Cheery Tomato Productions

Hello, and goodbye

2011-10-01T20:59:00.000-07:00

Hello.

I am here to say: this is goodbye, for now.

Blogging has been a struggle in the last few months. At first I thought it was a temporary lull. Then I realized that it had become a chore, something I did not look forward to. The time I spent on the blog felt like time sucked away from my art. When I went out of town this summer, I did not miss the blog for a minute. Didn't even have a fleeting thought about it.

Then I had a minor health crisis (from which I'm recovering and feeling much better in the last couple of weeks). I could not do much artwork at all, which felt frustrating and scary to me. I began to see that I've been wasting energy on a lot of things that do not matter. I want to refocus and to be conscious of my priorities. In order to do the things that truly are mine to do, I need to drop the incidentals - especially the activities that primarily please someone else or that I "should" do.

Now is the time to find my own balance in life, and to listen to my own inner knowing. I am trusting my intuition more and more - and what I hear is that I need to turn inward and to do the creative work that calls to me. So much falls into place when I stop seeking respect and approval from others, which is the trap I fall into when I'm obsessing about my blog stat counter and comments. Don't get me wrong - I think the Internet is a wonderful world, and I'm not going to disappear from it. It's just that I need to give myself a chance to unplug from its incessant hum, if only to remember that I have a whole life without it.

I aspire to be a more joyful Judy. So I guess it's fitting that I finally finished the "spring" banner that says "JOY", and that it graces my last blog post.

I'll leave this blog up, because it's got some ideas that people may want to explore. Maybe I'll start another blog next year, on a very different topic. Or not. Everything changes, and I'm open to the possibilities.

I salute all my readers, and everyone who writes a blog. You are amazing. Really.

Thank you, and namaste.

First thing in the morning

2011-07-23T22:16:00.000-07:00

I've been trying some self-portraits the past couple of days, but I've winced at how I look and deleted every one. Too serious, too goofy, too fat, too old - the ego yammers away in my brain, trying to convince me that my body is always undeserving of my love. I guess that makes me just like a lot of women in the world. I could always find plenty of flaws, even as a teen, but now that I'm firmly middle-aged, the image in the mirror seems even more like an enemy.

So I've been practicing a little self-kindness here and there. Looking at myself naked in the mirror and saying things like: thank you, body, for taking me where I need to go and doing what I need to do, every day of my life. It sounds totally corny, but it makes me realize how very grateful I am for my health and my strength. I have my share of aches and complaints, but every breath is a gift, and I aim to use it well.

For many years, I often awakened with my brain grumbling about the day ahead. Now I try to be in the moment, noticing what the morning feels like, and then stretching and saying "thank you" to the Universe for another day. On a whim, I placed my camera by the bed so that I could take a photo upon awakening. I purposefully smiled some love into the lens, and I finally got a self-portrait that I liked, bedhead and all.

Journaling with Teesha

2011-07-17T21:27:00.000-07:00

I had the privilege of taking a visual journaling workshop with Teesha Moore this weekend - right here in Spokane! Teesha and her husband Tracy are perhaps best known for their wonderful art retreat, Artfest, held in Port Townsend, Washington each year. Tracy doesn't teach at her retreats because she is too busy making sure that everything goes smoothly, but she is quite the artist in her own right. I leapt at the chance to take a class with her. She is generous, warm, funny and encouraging - a real pleasure to be around. (You can see some of Teesha's journal pages here.)

We made simple journals from large sheets of watercolor paper and started collaging, drawing, doodling, and writing. Teesha makes her pages very full and lively, and she challenges her students to do the same. I've gotten the furthest on this page. It has a long way to go, but I'm happy with my progress so far. . . .

Two more birds . . .

2011-07-14T16:10:00.000-07:00

Here are photos of two more birds for the banner:

On the trail of wildflowers, early morning, July

2011-07-11T21:35:00.000-07:00

(All of these shots are "straight out of the camera" - no cropping, no light or color adjustment, nothing but what the camera saw when I pushed the shutter button.)

Testing the waters

2011-07-02T22:40:00.000-07:00

Today I kept seeing an image in my mind: eyebrows cut from magazine photos. Sometimes it goes like that. Random stuff floats to the top of my consciousness, and it comes back again and again.

Instead of opening my journal and working with the image, I kept avoiding it. Chores to do, people to talk to, Facebook postings to read - mostly inconsequential stuff. I kept seeing the eyebrows, but also noticed that I was very reluctant to get down to business. Maybe I've been avoiding my own artwork so much that I don't know how to get back to it. Maybe I'm avoiding the messiness of life; maybe I'm scared to find out what I really think about everything.

It takes courage to look at your thoughts and feelings and admit where you are in the midst of them. Avoidance comes in many flavors: alcohol, drugs, overeating, sex, work, shopping, TV, Facebook, etc. I think there are very few people who can sit with their uncomfortable selves and see all the imperfections and love themselves anyway. But if we don't learn to give our selves a break and relax, how can we spread love or compassion to anyone else?

Tonight I wrestled myself to the dining room table and cut out some eyebrows, then the rest of a face. I wrote on the page, testing the icy waters of my dissatisfactions. I only dipped my toes in - and that felt like a good start.

A bird in the hand

2011-06-20T22:54:00.000-07:00

The spring banner is still slowly unfolding - even though the summer solstice is almost here . . .

Adding a few more birds seems like a fun idea, but I've struggled with how. Tonight, I finally put all the pieces together.

The body is a simple stuffed shape. The eyes are French knots. The beak, wings, and legs are all made from "fabric paper" (a la Beryl Taylor), which is a layered concoction of muslin, bits of interesting papers, and tissue paper, all held together with watered-down glue. (You can find a tutorial about it here.)

One reason that I like working with fabric paper is that it's fairly stiff, but you can sew through it. I placed two pieces back to back when I created the legs on my sewing machine. The wings are a single thickness, sewn through the buttons, so the back of the wings flare out from the body a little, making it more three-dimensional.

Now I can create a few more birds, and then assemble the flock to finish the banner!

Oh

2011-06-10T13:08:00.000-07:00

I have not given up on finishing the spring banner - even though it is months late and summer will be here soon. (It's still quite cool in this neck of the woods, though. I've heard estimates that spring is about 3 weeks behind "normal.")

I had originally thought that "O" would have a sun on it. But after creating a bunch of these organza leaves, I thought they'd be pretty sprinkled on the vintage doily.

I sandwiched the organza between layers of Solvy (a water-soluble stabilizer), then stitched the leaves with free motion on my sewing machine. They pucker and buckle in places, which adds to their character. You'd have to put it in a hoop to get the leaves to come out flatter.

I didn't think about the leaves unraveling with wear. After I finished sewing the leaves to the doily, I re-read a book - maybe Fragile Fabrics by Jan Beaney and Jean Littlejohn? - that talked about heat-sealing sheer synthetic fabrics so that they don't unravel. Well, it's too late for me to do it this time around. I hope they'll hold up okay over time.

A letter to Sue

2011-06-03T23:05:00.000-07:00

Dear Suzee,

Part of me keeps hoping that if I don't write this blog post, it never happened. You didn't die. You should still be working and playing and breathing in Manhattan.

But you're not. I flew back to our hometown in New Hampshire, to see you one last time, to kiss you on the forehead before the casket was closed.

How can this be? How can your beautiful life be over so soon?

You lived with gusto, with guts, with joy. You sang, you laughed, you cooked, you loved. You faced heartache and you came out a better person for it. You did not hide. You embraced your life and welcomed so many into your circle.

I was your smug older cousin, but I came to understand that I could learn a lot from you. I admired your ability to let your hurts go, and to live in the now. At the wake, your mom said that I was the one who taught you how to read. I don't remember that, but I know that you taught me to sing - to lift my voice, loud and proud. You helped me to see that I could be my free-spirit, uninhibited self. Why would I waste my time trying to be anybody else?

The morning of your funeral, I went for a walk in the woods that we roamed as kids. I took my camera, and found some comfort in noticing the beauty of the flowers on the path. Bluets were everywhere. Small, humble flowers, ones that we must have noticed every May, as the days grew warmer and the peepers began to sing in the blueberry pond.

As I finished my walk, I noticed - or felt? - a particular clump of bluets in the middle of the path. I kept walking, but something told me that I had to go back. It was somehow important that I photograph them. I put my camera down and pushed the shutter a couple of times.

As I reviewed the second photo, still crouching on the path, I finally saw what I was supposed to see: one bluet had five petals instead of four. Totally unexpected - I'd never seen that before.

I thought it looked like a star. And I smiled, thinking that you are a new star, too.

Thank you for being a part of my life.
I love you!
-- Judy

Happy Mother's Day!

2011-05-08T14:24:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day to all!

My son, now 12, is not thrilled to be the subject of my photos. But he kindly consented to a few quick snaps in the backyard today. (I'm holding the camera in my left hand - not ideal photography, but I like the immediacy and imperfectness of it.)

He's 5'2" and 85 lbs. and growing like a weed. And I am so very very blessed to be his mom.

Are you holding back your creativity?

2011-05-06T17:41:00.000-07:00

Obvious to you. Amazing to others. - by Derek Sivers

(Thanks to Etsy for posting this on their facebook feed!)

Light still dwells in you

2011-04-24T21:30:00.000-07:00

This I know to be true:

even when the darkness seems to swallow you whole -
when you can't smile
you can't get out of bed
and pain grabs your body

light still dwells in you.

you may not see it because you have your eyes screwed shut
fiercely squeezing out everything you fear

but I know it glows inside you.

nothing in the universe can extinguish your light.

fog and night may hide it
but it burns within you.

some day you will open your eyes to a dazzling dawn
you will breathe in as if for the first time
and you will feel as if this world has always been here
waiting for you
to be you.

A nest for the birdie

2011-04-19T21:14:00.000-07:00

I've stitched a little nest for the birdie on the banner.

I used dark brown pearl cotton and a variegated embroidery floss, making it look like a hodgepodge of sticks. I didn't have much of a plan starting out; I'm happy with the results. Sometimes I think I do better if I trust my instincts and dive in.

No excuses

2011-04-14T21:47:00.000-07:00

I almost started this post with a list of excuses. Why I haven't been blogging, why I haven't been working on projects, blah, blah, blah. What's the point in repeating that story? I doubt you care about my excuses, and I don't care about them, either.

Suffice it to say, I have my challenging times, just as everyone else does. What matters: how do I meet those challenges? What do I do with the days I have been given? I laughed a lot while I took a shower this morning. So many conditions and events could have me pinned to the floor, but most of them struck me as totally absurd or ironic. I could only shake my head and laugh as the hot water poured down.

Today I chose to concentrate on the now. I watched the sun shine one minute, and I watched the hail bouncing off the mud the next. I took deep breaths in yoga class. I thought about my cousin who is in the hospital. I wrestled with new software at work. I smiled at my goofy husband and son. I chose to write a blog post.

Update: the spring banner is coming along. I've been stitching whenever I get a chance.

Honestly, if I did not "make stuff," I would be a basket case. Creativity is sanity.

S-O-L-D!

2011-04-04T20:31:00.000-07:00

Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me, happy birthday, happy birthday, happy birthday to me!

I decided not to grumble about turning 48, but to enjoy the day. I received a lovely bunch of bright daisies from my husband, who dragged himself out of his sickbed to buy them! He's so sweet. Ross gave me a big hug and kiss. Some packages, things I had ordered for myself, arrived in the mail, so that made things festive, too. And it's so nice to get phone calls and emails and Facebook messages - maybe I'm corny, but I love it nonetheless.

Perhaps the best part was hearing that I'd sold "Heart Signals," a piece I'd made last year. I'd placed it in a show in Post Falls, Idaho, at the Jacklin Center, and frankly, I figured I'd be driving there this week to pick it up and hang it up in my office again. I'm glad that my pessimistic side was wrong.

(Yippee!)

Spring banner in progress

2011-03-25T15:52:00.000-07:00

I'm working on a spring banner. Honestly, it should have been finished long before now, but between life's ups and downs and my lack of inspiration, it took me a long time to get going on it. I finally feel like I have a handle on it.

The base fabric is a set of three white doilies that I bought in a large box of slightly imperfect household linens. They have some light stains that won't come out, which I can work around. Next I found some fabric that must have been meant for curtains - kind of sheer, with a sweet pink print. That got me up and running.

I cut out letters from the curtain fabric and machine stitched them to the doilies. Now I'm adding some appliqued figures and embroidery:

It's been a while since I've done much with fabric, so this is feeling fun and fresh.

Bar light

2011-03-20T13:33:00.000-07:00

Our waitress smiles hello.
I wince about last time. Yet she
beguiles in bar light.

The challenge of noticing poetry in daily life

2011-03-15T21:56:00.000-07:00

When I notice that I need something to spark me creatively, I sometimes give myself a challenge. It's like a coming up with a game, writing my own rules as I go along. Today I thought: hmm, I haven't written any haiku in a while. Maybe I should write about my daily life, and photograph the subjects, too. I give myself permission to be spontaneous and not worry about "perfection" - the poetry can be goofy and not always follow the rules, and the photos can be blurry or poorly composed or whatever. I took a short photography class last week, so this is a perfect opportunity to experiment with what I learned.

As my brain was on this train of thought, I was washing dishes. I looked down into the dishpan and decided soapy water could be as good a subject as any. . . .

Washing plastic bags
in warm, soapy dish water -
bubbles pop and shine.

Some days go like this. . . .

2011-03-04T16:08:00.000-08:00

My migraines usually have the decency to hit while I'm at home in the morning. I cancel my plans and go back to bed.

I've been somewhat functional this afternoon, so I took out my frustrations on a piece of junk mail that I'd covered with Golden Fiber Paste. Viva la Sharpie noir!

Self-portraits with gesso

2011-02-27T20:04:00.000-08:00

Outpourings

2011-02-16T21:28:00.000-08:00

Have you ever seen the work of Daniella Woolf? She was featured in Somerset Studio last year; I immediately fell in love with her works of paper, often constructed with shredded "morning pages." Writing morning pages is a technique in Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way: "three pages of longhand, stream of consciousness writing, done first thing in the morning."

I have written morning pages off and on for years. The practice is an excellent way to get things out of your brain and off your chest, and put them right in front of your nose. What are you really thinking and feeling? Pour it out onto the pages without censoring and without stopping, and you'll find out.

When I saw Daniella's work, I loved the idea of using morning pages in art. There's something appealing about pouring out your heart in writing, then obscuring the words by cutting up the paper. The shredding maintains privacy. Morning pages are not meant to be read by anyone else; they are a safe place to vent. A lot of my writing wouldn't make sense to anybody else, and I won't want to re-read it, so why not put the paper to good use?

I started this piece last year, but I got around to finishing it only yesterday. I call it Outpourings: 13 Days.

It's a tassel, of sorts.

The top is a simple felt heart stuffed with polyfil. A loop of cheesecloth is attached for hanging. The tassel is made from cut-up morning pages, strung onto embroidery floss, then sewn into the heart. There are 13 strings - 13 days of morning pages.

I wrote on all kinds of papers and backgrounds. Watercolor washes, acrylic washes, inkjet photos, calendar pages. I tried cutting different shapes, sometimes folding the paper, sometimes rolling it into beads. It's been a long time since I've done any significant beadwork. This time, I felt that I was creating a beaded tassel with paper.

I think there's more playing with paper in my future.

There's still time for valentines

2011-02-13T10:27:00.000-08:00

If you're facing a quiet Sunday afternoon today, you've still got time to make some valentines! Grab some cardboard and magazines or catalogs, and start cutting.

My cat Gus likes to inspect my projects as I'm photographing them. Although I think was too sleepy to care much about this valentine - I think he was ready for me to go to bed.

The theme of this valentine: I (heart) my fruits and veggies.

Looking for a new view

2011-02-10T19:42:00.000-08:00

Lots of little projects

2011-01-30T20:41:00.000-08:00

I'm working on lots of little projects right now. That's probably a good thing, because big blocks of time aren't part of my life these days. It's easy for me to get frustrated about lack of time, and the phrase "I don't have time to do it" comes out of my mouth too often. But that's not the full truth. If I really want to do something, I make the time for it. Simple as that. I'm working to leave the complaints and the "can't"s behind.

Here's another valentine from repurposed materials - flower catalog photos and thin cardboard.

(side 1)

(side 2)

My church's celebration of the Season of Peace and Nonviolence started today.One of the projects we're planning is creating "peace rocks." We learned about the idea from our church association's magazine. One of our affiliated churches painted peace rocks and left them all over their town. We thought it was such a cool idea that our church is going to do the same thing this year. Below are a few samples that I made. The rocks are painted with acrylics. After the paint dried, I wrote on them with Sharpie markers.

I did manage to carve out one big chuck of time this week: I took an all-day watercolor class for beginners at Corbin Art Center. It wasn't a fabulous class, but it was inexpensive, and I picked up some good pointers along the way. The students painted artificial flowers as an exercise. My flowers are impressionistic at best (ahem), but I sort of like the leaves.

My other project - my eternal preoccupation, I guess - is picking up the camera and capturing the moment. It's as close to instant gratification as I can get, art-wise. I snapped this self-portrait as I walked down the street.

Green 3-D valentine

2011-01-22T13:10:00.000-08:00

I've been working on ideas for valentines made from repurposed materials. Yesterday I made a three-dimensional valentine from a cereal box and magazine and catalog pages.

I cut two hearts from the cereal box, then I created collages on both sides of each heart. I decided to make one heart full of "green" imagery, mostly plants and trees and landscape scenes.

On the other heart, I used green article titles from a devotional magazine. I drew on top of the collage with a green Sharpie marker.

To connect the hearts, I scored, then folded each heart at the center. Then I punched a few holes with an awl on those center lines, and sewed the hearts together with some waxed linen thread.

I punched a hole at the top of each piece of the heart (four holes total) and sewed more waxed linen thread to create the loop for hanging.

Another scarf!

2011-01-21T20:00:00.000-08:00

Yup, I made yet another scarf. This one is crocheted from more gorgeous yarn from Juaquetta at Garden Party Fibers. It's a gift for a friend.

Gus could NOT stay away from the scarf. I think he wanted to cuddle with it all night.

"Aren't I cute?"

Snowy trees

2011-01-06T20:40:00.000-08:00

Always be on the lookout for beauty.

I trudged out to my car after work on Tuesday, and I was stunned at how beautiful the trees were in the new snow. The dramatic black of the winter night created a memorable background, and a simple parking lot lamp provided all the light I could ask for.

Corazon Scarves

2011-01-06T20:34:00.000-08:00

There are lots of scarves on my brain these days. . . . Shortly before Christmas, I met Debbie DuPey. She is a multitalented woman who has dedicated herself to helping Guatemalan women earn a fair wage by selling their beautiful scarves in the U.S. Our church bookstore has taken a few of her scarves to sell, but we don't have a great place to display them. Fortunately, the local newspaper ran an article about Debbie's venture. I cut it out and decided to give it a little oomph by drawing a background for it.

Now the sign is hanging next to the scarves. I hope it draws attention to a good cause.

Scarves for the new year

2010-12-31T12:45:00.000-08:00

I've taken some time this week to wrap up a couple of projects.

The first project is a scarf that I began crocheting while on vacation in Michigan this summer. I bought a gorgeous hand-dyed wool and started working right away. On the flight home, however, I realized that I wouldn't have enough yarn to make the scarf as long as I like. I looked through my yarn stash, and found a cotton/poly 2-ply with almost the exact same color scheme! The colors are more muted, but I think the two yarns look great together.

One-third of the scarf is the 2nd yarn. The combination is subtle - it takes a beat or two to see that there's a difference.

The second project: I've had the rusted fabric sitting around my house for a while, not sure what to do with it. I decided that I'd like to dye it again. I added a third piece of muslin to the pile, and added more rusty objects this time. It occurred to me that I could cut the fabric lengthwise and make a very long scarf out of it. It was hard to be patient with the dyeing process, but I am very pleased with the results.

Since the rust will keep working on the fabric (the process never completely stops), it will eventually develop holes. I like the idea of embracing that natural decay. I tore the fabrics instead of cutting them, and sewed them by hand, leaving the edges ragged. The scarf will unravel and rot over time.

(This, too, shall pass.)

Christmas joys

2010-12-26T16:17:00.000-08:00

Christmas Day

Christmas smiles and joys . . .

(Yoshi was crocheted by EnemyAirship, whom you can find on Etsy.)

Ross opened this present and said, "Oh cool, a venn diagram!" Do I know my kid or what?!

Must play the new Wii games, of course.

The cats liked their presents, too.

December 26th

This afternoon, Ross and I visited the annual Christmas display at Gaiser Conservatory.

Looking forward to the new year.

Want to see the zine swap?

2010-12-23T20:10:00.000-08:00

Remember back in September when I produced this zine for a swap? Now you can see photos of all of them. And let me tell you, there were some jaw-dropping zines! Alma Stoller has posted photos on her I Heart Zines blog -- check it out!

Photos of the season

2010-12-19T16:26:00.000-08:00

Part One
I painted some quick gift tags the other night, but made the mistake of leaving the wet paper where our cat Gus could get to it. Of course he walked right into the red paint! Luckily, Chris caught him before he left Christmas footprints all over the place.

Part Two
The sun peeked out just a tiny bit this afternoon. I grabbed my camera to take photos of the berries on my neighbor's mountain ash tree.

Christmas craftiness: a green nativity scene

2010-12-13T20:55:00.000-08:00

My church has some sort of program or class almost every Wednesday night. As the staff was planning our December offerings, it was suggested that we could do a craft night for the whole family. We were also planning a nativity scene display, and thought it would be fun to help people make their own nativity scenes which they could add to the display. Well, guess who got to design the craft project?

I knew I'd like to use as many inexpensive supplies as possible for this project. Since I knew I'd have young kids and parents in this class, I thought it would be easiest to find something three-dimensional to be the main body of each piece. Some sort of box or tube . . . ah ha! Toilet paper rolls. Readily available and free, and easy to upcycle. Perfect.

My sample nativity scene looked like this:

I decided to give the people a simple head scarf and robe. I glued a piece of fabric onto the roll for a robe, leaving about a third of the roll uncovered to become the head. Then I cut more fabric for the head scarf. I folded the fabric to find its center, and then glued it over the area that I wanted to be the face. (Ideally, the center of the fabric should align with where you'll draw the nose.) I only glued it around a third of the tube. The head scarf can be easily trimmed if it's too long in the back.

You can see on Joseph how I gave the scarf a couple of folds, and then tacked them down with a little glue.

I found it easiest to draw the faces last. I used markers; some of the craft-night folks used crayon, or glued on googly eyes.

For baby Jesus, I cut a toilet paper roll in half. Then I wrapped the roll in a piece of fabric that was extra long, so that it would look like "swaddling clothes." I glued it at the top like a head scarf, but also under the chin. Again, I drew the face last.

The manger turned out to be easier than I thought. I cut a roll in half lengthwise, then used double-sided tape to connect the two pieces at the curve.You could paint it if you wanted. Some folks in my craft class glued yellow yarn in the top to create straw.

The animals were a challenge. Luckily, I had some fabrics in my stash that made great sheep and cows and donkeys. (Look for remnants at the fabric store or clothes at the thrift store that you could cut up.) I'd make big animals (horses and cows) with full-sized tubes, and cut them smaller for smaller animals.

I used chenille stems (pipe cleaners) for legs. Each 4-legged animal needs two stems. Cut them both in half, so that you have 4 pieces. Fold each piece in half, then twist the ends together to create one leg. Bend over both ends a bit. One end will be where you tape the leg to the tube, and the other end will be a foot. Feel free to add knees, too! After you tape on the legs, then you can glue the fabric onto the tube. The fabric will cover the taped portion of the legs -- you may need to cut small slits in the fabric to get it to fall where you want it. I didn't put a tail on my sheep, but it's easy to do. Cut a circle of fabric slightly larger than the end of the tube and glue it on for a solid behind on your critters.Then attach a tail to the fabric circle.

It was easiest to glue paper faces onto the bodies. I found some nice animal faces on free internet coloring pages, which I thought would be less stressful for people than to tell them to draw faces on their own. These were cut out and glued on last.

So there's the basics. I'm sure you can come up with shepherds and wise men and chickens, and you could even construct a little barn, too. Jane LaFazio has a great version of a toilet paper tube angel on her Flickr account. I didn't use paint because I didn't want to deal with the mess of a large group, but you certainly could. I hope you enjoy making your nativity scene as much as my students did on craft night!

P.S. Sharp scissors (preferably fabric scissors) are a must for this project. Parents, please help your little ones cut fabric safely.

Yesterday's icicles

2010-12-09T21:00:00.000-08:00

Winter sunshine can be a rare thing in the Inland Northwest. Yesterday, the temperatures rose and the sun peeked out for a little while. I grabbed the camera and stepped outside to admire the icicles on our church building.

They are so beautiful, and so ephemeral. Especially when they are melting fast!

Icicles were falling off the roofline and smashing into the snow and slush as I shot these photos. Had to be careful not to get hit by one!

I am in love with the way icicles show off the sunshine.

A wondrous, drippy world.

In gratitude: five things

2010-12-07T20:46:00.000-08:00

Five things I'm grateful for today:

1. My exercise bike is ready to go whenever I am.
2. Space heaters. My office and my basement would be uninhabitable in winter without them.
3. Deadlines. They make me crazy, but I'd probably never finish anything without them.
4. The generous people who post free images on the internet. Thank you for saving me, time and again.
5. Email. (Yes, really.)

Word play

2010-11-29T08:37:00.000-08:00

When I see some idea, several times in quick succession, I know that I'm supposed to try it out. At least three times in the last couple of weeks, I've read about the idea of making a collection of words -- going through old books or dictionary pages or what have you, and gathering the ones that attract your attention. Every person I've read gives credit to Susan Wooldridge and her book Poemcrazy for the idea. Liz Lamoreux talks about it in her new book, Inner Excavation. Diana Trout used this idea in one of her journal nudges on her blog; who am I to resist trying it?

I grabbed a couple of very old books off my bookshelf, and wrote down whatever struck me. Then, I chose ten words at random (with eyes closed!), and challenged myself to write a poem with them. To create the two-page spread, I loosely painted my journal with watercolors. I decided to cut out my long word list, and tuck the pieces into a pocket created from a magazine photo. Diana's nudge suggested creating a tab for the spread. I cut out some thick stock from an old calendar and taped on two tabs. I wrote down the poem, and contemplated doodling on one or both pages, but decided to stop there. The words should be the focus this time.

When in doubt, just keep going

2010-11-18T22:28:00.000-08:00

I have no doubt that I've been in a funk for most of the autumn. There are lots of reasons, but no excuses. Do you know what I mean? I can blame outer circumstances, and I can blame myself, but what use is any of that? Blame is wasted energy. Right now, it's more important to me to keep going. I know that I must keep doing something, anything creative.

I bought a package of three small Moleskine journals. Nothing fancy, just simple cardboard covers and blank pages. They are light and thin -- perfect to carry in my purse. I put 4 pens in there as well, thinking a small selection would tempt me to use them all, but most of the time I've been using only one.

As a mother, I spend time waiting for my child. Most days, it's just a few minutes. The perfect moment to take out the Moleskine and do something. This was a rough 5-minute sketch:

Nothing great. But it's something.

Occasionally I get 15 or 20 minutes of waiting time. If I'm not sleep deprived, I'm usually eager to scan my surroundings for a subject to sketch. And if I like the sketch enough, I may go back and add color later. The next two sketches have colored pencil.

There's something very satisfying about playing with colored pencils, trying out colors, seeing what I can mix together to approximate what I saw. It's an appealing way to end my day.

Dyeing with rust

2010-11-09T21:04:00.000-08:00

I first saw fabric dyed with rust on the cover of Belle Armoire, September/October 2007. (Maureen Cox's stunning aqua-and-rust duster can be seen here.) I've thought about playing with rust over the years, but I finally got around to it last week.

It's a very simple process. Wash the fabric, apply a mixture of vinegar and water, then add your rusty objects and let it dry. Wash the fabric again, dry or iron, and voila! Rusty fabric!

It's usually recommended that you do this process outdoors because of the odor and the mess. However, I thought I'd try dyeing a small batch of fabric in my basement, where I could keep it away from kid and cats.

First step: dig out my rusty object collection. Doesn't everybody have rusty stuff laying around the house?! Oh yes, not everyone is a packrat like me. If you don't have any rusty things around, you can easily create them by soaking iron or steel objects in some vinegar and water for a while, outdoors. Or go on a scavenger hunt into a garage, junk yard, barn, estate sale . . .

I chose to use bottle caps. I have lots, and I thought I'd make a simple pattern with them. I decided to sew them onto a 9" x 12" piece of white muslin.

I pinned a second piece of muslin on top of the first piece, reasoning that the rusty bottle caps could easily do double duty. I figured the pins would rust, too, adding extra marks. I carefully wet the fabric and wringed it out a little, then placed it in a plastic container and soaked it in white vinegar for a minute. Wringing the fabric out again, I then spread it out in an extra-large ziplock bag, and placed it on a high basement shelf. I didn't seal the bag, wanting the fabric to air-dry slowly.

The rust formed pretty quickly.

After a day, I took the fabric out of the bag so that it would dry faster. I noticed that some of the bottle caps weren't getting any rust onto the fabric, because the fabric wasn't firmly touching them. I placed some glass jars and plastic containers on top of the fabric, and that seemed to help. (Next time, I'm going to try placing bags of rice or sand on top, to create better contact.)

Once the fabric dried, I pulled out the pins (very tough to do!), then cut the sewing thread and removed the bottle caps. I washed the fabric in hot water and put it in the dryer.

Each bottle cap left a unique imprint. The fabric was wet enough that the rust migrated, so a lot of the fabric ended up at least a little orange-brown.

I wonder what I'll do with it now?

Buddha's autumn

2010-11-03T19:09:00.000-07:00

A couple of members at my church recently donated a little Buddha statue for a meditation path that will someday be on our grounds. He is resting under a tree near our peace pole for now. This morning I noticed that he had some beautiful maple leaves resting on his arm, so I decided to take out my camera and see what I could capture.

The light wasn't great, but Photoshop helped brighten up the images. On the second photo, I added some texture and played with the contrast.

"As we watch leaves fluttering to the ground in the fall, we are reminded that nature's cycles are mirrored in our lives. Autumn is a time for letting go and releasing things that have been a burden. All the religious traditions pay tribute to such acts of relinquishment. Fall is the right time to practice getting out of the way and letting Spirit take charge of our lives."
-- Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, on Spirituality & Practice

Collaged journal page (part two)

2010-10-30T20:14:00.000-07:00

Diana Trout's nudge #7: Paint gesso or white paint over your five-minute collage and draw into the wet paint with a pencil.

I am a big fan of FULL color, but I decided I'd give the "whitewash" a try. I attempted to apply gesso thinly in the spots where I wanted color to come through, and I wiped some of it away if it seemed too heavy. But it dried very quickly -- too fast to get the effect Diana was going for. So I had a very white page on my hands!

I took out my markers and pens, and drew back over the photos and words that I wanted to preserve. I added words that popped into my head as I worked. Then I added a little embroidery for visual interest. This was easy to do, since I'd done the collage on a separate sheet of chipboard. (I like to do elaborate pages on their own substrate, then glue them into my journal later.)

The re-drawing made me think about the images I'd chosen. A pseudo-story emerged before my eyes.

Black paint or gesso could be interesting, too. . . .

Collaged journal page (part one)

2010-10-26T19:36:00.000-07:00

Inspired by Diana Trout's nudge #6 -- a "5-minute collage" -- which took me more like 45 minutes. I stopped tearing out photos and words to read some of the magazine articles I'd missed! Plus, I couldn't resist fiddling with the placement of the photos a little bit, but there was no stress involved.

Now I'm off to work on Diana's nudge #7 . . .

Beautiful October walk

2010-10-21T20:43:00.000-07:00

We've had gorgeous weather most of this month. Today I finally took out my camera and went for a walk in the sunshine. I cannot resist Manito Park when the leaves are in their autumn glory.

A view of the Japanese garden through the fence . . .

The crop of leaves is ripe for the picking (with my eyes.)

I found myself noticing striking patterns -- bark, shingles on a roof, mushrooms, pine needles, and more leaves.

Looking up and trying to decide how to frame the views -- what an embarrassment of riches.

Growing Roots

2010-10-19T22:13:00.000-07:00

Working on journal pages feels like a low-key way to get back into a creative groove. I glued down a background collage last night and started the lettering before I went to bed. Tonight I came back to finish the page, and I DID finish -- a small accomplishment, but probably the best thing I've done in weeks.

Journal page, 10-17-10

2010-10-18T20:13:00.000-07:00

(Inspired by Diana Trout's creative nudge from October 4.)

I decided to do something, anything, in my journal last night, to kickstart something creative. I've not felt very inspired this month. Spending ten minutes with some markers made me feel a little less hopeless.

A blog you may want to check out

2010-10-06T20:44:00.000-07:00

My cousin Suzee is a food blogger. She pointed me to an amazing food blog, called Lovemenu. Not only does the author, Emily Katz, create beautiful food, she also captures her creations in watercolor-and-stitch! Unique and beautiful. Go check it out!

A journal page today

2010-09-27T20:40:00.000-07:00

I'm not much of an art journaler. I'm more of a writer and a list maker and a creator of diagrams (when I'm figuring out how to make something). But I do like to pull out the journal to mess around occasionally.

Today I read a blog post by Diana Trout, author of Journal Spilling. She has started to write weekly "creative nudges" on her blog, calling it a "Creative Revolution." A chance to reclaim your creativity, in fast, non-intimidating spurts. She's started a flickr group, too, where people can posts their responses to her nudges.

The first nudge was posted September 15: take paper or fabric scraps, play with them on a page, then stick them down. She suggested that if you were reading the post at work, that you take 5 minutes to gather some papers and then glue them down at home. Well, who can pass that up? Not me, especially when I knew I had a whole desk drawer of files from the previous person in my job that I still haven't gone through. Cleaning out my desk and finding art supplies. Score!

I even did a 5-minute sketch in my day planner while I waited for my son to get out of school. I'm not much of a sketcher, either, but it's a good way to look at what's around me at any given moment.

If you'd like to play along, Diana has already posted the next prompt. Enjoy!

Peace Arts Festival on Saturday

2010-09-15T21:14:00.000-07:00

The peace organization I belong to, One Peace, Many Paths, is hosting a Peace Arts Festival this Saturday from 10 am to 4 pm at Unity Church, 2900 S. Bernard, Spokane. Admission is free. There will be lots of music, kids' activities, and a visual arts display. My piece Heart Signals will be in the show.

There's an art raffle to help cover expenses. (I think you get 6 tickets for $5.) My piece Waves and Bubbles is in the raffle.

I'll be there all day, mostly coordinating the children's events. So if you're in the neighborhood, stop by and say hello!

The Invitation

2010-09-12T16:24:00.000-07:00

I jumped into Alma Stoller's I Heart Zines swap at the last minute this year. I'd been thinking about it for months, but I wasn't sure that I wanted to commit the time to it this year. After making 2 zines, I know myself pretty well: it takes a lot of hours to put one of these together. I spend many days writing, editing, and creating individual, handmade covers for each zine.

In the end, I couldn't miss the swap. I learn so much every time I produce a zine. It's an opportunity for exploration and art-making and putting myself "out there."

This year's Something Extra is subtitled The Invitation. I wanted the cover to convey the sense of an old formal invitation, found in an old trunk full of family photos, love letters, pressed flowers, and precious linens.

Each cover is an old calendar page, covered with strips of text from obsolete books (shorthand, typing, a public health book from the 1930s, etc.). I painted some words about invitations in white acrylic, then I stitched on pieces of old lace and crochet. I hope the mixture of papers and graffiti-ish words prevents the covers from becoming too sentimental. The title label is printed on blue vellum. I like how the book text shows through a little, adding another layer to peer at.

The zine contains articles that are expanded versions of some of my blog posts, plus some new photography and a couple surprises. Ten zines went out on Friday afternoon. I'm going to make a few more covers this week, and once I've sewn those together, I'll be done with Something Extra, probably for another year.

Class assignment

2010-09-08T19:34:00.000-07:00

Ross needed some family photos for a school presentation. I was happy to oblige.

I think it's a pretty good shot, especially since I took only about 5 minutes to set up the tripod in the back yard and click away.

This is a shot of Bubba that I took last year but never processed. He "hangs out" like this a lot.

Gus is a beautiful cat, but he is SO hard to capture in a photo! I can't seem to get a well-focused picture of him. This one is kind of blurry, but it's the best I could do today:

This week: first day of sixth grade

2010-09-03T12:59:00.000-07:00

I've been working on my zine in most of my spare moments. But I am coming up for air to post my annual Ross photo for the first day of school.

Sixth grade! He's almost 5 ft. tall now. Amazing.

Part of the zine work has been shooting some last-minute photos. This morning, my photo shoot was a good excuse for a hike. Or was the hike the excuse for the photo shoot? Some of each, probably.

A zine library in Spokane

2010-08-27T20:24:00.000-07:00

Spokane is a small city that gets a lot of sneers. Not large enough, not cool enough. Often you hear it's a great place to raise kids, but your kids will flee the city for Seattle or Portland or points beyond. I've done my share of bemoaning Spokane.

But in the last year, I've started to feel more optimistic about it. More adventurous restaurants, bicycle-centric events, a cadre of 20-somethings who seem determined to do some fun and unique stuff even if they're not in a cool town. . . . Today I met one of those folks. He helped me get my own library card at the Bird's Nest Zine Library.

Yes, a zine library! I'd read about it in the local alternative weekly, and thought it sounded like a great idea. You can borrow up to 3 zines a week. They are inhabiting a hallway next to the local alternative radio station (3rd floor of the Community Building, next to KYRS). It's staffed two afternoons a week.

Here's the main shelf:

The basic info:

This is an intriguing shelf:

The other cool thing: a section devoted to local zines. I had no idea that there were so many folks making them around here. Maybe it seems strange, but it makes me feel like I've got more of a tribe around here.

August

2010-08-23T20:16:00.000-07:00

Hello world.

August has been a stew of heat and sickness and busyness and false starts. And true starts.

One start has been my next zine. The Invitation: Something Extra #3 is my contribution to this year's I Heart Zines swap. I worked on some of the covers this weekend.

The act of creating a zine is a leap of faith. Faith that I have enough to say, and that it is actually worth saying. Faith that I'll fit in all the work that needs to be done. Faith that my zine will arrive in the right hands.

Some days I doubt everything. I wonder what I am doing. Why am I doing any of this creative, crazy business? Why can't I stay happy only by consuming instead of creating?

Then things unfold a little more to me. I suddenly see why I went through an painful experience, why I connected with someone's artwork, or why I see beauty in my imperfect attempts to capture a feeling or moment. The "ah-ha" moments keep pulling me along, drawing me in. I am a very curious creature. I want to understand.

I become content to let the blurred image speak. The mysteries are simply a part of life. I don't have to understand it all right now. I am invited onward on this journey.

More vinyl flowers

2010-08-04T07:18:00.000-07:00

I'm making more vinyl flowers, to construct a garland or a wreath.

I like drawing and writing on the circles before I stitch them. I've been thinking about plants -- their qualities and their needs. What plants need, we need. Their strengths can be ours as well.

May you feel firmly rooted, reach for the sun, and share your bright blooms with the world!

Photos from our Midwestern vacation

2010-07-25T17:21:00.000-07:00

Our art destination: the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden.

(The Spinner by Alexander Calder)

(Spoonbridge and Cherry by Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen)

Then it was off to the Upper Peninsula to visit our family.

I'm grateful for all the smiles, laughter and adventures we shared with our Michigan family on our vacation.

Guerrilla art: "Elegy for E"

2010-07-25T16:50:00.000-07:00

I've been intrigued by the idea of "street art" or "guerrilla art" for a long time. Cloth Paper Scissors magazine recently ran an article by Fred Free on the topic, which reignited my interest in the subject. In a nutshell, this is free art placed in public spaces, often anonymously. Sometimes it has a political message; sometimes it's meant to surprise the viewer; sometimes it's an experiment in finding the boundaries of what is art and what is "real" life.

Well. An event during my vacation rose up and smacked my sensibilities around a bit. And I ended up processing it by creating a piece of guerrilla art. It's a simple stitched-paper garland (unsigned) that I called Elegy for E.

I quickly installed it on a small phone box, snapped a couple of photos, and left the scene.

Later, I did happen to see someone looking at the piece as I was driving by, which was a bit of an adrenaline rush. Yet I didn't create the piece for anyone else but myself. The act of creating it helped me process my thoughts and feelings. The act of putting it outside was my signal that the process was complete.

Crocheted Car Cozy!

2010-07-19T20:13:00.000-07:00

Etsy posted this photo on their facebook page, and I thought that it's a must-see for fiber fanatics.

Photo by StartTheDay at flickr.com

That's some serious crochet!

P.S. Vacation photos coming soon. We'll be back in Spokane Tuesday night.

Packing for vacation

2010-07-07T08:39:00.001-07:00

So, what do you bring in the way of art/craft supplies on vacation?

I've brought various things over the years: jewelry components, handwork on small art quilts, and even an altered children's book for a trip journal. This year, I don't have a project that seems portable enough, and I'm not interested in "just" doing an art journal. What intrigues me is the idea of bringing a few tools and supplies and then making stuff with whatever is on hand.

Everything fits in a lidded plastic container, and can be carried on the plane (except for the large pair of scissors, which will go in my checked bag).

needles
thread: upholstery & beading (Silamide)
embroidery floss & perle cotton -- just a few colors, in a slightly different palette than I usually work in
thimble
scissors, large and small
a few markers & pens
glue stick (must go in the liquids baggie for security)
3 pairs of baby socks -- in case I get the urge for plushie making!

Now I'm in the mindset of looking at lots of objects as possible art supplies . . . I'm hoping it'll be a freeing adventure.

Vinyl flowers

2010-07-03T12:24:00.000-07:00

Two words for you: sign vinyl.

I was walking down the street and noticed workers taking down a large vinyl sign from a business. I asked if I could have it to make crafts (like tote bags), and after they called their boss, they happily gave it to me. I took it home and washed it in the back yard. It's mostly a lovely blue, with white on the back.

My brain started to whirl with the possibilities. Tote bags would be useful, but what else could I do with this stuff?

I took out my stash of inks, and chose Pinata, Staz On, and Adirondack alcohol inks.

I worked with cheap foam brushes -- I didn't want to try to clean the ink off, so I could throw these away easily. You could work with rags or sponges, too. I dripped ink from the bottles onto the vinyl and spread it around. Of course you could use rubber stamps and stamp pads with these inks, as well. Spraying rubbing alcohol (or a mixture of rubbing alcohol and water -- I used a ratio of approx. 1:1) from a squirt bottle onto the wet ink creates interesting mottled effects.

I worked outside (some of these inks are strong-smelling), and I let it dry for a full day. The inks come off a bit if you rub the vinyl with a damp finger, and it'll scratch off a little, but that's okay for my purposes. I also doodled on top of the dried inks with a Sharpie marker, which seems more stable than the inks.

On to the flowers: I traced two lids with pencil to draw circles on the vinyl. I used 2-3/4" and 4" circles, but I wouldn't use anything larger than that. Bigger circles are very difficult to work with, because the vinyl is fairly stiff and it doesn't "gather" nicely. (You'll see what I mean if you keep reading.) I cut the vinyl easily with scissors.

To create a flower shape, I sewed around the edges of the circles with a sturdy needle and strong thread, such as button or upholstery thread. A thimble is very helpful. You could also pre-punch small holes with an awl. Leave a 3-4" tail of thread when you start sewing, and be sure to have at least that much thread at the end, after you've sewn all the way around.

Now you start to pull on both ends of the thread, causing the vinyl to gather in ridges. It's a lot like making fabric yo-yos. If the thread is too weak, it'll snap.

You'll need a little patience at this stage. You'll need to pull the thread, then manipulate the vinyl to make the ridges, then pull more, and so forth. When you've got the circle the way you want it, tie the thread with a square knot, and cut off the excess.

Once I'd gathered both circles, I punched a small hole in the center of each of them with an awl. Then I cut a long piece of floral wire and poked it through both holes.

I chose buttons for the flower center.

After poking the wire through the buttons, I pushed the end back through the vinyl.

I pushed the wire as close to the top button as I could. I squished the wire loop together to make the fit more solid.

At the flower's bottom, I wrapped the shorter wire around the longer wire with pliers. It works best if you push the wire right up against the vinyl. You can wrap additional wire at the base as needed.

Finished! You could create leaves, too, if you wanted.

Here's a flower with more ink colors and white thread.

I wouldn't leave them out in the rain, because I think the ink would eventually fade and/or wash away, but they'd make a fun centerpiece for an outdoor party.

In bloom at the park

2010-06-27T21:17:00.000-07:00

Craft party fun

2010-06-19T19:39:00.000-07:00

We had a small Etsy Craft Party here in Spokane last night in a local coffee shop. Very fun!

We talked a lot about the crafts we do, sewing machines we love, and Etsy, of course. And we agreed to try it again next month! If you're in the Spokane area and would like to be part of a craft group, sign up for our Yahoo! email group here.

I got to sew a new plushie last night, too. Nosey was finished this afternoon.

(The book is Susanna Oroyan's Anatomy of a Doll. I used it to figure out how to needlesculpt the nose.)

A craft party invitation

2010-06-13T21:33:00.000-07:00

Blossom the sock plushie has an invitation for you!

Etsy.com is celebrating its birthday in style! In conjunction with meetup.com, Etsy is encouraging crafters everywhere to get together for craft parties on Friday, June 18, which is Etsy's birthday. The Spokane version will take place at Forza Coffee, 2829 E. 29th Ave. from 6-9 pm. I'll be teaching folks how to make sock plushies (like Blossom, above). This is a great opportunity to meet other local crafty types in a fun setting.

The Spokane meetup page is here. To find an Etsy craft party anywhere, click here.

Saturday afternoon in the backyard

2010-06-13T13:46:00.000-07:00

I worked on my first sock "monster" plushie yesterday. I'd never gotten around to trying this fun project, but I'm glad I finally did. You can hand-stitch the whole thing pretty easily. It doesn't have a face yet, but I knew that it had to have a scarf!

Windy days make for blurry photos

2010-06-07T21:24:00.001-07:00

Back to crocheting fabric

2010-06-05T09:02:00.000-07:00

I mostly enjoyed my 30-day creating-and-blogging challenge. I noticed that I got bored with one project, so I'd move to the next thing, then the next, but not finish anything. That's been my tendency, but the challenge made it even more obvious to me. It became clearer that I also get discontented when I haven't finished anything in a while. There has to be a balance between experimenting and completing.

So. I've picked up the crochet hook again, to complete that fabric strip project. I finished the flat piece of mostly green fabrics, and formed it into a sort of blobby 3D shape.

Next, I decided that I want to crochet a tube to attach to the "blob." I wasn't sure how to do that, so I worked up a couple of samples after consulting A to Z Crochet, a great resource if you crochet.

Not long ago, I wouldn't have bothered with the samples. I would have impatiently crashed onward, then been unhappy with the results. This time I recognized that I needed to step back and try it out on a small scale first. Much saner, don't you think?

Collage on the mail

2010-05-27T23:42:00.000-07:00

I'm mailing a great article to a friend. (It's a piece in the latest issue of the Buddhist magazine Shambhala Sun, about waking up -- if you're curious, there's an excerpt here.) Like so many others, I don't send a lot of physical mail any more, so I was a little excited to have this opportunity to create a little mail art piece.

It's entirely collage from a flower catalog, glued onto a standard envelope. (I tend to hoard those catalogs, because the pictures are so pretty that I have a hard time throwing them out.)

A little piece on the left front side:

I went crazier on the back:

A little color in the mailbox -- what's not to like?

Accomplishment

2010-05-26T22:47:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I have trouble undoing my work when I don't like the way it's turning out. Why I am so attached to a few strands of thread, or a few beads, or whatever I need to change?

I had to talk myself into removing the orange daisies from my backpack panel. They were in the wrong spot, and not quite the right color. But part of me always wants the illusion of progress as I work -- that I'm getting something "accomplished" -- and tearing out an "accomplishment" makes me feel as if I'm going backwards.

I doubt that makes a lot of sense. It's very silly. Yet I noticed the resistance in me when I considered the idea of cutting out those daisies. I had to take a deep breath as I picked up the scissors. But once I began snipping threads and pulling them out, I relaxed. Now the panel is closer to the look I was hoping for. Which is an accomplishment.

3 embroidered daisies

2010-05-25T22:32:00.000-07:00

Today was dominated by science project mania, but I did manage 3 small daisies.

I'm glad that I did a little something before I went to sleep.

Pretty buttons

2010-05-24T23:03:00.000-07:00

Today I needed "pretty" -- something to work on that pleased my eyes. It had to be quick, and not a brain challenge. Too tired to think much tonight.

I gravitated toward the pink and green backpack I was working on in March. The outside pieces have been cut out, backed with felt, and stitched with some free-motion quilting. I've collected some buttons for further embellishment, so tonight I sewed a few on.

Playing with blue paper

2010-05-23T22:13:00.000-07:00

Not all of the dye has dried yet -- the t-shirt will be revealed tomorrow. Here's a peak at the paper:

The top two samples were on white grocery bags, and the bottom two were on brown grocery bags. I love the intense, pure blue, yet I think the brown bags could be very useful, too.

The Sharpie doodles shine through the pigment dyes. Using the clamps to resist the dye worked fairly well. If I'd used less dye, there'd be more white. I find the back side very interesting -- there are places where the doodles bled through, leaving partial images.

I twisted up some of the paper, as I did for that spidery thingy a couple days ago. My fingers got a little blue as I twisted; maybe using a hot iron to set the dye into the paper would have been a good idea. I sewed the twists into a little lantern shape.

The paper doesn't hold its shape very well, as you can imagine, so it was a mistake to think it would bow out into a perfect lantern. It's good to experience what the paper can and cannot do.

Using up old dye

2010-05-22T21:16:00.000-07:00

Friday was not a very creative day, unless you count sewing badges onto a newly-minted Boy Scout's shirt and hemming his uniform pants. I'm glad my son is moving up from Cub Scouts, but I didn't budget my time well. Oh well, it happens. The important thing for me is to keep going the next day. Otherwise, I start beating myself up.

Today I decided to experiment with paper again. I've had a bottle of diluted blue pigment dye sitting around for a long time, and it was time to use it.

As usual, the cats thought I was inviting them to play with the art supplies.

I cut open a couple of small white grocery bags, and decided to doodle on one of them.

Then it was time to add texture.

I covered the table with plastic and rummaged around for other things to dye. I wanted to pour as little of the dye down the drain as possible, and I knew I had a lot to use up. I found a white t-shirt that's a 50/50 cotton-poly blend -- perfect for pigment dyeing, because it will color the polyester, unlike procion dyes. I placed it under the paper that I planned to dye, so that it would absorb the excess.

I accordian-folded the doodles, then clamped them, hoping for a tie-dye effect. Bubba had to get in his sniffing at that point.

Then I began to pour the dye. The blue looks pretty intense, but it won't be that bright in the end.

Now it's a waiting game -- 24 hours for the shirt. I haven't unclamped the doodles yet, but some of the plain paper is already dry. This is a brown paper bag, simply crumpled and lightly dyed:

I'm hoping for some interesting surprises when everything is dry.

Oh the places you'll go . . .

2010-05-20T22:50:00.000-07:00

. . . when you decide to create every day. Strange notions will pop up, and you'll decide to follow them.

Ross went off on a 3-day, 2-night camping trip with his school on Wednesday, so Chris and I had a little extra time to ourselves. I decided to do more free-motion quilting on the red and white patchwork.

I'm almost done with the quilting, and I've developed some ideas about how I'll put it together with the hearts I've been creating.

Tonight, Chris and I sat down at the dining room table together. He was working on his latest light saber (yes, you read that right -- he's built a couple of light sabers, complete with lights and sounds). The sewing machine would have made things crowded, so I played with an idea I had about twisting paper.

I still have some painted grocery bag paper left over from my zine covers. I cut 1/2" to 1" strips, approximately 7" long, and twisted and curled the strips. Then I sewed them together with hand quilting thread and a big needle (after I broke a regular needle).

I could hang it up, as an odd sort of tassel:

or I could attach it to something, as a weird flower, or hair for a doll:

(Our cat Bubba thought it would make a great toy to chew on, but I rescued it from him!)

Things that fall from the sky

2010-05-18T20:21:00.000-07:00

Today is the 30th anniversary of the eruption of Mount St. Helens. I didn't live in Washington at the time, so I only know what I've seen on the news and what I've heard from folks who were here. Spokane is on the other side of the state from the volcano, so the impact here was mostly the ash -- days of ash-fall, making it difficult to go about daily life.

Today there were more normal things falling from the sky, like raindrops. The showers washed flower petals from the blooming trees, creating carpets of pink and white and yellow on the ground.

Today I looked out the staff room window and saw that our church grounds had a thick coating of flowering plum blossoms. I loved the green of the benches in contrast to that soft pink.

Can you imagine a shower of pink petals erupting from some sort of enchanted volcano?

Release

2010-05-17T20:43:00.000-07:00

I felt disappointed this morning as I thought about my weekend. I had hoped to get in a large block of creative time, but chores and commitments seemed to block my path.

I'm still learning how to keep my commitment to my creative path.

Being gentle and forgiving with myself isn't easy. Anger arises in me when ego knocks around in my head, squawking "You should have gotten so much more done this weekend -- what's WRONG with you?! You wasted time, you fooled around, you didn't concentrate. You failed -- again!"

Sometimes anger is the fuel that pushes me. Tonight it felt like a force that I needed to release physically. Free-motion quilting appealed to me. The sewing machine runs fast and loud, I push and pull the fabric around, and there is a rhythm to it. It's almost mindless, but it demands concentration; it's a meditation of sorts. A good activity for shutting up the ruthless ego.

I quilted a section of the red-and-white patchwork fabric that I'm using to make the hearts. I suspect that I'm going to need it for the sculpture yet to come.

Another wrinkled heart

2010-05-16T21:49:00.000-07:00

Lawn mowing moment

2010-05-15T20:41:00.000-07:00

I didn't post yesterday because we went to a movie, but I did finish stitching wrinkles into this heart's backing.

Today was a catch-up-with-chores day. While I was mowing the lawn, I thought it'd be interesting to take a photo of myself in that moment's reality: sweaty and tired. I parked the mower under a tree and played with camera angles. This shot was the best. I like the rogue strands of grass in the foreground, and I didn't need to crop it at all.

Stitching in the waiting room

2010-05-13T21:12:00.000-07:00

I had a nice chunk of stitching time today while Ross was getting his teeth cleaned at the dentist. I finished up heart number 8 (it's the top heart in the photo), and I went back to an earlier heart (at bottom). I'd left the backing very loose on it, so I decided to tack it down with random straight stitches. Not quite done with it yet.

Diorama

2010-05-12T22:34:00.000-07:00

My son had an assignment to create a diorama of a room featured in the novel, The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer. We (his parents) didn't find out about the assignment until Monday, and were pretty ticked that he hadn't bothered to work on it last weekend.

We probably should have left him to flounder on his own, letting him learn the consequences of his actions. Yet Chris and I both like to make stuff. We couldn't pass up the opportunity to help with the diorama, because we think this sort of thing is fun.

Chris jumped in and created a grand piano out of cardboard and chopsticks, and he glued on a picture from the internet to create the keys and the inside of the piano. (Unfortunately I had to put small photos into this post -- you really should click on the photos to get a larger view.)

When I came home from work, Ross had just started to concoct some potted plants. I knew I had tiny clay pots and some "silk" leaves, so it wasn't a great leap to make better-looking plants.

And so it went. We parental packrats went to our stashes and found fabric for carpeting and curtains, the metal from a windshield wiper blade for a curtain rod, upholstery foam, straws, etc. Ross cut and painted and glued along with us.

It was a family effort. We worked together and learned together.

I asked Ross what he'd say to his teacher if she asked him if he had help. He thought for a bit and said, "I'd tell her that my parents helped me." I said, "Good. Because I think it's better to tell the truth."

We did not help so that we'd be rescuing him from a possible poor grade. We helped because we like to do this stuff. I know I may catch some flak for my choice, but so be it.

Inches

2010-05-11T21:24:00.000-07:00

I'd hoped to stitch enough to finish this heart today. But there wasn't quite enough time -- the session in the car, and the session in the audience, as I waited for my son's concert, just didn't add up.

My yoga teacher has a bag of quotations, on little slips like a fortune-cookie fortune; each student gets to draw a slip from the bag at the end of class. On Monday, one of my fellow students drew this out of the bag:
"Inches make champions." -- Vince Lombardi

It's a very appropriate thought for yoga. During every session, a practitioner is encouraged to work deeper into a pose; most stretches are not static. The quote fits my experience of creative work, as well. As I make things, I have periods when I seemingly make very little progress, and it's easy to belittle my efforts or to feel that I'm failing. But it's an effort in patience with myself. Visible progress may be measured in millimeters, but as I long as I persevere, it is still valuable progress.

More tie-dye and hearts

2010-05-10T19:27:00.000-07:00

I didn't get a chance to rinse out my tie-dyed t-shirt until Sunday. (Your tie-dyed items can sit for longer than 24 hours if necessary; the chemical reaction stops after that time.) I am pleasantly surprised by the results. I wasn't sure I was going to like the green that was produced by the yellow and blue dyes running together, but I do like it. They're sort of Kool Aid colors, don't you think?

(click on the photo for a larger view)

I wore my orange hoodie to work today, and got a lot of compliments on it. In fact, some of my coworkers are asking about all of us doing a tie-dye session together. Could be fun!

I've started to stitch the eighth red heart.

Didn't get very far, but I bet I can squeeze in some more work after I post this blog entry. . . .

A bright Mother's Day

2010-05-09T13:15:00.000-07:00

The main reason I like tie-dye: it's somewhat unpredictable. I like the surprises as I untie and rinse the fabric. These dyes turned out brighter than I thought they would. The hoodie is gaudier than I would have liked, but hey, there are times when it's good to stand out in a crowd.

(Thanks to Ross for taking these photos.)

I decided to make some last-minute earrings yesterday -- I attended a Mad Hatter's tea and garden party, and the flower yo-yos fit the theme perfectly.

A bright and cheery Mother's Day to all!

Orange tie dye in progress

2010-05-07T22:42:00.000-07:00

Tonight I tie-dyed a t-shirt with turquoise, medium blue, and lemon yellow; also a terrycloth hoodie with brilliant orange, lemon yellow, and golden yellow. The photo is rather eye-popping, but I don't think the finished product will be that bright. We'll see . . .

Flower Yo-yos

2010-05-06T21:50:00.000-07:00

Thank goodness I have crafty things I can do when I'm brain-dead. I came home feeling very tired this afternoon. I took a nap, woke up still groggy, and picked up Chinese takeout for dinner. I didn't think I'd have any energy left for my 15 minutes of creative activity.

Then I remembered that I would like to make some flower yo-yos for my pink and green backpack. I found my Clover Yo-yo Maker, grabbed some fabric, and stitched up a couple. It's good to remember that I can make a little something, as long as I can stay upright for a few minutes. It all adds up.

Wordless Wednesday: tulips

2010-05-05T21:18:00.000-07:00

Rhythm and flow

2010-05-04T21:34:00.000-07:00

I came home from work and crocheted while Ross did his homework. He watched me intently for a while, then said: "Oh, I see how you double crochet." Then he proceeded to describe the technique correctly. I remember trying to teach him how to do it months ago, but he was more interested in single crochet, and he never really got the hang of it. Now I think he could do it easily. His hands and mind have started to find the rhythm of crochet.

It's a dance, the way your hand works the hook in and out, pulling and twisting, creating loop upon loop. I take joy in the movement. I like the flow of it -- there is a meditative quality to the work. The present moment is where the hook does its work. My mind rests.

I'm nearing the end of this part of the project, because I'm running out of fabric strips. What's next?

Knotting

2010-05-03T22:38:00.000-07:00

The irony of knotting fabric strips together, while other things feel as if they are slipping apart. At least there is the satisfaction of hands at work.

A couple more rows

2010-05-02T21:27:00.000-07:00

Only crocheted two more rows today -- went as far as I could with the fabric that I'd already knotted together to form my "yarn." I'll probably tie more before I go to bed tonight. I've started decreasing (making the rows shorter), in order to make the piece easier to handle, and I hope it'll be easier to fashion it into a basket when I'm done.

Added 2 more rows of crochet today

2010-05-01T16:48:00.000-07:00

I'm starting to think this will be a basket of some sort. It takes a fair amount of hand strength to crochet this much fabric!

Afternoon walk

2010-04-30T20:02:00.000-07:00

When I walk, I see beauty everywhere.

The rusty bottle cap wears its hard-earned patina; the hyacinths glow in the sunshine. I thank them all for crossing my path this day.

Crocheting fabric

2010-04-29T20:59:00.000-07:00

Today was wet and cool. It felt like a day to crochet.

Backtracking a little: I hadn't crocheted in months, but then I picked up some gorgeous blue/green handspun yarn from Juaquetta at Garden Party Fibers in March. When I sat through juror training at the county courthouse a couple weeks ago, I made use of the time by working up a simple scarf.

Now that I've got the itch to crochet, I thought I'd try an idea I've had for a while.

Last year I facilitated an art project at my church. The congregation participated in creating a "peace tree" with strips of fabric -- mostly cotton sheets and shirts from my stash. This was the finished project:

When we took the tree down, I couldn't throw it out. (My middle name should have been Pack-rat.) I've wanted to tie the strips together and crochet them, but I hadn't gotten around to doing it, until this afternoon.

Fabric doesn't have the "give" that yarn has, so I learned that I needed to keep my tension loose, or else I couldn't pull my hook through. I only did one row of double crochet. It quickly got thick and heavy.

It's too heavy to become clothing or an accessory, but it could become something sculptural, perhaps. Or a rug, if I put a backing on it?

My cat Gus thought it was fun to play with the fabric strips, at least.

A 30-day challenge

2010-04-28T20:58:00.000-07:00

As I was standing in the shower this morning, a thought drifted in: What if I give myself a creative challenge? Something that would get me doing something creative every day. And, I could blog about it. I could get back in the groove. Hmmm.

These are my rules:
1. I must do some creative work for at least 15 minutes every day. I may work on an ongoing project, sketch, journal, take photos, write a poem -- whatever moves me that day.
2. I will blog about whatever I did that day.
3. I will do this for 30 days.
4. Above all, I will be kind to myself during this challenge. No browbeating myself for "bad" work, no guilt trips if I am too sick to work or if emergencies arise. I intend this to be a positive, encouraging experience.

I know there are similar challenges out there that are fairly organized, but I am not looking for a group experience right now. This is my journey, and I feel that it needs to be solitary, even selfish, right now. I'm not afraid to admit that this is for me. I want to document this challenge so that I can see what I'm learning as I go along.

But if you want to peek in from time to time, you might find it entertaining.

Today is Day 1.

I've been working on those red quilted hearts in small doses, mostly when I'm waiting for Ross to get out of school. Today I spent a little time finishing up the current heart.

I've now completed 7 out of 10:

I'm quite undecided about whether I'll add more to the backs:

I don't have a real plan for how they're going to become a sculpture once they're finished. I trust that the ideas will flow when the time is right.

Open the door

2010-04-27T21:49:00.000-07:00

I've struggled with blogging the past few months. Life has been so hectic and full of challenges. I was getting some creative work done, but -- honestly, the turbulence has drained me. I am tired, and some days, depressed.

Ah, my old friend, depression. I recognize its vicious cycle earlier than I used to, but I certainly haven't mastered it yet.
Step one: feel depressed.
Step two: feel tired.
Step three: don't do things you like to do because you're tired.
Step four: feel more depressed because you aren't doing things you like to do.
Repeat.
Until you recognize the downward spiral and DO SOMETHING!

Luckily, I've had a photography challenge in front of me for a couple weeks. I've joined a new camera club. The group agreed that we'd each show up to 5 photos on the theme of "doors" for our first full meeting. And so I've been considering a subject that I've not shot before, and trying to create interesting images with a topic that didn't grab me.

I've managed to get 4 photos that I like. I'm not in love with any of them, but at least they got me out of the house and out of my head for a while. (Click on the photos for a larger view on flickr.)

Photo #1: Break down
The houses and businesses in the neighborhood next to my son's school is being bought up by the state and then torn down to make room for a freeway. Most of the houses are entirely boarded up, but one house didn't have its door barricaded. I noticed the big muddy footprint as I was driving by one afternoon and it intrigued me, so I went back and took some pictures.

Photo #2: Japanese Bathroom Sign at Manito Park
The public bathrooms nearest to the Japanese garden have fading signs in (surprise!) Japanese. This isn't technically a door photo, but you can see the hinges of the bathroom door in the background.

Photo #3: Pull
Our county courthouse is a very ornate structure. Recently I was on jury duty, and decided to photograph the doors on a Sunday afternoon (no security guards or citizens to bother me). The doors themselves aren't very interesting, but I like the brass plates with their slight blue-green patina. This photo was shot with my macro lens.

Photo #4: Gimme shelter?
This is the worst photo of the bunch, but the most poignant to me. I was exploring a wooded, steep hill in a local park when I came across this shelter. It's constructed between two large rocks. The blue tarp creates a roof and also functions as a door. You can see some flattened cardboard boxes on the ground, which seem to form the floor inside. I could see a blanket or a sleeping bag in the small opening, but I did not put my head inside.

About a year ago, I'd heard that someone was living in this area, but the man had been run off by police. Clearly, he'd moved back. I'd also heard that the man had been angry with the city employees who work in that area, thinking that they'd turned him in. I don't think anyone was in the shelter when I was there; I'd been crunching along the path leading up to it, so I assume most folks would have heard me. However, I wasn't anxious to incur the wrath of a homeless man. So I got a few quick shots and left quietly, just in case he was sleeping in there.

I wonder if a census worker will come calling at his door.

Today at work

2010-04-19T21:41:00.000-07:00

When I got to work today, I roamed with the camera. Honestly, it was too beautiful a morning to sit at my desk right away.

Our teens did some fun parking lot art during the church service yesterday:

One of them even "signed" their work:

We have a profusion of daffodils blooming around the peace pole:

And in the Prayer Garden, amazing tulips in orange:

You can almost feel the color vibrating, can't you? It's spring, glorious spring.

Just a thought before I go on vacation

2010-03-31T21:45:00.000-07:00

My poor blog has been so neglected this year. Every time I think that I'll get into a blog-posting groove, something comes up. I've spent a lot of this month sick, like so many others folks. It's been a difficult transition to spring this year. Plus, there's been the rush to get things done before we head out to California to spend Easter weekend at Disneyland. My to-do list is not all done, but that's okay. It felt more important to post some photos of my latest creations before I get on the plane.

After I recuperated from a sinus infection, I spent a lot of time working on my backpack. But it became more complicated than I thought it would be, and it was going to be a big push to get it done on time. And as is so often the case, my attention started to wander. I wanted to make some quick plushies, in honor of my upcoming birthday.

My workplace has an unusual birthday tradition. Instead of coworkers bringing you presents on your birthday, you bring presents to them for your birthday! You're supposed to bring something that you'd like to get yourself. So I bought coffee-flavored candies and fun little buttons, but nothing else was presenting itself to me. Except that I knew that I'd LOVE to get little homemade plushies . . . and that I'd love to make them, too.

It wasn't hard to abandon the backpack to make plushies. It was more fun to make something for my friends than for myself!

Here they are -- the birthday treat plushies!

My personal birthday treat will be spending my 47th birthday with my husband and son at Disneyland -- my birthday is Easter this year, no less. May you all have a beautiful Easter Sunday.

Creating pink fabric

2010-03-13T10:22:00.000-08:00

I've had the urge to make a new bag. We're going to Disneyland over Easter weekend, and I'd like a nice bag that'll carry my essentials while we travel.

At JoAnn Fabrics, I found a nice remnant of outdoor canvas, a green floral print. I thought it'd be fun to create some pink fabric to go with it, so last weekend I pulled out a ragged pair of chino pants. They were a light stone color -- not my first choice of background color, but suitable. I cut along the seams of one of the pant legs to create two long and skinny halves. Pulling out the fabric paints and acrylic inks, I painted different patterns on each section.

Last night I decided to stitch some free-motion flowers on top of one of the pieces. I'm not quite done yet, but this is a sample of how it looks so far.

Now I'm thinking that remnant is going to be the bag lining, and I'm going to paint more fabric for the outside of the bag. Once I start fabric painting, it's hard to stop!

If you need some artsy inspiration today . . .

2010-03-04T20:28:00.000-08:00

. . . go read Jane LaFazio's interview of Kelli Nina Perkins on Janeville. The photos of Kelli's work are great fun, too.

I think I need to put this sentence from Kelli in my journal right now:

"I still do lots of bad drawing, I'm just not afraid of it."

Wordless Wednesday: Today's Walk

2010-03-03T20:22:00.000-08:00

Three D isn't just for movie screens and funny glasses

2010-02-28T22:13:00.000-08:00

I've wanted to work in a more sculptural or three-dimensional mode for quite a while. Other ideas and projects kept popping up, and I didn't follow that urge. I am easily distracted by all the cool things I see other folks doing, and I tend to want to try everything. In the past, it could take many years before I gave myself permission to leap in a new direction. But I think fear has a little less of a grip on me than it used to, and I'm getting clearer about following my inclinations instead of getting distracted by the latest and the greatest. I can admire others' work and learn from it, but I am doing myself a disservice if I don't pay attention to what my heart is telling me.

Sculptural work feels way out of my league. My brain has been very 2D, left-to-right, top-to-bottom -- I was a bookworm very early on, and my synapses are most comfortable when my eyes are scanning a page of English prose. Yet I've learned over the past 10 years that I am far more visual and color-oriented than I ever would have guessed. This journey is far from a static thing. So why not try something more 3D?

I've been looking at my copy of Three-Dimensional Embroidery by Janet Edmonds. There are so many intriguing ideas in that book! Not quite knowing where to begin, I cut ten hearts from some quilted red patchwork fabric I made last year. Now I'm sewing various white fabrics to the back side of the hearts with embroidery floss. Some will have additional embroidery, some may have beading or found objects or photos or text -- I don't have much of a plan at this point. I am happy to play.

When I have ten finished hearts, I plan to combine them in some sort of three-dimensional way. I've played with some ideas, but nothing has struck my fancy yet. I'm perfectly happy to wait and see what happens! It feels very freeing to let my planning mind take a break. Curiosity will draw me along.

Simple beginnings of spring

2010-02-18T21:56:00.000-08:00

I choose to rejoice in the simple things.

Enough daylight and warmth to take a walk at 5 pm.

Spotting my first crocuses this year.

Working with my camera, outside, where I belong. Where I breathe freely.

Walking along a park trail, then striking out for orange light on the ridge.

Glad for silhouettes, glad for the crescent moon in the pine branches, glad for dog walkers and bicyclists, glad for beautiful houses; glad to come home with fresh air in my hair, and spring whispering its name everywhere.

Heart Signals, really finished at last

2010-02-11T20:47:00.000-08:00

There's nothing like a deadline to prod me into finishing a piece. I call this one "Heart Signals."

(The color is off in this photo -- I really need to invest in some better lighting!)

Once I got the piece mounted onto a stretched canvas, I began to sweat how I'd finish it. It came to me that a knotted cord or ribbon would mimic the embroidery I'd done on this piece, which is alternating French knots and straight stitch. I sewed a kind of ribbon or bias tape, then knotted it and glued it on as a frame.

I've got to admit -- once I'd glued on the knots, I thought it looked like a wedding cake! The knots remind me of fancy icing doodads.

Then I wondered what to do with the sides of the canvas. I'd made some pink "fabric paper" by gluing text from old books and handwriting samples onto muslin, then gluing pink tissue paper over it. Eventually I cut circles with a punch, again thinking about mimicking French knots. But the plain circles lacked something. So I punched small holes into the circles with an awl, then sewed white embroidery floss through them. A little glue, and there it was.

"Heart Signals" was by far the girliest thing in the Raw Space show. I felt a little odd about it hanging with some fairly dark pieces. But hey -- it was unique, a little confectionery, and a break from all the seriousness.

Our last Pinewood Derby

2010-01-29T19:55:00.000-08:00

Glimpses into our Pinewood Derby-obsessed household:

Even the cats were watching the goings-on -- notice Bubba is in the background!

Inspired by a fellow scout who made his car into a large pink eraser last year, Ross decided to make a pencil car this year. Chris helped him figure out how to get it cut at the right angles, and another adult in the pack cut it out, but Ross did more of the work by himself this year than he has in the past.

Someone suggested that he name it Ticonderoga, and he went with it. I think it's by far the best-looking car he's built as a Cub Scout!

Chris went back to his beloved lake freighters. This year, it was the Paul R Tregurtha.

If you've never had the pleasure of seeing the Tregurtha up close and personal, you might enjoy searching You Tube for videos of her on the lakes. At 1000 feet long, she is an amazing sight. Chris's wheeled version came in 2nd place in the adult open division.

Ross had been feeling nostalgic and a little sad about this being his last Pinewood Derby. He is thinking about moving up to Boy Scouts, but they don't have the derby. Yet on race day, he was all smiles. His car was fast, but there were a lot of fast cars this year, and he didn't place. He took it all in stride, though, showing good sportsmanship, and carrying himself like the capable 2nd year Webelos that we know and love.