Studio Jules

Time to Get Busy!

2012-01-31T10:56:00.000-06:00

Didn't I say I was going to post more regularly this year? Where has the time gone? My excuses? Family in from out of town, playing with the grandkids and catching a cold. This past week I tried to play catch-up, but my cold was getting the best of me. I tried to do some quilting one day, but when I caught my thumb with the machine needle, I gave up and turned off the machine. Yes, I'm current on my tetanus shot.
Today I'm in the studio and ready to quilt two 9 x 12 art quilts that I created last week. Misty Fuse and the iron I could handle without hurting myself.
These are the two 9 x 12's I am going to quilt, thread paint and bead today. They are two of my donations for DAFA's Special Exhibit in their Annual Show for the Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative (AAQI).

Building Entry

Left: "Building Entry" is from a picture I took when we were in Charleston. It is the entry way to one of the buildings we passed by when we were on a walking tour. I used Tsukineko Fabrico markers on duck canvas.

The Flag

Right: "The Flag" is an image I have had in my head for years. We toured the Smithsonian years ago when we were in Washington, DC on vacation and this is of the flag hanging in the entry. I have beads for the stars. The background is hand dyed batting ~ a new technique I think I really like.

Okay, time to get busy, because I also have fabric to dye this afternoon!

Happy New Year and New Goals

2012-01-05T11:03:00.000-06:00

Ice Dyed Fat Quarter in my Etsy shop

As usual, time gets away from me and I'm late on my New Year's post. I spent time looking back to my posts a year ago and realized that I've come a long way in the past year. I don't think I created as many pieces are art /art quilts as I did in 2010, but I accomplished a lot. A year ago I opened my Etsy shop and it has been a success, in my opinion. Those of us that sell our creations, always wish for more sales, but I can't complain. I'm happy with the progress. I started selling my hand dyes at quilt shows and have 4 shows planned for this year, so far. My dyeing methods have grown from parfait dyeing, to snow dyeing, to ice dyeing. I have dabbled a little more in surface techniques and this year I plan to expand more in this area. I feel the direction I want to move this year with my art quilting is calling for an expansion in this area. I tried some new styles of art quilting this past year and plan on trying to be more abstract this year, but using the influence of structures and geometric objects and colors that are out of my normal palette.

I hosted Sandra Sider for a weekend, while she was here for critiques and lectures (she is a lot of fun!). I learned so much in the few days that I spent with her and it has given me a broadened view of where I want my art quilting to grow. Thank you Sandra!

Part of my plan for this year is to take time to photograph new structures to use in my art. I usually get up and head to the studio, but this year I'm going to make an effort to have a day or two each month to spend time outside and photograph.

This past year I was able to show in three different quilt shows, this year I already have three planned and need to spend time planning others to enter and broaden my scope of entering quilts, that means, I need to get busy and create some more art quilts!

The Dallas Area Fiber Artists have their annual show in April and this will be my last show as Show Co-Chair. When our new board takes over mid-year, I have volunteered to be President and have several ideas in mind to encourage our group to expand and grow as artists and in membership.

Well, I'm sure there is more in my brain that I wanted to share with you this morning, but right now I have to get busy and photograph more fabric for my Etsy and Art Fire shops. The end of the year was very good to me and now I need to get busy and post post post!

My big thrill of the year? Having "Old Alton Bridge" included in the Lone Stars III;Texas Quilts Today book and the "Truck Quilt" included in IFQ Quilting Scene Magazine. Plus being interviewed by the Alliance of American Quilts. Being in these two publications and being interviewed made going to IQF so much fun this year, especially since Jeff went with me to enjoy the festivities and see all the quilts.

Happy New Year everyone and I pray that your creative dreams and goals are accomplished this year!

Ice Dyeing Again!

2011-12-23T13:19:00.000-06:00

Even in the midst of Christmas shopping and making Christmas presents, I had to spend a few minutes in the dye studio yesterday and ice dye some fabric. I needed some fabric therapy. This piece (one yard) is Strongest Red and Clear Yellow. I also dyed a half yard and four fat quarters. I don't have time to load them online yet, but if you are interested, drop me an email and I'll make time to take pics and send them to you.

While these beautiful pieces of fabric were washing and drying I got to work in the studio and made this precious tool belt for my grandson (he's pretty precious too). I already had this in the plan when our son asked me to make Hudson two tool belts. One for their house and one for ours, that way he can help Paw Paw in the workshop. I used fabrics out of my stash. Faux suede and Building Blocks by American Jane Patterns. I found an online tutorial for the pattern. One-Hip-Mom has a great blog with the tutorial. The tool belt went together quick and easy. She has some other great tutorials on her site too. Check it out!

Okay, time to get back to work on the next little Christmas surprises!

One Christmas Project Down, Time for the Rest!

2011-12-20T10:06:00.001-06:00

One Christmas project has been completed and I'm ready to clean up my studio and get on with planning the next! My studio is in chaos, well, chaos for me. You all know how I like my studio organized and straightened up, I just can't create with piles for fabric on the floor, on the worktable, and sitting on different stools and counter tops.

Last night I had a great time at the Dallas Area Fiber Artists covered dish and Christmas Silent Auction. I was able to win a beautiful necklace made by my dear friend, JoAnn Musso, and a black and white original painting by Flo Barry. Both are wonderful women and I am so blessed to have handmade creations from both of them. I try to get one of Flo's black and white paintings every year for Jeff's office. I have decorated it with black and white photos and art work.

Next on my " "To Do List" is cleaning up the studio and planning the next Christmas surprises. I have a couple in mind, but I can't tell you, because then it may spoil Christmas for someone. Sorry. I am going to create my plan of action for dyeing fabric, planning out shows to enter, new creations that are in my brain, (some I've pulled fabric for already), plus planning out the creation of our new master bedroom quilt. I've dyed most of the fabric already, thought I had dyed it all, but after I ice dyed a yard to add in, I've decided that I may need another yard. Just love the ice dyed fabrics!

I hope all you have a productive and beautiful day!

Christmas Creativity!

2011-12-15T12:13:00.000-06:00

I'm still busy working on my Christmas creative list. These little notebook cases are darling! I am streamlining the process of cutting, quilting, stitching together. I'm almost done with all the quilting, but I need to take a break and stitch some of these together today. I'm seeing my BFF tomorrow and want to let her pick one out! Today is going to be hit and miss on the stitching because we are having rain storms. One wave has already gone through and another one is on its way. I have great surge protectors on my machines, but I still hate to be sewing along and the power surge. When I have the machine off I'm going to plan out my next project or two.

Since I'm making so many notebook covers, I have been using quilting stitches from The Free Motion Quilting Project. Leah has great quilting patterns and tutorials on her site. I truly appreciate the hard work and time she has spent on this project! This has been a great time for me to be able to try out new quilting patterns and expand my mind and not stay with the same quilting designs that I usually use.
Okay, need to get busy before the next wave of thunder storms!
Create and be Happy!

Getting Organized

2011-12-11T19:06:00.001-06:00

I know I talk a lot about organization in my studio and here I am again and this time I'm promoting a friend of mine who has written a book on organization. Kathy Wright is a dear friend of mine and has written a wonderful book on being a busy mom and being organized. The book is named appropriately The "Wright" Way to Get Organized. I'm telling you about this book now, because it would be the perfect gift for someone on your Christmas list, or download it for yourself! Kathy had the book published on Blurb, so downloading or ordering the soft or hard cover books are simple!
Enjoy!

2011-12-10T17:08:00.001-06:00

I am up to my ears with projects and things to do. With getting ready for Christmas, taking care of household things and celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary, I don't know if/when I will see the light at the end of the tunnel. Today I've been working on my website, Studio Jules Art. My step-son has taken care of it inthe past years for me and the time has come that I needed to take it over and off of his busy plate. I truly appreciate the hard work and time he spent on my website in the past years. I decided to move it to the blogger site and use it as my gallery and categorize my art work and art quilts by year of creation with links to Etsy and Art Fire for the ones that are for sale. Plus it links back and forth to my blog easily.

Take a peek and let me know what you think here on my blog post.

Yesterday I started on Christmas projects for the Dallas Area Fiber Artists Silent Auction and as Christmas presents for some well deserving fiber friends. The other day I bought Simple Quilts and Sewing magazine because it has some great projects and ideas in it. One that really caught my organized eye is the notepad project by Betty Berginski. This is a great project to use fat quarters and/or scrap fabric in your stash. I've really enjoyed cutting out and making several of these as gifts!

Notepad Case

Inside of Notepad Case

December Shipping/Shopping

2011-11-29T09:31:00.001-06:00

"Confused"

Well, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are over, but Christmas Shopping is still happening! To celebrate the shopping season, I'm offering FREE SHIPPING on all Art Work and Art Quilts in my Etsy and Art Fire shops. Use Coupon Code ARTWORKFREESHIP in both shops to get the free shipping on these beautiful pieces!

The piece above is called "Confused". It is mixed media on stretched canvas. Painted with textile and acrylic paints, denim, silk, cheesecloth, painted Misty Fuse, papers and beads. It is listed in my Etsy shop.

I have a lot of fabric that isn't posted on either shop (just haven't had time to take the pictures and post them!), so if you are looking for a certain color, color combination, or size, shoot me an email and I'll let you know what I have! The Ice Dyed fabrics are fantastic!

Okay, off to clean up my desk, do much hated paperwork, and clean up the Christmas decorating mess. I've done as much as I can do this year for decorating. What isn't done, is going back in the attic!

Happy Shopping with FREE SHIPPING everyone!

Happy Thanksgiving and Black Friday Free Shipping!

2011-11-24T07:54:00.001-06:00

Color Explosion - in my Art Fire Studio

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I just love this day. It is the one day every year that I get to serve my family. Have them in our home and cook big. I love to cook, but don't get the opportunity to cook big very often - aka, empty nest syndrome. I get to spend today visiting with my parents, sister, sister-in-law (brother is working so his plant workers can have the day off - such a good guy!), nephew and Mr. Wonderful.
Cosmo, our precious Maltese, is all dressed up in his Thanksgiving bandanna and ready for the company to arrive.

Tomorrow is Black Friday, so I am offering Free Shipping on everything in my Etsy and Art Fire Shops. If you shop StudioJulesArt on Etsy use the coupon code "BlackFridayFreeShipping" and if you shop StudioJules on Art Fire, the Free Shipping is already taken care of.

I pray each of you have many things to be thankful for this year. Family is on the top of list!

Ice Dyeing, Oh My Goodness, I'm Hooked!!!!!

2011-11-13T18:08:00.001-06:00

Okay, in my post day before yesterday I told you about my first day of "Ice Dyeing". I'm hooked, hook, line and sinker. This is the way I'm going to work for a while. Just look at what happens!

These two are already posted on StudioJulesArt on Etsy.

Colors used: Lilac, Fuchsia, and Clear Yellow

Colors used: Slate Blue, Basic Red and Lemon-Lime Green

Can you believe how beautiful and gorgeous these fabrics are! Here are the other two. They are in my StudioJules Art Fire studio.

Colors used: Lilac, Fuchsia and Clear Yellow

Colors used: Slate Blue, Basic Red and Lemon-Lime Green

11-11-11

2011-11-11T08:32:00.001-06:00

Double Tulip Quilt, Quilted by Alma Baugh 1966

As we look back in history, World War I ended, on the 11 hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. When I was checking FaceBook this morning there was a post from The Quilt Index reminding me of the significance of this date in history, along with a post of a quilt made in 1918. I'm reminded the "quiet" way women have played such a strong roll in our history by creating quilts to warm their families, give direction to slaves through the underground railroad, pass on family histories and love, oh, the list goes on. I appreciate this important piece history and how it has played in our lives and how it has evolved into elaborate traditional quilting and art quilts. I give great thanks to the pioneer women who passed down this tradition to their daughters and granddaughters. There is a history of quilters on Mom's side of the family. The picture above is of a quilt on my quilt rack. Two of my grandmothers' cousins made the blocks in the 1920's and then her step-mom (the only great-grandparent I knew) quilted it in 1966. After Mimi finished the quilting, it laid on my bed. My mom kept the quilt until my 40th birthday and then it became mine. Lucky me! I'm so blessed to be able to treasure this piece of family history and know the history of the blocks and quilting. When Mimi was quilting this quilt, the blocks were old enough that the fabric was thin and fragile. Mom asked why she was spending time quilting a quilt that was already in slightly poor condition, and the answer was that it was the best way to spend the day and to pass time.

Today, I treasure getting to spend my days in my studio, passing time, continuing a family tradition of quilting, even though it is in art quilt form, not traditional quilts.Well, I periodically make traditional quilts, just ask my grandkids!

Dye selection

Yesterday I spent a good part of the day dyeing fabric. In the August/September 2011 issue of Quilting Arts Magazine, there is an article on Ice Dyeing. Oh yum! So yesterday I decided it was a great time to try it. Here are some pictures of the beginning of the process. I selected my dyes and dyed 2 yards per color selection.

Fabric, Ice, Dye

I only had enough ice to dye two color selections, so I'll ice dye the other two tomorrow. Lucky for me, we have a nice under the counter ice maker!

In the instructions it said to cover the fabric, ice and dye with a cover, well I used my favorite fiber, cheesecloth. I also put some cheesecloth at the end of the tray to sit in the dye run off. Can't wait to see how it all comes out in the wash later today.

Cheesecloth over the ice

Here is a picture of the fabric and cheesecloth, the ice has all melted and is ready to start the rinsing and washing process. There will be pictures tomorrow of the completed pieces!

Ice has melted and ready to wash! Love these colors!

Dye Color Decisions

2011-11-09T15:41:00.000-06:00

Decisions, Decisions...what's a girl to do. I need to get busy dyeing fabric so I'm not behind come the first of the year when the quilt shows are all gearing up. Last week I made a delightful trip to United Notions/Moda and bought 5 bolts of PFD.

Today, I'm sitting here with my list of dye colors and my color wheel. Trying to decide what new color combos would be pretty and pleasing to the eyes of my customers.

So, help me out here ya'll, what color combos do you like?

IQF 2011 - It was a wonderful time!

2011-11-07T18:55:00.001-06:00

Standing with my Old Alton Bridge quilt

Oh, it was a wonderful time at IQF 2011. The Friday night reception for the quilters in the Lone Stars III book was exciting. I had a wonderful time getting to know some of the quilters, signing each others books and seeing the quilts.

Here I am with my friend Amy Walker

Saturday we have spent the day looking at the quilts with our wonderful friends, and former neighbors, Dale and Amy Walker. Amy is my dear friend who introduced me to appreciating antique quilts, which led to me deciding I could make traditional quilts, which led to me getting board with piecing and discovering art quilting. So to the day with her was icing on the cake for me.

After we looked at all (close to all) the quilts, I reported for my interview with the Alliance of American Quilts. Treat for me, I was able to meet Amy Milne. What a wonderful woman! I have an admiration for her energy and excitement about the "Save our Stories" project and the work they are doing.

Okay, how much shopping did I do at festival? Well, not as much as I usually do! I had my list of dyes to buy from ProChem, the Masters and Masters 2 books from SAQA, my annual splurge on fudge, and Jeff bought me a bracelet. That's it! Believe it or not! This trip was about seeing the quilts with Amy, spending the time with Jeff, the book reception, and the interview...shopping was not too high on my list and I know that is hard for some of my "dye" hard friends to imagine, but it's true.

Saturday we were going to go to the Gala on the Green, but we just couldn't get the energy to go. I had awoken Friday morning with vertigo and it was just about gone, but still teasing me a bit. Sunday we drove home, listening to a Nickolas Sparks book and I loads of ideas stitching around in my head. I always have more ideas than I have time to make art quilts, but it is the passion that gets me up in the morning and into the studio each day.

Today I worked on some charity quilts and will finish them up tonight while, hopefully. Tomorrow, well it will be a day to "dye" for and working on the background of a new little quilt I'm testing out.

Happy creating everyone and enjoy your creative brain more than that other side!

And The Winner Is....I mean Are....

2011-11-03T09:39:00.001-05:00

Waiting to pick the winners!

Well, Cosmo the Gentleman, (yes, that is his registered name) did his duty this morning. He just wasn't up to it last night, so first thing this morning we came up to the Studio and got to business. Here he is with our wonderful fiber bowl and 13 entries. Now, Cosmo reminded me that I have not just one, but two extra copies of IQF Quilting Scene, so he is going to pick 2 winners! Well, okay then!

Picking Winner #1

Winner #1 is Gail! Gail enjoys free motion stitching/quilting and couching instead of satin stitching (I need to try that, I have several couching feet!). Congratulations Gail, I'll email you to get your address.

Picking Winner #2

Winner #2 is Lu Peters! Wonderful! Lu is one of my favorite people and I'm blessed to be the DAFA Show Co-Chair with her this year! Lu has two favorite techniques, variegated quilting threads and adding embellishments.

Congratulations Ladies! I hope you enjoy this magazine as much as I have. I think I have read through it 3 times this past week and there are wonderful articles in it!

IQF Quilting Scene Give Away!

2011-10-31T17:53:00.000-05:00

I just can't contain my excitement about my "Truck Quilt" being a part of the International Quilt Show Quilting Scene magazine! I'm in such a stitch about it that I just have to share it with you. Starting right now, I am having a GIVE AWAY of a copy of the publication. Here are the rules. Post a comment on my blog with your favorite fiber or quilting technique. On Wednesday night, November 2nd, I will put all the comments in a container (probably made of fiber, no doubt) and my precious little Studio dog, Cosmo, will pick the winner!

Cosmo, my precious Studio Dog

Oh, don't worry, he is up to the challenge, as long as I give him a treat! So, make those comments, I can't wait to read them!

For those of you who (or is it whom) already have the magazine, my quilt is on page 37!

In case you haven't already figured it out dear readers, my favorite fiber to include in my art quilts...painted or dyed cheesecloth!

Now what's yours?!

Happy Posting!

My Time with Sandra Sider, President of SAQA

2011-10-26T10:10:00.000-05:00

The past few days have been absolutely wonderful. Sandra Sider, President of Studio Art Quilt Associates, is one of the most pleasant, knowledgeable and fun people I have ever met. From the moment she walked into my home, I felt like I had known her forever. Sandra was here to conduct critique sessions and speak to the Dallas Area Fiber Artists, and I offered to host her. While Sandra was here she spent one-on-one time with me talking about my finished projects, the projects I am working on and the ones that I'm going to work on. And yes, I had to sit down and write notes. The insight and encouragement she gave me is priceless and I can see further down the "Fiber Art World" road now. The timing of this visit was perfect for me since I just quit working at the Soma Intimates store and was in a minor slump and trying to get back into my creative groove.

The program Sandra gave to the Dallas Area Fiber Artists was wonderful. She had curated a Fiber Arts show in New York. The slides of the work were wonderful and learning her thought process was provoking and has me thinking about how Lu Peters and I will hang the DAFA Annual show in April.

To make things even more perfect this past week, we were involved in watching (and still are) the Texas Rangers in the World Series. Now, Sandra is a big Yankees fan, but while in Texas, she is cheering for the Rangers. I have to share with you that Sandra has a "lucky t-shirt" that she wears every time she flies. It is one that she bought in Naples, Italy, and Naples in Italian is Napoli. And the best catcher in the world is Texas Rangers, Mike Napoli!

When I dropped Sandra off at the airport yesterday she told me that she was going to wear her Napoli shirt all day and all day today, to help the Rangers win the Series.

I just love this lady and have the greatest respect for her! Thank you Sandra and I look forward to seeing you again in Houston during the International Quilt Festival and again sometime in our "Fiber Future"!

I've Been Published!

2011-10-24T11:25:00.000-05:00

I am so excited! The "Lone Stars III: A Legacy of Texas Quilts, 1986 - 2011" is out and my Old Alton Bridge quilt is on page 280. I didn't know the book was in stores until my friend, Connie Akers, told me at dinner Saturday night that she had seen it that day. So, Sunday morning we were at Barnes and Noble right after they opened to get the book and....the "International Quilt Festival Quilt Scene" magazine.

I had not mentioned it before, I wanted to keep it a secret until I saw it, but I had received an email about a month ago that they were considering my Truck Quilt as on the the quilts in the publication. And it's there! On page 32! As a Fiber Artist, one of my goals is to have my work recognized and publicized and I'm just in awe that it has happened twice, at the same time! What a wonderful way to inspire me and keep my in the studio creating and thinking up new ideas (that's not hard to do...those thoughts keep me awake at night, as I'm sure they do you too).

Speaking of being influenced with wonderful inspirations, I am currently hosting SAQA President, Sandra Sider, while she is conducting a critique session in Forth Worth and speaking to the Dallas Area Fiber Artists tonight. Being able to spend these 3 days with her and glean from her expertise has been encouraging and eye-opening. Sandra has given be wonderful confirmation on completed projects (and how I can improve the flow of one of them), guidance and encouragement on works-in-progress and best of all, she loves watching the World Series with us!

Alright, I'm off to work on a few pieces before we leave for the DAFA meeting!

Looking Forward

2011-10-15T14:45:00.000-05:00

Under the Sea

This past week was very busy with work (yesterday was my last day at Soma), catching up from the quilt show, catching up from the daughter and granddaughters being here and getting organized for the upcoming week.

"Under the Sea" is a upside down mini-quilt (9x12) that spun off from my "Outside In" quilt. I haven't finished it yet, but hopefully I will sometime beading on it this weekend, definitely this next week. It is due to SAQA-TX by the 28th for the SAQA-TX exhibit of 9x12's at the International Quilt Festival. I have a sunflower quilt also and need to get busy on beading the center of it.

With so much to do this next week, I couldn't help but add to the mix a 2 day workshop with the Trinity Valley Quilt Guild. Larkin Van Horn is our guest speaker this month and is giving us a 2 day workshop on "Beading is Applique'". I'm so excited to be able to spend two days with her and learn more about beading on my art quilts.

Saturday, Sandra Sider, President of SAQA will be coming to town for critique workshops and a speaking engagement with the Dallas Area Fiber Artists. And she is staying with me! I'm so excited that I get to entertain her for a few days and bask in her knowledge and expertise. Saturday night I have invited DAFA and local SAQA members to my home for a cookout and a get-to-know Sandra evening. Our new grill has been completed, so we are going to get the chance to test out massive grilling on it and enjoy our fire pit with great conversations. If you are a local SAQA member, contact me and come for the cookout Saturday night!

Now, I must get to beading...

Where Have I Been?!?!?!?!?!

2011-10-08T18:28:00.000-05:00

Gosh, I knew I had been busy, but I didn't realize it had been weeks since I paid attention to my blog! My weeks since my Painted Cheesecloth workshop have been filled with working for Soma Intimates and getting ready for the Trinity Valley Quilt Show in Fort Worth, TX.

The quilt show went well. Here is a pictures of my friend, Kathy Mayhew, in our booth at the show.
Now I am trying to find time to finish unpacking from the show and see what I need to dye for the Texas Federation of Fiber Artists show in February. February is the semi-annual conference for the Texas Federation of Fiber Artists. There will be a gallery show, classes and a dinner. I'm going to vend the show with Kathy's surface designed fabrics and my hand dyed fabrics and fibers.

As much as I enjoy the ladies at the Soma Intimates store, I had to give them my notice this past week. I really hated doing it after only a couple of months work, but my fibromyalgia just isn't cooperating with the routine. I've been in a lot of pain the past two, going on three, weeks and I just had to give it up. I'll work this week and then I'll be back in the Studio full time and working on loading more fabrics in my online shops, vending quilt shows and developing classes to teach.

I was encouraged at the TVQG show by our members and members of other quilt guilds to teach and learn the dying process and my painted cheesecloth process. The experience of working out in the public and not being able to pace myself properly has taught me that I must find an avenue where I can pace myself and work with my passion and be able to share it with others. So, there is my focus and that is what I am going to strive for. Passing on my passion, and as artists, don't we become more passionate about our art when we can pass it on and see the excitement and joy it brings to other artists?

This week our daughter and twin granddaughters are here for a visit, so we have been busy, busy, busy with these little "Princess Angels". Yesterday, we went to the Fort Worth Zoo and saw lots of animals they don't get to see at the LA zoo. I would love to show you pictures, but for some reason my phone isn't wanting to forward pictures to my email address, so I'm stuck right now. Why do we hold our selves hostage to technology?

That reminds me of what my dear friend, Lu Peters, wrote in an email to me lately, "Obviously technology is not my strong suit! If it fits under the sewing machine or in a hoop, I could manage it!" Isn't that the truth! Keeping to the basics is so much easier for some of us than trying to master the latest and greatest technology.

Well, I while I was writing this I realized that I do have a cable that I can use to transfer media between my Droid and computer, so now I can get the pictures from the zoo! Maybe I was maxing out the memory capabilities of the phone or something.... Who knows, not me for sure!

Okay, so here are a few of my favorite pictures from our visit to the zoo yesterday....

Oh, to have a long neck and be able to reach things!

King of the Jungle!

See No Evil, Hear No Evil and Speak No Evil...

Amanda and Sadie feeding the birds

I'm reading several magazines right now, one of them is "Artful Blogging". I'm ready for inspiration and encouragement to keep motivated and improve my blogging habits and art. So, and I may have said this before, I'm going to make a better habit to keep in touch and let you know what I am doing and what I am learning!
Stay Creative!

DAFA Workshop and Being Creative Today!

2011-09-23T17:37:00.000-05:00

Everyone is being creative!

Our wonderful Program Director
Linda Disosway

Suzanne Morgan
working on her abstract creation

This past Saturday I spent a wonderful day with members of the Dallas Area Fiber Artists, teaching my Painted Cheesecloth and 12x12 Sunflower workshop. Here are a few pictures of the members and their creations!

Valery Guignon
also working abstract

Valery's painted cheesecloth

DAFA President - Janet Jelen
working on Sunflower placement

Karen Fischer and Pam Patton
sharing creative ideas

My work schedule this past week hasn’t allowed me to be inthe studio very much, but I’ve made some progress today and have the basics tothree art quilts in progress and the thoughts of several more are written down.Here’s a peek at what I’ve gotten started. Hopefully I can finish these nextweek before I leave for the Trinity Valley Quilt Show in Fort Worth. If you arein the area, don’t forget to come by, see the show and say Hi!

While I have been working in the Studio today I have been listening to "Sister's Choice" by Emilie Richards. I love her books and to my wonderful surprise there is a quilter in this book. One that, like me, wanted to venture beyond the traditional quilts and enjoyed exploring art quilting. I appreciated the way she expressed the way quilter's are. Paraphrasing, they always have a quilt in process, a quilt on their work wall, a quilt under the needle, quilts in our heads, quilts waiting to be bound, quilting until our final breath. Isn't that how we all feel?

Continue to be creative my friends!

Another Busy Day

2011-09-16T21:00:00.001-05:00

Today was another busy day, running errands, hair appointment and shipping my Old Alton Bridge Quilt off to the International Quilt Association. It has to get ready for the release of Karey Patterson Bresenhan & Nancy O’Bryant Puentes' third book, Lone Stars III: Texas Quilts Today. I am honored and blessed to have this quilt included in their book, recording the history of quilting in Texas and how it has evolved over the years. Karey and Nancy released information to us earlier this month that the book has been featured in the September issue of Texas Monthly. I am thrilled for them that the book is getting such wonderful press and recognition. The Old Alton Bridge Quilt will travel with the book exhibit to the new Texas Quilt Museum in La Grange, Texas and other shows and museums this next year. I will dearly miss this quilt hanging in my home, but I am so excited that it is getting to travel and be viewed by other people.

For those of you who don't know the history of this quilt, I'll tell you. The Old Alton Bridge is a historic bridge in Denton County, Texas, close to my home. I took a picture of it before I left for a workshop. it was late in the day, sunset, and it was early enough in the Spring to where there wasn't any vegetation emerging yet, so my picture was blah, boring, but I had a great subject to work with. When I got to the workshop, I had taken an enormous amount of commercial fabric and three yards of fabric that I had hand painted a week or so before. I ended up using just my hand painted fabric, as you can see. I took the week long workshop to jump start me off of traditional quilts and into art quilts. I think I made a good jump, leap and hurdle!

Oh, and have I told you, this was my first art quilt.

Painted Cheesecloth Workshop - September 17th

2011-09-10T11:20:00.000-05:00

Good Morning! I am teaching a workshop on September 17th for the Dallas Area Fiber Artists at The Point, C.C. Young Center. The enrollment is now open to Non-DAFA members!

This is a fun, messy and easy workshop. In this workshop we will learn how to paint cheesecloth with textile and/or acrylic paints and various ways to dry the cheesecloth. Then we will create the above sunflower 12x12 Art Quilt.

The workshop fee is $35 for DAFA members and $40 for non-DAFA members. Click here to go to the flyer with information regarding the workshop. Sign up today because the workshop is in a week!!!!

Looking forward to a creative day with you!

Nancy's Crystal Fantasies

2011-09-07T07:00:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, I posted about some of my favorite blogs to read. Well, Nancy of Nancy's Crystal Fantasies has this great bracelet that would be fantastic to go with my work clothes.

Oh, did I tell you that I'm working part-time for Soma Intimates at the Shops of Highland Village? Oh yes, and I love it. The ladies I work with are beautiful and a joy to work with and the customers are the best! The store just opened last week and we can only wear white, black or cream. Oh, I know what you are thinking...Jules is an artist! A child of color! My words exactly to my manager!

Anyway, this bracelet of Nancy's would be PERFECT for work! You know, when you have to wear the same colors over and over the key is to accessorize, accessorize, accessorize.
So take a peek at Nancy's blog and her Etsy shop! She has some great pieces full of color!

Overwhelmed and Moving Toward Being Creative

2011-09-06T11:42:00.000-05:00

Have you felt so over whelmed that you just want to crawl back in bed and play Scarlet? You know, "worry about it tomorrow". It's Tuesday and I feel like it's Monday... I'm sitting in my Studio, finally, after running the morning errands, needing to input the receipts from our purchases from vacation and this past weekend and desperately wanting to get my hands in my fabric and create a new quilt. Good things come to those who wait, I know, but I really need some "quilt therapy" today. It has been over two weeks since I've had a chance to enjoy my studio!

With that said, I had a great surprise yesterday. One of my Blog Readers gave me a "Favorite Blog Award". I'm told "Liebster" is a German word for "favorite" or "beloved" and have received this Liebster Award from Betty at the Arts and Crafters Supply Community.

The idea is to link back to the blog who picked you and then add give the award to 5 of your favorite blogs with less than 200 followers. Then they can do the same. We of course are looking to promote each others blogs and get more followers. So join in the fun to help promote not only your blog but help others too.

If you visit each blog and follow each one you like the numbers will increase dramatically and you will have made numerous new friends and contacts!

Without further ado, here are my favorites:

Fannie Narte

Kathy Mayhew

Suzan Engler

Nancy's Crystal Fantasies

Bear Chick's Journey

So, I'm off to clear off my desk, find my studio table and start on a few new quilts! The 2011 International Quilt Festival is coming up and the Texas SAQA members are putting together another display of 9x12 Art Quilts and this year they are going to be for sale!

The SAQA Benefit Auction starts on September 12, 2011, so click here to see the mini-quilts up for auction and don't forget to bid!

Have a Creative Day!

Jules

2011-09-02T07:26:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it has been so long since I posted! I've been busy, we went on vacation to California for a week to see our daughter and her family. Played on the beach with our precious granddaughters and played at other parks and amusement sites. While we were on the beach we collected sea shells, sand dollars and rocks that the waves brought in. I was collecting the sand dollars for art quilts and put them in my husbands pocket...when he took his swim suit off, he rolled it up to squeeze out the water...and crushed the sand dollars and sea shells. There are some large enough pieces left that I think I might be able to do some things with them and I'm sure it will involve painted cheesecloth.

While we were in CA we had family pictures taken by our friend Paul Kawabori. Paul and his wife, Amy, are wonderful friends of our daughter and Paul is the most fabulous photographer. Paul shot new head shots for me and they are just wonderful! The family pictures are great. The girls were in more of a playful mood and weren't always wanting to cooperate, but hey, their 2!

The day after we got back from CA I started a new part-time job at Soma Intimates. So far this week it has kept me busy and I'm learning my time schedules and trying to balance this position with studio time. I'm sure it is going to take me a few weeks to balance my time out and I'm anxious to get into the studio. I have a few quilts in my head and I need to play with fabric!

Have a Creative Day and enjoy your Labor Day weekend!

Getting Things Done

2011-08-18T12:12:00.005-05:00

This week has been busy, busy, busy. I finished preparing my hand dyed fabrics for the Trinity Valley Quilt Show and just have cards and patterns left to prepare. I also need to prepare kits for the Painted Cheesecloth and Sunflower Art Quilt workshop I am teaching to the DAFA members on September 17th. But I think this will wait until closer to the workshop so I know exactly how many to prepare.

I have taken time for myself this week with a wonderful massage and mani/pedi on Tuesday. Then I did a little shopping. Since my birthday is tomorrow, I decided that it was time to take some time off and pamper myself a bit.

This morning I received a wonderful email about one of my pieces of fabric being included in a Treasury on Etsy. Here is the link to Style Study #26 Mediterranean. It is a beautiful, relaxing collection. I'm honored to have one of my pieces included!

Reorganizing my "To Do List"

2011-08-14T18:58:00.003-05:00

I am truly thankful for all God has put before me - the challenges and the rewards. I am thankful that He has given me my faith, my family, and the talent and drive to create beautiful (and sometimes not so beautiful) artwork. Today was a wonderful morning at church and I have been able to make time this afternoon to catch up on group discussions, Etsy discussions, business development emails and watch a few movies in the process. For those of you who know me and are getting to know me, you know that if I could multi-task in my sleep, I would. I just have a hard time “not” multi-tasking. Even with the perpetual habit of multi-tasking, I have been feeling a little overwhelmed lately. Trying to accomplish so much in what seems so little time. I started to give you my “To Do List”, but I decided you could already relate and didn’t need (or want) to be burdened by my overwhelming need to do so much.

I will share with you that I have read and been involved in some wonderful discussions lately. I am a member of TAFA, the Textile and Fiber Art List. There are a number of us linked on LinkedIn and Rachel led us into a discussion this week on how we price our products. Great discussion on how we set our pricing and being careful not to under-price our products, and/or ourselves, and how hard this is sometimes. The timing was apropos because I had just received the weekly email from Etsy Success about using Product Worksheets to help with the pricing of product. I have already priced my products and do a lot research when I’m in the process and calculating my wholesale and retail prices. However, this discussion and online support from Etsy has me reevaluating my process and double checking my pricing. Reading and networking with the other artists involved with TAFA and Etsy is wonderful support and I appreciate both groups tremendously.

Honestly, networking with the groups I am involved with online seems to fall to the bottom of the list sometimes because I put more time and effort into producing product. However, as of today, I have decided to spend more time networking and I realize that as I do, it will help me with my production process. When we get so busy with our lives and the “To Do List”, it is easy to let our priorities become misaligned. So my friends, I encourage you to evaluate your “To Do List” and see where you are out of balance and how making sure your faith, family, community and work on in the proper order. Oh, and don’t forget, we have to get some exercise too.

Are you interested in TAFA? Here are the great links to the different venues TAFA has available!

TAFA - the Textile and Fiber Art List
TAFA Market
TAFA on Facebook
TAFA Blog

Happy creating everyone!

Hail Damage Repairs = A Creative Process

2011-08-04T11:45:00.003-05:00

Today starts the first of the major hail damage repairs being made. After this morning we will no longer look out onto our English Garden through broken glass. Saturday and Sunday, the old roof will be ripped off and the new one put on. Then we will schedule the gutters to be replaced. This entire process reminds me of quilting. We rip fabric, dye it, cut it up and create something new and beautiful. We rip out stitches to replace them with better ones. I think I could go on and on, but I think you get my drift.

Hmmmmm, today I’m ripping fabric so I can dye it! I ordered new dyes this week and still have plenty on hand, so the dyeing process will happen this weekend when my buddy, Kathy Mayhew, comes over to enjoy my air conditioned Dye Studio. With this Texas heat, you have to have an air conditioned garage to dye in, otherwise you would have to dye during the night time hours. We have been reaching temps of 110°, today is suppose to be 108° and we are suppose to get down to a cool 102° this weekend. I definitely think we will break the record of the continuous days running of 100°+ temps of 1980.

Kathy and I will have a booth at the Trinity Valley Quilt Guild Quilt Show (September 30, 2011 – October 2, 2011), so we are working hard to have a beautiful variety of Kathy’s surface design fabric and my hand dyed fabric. We will also have some completed art work and hand dyed notions. Saturday Kathy is going to continue creating her one of a kind surface design fabrics and I am going to work on creating fabrics for fat quarter bundles. I wasn’t sure about dyeing fabric for this type of product, but after I did these three bundles, I decided it was a good idea, they are darling and I think quilters will really go for them.

What do you think?

Don’t forget about the Hot Sale in my Etsy and ArtFire shops! 25% off! Beat the heat and stay inside and create!

Beat the Summer Heat, Be Creative!

2011-08-03T07:41:00.001-05:00

Will this heat ever stop? Not anytime soon, according to the weather people. Texas is headed to break the record from 1980 of the most consecutive days with temps at or above 100°. I remember the summer of 1980 very well. I was attending college in the Texas Hill Country, taking summer school, walking to classes and the cafeteria in the heat; it was not the best summer of my life (for several reasons). This summer, I’m lucky; I get to stay in the air conditioned house and I don’t have to leave, unless I want to and when I do, it is early in the day. Yesterday, my car thermostat read 103° and it was only 11am and today it is suppose to be back up to 110°. What’s a person to do? Well, I’ll tell you! BE CREATIVE!

To encourage all of you to stay inside and do something creative, I am running a HOT Sale on my ArtFire and Etsy shops. 25% off everything! Just use the code HOT2011 at check out, on either (or both) shops! Now, since it is hot outside, please remember to drink plenty of water before you shop, hydration is the key to successful shopping!

Stay cool and be creative!

On Their Way to Houston

2011-07-30T11:58:00.002-05:00

It has been an interesting week. Shipped "Sunflower with a Passion for Color" to Lowell, got busy finishing up some pricing on items that I have dyed to sell, started a baby quilt, reorganized my desk and "To Do List", was feeling accomplished with what I was getting done. Then I got an email that there is a possibility that one of my quilts may be published in a magazine. I'm not telling you which one, or what publication. I don't want to jinx it or speak too soon, but it's fun and exciting to have one of my quilts recognized and considered. So you will just have to stay tuned for the news!
So, with my feet barely touching the floor and walking around saying "Holy Cow", I packaged up "Outside In" and the "Truck Quilt" to ship to Houston for judging. I have so much on my plate right now, I had to get some things off the "To Do List", so that there is room at add other things, you know what I mean!

Have a great weekend everyone! I'm off to finish cleaning the house.

Ready to Ship

2011-07-24T08:27:00.004-05:00

Yesterday I prepared "Sunflower with a Passion for Color" to ship to the Lowell Quilt Festival in Lowell, MA. I am so excited to be included in this show. I'm looking forward to reading the judges comments on this quilt (and hoping that someone loves it enough to buy it).
I had other big news this week from the International Quilt Association, "The Truck Quilt" and "Outside In" have been chosen to be exhibited in International Quilt Festival in the November show in Houston.
Just like a finely tuned sewing machine, there was balance in my week. The great news from IQA more than balanced out the hiccup with my Bernina! BTW, the Bernina is quilting beautifully, it just doesn't want to straight stitch very well.

A Better and Productive Day

2011-07-22T07:58:00.005-05:00

Yesterday was a better day. I decided to test out my Bernina again to see if the spring was to the feed dogs, evidently it is. I was able to free motion quilt, so the day was good. Since I was able to use my machine I created a new sample for the Painted Cheesecloth workshop that I teach.

I used strips of hand dyed fabrics from where I evened up fat quarters and half yards. Recycling in a very productive and pretty way. I love this little sample, using the purple hand dyes for the background, the complementary colors are intense and striking. I didn't want to over quilt it, so I placed a few hand stitches in the corner.

We all go by the rule of having a pair of fabric scissors and a pair of paper scissors. I also use that rule for my 18mm rotary cutters. This way visitors to my studio know that I have a specific use for each of them. I have also labeled them accordingly - "F" for Fabric, "P" for Paper. Having these separate rotary cutters also allows me to have one on the cutting table and one at my ironing table. Why the ironing table? Well, I have a small cutting mat stored next to the ironing table, this way when I "audition" fabric I am able to "audition", cut and fuse, without having to walk around the table constantly.

I hope this tip helps you with your studio organization! Have a creative day!

I Sprung a Spring

2011-07-20T10:35:00.006-05:00

Today my road to good intentions was going to be paved with creating a new 12x12 art quilt for the Painted Cheesecloth workshop I am teaching. The journey down the road came to a grinding halt when I was doing my routine clean and oil of my trusted Bernina 200. I am meticulous about keeping my machine clean and oiled. Today when I was cleaning, this little spring popped out. Well, what does this go to? I tested the machine to see if there is something dire wrong and the only issue I have is regulating the tension. I was having this problem last week and just kept tweaking the bobbin case until I was satisfied. That didn't work today. So, I made a phone call to the Bernina store and can't get it in for service for a month...and I have two quilts I need to finish and one is due while the machine is in the shop. What's a girl to do...
I may have to break down and go to Kathy Mayhew's and borrow her Handi Quilter.
In the meantime, I'll go ahead and cut out the applique pieces for my 12x12 and fuse them on, put some fabric on to dye and take pictures of fabric to add to Etsy and Art Fire.
There is ALWAYS something to do...I just won't be kept in stitches today.

Shattered Curves and Dyed Fabric

2011-07-14T10:00:00.003-05:00

Shattered Curves is complete, binding and sleeve are on and it’s ready to enter into quilt shows.

This past Saturday I spent the day in the dye studio with Kathy Mayhew. It is so great to spend a day with my friend and complement each other’s dye styles. I’m a parfait dyer and Kathy has a passion for surface design treatments.

We had some great outcomes and some that surprised us. I tried out some new colors and was surprised how the colors come out with the Lemon/Lime. The first strike was a wonderful Lemon/Lime, but the second and third was definitely Lemon Yellow. The green hit the first piece of fabric and didn’t want to share.

I’ve spent the past several days ironing fabric and taking care of business tasks. I love ironing fabric. Weird, I know, but it is something that my mom taught me to do when I was little and I find taking the creases and wrinkles out of fabric and listening to a good book (Lisa Wingate’s “Over the Moon at the Big Lizard Diner” right now) relaxing.
Okay, time to get back to work! Have a great day and stay cool! This summer heat is terrible!!!

Today's Process

2011-07-05T20:14:00.005-05:00

Today I finished quilting the blocks of Shattered Curves. Tomorrow I will work on the sashing and start the borders. I just read a great blog post by Linda Matthews on slowing down and taking time with our creative process. Less “unstitching”, more meditative work, more time to enjoy the process. Ahhhhh, with the last name “Rushing”, hard for me to grasp the slow process sometimes. Hence, reminders are put in front of me, to remind me to slow down, take my time. Quilting isn’t something that is done quickly, unless you want to do some “unquilting”. Which I did today. Stitches started skipping, time to clean the machine and change the needle, make sure the bobbin case tension is right for the thread…time to pick out where the stitches were skipped and stitch again.

I did start quilting the sashing today, and then I “unquilted” it. Just didn’t like the way it looked and decided to take it out and start again in the morning. This will give me time to think through the design to use on these narrow strips of bright green. It will be good to sleep (dream) on it and start slow and fresh in the morning. Great creative things come to me in my sleep…and that is why I’m always in a rush. Too many creative ideas come to me in my sleep and I just want to get them all done, well a lot of them at least. Maybe if I slow down, breath through the process, I will get more done and be less frustrated artistically. Time will tell!

One of my fiber art friends, Fannie Narte, posted this week about “Abstract Freedom” and her yearning to create her way and not be influenced by what others think she should or shouldn’t create. Absolutely true! Creating is personal, it has to be. If we don’t create what is on our creative hearts, then we are only mimicking what someone else has created. If someone doesn’t understand our art, that’s okay. It doesn’t have to be for everyone. When I was growing up and wanting dress like everyone else, my mom would say “Why do you want to be like everyone else…be yourself.” So, my artful friends, I encourage you to be yourself. Be true to your artful heart, create with a heart full of contentment.

Artfully and creatively yours,

Jules

Almost Done and Distractions

2011-07-02T09:19:00.003-05:00

I'm almost done! Well...I probably have a couple of more days left of quilting. Quilting as densely as I am on this quilt and the thread color changes takes so much time, but it's work it. I love the way this quilt is coming together, but I keep getting distracted. Email, computer games, email, blogs, Facebook, email, show chair responsibilities, playing with the dog...get my drift?
So, for the rest of the day, no more email, Facebook, computer games, email... Luckily, the husband had to go into work this morning, so he isn't going to be a distraction for a couple of hours.
Now, let's see how much I can get done!
I'll be back when I'm finished!

To Pin or Not to Pin

2011-06-22T09:15:00.004-05:00

What do you do? I usually pin my quilts. I have friends that use spray adhesive and ones that pin. And I have friends that work small art quilts, so they don't have to do either. I've tried spray basting before, but the quilt still shifted and I didn't like the layer of adhesive going through my machine and gooping up my needle. I just grab my bowl of quilting pins and Kwip Klip and pin.

Oh, like my little bowl? It is very special to me. My step-son made one year in elementary school and gave it to me for Mother's Day. Sweet memories every time I see it and use it. I've been using it for over 20 years now!

My worktable was designed so the height is easy for me to pin on, really saves my back. I use binder clips on the edges to hold the layers in place and depending on the size, I may use blue painters tape too.

So, my quilting friends, what do you do? Let me hear from you!

Borders On

2011-06-21T14:59:00.005-05:00

Today started very early this morning, say around 2:30am. We had a tremendous hail storm that lasted around half an hour. We have neighbors with damage worse than ours, but my morning started off by walking our yard and taking pictures of the damage. There is so much damage in our area it is going to take the insurance adjuster a couple of weeks to get to us. Fortunately, only the outside panes of our double pane windows were broken. As I looked at the broken windows I thought, "Well, it goes with the quilt I'm working on!"

After things settled down I was able to get in the studio and sew the panels together and put the borders on. I fell in love with this quilt more and more with every border I stitched on. Tomorrow I am going to start practicing some of the stitches from The Free Motion Quilting Project for the quilt and start the quilting.

I decided to go ahead and put the borders on instead of quilting the panels and then putting it together. I'm glad I did, the visual of the entire quilt has energized me, and after the morning that I have had, I needed the energy.

Better run, Jeff is on his way home so we can clean the yard.

New Favorite Website

2011-06-16T13:45:00.004-05:00

When I finish a quilt top and am ready to start quilting, I get nervous. Trying to decide what to quilt where, making sure the quilt design will enhance and not ruin or take over the quilt. I look at quilts quilted by my favorite quilters, my friends, etc. I stay nervous and seem to fall back into the same motifs I always use. With this new quilt (here's a peek), I'm really nervous.

I expressed my frustration with my fiber arts buddy, Kathy Mayhew, she reminded me of the website of Leah Day, The Free Motion Quilting Project. Oh my goodness, I have gone to quilting heaven. I would have never thought of all theses quilting designs. With these at my disposal, I should never, ever, be scared again. Now I'll just have to make decisions, decisions, decisions.....
Thanks Leah for your time, talent and willingness to share!

Cheesecloth Workshop

2011-06-15T10:35:00.010-05:00

Well, I decided to start teaching. It’s part of my heritage, but I don’t want to teach school, I want to teach fiber arts techniques (play time) and projects. One of my fiber arts passions is painting cheesecloth and using it as a texture medium in my art quilts. So, I invited some of my fiber arts buddies over for a first run on my first workshop and we had a grand time! Here are some of the pictures I took during our day together.

Katina Hronas, Carol Reagan, and Barbara Kirksey talk about auditioning applique' fabrics and painting cheesecloth

Denise Spillane and Sherrie Tootle work on creating paint mixed media

Carolyn Skei works on her 12 x 12 art quilt

These are an awesome group of ladies and they gave me great feedback of what to add to my supply list and what to change in my pattern and procedures. They even gave me some great ideas for some other classes to develop and teach. I can’t say thank you enough to these artful women for spending the day with me getting messy and having fun. Here is a picture of my class sample.

If this workshop interests you, pass my name along to your workshop coordinator with your guild or art group. For my workshop I supply a project kit of a pattern, instructions for the project, cheesecloth to paint and a bonus of some of my hand dyed cheesecloth.

In my last post I mentioned that I would post pictures of my dyed fabric. Last week I was so busy getting ready for the Saturday workshop, I didn’t have time to take pictures. But their coming, I promise!

Dye Day!

2011-06-06T20:56:00.004-05:00

Today was great fun, I used my dye sink for the first time and oh how sweet it is! To be able to have a double sink and be able to mix several colors at once. I had an assembly line going! There are fabrics in the wash and these just came out of the dryer, I know it is hard tell by the picture, but the color combinations are awesome. I tried some new color combos and mixed some colors together (bright yellow and chartreuse) to see what would happen and boy, did the colors pop! In the fabric mix today I dyed my regular cotton, three different weights of linen, doilies, Aida cloth, trim, rick rack, lace, and my favorite mixed media technique item - cheesecloth.
Tomorrow is ironing day, so when the ironing is done - I'll post more pictures.
Just had to tease you a little bit today!

Dye Sink and our Little Helper

2011-06-02T13:26:00.004-05:00

I'm thrilled! My dye sink is installed in the garage, aka "Jeff's workshop". Yes, I have invaded his workshop. He has a sink, but I need a bigger sink and one that is easier for me to work in. His is built up 6 inches higher than it should be, due to the flooring he is going to install, someday. Anyway, our son and precious grandson came over to help. Isn't this the cutest face ever!

"Hudson the Helper" making sure that the pipes are not clogged before installation. And yes, he put these PVC pieces together all my himself! Smart boy!

I love my sink and the faucet I picked out is perfect. One handle to turn it on and off and I'm able to control the temp easier. The spray can either be a stream or spray, great for cleaning up!

Since I have my own "Dye Station", I had to purchase more PFD at United Notions/Moda last week. While I was walking the isles to see what was new I came across this great little stand by Simply Renee Clip It Up. I think their main market is for scrapbooking, but I thought this was perfect for Fat Quarters.

Ahhhh, Back in the Studio...

2011-05-24T11:24:00.007-05:00

It’s hard getting ready for vacation and it’s hard getting back in the Studio when you get back… I’m finally getting back into the Studio and getting caught up. It feels good to be back in my Studio, surrounded by my fabric and paint….
First, let me tell you what I did BEFORE we left for the coast. I’m a one of those obsessive, compulsive people that likes to have a new purse before I leave on vacation and I usually make it. Rushing around, stressing out and making it worse by adding in a “personal deadline”. One day I was in the mood to paint duck cloth and be very abstract about it. This is what I came up with.

I used a pattern that I had borrowed from my friend, Lu Peters, and this is what it turned into!

I lined it with fabric I had bought from Frieda Anderson and used my own fabric for the binding and handles. Great Spring and Summer purse and all my junk fits in it perfectly!
Last night the Dallas Area Fiber Artists held their Annual Pot Luck and Artwork Exchange. Darn if artists are good cooks too! I was fortunate enough to receive this wonderful piece by Connie Akers.

I love Connie and she and I are “carpool buddies” to the meetings, so it was funny that the artwork I road to the meeting with, also road home with me. This happened to 3 other people last night too! Guess it shows that DAFA members are good artwork and carpool buddies!
Today I am back to work on my current quilt and planning out workshops to teach and catching up on computer work. And it’s time to get off the computer and pay attention to the design board!
Happy Creating Everyone!

Thursday Eye Candy!

2011-05-19T15:02:00.005-05:00

New Fat Quarters are posted in Studio Jules on ArtFire. These are just a few of them, I didn't want to overpopulate the post today with pictures of fabric. It's a little cloudy today, so hopefully these colors will brighten your day!

Hand dyed Fat Quarter Show and Tell

2011-05-18T16:50:00.007-05:00

The weather cooperated this morning and I was able to take pictures outside of the fat quarters I hand dyed the past couple of days. Blues and greens are usually very difficult to photograph, but the clouds were working with me today and I didn't have to do any color adjustments!

The first one I want to show you is the one that was the one I had rolled with a hand painted fat quarter and then threw into the dye bath. I love it! I have posted it in my Etsy shop, click here to see it in the shop.

I've only been able to post the ones I've selected to sell on Etsy today. I'll post the ones I have selected for ArtFire tomorrow. Here are the ones on Etsy!

A Wonderful Way to Wake Up!

2011-05-17T15:32:00.005-05:00

This morning when I checked my email I had one letting me know that my "Sunflower with a Passion for Color" quilt has been accepted into the Lowell Quilt Festival! Yup, I'm a little pumped about it. Other than having a quilt travel with the International Quilt Festival, this will be my first out of state quilt show.
I have spent yesterday and today playing in the studio with newly dyed fabrics. I have a special order for hand dyed hankies and I just took the last ones out of the dye bath and they are so yum! I can't wait to send them to my customer, I know she will be pleased with them. Since I was dyeing hankies, I had to throw some fat quarters in to take up space in the dye....it's easier to add fabric than decrease the amount of dye you make up, right? They are all beautiful. The last piece of my "Show and Tell" yesterday that I said I would throw in a dye bath today, well it turned out very interesting! I can't wait to ponder what to do with it. Pictures to come later, I know you all love "eye candy"!
Have a creative day everyone!

Sunshine, Cool Breeze and Paint All Over My Hands!

2011-05-16T19:39:00.008-05:00

I had a great day today, opened up the window to the Studio and enjoyed the sunshine, singing Cardinals and cool breeze. What an inspiration! Being in such a great mood and feeling very artistic, I spent the day dyeing fat quarters and hankies. While those were in the dye bath I painted duck cloth and PFD. Oh what a wonderful feeling to be back in the Studio and paint all over my hands! Kathy Mayhew influenced me to paint duck cloth, I’m hooked! I love the way the paint flows and the results. I’m anxious to quilt these pieces!
The first five pictures of painted duck cloth. The rest are painted PFD.

Painted Duck Cloth with Textile Paints

Painted Duck Cloth with Acrylic Paints

Painted Duck Cloth with Acrylic Paints

Painted Duck Cloth with Acrylic Paints

Painted Duck Cloth with Acrylic Paints

Painted PFD with Textile Paints
Over Painted with White Acrylic

Painted PFD with Textile Paints
Over Painted with White Acrylic

Painted PFD with Textile Paints
Over Painted with White Acrylic

Painted PFD with Textile Paints
Over Painted with White Acrylic

This is PFD that I rolled with another painted piece. I have heat set it and will throw it in a dye bath tomorrow.

Hope you enjoyed my "Show and Tell for today. I had loads of fun and wanted to share my "art excitement"!

Back from Vacation!

2011-05-15T14:48:00.005-05:00

We took some time off from normal life and spent a week in Galveston. Sunshine, the beach, lots of seafood (well, I ate the lots of seafood, Jeff ate lots of cow and chicken - just refer to us as "Surf and Turf"). We really enjoyed relaxing and getting some good sunshine. On the drive home we took the scenic route and stopped at the Antique Rose Emporium for some perennials. I've missed my Butterfly Bush that we had at our last house, so I bought one of those, Shasta daisies and a few other perennials and wild flower seeds. Got home and needed more for the yard, so off we go to Lowes for Knockout Rose Trees and herbs. Jeff is awesome when it comes to planting and only had to kill two snakes in the process. I'm anxious for everything to start blooming! Spring and Summer is going to be very colorful in my yard this year! Today while we were finishing up I walked across the patio and saw a future butterfly! Jeff came over and scared the poor caterpillar, so he curled up, but here he is!

I just love the little guys, they are so cute and fuzzy!

Well, tomorrow I'll be back in the studio. Right now I'm watching the Texas Rangers vs. the Angels (The Texas Rangers ROCK!!!). We have tickets next month to one of the Ranger games, sooooooo looking forward to it. Jeff is sitting here reading the latest "Popular Science", there was a UPS truck that turned over in Boston back in March and made a very pretty painting on the freeway it shut down with all the ink that was in the trailer. He also showed me an article of a mini ink jet printer called "PrintBrush", that is a handheld printer, only 8.8 ounces and prints a full page in 10 seconds! I just did a little web surfing for more information and yes, it prints on fabric!!!! Can you just see all the advantages and techniques the quilt art world can use this for! Quilt labels, surface layers, oh my, I think this just went on my "Gotta Have It" list! The article said that by the end of the year it will be developed with a camera for click and print capability. Oh my.....

It is Always Good to Sleep on it

2011-05-04T16:54:00.007-05:00

When in doubt about certain fabrics you have put in a quilt, it is always good to sleep on it and have a fresh view the next day. And that is what I did. The blue in the middle of this quilt just seemed too dark and a little off. The colors of the swirls are more in harmony now. As I was working today I just wasn't feeling the paint trails I had made with the dark blue organza (see previous post for picture with the paint trails), so I removed them and will test later, on other fabric, the paint trails that will come off the blue fabric in the middle through the other colors. There are a few other places that I'm just not 100% happy with, but that is what I will sleep on tonight.
Well, Mr. Wonderful is on his way home, time to start dinner!
Happy creating!

Feeling Good

2011-05-03T17:48:00.003-05:00

Feeling good and feeling creative today. After two days of a thunderstorm headache, today is a great day! Oh, it feels good to be pain free and feeling creative. I've been working on the first quilt of a triptych series. All the fabrics are ones that I have hand dyed, specifically for this series. I have just a little bit of fabric left to fuse onto the quilt and then I can start painting and quilting.

This past Saturday I had a great day with my friend Kathy Mayhew! We started the day with manicures and pedicures, stopping by Oxide Gallery and then off we went to the Denton Jazz and Arts Festival. What fun! The weather cooperated with cool breezes and the sun peeking through the clouds on and off. The shopping was fantastic! I found two great pairs of earrings, a summer dress and homemade jellies. Kathy bought some great jewelry too!
Okay, time to start dinner for Mr. Wonderful! Have a great evening everyone and keep on stitching!

Current Showings and Fusing

2011-04-26T10:58:00.004-05:00

I've got to get busy!!! I have deadlines coming up and I really need to start and finish some art quilts!
Today I'm going to spend the day fusing fabric for my next series of quilts. It is a triptych series from water color paintings I made last year. With deadlines coming upon me, I have got to get busy! Fabric is dyed and the fusing has begun.
Yesterday was a good day, I got word that my new piece "Confused" was accepted into next months show at Oxide Gallery in Denton. I submitted two new 12x12 pieces to the Irving Art Center Gift Shop on consignment. June through September the Irving Art Center is having the Genghis Khan Exhibit and asked the Dallas Area Fiber Artists to contribute consignment pieces to their gift shop. I submitted these two art quilts that I started in a workshop last month with Deborah Boschert. Here are their pictures.

Shadow Circles

Sea Visions

Last night Kathy Mayhew and I taught a mini-workshop and gave a presentation of the SAQA-Texas members 9x12 Mini-Quilts that were on display last year at the International Quilt Festival. The mini-workshop was great and the creativeness of our group never ceases to amaze me. The 9x12's had a great response and the members really enjoyed being able to see the wide variety of quilting and surface techniques. Kathy is one of our Texas Regional Reps for SAQA and did a great job informing the DAFA members on the benefits of SAQA, what can be utilized by members and non-members on the SAQA website and the information, education and growth that SAQA encourages for all artists.
Till next time....happy creating everyone!

Completely Confused

2011-04-20T16:25:00.003-05:00

Well....Confused is complete. I really enjoyed this new venture into mixed media. Working on canvas and not an art quilt. I incorporated jeans, silk, cheesecloth, paper, beads, acrylic and textile paints.

Here are some detail shots.

Trying New Technique in Hand Stitching

2011-04-18T18:06:00.002-05:00

I'm working on a new technique. This came to me the other night, you know, one of those things that comes to your creative mind when you are trying to get to sleep, the kind that keeps you awake until 2am or 3am. I've been doing a bit of hand work lately, getting ready for a workshop and various art pieces. And it struck me...or should I say "stuck me" (like with a needle), make a hand stitched circle and use a medicine bottle lid as the stabilizer. Hmmmm, so I have practiced this afternoon and this was my best attempt. Still needs some fine tuning, I mean stitching, but hey, I just started this technique today.

Confused - In the Works

2011-04-16T12:49:00.008-05:00

I'm working on a new project - very mixed media. You see, I have this canvas, it's 40" x 24". I've been trying to think of what to do with it. Well, the Oxide Gallery, Denton, TX, is having a call for entries, due on Friday/Saturday, that is a mono-chromatic theme. I chose Red. Since Red has so many moods and emotions that go along with it, and this project is going to be a broad range of mixed media, I thought the name "Confused" fit the media.

This project has been keeping my mind busy and everyday I have a new "Aha moment". Yesterday I was able to get started and right now I'm waiting for the paint to dry.
Here is what I've accomplished in my layering so far...

Silk with surface layers, painted cheesecloth and sequin waste.

Yes, a leg torn from a pair of jeans, painted, surface layers and the start of a few more small canvases.

Watercolor and acrylic on hand written paper. It is going to be mounted either in whole or in part on the canvas.

Closer view of some of the surface layers on the jeans.

Small canvas covered with surface layered silk and painted cheesecloth.

So far I've only dropped the paint brush on the carpet once, but the day isn't over yet. One of these years I'm going to get new flooring.

Have a great day!

New Pictures!

2011-04-08T18:11:00.004-05:00

Last week I was able to spend some time dyeing fabric for my next quilt series. Hopefully I'll be able to start on the first of these four quilts next week. My schedule is filling up, so I'm going to have to make sure I have a day or two devoted to studio time.

Today I was able to make it to the photographer and have professional pictures made of three of my quilts. You have seen two of them already, but those were pictures I took. The colors and textures the photographer was able bring out are much better than what I can accomplish. The one you haven't seen yet is my "Outside In" quilt. I've shown you pictures of the detail of the quilt as I was working on it, but here is the full picture! It measures 21" x 71". When you zoom in you can see the detail of the beading and stitching.

Here is the "Truck Quilt". When you zoom in you can see the detail of the stitching and the beading.

Finally, here is "Sunflower with a Passion for Color". The quilting, brush strokes and thread painting show up beautifully in this picture. I love this quilt, and would love to sell it!

There is A Lot Going on This Week!

2011-03-30T13:37:00.004-05:00

There is a lot going on this week. I'm spending time catching up on paperwork, cleaning up the studio, putting supplies back from a workshop with Deborah Boschert, and working on a few little projects. Today as I work on a few little projects, there are men downstairs taking the old tile out of the master shower....the drain pan is leaking. By the end of the week we will have a new shower with slate tile, so yum, I'm going to feel like I'm at a spa.
Last week I finished the "Outside In" quilt. There aren't any pictures to show you the finished quilt, my camera is at the manufacturer being repaired. Monday I have an appointment to have it professionally photographed, along with "The Truck Quilt" and "Sunflower with a Passion for Color". So, stay tuned, next week there will be pictures!
When it warms up a bit tomorrow or Friday, I'm going to get back to dyeing fabric for the next series of quilts. Hopefully I will be able to start on the first quilt next week.
Okay, just wanted to pop in and give you an update!

Quilt in Progress

2011-03-17T17:39:00.007-05:00

Just thought I would post a few pictures of my quilting and mixed media techniques on my current quilt "Outside In". As I posted earlier, the initial intent of this quilt was to mimic the hydrangea's outside the window, but my husband thinks this quilt looks more like the depth of the ocean. My quilt, I win....it's "Outside In". I'm not done yet, but I"m getting there!

Relief Efforts in Japan

2011-03-17T09:11:00.004-05:00

This morning I awoke hearing the increased devastation in Japan. I can't imagine what the United States would be like if we had experienced this tragedy. The American Red Cross is in full action in Japan and they need additional funds to meet the increased needs of those they are serving. As of today, and until I feel the immediate need has passed, I am donating 50% of all sales through StudioJules ArtFire shop and StudioJulesArt Etsy shop to the American Red Cross.

Let Me Interrupt This Time of Creativity to Blog....

2011-03-13T16:26:00.003-05:00

I just have to post a few quick pictures of what I'm working on. I have a quilt back hanging on my work wall that is going to be an art quilt for our family room. We have a dark corner and I want to brighten it up. Anyway, it's been hanging for awhile and I have been pondering what techniques I am going to use on it. Well, last night was a turning point and I fell asleep dreaming different techniques to use today. When I was digging through my drawer of textile/acrylic paints and things to use to paint with, I found an empty spool of thread! What a great idea for this quilt! You see, this quilt is going to hang next to a window where you can see all of our beautiful hydrangea's. The end of a spool of thread is similar to hydrangea blooms! I've also pulled out chiffon, organza, organdy, and silk to use to make artful hydrangeas.

Okay, I need to get back to work, but I also wanted to show you the fabric I dyed yesterday in preparation of the next four quilts I'm going to work on. I still need to dye more, but this is a start!

It's Been Slow Around Here Lately....

2011-03-10T09:57:00.003-06:00

Well, not really. After I finish a quilt I have been working on for a while, I have to have some down time and catch up on things around the house and family. This past week I've picked up some of the trails I left off several years ago with my genealogy research. I'm working on my family and my husband's family. My dad's family has been hard to research because my great-grandfather ran away from his father at a young age, during the Civil War. This week I have had a break through on this trail and I'm so excited! But I'm putting this research work aside today and going to continue working on the patterns for my next 4 quilts. Three of them will hang together and one will stand alone. The one that stands alone has a lot of detail to it, so it will take me a good part of the day to trace out the pattern.
This past Tuesday the Dallas Area Fiber Artists had their "Meet the Artist" night at The Pointe, (C.C. Young) in Dallas, TX. It was a wonderful evening. The residents of C.C. Young who joined us had lots of questions about art work and were amazed at the variety of techniques used in our art and the Mini-Art Quilts made by the SAQA-Texas members. We even had a couple of DAFA members say they are going to join SAQA! Bonus!
Tomorrow is the first day of the Dallas Quilt Celebration. This show kind of snuck up on me! It's the first time in, gosh, 6 years that I haven't been working at the show in some fashion, either with the Bernina of Dallas store or the Dallas Area Fiber Artists. I'll be going tomorrow, can't wait to see the quilts (and shop)!

DAFA Workshop with Deborah Boschert

2011-03-02T11:53:00.004-06:00

I'm excited to announce and encourage you to join the Dallas Area Fiber Artists this next month for our workshop with Deborah Boschert! Deborah is one of our favorite people, she was a member of the Dallas Area Fiber Artists before her family moved to Maryland. The workshop is "Techniques and Truths: Inspired by 12X12", on Saturday, March 26th, from 9am to 4pm. If the Saturday workshop fills, Deborah has agreed to teach an additional workshop on Sunday, March 27th. Click here for more information and the registration form.

Deborah will also be the program presenter at the DAFA monthly meeting on March 28th and also lead our mini-workshop prior to the meeting on Illuminated Letters. And one of the big bonuses about Deborah coming to share with us....we get to have her sign her new book Twelve by Twelve: The International Art Quilt Challenge!

This past Monday, Janet Reynolds, presented a wonderful program on photography at the DAFA meeting. She shared wonderful information to help us with our photos and how to present them for upcoming shows.

DAFA in April? Well, my dear friend and artist, Kathy Mayhew and I will be presenting a program on the benefits of being a Studio Art Quilt Association member and Trunk Show the SAQA-Texas Mini-Art Quilts that are touring the state. We will also be leading the mini-workshop before hand on Quick and Easy Mini-Quilts. The SAQA-Texas Mini-Quilts are the combined efforts of several SAQA members, from Texas, that were displayed at the 2010 International Quilt Festival. The only parameter we were given was that they had to be 9x12, the rest of the creativity was left up to the artist. The variety of artistic inspiration is awesome! Most of the time I just stand there and think "Why didn't I think of that?" or "Wish my brain would think that way....maybe I'll take that idea and spin it off...." It is so wonderful to be able to display the mini-quilts and inspire more people into stretch and challenge their creative side! We have them on exhibit this month with the DAFA show at The Pointe in Dallas. Our "Meet the Artist" night is March 8th, 6:30pm to 7:30pm. Join us!

Truck Quilt Finished and DAFA March Show

2011-02-28T10:44:00.009-06:00

I feel like dancing around and singing "I did it, I did it" like Dora the Explorer (okay, you can tell I have grandkids), the Truck Quilt is complete as of this morning!
I love the surface technique of painting over the background fabric to calm it down, show the quilting of the windmill and barn and make the truck pop out.
To make sure I didn't get paint on the truck, I taped it off before I painted the background. I learned this technique from "The Painted Quilt" by Linda and Laura Kemshall. The Kemshall's also demo'd this technique on one of the Quilting Arts TV Series 200 Episodes. I can't wait to use this technique again.

The Dallas Area Fiber Artists are having their annual show at The Pointe ~ C.C. Young the month of March. Tonight is our monthly meeting and tomorrow I will hang the show. This year we are honored to also show the SAQA-Texas Mini-Quilt Exhibit from the 2010 International Quilt Festival in Houston. If you are in the Dallas area, join us for our "Meet the Artists" night on March 8th, 6:30pm - 7:30pm. If you can't make it then, make time to go my The Pointe and see the exhibit. Kathy Mayhew and I will be presenting a program on SAQA and the Mini-Quilts at the DAFA April program.

In the Meantime.....

2011-02-18T13:05:00.004-06:00

Well, I ran out of thread while quilting the truck quilt.... I've quilted and picked out so much I've burned through an entire spool of thread. I've ordered more and am waiting on it's arrival. So, in the meantime I'm working on the patterns for my next 4 quilts. I was inspired by the watercolors I did during my workshop with Katie PM at the International Quilt Festival in Houston last year. I'm taking three of the selections I made from one of the watercolor exercises and I'm going to make a triptych out of them. I've drawn them out on clear velum, copied them and then had them enlarged to roughly 18" x 24".

I would show you pictures of the patterns I have drawn out, but my camera is on the fritz and I need to take it to the camera doctor.
Here is another one I'm working on. It was painted with acrylics during the same workshop. It looks like a flag to me.

Okay, blog time over, time to get back to my patterns!

Oooops

2011-02-14T17:01:00.004-06:00

I've had a good day, really, until a few minutes ago... I was quilting away on the truck quilt, listening to "Crossroads" by Fern Michaels, and wondering if I have enough thread to complete my quilting, when I decided to stand back and take a look at the section between the barn and the windmill.....that's when I realized I was quilting at an angle and not horizontal....grrr. So, I guess while I'm watching TV tonight I'll be picking out this section of quilting and tomorrow I'll quilt as long as I can before I run out of thread.

At least I walked 4 miles today at lunch and Mr. Wonderful is on his way home from work. Time to go start dinner and enjoy a glass of red wine. Even though there is a hiccup in the progress, I'm determined to find a bright spot, or two.

Hugs and Kisses Mixed Media Art Quilt

2011-02-10T17:49:00.003-06:00

Just finished this great little art quilt! My thanks go to my friend Kathy Mayhew who let me use one of her screen prints to start this project. Really, I started this back in August when I had my birthday "Dye Party". Kathy taught us how to screen print and this is on the pieces I started. After I screened it, I soaked it in a bath of turquoise dye. I then accent painted it, added some mixed media items, hand wrote some phrases, hand quilted it and then had stitched the binding. This week I hand painted a canvas to mount it on and I'm really pleased with the way it came out!
So, if you really love this piece, it's for sale in my Etsy shop, StudioJulesArt.

Early Happy Valentines!

50% Off Sale Hand Dyed Handkerchiefs

2011-02-10T00:00:00.001-06:00

I decided to get ahead of the curve and put my hand dyed handkerchiefs on sale 50% off. Get them now before Mother's Day, allergy season and for Teacher gifts!
StudioJules on ArtFire
StudioJulesArt on Etsy

Let the Quilting (and Thread Painting) Begin!

2011-02-09T11:47:00.002-06:00

Okay, today is the day come rain, sleet or snow....and that is exactly what we got this morning! I've got the windmill and barn drawn out on the quilt top, the quilt is pinned and I'm ready to start.
Have a great day ya'll!

Testing Truck Quilt Background Quilting

2011-02-05T15:50:00.005-06:00

The other day I started working on testing out the quilting for the "Truck Quilt". Today I completed my test and feel really good about what I quilted. I'll start with the "Truck Quilt" as it is at this moment. As you may remember from previous posts, this precious truck is from a picture of my fraternal grandfather's truck, we called my grandfather "Foxey" because his favorite cartoon when he was growing up was "Grandpa Foxey". Anyway, the truck was a 1956 Ford, and he drove it around the pasture and from the house to his fishing tanks. I think all but one of us 7 grandkids learned how to drive in this truck, so you see, it's special. But I just had to put a twist on the "Truck Quilt" and make it my own. It's turquoise instead of baby blue and I added long horns to the front (with several Univ. of TX Longhorns in the family, I felt it was appropriate, plus I'm a true cowgirl at heart).

Now for the quilt testing. With the hand dyed background being so intense, it needed to be knocked down a bit so the truck can stand out. So I decided the background was going to be quilted so I could paint the background white to tone it down. Now Foxey had a barn, several infact, and a windmill on the property. So I decided to quilt in a barn and a windmill behind the truck along with the clouds.

Now the bright fabric you see at the bottom left, well I left that bright because that is where the truck will be in front of the barn.

This next picture gives you a little closer look at the barn detail and how it lays with where the it will be with the truck.

The following picture is a close up on the windmill and the different cloud designs I quilted today. I usually do the swirlly clouds, but I tried the horizontal horizon lines and then also following the movement of the fabric. The movement of the fabric just isn't tight enough and I really think the swirlly clouds are too busy. The horizontal horizon lines help push the background back and help the truck pop.

Okay, couldn't resist. Had to cut out the bright area and pin it up on the wall with the truck quilt. WOW! I love the results! The white paint really tones down the background. The windmill is going to be over to the left above the bed of the truck.

This week I've got a fairly clean slate, so Lord willing, this baby will be quilted and thread painted this week. Yes, I still have to do the thread painting on the truck. Okay, feedback please!!!!!

Watercolor Sketches

2011-02-02T17:45:00.004-06:00

Well, I held to my guns and sketched with my watercolors today. The challenge with the Sketchbook Challenge this month is "Opposites". Hmmmm, several came to mind, but since I was sitting in the kitchen, Salt and Pepper shakers were handy, so here is my watercolor sketch.

The next thing that came to my mind, since I was looking at my watercolors, was the color wheel...complementary colors! Here is that one!

The artist I admire the most is Georgia O'Keefe. We have a print of her "Orange Poppy" in our family room. So here is my watercolor of it. Needless to say, I have a long way to go before I can accomplish what Georgia did, but hey, we have to start somewhere right?

So that is it for today, time to start dinner. Jeff is driving home in the cold and ice from the office. Maybe if I start cooking the kitchen will warm up. Tomorrow the snow dyed fabrics get washed!

Oh, I added a link to on the right hand bar to the Collection I curated on ArtFire!

ArtFire Collection - Hand Dyed Fabrics and Fibers

2011-02-02T11:57:00.004-06:00

Well, it is so cold outside and the utility companies are doing rolling blackouts, so I decided to help out the utility company and keep the thermostat down low in the studio and work downstairs today. So, the truck quilt isn't being worked on...
I did decide to try something new though...I created a collection on ArtFire! It is called "Hand Dyed Fabrics and Fibers". I wanted to pull out some of the hand dyed fibers and fabrics and put them in a collection. Take a look and let me know what you think?

More Snow!

2011-02-01T11:47:00.005-06:00

Well, I didn't think we would get any snow this year in North Texas by the weatherman's report a few months ago, but Mother Nature has proved them wrong and we are having our second snow for the season. So, this morning I set up to dye fabric (with the help of Mr. Wonderful) in the garage. I'm so glad he is a HVAC dude and has a HVAC unit on "his side of the garage" (aka the workshop, when it gets built out). Heat was on while I was mixing dyes, yum! There are 4 yards, 4 fat quarters and a couple of fat quarters that I did surface dyeing on this past Saturday.

Now for the snow....... this is the drift outside our garage.

Jeff took the shovel and just piled on the snow on the fabric for me.

In this picture you can see my little roll cart in the background. It holds my dyes and dye utensils. It's great for rolling from "my side of the garage" over to workshop sink area (and the heater).

This is my huge fabric snow cone. Colors of Midnight Blue, Chartreuse, Golden Yellow, Hot Pink, Robin's Egg Blue, Turquoise, Fuchsia, Purple, and Light Red. Yes, I like lots of color!

This next picture shows a small container. It has a couple of pieces in it that I surface dyed on Saturday. I just wanted to dye them Robin's Egg Blue, so we will see how the snow dyed technique works with it.

So that is my work for the morning. This afternoon I am going to iron the fabrics I parfait dyed on Saturday. Show and Tell for those fabrics tomorrow!

Stay warm Ya'll!

Parfait Dyeing Results from Last Week

2011-01-26T16:47:00.005-06:00

Well I have dyed, ironed and posted fabrics on Etsy and ArtFire! Thought I would give you a peek at what came out of the dye containers. The colors are so beautiful and I'm amazed at how the dyes take so differently from the snow dyed fabrics. The snow dyed fabrics, the colors are so much more brilliant and the parfait dyed fabrics are softer. The movement in both are wonderful and unique. So, here are the parfait fabrics!

Hand Dyed Cotton Fabric Fuchsia

Hand Dyed Cotton Fabric Varigated Green and Yellow

Hand Dyed Cotton Fabric Fuchsia and Blue

Hand Dyed Cotton Fabric Blue and Fuchsia

Hand Dyed Cotton Fabric Purple, Fuchsia and Blues

Hand Dyed Cotton Fabric Golden Yellow and Green

Fuchsia and Blue Hand Dyed Fabric

Multi Color Dyed Cotton Fabric 1 Yard

It Feels Good to be Creative Again

2011-01-20T10:46:00.004-06:00

It sure does feel good to feel creative again. I'm in the studio concentrating on fabric today. One of the discussion groups I am part of has been talking about containers that we dye in. Well, all the discussion really got me in the mood to dye fabric today. It is so cold outside that I didn't want to spend time in the garage mixing dyes and arranging fabric to dye. So I hauled the containers and dye upstairs to my studio and have several yards of fabric dyeing along with some tops that I have bought to dye. Two containers are parfait style and one is sort of a parfait, but it is just one blouse with two colors. I wanted a camp shirt that is brown and turquoise, since I wear my turquoise jewelry a lot. Hope it turns out the way I want, if not, oh well! That is one of the things I love about parfait dyeing, the results are always a surprise.

I decided to get the fabric dyeing and then start on my truck quilt. I just have a little bit of painting left to do on it and some surface techniques. I fused it all down the other day. I'm planning out the quilting too. Hopefully I will get the quilting sketched out this afternoon and then I'll be ready to go tomorrow morning after I run my errands and do come cooking and baking for a party on Saturday. I plan on quilting a barn and a windmill into the background.

Okay, have an artful day everyone!

It’s Been a Good Day!

2011-01-17T17:31:00.004-06:00

My day started off wonderful! Got up, checked the email and someone had bought some of my dyed fabric! To make it even sweeter, one of the pieces is one that I snow dyed last week. Whoo Hoo!
So, I made sure to workout, but I think I forgot to have breakfast and celebrated the sale by myself. While I was getting ready for the day I decided it was time to put forward some of the “Branding” information I have been reading on the internet, Etsy and ArtFire. First I decided to continue with the header I have on my blog, Etsy and ArtFire shops and put it on my “Sales Receipt/Packing Slip”. I just copied the packing slip information over from Paypal and made my own! This way I was able to personalize my message at the bottom and made sure all my websites were accounted for.
Next, I pressed white gift tissue, yes, I ironed gift tissue. I want it to look nice! Then I printed out clear labels with my ArtFire and Etsy shop web addresses and I pulled out some of my hand painted fabric scraps and cut a strip to use as a bow. After I wrapped up the fabric, I used one of the labels to secure the gift tissue, and then tied it up with the hand painted fabric! Doesn’t it look pretty! I know printed gift tissue paper would look nicer, but I don’t want to run the risk of any of the dyes from the paper to leave a mark on these beautiful fabrics.
The next branding/marketing idea I put to use was printing out “Return Customer” discount cards. It is a marketing strategy talked about on one of the Etsy forums. I thought this was a grand idea, so I put it into action.
Okay, so now I’m off to post new artwork on Etsy and ArtFire!

Snow Dyed Fabric - The Big Reveal!

2011-01-12T16:03:00.010-06:00

We received over an inch of snow the other day at our house. Just enough for me to gather enough snow for to snow dye some fabric in the garage. I posted on Monday the pictures of my 5 yards of fabric being snow dyed (and how they looked like huge snow cones). Well, here are the results. At first, I wasn’t too thrilled with the results, but I have learned not to make judgments until after I washed the fabric twice and dried it. Because, first impressions are always wrong. The fabric I think looks the worst, becomes my favorite, what can I say, so I just don’t get my hopes up or down anymore and look forward to the wonderful surprise that awaits me. The part of the process I love the best is when I iron the fabric, that is when it really talks to me and tells me what it wants to do. With each picture, I’ll tell you what they told me!
For those of you that are just now following my blog, I blogged earlier this year about the snow dyeing process. See my March 31, 2010 post "Snow Dyed - Hand Dyed Cotton.

The Reveal……………

This first piece is gorgeous, I know I should save the best for last, but I just had to show this one first. This piece started talking flowers, as I started ironing, flowers started popping out, iris and peonies. Purple and yellow iris, pink peonies, do you see them? My hair stylist asked what I was smoking when I showed the pictures to him, I don’t smoke anything! Just high on life, fabric and color.

Oh, I love these colors. Reds, pinks, orange, yellow, bright cheerful colors. This one started talking flowers too, yellow and pink iris again, or maybe some butterflies. This would also be a great piece to use for appliqué. It has such a great mixture and movement. Do you think I’m anxious for warmer weather and that is why I’m seeing spring and summer flowers?

Piece number three started out as a disappointment. The top section just didn’t take the dye as well as the middle. I don’t know if it just didn’t get soaked well enough with soda ash before I placed the snow, or if the dye just didn’t migrate over to it, but it has a hint of the robin egg blue, chartreuse and pink. The colors are better in person, I just couldn’t get the color to adjust right today and I wasn’t up to braving the cold to go outside and take it. Brrrr. Anyway, I can see using surface designs and textures on it. The middle part reminds me of pictures I’ve seen of stars exploding. When I started thinking about stars, then a universe piece started forming in my brain...we’ll see where it goes. It just may go into either my Etsy or Artfire shop. Any takers out there?

Piece number four, now this is a close runner for my favorite. Rainbow explosion, the green is very lightly mixed in the middle. The way the colors just explode into each other is invigorating! The snow, ice crystals really did a great job. This piece also shows great potential for flowers and butterflies too. Do you see them too?

This last piece was dyed with piece number two, so the colors are the same, but the way the fabric took the dyes is a little different. At first I didn’t see flowers as much as the other piece, but when I looked at it again I saw gladiolas and some roses. I also see this piece as a great piece for appliqué. Each artist visualizes differently, so tell what the fabric saying to you.

Some of these pieces will be one of my online shops, StudioJules on Artfire or StudioJulesArt on Esty . So, if you interested, check my shops! Each piece is one yard.

Happy creating everyone and I hope these bright cheerful colors warm up your day!

Sketchbook Challenge - January - Highly Prized

2011-01-12T15:47:00.005-06:00

It’s cold this morning! Okay, I know it’s not as cold in Texas as it is north of us, but my fingers are so cold that I’m having trouble using my new Droid X because my finger temp isn’t registering… I know, life could be worse.

As I promised yesterday, I have pictures of the sketches I have made so far this month for the Sketchbook Challenge. I joined this challenge because I have a terrible time sketching and just haven’t been able to get comfortable with pencil and paper, I’ve always been more of a “tracer”. So, this month the challenge is “Highly Prized”.

Hmmmm, the first thing that came to my mind is that the most highly prized things in my life are faith, hope and love. Without faith in God and our relationship, life would be so hard to deal with at times. Hope in the promise of salvation through Jesus Christ, and the love that He shares with me and I am able to pass on to others.

As I was working on the sketch above, I thought of the gifts and talents that God has given me and realized that the art I enjoy creating the most is abstract, off the beaten path, realism with a twist, so…… I sketched out the next drawing while I was playing with my new phone and downloading music. Honestly, downloading the program to download the music to my phone was very frustrating, so I needed a positive outlet. Here is what I came up with, structured abstract, colorful, free and didn’t require any computer downloads. I can already see this as an art quilt with each section being quilted differently. For this one I believe my “Highly Prized” statement would be the “freedom to create whatever my art heart desires”.

Have a great day ya’ll and stay warm!
Watch for my next post…..snow dyed fabric!

Where has the time gone?

2011-01-10T17:03:00.003-06:00

Can't believe we are 10 days into January and I feel like I am so far behind already! Oh well, guess that is what happens when you start off the year with recovering from surgery. I looked back to what I blogged a year ago for my resolution for my studio for the year. To have a project being quilted, one on the board and one in the design phase....for the major part of the year I kept that one up! Right now I have 5 yards of fabric in the garage covered with snow and dye. I love this process! Today I realized one reason why, I'm a big fan of snow cones in the summertime, and these look like huge snowcones! I promise not to eat them, only to drool over the fabric when they are done. Here are the pics!

To add to my schedule this week, I decided open an Etsy shop in addition to my Art Fire studio. Spreading the love around, plus so many people know about Etsy and don't know about Art Fire, so I decided to jump on the wagon and try Etsy out. The links are on the right hand side bar. My Etsy shop is named StudioJulesArt.

I've started on the Sketchbook Challenge. I haven't done very much, but some. I'll post pictures tomorrow of what I've done.

Getting ready for the New Year

2010-12-30T16:18:00.004-06:00

I have been AWOL lately, but for good reason. I had my gall bladder removed on Tuesday. I am feeling better than I felt before the surgery, but I haven’t been in the Studio since I finished my secret Christmas gift, which ended up not being so secret since my sweet niece, Karolyn, reads my blog. Here is a picture of us with her new quilt. I hand dyed all of the fabrics and quilted it on my Bernina. Karolyn posted a Christmas video of “If Quilts Could Gossip”. Link on over, it is so wonderful and Yes, I am bias, she is my niece!

I love the colors of the hand dyes I used for Karolyn’s quilt. I think I’ll try to dye some more in these colors when I get back into the wet studio after the first of the year.
After the first of the year, my first project is to finish the truck quilt. I have ideas in my head for the quilting and I just have a little bit left to do on the painting. Then I’m going to continue on the quilt for the house. I’ve been collecting mixed media items for it. Stamps, surface techniques, keys (one for each grandchild), beads, misc. items that have family meaning. I made a trip to Artful Bead in Carrollton, TX and found some wonderful glass pieces to include. One day after a DAFA board meeting we made a field trip to the Stamp Asylum in Plano and I found some wonderful stamps! I am looking forward to getting back to it and using some of my new findings.
Then I have new projects in my brain. I’ve started sketching out one that started from my workshop day with Katie PM. It is in the enlarging stage right now.
While recuperating I am using some of the time to get started on “The Sketchbook Project”. I actually bought two new sketchbooks the other day. Both are small enough to fit in my purse and one of them has watercolor paper in it. I am really looking forward to this challenge and broadening my artistic abilities. Can’t believe that it is going to be the new year in just a few days!
To add to all of my new year art projects, I am going to spend more time in the kitchen this year. I love to cook, but “Mr. Wonderful” is also “Mr. Picky Eater”, much to the surprise of my mom 24 years ago. I am her child that would anything she put on the table, and I married “Mr. Picky Eater”. My response to her was “Well, he can fix anything that breaks around the house.” That got a smile out of her and she said she was glad I looked at it in such a positive way. Our meals have gotten very lazy and routine and with some of my health issues, I have decided to go Gluten Free. So far the things I have fixed have gone over well, especially the chocolate-chip cookies.
Okay, off to take care of a few other things on the computer and read my new cookbook.
Have a safe and happy New Year everyone! May it bring you health, happiness, and lots of paint, thread, fabric and mixed media!
Jules

If Quilts Could Gossip

2010-12-17T19:16:00.003-06:00

I have to share a link to a You Tube video that my wonderful niece wrote and directed. It's called.....wait for it....."If Quilts Could Gossip". It's a hoot, take a peek and give her a thumbs up on You Tube! I'm so proud of her and I know she has more episodes in the wings to film and I'll let you know when they are ready for viewing.
Merry Christmas everyone!

Down Time

2010-12-16T12:38:00.004-06:00

Ever finish a project and then need some down time? Seems to be my norm. I just finished the super secret Christmas present I've been working on and am now in limbo. So I decided to catch up on a few computer things, like blogging and increasing the discount in my ArtFire studio. Oh, yes, it's one week until Christmas and all merchandise at StudioJules is 25% off. Yes, that means hand dyed fabrics and Mistyfuse™! I figure discounts are better than fighting traffic!
Sue Bleiweiss is having a give away on her blog. It's the Cloth Paper Scissors Gifts 2010 Issue! Tomorrow is the last day to sign up for the give away, so link over and sign up quick!
Sue is one of the artists with the Sketchbook Challenge that I have committed to for next year. I'm really excited about this new adventure and maybe I'll work on sketching this afternoon!
I'm hoping that next week I'll be motivated to work on the truck quilt. I've been pondering the quilting and think I may quilt a barn and windmill into the background.
I've also have the project that I started for my house and I have a smaller quilt that I have to sketch out and start on soon. I would like to get it done for a gallery show coming up in February. I better get moving on that one. So maybe I'll work in sketching it this afternoon.
I've recently started listening to books by Dee Henderson. They are wonderful Christian mystery books. I'm listening to the "O'Malley Family Series" right now.
Okay, time to start sketching! Have a great weekend everyone!

Making A Commitment to Sketch

2010-12-08T09:13:00.008-06:00

Yesterday I signed up and made the commitment to “The Sketchbook Challenge”. I’ve tried sketching before and just drew a blank when I sat down, so I didn’t pick it back up again. Now that I’ve made the commitment, I’m going to follow through. I’m really excited because this challenge is being led my some of the best quilt/fiber artists I’ve met at the International Quilt Festival and through networking on the Internet.
So, this morning I pulled out my sketchbook and I thumbed through and found notes and rough sketches of potential projects, sketches from an IQF class with Lyric Kinard and sketches that actually became art quilts. I think about these from time to time and that I need to do something with them, but other art quilt projects jump ahead of them!

Here are a few of those sketches from my class with Lyic.

These are sketches that actually turned into art quilts this year!

Tried my hand at Zentangles one day.

I already know I’m going to need another sketchbook partway through the project, but at least I have one to start with until I get another one. Maybe a gift certificate to my favorite art supply store, Asel Art, will appear underneath the Christmas tree!
So for now, I’m going to quilt and overdose on Christmas music today, my favorite is Vince Vance and the Valiant’s, and the Carpenters, and Barbara Streisand…..

I Know, I've Been Absent Lately......But I Have a Good Reason!

2010-12-05T15:14:00.006-06:00

I've been a little distant lately from my blog, but I have a good reason. I'm working on a Christmas present and I can't talk about it on my blog! If I do, it won't be a surprise for the person that receives this "gift from my heart" that I'm working on. All I can say is that it's beautiful!
I still have a couple of quilts on my design board and I'm looking forward to working on new projects after the first of the year. After the first of the year I plan on working on developing a few workshops and start teaching. Plans of increasing on online networking are already in the works with other artisans on ArtFire and Facebook.
Right now I have a Holiday Sale of 20% off all merchandise in my ArtFire studio, StudioJules. Link over and enjoy the sale!
I've also been busy with the grandchildren and tomorrow, Mr. Wonderful and I will celebrate 24 years of wedded bliss. He is taking a couple of days of vacation so we can do some things together that don't include sewing, sketching, dying or fixing anything around the house.
Tuesday night we are going to the Gallery Night at Oxide Gallery in Denton, Texas. I have three new pieces in this show that haven't been in a show before and are fresh out of the studio. So if you are in the area and want to see the fantastic works of some of my fellow Dallas Area Fiber Artists.
So, signing off for now and I'll post more later, when I can tell you what I'm working on and not keeping Christmas secrets!

Dallas Area Fiber Artists Show at Oxide Gallery

2010-12-03T00:00:00.001-06:00

The Dallas Area Fiber Artists will be holding a show at the Oxide Gallery in Denton, TX, the month of December 2010. If you are in the area, be sure to come by and see the show and buy some beautiful artwork! There is a wide venue of artwork by the artists, everything from paintings, to art quilts, to wood sculptures.
Come join us for Gallery Night, December 7th, 6pm to 8 pm.

Looking for Stocking Stuffers or Secret Pal Gifts?

2010-12-02T11:11:00.006-06:00

We are always running around looking for Stocking Stuffers and Secret Pal gifts that are unique and one of a kind. Do you have a favorite Quilter, Fiber Artist, and family member in mind? Take a look at the hand dyed handkerchiefs and fabrics at StudioJules on Artfire. I've left the Cyber Monday Sale Discount of 20% on the entire stock of Hand Dyed Silks, Cottons, Fat Quarters, Handkerchiefs, Bookmarks, Artquilts and Trims!

Cyber Monday

2010-11-28T18:21:00.003-06:00

Are you tired of shopping??? Well don't stop now! StudioJules on Artfire is running 20% for Cyber Monday! Get your hand dyed fabric and small art quilts now!

New Fabrics on StudioJules

2010-11-21T19:09:00.005-06:00

I just posted new fabrics in my Artfire studio - StudioJules. There are luscious hand dyed silks and cottons. Some of the pictures that I posted today are of fabrics that have been in my studio, and needed updated pictures. I have been working on my camera skills and in the past year I've been able to tell a difference in the quality of my pictures. I'm not done yet, there are still updates and new pictures to be taken and loaded, so stay tuned in. I'm getting there, it just takes time after you dye two bolts of fabric to get the pictures taken and loaded with descriptions.
But take a look in StudioJules, there is a Black Friday 10% off sale!
Happy Stitching everyone!

Change in Studio Jules Black Friday Discount

2010-11-20T16:09:00.003-06:00

10% Discount is still there, but I changed it to where the discount is already calculated and you don't have to remember to use the "Coupon".

Black Friday!!!

2010-11-18T12:29:00.006-06:00

Well, I'm jumping in and getting a head start! Black Friday at StudioJules on Artfire starts today! 10% off your entire order! There is a coupon on the right hand side of my blog that gives the Coupon Code to receive 10% off your order. Click on the Coupon and it will take you to StudioJules!

Start your shopping early, finish early and enjoy!

Fall Leaves ~ 2010 ~ Complete

2010-11-17T15:37:00.004-06:00

I finished "Fall Leaves ~ 2010" today, just in time to submit it for the Dallas Area Fiber Artists show at Oxide Gallery.... I really like this piece. The colors are so warm, cool and refreshing. I spent all day yesterday and this morning stitching the detail to the leaves and when it was all said and done....this is how much thread I had left! After knotting the threads and hiding the tails on all the leaves, by fingers are sore and ready for a manicure!

When you look at the detail of the art quilt, you can see the knot in the tree and that the quilting has blue leaves...these are suppose to be like shadows and/or reflections of the tree leaves.

That's all for now! I've got to finish up the other piece I'm working on.
Have a great day everyone and Happy Stitching!

Monday Path, Start of a New Day and New Routine

2010-11-15T09:24:00.006-06:00

Yesterday I picked up my "Artist Way" book again, after 2.5 years. This morning I started journaling again. I'm incorporating the scripture from Sunday service into my journaling. Hopefully this will move me forward and stop the time blocks I've been running into the past weeks. I have decided to stop listening to books while I work for the time being and have turned the Rock 'n Roll back on. Now, if I can work instead of dance around the Studio (dancing around the Studio counts as my daily exercise, right?)...

I have so many creative thoughts and my creative time needs to improve to accomplish what is being put before me. I know I am starting this at a difficult time of the year, but what a time to start a new process! If I can make it through the holiday season, then the first of the year will be easier and more routine, right?

The weather forecast for today is "Mostly Cloudy"....right now at my house it is very sunny, cool and beautiful. But this is Texas and I know that the weather can change in an instant, so I'm sure the clouds "may" show up sometime today and it "may" rain tomorrow. If it does get cloudy today I plan to run outside and hopefully finish taking pictures of fabric and handkerchiefs that I dyed last month. I need to get these into StudioJules for the holiday shoppers. Speaking of StudioJules and holiday shopping... I just marked-down my hand dyed t-shirts 25%. The t-shirts, hankies and fat quarters would make great presents for family, friends, secret pals or for yourself!

In the meantime, before the clouds appear and I can go outside to shoot pictures, I'm going to continue working on the two projects I have going to submit to Oxide Gallery on Friday for the Dallas Area Fiber Artists show in December and January.

Fall Leaves I showed you this one in the starting stages of leaves the other day. I decided it needed a lot less leaves. Yesterday I started adding in the smaller tree branches by couching embroidery floss. I have a few more small branches to incorporate and then I can start thread painting the detail into the tree and leaves. I've placed a few pieces of fused metallic paint into the background to be "light reflections" of the leaves and sky. If all goes as planned, this may be finished today before (or if) the clouds appear.

This one doesn't have a name yet. It is still trying to speak its name to me. I have copper wire and a few other things that I am going to incorporate into it before it is finished, but it is getting there. I love nestling the beads into the folds of the painted cheesecloth, like they are hiding, or trying to come out of hiding.

Well, I'm off. I'm keeping in mind that this is all in God's timing, not mine and each piece will be finished, when it's finished.

Move over left brain, the right is taking over!

New Projects....

2010-11-09T17:43:00.010-06:00

The Dallas Area Fiber Artists will be showing at Oxide Gallery in Denton, TX the months of December and January. I'm excited for our group to have another venue to show in! I have one work completed to sell, Cardinal Summer Dance and two on my worktable to get finished within the next two weeks.
Yesterday I decided that I needed to work on something quick, so I pulled out a mosaic background I had fused a few weeks ago and started working on a tree motif. I used the last of a batik fabric for the leaves and was pretty happy with it.

Then I decided that it needed a little bit more "Fall Color" in it and started adding some orange into the leaves. Now I have a complete split complementary color scheme! The background fabric is has blue and purple in it. These pictures aren't the greatest, but I did the best I could. I was standing on top of my worktable to take them!

Now I have the critical artist voice asking myself if I have done too much, should I take out some of the leaves and let it be a little more sparse, or should I leave it, fuse it and start my thread painting.

What do you think? I'm looking for some feedback, so let me hear from you!

Happy stiching everyone!

IQF, Directions and DAFA

2010-11-06T11:48:00.006-05:00

It has been a busy week! I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Houston at the International Quilt Festival. I was able to meet up with a network of quilters I have met through the Internet networking and workshops that we have attended. And my two-day class with Katie Pasquini Masopust was awesome. I have always walked through the International Quilt Festival with awe and wonder of vision and construction. I have total appreciation for these quilters/artists. This year, was even more exciting for me since I had a quilt accepted into the “In Full Bloom” exhibit and a mini quilt in the SAQA booth exhibit.

Through the years, I have been taking steps to develop my “style” from traditional sewing (clothes, purses, craft projects, embroidery), to traditional quilting, to art quilting, to artwork. I have felt understanding and working in all these areas would awaken my “voice” and direct me to where I feel fulfillment with my work. Like many quilters and artists, there have been many struggles, frustrations and projects that I have placed in bins for another time; I have more ideas in my head than time. I can’t go to sleep for thinking and designing, I wake up early with new designs and/or an idea for one of the projects I’m working on. Don't get me wrong, I love my artwork and the paths I am taking with it. I experience great joy in the process of each project. Creating and watching fabric, paint and thread become a visual of something real going into the abstract. And part of this process is taking workshops with different instructors. It has helped me discern the directions and methods that create excitement and that I would like to explore and work with more. This past week has really touched a place in my artistic mind that will move my “voice” into the direction I’ve been seeking and will broaden my scope of artwork. Here are some of the pictures from my class with Katie PM. I’m looking forward to finishing the projects I’m working on and move on to the next brush strokes and stitches with my art quilts. I think my new motto will be "Move over Left Brain, the Right is taking over!" Thanks Katie!

After my two-day class with Katie, viewing quilts and a tiny bit of shopping on the vendor floor, I drove home to get ready for the Opening Night Reception of the Dallas Area Fiber Artists 2010 Annual Show. It was a wonderful night with my fellow fiber artists, their friends and family. The ArtCentre of Plano is a beautiful, restored historic home in Plano, TX. The artwork hung beautifully and everyone was thrilled with the venue and the quality of work. Our Juror/Judge, Amie Adelman did a wonderful job in choosing the collection and winners of the awards. Best in Wearable Art? Well, it was my Kimono Jacket! Here is a picture of me with my “Sunflower with a Passion for Color”. I was so busy (and tired from the drive) that I forgot to have my husband take a picture of me with my “Traditional Batik” quilt and the Kimono Jacket.

It was a productive and wonderful week. The networking, learning, fellowship and challenges are all priceless pieces to the journey. Happy Stitching everyone!

"Move over Left Brain, the Right is taking over!"

Checking Off Items on the Check List

2010-10-30T15:10:00.003-05:00

Well I've been able to check off a few things on my check list so that I'm ready to leave for the International Quilt Festival in Houston on Tuesday. Friday I ran to Kinko's and ordered postcards of the quilt I have in the In Full Bloom exhibit. Nothing like deciding to do things at the last minute!

One of the very important things I accomplished today is embroidering Hudson's name on my denim shirt. When I embroidered all the girls names, Hudson wasn't born yet and his name wasn't a "for-sure" thing. Now that he is almost 2, it's way past time to have his name on my shirt. So here they are, all 5 of my precious little bugs, well blue jays in this situation. Nickola leading the pack, Betty going along her merry way, the twins, Sadie and Shelby, the same, but different and here comes my Huddy Buddy, charging after the girls and making sure they stay in step. Oh what a precious bunch they are with their own personalities! Don't know what I would do with out them! Can you tell I'm a proud Grammy???!!

All my supplies are packed for Houston, laundry is done, but I haven't packed my clothes. I've set up times to meet my quiting buddies for lunches and dinners. Book on CD has been picked out from the library, now let's hope my CD player will work. It's on the fritz and the dealership has ordered a new radio, but sometimes it works!
Okay, off I go. Time to go cheer for the Texas Rangers, hopefully they can pull out of the two losses they've had and come back and win the World Series! Oh, and we have to join three of the grand kids for the "Monster Mile" in our development tonight!
Happy Stitching everyone!

Staying Busy and So Much to Do!

2010-10-27T21:52:00.003-05:00

Time is moving fast and I have so much to finish up with before I leave for Houston next week. What's on the schedule? Well, I have a display I need to finish for the Dallas Area Fiber Artists (DAFA) 2010 Annual Show, embroider my grandson's name on my denim shirt (because it has to go to Houston with me), finish packing my class supplies and my car CD play went on the fritz today so tomorrow is goes to the dealership to be fixed. I have already checked out two books on CD to listen to on the drive to Houston and back, so the CD player has to be fixed.
And to add to my time schedule, the Texas Rangers are playing in the World Series (though tonight they aren't doing as well as we would like), so nothing gets done during the games.... There are still several items on my worktable that need to be finished up, but they can wait until after Houston. I really need to finish my truck quilt so it can be submitted on the 19th to a show DAFA is having at the Oxide Gallery in Denton. I work best under deadlines and stress, so I'm sure everything will get done when it needs to be done, but time is flying fast!
I was pleased to find out today that my Old Alton Bridge quilt was included in a blog by Satin Moon. What a wonderful surprise and it is a fascinating blog post.
I had a great time Monday night with my fellow DAFA members at our monthly meeting. My mini-workshop went well and I'm mulling over how to make the mini-workshop into a full workshop so the participants can make an art project. I really enjoyed it and am looking forward to doing more and growing in this segment of my career.

Teaching First Mini-Workshop

2010-10-25T13:07:00.000-05:00

Well, tonight is the night. I'm teaching my first mini-workshop at the Dallas Area Fiber Artist meeting. It is our "Mixed Media Mini-Workshop" night. It should be a lot of fun. My season is is on painting and fusing cheesecloth and Mistyfuse™. There is so much you can do with this process! I've got my instructions written and printed, kits made, supplies together....now I just have to find something to do until time to leave for Dallas. It's hard for me to get into the studio and be productive on days like this, because I loose track of time when I start working. If I start working on one of my projects I might miss the meeting!

I'm anxious to teach tonight. If things go well, I would like to spin this off into a 1/2 day or full day workshop where the attendees can do this process and incorporate it into a project.

So, if you are in the Dallas area, come to our meeting and join the fun! Check the link above to get directions. See you there!

Free Shipping on MistyFuse!

2010-10-23T09:00:00.001-05:00

Don't forget that the free shipping on Mistyfuse™ end October 31st from StudioJules on Artfire!
Use Coupon code Mistyfuse Free Ship!

Go Texas Rangers! ALCS Champs!

For My Art Quilt Friends That Have Never Seen My Studio a Mess

2010-10-22T14:55:00.004-05:00

This is for all my "Artsy Friends" that have never seen my Studio a mess. Yes, there have been complaints that my Studio is always too neat and how do I get anything done in a workspace that is so clean. Well, that's because I cleaned it before they came over and I am a little ADD about my workspace and have trouble focusing in with a clutter of projects around me. Maybe it's a case of the era I was raised in "Finish what you start and then you can move on to the next project....clean up your mess as you go...." Anyway, to "please" my friends, here are pictures of what my Studio looks like today.

On my worktable you will find several things in progress...the Truck quilt - ready to put on the background fabric (it's hanging on the work wall), supplies for Houston, Dancing Angel quilt is ready to be mounted on canvas, and supplies and samples for the mini-workshop I am going to teach Monday night at the Dallas Area Fiber Artists meeting.

Oh yes, and don't forget that overflowing backpack of supplies I've already packed for Houston! Katie PM, here I come!!!!

Okay, so I've got to get busy here. I've been listening to another book by Lisa Samson "Club Sandwich", but I think I need some good old Rock n' Roll to get me moving this afternoon and get finished up here in the Studio. I need to finish mounting the Dancing Angel quilt, get my class samples finished for Monday night and mount a display for the Dallas Area Fiber Artists Annual Show. Then I need to get dinner started for when "Mr. Wonderful" comes home from work and then the Texas Rangers are playing the NY Yankees. Tomorrow is another busy day with family and the TCU football game. Okay so Rock 'n Roll! Go Rangers! and Go Frogs!!!!

Mixed Media By Chance or Recycle Reuse?

2010-10-20T11:53:00.007-05:00

I know I’m always starting new projects before I finish the prior two, but hey, art on a whim can be the best pieces, right? Okay, I know, it just increases the number of unfinished projects, but the results can lead to unforeseen Mixed Media items that I hadn’t thought about before. That’s what happened this morning! Yesterday I painted and fused (with Mistyfuse™) cheesecloth for a new project. I did this on my appliqué press sheet, figuring it would clean up easily. This morning I went back to cleaning up in my studio where I had left off yesterday from painting and fusing. Using my handy dandy pot scrubber to take the paint off the press sheet I was welcomed with a colorful surprise. Look at the gold, silver and turquoise flakes! Can’t you just imagine how wonderful they are going to be fused (recycled) into a project!

Today I plan on working on the front end of the Truck Quilt and I’m thinking these flakes may work in somehow. They may be in the front end, below the truck, inside the truck, who knows, time and testing will tell!

Pictures, Pictures, Pictures.....

2010-10-18T10:50:00.006-05:00

Yesterday was a beautiful "Partly Cloudy" day. The temperature was perfect, so I grabbed my camera, newly dyed fabric and hankies, plus some of the older fabrics. I have been able to improved (IMO) my photo techniques, so I wanted to reshoot pictures of some of the older fabrics while it was cloudy outside. The sun, clouds, and I had to play peek-a-boo for a little bit, but I was finally able to shoot pictures for a couple of hours. Thanks to my wonderful husband, I was able to use a stretched canvas to block the sun at times and he also helped me pin fabrics to the fence. We were able to get several pieces done before Dallas Cowboy game started, maybe I should have kept taking pictures….

I wasn’t able to get all the fabric photographed, so when the “Partly Cloudy” part of today happens, I’m going to be outside again.
This morning I have spent time loading the new pictures and products in my Artfire studio (StudioJules) and remerchandising the different categories.
Well, I’m off to press fabric so I can maximize the “cloudy” part of the day!
Happy Stitching Everyone!

Mistyfuse™ and Making Mini-Workshop Kits

2010-10-13T12:31:00.003-05:00

I just posted Mistyfuse™ White, Black and Ultraviolet packages in my Studio Jules (on Art Fire) studio! Now it is available to purchase in a pre-cut package (20" x 2.5 yards) or by the yard (12" wide)! For the month (well, the remainder of the month) I'm offering Free Shipping to kick off sales.
This afternoon one of my Dallas Area Fiber Artists friends is coming over to help me put together kits for the mini-workshop I will be teaching this month. I'm so thankful for the help! We'll be making 60 kits of Mistyfuse™, cheesecloth, and parchment paper.
Tomorrow, back to work on the truck quilt!
Happy Stitching Everyone!