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No, I didn't make these cookies, but I saw them in the bakery counter of Ginny and Jane E's here on Anna Maria Island, and I snapped a photo.
Besides, there's fewer calories this way, right?
Whether your getting treats or handing them out, enjoy the eerie spooky Halloween holiday........ and don't eat too much candy. Sigh......I don't have little ones around anymore whose candy bags I can raid after they go to bed, so I'll guess this image will have to suffice.
Remember the fabric I dyed in layers a few weeks ago? Well I finally got around to creating something with them. This photo here was my first attempt at seeing what I might do. I eventually sewed this piece together, but after staring at it for several days, and I do mean several, I couldn't see where it was heading. So I cut that sewn piece apart and started rearranging the pieces to create something more interesting. My goal is to create an art quilt that has several layers of illumination attracting the viewer....the next photo is what I have up to this point. This piece is not sewn together yet at all......the pieces are all just setting on my design wall waiting for the next go ahead and sew it together feeling. Here it is: I added the navy/white pieces which are also hand dyed by me a few years ago. The smaller purple squares were from my store bought stash. Now, I'm liking this a lot better, but of course, it will have to set there for a while till I make up my mind to start sewing it together. I envision perhaps even more light windows painted over the surface........maybe stencilled on, maybe using tulle, I don't really know right now. But here's where I am as of now. What do you think?
Isn't this just a great card??? This card is an original made by my friend Bea who lives in Vero Beach, Florida. If you click on it for a better view, you'll see that each of those grapes are individually punched out with a hole puncher and applied to the card. That's amazing, but I know that making original cards are Bea's passion.
She uses watercolor paper, and paints it with different colors to create unique papers, which she then uses as she pleases on her cards. This is so special that she made and sent me this card for my birthday! Thanks, Bea.
I also received many other beautiful cards from friends and family with strong sentiments of caring and love that mean a lot to me. I hope the sending of cards tradition never leaves us........even though there is email, texting, and other ways. Receiving a card you can hold in your hand and read again and again is just priceless. And you can save it for another day! So a big thanks to Bea, Janet, Nancy for remembering my special day. It made turning the calendar to another year of life meaningful. And to all my telephone friends who called, like Sue and Karen. AND to all my online friends who wished me well on Facebook. You all matter to me a great deal and I won't forget it!!!!
This is the place I took my walk this morning about 7 AM on the Gulf on Anna Maria Island Florida.
This is a special day for me, being my birthday........and I started it out just as I often do. Except today the weather was just right and the view at early sunrise was wonderful.
I'm grateful, and just wanted to share this spectacular photo with you. A great way to begin the days ahead of another calendar year.
Hope your day is also what you hope it will be.
This is a pretty old art quilt I made about 5 or more years ago.....it's hanging on the wall of the landing going upstairs. I've always liked this piece because of the mother and child in it......I remember how hard I worked to get the feeling of wind blowing which is so common by the seashore. I always like seeing it on my way up or down the stairs. The sand was made with little pieces of different colored tan/brown fabrics, collaged in place. I believe I hand painted the water fabric. Why am I showing this now? I guess because it is a favorite of mine that I continue to leave right where I first hung it. Favorite things, I find, bring comfort in trying times. To me, these are trying times, for many reasons. So it's important, as I see it, to surround yourself with things that you love.....things that remind you of who you are, what makes you happy, and what you've accomplished. Maybe there's mementos that bring back a special memory. It could be something simple, like an old greeting card you received once. These are some of my favorite things to look at again and again. I have a few favorite books that I take back and forth between Indiana and Florida just to have them with me. One is entitled Where Ever You Go, There You Are........another is Favorite Poems. And I do read through them again and again, sometimes they are the perfect antidote to feeling edgy or stressed. Something familiar. Who doesn't have an old sweatshirt or shirt that when worn, makes you feel just right? Or habits that signal a comforting moment.........one of mine is putting on a pair of socks when my feet are cold in bed. Silly, perhaps, but it always works to comfort myself. The world keeps on spinning with change whether we like it not, so take advantage of any and all opportunities to comfort yourself. Just my two cents for today.
Finally I am able to get back to some fabric dyeing. Thought I'd share a little of my first experiments. There are not original, but learned from various technique books on fabric dyeing. The first experiment I did was layering fabrics in one container using three different dyes. Here's a photo of the fabrics in place:
I first used a piece of scrunched up fabric on the bottom, covered with red dye. Then I added another piece of fabric, covered that one with dark blue dye, then I added a third piece and covered that one with green dye. Here's how it looked when I finished adding the dyes and it was waiting to be finished. I kept it this way for about an hour. Next will be the photos of the three pieces of fabric that resulted from this technique:
This fabric was at the bottom of the container. It picked up some of the blue dyes from the piece placed on top of it, but kept some of the red already in place. Plus, created varying shades of violet.
This fabric was in the middle of the container. It picked up a little of the red dyes on the fabric below it, the white parts are areas that did not take dye well because they were crumpled fabric areas.
This fabric was the piece on top which I poured green dye over. It also absorbed some of the blue dye from the piece below it.
I like all of these results, except next time I will use a smaller container.......so the fabrics are more crumpled and more white areas occur. AND, I will wait longer between applying the different dyes so allow each piece to seep in the colors longer.
This is my art quilt "Emergence" that is currently in the Studio Art Quilt Associates Exhibit called Fibrations. It debuted at tne Yellowstone Quilt Fest in Cody Wyoming, and has just left for its' next venue at the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum in Denver Colorado.
Here's how I made it in case you're interested. First the background was pieced together, those are all the squares and rectangles you see. I used various batik fabrics. The figure is just a black silhouette I fused to the background. It's an image of a person walking forward. Then I created a stencil of a palm frond, or something resembling one. I then stencilled fronds randomly over the service of the quilt with fabric paints, using a variety of colors in different places. The quilting was done outlining all the palm frond shapes. You can probably see this if you click on the photo to enlarge it. I don't think I shared this photo before so I decided to today.
so here's the quilt I needed to make that I mentioned earlier. It came about pretty quickly......the background piece in the center was a piece I started last year and never finished; the side pieces were leftovers from another project last year also. When I began, they seemed right, and things fell quickly into place. Now I know that the arrows in the border pieces are significant for my expression. I added the reds and other black and white pieces in the middle section.
I'll leave you to decide what this is about. Here's a few clues for those interested: I love sailboats.....not to be in them mind you, but to see them out on the water. For some reason they always attract me and provide a sense of calm. I also love being near the water.....lake, river, or ocean.
This is not quilted yet, it measure 18 inches wide by 30 inches high. I haven't given it a name yet, altho I've entertained "Tossed About" and " Thwarted" along the way. Funny thing, now that I've gotten it out of my system and out in the cloth, I'm not in any hurry to finish it by quilting it. I will, I'm sure, but it has served its purpose by the process of creation. I came across a sentence in a book I'm reading called Wisdom Bowls, by Meredith Young-Sowers:
"We grow to trust the process of creation, although when we start, we never know how the finished work will look". True, true, true.
I came across t
his photo in my "art photos for inspiration" file today. I'd bet you could not guess where it came from.
It proves that inspiration can come from anywhere, you just have to be open to seeing it.
I first was attracted to it because of the curved lines, and varying shades of blue. When I downloaded it, I saw the reflections present in the image, I guess I used my flash on a glass covered image, and picked up the reflections that way. Today I printed a copy of this since I'd like to use this as an idea for a quilt. My goal would be to capture the curved lines, different values, and subtle shadows that give the piece dimension. And of course, the reflections, altho I don't know how I'll do that just yet. Anyway, it's hanging in my studio now while I ponder how to accomplish it. so...............where did this come from? where did I see this hanging? It was at a McDonald's restuarant somewhere in Florida........and I think we were in there over a year ago. Probably on our trip here. anyway, I don't think I was thinking about being inspired when I went in for my cup of coffee. But, there it was.......I snapped a quick picture so I wouldn't forget it, and today I'm remembering. One of the good things about our phones having cameras. Happy Tuesday!
