Creative Swaps - Technique Tag Book

I met a lot of wonderful artists in the "Your Vintage Gluebook Online Class"...including the lovely Creative Lenna!


One of Lenna's blogs, Creative Swaps, is where she hosts amazing art exchanges--what a find! And lucky for me, sign-ups for the Technique Tag Books Swap had started when I got there.....decorate 10 tags using a particular technique(s)--all the same or each one different--and include directions for the technique(s) on the back of the tags. Then receive back 10 beautiful Technique Tags from other artists--I love this idea!!

I was inspired by a post on iHanna's Blog---"Paint with a Plastic Card".

Using the plastic card, I started with a layer of gesso on both sides of the tag:


Then I added Golden Fluid Acrylic (Raw Sienna) to the front, also with the plastic card. I sprayed a light mist of water onto the paint, let it stand for a moment, then scraped it again.


I added a second layer of paint, repeating the process, this time with Golden Fluid Acrylic (Green Gold).


When the tags were dry, I placed a Tim Holtz Mask (Flourish) on the tag and rubbed Distress Ink (Vintage Photo) around the edges of the mask using a blending tool.


To finish, I added a rubber stamped image with StazOn ink (Timber Brown).


The same paint technique was used on the back of the tag, but green gold for the first layer...


...and Lumiere Pearl Turquoise for the second layer. This time, after spraying the water, I blotted it with a dry terrycloth rag instead of the plastic card. All that was left to do to the backs was add the written technique instructions.


Decorating the envelopes (the actual pages of the tag book) was optional but I was on a roll and had a good mess going already so I started with a layer of gesso to both sides, gold gesso--from Mary who kindly shared some at one of our craft days.


I dry-brushed a metallic blue to the edges of the envelope...


and a metallic red in one corner.


I used white gesso to stamp a swirly design and text around the edges...


and StazOn Jet Black for two more rubber stamp images.


And ta-da, a really fun project!


My Technique Tags are on their way to Lenna and I can now look forward to seeing the completed tag books--I know they're going to be wonderful!

Marilyn

Another Doll Quilt Swap 9 Post-----

This time to show you what I sent to Anita. The front...


It was really fun "stalking" Anita for ideas as I was planning the doll quilt I wanted to make for her. We have a lot of the same likes, which includes the color red and that is where I started.

This is the back...


I loved that little girl fabric but had a hard time making a lot of it work on the front--how nice that quilt backs have moved away from plain muslin only!

I shared with Anita that I was initially a little nervous when I learned that I'd be making her DQS9 quilt. She is a very talented and accomplished quilter, you see. But I decided to trust the process and follow my intuition and that seemed to work. Anita was very pleased with it;)

Another mini quilt completed with 3.5 inch blocks. The Bitty Block Committee swap theme this time was "Red, Yellow and Blue".


Some darling little blocks, don't you think?
This one is mine...


These bitty block swaps have become so addictive, and FUN!

Marilyn

Doll Quilt Swap 9 Received!!

I planned for my next blog post (this one) to be about Hoop Up! Round 2 and the embroidered blocks I've stitched so far.....but I received my Doll Quilt Swap 9 package Thursday evening and I couldn't wait to share it with you!!!

All the way from Vancouver, BC, Canada, Janet created "Birds of a Feather", a gorgeous masterpiece of a doll quilt, for me! I am so in love with it and it is perfect in every way! Can you believe the incredible quilting she did on it?!


I swear she is the best "stalker" ever! Doll Quilt Swap is a secret swap--we don't know who is sending to us until the little quilty arrives. To learn about our partner and their likes/dislikes, swappers can secretly check out/"stalk" the partner's flickr photostream and blog (if they have one). Janet definitely got it right when she chose colors and design based on what she learned about me! Amazing!


She also sent a quilt pattern that I love and can't wait to make and a bundle of beautiful fabrics. And a mug rug, the greatest mug rug, so pretty it makes my morning coffee taste better than ever!


When Janet completed my quilt, she blogged about the process here. It's really fun to see her photos all together in one post.

Janet, I cannot thank you enough...here I am, two days later, still gushing, lol! Although, really, who wouldn't be?!

Marilyn

I Hope I Win THIS Giveaway!!

This is going to be a short little blog post but it's gonna pack a punch.....

My friend, Aneela--the multi-talented Aneela--is having a huge scrap fabric giveaway.....and not just any fabric scraps but pieces from many treasured fabric lines!!

You can check it out here--even if you're not a sew-ist, Aneela writes an entertaining blog:)

Marilyn

P.S. I'll have some Hoop Up! Round 2 embroidery pieces to show you soon. It's a rainy morning here today and difficult to get decent photos.

Happy Quilts...

Actually, as I think about it, I've yet to meet a quilt that isn't happy--it's kind of the nature of a quilt. That said, look at this little piece of happiness.


It's made with the 3.5" blocks I received from The Bitty Block Committee swap. The theme was "picnic/bbq". Everyone's blocks turned out so cute that I couldn't wait to get them put together. 3.5 inches...amazing, right?

And how about the fabulous quilty Cindy sent to me for the "Landscapes" swap?!


She titled it "The Hour of Bird Song", that hour right before dawn when you can still see stars in the sky but all the birds have started singing.

Hand quilted. Beads.


Beautiful batiks. Strips of chenille (that Cindy created herself).


And generosity...threads and fabric for my stash and chenille pieces for me to try out.


It was a such a good.....no, great, mail day! And this is the landscape quilt I made and sent to Cindy...


I named it "Lavender Fields", inspired by a friend's vacation photo--one of her sitting on a lovely deck with a glass of wine and mounds of lavender in the background. I would call that a fine vacation moment!

I also want to share with you the name of an incredible textile artist. Kim Eichler-Messmer spoke at the KC Modern Quilt Guild meeting last week. She is fun and innovative and her work is gorgeous! She talked about how she came to work with textiles and how she is inspired. It was fascinating. You can see her work on her website and her blog.

Marilyn

English Paper Piecing: Hexagons

I think everyone is making hexagons. {Handsome} Hexies, a flickr group, shows us that at least 470 have taken up this addictive pastime!


Twice this summer I've made a short three day visit someplace. One might think that three days away from crafting and/or sewing is no big deal. So I'm not sure what it says about me that, even for that short amount of time, I felt it necessary to take handwork with me and thought it would be the perfect opportunity to try these hexagons.

I found a tutorial from The Sometimes Crafter and discovered a wonderful way to pass the time while riding in the car.

And I haven't stopped since, can't stop! Like I said, it's addictive!

I'm making 2" hexies...


and 1" hexies...


And I'm not alone. Or rather, I like to think I'm in good company. Britt has posted tips on joining hexagons left in comments from her readers. She asked to use one of my photos for her blog post---she's moving and all of her hexagons are packed up---and in her email to me she happened to mention that it's driving her crazy not having something to do with my hands! Sounds familiar:)

This is how I store and travel with everything I need. I bought this inexpensive storage container. I like it because the sections come apart and it's easy for me to work directly out of them.





When I want to take my hexagons with me someplace, the sections stack up and snap together securely...and the container fits perfectly in my KC Modern Quilt Guild tote--cool, huh?


Are you looking for a reason to give hexagons a try? Or a reason to make more?!

Sign ups have just started for a Modern Holiday 2 1/2 inch square swap. This is the size used for the 1" hexagons in The Sometimes Crafter's tutorial. Send 50 of the same fabric squares and receive back 50 different fabric squares for making something really wonderful for the holidays. ETA 8-11-10: Swap cancelled...perhaps to be offered at a later date.

Marilyn

"Your Vintage Gluebook"

Craft day at Karla's is always fun and we usually get some good crafting in too. It must be the creative surroundings of her studio and the creative energy of everyone there! On Tuesday, it was Karla, Beth, Mary and me.

I worked on a lesson from Mary's Your Vintage Gluebook Online Class.


It was lesson 8 and one I've been struggling with for weeks. The challenge was to use a photo that was less than perfect in a collage and "make it work". Thanks to that creative energy flowing and bouncing around the studio, I completed the lesson and I think it does work!

I've enjoyed the class immensely! It's self-paced and I learned a lot in nine lessons.

Lesson 1: Color in composition...



Lesson 2: Size in composition/3 piece collage...




Lesson 3: Image and pattern/2 page spread...


Lesson 4: Position in composition...


Lesson 5: Pieces in composition...


Lesson 6: Visual weight in composition...


Lesson 7: Collage with original paper only...


Lesson 8: Making it work...


Lesson 9: Making patterned papers...


This lesson was especially fun--the possibilities are incredible! If you would like to use this background I made in your own collage work, please feel free to do so.

And if you would like to see the work from others in the class, check out Your Vintage Gluebook flickr group.

Marilyn

Quilt Blocks In - Quilt Blocks Out

It seems I've been making a few quilt blocks recently...

For the Modern Siggy Swap, I sewed up one hundred and one 4.5" squares and signed them with my name, city and state.

In return, I received these!


All made with modern fabrics and all different -- from all over the US, Canada and Australia. I can't wait to start playing with them!!

Two of my virtual quilting bees finished up last month but there is still lots of fun going on in Bee Obsessed! Sara requested orange and pink asterisks for July -- 9.5, 6.5 or 3.5 inch blocks. I got so caught up in them that I ended up making all three sizes. I think I enjoyed the two smaller sizes the most.


KC Modern Quilt Guild started a project last month making baby quilts for the NICU at St. Luke's of KC. The goal is to complete 15-20 quilts by mid-October.

We could sign up for blocks in any of four color schemes:

blue/red/green/yellow
blue/orange
pink/green
purple/lavender/brown/white

I chose to make 3 blocks each in pink/green.....




and purple/lavender/brown/white.....




It was fun to work with girly colors and patterns...I've been limited to colors and patterns geared to boys lately;) But don't you worry, sweet grandbabies, that's no complaint;))))

Marilyn