Postcards

I had quite an art productive weekend with several finished projects to show for it. In addition to the purses in my previous post, I also completed a few postcards. A few weeks ago Jenny and I met at Terri's house for an afternoon of silk fusion. It was fun and easy. I made several small sheets with the intention of making postcards.

I really like the wispy edge of the silk fusion.

Purple Pebbles

Flow

This postcard was an experiment in just what can I make my ol' 1990s era Kenmore sewing machine do. It was definitely a task in hand eye coordination. One hand was on the width control while the other guided the card through in gentle waves. My Kenmore has a very limited number of stitches and a limited length and width, but I am please with the wavy zigzag it produced.

Current

For this card I just played around with a free motion stitch with swirls.

Beaded Swirls

Weekend Sewing

I took a break from working on the beaded crazy quilt and made a few purses this weekend. The first is the from Amy Butler's Madison Bags pattern for the Uptown Bag. Very easy and such a cute shape. Great for that take along knitting pattern, long needles could fit easily.


The second purse is a Simplicity pattern, I have made numerous time. I just love the size and shape of the bag. the little tote is big enough for my lunch, wallet and sewing kit. It has a small pocket on the front for keys. Most of the bag is made from a heavy green denim along with the accent fabric.

ATC

I am exchanging ATC with Peggy in Germany. I received this beautiful card in the mail yesterday. It is made with distressed velvet and lovely stitched curves. Very textural. Ich liebe es, danke.

Here is the card that I am dropping in the mail today. It is a variation of the fiber collage postcards I have made. It is all hand stitched with a few beads. I hope she likes it.

Still beading

I continue to work on the beaded crazy quilt. The border has come together very nicely. I based the design on an antique crazy quilt. Since I am not a precise piecer I used ultrasuede to make the dark scallops and fused them down. I have about half of the border beaded with flowers and I have only a few spots that may need a few more beads on the block. I am stumped on how to bead the orange triangles in the border. The need some beading but I haven't liked anything I have tried. Any suggestions?

More Beads

Here is the latest photos of the beaded crazy quilt block. Since this photo even more beads have been added and I finally was able to settle on a border. With such a busy block it was difficult to select a fabric that didn't distract. Black seemed to harsh with the colors I was working with and a solid border in the same color as the block seemed too plain and stark. I searched the Internet and found some inspiration in the antique crazy quilt border.

How I support my quilting habit.....

Lets be serious, if I could, I would stay home all day working on art and keep busy all day. But since that may not pay all that great, I do have a job to support my quilting habit. My cube at work has become gallery of fiber art. I work at the State Historical Society and have a great view of the Capitol from my desk...

All the cabinets are made of metal, so I use magnetic strip to attach most of the art to the surface.
I have an ATC and a post card from my mom as well as my fiber collage post cards on an upper set of cabinets.




I also have these two small works made with some fabric beads that were inspired by a Quilting Arts article a few years ago.

A little closer look

I participated in a art2mail postcard exchange and have all my traded cards on display. Such a vast improvement over the drab office file cabinet.

This guy sits on the window sill smiling at me all day long. I was in Lincoln Nebraska visiting my sister along with my mom. Mom wanted to check out a ceramic shop and I just fell in love with the plant man. So much so, mom purchased a mold, poured and fired over 30 pots.



This is my Caveman Quilt made from Ricky Tims technique. I had one gal tell me wow that is big and I guess in the photo you cant tell how big it is but it measures approximately 36" x 18". It still needs to be quilted, but until I get to that, I am enjoying it in my office. Maybe I will like it better when it is quilted, it was a great exercise in just go with the flow and sew.

Quick Project

I have had the pattern for this sewing kit for ages and I finally made one. I think I am going to add a needle case