Textile artist Richard Box demonstrates his thread painting techniques.  What an excellent brief but detailed demo.  Worth a look.

I have been busy working on a new project that is made with silk fabric from vintage kimonos.

This image shows is the current status and I am happy to report that it is almost finished.  I only have a bit more stitching to do.

In the beginning this [...]]]>

I have been busy working on a new project that is made with silk fabric from vintage kimonos.

This image shows is the current status and I am happy to report that it is almost finished.  I only have a bit more stitching to do.

In the beginning this piece looked totally different.  Read the details of the evolution on my other blog ZEN CLOTH

In three posts:

Hand Piecing Kimono Silks

Silk Transformation

Successful Transformation

]]> http://studioquilts.com/hand-stitching-with-kimono-silk/feed/ 0 http://studioquilts.com/absent/ http://studioquilts.com/absent/#comments Mon, 18 May 2009 23:56:37 +0000 admin http://studioquilts.wordpress.com/?p=393 I have been absent. In February my husband fell and crushed his left heal. Shortly after that my computer started failing. I am the official NURSE for my husband thus, my time has shifted from my normal activities. I do have a new computer but switching over is [...]]]> I have been absent. In February my husband fell and crushed his left heal. Shortly after that my computer started failing. I am the official NURSE for my husband thus, my time has shifted from my normal activities. I do have a new computer but switching over is such a PAIN! During all of that I was asked to write a new online class for Joggles. I did manage to squeeze it in, barely. I am really excited about it! The subject is a vintage style botanical. The techniques are multiple but mostly center around using Ranger Ink Color Wash on paper and other surfaces. Here is a peak at the finished art work.

22″ x 25

This combination is MIXED MEDIA. There are two separate pieces that are made independently and then quilted together. The flower is an Orchid-Catteleya which is the only cotton fabric in the combination. The other materials are paper, interfacing and organza. This piece was so much fun! I am totally sold on Ranger Ink Color Wash. The results this product can produce are amazing! The best thing about the colors is no matter how many are combined, the colors stay pure and do not get muddy. They come in a small spray bottle which allows for misting several colors to create wonderful nuances.

Close up of upper left

Stamps are used to add text to painted organza and paper surfaces. The word ORCHID is stamped onto painted organza and then hand stitched. Most of the stitching is done by machine. The applique of the orchid is done using my favorite method and a tool I call a “Search Guide”.

A close up of the upper right corner of the base layer

The base layer includes stenciled organza and interfacing. These are quilted together and embellished with buttons. These details are brief as there are many more aspects to reveal. I hope to wet your appetite and peak your curiosity. This class will be available in August. See the new schedule at Joggles.com. See the complete description under my class titled: Vintage Botanical Interpretaion

Title: Together 12″ x 15″

Fabric Collage

The individual sections of this piece have been lying on my workbench for weeks. I kept looking at them as I worked on other things. I saw potential from the beginning. Once I began to work on it [...]]]>

Title: Together 12″ x 15″

Fabric Collage

The individual sections of this piece have been lying on my workbench for weeks. I kept looking at them as I worked on other things. I saw potential from the beginning. Once I began to work on it about 1 hour later the composition came together. Five hours more and it was done. I don’t usually know how much time goes into a piece as I usually spend days; which includes time to make considerations. What a joy to see something come together in one day.

Another piece that I made this week is a mini version of a larger one. The larger one has lyrics to the famous song by John Lennon, Imagine. It is one of my all time favorite songs.  After I finished it I realized that because the lyrics are copyrighted they are not mine to use.  That piece of art will have to remain in my private collection.  This mini version will give you a taste of the larger one which is much more dynamic and rich.

Title: Imagine  7″ x 11″

Machine pieced and quilted, acrylic paint, hand stitching

The figures represent “all the people”.  There are 5 figures, two men, two women and one child.  The larger version has two sets of figures which are standing on hills which represent nations.

The message is:

Imagine all the people live in peace across the nations.

I plan to attempt another large version without the lyrics.  Copyright laws are infringed upon right and left in todays world.  Many of us do not realize what can and cannot be copied.  This mistake I made is a classic example.  I for one, think of the words to many Beatle songs as words that belong to everyone.  We have loved them for many, many years; they have become part of our culture.  But, they are not ours to COPY.

]]> http://studioquilts.com/productive-recently-new-art-work/feed/ 2 http://studioquilts.com/view-of-my-studio/ http://studioquilts.com/view-of-my-studio/#comments Fri, 09 Jan 2009 02:42:18 +0000 admin http://studioquilts.wordpress.com/?p=281 My studio has been selected by Morna Golletz to be featured in an article in the next issue of Professional Quilter.  My studio is my hang out.  I am in it everyday.  There is so much I could say about it; certainly more than the article had space for.

Co-incidentally I was going through [...]]]> My studio has been selected by Morna Golletz to be featured in an article in the next issue of Professional Quilter.  My studio is my hang out.  I am in it everyday.  There is so much I could say about it; certainly more than the article had space for.

Co-incidentally I was going through my images searching for something and came across some views of my studio when I first set it up.  This was about eight years ago!

My studio is in the basement of my home.  The basement was totally unfinished with pipes, wires, bare cider block walls and duct work randomly snaking around the ceiling.

My husband tackled the huge task all by himself except for the plumbing and tile work.  He planned the layout and moved some of the duct work using some angles as if they were part of the planned architecture.  He was very ingenious.  Our home has beautiful tongue-in-groove wood on the ceiling of the family room and foyer.  He decided to include this feature on the ceiling on the central area.

He did a fabulous job!  It took months of arduous labor.  Have you ever tried to hand dry wall on the ceiling by yourself?  Well, he did just that.

The downside is there are no windows.  So lighting was crucial.

The most charming feature is an antique stained glass window that he mounted in one wall.  This sort of gives the illusion of a window and light.  I took this picture this week for the article.

Next come the old images.  What a difference from today.  The main difference is it is how tidy it was!  And look at all of those trash cans….empty ones too.

This area is the largest about 20′ x 20′.  I use it mainly for storage and design walls now.

The lighting did not prove to be efficient enough so I use a second room for sewing and detail work.

Have you ever posed sitting at your sewing machine?  It is obvious I am NOT doing serious work at this moment.

Now I am posing in front of a design wall.  Wow! I haven’t seen the surface of that table so clear!  The piece on the design wall on the lower right is Madame Butterfly in progress.  This quilt went on to win first place in Art=Quilts=Art for Pictorial a few years back.  It now belongs to my daughter.  She claimed it even before it was finished.

You will have to read the article to see the other room.  I wasn’t even using it at the time these images were taken.