work pinned in place on a vertical design wall. Need to soften the line
between the text fabric and the blue/green one above it.

I added some free motion stitching and there you go!

The back view. Even though zebras live in the savannas
and not in the jungle I found the black and white design 'refreshing'
so I included it.

Final work-

The colours are so much better 'live' plus you can see the stitches better.
Can you make out the bug on the right side? I also added some text
on the lutradur to the left of the bug's wing.
20" x 20"

Looks nothing like my first sketches!

More Purple Painting

Wednesday is my painting day. I paint and prepare fabric for future use. This panel is to add to the piece I am working on right now. (click here to view it)

more purple painting
 I make up a small pot of paint every time and only make enough
 to cover the piece of cotton I have in front of me.
It speaks to my concern to over consume.
The purple colour I mix up is always slightly different

My friend dropped by and life stopped for half an hour. We sat and had tea and made a fire.

Sometimes that is bliss!

Food

I spend about half my day in the kitchen (more when the four children lived at home). I love cooking and baking.

The background looks like an encaustic painting.
Did you notice the thin blue line on the bottom left?

There are so many beautiful colours and textures I notice.

This could be interesting as free motion thread work

The compositions are also interesting...achieved without any thought at all.

Nice composition, a circle that goes off the "page",
nice black "french knots" and
 a clever white strip up in the right hand corner.

Food can be a great inspiration for textile work.

Market fair

So Productive

I have started this year with a bang! So productive today!

I finished the borders on this quilt which I will be donating to the Diabetes Association in the Cayman Islands. It will be given to one of the newly diagnosed children between the ages of 7 and 10.

The quilt had to be predominantly blue as that is the colour representing diabetes.

I did not buy one new piece of fabric for the top.
 I made it using my scraps.

I love scrap quilts. They have so much to offer the viewer.

detail

The backs of my quilts are usually pieced. I just put a simple strip down the back for this one.

I had some time to work on a small sample for my next scrap class that I will be teaching this term.

For the scrap classes I teach, NO new fabric is bought.
We really just use the students' scraps.

I made a great dinner for the family AND my husband came home early from the office. What a great way to start the first week of the new year.

We Start Again

We begin another year...

What do YOU have in store for yourself this time around?

Today is the last slow day before the tread mill in my head starts, the last day before that make-believe gerbil starts running round and round.

I sit with a cup of tea and embroider circles- an appropriate shape for today. The circle begins again.......or does it ever end.

I like the combination of the circles with the angular grid.
(latest work in progress)