Many have asked me to show some of the work tha's in Dale's book. but I'm afraid I can't find them all. Above is a lady from Catherine Cookson's books walking over the moors. The other one really is in Dales book Surface Design

Below is some work done using transfer painted fabrics. The makeup bag is made of polycotton and the detail below shows one made using a piece of satin and some cryztal organza both dyed using Transfer Paints. I am having lots of fun preparing for my article for Fibre & Stitch - An Online Mixed Media Zine

Surface Tension

I must tell you about Surface Tension, a book that has just been published, written by Dale Rollerson of The Thread Studio. It is a must for all of you interested in using the Embellisher. Dale's book is full of new ideas on creating with this useful machine.
My book arrived this morning and I was very proud to see some of my own work in it. Thanks for including it Dale.

More Inchies and a Postcard

With all the excitement of our new venture, Fibre & Stitch - An Online Mixed Media Zine I haven't blogged in the last couple of days. I had this lovely Postcard this morning from Patsy of Threads~n~Fiber. We are in a swap suggested by Joanna owner of the Yahoo Group, Surface Design, experimenting with tissue paper. Patsy has bonded cheescloth to the tissue and added embellishments.


These lovely inchies are from Kathy Hefner, they are absolutely lovely Kathy. I don't think I have come across your blog if you have one.





Do you like my pink castle Dianne? Dianne of FaeryDi's Fibre Feats or "Fiascos" loves 'my castle'.


These clouds were fluffy and pink.


This is the sunset that created those pink clouds and that beautiful pink castle.

Fibre & Stitch - An Online Mixed Media Zine

Fibre & Stitch - An Online Mixed Media Zine

We are pleased to announce the launch of Fibre&Stitch, an exciting new Mixed Media Arts online publication published by Sue Bleiweiss alongside a very talented team of artists.
Available quarterly beginning in September 2007!
Published 4 times a year, Fibre&Stitch is packed with a wide variety of articles and projects covering all types of mixed media techniques. Not just for the Fibre Artist, Fibre&Stitch explores Paper Arts, Collage, Machine and Hand Stitching, Art Journals, Wearable & Decorative Arts and much more.
Written to appeal to every level of artist and crafter, there is something for everybody in each issue of Fibre&Stitch, from in-depth full colour technique articles to quick and easy make it and go projects.
Each issue is guaranteed to inspire and stimulate your creative muse!
Visit www.fibreandstitch.com to learn more about this publication and to subscribe.

My new workspace

I am delighted with the way my new space is working. It seems to be a very convenient way of working.


BUT after reading this in 'Outside the Lines', the newsletter by Box of Crayons - Michael Bungay Stanier I'm beginning to wonder if it's the right decision.
This is what Michael has to say.

Shift your perspective in space

When teaching creativity to teams in organizations, I'm forever getting people to move around and sit, stand and strut in different locations. In part it's just to stop their brains and bums going numb. But it's more than that: if you want to think differently, move differently.

For instance, you have a place where you are at your most focused and efficient. For many of us, it's our desk at work. This is a powerful and limiting place. To think and work differently, pick up and move somewhere else in the building. New ideas and perspectives guaranteed.

Thinking about the challenge at hand, here are just four places that will shift your perspective in space

Turn your chair around.
Walk around the neighbourhood
Find the comfiest place to be
Exercise and raise your heart rate. Box of Crayons - Michael Bungay Stanier - Discover What's Possible!


Some of you will know how much I enjoy finding images everywhere. This is one I noticed and rearranged a little this morning and then I converted it to fabric using the same silky threads.

SerenTex

Meet Gwladys. This little lady is in Joan's garden and you will see some lovely work by Joan on SerenTex today and Miriam's designs from her course with Bobby Britnell.

My new system of working

Before I tell you about finding a more efficient working system I must show you the very special inchies that arrived for me this morning. These were made by Elizabet of Her eyes shone like emeralds of the deepest hue. Thanks Elizabet, they are becoming favourites and I love what you have done to those beads.


Here are Elizabet's Inchies.


I experimented this morning with some begonia leaves. I had to trim some stems and leaves as it had become too big. I could not let these go to waste. They are nice juicy leaves and I have bonded them onto Transfer Dyed synthetic fabric. They separate giving me two different images. I like the delicate one on the left where only the veins and delicate skin have transferred.



My workroom is quite large, but I have not been using it efficiently up to now. I have made work stations for myself in different areas but I find the only ones I really use are my favourite stretch of worktop and my stitching areas one used for my embroidery machine and the other for my embellisher.

When I want to do anything else all the stuff migrates gradually to my worktop leaving me in a mess where I have to push things out of the way and find myself a tiny space to work in.
I have decided today to use this area differently. I have a large shelf above the worktop and this was full of all sorts of rubbish that I stick up there out of the way as I work. Today I took everything off the shelf and put these things in the correct work station. I put empty plastic baskets on the shelf and the worktop is clear. From now on I intend to have all the tools and paints etc that I need for the project in progress around me here. I will set it all out before I start. When the project is finished they will be put back in their own work station. In fact my previous work stations will become store areas.

This works really well on paper. I wonder if it will work in real life? What brought it on? Well I bought a book called The Declutter Workbook by Mary Lamb and it is based on feng shui.
Tomorrow I hope to have more work in the SerenTex blog.

SerenTex

SerenTex is back after a short break.


Do you like Janine's quilt?


Llyn Dywarchen in Snowdonia. Our latest project is based on this photo.

Below is a little taster of what you will find on SerenTex tonight. We have been very quiet in the last 6 weeks due to one thing or another but we are back! I know Sheila will be very happy to see us back. Hello Sheila.

Plas Tan y Bwlch

We are all enjoying the creativity on Mary Sleigh's.
course at Plas Tan y Bwlch. We also enjoyed walks in this wonderful setting in the early morning, at lunchtime and before our evening meal. A wonderful, healthy time was had by all. I thought some of you would like to see the setting where we worked.


Trish and Sue enjoying a walk through one of the many paths through the woods.


I love this old tree.


Here is a small island in the middle of the lake with the Welsh flag flying proudly in the breeze.


This is the view as you look down from the house at the meandering river in the valley below.

Mary Sleigh

I have a rare treat for you today. Mary(Sleigh) who wrote the African Inspirations in Embroidery book sent me a photo of a detail of work she has made using the stitch I described here. She gave me permission to share this with you all. It's called Starch and Ochre, a piece of work that used that stitch that she showed us all on the course at Plas Tan y Bwlch. "The panel celebrates the textile skills that are passed on from generation to generation. - a universal language don't you think?" These are Mary's own words. She used gesso on this piece as she is particularly interested in the surface.
Here is Mary's website Lizard Dance.



This is one of my favourite photos. Mary is demonstrating The Stitch Without Name.


This is a detail of Mary's new piece Starch and Ochre.


Here is a closeup of part of the detail where you can see this stitch clearly on the blue at the left of this image.
Below is my very clumsy effort in class.



Now we must come downs to earth and these are the last 3 of my efforts for the In the Eye of the Beholder postcard swap.

Clearing the decks

I have been clearing the decks and preparing to do some fabric dyeing tomorrow. It still looks a mess doesn't it?


Below is one of the fabrics from Sue's blog. I asked her permission to show the lovely Medieval Masked Lady I could see in it. Can you see her too? Have a look at what Sue Bleiweiss is doing
here.

I have finished stitching some more postcards for my swap with Surface Design friends and will post them here tomorrow.

Latest Inchies and Rust dyeing

This morning I had these fabulous inchies from Barb Ingersoll of Raleigh, NC, USA. They are even better than they look here and I am absolutely thrilled with them. Thank you Barb.


Below is a closeup of these magic inchies.



Sue Bleiweiss of Fiber*Thread*Textiles asked what would happen if we tried to rust fabric that was already dyed. Now this is what happened to mine. The rusty coloured fabric above did become rusty, but they are so close in colour that it does not show up very well. But I think I know what I will use this for.
Now the black was very successful and I would try it again one day. Both fabrics were polycotton. All the rusting equipment has now been put away for another day.



I am so pleased with the image of the horseshoe and below is a photo of one of the others re-rusted.

Digital Art

Here is some Digital Art for a change tonight. Do you think these are stitchable or could they be turned into mixed media work?

Postcards

I am so pleased with this postcard. Is it a hare? With that tail? Anyway, I still like it, so there!
I have 4 more images to stitch, but I made a mess of the woman that showed herself to me, I stitched her mouth when I should have left it as it was, as I was unpicking it I had a large hole. Pity.


Here are some of the Tissue Paper postcards that I have now finished. Yesterday I thought the finished 'paper fabric' was too shiny, but I love the feel of this now that I have free machined into it. Maybe it's not particularly good for postcards, but I can think of many other things this would be suitable for.

In the Eye of the Beholder

 

I'm in a swap with four other friends from the Surface Design Yahoo Group and we are looking for images in any of our fabrics and making them into postcards. Above are the images I have found and I have gently added a few strokes to bring out the shape.


These were the only images of several that I photographed that came out because they were too shiny.



These are my experiments using tissue paper. I need to make some postcards experimenting with tissue. These were made using variegated coloured tissue crumpled up and then opened out, then bonded onto felt using Bondaweb accentuating some of the creases. I then stamped the fabric created with a variety of stamps and when dry I rubbed the tissue with Acrylic Wax. I intend to do some free machining into these samples to make postcards.