New Work and a Learning Curve

I'm finally finishing up this piece, which I'm calling Nora's New Kitten.

It started out as a quick fabric sketch...

but I wanted to take it further, although I did like the original piece. I wanted to teach myself some new things about outline stitching, composition, and bringing a picture to completion. In fact, I have one more thing to do to this, and that is to finish off the edges and mount it on canvas. I have a couple of shows coming up, and I'm looking for a clean, consistent way to present work. I'll show the completely finished piece when it's done.

I do apologize for being so absent from my blog, but I've tried to keep up with friends' blogs and to see what everyone else is up to! It's hard to believe that this is the last week of August. Where does the time go?

I hope that you are enjoying these last days of summer and that you're having a creative day!!

Drawing with Scissors and Fabric

As my husband and I completed preparations this morning for a trip to see our daughter in Toronto, we found out that our flight had been delayed by 4 hours. Luckily we were still home and, since I was totally packed and ready, I decided to spend some of this bonus free time doing some fabric art! Just a little sketch cut directly from fabric as I chatted on the phone with a friend. When I get back home I'll decide whether to stitch it or leave it as is!

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

35 Years Ago...

Happy Anniversary to my dear husband!

Getting Started

I can't believe we're into August! The summer seems to be flying by, and I've spent much of my time indoors, avoiding the heat and organizing my materials and tools. I, like most people, have certain favorites, and these are a few of them -

For the machine embroidery I'm planning to do, I've rounded up different linen and textured fabrics as backgrounds. Many of these I had collected over the years, but a few are new. This particular pair of scissors is my favorite and I love all kinds of colored pencils - regular and watercolor. I'm a bit obsessed with Micron Pigma pens and have them in every size. They work beautifully on fabric for details and they are permanent and archival. I have at least twenty five of them - my favorite art indulgence!

Last of all, in this photo, a heavier weight (30m) Gutermann thread, which shows up well in thread line drawings. I'm still tinkering with my sewing machine tension and trying to find the smoothest line.

More colored pencils and pens! They've multiplied over the years and there are even more in drawers.

 My trusty old Singer sewing machine, which has seen me through so many projects. Behind it are photos of my daughter and my ever-present fan. I'm basically hot all the time, and this little red fan gives a welcome breeze while I'm sewing.

I do have a much newer sewing machine, a Brother, which has remained in its box for a few years because I never learned to use it properly. I'm finally thinking about taking some lessons with it because it's such a waste to have it and not use it. 

I'm happy to be back into blogging again and I hope to post more frequently. Meanwhile, I hope that everyone who reads this is enjoying a wonderful summer!