Top Majority

The majority of the quilt top for the Stretching Art & Tradition 25 exhibit went together pretty easily.

This is the design that I did in my sketchbook. I'm trying to scale up from this sketched version to the quilt on the wall. I did the math and multiplying all dimensions by four is working. The title of the piece is "Our Mistake", which is taken from Rebecca Solnit's post-election essay which is what the writing in the window is. 

Specifically this line: "Our mistake was to think we could row this boat across the acid lake before the acid dissolved it."

The green pieces are just pinned up there for now to get an idea of how the acid lake looks..

Trying out colors and shapes for the sinking boat.

Starting With a Title

Last week I made a small quilt (18x36") for a show that had a loose theme of Vision.  Here's where I started out.
Well, no I actually started out with a title: Dream Vision and a sketch:

I free-motion quilted several sections.

And zig-zagged the edges of the "hills" along with some quilting in various colors.

And then I pinned the rest down securely, packed it all in my car and drove up Highway 1 to the CQFA retreat in Half Moon Bay, taking pictures as I drove (I know, I know) and what do I see when I look at them when I arrive (and am no longer driving)??

Look familiar?

The color and shapes of the coast side hills and vegetable crops right up to the edge of the sea.

I had no idea, truly.

Closeup of vegetation edges and quilting.

Harmony Sketches

 Sometimes "wasting time" is worthwhile.

Especially when you find something online like Mr. Doob Harmony that's this fun and easy.

Thanks Deb at ::More Whiffs, Glimmers & Left Oeuvres::

Go try it yourself!

Sketchbook Project Part Three

 The rest of the pages from my sketchbook that is part of The Sketchbook Project.  I realize now that I skipped two pages in my photo taking, so I'm really glad I paid the extra $ to have the organizers of this project scan and put images on a DVD.  Plus I bet they'll look better than these photos too (hope so!).
This page uses a scrap from an old collage with a magazine picture and watercolor crayons.

 An old tissue paper collage with watercolor crayons and pen work.

 Writing, tissue paper clothes patterns, cancelled quilty postage stamps.  This is one of my favorite pages in this book.

 A two page spread that has a paper napkin in a toile pattern, acrylic paint, cigar labels, game cards and a vintage label.

 Cheracol, yum...

 The whole two page spread.

 The last page of the sketchbook!  This page was based on the watercolor paper that makes up the pocket, it was a scrap left over from something else, so I painted the background to match it.

 I love pockets in altered books so I thought why not on this last page of the sketchbook.

 I made one two sided tag to put in the pocket with vintage pictures from ArtChix, gold-leaf pens, acrylic paint.

 Why Should? vs. Why Not? sides of the tags.

I'm really glad I did this project and actually finished and submitted it! 
I am really looking forward to seeing the exhibit in San Francisco in June.  Check the schedule and see where the tour is coming near you so you can riffle through and handle hundreds of artist's sketchbooks!

Sketchbook Project Part Two

 More pages from my submission to The Sketchbook Project.  This one has cancelled postage stamps, words from a magazine and a paper napkin.

 A cancelled playing card with mulberry paper.

 Painting with metallic acrylics.

 More of the same painting.

 The whole two page spread.

 Too much paint on one page leads to this on another page.

 A whole bunch of images of this one group of pages.  Mulberry papers, Caran d'Arche watercolor crayons, stamped words, and pages cut with fancy scissors.  The two page spread is shown here.  On the right you can see there are a couple pages that have been cut into three sections.

 Words were stamped onto each of the three sections, front and back.  I intended them to be able to flip back and forth and say different things.

 Some hopeful.

 Some not!

 Some more angsty.

 Some direct.

 Some hopeless.

The page underneath that has tarnished copper tape.

More pages tomorrow.

Sketchbook Project Part One

 Back in August last year I shared about starting The Sketchbook Project. 
Here are some of the pages (I'll share more over the next couple days) that I completed.  Of course I sent it in on the last day possible, and of course the power was out when I was going to scan the pages. So I had to go outside and photograph this on my table on the deck, so sorry for the background. 

 A lot of the pages are not very "sketchy" at all, but instead multi-media/collage/fiber/journal-ish/etc. 
Are you surprised?
Nope, me either.
This page has plastic sushi grass, words from magazines and origami paper.

I continued the lines on the scrap of fabric and liked how it filled the page.  Do you happen to recognize this fabric? 

 A study in white textures, coffee sleeve, white wool felt, white cotton and iridescent fibers.

 A leftover piece from Shiva Paintiks fabric surrounded by fortune cookie fortunes.

 I sewed the zipper onto the fabric first before the fabric was glued onto the page.

 See there is always something hidden if you take the time to look.

 Sometimes you just have to draw what is in front of you even if it is just a burned out light bulb.

 Yes, this collage was done right before the Giants won the World Series.  Ribbon scraps, fabric, raffle coupon, parking stub from Giants parking lot,  tissue paper.

 Recognize your spinning wheel Bron?  This sketch was done during a CQFA "between-meetings-meeting" at Bron's beautiful house.  She had this great spinning wheel on her hearth that I sketched and later did the watercolors.

Candy wrappers, tissue paper, words, numbers and pictures from the phone book.

Words from a magazine and fibery tissue paper.