Inspired by Sew Somerset

Attempt #1 ~ Beautiful Maiden

I just received the summer 2012 issue of Sew Somerset.

There are a couple artists I am smitten with in this issue, but

I'm particularly excited to see work by Nellie Wortman.

After organizing my fabric, and remnants this weekend,

I was determined to sew her way.

***LOVE*** is all I can say.

I wasn't sure where to begin,

so I started small, and kept adding

layers of lace, stitches,

rusty elements, text and buttons.

My original plan was to come up with

some type of bag, or tote.

That was too overwhelming, so I

opted for these small projects.

Attempt #2 ~ Fairy of the Garden

This one is actually a pocket.

I LOVE this stuff.

I hoard fabric right down to the tiniest scrap.

I just can't bear to throw it out,

and my heart sings to know I can

use it all up with thise type of sewing.

My plan is to stitch up a bunch of small patches

to add embellishments while watching TV,

to complete in projects when I have time

to sew on the machine.

By the way, Registration is now open

over at Artful Gathering

and Nellie Wortman

 is teaching a class on

how to make this...

Recycleable Reusable Journal Wrap Cover.

Gorgeous!!!

Gardening bliss, and gratitude.

My iris's are blooming,

and the poppies are waiting their turn.

Our lovely raised beds.

We planted a few different types of tomatoes,

(way fewer than last year)

hot peppers, eggplant, cukes and yellow squash.

In the herb garden bed,

we added Rosemary,

2 types of Thyme and 2 types of Basil.

Already doing very well,

are Chives, ornamental onions and Sage.

A long leisure holiday weekend,

with beautiful weather and happily

with nothing planned.

The next several weekends, will be filled

with a graduation party, out of town guests,

a multi-family yard sale, and travelling.

It will be the middle of July before things settle down.

I squeezed in some yard sales, and antique shops.

A couple new plastic bins with drawers,

set me in motion to re-organize my fabric stash.

I also picked up my repaired sewing machine.

I purchased a grain scoop,

an intricate crocheted doily,

some new linens,

a square canning jar

(to store my coveted buttons)

and a black wire plant stand

to use as a display at craft fairs

(that was the BONUS purchase!)

My son moved out recently,

so the spare "guest" bedroom

needed some sprucing up

for guests arriving in a couple weeks.

When I hung the sheets outside,

the poles snapped on the clothesline.

The halloween storm we had back in the fall,

caught us by surprise, and the weight of the snow,

weakened the poles.

Looks like a new clothesline is in order.

With chores done,

I'm itchin' to be in the studio.

Whenever I take a break to clean, and organize,

and wander around antiques and collectibles,

I feel like my batteries are recharged.

I can't decide on sewing, painting or journaling.

All I know is the weather is overcast,

and I have a big grin on my face.

Studio time!!!!

Keeping the reason for this

memorial weekend in my thoughts,

feeling the gratitude, and giving thanks,

to all who serve, and have served

to keep this country safe,

and the best place ever,

 to live in the world.

Amen

"Nothin' but blue skies from now on...."

"Blue skies smilin' at me,

Nothin' but blue skies do I see...

Never saw the sun shinin' so bright

Never saw things goin' so right.... 

Noticing the days hurrying by...

Nothin' but blue skies from now on...."

Graduation Day

Plymouth State University

May 19, 20012

Reflections...

17 years ago today, we burried my dad.

A life ended too soon.

10 days before his 40th wedding anniversary.

So I decided it was a good day,

to take a personal day off from work.

I always feel grounded in my yard,

and my day began

with spreading the last 2 yards of mulch.

It's a beautiful day,

and the birds are busy settling into

the many birdhouses around my yard.

I was disturbing the birds,

 as I layed down a layer of newspapers,

right on top of the decaying layers of dead leaves.

I felt bad that they were scolding me,

but once my garden composts down,

there will be some nice juicy worms

right under their home.....

I was reflecting about my dad

while working in the garden.

He built most of the bird houses I own,

before he died.

It took years for me to

actually put them outside.

But I was finally able to let go,

I have actually enjoyed

the families of birds

making their homes in my yard.

This steeple one contantly has birds in it year round.

They have all held up well despite the weather.

I know my dad is smiling.

The mulch is finally spread in all my garden beds.

The journey is just beginning.....

Tomorrow,

my "baby" graduates from college.

It's his time to leave the nest,

and spread his wings.

I am very proud of you Craig-man.

May you always soar with Eagles....

Today, my heart is filled with joy,

and my thoughts are bittersweet,

reflecting on the past,

and wondering

what the future now holds.

Instagram pillows!

So what can you do with your instagram photo library?

Have a pillow custom designed here!

I recently upgraded to an iphone,

and I'm fascinated with the possibilities.

I LOVE taking photos, but it seems like

 the photos I take with my camera are a little grainy.

I experimented with Verizon's Lucid Lg smart phone first,

and those photos were crystal clear,

but that phone clearly wasn't

as user friendly as my iphone.

I guess you can't have everything.

Needless to say I have been feeling a little

"wired" with constant updates on my phone

from Facebook, emails, voicemails and text messages.

I'm overwhelmed with finding new apps,

and the learning curve of transitioning from a

"flip" phone to a "smart" phone.

The new-ness is wearing off,

and I'm now "tuning out".

Unplugged is more like it.

Seriously, I need to get things done.

I have neglected  my blog, studio and art supplies.

The rainy spell has ended, and I have

4 yards of mulch being delivered today.

With Mother's day tomorrow, I'll also be

spending some quality time with family.

So I just wanted to say I haven't gone anywhere.

Just taking a little internet break to enjoy family,

and get some exercise and breathe some fresh air.

My son is graduating college next week,

so I've been preoccuppied with planning for that as well.

Anyone that really knows me,

knows my hands are never idle,

and my brain is in constant overdrive.

Ideas are constantly percolating,

so this internet break may not last long!

I'll be back soon.

Happy Mother's day weekend to all my friends!

No Regrets

Yesterday's craft fair was a bust.

Great effort by one and all however,

and money was raised for

Cystic Fibrosis after all!

On the bright side,

I met some really nice folks,

hung out with great friends, and

spent time with my mom.

We were set up in the cafeteria of a high school

with huge windows letting in the bright sunlight.

It was a cheerful room.

Now I have dolls to list in my Etsy shop.

I broke down and bought a smart phone.

I remembered to shoot this photo with it!

Not bad.

I feel so clumsy trying to type on that little phone screen however.

Does that make me old?

So these ladies are looking to be adopted!

These bad boys need homes too!

I hope you are having a great day!

Cystic Fibrosis benefit

I have been busy in the studio

getting ready for this event.

I'll be joining my friends in Rochester, NH

to help raise money for this cause.

Hope to see you there!



Gathering supplies to paint my story...

I'm gathering supplies to paint my story with Mindy Lacefield.

Yay!!!

Getting ready for a craft fair!

This past week I have been beading the spines

of these pamphlet style journals.

I love making batches of painted paper,

and I couldn't stop making these journals.

I will be vending at a craft fair at the

end of this month, and think these

journals will add a nice pop of color to my booth.

Since I save everything,

I'm using the bits of leftover paper scraps

to make these tags.

 I recently used some blank canvas to protect my table

while I was painting papers,

and today decided to attempt a zippered pouch,

using some of the painted canvas.

It didn't help that I started the day with a

pounding headache, and the thread kept breaking.

Plus, the canvas was stiff, and the nylon lining

wasn't exactly easy to work with either.

I almost couldn't turn it right side out!

I clipped the edges, and stitched the corners.

I don't think that was such a great idea.

I have quite a few zippers to use up,

and more painted canvas,

so I won't abandon this idea quite yet.

This one will be great to carry art supplies!

I want to shout out a special

Happy Birthday to my awesome nephew Danny!

I love you Dan xxoo

He is hugging my mom, Nettie.

(I love you too Nettie!)

I'm off to whip up a batch of cheese stuffed shells

to bring to Easter dinner with friends tomorrow.

It will be a long day driving 3 hours each way,

but I'm really looking forward to seeing my best buds!

I wish special Easter blessings to all!

May your day be filled with family,

friends, love, laughter and Light!

xxoo

Waste not....turns into playtime.

This used to be a pile of inky paper towels,

baby wipes and lysol wipes!

Just like this!

 I have this saying I use all the time:

Waste not, want not.

I stretch my supplies,

wasting NOTHING.

It doesn't go into the trash,

unless I'm certain there is nothing more

it can be used for.

My used paper towel stash was getting really big,

and I felt like it was time to do something about it.

When these towels were wet and saturated with color,

I just couldn't bare to toss them.

They were just too pretty to throw away.

My inspiration to keep them,

actually came from Traci Bautista,

and her book Collage Unleased.

She doesn't go into great detail on

how to do something with them exactly,

but does steer you in the right direction,

with juicy photos of her finished journals.

I wasn't sure where to start,

but decided to just jump in,

especially after watching an encouraging

  jumpstart video by Dina Wakely

I didn't have a specific project in mind;
and I didn't really care about a color scheme;
I just wanted to experiment a little.

So I cut up a few strips...

and randomly started laying the strips down,
with little thought about color or placement,

overlapping a bit, with a little glue....

until my sheet of freezer paper was covered.

After sitting and drying overnight

 (near the furnace)

I was able to peel the sheet off the freezer paper.

I noticed the colors nicely bled into each other.

The first batch was applied over a thin

sheet of japanese paper with gold flecks.

These sheets feel really brittle.

The second batch was without paper,

and much easier to handle and sew on the machine.

My sewing machine was set to a zigzag

stitch, but the stitches were really wonky.

I held my breath hoping to not jam my machine.

Now I have these really cool patchwork papers

that will make awesome journal covers.

After feeling "warmed up" in the studio,

I started looking around for something else to do.

I have been avoiding this pile of doll bodies,

but decide maybe it was time to paint their stockings....

I love how one thing can lead to another,

when you are feeling "in the groove"...

and who knows what I'll be working on next!