Artfest day two- the wild portraits class

After much socializing in the commons and 'round the bonfire, being fed in the fab dining hall, and having a blast with the best bunk mates, day two rolled around (or is it day three, since we did arrive on Wed?). Class day two! I took a wild portraits class with the same paint teacher, Roxanne Padgett. Why two painting classes and the same teacher? I can only say I had a feeling about it. And it turned out to be just what I wanted to be doing.

We warmed up with drawing exercises. Roxanne likes us to try out all different sorts of surfaces of paper and fabric, including recycled ones.

That's my new thermos in the foreground. I'm in love with it. Tea time is anytime.


I'm painting away.....


Layers of paint, gesso, writing, collage, stencil, stamp, and a drawn face later, I have abook mark, and a mini portrait. Folks were voting for me to keep this one white, but I feel the need for color. Later.



I was so engaged with the process, not to mention covered in paint, it was hard to stop and take photos, but I got a few. Here's the Tea Time portrait in some of it's layers.....



Painting the actual portrait part on a transparency. I LOVED painting in reverse (see this is the back side) and can't wait to do it again. Anyone have access to used transparencies???


Flip the painting over to see the front side and attatch it to the collage below.



Coming back from lunch break, I was feeling rather serious about what was happening in one of my pieces (we work on 2-4 at a time). I didn't talk about it in class, or that day, but will share now. I'm painting away when this green angel started to emerge. I wasn't planning or thinking anything, just playing with technique, and suddenly she was there, wanting to be shown. This is the green angel that accompanied my father as he passed on this winter (age 60).

He had been talking about a green light in his room, and the more we talked about it, the more he began to see it clearly. It was his angel and she was gorgeous, with blue eyes, and happened to be green. She soothed him during surgery and accompanied him as he passed over. His death was so sad and unexpected, but it was also very beautiful, positive, and wondrous. I'm grateful that I was there. Death isn't sad, it's really just the parting from loved ones left behind. So.......


So THIS angel starts to show up in my collage. This on the left is pic one. She wanted an x-ray hand, which I didn't like, but I put it in anyway. My discomfort with the piece was about wanting so very much to see her, but not wanting to "mess it up". Does that make sense?


Next image of the green angel piece, I used a cut out to paint around the image, to mark out her radiance before I got the guts together to DRAW the darn portrait itself.


Then I grabbed the sharpie and just drew. I didn't think, I drew. Face. Wings. Heart collage. There she is. I was desperate to outline her face with the sewing machine (this portrait was on canvas) and get her to stand out more. Roxanne suggested use of her water soluble crayons, which did the trick. See the blue outline?

After I was home for a few days, and showing what I made, I realized every single thing I did had hearts in it, and hearts with holes in them- often three. My dad died from the results of a series of heart attacks and had surgury that put stints in. Three. Art, or to be more humble, the act of creating is also the act of revealing one's unconscious and putting it into form. Espeially when we get our brains out of the way.

I finished sewing on her when I got home and really like the piece. Creating is really scary and exhilarating sometimes. I'll get a good photo to post tomorrow.


This is one of the typical buildings at the fort. All stately and painted white. It really was a great location.

OH! Don't let me forget to tell you all about "trades" tomorrow. That's one of the great Artfest traditions. I brought 80 things to trade! I'll take a photo of the trades I received.

Hawaii Bliss Bags - art for your life -

The summer Bliss Bags are in! The Hawaii bags were inspired by a series of dreams. They combine all my favorite things: color, free motion quilting, hidden messages, raw edge applique, and functional art.

One bag, two looks. STRIPES SIDE: Each stripe is free-motion quilted with abstract Hawaiian designs (flora, maps, waves, earth, sky, water, sun), and the word "Hawaii" is hidden in quilting somewhere on the bag, as are hearts (because you are loved). Raw edge applique finishes the top edge of the bag - shabby chic look. It will fray slightly, giving the bag more texture, as you use it.



SIDE TWO: Flip the bag over for a second look. Fabric print with art pocket feature - perfect for cell phone or camera. (On this bag, the flower is the pocket.)


Top edges are finished with a raw edge applique technique of overlapping squares. These are so much fun to stitch up. Lots and lots and lots of thread!


Your perfect bag for summer, or to keep up your sunny disposition all year long. Interior fabric is a bright orange print of sliced oranges.


Organizer zippy pouches, in matching colors!
cosmetic
money
clutch bag
camera bag
tunes
receipts or punch cards.

NEXT UP: Same style of bag in Oceania blues and blue greens!

Coffee Cozies are Out of This WORLD!!!!

Need a little rocket fuel in your cup? Coffee cozy fans, strap on your seat belts for this journey into bliss space!

You know me, I love to make coffee cozies because I am an art quilter at heart, and I love using those skills to create art for every day objects. Combining my adoration of art quilts and coffee, and my current playful mind space, I bring you space themed coffee cozy series. They make great gifts for those coffee, tea, cocoa drinking friends of yours.

Above: Milky Way Macchiato coffee cozy, named by Facebook fans. Join in the fun at Bliss Monkey Studio fan page on facebook.

Mocha on Mars coffee cozy. Laid flat, you can see more of the quilting, amount of stitch work, and raw edge applique style. Cheers!

Interplanet Janet coffee cozy. Did you grow up with school house rock? If you are like me, you remember those little learning lessons between cartoons on Saturday mornings. In fact, you remember the lovely jingles all TOO well, thus your brain is now full and unable to store anything new.

Cozies currently available in Bliss Monkey Studio shop on Etsy!

Bliss Time

I love Spring in Oregon. My trees are kind enough to take turns blooming, so there's weeks and weeks of pink or white petals to view out back.

March and April are a "new years" time in Bliss Monkey Studio. The holiday sales slow down in Feb, I get a chance to Spring clean office and studio. (I plan to show before and after pics of these events! LOL!). And it's a time to think about the year ahead as well as develop new products.

Most of you know that I have three stores. My products for Bliss Monkey are cyclical, while Charmish beads and Bliss Forest plush are similar product lines year round.

What is next? See my new Super Girl bag? I made it for myself, but it's an experiment for 2010 Bliss Bags. I do a summer line every year and its fun to invent something totally new.


The blooms smell gorgeous, and I can hear the hum of many honey bees hard at work.


This is the back side with angled pocket for cell phone. Are you like me and can not HEAR your phone ring if it's down inside your bag? Plush this bag is HUGE, to hold water, snack and change of clothes for gym or pool.

I have recently become intrigued with hot pink and orange, and saved up a heap of fq to play with.

The close up shows the amount of free motion quilting (my fav part!) and the raw edge trianges that I trimmed the bag with.



The Super Girl print/applique was made for me by artist friend, Helisengezer, in Istanbul. I've saved her for over a year before finding the right project to feature her in. I love this print because she looks like she's done her Super work for the day. Cape dirty and job well done, she heads home for a snack.

Pretty Little Quilts

Pretty Little Quilts by Lark books is out. YEY! I wrote a how to project for this book a year ago, so it's great to see it in print. There are some great projects in this book. I love the little quilt of the whole family's hands traced, then embroidered in red.

So my project is the Tea Time quilt that is on a house shaped frame for hanging. The piece itself is for sale at Hope for Haiti etsy shop to enable Doctors Without Borders, to do their great work.

Helping Haiti

Ooo, my art quilt, "Tea Time" is up on Craft Hope for Haiti etsy shop. Have a look at the listing. I appreciate that the money goes directly to Drs Without Borders.

This piece is going to be part of the Pretty Little Quilts by Lark books, due out next month. I have just supplied them with more info to help with the selling, for example, the tea cups button off to be reversed to a different color and rearranged! Interactive art quilt. :-)

Coffee Cuffs and Spring

It's lovely to get away to the snow, but returning to the valley to find the daffodils blooming, and the plum trees in full throttle pink, it's lovely to be in the next season.

This is my new purse sketchbook.



Celebrating seasons: new wrist cuffs/cup cozies in my AlyTheRed shop. On the left is "Spring", and the right is "Summer".

Textile jewelry is hot hot HOT, but your hands shouldn't be! This art cuff transforms, with a literal snap, to become a cup cozy. Fits 12-20 oz coffee shop cups, cold cups and pint glasses.



When you are an Oregonian, happiness is an afternoon of sunshine!

Inspire me Thursday "Breakfast"

Inspire me Thursday's prompt was "Breakfast".

Breakfast rendered in art quilt. Do you recognize my favorite new mug? Steaming coffee, my favorite, and fresh eggs from our hens.




I couldn't get a better shot under the lighting conditions, but wanted to show the piece as it looks on the wall. I wrapped the art quilt on a thick wooden frame, so the image wraps around the sides, which I think is fun. 9" x 12"




This is Quillan's offering. "Breakfast" of fried egg, over easy, with glass of juice, rendered in gummy bears. He did the place setting and photography himself. Quillan age 6.

Coffee House

These are my new art quilts. They are 8" high and stretched on a wooden frame, ready to hang, and feature a free-motion, quilted steaming mug. Coffee? Tea? What's your pleasure?

Back view.

Tea Time Art Quilt

Tea Time is a 20" art quilt on a wood frame- a project I designed for Lark books, "Pretty Little Art Quilts". The cups button off to be changed for seasons or reversed or rearranged (who says art quilts can't be played with?). The tea bag has real tea in it. I had a lot of fun doing this project. The background is four different textures of white fabric, evocative of fresh linen, curtains and crisp cloth napkins.
(click to see an enlarged photo)

I am 100

Am I already one hundred?!! I just noticed. That I happened to write about slides and being playful at 99 was probably a good sign, huh?

100 posts and I still love you.

Wanna see some quilt art?


This is the "number" Hot Pink of the Bird on the Line series. I'm making art quilts and mounting them on wooden frames in two sizes. It gives a very satisfying and new sort of finished look. This one is for my dear friend Tonia's birthday. Happy Birthday to you, you excellent leo!

The moon is from a scrap of hand printed Tiwi (aboriginal australian tribe from the north) fabric depicting a spider's web. I adore hand printed fabrics.


Close up showing texture..... see the wee birdies?


Reverse side. I am getting the hang of how I want the backs to look and where I want to staple the fabric. It's like stretching a canvas only tiny. I adore putting something unexpected on the backsides of my quilts. I like surprises myself, so you can imagine I like to create surprises.


Clematis........ I'm new to clematis growing. We bought two different sorts then an ever-green. After planting them in a new flower bed, I learned that while they ARE a sun plant, they don't like their "feet" to get hot. I wonder if a covering of wood chips will keep them cool enough? They haven't grown much over this summer.

Planting bed.....
This is the view of a new shed area being prepared. We were going to build a shed, but in a yard where we want to maximize room for plants and garden and hens and add a mini orchard, we came up with a groovy alternative. We are using the North side of my studio as a shed. We pulled up all the grass and plant matter, put down that "no weed" screen, covered with chips for a nice floor, and we'll be adding a clear roof before fall. I'm wondering if I might like to add gutters to the roof and a collection barrel. This gives us a huge area to organize tools and store things, with lots of light, that's tucked out of view though close to the house. Downside is that it IS more exposed to spiders and such nesting, but they get into any shed or garage anyway. (No offense to spiders by the way.)

Letterboxing as art?

Is Letterboxing art? Let's talk about it. But first, it's 2 oclock. Yes, tea time. Would you like a cuppa with me? I'm really hooked on having a few Marie Lu dipping biscuits with my tea these days. It's just Irish Breakfast today, I'm afraid, nothing exotic. But it's a nice standard.

Finally, conditions were right to find our first Letterboxing series of the spring. The sun came out, the kids had the day off of school, and we printed out the clues to an eight box, book themed series, called Dead Poets Society, all in a park we have hardly explored. Grabbed our kit, and our puppy and off we went!

Letterboxing always gets me into new parks, hiking new trails, climbing mountains because it's beautiful, and fun, AND there's an art reward at the end. I mean I love to be out in nature, and pretty much ALL artists spend a lot of time in the studio and probably need more exercise. Is it the artist in me or the pirate in me that loves a little adventure that leads to art booty?

Here's the trail scouts, Mudslide Sydney and Long Leggs McCormack honing in on a hidden letter box. We've followed the clues to the "giant mossy rock laying against twins" and searched the right side. Careful, don't let anyone see what you are doing! Letterboxing is kinda secret........ there it is! We found it! ......Nice. The person who produced these letter boxes did a great job camouflaging them with tape and keeping the contents secure from moisture.
What is inside a letterbox? Can you see? There is a hand-carved stamp based on the theme, and a sign in book. To collect the art, you simply ink the new stamp and stamp it into your own book. You make an original stamp with words or symbols to represent you, and stamp it into the box's sign in notebook, and can add the date and write a little note. Some of the stamps are simple renderings, some are amazing! Then you put everything back, and move onto the next box, if you are lucky to be in a park with a series. Most boxes are singles. They can have all sorts of themes to them. Some clues are riddles and hard to puzzle out. Some are simple directions. Sometimes the book inside the box is a beautiful, hand bound miniature. They are fun to read through before you stamp your own stamp. People travel from all over to letter box in Eugene. And honestly, when I'm traveling, I look up letterboxes in the area in case I get the chance to visit them. I've made my own boxes and posted the clues as wel, but you should only do that in your own area because you have to monitor the boxes to make sure contents are safe, and the book hasn't gotten full. Occasionally, nature changes a site and you may need to find new locations. Always hide boxes right on the trails so people aren't encouraged to trample all over in search of things. You know the "stay on the trail" rules.

Letterboxers like to have gatherings. There's debate about whether or not to show off your books (of collected stamps) because you might ruin the surprise or hunt for someone else. Perhaps if you shared stamps from far away? It's a tradition/game that started in England, after all, and has spread world wide! Perhaps I'm funny, but I prefer to keep letterboxing anonymous. You start recognising people's stamps, carving style, and notes in books after awhile, and I like the mystery involved. I don't want to put names to faces. I like to imagine everyone as an exotic, eccentric, magical, artist............. normally, I love meeting other artists, but sometimes it's just nice to keep a little mystery in life.

So is letterboxing art?

Wear your coffee cozy!

I love making coffee cozies. They are a reusable cloth accessory that literally does save trees. They are joyful to look at. (Yes, I have an inner need to decorate and beautify the world). Tacitly, they are a little addicting. (Feedback given from friends). They make your cup unique so no one else picks it up by accident. And they are fun, thus giving you an extra ritual to enjoy with your daily cup. I've been making and selling them for almost two years now, and love it. One of my best coffee cozy moments was the discovery that I could make them dual functioning as coffee accessory and wrist art. Thus the launch of my "Wrist AND Coffee Cuff" line of cozies. They are lined with fleece, so soft and comfortable to wear. You can always have your cuff at the ready. I am fascinated with art objects that have more than one use.

I consider what I"m doing, when I make the coffee cozies, is designing and quilting an art quilt, then cutting it up to become functional art. This is what makes them special and different from other cozies. (And I'm a big fan of other coffee cozy makers, but the way). That said, I'll tell you my inner secret........What I want to do "when I grow up" is be a gallery represented Art Quilt artist. (Somehow, I just can't call myself art quilter- perhaps I should shorten it to Quilt artist, but people just hear "quilt" and think traditional). I do make art quilts, but my love of functional art has taken precedence. The philosophical question is: does this define me as a crafter instead?