Snow Dyed Woven Background

One of my challenge groups has the theme "Snow" for December.  Well.....I mean I HAVE to snow dye the fabric for that one right????  AND we DO have enough snow!!!

First I have to prepare a place to put the whole snow dyeing process.  I like the melted snow and dye to drip below the fabric so that the fabric doesn't bathe in the dye.  One thing I say...."the right tool for the right job".   I'm so glad I picked up those big tin snips when they were on sale years ago!!!  The metal mesh is for a leaf shield on gutters.

Then I just placed the scrunched up fat quarter of PFD that had been soaked in the soda ash solution onto the screen and covered it well with snow

I had mixed up two strengths of #44 New Black from Dharma.  Also added in just a smidge of blue dye in one and a smidge of purple dye in the other for just a bit of contrast.  Then just waited for the snow to all melt.

GOING...

GOING...

GONE!!!

Results side by side

A while ago I had done a woven background like this one with an abstract tree. I wanted to do something very similar for this challenge.  So on to weaving the background.

First I cut each piece to the appropriate size - this time 15"X15". I ironed MistyFuse onto the backs of each of the pieces. Then I use my rotary cutter to slice the pieces into wavy lines.  (NOTE: On one piece, leave one edge in tact to make weaving easier to control) Also...it is important to keep these strips in order so they will fit snugly when woven.

Next I started weaving the horizontal pieces into the vertical strips. I just go ahead and set this whole weaving part up on the batting so when I iron it in the final step...it is ready for the rest of the process without having to pick up the woven piece on its own. You can see the black MistyFuse on the back of the strips that are flipped up ready for the next strip.

It may be necessary to futz with each strip just a tad to be sure it is in there snugly.

And finally, when all the strips have been woven in (you probably won't have room for the last one or two pieces of your horizontal strips but it doesn't matter).  I iron it to fuse the strips together and the whole piece to the the batting.  I love the subtle play of the color in this muted background which will depict a gray winter day.

And here is a detail shot.

Now it is ready for the tree and the snow!!

Weekly Creativity - Week 6 - Large Screen Prints

While I have a "regular" sized screen for printing, I was excited when I read somewhere about how to make large screens...especially for more organic forms.  I so wish I could remember where I saw it so I could give credit to the person from whom I learned this technique.  If you know...please post it in Comments below!

The "screen" is made from organza taped at the edges.  Lesson for next time:  It is pretty much a two people job...at least for me it would have helped to have an extra pair of hands!  The organza shifted at a breath and the duck tape has a very permanent stickiness!!  But I kept on and finally got a fairly workable screen.

The completed "screen"

I then got out my Golden Matte Medium to spread in a rather haphazard manner onto the screen.  I put it all on top of some packing paper so I could just throw that away when it was done.  Lesson for next time: Don't even TRY to use a plastic spoon!  The sturdy wooden one worked MUCH better.

The medium

With the gel medium spread onto the organza screen, it needed to dry very well. I hung it up to dry overnight.

Drying the screen

When it was very very dry, the medium is quite sturdy...at least so far.  I used the duck tape again to lace a spare piece of  fabric down onto my painting surface. It needs to be very stable I think.  The first printing was made with light blue acrylic paint applied with a squeegie thingie.  Lesson for next time: It does take a good bit of acrylic to cover this size.  I had to get out another small bottle. 

First painted layer print

I then removed the screen to see just how the printing went.

Screen removed

Mainly because I used acrylic paints, the screen had to be rinsed right away. I just filled my sink enough to cover it and soaked it for a minute, then used the sink sprayer to get all the paint off.

Screen Rinsing

I then repeated the printing process with two different colors of green.  I rather like the effect.....kind of like peeling paint.  I especially like the part over the clocks.  

Printing completed with second layer of two greens

Clock detail

And the screen is very much usable again! I'm not sure how many times it will last but it has already been worth the effort.  Now I want to try making a large screen like this but use a more regular pattern or form stamped with the gel medium.  

When Inspiration Hits!

The latest challenge for the 12 X 12 pieces is the theme - OPPOSITES. You might think that would be an easy one, right? Perhaps so. However, I struggled with it for weeks now and was just not coming up with something that excited me.


Until today. At my wit's end, I decided to google OPPOSITES just to see what might show up....maybe an idea to work from...or maybe even inspiration! One of the first selections was a list of opposites. Well....that sounded promising!! And sure enough, the light dawned, birds sang, euphoria filled the studio!!!

I decided to use a few of the opposites in one art piece!! Well....when I started looking and thinking, I came up with more than a few.

So here it is...I had a black and white piece I did for a project a couple of years ago. I started with that (the Picasso-esque man and woman in the woven textile background. Then I cut and added the strips for the left side and top.

FOURTEEN OPPOSITES

Yep...you read it correctly!!! There are actually 14 opposites in this one piece. Can you find all of them? I'll get you started....one of them is Black/White. The other 13 are up to you to find. That's why I put it on this post as a large photo. Some of the opposites are perhaps not as easily seen as others. A couple of them are a bit subtle. But they are all visible!! One I ditched (natural/synthetic) because it would not be discernable in a photo.

Good luck! I'll publish the list on November 1 so you can check your list!

And it grew and grew!!

This is the quilt top made from the map fabric I made last week.  It was supposed to be for a 12 X 12 art quilt but I was having so much fun adding in the fields, etc. that it grew to what is now going to be a 20 X 20 quilt!! This is just the top. It still has to be quilted and bound. It doesn't fit the size for any group quilt requirements I'm currently working on so I guess this one will just be in my collection!

And it came to mean a lot more to me after driving round trip to Texas in 4 days!! Maps maps maps.

Now, can you see the fun things I put in here?? 

A vineyard which backs onto a dirt road. (purple on lower left)

A forest just right of center on the bottom

A marsh near the upper left top (kind of a mottled green)

Two plowed fields (left edge just top of center and bottom right quadrant)

A corn field just up and left of center above the little pond in the center of the map

Two green fields - probably soy beans

A brown field which is fallow dirt this year

And finally, a golden field - waves of grain no doubt!

Oh and the river, of course

TAKING THE BACKROADS

I named it Taking The Backroads because whether it is on a photo safari or on motorcycles...I LOVE the backroads!!

Besides the map fabric I made, I used my own hand dyed fabrics, rusted, rouched nad painted fabrics. Only commercial fabrics used were for the roads (both asphalt and dirt). I chose them because they look like....well...asphalt and a rutted dirt road. Here is a detail photo so you can see what I mean.

I had a blast making this top. Of course, now I have to come up with another idea for the 12 X 12 challenge this was meant to be!

Creativity - Week 1 - Organic Stamping

It's done!! Final layer - I have a brayer that has a rubber band wrapped around it. Thought the piece could use some straight lines but needed a more random feel to it. So I used Jaquard Lumiere Pearl Blue paint and applied it with the rubber band wrapped brayer to get the random lines.  I'm happy with it now and it will go into my stash to be used someday when the time is right.  It always surprises me when I get an idea for an art quilt and so often find just the right piece in my stash...often one that was "made" even years ago!!  LOVE to have that to draw from.

Wanted to test both the technique and the paint color so I used the Wrinkled and Rollered small piece first.

Onion Stamping - completed



Onion Print - step 2

Figured out what I wanted to add to my onion stamped fabric! I used a bit of punchinella as a stencil. The paint is Jaquard Neopaque Violet applied with a stencil brush. Since I wanted it to look like the onions were printed on top of the punchinella, I took care not to overlap the onions.  Not sure if it would look like I wanted it to, I first practiced on the Wrinkled and Rollered piece. Liked what I saw and continued on to the onion piece.

Wrinkled and Rollered - Step 2

The test

Onion Stamping - Step 2

Still want to add another layer...just waiting to see what that might be...........

Creativity - Week 1

One of the goals I've set for myself recently, is to do one thing every week that I either haven't done at all before...or...a twist or tweak on something I'm familiar with.  So yesterday I did some stamping with a dried onion. This is something that Wil did on her visit here but I was doing something else that day and didn't get to play.  So now it is my turn.

I cut the onion in half and let it dry for quite a while...days and days. The background is a piece of my own hand dyed fabric. I stamped with Jaquard Lumiere Metallic Olive Green. I love the effect! Not sure if I'm going to add to it or not. Just living with this for a bit to see if it is fine as is or needs something else.



Then when I was finished with that piece, I had a bit of paint left so I grabbed another bit of my hand dyed fabric and wadded it up then rollered the paint over it.  Repeated this several times until I got the coverage I wanted.



Also made a print of the onion on paper. Thinking I might want to make a screen print of it soon.

Directions

Funny, when I dropped by today to post one of my latest art pieces I realized I must be on a Black and White theme lately!  (see previous post) Hadn't noticed really.

Anyway, I was in one of my "I wonder what would happen if...." moods recently and felt inspired to try something similar to a piece I saw somewhere (can't remember where at the moment - it was just in passing). So I got out my black printing ink, black pigma pen, white ink and a credit card (art is about the best use for one I think!)  And here is what I ended up with. The title is "Directions". Some of the directions of the ink smears seemed headed in all different directions so I just extended them. Then the texture of the swiped ink needed extensions of the black lines or even new directions of their own. I'm very happy with the results. Only problem....printing ink when applied in this manner takes FOREVER to dry completely!! And those of you who know me are familiar with just how much patience is NOT one of my sterling virtues! But I managed...this time!

DIRECTIONS



A New Voyage

I have the privilege to belong to another art quilting group with people from all over the world.  This one is for an art quilt every two months or so. This is the first piece for that group.

So the theme is "Where I Am". The answer came very quickly for me as did the initial concept. Then it was just a matter of bringing it to life.


Where I Am - LIMBO, that's where I am these days. In just about every aspect of my life...LIMBO. Not in the theological definition. More in the idea of so many things not settled. Everything is up in the air. So that is where I am taking you with this art quilt - to my state of limbo.

I do feel as though I am barely balanced and no definite (or sometimes even a hint of) direction to go to solve any of these issues. All of them are mostly out of my control. Others are left to decide my fate. The green verdant background is the beautiful fields of abandon where I long to frolic and play....just almost within reach. The cliff on the left is the sturdiness of knowing at least my immediate future plans. But now...I'm struggling in mid air and always feeling like any day I could plunge into the roiling tumult below me. The solid part on which I can still put my feet is my faith. It is often the only thing that keeps me upright.

So that is my story of Where I Am.

LIMBO

The next theme is "Who I Am".  Again the concept was immediate but this one is even MORE difficult to decide how to put it into tangible form. But that is the fun of a challenge....to stretch and experiment on ideas and/or techniques that I haven't done before.



Well....it's been a while!

Life went off the rails big time.  Getting back to earth now.  This is the second piece in the series of three that I did earlier this summer.  The one previously posted was the first one - the girl in the canoe.  This is the second.  It is all done in commercial batiks.  The subject is our granddaughter. This is from one of my favorite photos of her as she is looking up at the sky with the sun shining on her face. Since her favorite color is purple....there is a lot of purple used in her portrait.  Just finished the binding today.

Now onto the next one after a slight (oh at least I HOPE it will be slight) break.

Inspired by ? - a new journal - Joan Miro

Starting a new journal with art prompts by Milliande.  This one is to be inspired by chosen artists.  The first one is Joan Miro.  I love the playful form and colors of his work.  At first I had a subject in mind and tried to draw a Miro-inspired picture of it.  Didn't work too well.  So, I just started drawing shapes and went wherever it took me.  When I started coloring in the shapes, the title came to me.  The title is The Embrace. And in honor of our Spanish artist I am calling it - El Abrazo.  See the girl near the upper left?  Her very long arms are embracing all the varied bits around her.  I see it as embracing a variety of things that surround me in art and life.  To embrace them and let them change who I am and how I view my world. Truly enjoyed this page!

Inspired by ? - Joan Miro - El Abrazo

Latest art from my busy studio

It continues to be a whirlwind around the studio these days.  So much inspiration...so little time!!  Let's see, where did I leave off.....

Ok, here are some new ATCs for swaps I'm participating in.

These are for the Let's Get Messy swap.  The rule was that all the cards had to be painted without using ANY tools other than finger, elbows, toes.... you get the picture.  Those of you who know me, KNOW how difficult this one was to get into!  NOT!!  It was great fun actually.  So much so that I find I'm fingerpainting a lot of my backgrounds since this swap completed. 

A Day At The Beach
Waves breaking. Seagulls calling. And the only footprints in the sand are your own. Ahh what peace!

Cave Drawings
Decided to go primitive on this one. Okay...abstract primitive might be a better description. I painted the shapes with the side of my little finger dipped in paint. Then overwashed it with some Marigold Procion Dye.

Patiently Waiting
It fits the title because I dipped my fingertips in several colors of acrylic paint and then drummed them on the card like one does when waiting. If you look closely you can even see my fingerprints.

Grape Hyacinth
Lots of tiny purple flowers with white tips to make up one stem. The look very similar to a bunch of grapes...hence their name.

Inspiring Artists

You know how I like to share with you artists that inspire me.  Well here are three pieces from three different artists.  All of them are abstracts from three of my favorite artists.  I like the last one particularly. Hope you enjoy them!

Abstract ATCs - Completed

The remaining steps didn't take as long as I had thought and I completed them this afternoon.  I didn't post pics of them dried because when the matte medium dried, the cards looked just like the cards before the medium was added....not much new to see. 

Step 3 -After the matte medium dried, I lightly rubbed a chalk pastel in black over them to highlight the raised areas. Supposed to use charcoal but I don't have any. 

Step 4 - I then pulled out the appropriate colors of Lumiere paints and went to town!  The paints are very watered down for this technique.  Still want to see some of the card base showing through....some more than others ended up that way.  In fact, I'm not sure it will show in the pictures but it is there.  Here are the completed cards.  I really had fun with this technique! 

In the pictures below, on the left is the first color wash and on the right is the completed card.


Abstract Pastel - I applied the watered down Lumiere paints in this order: a full color wash of Halo Violet, then strips of Pearl Magenta. Painted the curls with Jaquard yellow textile paint. Then a color wash of very diluted Lumiere Metallic Gold.

Abstract Purple/Green - First a full color wash of Halo Violet. Then painted the inside of the circles with Pearl Emerald Green. Then the final Metallic Gold wash.

Abstract Brown/Blue - First a full color wash of Metallic Rust. Then a full color wash of Pearl Blue. Painted Metallic Olive Green in the center of the circles. Final Metallic Gold wash.

Abstract Blue/Green - Full color wash of Metallic Rust, then Metallic Olive Green on one side of the curved line.  When that was done the curves reminded me of a river so I painted that with Pearl Blue.  Metallic Gold final wash.
 I found this to be a very interesting way to add texture.  And I was actually amazed at how flexible the card was when everything was dry and before I added the backing card.  Gets the brain going, ya know!!

Abstract ATCs - Step 2

Wow! That didn't take as long as I had anticipated so I completed the second step before lunch! 

STEP 2 - Creating Texture

First I got all my imprinting tools together -- a twisty plastic straw, plastic core of a roll of cellophane tape, a piece of plastic diamond grid and the end of a small paint brush.  Then I got out a foam brush and was ready to start the texture layer.

I painted on a rather thick layer of matte medium and then made texture marks. 

Here they are all covered and "drawn" on.  Difficult to see the under layer at this point but the matte medium SHOULD dry a bit more clear.....I hope!  Now for the long and patience-demanding DRYING period (certainly not my favorite part!) Fortunately, I have several other projects needing attention so they will provide the necessary distraction....well.....that's the plan at least!

Abstracts with matte medium - wet and waiting.....and waiting....and waiting......

Afraid we won't be seeing them again until tomorrow.  OH well, on to lunch!