More Changes

I just didn't quite like the way the piece stood up, so I shortened the legs and added face beads to the top of the dowels...I like it better and now the only decision left is whether to paint the supports or not...

I'm So Lucky!

Last week I left a comment at Art Bead Scene which entered me in the weekly drawing for an artist-made bead and I won this fabulous little bird bead from Heather Powers here!
I rarely enter drawings or contests as I feel I have so many wonderful beads it's better to let other folks who don't have so many get the free ones, but this little bird just captured my heart and I'm so excited that I won her!
I may have to make a piece just to showcase her and if I do, of course, I'll post here...

...what a great day...sunshine, strawberry plants (75 my husband planted) AND a little freebird!

Oh...forgot to mention...if you'd like a little bird of your own, you can get one here!

Tea

I am working...the bunny is a hard taskmaster and just gives that superior look whenever I think of slacking off....but I need a tea break now and then and this is my new favorite tea...chamomile/apple from twinings...heavenly!

Better Photo

This shows it better?

And thanks, kathy...triptich it is!

They will be standing on pedestals that people can walk around, so they can see all the "faces"...

and yes, kris...I made fabric loops (or hinges) to connect them.

thank you all for commenting!

Clear?

Is it clear that the photos are of a single, three-sided piece? Or does it look like three separate 3-legged pieces?

BJP Update

I've figured out how I'm going to display my bead journal pages....they will be in groups of three, one set to each season...so the photos are the first set, made of the june, july and august pages (Summer) and set up as you see. It's not a vessel or basket since it has no bottom, but it is three dimensional, so I have no idea at all what you'd call it?
I may paint the dowels and wooden beads, but I'm not sure yet. Have to live with it for a while and then I can make up my mind.

April TIF

It's done, although I haven't printed out the book yet....this one will have photos of my family in the 70's and again in the 2000's....lotta changes in the past thirty plus years!

The little face is coming along slowly...BUT THAT'S OK, lol!

Slow Craft

There are some wonderful discussions going on about the definitions of Slow Craft and Slow Cloth movements at Red Thread Studio here and In a Minute Ago here.
Having started this blog in the first place because I felt I was so much less productive than some of my other artist friends and acquaintences, I can certainly relate to that feeling of just not doing enough!

Here are Elaine's 10 Qualities of Slow Cloth

*
Joy
Slow Cloth has the possibility of joy in the process. In other words, the journey matters as much as the destination.
*
Contemplation
Slow Cloth offers the quality of meditation or contemplation in the process.
*
Skill
Slow Cloth involves skill and has the possibility of mastery.
*
Diversity
Slow Cloth acknowledges the rich diversity and multicultural history of textile art.
*
Teaching
Slow Cloth honors its teachers and lineage even in its most contemporary expressions.
*
Materials
Slow Cloth is thoughtful in its use of materials and respects their source.
*
Quality
Slow Cloth artists, designers, crafters and artisans want to make things that last and are well-made.
*
Beauty
It's in the eye of the beholder, yes, but it's in our nature to reach for beauty and create it where we can.
*
Community
Slow Cloth supports community by sharing knowledge and respecting relationships.
*
Expression
Slow Cloth is expressive of individuals and/or cultures. The human creative force is reflected and evident in the work.


For me, I'll substitute the word cloth with craft and then I can just call myself a slow craft artist....

How about you?

thanks

denise! that apparently was just the kick in the pants I needed!

Bakin'

I've been bakin' this morning...now I get to paint too...nothing makes me feel quite as rich as a drawer full of faces!

A Face of Spring

I took some basho pieces with me to the visual arts center yesterday while I was gallery sitting, but just couldn't settle down to backing them. I had a few beads with me though, so I started this little spring face...it was such a beautiful day, I had to work on something light and spring-like.
Also had a fellow bead artist stop by with her DH and I had a great time talking beads and art and the web that connects so many of us!
Hope to see you here soon, Lisa!

Paradise

We love it here all the time, even though I moan a bit after a week of solid rain, but today was just a perfect day...warm, slight wind and everyone in all the stores was smiling.
Didn't get any beadwork done but we got 75 strawberry plants, four concord grape starts and a blueberry bush...oh, and a small flat of pansies, or violas...summer is a comin'!

Behind Basho

I'm actually getting stuff done, but photos of the finished backs of the basho pieces would all look pretty much the same, so you'll all just have to picture lots of little 4x4 black ultrasuede backs with tiny little eyes sewn to them...I'm 1/4 of the way through, so still have lots to go.
Unfortunately my first couple of ideas of how to gather them all into one piece didn't pan out, so I'm pondering some other ways to do it...

Needlebook

Sharon B of In a Minute Ago posted links to some needlecase/needlebook tutorials here and I made this little one from here...a quick bit of harmless fun before work begins, eh?

Changes

This month's Take It Further challenge is all about change and that's a major topic/theme in my life...so big that I'm having a very hard time crunching it down into a tiny 3x4 inch piece of fabric!
I know there are people in this world who can move into a house or apartment, arrange the furniture and leave it that way until they move out....I am NOT one of those people. I also know there are people who live in the same town/city their whole lives...I am also not one of those people.
My dad was career military, so we moved a bit when I was young. When it was time for me to go to college, I left home and attended college in a town half a state away from my folks' place...then I met my husband and we did quite a bit more moving...too much moving for our son, I'm afraid, but we didn't realize it at the time.
Now we've been living in this area for 17 years and in this town/house for 13 years and those are both records for us.
Six years ago, I was getting a bit restless and we considered selling our place and becoming fulltime RVers but then I was diagnosed with breast cancer and we had to stay here to deal with that.
This spring, I'm finally beginning to feel like I've turned the corner and may be healthy again...and I'm finding my thoughts turning to changes I might make this year.
I'm pretty sure this isn't going to fit on my TIF piece, lol!

New Bracelet

I went to an opening art exhibit this afternoon with friends, so I made a quick bracelet to wear...it's grey and wet outside, but feels a lot warmer inside wearing this little piece.

Studio

I was lucky enough to find the Studios issue put out by Cloth Paper Scissors and am just enjoying the heck out of it! I love to see other folks' studios and work spaces and a whole magazine devoted to them just made my whole week.
So inspired was I that I redid a whole corner of my studio...the studio looks great but I do have a large pile of stuff to sort sitting in the middle of the living room....I put it there because then I HAVE TO do it right away or give up using the living room for the duration!
I restrained myself photo-wise and am just putting one before and one after photo up...see if you can figure out which is which, LOL!

"Pink Artists" Doll Finished

What a beautiful face...I think all the love put into her squares shows right in her serene expression...and what a fantastic job monica has done....see more photos and the whole story here.

Playing Around Again

In between the two online projects and the Basho series, I've been playing with the idea of making a tiny book with a beaded cover that would be small enough to wear...so I cut out this odd little house shape and covered it with some old velvet I had...I had a moon face and a metal fastening in the shape of branches so I beaded them onto the front of the book and since it is an accordion book, I added a strand of beads ending in an ivory toggle to fasten the book with. Last, I strung the necklace part and attached it to the book. Here are a few photos, just to give you an idea of it....don't know if I'll do it again, but once was fun!
Haven't decided what to put into the book, but I added some photo corners so it will probably be some digital photos of my family, including the felines, of course!