French Knots

Of all the embroidery stitches, I believe that the french knot is and always has been my favorite. I was probably around 9 or 10 years old when I first learned how to make one, and I thought it was magic! In 10th grade I got kicked out of my math class for embroidering while the teacher lectured, (sorry but it was the only way I could keep from falling asleep!). I had to report to the principal's office for my punishment. After explaining to the secretary why I was sent down to see the principle, she smiled and requested to see my embroidery. I still remember how kind she was, telling me that my french knots were beautiful, and letting me skip seeing the principle and allowing me to go hang out in the library. The librarian was equally kind to me, and said that any time a teacher did not want me in their class, (something that happened more then once) I was more then welcome to come spend my time in the library!

Pictured above is the latest in my small art quilt series. I call it "Amoeba in Pink and Green". It features approximately 275 french knots. They are just like eating potato chips, I just can't stop at one!

Happy Little Amoebas

Here are a couple of new amoeba illustrations. Hoping to turn them into art quilts this week. Small amoeba paintings are also on my to do list and I am thinking of making a little amoeba coloring book! Below is a picture of my first amoeba quilt which I made the other week.

New Year, New Look, New Direction

I hope everyone had a very nice holiday, and that the new year is off to a good start. I know that this time of year can be difficult for some of us who can't help but be reminded of how quickly time passes and how much we miss certain loved ones. Five years ago, on December 26th my father passed away. It was difficult for me to realize that so much time had passed. My girls were still little when he died, one in elementary school and one in middle school. Now my youngest is a teenager and my oldest an adult in college. I ache thinking of how much time we all missed. I can't help but to feel a bit cheated for my kids, that they didn't have him in their lives for a longer period of time. And I feel grateful for the time we did have, and blessed with the certainty that he indeed is still present in our lives, watching over us, and rooting for us as we find our way in this life.

With the new year here I found myself looking for some change. The artistic path I have been on was starting to feel too familiar, like walking a trail and passing the same tree over and over. It was a lovely path but I was ready for a little change, and so I have done a few simple things. I changed the look of the blog a bit, and added a new banner. I also changed my Etsy banner to this one and made a matching avatar. Also for the time being, I have put aside making my vintage and retro inspired gift items and have started concentrating more on illustrating and making art quilts, (which is what I use to do almost exclusively a few years ago).

I am having loads of fun with this new series of small embroidered art quilts. They are based on little, loose styled drawings that I do on my computer. The red and white one pictured above is called "Pathway" and the one pictured below is called "Extrovert and Introvert". (Also pictured below is the drawing that I based it on.) These and others can be found in my Etsy store, and I will be posting more as I make them.

Paper Angels

Here are some pictures of some retro inspired angels that I made last year. (Sorry, they are not the best photos, but it has been dark and rainy in my neck of the woods for days now, and as far as natural light, I just had to go with what I had.) I originally made them to sell, but I quickly became attached to them, as they look nice sitting atop my hutch, and decided to hang on to them. (This is one of those things that I had a lot of fun making, but will probably never make again.)

The tops are vintage magazine pictures, enhanced with glitter, backed with cardboard, and more vintage paper. The skirts are made from old pattern tissue, which I coated in beeswax. A bit of tulle netting and some angelina fibers complete the outfit, along with a dash of glitter and a pipe cleaner belt. The wings are also made from angelina fibers. Each one can stand on their own as shown, or hang from the attached beaded hook.

The angel above is a pretty big gal, measuring 16 inches. The blue angel is 11 inches tall, and the red angel is 8 1/2 inches. I also lined the two bigger angel's skirts with colored tissue paper, coating it with melted beeswax as well. I like the way the color peeks through the pattern tissue, and also it gives the skirts more strength.