Category Archives: other projects

what’s happening around here

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I made something for the Summer Stitch Fest. I had big plans, cut out 2 shirts, but then didn’t even get the one finished. I finished it on Monday though and got to wear it out for my birthday dinner last night.

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The fabric is double gauze which I’ve never sewed with before. It was definitely not as easy to sew with as regular woven cotton. It was wiggly and stretchy and very difficult to unpick when things didn’t go right which unfortunately was pretty often. But, it is light and airy and very nice for a summer shirt and now it is finished.

Things have suddenly picked up around here. I am really excited to tell you that I will be going to Nashville in September for the Tennessee Craft Fair, Sept. 23, 24, and 25. So, what should I know about or definitely not miss while I’m in Nashville? I’m excited to go since the last time I was there was maybe 1981? I suspect things have changed quite a bit.

Also, I will be doing CraftBoston Holiday Show in December but I will post more about that when it gets closer. Both of these shows have just been confirmed so suddenly I am feeling like I need to get more things made. The last 3 days have been spent cutting out pieces of/for tattooed men. The studio is getting that crazy mess look.

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Next, I have to cut out some ladies. Then, I am going to pull out the dye pots. That is the next step in the process but I will want to wait for a cool-ish day. So many steps!

tiny world- Castle!

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These two are the last for now.

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I love topiary- And felt topiary is SO much easier to deal with than the living kind!

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My studio needs a massive clean and so that is going to occupy at least some of my (US) holiday weekend. If you are having a long weekend, hope you are doing something fun!

Tiny World pincushion time

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I was scheduled to do a Tiny World Pincushion class but we didn’t get enough people to run it. Timing is always a mystery when planning these things. When I am expecting to teach, I get out all my materials and get to work. That way I have fresh memories of the process. So, the result of teaching is always some new finished pieces. Whenever I get going on the Tiny Worlds, it is hard to stop!

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and #2 which I think of as Cabin in the woods.

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some fabric printing and other news

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I said in my last post that I got excited about the block printing. Yesterday, I cleared off my table and got to work-

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Of course I am jumping in to the middle of the story here because I wanted to put in a picture. The tale starts when I got back from California and thought, Oh what fun! I can go to the Art Store and spend a bunch of $$$ on some fabric inks… Hmmm. Then I remembered that way back in 2007, I did some fabric printing for an online swap. And, I was blogging then so I could go back and read the 2 posts about what I did- so helpful! It took me a lot of searching to find where I’d put all the various supplies. And, unfortunately I didn’t note some specific info that would have been helpful, like the proportions of fabric medium to pigment. But, onward.

I ironed my fabric to give myself a grid pattern to work on but I still managed to mess up the pattern. Whatever! I wish the lighter color of the flowers was more opaque but Whatever!

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There is no point in being a perfectionist on a project like this or I’d never even try. Here is the scarf/shawl, edges zig-zag finished and washed although obviously not ironed. You can see the back and the front.

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This was my inspiration for the flower block- from my walk along the beach in Ventura.

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I hope it doesn’t take me another 9 years to try it again.

And some other news- I will be teaching a Tiny World Pincushion class in Cambridge, MA on May 14 and 15 at Gather Here.

Are you on Periscope? I will be spending some time with Lilla Rogers on Tuesday afternoon– join us, it’ll be fun! I believe that Lilla saves all her casts to YouTube so hopefully I can post a link afterwards if you miss it.

Lastly, here is a beautiful video interview with Georgina Haynes from LAIKA who I had the pleasure of spending some time with last summer in Portland, OR. It gives me chills and heart tugs to see the puppets come to life.

LA trip report

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I had an amazing time in LA. What can I say? Leaving Boston with snow on the ground and going somewhere with palm trees will always work for me! First stop was the Craftcation Conference in Ventura.

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That beach was about a block from the hotel. There were teenagers playing volleyball on the sand, people who actually  said “gnarly” completely seriously, all the plants we could never grow here- it really, most definitely, is not Boston. It was great!

The conference was excellent. It is described as “4 days of creative business classes and hands-on craft and food workshops”. It sounded right up my alley and I’d talked to someone who’d gone in 2015 so I was pretty sure it would be a good time. The thing is, when I step out of my house, I never know what I will learn and what will stick with me. What ended up being the best part for me? Socializing with my peers. Just hanging out and talking with other people who have creative lives and businesses. I don’t get enough of that, ever. It is one of the perils of being an introvert and working by myself. I actually met amazing 2 people who live right here in Massachusetts- Funny how I have to go all the way across the country to meet my local peers! Hi Crispina and Jenny! Of course I loved all the other parts too. I made a simple shirt with Sonya, talked about designing a wardrobe with her too, embroidered with Robert, and did block printing with Lisa. I have gotten all excited about the block printing so more on that later! But, here is what I did in class-

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and blue-

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These fellows came out with me and got to meet lots of Craftcation attendees.

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Okay, that was the first part of my California trip. I will show-and-tell more soon.