5/23/10

Weekend Play

















I'm still trying to find a book form I can do easily, since I'm looking for something I can alternate with beading, so I don't spend quite so many hours with a needle in my hand. I do love digital photography, but I also wanted to find something interesting to do indoors when it's raining, which it does quite a lot of in oregon, lol!
So I was looking at the book on handmade books published by penland ( a wonderful fine craft school in the east) and found a tutorial on hedi kyle's blizzard book which I tried. I found it way more work than I was willing to put into it and too hard on my hands as well, since there is a lot of heavy folding with the bone folder involved. So then I went in another direction and am working on a bottlecap book....have punched out the "pages" and they're sitting in the bottlecap while I decide how to "bind" them....fun, but probably another route I won't be traveling too far on.
Then I was looking at some of chad alice hagen's felt brooches and thought it might be fun to do my own take on them, so I crocheted some of my multi-colored wool into a small rectangle and will be working on felting it....but that's another route that takes a lot of physical effort so I'll have to see if I'm up to it.
Still...it's nice to try different things sometimes and take a mental and physical break from my bead embroidery.
And while I was cleaning out a cubby in the studio I came across some very old bits and pieces of my beadwork that were done when I was in the early days of making jewelry with beadweaving, mostly using the peyote stitch. It reminded me that it's been a long road getting to where I am with the beading and how long it took me to get the skills that now let me focus more on meaning and soul and not so much on craftsmanship and technique. A long and happy road and I wish the same for each of you...work you love to do, in a place you love, surrounded by friends and family you love...

6 comments:

abeadlady said...

I'm lucky enough to have those things already, Bobbi.
Isn't it fun to experiment with new things once in a while?

Carol- Beads and Birds said...

Hi Bobbi
I am just starting to appreciate mixed media, but I must confess, with fibers. Not much with paper.

My skills are not the best. I putz with my art, but I am happy and always looking for another thing to try. Unfortunately I don't always have the time to follow through. But...I'm always busy. Just slower than I used to be.

I am confident that you will find the proper avenue for this project.
xx, Carol

Stacy Olson said...

I have had this great beading book for sometime now. It's still a great value. I found it here at Creek Corner. A great site to check out

Pat said...

That was a beautiful wish for all of us that read your blog. I think that I will wish that for everyone as well.

Timaree said...

I can't believe you have made, or are in the process of making, such a tiny book as the bottle cap one! That is very different. Why don't you try one like the one I made with my so far, only 2010 BJP bead piece? The book wasn't too hard and it would let you fill the window with odd bits and pieces of your work in any media. The pages can be pretty much whatever you like too.

Pursuing Art... said...

Glad you are playing around with different ideas between beading...it's good to take a bit of a break.

Thank you for the wish! Still living and learning, but enjoying the ride. Just have to put it down every now and then and rethink something through or just try again! Big hugs!!!