Yesterday Dave and I celebrated our 16th Anniversary. I can remember the first time I talked with him and the first time I saw him. We were set up on a blind date by a classmate of his with whom I worked part-time (to pay for the car that I had to have for my full-time job!). He called and sounded so nice. All I knew was that he was in his second year of medical school and that we had similar political and religious beliefs - sounded like a good start to me! And so we went out to his winter dance and then we went out the next night and three days later and as often as possible after that. Neither of us ever dated anyone else again. We were married a week after he graduated medical school.
We had a lovely day together. Dinner at Roy’s Hawaiian Fusion was lovely. Great service, fresh, fabulous food. And they were so wonderful to make up a dessert plate that wished us both a happy anniversary and Dave a happy birthday. You see, Dave married me the day before his birthday. So, when we celebrate we celebrate both.
As you already know, I’ve had some major vertigo going and, a really difficult few weeks. I was finally feeling better Friday afternoon, and I took the time to work on some projects for Dave. Luckily, Dave had poker on Friday evening and I was able to work into the evening without him knowing! 
You may recall an early post of the first collages I did for Dave’s office. The one that was missing was the collage of the nervous system. Since Dave is a neurologist with a specialty in nerve and muscle disease, this is a rather important image for him to have. However, the source images were not working for me. After many hours with Photoshop Elements, I was able to alter the images enough to make them look more artistic and recognizable. The nervous system alone, well, let’s just say it’s got its beauty, but it’s not really something to collage!
In the end, however, the collage above left 20″ x 16″ came out of the work. I’m pleased with it. It’s a bit darker than I’d like, but it completes Dave’s set and he is pleased with it. That, in the end, is all that matters! And, to the right, you see a long collage I did for him with lots of images of the brain. It’s very bright (red is his favorite color!) and I’m pleased with how it came out. Dave will likely put this one in his exam room or his procedure room with the small collage to the left, an 8″ x 10″ small collage.
I have a lot more to share, but we’re getting ready to head out for lunch to celebrate Dave’s birthday with his parents.
June 1st, 2008
Posted by
Fran |
acrylic, art, collage, family, life |
one comment
It’s May 5th - 
Day 5 of the Every Day in May challenge. For the first time in a while, I was feeling up to spending time in the studio today. I walked in and immediately decided I needed to paint. I had an urge to get messy! So, I drew the outline of a woman on a piece of Strathmore 400 linen canvas 246lb paper and started to paint with my Golden Fluid Acrylics. I was completely in “the zone” for several hours as I layered paint upon paint.
I finished the 6″ x 6″ piece and then decided it needed a stretched canvas behind it to make it easy to hang. So, I went to my stockpile of mixed-media acrylic canvases. I had one that was a perfect match to the dress of the woman I had painted.
Considering that I hadn’t painted in acrylic in a while, I’m pretty pleased with it. The gel medium holding the acrylic image to the background is still drying (notice the white around the central image!) but it’s done! Now maybe I can do some drawing…
May 5th, 2008
Posted by
Fran |
Creative Every Day, acrylic, art, collage, painting |
2 comments
I’ve spent the past few days doing some sewing. It’s so nice to just play with fabric, fiber, and to hear the soothing sound of my sewing machine! I’ve been working, particularly, on a project for a friend. I made her a tote bag (right). I created the base with free motion stitching and then created a fabric collage out of vintage kimono fabric. I then constructed the whole thing. I’m really happy with how it turned out.
When I did the free motion quilting, I, as usual, created more quilted fabric than I needed. I knew I would figure out something to do with it, and I did. You see, I was lucky enough to participate in the Cyber Fiber Exhibit Postcard Exchange with the fabulous Susan Lenz. In February, I offered to trade out a postcard for this fabulous one Susan created out of a full-sized quilt she made a while back. Well, unfortunately, the mail being what it is, the postcard did not show up, though Susan sent it on February 3rd. I emailed Susan after a few weeks and told her I’d not received it. We were both disappointed, but we were willing to accept that these 
things happen and that we’d trade at another time.
Well, much to my surprise, Saturday’s mail brought with it the very postcard! I cannot tell you how excited I am to own this beauty! It’s even more intense and the color is SO much deeper in real life! I love it.
Anyway, back to the leftover quilted fabric! LOL
Today I took some time and created the postcard for Susan. I made it out of the base fabric left over from the tote and I added a decorative collage of vintage kimono fabrics. But it still needed something to balance it out. So, I added in the fiber from my huge (and I mean huge!) stash of fibers. I’m pretty happy with the result here, too. A lot had to do with the color of the background fabric, which I love, but I also like that it really represents my style.
Tomorrow I’m volunteering for Cochlear again, showing off my Baha implant and answering questions about it. I always enjoy helping people learn about this so it will be a tiring, but good day!
OK. Now I’m off to figure out what to do with the rest of that fabric and to pull together stuff for my trip!
April 10th, 2008
Posted by
Fran |
Creative Every Day, art, collage, fabric, friends, sewing |
4 comments
It was so good to get back into the studio yesterday. A certain calm comes over me when I walk into the studio - even if it’s a mess! It’s really a haven for me. 
Yesterday, after I wrote about my preparations for today’s Watercolor Pencil Magic class, I pulled out the sewing machine and set it up on my main desk. It felt good to see my old friend. I didn’t know what I wanted to do, since I wasn’t sure how much energy I’d have. So, I took my scrap box and a painting I did before all this health stuff started. I just started adding some fabric to the background with stitching. Unlike some people, I don’t use fusible webbing under my small pieces. I choose to let them loose and let them lie where they will. I’m happy with where this is going. It’s not done yet, but it’s good to be creative! She’ll either end up as a wall-hanging or a pillow. I’m not sure which yet!
Dave and I are planning to go to France this summer, starting in Paris, where he has a conference. As a result, I decided I should learn to speak French. Yesterday my headset came from Rosetta Stone and I started my French lessons online. I am finding it a bit challenging with my hearing impairment to get the pronunciation right, but the program does record my voice and play it back to me, so I am getting an idea of how I’m doing. I’m not yet ready to write in French, but I’ll get there. I have six months to learn and I’m feeling fairly comfortable with that amount of time.
Now I’ve just downloaded and printed out the first lesson for my watercolor pencil class. I’m going to spend today working on that and then, if I feel up to it, I might do more work on the fabric collage.
If you haven’t left a comment for my One World One Heart drawing, please do so. One comment per person! You have until February 14th at 9 am Pacific Time to be included in the drawing.
February 5th, 2008
Posted by
Fran |
Creative Every Day, art, collage, fabric, sewing, watercolor |
3 comments
‘Tis the season, right? Well, I had my treatment on Monday. I was pretty sick during it and the IV had to be reinserted twice, so it was not my favorite day. And, though it took longer for me to get through it, I had the pleasure of Angie’s company for a couple of hours. And, at the end of the day, my DH took me home. Not a bad day, overall!
The nurses loved the bags, so that was fun. And I made the one on the left for myself, as well. I used it to bring my blanket, my iPod, and some reading material with me. It’s deeper than some of the others, but, since it has to fit in enough “stuff” to get me through the day of treatment, I figured it would work!
This bag, actually, was a great victory for me. The base was created with my new Fabric Mover, so it is all free motion quilted! I really learned how to manipulate the fabric with this project. It was a blast!
I’ve spent the past day working on two presents while relaxing and recuperating from my treatment. The first is a doll for a friend’s holiday present (Yes. It is late! She knows it will be!) and the second is a bag for a bottle of wine. See, each year, one of Dave’s partners has a holiday party. They are wine drinkers, so we go and buy them a good bottle of wine each year. Usually, we just get a tube for it or we bring it in a store-bought gift bag. And, while none of these are bad, I decided that a good bottle of wine needed a beautiful exterior. So, I made this wine gift “bag” out of a beautiful crushed velvet that had sequins on it and a raw silk inside. It was a quick and fairly easy project, but it looks like it took a lot of work. I added some copper metallic fibers from my stash. All that’s left to do is to write a short note and we’re set for this weekend’s party!
Most of today, I’ll probably sit in front of the television and try to get my energy back. I’m feeling the fatigue from the treatment today.
December 19th, 2007
Posted by
Fran |
art, collage, fabric, health, sewing |
5 comments
I have been working on gifts for the staff at my infusion center and one of the nurses at the free clinic. I’ve been working on the totes and I’ve completed the collaged quilts that are going to adorn the front of the totes. To the left are two of the three completed quilties. Three are done and a fourth is in process. I’ll post them all when they’re all done. I hope to finish at least one by the end of the weekend.
And I just spent the day with Angie, who brought me the MOST amazing 40th birthday gift. Ever. It’s to the right here, and the pictures, well, they do not give it justice. It’s a fabric sculpture, really. It’s 40 beaded prayer pillows sewn together to hang on the wall (which was just what I did as soon as she handed it to me!).
Click on the picture to go to the close-up photos of the fabulous pillows with the beading.
Angie is perhaps the most genuine person I have ever known. She is who she is. She truly a beautiful person inside and out. And our friendship has become one of the closest relationships I’ve ever had in my life. I can’t express how amazing it is to me that Angie and I met at Art Unraveled here in town in 2006 - yes. that’s just 15 months ago! It feels like we have been friends forever. And there was some sort of Divine intervention in getting us together. I don’t think I knew, before our friendship, how much I was missing that close relationship with a female friend. And now, well, I could not imagine my life without her. Angie, I love you and I am blessed to have you in my life.
I’m off to work on the final qultie and to start working on the tote construction.
December 7th, 2007
Posted by
Fran |
art, beading/embroidery, collage, fabric, friends, sewing |
4 comments
This week, while I was recovering, I regrouped much faster than I anticipated. This was good news, because this weekend Art Unraveled starts. And Tracey and Andrea are all coming into town to play! We are all having dinner tonight and Angie will join us.
In other news, I think I mentioned that I’m going to be putting some of my art in a friend’s new store/gallery. I’m pleased to announce that I will be the Featured Artist at the Grand Opening of Sun Spirit Studio in Bisbee, AZ! Andrea’s store is going to have her usual stock, but in addition, she is adding artists’ work. She asked me to provide her with some of my different mixed media work. The first group of cell phone/iPod pouches you saw were for her gallery. I’ve been busy working on other things, too.
I spent some time in the studio and I made some fabric collages and sewed them to cards and portfolio covers. Here is one example of what is going on.
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Each of these packets contains four cards. All the cards have different original collages on them. The portfolio cover also has a collage on it. All the collages in each stationery pack use the same fibers and fabrics to keep them a cohesive set. |
I also had some gift albums from the days when I used to do scrapbooking. I took those albums and made small fabric collages on those, too. They’ll make great arty gift albums. To the right is an example of that. The one to the right is an 8×8 album, but I also have done some that are 6×6. Each features an original signed fabric collage in the front. I think they will make great vacation albums for the people who visit Bisbee.
So, I haven’t mentioned the CJ round robin I’m in in a while. I thought it was high time I share with you some photos of what I did in July’s claendar. Here you go!
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This journal was just a date book that had blank pabes and pages with images of Tuscany. It was a long month for me, so I was a bit stuck for most of the month. I also had been out of town for part of it, so I had to make up for the lost time. Deadlines are sometimes the greatest motivators!There were only four layouts to do. I took a photo from a magazine and then doodled all over it with my Sakura pens. I love my Gold Shadow Pens. That’s what I used here, along with some other Gelly Rolls. |
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I followed the same basic idea here, but I also added some Permapaque Metallic pens and I did some journaling on her face. I had some fun with these. |
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I loved this photo. It reminded me of photos of the Greek Isles. So I wanted to use an image of a woman as if she’s floating over the city. The image is from Anahata Katin and I altered it some by pairing it with other images and then adding some doodling and a sticker. |
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This is another page that has Anahata’s images as its base. I had fun pulling together different pieces and then doodling over it. |
So, there you go. That’s it for now. I’ve been busy creating lots of art, printing business cards, putting together my trades for Art Unraveled, etc. Everything seems to be ready for Monday’s class with Bev Brazelton. There will be many photos taken this week, and I’ll update when I can, but I do have a lot of artsy, girlie fun scheduled and balanced with rest time to conserve my spoons as much as possible! 
August 4th, 2007
Posted by
Fran |
art, business, collage, fabric, goals, group projects, journaling, sewing |
6 comments
I got my first commission request for the pouches. Shirley McCutcheon (who is in the current issue of Somerset Memories!) asked me to make a bag for her Garmin Nuvi GPS. She preferred blue. Well, I was so excited to start on this project that I have done little else art-wise since she ordered it. This morning, I sent her photos of the front (left) and back (right). It features Vintage Kimono fabrics, a vintage button, and the background is made wit
h fabric that I did some surface design on.
I’m happy to say that Shirley is happy with the pouch. I will be sending it out tomorrow on my way in to my treatment.
Yes, folks, it’s time for my every-four-weeks infusion of the medications that keep my immune system in check, preserving my balance and my hearing. So, keeping my vertigo at bay in time for Art Unraveled is certainly worth the vertigo I’ve had the past two evenings. And yes, this means that I may be a bit less energetic and productive for the next few days, but I am so excited to be seeing my dear friends and to be doing art with them. Lots of girlie arty fun is ahead next week. 
So for now, back to creating!
July 29th, 2007
Posted by
Fran |
art, business, collage, friends, health, pouches, sewing |
3 comments
As promised, I’m sharing with you some of the things I’ve been creating for the past two weeks. First some paper and fabric collage cards - a stationary set. This will be in my etsy shop later today.
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| This stationary package has six different but coordinating cards. The cards are all handmade, each is a bit different, created with fabric and paper collage and sewn onto the envelope and cardstock. Envelopes are included. |
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The other project I’ve been working on is pouches to sell in my friend’s store that will open at the end of the month. The store is being put together now. It’s in Bisbee, AZ, which is a lovely little tourist town with historical mining areas and lots of artsy stores. I decided to design my own after seeing others that just weren’t what I was looking for. Here are my results so far:
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This is the first pouch I created. I was determined to create someting that had all the colors I’m used to using, but that used my new surface design and sewing work. It came out a bit wider than I wanted, but at least I learned about the construction and was able to continue to refine the design. |
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This pouch is the one that I use. I tried out other designs, but some were too long, others were too short, so I tested myself. It’s great for attaching it to my purse for easy access to my Treo. Each of the pouches has a clasp and two hooks - one in the center of the pouch or on the edge. |
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This pouch is done in earthtones and uses fabric that I created with surface design as the background. I then used other fabrics to create a collage. Decorative stitching is ued as an additional elelment. The button on the front is a vintage button. Each of the pouches has a clasp and two hooks - one in the center of the pouch or on the edge. |
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This pouch features two vintage buttons, two pieces of vintage kimono fabric, and other fabrics. The background fabric, again, was created with surface design techniques. Surface stitching add an additional design element. Each of the pouches has a clasp and two hooks - one in the center of the pouch or on the edge. |
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This brightly-colored pouch is perfect for a flip phone. The background fabric, again, was created with surface design techniques. The additional pieces are added in a collage fashion and then surface stitched for an additional design element. Both buttons on this piece are vintage. Each of the pouches has a clasp and two hooks - one in the center of the pouch or on the edge. |
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This purse is an earthy flip phone case. The background fabric was created with surface design techniques. Additional pieces are added in a collage and then surface stitched for an additional design element. The buttons are vintage. Each of the pouches has a clasp and two hooks - one in the center of the pouch or on the edge. |
I hope you are having a great day and that you are enjoying some art and fun!
July 12th, 2007
Posted by
Fran |
art, business, collage, fabric, sewing |
6 comments
I’m feeling a lot more artistic today than I was last evening. I have spent the morning working on my projects for the mixed media for fabric class with Joggles. On this Thursday, my class will have its last session, so I wanted to try to get some work done on it before then.
But first two things I had mentioned yesterday, but for which I did not provide photos or final resolution!
1. Embellishment Organization:
I have used baby food jars to organize my dimensional embellishments so that they are fun to look at. I love looking at the colors and being able to see what is inside each jar without any need for labels. This means I can easily change out the jars based on what is in “stock” and what is “needed”. The best part of this is the acrylic shelf organizer it’s on. It has steps so I can see each of the different levels of the jars and stack the jars on top of each other. I really like this method. It’s pretty to look at and easy to see what I have.
2. iPod Update:
This morning my new iPod arrived. I am a now a very happy camper! I can carry all of my music, videos, podcasts, and audiobooks. And yes, it’s safely in the new hard shell case! Right now, the case is black, but it will be decorated in the very near future. I will share that, of course, on this blog! For now, all I know about the decoration is that there will be both doodling and rhinestones.
Now that this is all out of the way, on to the artistic stuff!
I mentioned yesterday that I had painted a silk cap with Dye-Na-Flow paints to use with Paverpol. It turns out, nto incredibly surprisingly, that I’m allergic to Paverpol and had to close the container it before I even started working on the project. Well, I needed something to do with this luscious fabric, so I created a padfolio using Sue Bleiweiss’ padfolio tutorial. The tie is done with a vintage button I have. The cording was made by using a zig-zag stitch over several twisted fibers. It’s one of the methods Sue taught us in class. I really love how easy this method of creating a multi-colored, multi-textured cording is. The padfolio sews up in a snap!
This week’s assignment was to create with kitchen products. The first assignment was to dye some paper towels. Now I LOVE to dye paper towels. That’s one of my favorite things to use. Two-ply paper towels are quite sturdy and they do hold up well with the wetting, dyeing and drying process. I used Color Mists to dye mine. I took the assignment and changed it up a bit. We were to tear up the paper towel and fuse the pieces. I wanted to do more of a patchwork view, so I just sewed the pieces on and then added stitching to keep them sturdy. I like the texture that was created by the continuous
movement of the sewing machine and the paper towels.
We were to create a triangular/three-sided vase out of this. Choosing where to cut the fabric was half the fun. I wanted diverse colors. it’s why I chose so many different colors of Color Mists when I dyed them. I wanted a Free People/Hippie sort of look. The sewing on it made the design really stand out. It reminded me of one of those shirred fabric peasant blouses that are out there. But the best part was what happened when I put the project together. The vase came out looking even brighter and more “artsy” than I expected! I’m really happy with it. It will hold a spot in my studio to brighten it up. Perhaps I’ll try to make some of the fabric flowers that was highlighted in one of the earlier issues of Cloth Paper Scissors magazines.
Now, however, it is time to turn to yet another project. No. I’m not sure which one!
July 2nd, 2007
Posted by
Fran |
art, classes, collage, fabric, group projects, organization, sewing |
9 comments
