Gridded Painting

I had an urge to paint late last night.

I pulled out several previously painted incomplete pieces and chose this one to work on.

It was done with Seta Color transparent paints with leaves to give it detail.

I did the vertical bars first. I thought I would have to wait until this morning to do the horizontal bars. I had placed in under a ceiling fan and it dried quickly enough so I could do the second layer.

This is a study piece for some other larger pieces I’d like to do.

I used Silk Screen paint for this one. I have 3 other types of paints I’d like to try this with on other study pieces. I then can decide if I want to work on the large piece I originally had the idea to do this to.

New Painting–Full View

This shows you the entire part of the canvas I painted. You can see the painting does not go to the edges.

I will have to handle that.

 

I did some cropping of the painting on my computer. I am not sure this is my final answer.

I received this comment about the painting yesterday:

“The spirit of Wasilly Kandinsky was most definitely with you as you worked.”

I found that interesting as I was working out of my head drawing on many years of living, seeing and doing.

I can see a very tiny resemblance to his work.

What do YOU see?

Painting On Canvas

 

I have about 2 yards of canvas on my table ready to apply a coat of gesso.

I covered almost all the canvas with the container of gesso I had. The gesso didn’t seem to be drying so I took it outside in the sun and laid it on the grass. It was dry in no time.

When I brought it back inside and put it on the table I put felt rather than plastic under it. I started to paint with no plan in mind. When I am designing something I often start with no plan in mind. This is also how I work when I am quilting a quilt.

I have the entire gessoed area of the canvas painted with the first layer of paint.

I have added a second layer of paint to the piece. I used random designs.

I now have 3 layers of painting with more random designs.

This is a closer view of the fourth layer of design. The colors don’t look quite the same in each picture as the sun changed its angle in the sky while I was painting and by the time I finished painting it was very bright. I don’t know if I will add anything else. I am going to look at this for a while before I decide.

I also don’t know what I  am going to do with this yet.

Originally I thought I’d cut it up into smaller pieces but I like the total look so I don’t think I’ll cut it into smaller units.

I may cut off part  of it – and then again I may not!

It’s Done–Fringe And All

I finished adding the fringe to this last night while watching DWTS!

I really like it.

I know it will go perfectly in the friends home I made it for.

I hope it will keep her warm on our chilly evenings.

Ombre Afghan

When I was organizing my studio I came across a very small amount of soft yellow yarns. It inspired me to knit this afghan for a friend who’s home is decorated in these colors. It is almost done. She does not read my blog so I can share it with all of you as I am working on it.

I have been enjoying knitting it since the color scheme is totally different than anything I’ve worked with before.

It has been keeping me warm on chilly evenings as I work on knitting it.

Thanksgiving 2012

I had a delicious dinner with my neighbors on Thanksgiving Day.

I enjoyed meeting their family.

One of the things I have been interested in this year is family holiday traditions – be they food or other things.

Betty made a wonderful dish which I had never had before. She combines apple slices and sweet potato slices and adds a small amount of sweetener and seasoning. You could taste both the apples and the sweet potatoes and they complemented each other.

I am indeed fortunate to have good friends when I am not near family at holidays.

Thanksgiving 2012 Potholders

One thing I often do is bring potholders as a hostess gift.

These are not your hang on the wall – don’t touch or use them potholders.

I use fun fabrics and make them BIG – 10” square.

There is a lot of padding and you won’t burn your hands when you use them.

They wash up beautifully and get puffier and better each time they are washed.

I’m bringing some as a hostess gift today.

Turning Fraternal Twins Into Identical Twins!

Long time readers may remember the first pair of socks I knit. They ended up being fraternal twins – different sizes.

I might have still been able to wear them but they were also too BIG!

It took me quite some time to come to the conclusion I’d have to unravel and reknit them.

I now knit both socks at the same time. I work a little on one, then a little on the other. It works and I end up with two identical socks. I use Size 0 bamboo needles and get the weight and texture I like. I also knit a longer cuff for a better fit. These are almost ready to shape the toes. They will go with so many things I wear. They are knit with Emily Parsons Sophie’s Toes sock yarn – my very favorite.

Nick’s Pizza Party

I “borrowed” this photo from my grandson Nick’s Facebook page. He’s the one in the chef’s hat to make himself look taller!

I made the half the aprons you see  – namely 1,2,3 and 5!

The aprons add to the whole ambiance!!!

“ A Make Your Own Pizza Party” is something other members of his family have hosted before.

All Hail the host and Chef Nicholas!

This is a great idea for any age group except the very youngest.

Honey I’m Home Again ………….

And I’m going to have to figure out where to put all of this in an already full house!

We filled the car to the brim and this is part of what came out of the car.

I had a great flight and sat next to a delightful couple I enjoyed visiting with.

The flight was on time (actually early) and smooth. I think there were 699 people on board as I watched them get on from my seat in Row 2!

Glad to be home again.

Hide The Amulet

Tonight we played “Hide The Amulet” on Cooper’s bright shirt!

We also did magic tricks where they disappeared (up a sleeve). He was funny because you could see him put them up his sleeve!

And then we counted and I did a little slight of hand and made some of those we had already counted appear again and they were counted twice.

He eventually did catch on!

Happy Halloween and Counting Blog Visits

Although Halloween is a few days off, many of the communities around here had their Trick Or Treat night last night.

Several years ago I used to decorate a full size tree for each and every holiday and occasion.

 

There are so many ways to use a counter to see how many views you’ve had on your blog.

I decided the Google statistics are the most accurate as they track the page views since Day 1.

As of today I have had 300,461 page views on my blog!

I have made well over 1000 posts to my blog.

Recently I have slowed down with posting. I have found a lot of my friends have done the same thing and only post occasionally.

My reasons include being very busy, and also not posting just to post!

Stay tuned as there will be more Quilts and Color!

Warm, Wild and Crazy Scarf

I just finished this scarf. It is so lightweight and yet so warm. It is an Ironstone yarn that is 50% wool and 50% nylon.

The yarn is bulky, lightweight, fuzzy and so colorful.

The scarf itself was knit with a simple garter stitch. I felt it needed something a little bit crazy to finish off the ends and add a little weight at the ends.

I tried various knit and crochet ideas I found in books and online. Nothing worked so I got out my crochet hook and designed and made these circle discs.

I am sure this is going to be my “go to” scarf this winter and it will reside on the lime green loveseat within an arms reach of where I like to sit!

I Spotted One Of My Quilts…..

It is so much fun to be surprised and see a quilt you made when a friend posts a picture.

This is my friend Angie and you can see the quilt I made in the background.

This is Angie with her daughter Diana. You can see a little of the quilt here too.

I have known Diana since she was less than 2 years old.

 

And one more of two of the most beautiful people in my life – both inside and out.

Talented too!

Here is a picture of the entire quilt.

COLOR–It Runs In The Family!

I thought this was the perfect title for the race my grandson and his friends participated in.

 

Don’t they look colorful?

They really got into the spirit of the run!

Fall’s Changing Colors

Fall is my favorite time of the year. I love the colors as they change. I have been taking similar pictures every other day to appreciate the change as it has happened.

This was taken on October 14th.

Similar view on October 16th. The orange bush in the background has lost some of it’s leaves. The burning bush on the right is becoming redder.

The burning bush has almost reached it’s peak of color today on October 19th. I hope to enjoy it for at least another week before it starts losing it’s leaves. I also see a little more loss of the leaves on the orange bush.

I will try to remember to continue taking photos of this area.

Mariner’s Compass Table Topper

I made this “quilt” to use as a table topper on one of those small round tables you can buy. In the photo the background looks a little wrinkled, but it looks smooth when it is on a table. I don’t have the table available here to put it on to show that.

It is finished on the edge with a double ruffle.

I did make a matching pineapple quilt but that was sold. When I find a picture of the quilt I’ll post it.

I'm glad to be able to include a puzzle for you today.

Just Sittin’ Knittin”

With the arrival of cooler weather I’ve been enjoying doing some knitting.

This will be a long scarf or shawl when I finish. I am about on half done if I use all 10 balls of yarn. I doubt I will use all of them.

If this pictures looks a little fuzzy it’s not the camera work – it’s the yarn!

I'm adding a puzzle to this post.

Perfect Harmony 2

This is the other quilt I was not at liberty to show you until now.

It was created with shibori fabrics I dyed.

I really enjoy doing the quilting on these pieces – free and easy!

I hope you can see the quilting a little clearer on this close up of a section of the quilt.

I use threads that blend into the colors of the quilt to create another layer of design “gently”.

Perfect Harmony

This is a quilt I was not at liberty to show you until now.

I worked on this in a different manner than my usual method of dyeing the fabric and then letting the fabric tell me what to do.

I planned out what I wanted to happen with the fabrics and then carefully measured and dyed each fabric to undulate in a similar manner.

When I had it sewn together I contemplated how I would quilt it.

This is a close up of the quilting. The undulating pattern in the fabric suggested the quilting pattern.

I felt the two complemented each other and that is why I have titled it “Perfect Harmony”.