A Rainbow of Raw Materials

The raw materials are done. I spent the weekend painting a quilting away. I have a whole rainbow of quilted fabrics and fabric paper. For one set, I quilted white fabric and then painted it with very watery acrylic and fabric paints. For the other set, I painted the fabric first and then quilted with metallic threads. I'm not sure exactly what I am going to do next, but I know that I need to get to work on my twelve by twelve piece. Shelter, very fitting for the last two months. I started one idea, but it just wasn't working. Now, I've got one week. I think I'm trying to hard and thinking I need something grand. Time to stop taking myself so seriously and enjoy the experience.

Time to Get Back to Work

The house still hasn't sold. It seems that everybody who is interested in buying our house can't qualify for financing. Oh well, at least we have a low house payment while we're still here. I'm also getting a more lax about cleaning. Dust bunnies are gathering in the corners and the toys are spending more time lying about. I've decided that it will all be okay and I need to get back to focusing my energy on the things I enjoy.

My art has definetly been on the back burner this summer and I have had a very hard time getting motivated. It's time for no more excuses! I've got to get back to work or I'll go crazy.

I started with a whole rainbow of fabric paper. I've also prequilted a bunch a fabric for painting and I'm painting some other fabric to quilt with metallic threads. I'm excited to have the raw materials to work with! Who knows what fun designs will appear in the next few months.

I'm also getting excited about ArtFiberFest at the end of next month. Four days away from the family doing art! I can't remember having so much time for myself. Plus it will be first classes I have ever taken. I feel like a kid dreaming about camp.

Stuck in a Clean House

The challenges of living in a House for Sale! I'm not used to having to keep my house clean all the time. Somehow I didn't get the cleaning genes from my mom. My only way of keeping things clean is get nothing out! The only problem is that I'm getting tired of not really "living" in my house. I miss my art. Currently I have been making lots of little yo-yos with my hand painted fabric. I don't really know why, other than I can keep all the supplies in a ziplock bag. I am so out of practice, I guess they are an easy way to try to get back into the groove. I so want to be able to just jump back in and recapture the joy. Ultimately, it comes down to being a little afraid. I've placed expectations and goals upon myself and my perfectionism is coming up against my fear of failure. I know, get over it and get to work. I know, I know. At least I'm putting my toes in again!

The House is Done!

After nearly two months, the house is finally done and we have it on the market. I had no idea how much work it would be to get four years of four children cleaned up! We completely repainted the entire house and put in new flooring and trim. Plus we replaced the sink and fixtures in the main bathroom. The house now looks beautiful! We've come a long way from April when we had sprouts coming out of the kids sink because they had washed beans down the drain. I keep saying it's somebody else's house because it sure doesn't look like our family lives here. Now I just have to keep it clean while we try to sell it. That could be anywhere from soon, to months or even a year. I am hoping that because we are at the low end people can still afford our house. We have the added bonus of acreage and the house is move in ready. So many of the houses in this price range are just scarey.

These are some of the pictures from the listing. If you are looking for a house in Kitsap County, you wont find a better deal. Now it is time for me to get back to my art before I have to pack everything up and move.

I've Been Painting

My time for art has been completely taken up by trying to get our house ready to sell. Every wall has been repainted and every inch of flooring has been replaced. Okay, the carpet in our walk in closet survived, but everything else had to go. I'm not the best housekeeper and my kids love dirt. White carpet just didn't work for our family. We now have beautiful, easy to clean laminate flooring. No more food stains, not to mention those potty training accidents. A trip to the dump and that is all behind us. The house is starting to look pretty good. All those things taht I have wanted done for the last four years are finally coming together. Now for the trim, little details and through clean up in the yard and we are good to go! Maybe then I will have my life back. Well, at least until we sell this place and have to pack up to move.

Now its time to get back to work!

Fallen Off the Face of the Earth?

No, I haven't fallen off the face of the earth. For some reason all the little people in my life have been demanding more attention. We have also come to the realization that six people in 1345 square feet just isn't working. Maybe if we got rid of all the stuff, but that isn't going to work for an artist, kids or a husband with lots of hobbies. Instead we are just going to have to find a bigger house. We have been busy trying to get this place back in shape to sell. All our free time has been dedicated to painting, bathroom repair,yard work and cleaning. My creative time has been severely limited. I thought I would throw up the few projects that I have managed to create the past month or so.

I bought a pair of white canvas shoes to paint a while ago. They sat on my desk for a couple months. Finally, before going on vacation I pulled out the paints. The kids had fun watching. I'm not really sure why I picked pink. I guess I was feeling girly. I took them with me to Monterey, but didn't wear them. I felt shy when it came down to it. I have worn them around town a few times since then. My husband infered that I looked like I was in junior high. I do have to admit that they are something I would have worn back then.

The box I created for our Out of the Box artists group. The assignement was to create something using paper mache and old socks. I didn't have a lot of time, so I cheated and used some fabric paper that I made a while back. I lined the box with socks from my orphan socks box. I then added various fibers and wire to the top. I really love working on boxes. They are fun and hold the promise of treasure. I also like to hide little things in them. I usually forget. Then I find a little present when I look inside. Today I found some orange Tic Tacs.

The other pieces I made even longer ago, probably back when it was snowing in April. I'm still waiting for the sun to come and warm things up around here. I know I can't really complain about sixties and raining, no tornados, no floods, but my heart longs for summer and not being cold!

I'm also feeling the calling to do something BIG. I think that has contributed to my feeling a little blocked. About 18" x 24" is the largest I have worked. I don't know if I'm afraid of putting a lot of effort into something and it not working, or if I'm just not sure where to start. I know I need to just pull out the fabric and sit down at the sewing machine. I know it would be good for my soul. So many things that I know in my head. Now I just need to do it!

The Big Water Reveal

Ocean Dreaming

Today's the big day for our Twelve by Twelve "water" reveal. This has been the only project that I have managed to work on the last month. Read more about it on the Twevle by Twelve blog.

The State of My Work Table

Okay, I admit it, I haven't done anything art related in weeks. I would say that I have wanted to, but if I really did I would have cleaned off my desk and made the time. I can say that I have wanted to want to create. Instead I have been trying to get caught up with all the other things around the house and yard. We are also considering moving closer to my husbands work. His commute would be cut from an hour to around ten minutes. Plus we desperately need a larger house. Six people, arts and crafts supplies, and lots of hobbies in 1350 square feet just isn't working very well. We'll see what the summer brings. For now it is time to get disciplined and finish up my water quilt for this weekend's reveal.

Home Again

This is my lovely family, enjoying the sunset at Point Pinos, near Monterey, CA. The wind was cold and the jackets were back at the hotel, so we made due with towels.

We arrived home last night from six days in California and over 2000 miles in the car. After a rather rough start--think car sickness, migraine, trying to sleep in the car--we had a wonderful time in Monterey. The west coast was suffering through a heat wave, which made the weather perfect at the beach. We played in the waves, went to the boardwalk in Santa Cruz, visited the Aquarium and enjoyed each other's company without all the distractions and to do lists of home. For some reason, the camera always seemed to be back at the hotel or in the car. I just can't seem to remember everything.

Now it is back to the real world, and hopefully I will have time to create soon. Maybe when I tackle the mountain in the laundry room and restock the refrigerator.

The Tide is Turning

I feel like I might finally be emerging from the chaos and mental funk. The last month has been marked by snow in mid-April, a broken water heater, a trip to the emergency room and a dead opossum in our garden, along with the regular challenges of life. The kids are recovering from the flu and we have a vacation planned for late next week. I finally have hope that life will settle down to a manageable level of chaos and we will have some fun again. (I'm a little afraid to put it in writing though! That old superstitious me coming out I guess.)

My creative time and focus has been a little limited. I did have a bit of energy to make some bookmarks. I love how they turned out. As a hopeless fiber girl, the ribbons and yarns satisfy my need to touch and stroke something soft. I love the way they cascade out of a book. And I don't need to worry about loosing the bookmark in the covers of the bed when I am reading at night. The painted watercolor paper gives me a chance to play with color and the messy nature of paint. I don't usually paint with a brush. I like to use a scrap of cloth and really spread the paint around. Then I also end up with some fun fabric to play with too. Finally the plus sized inchies let me sew away with fabric and thread. The only things missing are thicker embellishments. But I thought beads, buttons and wire wouldn't be the best things to put inside a book.

On another possitive note, I applied for a business license yesterday. Now I can write all these craft supplies off on my taxes! I would really like to make and sell more, not necessarily for the money, but for the joy of creating. Right now, I'm just kind of fumbling along, but I am trying to be easy on myself and take my time. The part I hate is marketing and selling. If somebody else would just do that for me, I would be a happy camper. I have a feeling most artist probably feel the same way. For now, it's baby steps.

Trying to Recover My Sanity

The last couple of weeks have been the type that make me question if I have what it takes to be a good mom, homeschool teacher, and wife, let alone friend, artist or any of my other roles. I've been in a mental funk and the kids have been being kids, no desire to to their school work or think of others. On top of the daily grind, my oldest daughter fainted last week and we took a trip to the emergency room. Now her and her sister have a nasty virus with a high fever. I'm just waiting now for the rest of us to get sick.

On the positive side, I did sign up for Artfiberfest in Port Townsend next October. I am so excited about a three day, four night break just for art. It should be the perfect preparation for the craziness of the holidays and a long winter. My husband is also very willing to send me off to other classes or retreats. The old saying, "if mom's not happy, noboby's happy!" is very real in his mind and he is very anxious to not be reminded of it again.

Through all of this I have been trying to do a little creating to improve my spirits and regain my sanity. These are a few mini, 2"x3" quilts that I have been working on. I'm hoping to paint some frames soon and get these into my etsy soon.

...and the Winner is:

Sorry, I'm a little late on the drawing. My husband was gone for the weekend and the kids left me with little energy for anything. After a touch of pampering last night, I'm feeling a lot better and hopefully ready for the week ahead.

I have to say that I had a lot of fun with this giveaway, especially learning a little more about some of the wonderful people I have met through blogging. The lucky winners this time are Doreen Kinkade, Brenda Smith, and Pamela Rice. I'll be making you each something along the lines of your favorite pieces. Please email me your mailing addresses so I can mail off your personal creations, hopefully some time this week.

I only just realized that this post never was actually published. This last week has been rather rough. Hopefully the tide is turning and I will have a chance to catch up with my art life. I'm sure Doreen, Brenda and Pamela are a little confused about the email I sent them. Please forgive me!

3 Days Left to Enter

I realized that I didn't give any timeline for my 100th post giveaway. I will choose a winner this weekend and create something special for the lucky gal. There is still plenty of time to sign up! Just leave a comment on my 100th post telling me you favorite piece.

Pink and Orange Explorations

Terri Stegmiller at StegArt challenged me to work with pink and orange. She sent me an image of a piece she has been working on and I have been having fun exploring the color combination. First, I started by painting some fabric with pinks and orange. I then quilted it with dark pink, light pink and copper metallic thread. I also found a scrap of fabric paper that I made last summer. Then it was time to pull out all the embellishments. I found beads, brads, buttons, wire, fibers and various scrapbooking embellishments. The only problem was I had no idea for a design. The weekend weather as awful, full of rain and hail, and I was in a funk!

To try to get out of the funk, I decieded to work on some plus sized inchies. They are easy and I could try out the different embellishments. Each one has two 1/2" strips of quilted fabric on the outside with a 1/2" strip of fabric paper in the center. I always have fun making these and I can play with different ideas by moving them around. I'm not certain what I am going to do with them. I might mount them on heavy paper and paint a frame for them.

I then had to make six more inchies for a mini treasure box filled with fabric beads. I love the beads spilling out everywhere. They are so little and precious and filled with hope. Each one a little dream. My only problem is that I don't have anywhere to display these little boxes that wouldn't be incredibly tempting to little fingers. I really wouldn't mind them touching if it wasn't for the stickiness and the fact that things tend to disappear. I know, I know, some day I will miss the sticky fingers, but for now they drive me crazy.

Finally, I used all the scraps from the inchies for this mini quilt. It really needs more contrast. The beads, wire and yarns are a little lost. I keep working. Now, if only I wasn't so tired from life. Summer is coming. The sun always energizes me and we hopefully will be able to take a break from school. There is always HOPE!