A Man and His Little Boy Books

Paul is working is way through his Big Little Books from his childhood....he's on number 8 of 35.... Popeye, Ghost Ship to Treasure Island.  Of course this is in addition to the 6 hours a day he spends reading his big boy books.

In case you were wondering....he's enjoying retirement.  It's Holy Week...and he has time for Popeye.

"Keep creating. Let the process teach you what it needs to teach you." 

Morgan Harper Nichols

Today we started cutting up our altered fabrics and assembling 4 base collages 

inspired by our sketches. Mine are 8 inch squares and it was challenging but also satisfying. They all have parts I like and parts that are so so....but we'll have the opportunity to improve them as we go on to the next steps. Let's see what tomorrow brings.

Layers

What a whirlwind of a day....it had so many layers it was hard keeping everything straight.  But since you are not likely interested in the updated condo "Pool Policy" or how excited I was about finally learning about "Google Docs"....I'll share a little glimpse into today's "From Sketchbook to Wall" lesson. It was, by far, the most colorful layer to my day.

We had one more day of making marks to create texture....this time with bits of fabrics and stitches. We keep adding bits and pieces to our painted fabrics that will eventually be cut apart and used in a final piece. And the best part is that not being very good at free motion stitching didn't seem to matter. 

I do love these little free motion wonky little lines....and the simple tree silhouettes.  They're subtle...but fun...and the similar, but unique lines will help create cohesion in our piece.  Or at least that's what Tansy is telling us.

Hopefully starting tomorrow we will begin cutting these up for our project. I've given up trying to predict what will come next....because I would not have guessed I would be doing this today....but I loved it.

I have a scarf I've loved...but hardly ever wore....so I closed my eyes and cut into it.  The colors are great and I know it will be useful....but maybe not until one of the next steps.  I love the crinkled texture and loose weave and the frayed edges are so wonderful.

We'll see!  I have NO idea.

Adding To The Story

At the beginning of the "From Sketchbook to Wall" course Tansy shared some beautiful little nature books where she draws some of her inspiration.  

I immediately thought of Paul's childhood Audubon Nature Encyclopedias......so we sat one evening looking through several books.  Not only are there beautiful photographs and paintings...but there are also wonderful sketches and illustrations of all things nature. At the time I wondered if somehow I would be able to use them as inspiration for my piece. 

Our homework today was making marks and adding text to add interest and texture.  Tansy showed us all kind of techniques....many I had never thought of. One of the techniques allowed me to use some of the images of the woodsy ferns and twigs I found in the encyclopedias. The images may get cut up....but they'll be there peeking through here and there adding to the story. And I don't think I mentioned that the stripes are all from some of Paul's tired Oxford cloth work shirts....yet another layer of the story.

I also found an image of snowdrops....the only thing blooming in my yard right now. 

Speaking of text....I'm off and running with the Hancock Church Project Group puzzle.  I'm going to take my time and enjoy every piece...it's going to be a busy week.

Splash of Spring

A bright splash of spring on our morning walk.

How can you look at this and not be amazed!

They're just so special!

Viewfinder

"I do not know where tomorrow will lead...but I do know I am free to give my all with audacious hope for what could be."  Morgan Harper Nichols.

Without cutting our pieces our weekend assignment for the "From Sketchbook to Wall" class is to play with our painted fabrics under a viewfinder looking for compositions and color stories. A viewfinder (just a piece of matte board) was a game changer. I really enjoyed this process and I'm looking forward to the next step. And I'm absolutely in love with the grain sack cloth I excavated.

I deconstructed an old stained dollie...and I accidently tore the lace as I was pulling it off. I loved how it looked so I tore it all up into chunks and painted a few pieces I'm thinking it may have a use in my piece.....?

This is the linen part of the doily....the edge still has the hand stitching line from the lace. I have a whole new appreciation of how you can repurpose old textiles.

"From Sketchbook to Wall"

I am at the end of the first week of a two week class called "From Sketchbook to Wall" by Tansy Hargan.  We get a lesson and a video every morning and submit our homework on a Facebook page (optional) where there is lots of conversation and interaction with people from all over the world. The goal is to end up with an art piece from repurposed and altered textiles. We shall see!

I follow Tansy on Instagram and her layered and textural fiber art and thumbnail sketching fascinate me. I'm also going to take her "Mixed Media Thumbnail Sketch" course in May and I'm pretty excited about that too.

https://www.instagram.com/palimpsestparade/

Tansy's work is about connecting what you see and feel...to what you make. She loves working with fabrics that have a story....so takes apart old garments and repurposes found fabrics.  

I'm getting better at the seeing and feeling part....but don't really know how to interpret that into my art.  So I take classes.

So far we've spent a couple days observing, sketching, and collaging lines, shapes....and the spaces in between...which will hopefully provide inspiration.

Since our pieces will be made from repurposed textiles...I spent part of one day taking apart a linen shirt and a few other things....there are a lot of pieces in a cuff....and we're embracing the frayed edges and needle holes.

I love the pocket!

I found some vintage quilt blocks that Jane gave me years ago and took them apart and found the block had been pieced on a grain sack...I felt like I struck gold.  That writing will work it's way into my piece.

Next we chose a color palette....and started painting our fabric.  I didn't want to stick with just the greens and browns against the blue sky of my collages from the woods.....so this is how I explained my color palette choice when I submitted my homework yesterday.  

The woods behind my condo is where I did my seeing and sketching and will likely inspire the textures, shapes, and layers in my piece. But the color pallette is directly inspired by the gardens around my patio where I sit and enjoy the woods. I love the contrast of my tidy gardens and the untamed woods and I painted my fabrics from the memories I have from last summer. When I was finished I put together the thumbnail collage of some garden photos and found I did pretty well.  I loved this first step in the painting process.

Our job over the weekend is to improve on our pallette and fill in the gaps....I can already see I need more greens and some neutrals. Then we're supposed to play with placement and color stories and take photographs through a viewfinder.  Stay tuned.

The Beach

I spent all morning working on the day 4 lesson for my new class....but writing about it will have to wait. I've been hesitant to share....but I turned a corner on that feeling today and am excited to see where it takes me.  More tomorrow...because this afternoon I went to the beach...and when a day involves the beach...that has to be celebrated.

The afternoon started with a visit with Margie....and I got to see her fabulous finished spring puzzle....it's over 3 feet long.  I'm already sorting edge pieces for my next one....and this one will get added to my to do pile.  

Jane invited me for a late afternoon beach walk....and the rain and fog cleared just in time. It was cloudy....but beautiful. I actually like gray days at the beach.

I was quite taken with this site....and had to soak it in for a minute and it was a good reminder of the power of the ocean.  This massive boulder is sitting on top of the tree trunk and might be 5 or 6 feet in diameter. 

The ocean just scooped it up....and set it down again...and the driftwood log was amazing too.

Every year the sands dunes shift and change. This fence post used to be fully above the beach....now it's mostly under.

The beach is amazing and beautiful....and I'm lucky I have so many place and opportunities to visit it.

I gathered some wabi-sabi rose hips on the walk back to Jane's house...

the colors and textures are amazing! 

And Jane has been at it again.....she's using up all her fabric and this quilt is wild and fun.

And finally....a sign of spring in her garden. Yup...it's a good day when it includes Jane's garden....and her beach.  Thanks Jane!

Win!

Sometimes joy looks like homemade Mexican soup on a colorful placemat.  

Paul has been doing almost all of the cooking and shopping since he retired....and he seems to be having a good time.  This Mexican soup was outstanding.  He's finding all kinds of way to use the cast iron skillet and is always trying new things on the grill.  

It's a win for me!  

Made Her Mark

I worked on the puzzle while I ate my oatmeal....then I just walked away. 

S-A-V-O-R-I-N-G

Eliza's journal arrived....and this is the cover.  It tickles me that she drew herself twice as tall as me....but it makes sense actually: she's twice as brave, twice as active, and twice as cute.  

For those of you who don't know...I've started a shared art journal with 5 year old Eliza.

http://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/2021/03/shared-journal.html

Eliza did some beautiful art pieces on several pages....this pair remind me of Easter eggs.

And what's not to love about this unicorn.

I love that she's sticking with the embellished "E"....may be one of her signature moves.  Pun intended.

But it you look closely....you will notice a theme....even in the first two paintings. 

Eliza's favorite color is yellow....and she put yellow circles on every single page....in the whole book. Many are simple....and others are concentric. I told her there were no rules....and I think this is brilliant.  She's made her mark on her book....and it gives me jumping off places...I'm going to have fun with her circles.  

I couldn't wait to dive right into this gridded page. I filled in most of the negative space around her circles with colored pencil...then accented them with black pen. Her book will be literally...shared art. 

And by the way.....I did finish the puzzle. Only the reds and some of the brown was tough....but it all was an absolute delight! If you change your mind Margie....I'll bring it over.

Embracing Brown

Yesterday may have been International Colour Day....but today I'm embracing brown. 

I wouldn't let myself move on to the rest of the color parts in the puzzle until I caught up with all the neutrals and browns in the spools. I ended up sorting them by shape (no photo) and that made it go much faster....and quite enjoyable I might add.

All the holes are filled in ready for tomorrow....I was channeling Linda.....explanation is here.  I could have easily finished today....but if you've been paying attention you know I like to savor the end. And that....drives my friend Becky crazy. Sorry Becky.

I just walked away.

This time of year I really have to embrace the browns outdoors too. It feels like spring...but there's not much color. I took a little walk in the woods as I was observing and collecting images for another class. 

Yes....I'm taking another class and I'm still working on the last one.....which is one of the reasons I'm so slow at setting up the condo. That....and my part time job as a board member.  

I'll probably share more about this new class in the next couple days...we're just getting rolling.  Being able to sign up for these classes whenever I wanted has been a dream. I'm finding lots of interesting things out there....and some of them are even free.

But for today....it's about the textures, shapes, layers.....and the browns in the woods....with touches of green and the glorious blue sky.

This one is from our evening stroll around the pond....and by the way....the ducks are back.