Joy, Love.....

hope and happiness!  That's what we all should choose! 

Sue...from Scotland sent me this fun coaster.

And she also sent this beautiful hand painted card. I just love the vibrant yellows and oranges....perfect for this time of year. 

And the touches of gold are right up my alley.

Thank you so much Sue....I love my gifts!

Just look at that scrumptious color!

The sky was just lovely this morning. Just enough clouds to make for a beautiful sunrise.

I have a correction from yesterday's post. 

I called my new favorite leaf purge...but it's actually spurge. Both equally good names for a weed!

Weeds

"Joy comes to us in ordinary moments. We risk missing out when we get too busy chasing down the extraordinary." Brene Brown

Some weeds are a nuisance and can be invasive....others can be beautiful and interesting in the right context.

This is my new favorite pressed weed for cyanotype printing. I love how airy it is and how it radiates out from the middle. I learned that it's called purge...and it is invasive.

It what was printed on the back of this teabag...

just enough white to compliment the prints coming through from the front. 

I only had this one piece....so I went on weed hunt this afternoon...and found something similar nestled in the pool landscaping rock...I'm pressing it in my atlas. 

I think this might be prostrate knotweed....doesn't that just sound like a weed? It has the same airy stems and tiny leaves....we'll see how it dries.....and whether it prints beautifully in the right context.

Surprise Outcome

The sky was blue...and the early autumn air was crisp and cool....perfect for a mid morning walk! This maple tree is a few steps away from our condo is always the first in the neighborhood to turn. As a matter of fact...half the leaves are already down.

I took advantage of the last couple of sunny afternoons and did a little cyanotype printing. With the sun lower in the sky...it's hard to find a sunny spot in my yard. Every print had to be done in a different spot in the yard.

I was motivated by the fact that I finally found the little stack of teabags Roseanne gifted me....and I wanted to try printing them again. Here is the post I experiemented for the first time: https://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/2024/07/tea-bag-project.html

I didn't think that first time to print both sides of the teabag...but this time I did....and had a little surprise outcome.

Because the teabag is translucent....the printing I did on each side sometimes came through on the other. The image you see coming through the fern...is actually what I printed on the back! I was pretty excited!

Every time the teabag reacted differently...which is what makes this process so much fun. Here The front was pretty much what I placed down for the first printing with just slight hints of blue from the other side.

But on the back there was so much more going on. You can see the lighter blue images at the bottom from the front.

Here it is with the flap open...I think it's gorgeous! The white stems are the only thing I printed on this side.

These are going to be fun little pockets to tuck a little gift or note into. I'm so pleased with the surprise outcome from this printing session.

Now I just have to remember to print both sides. I've already forgotten on one of them.

The Little Project That Could

Subtitle: I think I Can!

It's not uncommon for me to abandon a project gone wrong. I cut things up....toss unfinished projects in a drawer....or just throw them away.

But there was something about this little leaf project that I just couldn't let go of. I had to try and save it.

Like the little blue engine in the children's book....I started by saying I think I can...I think I can....I think I can....and I ended saying I thought I could!

So I thought I would recap the crazy journey of this little project that could. 

After the free motion stitching the watercolor bled like crazy on this particular fabric....and I'm still wondering why in the world I kept going.

And the watercolor splatters didn't help....it looked horrible.

I tried using green watercolor over the whole background. I didn't think it could look worse...but it did. 

The next day I decided to just rinse the whole thing in the sink thinking the watercolor would mostly wash out....or bleed together making an all over fallish color. Nope! the background was a pale putrid yellow...and the leaves lost most of their vibrancy. This is the only photo I have of that phase...I think this is right after I added the green watercolor. The yellow was even worse.

It was probably time to just give up and chuck it. But I kept kept going. I think I can....I think I can....I think I can.

I abandoned watercolor and switched to acrylic paint. First I thought about painting the whole background blue...and I tried a couple different options at one end. I liked the drama...and the way it showcased the leaves....but it was going to be too hard for it not to look messy. Posca pens would have been helpful...but sometimes they drag on the fabric and splatter....so that wasn't a good option. I didn't want spatters on the leaves. Oy!

So using a tiny paintbrush over the last couple of evenings...I used a slightly watered down white acrylic paint and carefully painted around all the rest of the leaves. TWICE!

The first layer of the acrylic paint reactivated the watercolor a bit and tinted the white paint. I didn't really mind it...but in the end I did a quick second coat to make it a little more crisp and clean. Or at least cleaner.

I added a bit more color in the leaves with colored pencil because I didn't dare go back to watercolor.

I actually liked that there's still a bit of its history peeking through. There is always beauty in the imperfection.  

The usable finished piece ended up being smaller than I thought....so I turned it into a coaster. Now it has form and function.  I thought I could! So I did!

Here's the back. Phew!

Dancing in the Rain

It rained ALL day today....and we badly needed it. It was the kind of rain that could really soak in and do some good. I actually love a rainy day...especially when I don't have to go anywhere....and every time I looked out the window I wanted to dance in the rain! I didn't....but I did dance inside...because of the rain.

Like many of you....I do the Wordle puzzle every morning. I try and make my first word fit the day...or something related to what's on my mind. If nothing comes into my head my go to word is olive.

My first guess today was rainy....and getting two letters was a good start. Working with the a and the n I thought about how my plants must be appreciating the generous drink of water....and plant was a helpful second guess. Three letters now...and two in the right spot!

I could see the next word in my mind right away....and it made me smile how it flowed perfectly with the others AND solved the puzzle.

My plants are giving thanks for this rainy day! I am too!

I put this montage together for Alyson last night....and included this blue found 5.

After I made the collage it occurred to me that the 5 was the blue that was missing in the veggie rainbow.  AND....in the rainbow acronym ROYGBIV (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet)....blue is the 5th word! I'm doing a little happy dance!

You can't make this stuff up.  Or then again....I guess I did.  

I think I may have come up with a solution for my problem piece from yesterday. Stay tuned. It was a dancing kind of day!

Rainbows and Doodles

Subtitle: Problem Piece

I picked up a rainbow of veggies from a small farmer's market while I was out visiting...and doing a few errands.

I've never bought purple cauliflower before...but it's what they had. I just read it has the same pigment found in red cabbage. As long as it's not dye...I'm good with it.

Is there anything cuter than a tiny radish? I still make my pickled vegetables at least once a week. It's interesting that the radish skins turn white in the vinegar/water brine....but recently I've been adding beets...so everything turns purply/red.

I'm anxious to see the color of the already purple cauliflower from the beet juice. 

Speaking of rainbows.....I shared a fabric piece that I've been practice doodling on with free motion stitch a few days ago.

Since then I've been playing around with some of my supplies to see what works best for coloring in the stitched shapes.

I tried watercolor...both pan and liquid, posca pens, colored pencil, regular sharpies, and some new sharpie paint pens I got from Becky. I labeled all the sections.

The clear winner this time was watered down watercolor ink using a glass dip pen gifted to me from Brenda. 

The tip has ridges that hold the liquid paint well....and the tiny tip could get into all the nooks and crannies.

 

I was able to paint these little purple loops...and vary the color based on how watered down the ink was. 

The stitching acted as a barrier...so it was really easy to paint with the rigid dip pen pushing the paint into the fabric. A brush worked...but harder to work with on fabric.

I'm not sure how colorfast watercolor on fabric will be...but I'm not making archival art. Posca pens and the sharpie paint pens worked well too...but the pigment is very dense. And some of my pen tips were too big for tiny spaces. 

I liked the way these little leaves turned out....which led me to another project. Turns out....fabric matters. 

My practice piece was on unbleached muslin. 

And the new project was on a cotton quilting fabric with just a hint of writing on it. The watercolor bled right through the stitching lines...but I just kept going. I'm not sure why it bled on this fabric and not the other...and I'm not sure why I kept going.

I added some watercolor splashes to try and distract the eye...and it just looked messy...and way worse. I tried several more things....and it would have been faster and easier just to start over.  But I was....and am determined to find a solution for this little problem piece. If I'm successful...I'll report back in....but I may to set it aside for a few days. I will certainly test fabric before I do anything like this again with watercolor.

Pops of Color

I'm getting a late start tonight....so I'm keeping it simple and sharing a few pops of color from our morning walk.

You know how I love found objects...but I'm also looking for unusual things on our walks to add into my nightly photo montages for Alyson. I'll work these into the one I send tonight. 

These are from the last couple of nights. We're still having fun with this....especially pairing unusual things.  

As you can see...our pool is all closed up...and this young lady was sad to leave. Hopefully she'll find her way home.

Here are a couple that Alyson sent to me.We do love our pops of color! 

And this is such a wonderful daily creative practice for both of us.

Apply the Skills

As I go along with this Fabulous Free Motion class....I'm always thinking how I can apply the skills to my own projects.

Roseanne gifted me this birch tree fabric a while back....and I knew I would use it at some point. Using the reverse applique techniques I practiced in the class...I layered up three fabrics...and started stitching. 

Here it is in progress. I had to spread the cutting out over a few days as it's hard on my hands.

I layered a textured green batik and a dark blue under the birch fabric all on a stabilizer....

then outlined the trees in a double layer of stitching.

When I held it up...I realized there was no clear place to start and stop the reveal of the two different fabrics underneath. So I added more branches that connected the trees giving me clear spaces to cut away.

Then I started snipping out the gray fabric to reveal either the blue or the green.

I finished cutting out the gray this afternoon....I will clean it up just a bit more once I rest my hands. The loose threads do add a bit of texture. Nature is not neat and tidy.

And...I'm trying to decide whether to add a little fall color stitching here and there to simulate leaves...and add another texture. Maybe some hand stitching like french knots.  

Thanks for the fabric Roseanne! This was a fun way to apply the skills from the class. 

Moment and Day

Exactly 8:43 this morning here in the Eastern Time marked the autumnal equinox. The moment the sun shined directly on the equator....the day that there was an equal amount of light and darkness all over the world. And this is the day that marks the official changing of the seasons. I love everything about the changing seasons.

I love the whole idea of nature winding down for its winter rest and all the colors and sensory experiences that go along with that. I do enjoy all the changing seasons...but summer to autumn is my favorite.

I made it a point to be on a walk at 8:43 this morning.

The air was cool...the sky was overcast and gray....and there signs of fall everywhere. I also did several outside chores...and soaked in every sensory moment on this day of change.

Ahhhh autumn!