Published in SEW SOMERSET Winter 2011!

SEW SOMERSET is a sister publication to SOMERSET STUDIO- one of the premier mixed media/paper art magazines. It features mixed media art that incorporates new techniques with the traditions of hand and machine sewing. Visit www.stampington.com to reserve your copy.

Sampler in Blue and Green originated with the idea of historical samplers as a learning tool and record of stitch experiments. This modern version combines hand sewing techniques with faux postage, fabric swatches and found objects like feathers, tags and buttons. The Needle Felted Leaf takes a simple shape and enhances it with lots of layers, beads and hand stitching. The layers include painted muslin, paper and felted wool.

Published in Art Journaling

Creating this illustrated art journal was so much fun! It gave me a chance to put lots of my favorite things together- ATCs, embroidery and exuberant color. Get your copy of the magazine at your local bookstore or form the publishers at Somerset Studio. http://www.stampington.com/html/art_journaling_s10.html

Pleats

I've been having fun with unbleached muslin for months now- adding gesso for journal pages and dyeing to create custom designs for my work. Recently I went back to a great book- THE ART OF FABRIC MANIPULATION by Colette Wolff. It inspired me to add texture to muslin. These photos show a piece with pleated petals. I finger pleated the muslin, ironed it to fusible backing to hold the pleats then painted it with acrylic paint. I loved the play of light over the surface and the textural interest the pleats created. My trusty sidekick Sammy liked it too!

Variations on a Theme

There is long tradition in the art world for creating a series of works that explore a theme. Monet comes to mind with his waterlily, haystack and cathedral works. Taking one idea and working with it repeatedly allows you to explore a design problem from many angles. Along the way, you often find that inspiration just comes as you spin off from the original idea.

As a gardener, I am always inspired by all the new growth in Spring. Shown here are three of the leaf designs I have been working on lately. The simple shape is consistent in all three but the mixed media treatments couldn't be more different. If you have never done a series before, pick something you like and see where your imagination takes you. Whether you do a few pieces or start a series that lasts for years, you will be surprised how this kind of work can spark all kinds of creative ideas.

Inner Animal Challenge in Quilting Arts Magazine

Check out my Inner Animal entry in the Quilting Arts magazine challenge.

http://quiltingarts.com/media/g/animal/default.aspx

Posting on ClothPaperScissors.com

http://www.clothpaperscissors.com/media/p/79.aspx

Check out this link to my art on the new www.clothpaperscissors.com live community!

Recycled Art

I light a lot of incense and candles around the house and started saving my used wooden matches. I dipped the burnt ends into acrylic medium to stabilize them then glued them to strips of painted muslin. Embroidery floss was stitched in rows then the strips were used to decorate journals, a picture frame and a collage. Look for "trash" around the house that has a graphic feel like these little matches and incorporate it into your art!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Hope 2010 is full of hope and beautiful colors for us all!

Mr.Turkey Struts His Stuff!

Mr. Turkey thinks he's hot stuff- he has no idea how hot he'll be in the oven next week! This guy is pretty safe since he's just made of decorative papers. I like to doodle when I watch TV and then I scan them into Adobe to use as background papers in collages. I printed about 10 different patterns with different densities of marks to have a full range of values. Using a master turkey drawing, I cut all the parts from the different doodles. They were reassembled and colored with acrylic glazes. I used transparent colors like Payne's Gray and Transparent Yellow Iron Oxide with a lot of medium and built up thin layers of glaze to get the desired colors. Certain areas got touches of gesso and gold leaf to accent. The turkey was layered to turquoise and gold paper with 3D glue dots to give a little dimension then mounted on the red background. An easel back was attached so Mr. Turkey can be used as a Thanksgiving decoration.

Winter Witch on ClothPaperScissors Website

Check out my Winter Witch stuffie on the ClothPaperScissors website.

http://quiltingarts.com/cpsmag/extras/27_winter_Stuffies.html

Halloween Haute Couture

These girls are ready for Halloween in some HOT little outfits! Who knew the dead were so fashionable? These lovely ladies come from a scan of an anatomy drawing from college. The diecut chipboard backgrounds were a $1 Michael's find. Each is covered with torn paper and sheet music. The outfits are an assortment of feathers, fabric and lace scraps and brass findings. They were so much fun to make and a great Halloween treat for friends.

October Beauty

I love autumn and this October has turned into a beauty since we finally got rain here in NC. My fall garden is in its glory and my porch is full of big orange and white pumpkins and gourds. This little decoration celebrates the specialness of October- pumpkins, gorgeous leaves and the warm palette of the season. This tiny collage was made using some paper coasters from Michaels (8 for a $1!!) mounted on a wooden dowel. I copied a vintage postcard then added little snippets from my stash. Stick it in a potted plant or a vase of flowers to add a little reminder of this great time of year.

Halloween is coming!!!

You better be careful- Julius and the The Triplets might know where you live! These unsavory looking characters were scanned from an anatomy drawing I did in college. See- all those tedious studies did come in handy. These guys are framed by purchased scrapbook frames I found on sale. I added adhesive backed ribbon, tags and a collaged background to create this ghoulish family portrait. BOO!

RED!

I love doing color studies. Creating a loose set of parameters can be a good way to push yourself out of your normal patterns. Above are the back and front of a journal about RED. It started by cutting up a bunch of pieced quilt tops I was never going to finish. Each was 7" by 9" wide and I quickly stitched them to cardstock pages just to get started. The sewing machine was threaded with red thread and things just took off from there. I scoured my studio and found the biggest pile of red wonderfulness then googled RED for some great facts and quotes. The whole 12 pages came together in a matter of days- no overthinking or planning, just fun and pure play!

Greeting Card Inventory

I like to have a stockpile of cards that I can use for birthdays, get well or whatever. I'm always cruising the sale aisle in the craft store for plain cards on sale. These make it so much faster to produce a lot of cards -all with matching envelopes. About once a year, I go through the pile of experiments, ATCs and paper scraps in my studio and start making stacks of focal points, pretty papers, stickers, etc. Then, I make stacks of my purchased cards and start matching things up. With everything spread out and in full view, it's easy to put a lot of cards together quickly. As I am finishing each card, I add stickers, ribbon and doodads to spice them up. In one afternoon I can make several dozen cards so I'm ready at a moment's notice to get a greeting in the mail.

The cards above include collage scraps, ATC cards and a beaded leaf that didn't work for its intended project. Now they have a new life as special cards for friends and family.