April mini

Just playing.

New Growth. (click to view it bigger)

I had a totally different sketch for April but I really didn't like it. I decided just to wing it and I do like how this turned out. It was totally a matter of whether or not I could pull it off. The 'new growth' is made with my machine's lock stitch. This is a stitch that does five stitches in one spot.

Bags

I have done this pattern so many times that I have it down pat now with my own little tips to make it more of a quality item. I cut the pattern out with pinking shears so the fabric won't shred over time and I have also sewn little extra bits of fabric at the bottom of the 'strap' to reinforce it. My daughter (the middle one is the only one living in TO right now) was the guinea pig for the pattern and she liked it so much that I made her sisters one too. Then I made a few more. I have mentioned it before but I will tell you again that it is Vogue 8466. I am not endorsing Vogue but I do have to "cite my source" as they say in the library world.

The one that started it all. It turned into a useful item.

For the little girl in England who likes it so much the other one I made has not been used yet.

For the eldest daughter in B.C. I just wanted to try out the fabric and I didn't even think of matching up the plaid.

For Amie's mom in Devon.

And these last two I did yesterday and today - just because. I'm going to take a break and make a diaper bag - or something totally off the wall and freeing.

Seminole Sampler

Well, it's finished. This is a product of an online workshop with a yahoo group I belong to called learningfa (learning fibre arts.) I have mentioned them before. They are a wonderful group (of all women as far as I know) and the workshops are free. The women belonging to the group come from Canada, Ireland, the U.S., Finland, Australia and New Zealand.

I took this photo outside since it shows the truest colours. It was a lot of measuring, cutting, sewing, ironing, cutting, sewing, ironing, measuring again, etc. You get the picture. Not sure on how it will be quilted but I am not worrying about that yet. The top is done. Now I'm off to make a bag or two and maybe bake some banana bread.

Spring Fling dolls

Look what came in the mail.

I belong to a yahoo group called Decidedly Different Dolls and we have challenges and swaps. This was a Spring Fling swap. I thought at first that she was a tulip and called her Tulip girl but then I looked closer and thought that perhaps her maker, Therese, made her as a Rose. So, I asked Therese which one was she. Here's what she said, "She started from a rose pattern, but I think her finished look is more tulip and I was inspired by a yellow and red tulip in my garden. So I'll name her Tula." All swaps are to be 4 or 5 inches in height and Tula is exactly 4 inches.

This is Sunny. I made her for Brenda but shhhhh - I don't know if she received her yet. Little Sunny has a worm that she caught. She has to keep up her strength since she is expecting twins.

This is Sunny's nest. On the left is the inside of her nest and the right shows the outside.

Here's Sunny's back view. She stands at 5 inches on her own. If she is sitting in her nest, she is a bit taller.

Ready for quilting - someday

I am trying to finish off some of the projects that I started and then lost interest in. Most of them are wall hangings. The photo below was taken on Saturday. It was a cold, blustery day.

Here's one top that just needed the four corner tulips and leaves appliqued and then the borders added. It has now made its way from a plastic bin to a pile of quilt tops that need to be quilted. This started as a Spring Mystery Mailout that was sponsored by The Quilt Patch of Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. It has been unfinished for a few years now and they really are not my colours. I did mark quilting lines in the white part so when I find the time, it will be ready to go. Even though I have a quilt hoop, I thought of doing this one on a frame. I do have some small quilt boards in the basement but I'm not sure if they are big enough - I have to drag them out. I may gift it to a daughter once it gets finished. I am currently working towards completing a Seminole Sampler quilt top and when the borders are on, I will take a pic and show you.

Female Wall of Art

The wall is finished - according to my eldest son who told me not to add any more. I may add down the road but this is it right now.

The full view.

The full view from the other side.

No matter when or how I take a photo, there is always glare. Here's the first half.

And here's the second half.

The first picture is a silk painting of what looks like little girls playing ring around the rosie by Sarah Hale. Next, the yellow skirt and the peach skirt are prints by Janet Hill. I bought the pale pinky peach skirt print (Bows On Her Toes) first because she didn't have the yellow one available (She Liked To Call Them Her Canary Shoes.) I had recently painted my walls yellow and thought it would look really nice (I know it's a lame reason but there you have it.) When the yellow skirt became available once again, then I had to get it. The lady in black is not the whole painting - just the upper half. It is just a photocopy from a book about my favourite artist James Jacques Joseph Tissot's October. My daughter and I saw the real painting in Montreal. It is gorgeous and huge - about 7 feet in height. I love the way he used black. You can really see the detail in the fabric of the coat. I also love chestnut trees. (the link colours are not really true but close.)

 The small picture above, on the left, is another Janet Hill piece. It is a note card titled "Deck the Heels." I had to get it because it went with the skirts. The lady lounging in the conservatory is the first Tissot I fell in love with years ago as a teenager visiting the Art Gallery of Ontario. It was on loan to the gallery and I just stood and stared at the detail (again) of the painting - especially her long wavy hair and the gown that she is wearing. The original is not very big - perhaps 18" X 24" but it is simply wonderful. I remember it being titled "The Convalescent" but the book had stated two titles and I can't remember the other one. The next picture of a young girl was purchased at the Getty Museum gift shop. The artist is Fernand Khnopff  but I do not know the title of the piece. I saw the original while touring the Getty and was glad that I could buy the print. The next picture is of a print by Cathy of One Pink Goose. I won the Folk Angel in a giveaway that Cathy had last year and knew that it had to go on the wall with the other females. Go visit her blog to see more of her wonderful art and the other artists she features. The last picture is "After the Bath" by Paul Peel which I received as a gift from my youngest daughter's friend. She knew I liked it and bought it for me. My high school friend, the same one I went to the AGO with many years ago has a much bigger framed print over her fireplace (at least she did years ago.)

And now a few more images. Click on any of the photos to see close-ups. The glare is from the window which is on the opposite wall.

ART outside

I do love art and I am always happy when I see it in outdoor settings.

This wall is in Niagara Falls, Ontario. I took this photo a year ago and fell in love with the wall.

This was at a housing complex in Irvine, California.

The same housing complex as the previous photo. Sorry for the darkness of the photo but it was getting on to evening and the light was waning. (did I just write that??)

Outside someone's door in Venice Beach, California.

In someone's courtyard  - again in Venice Beach, California.

Just outside of the San Diego Zoo.

Inside the San Diego Zoo.

These were inside the zoo too.

There were more of these post tops but I didn't take a photo of them all. These were outside the zoo around Balboa Park.

At the Getty Centre in Los Angeles, California.

Again, the Getty Centre. Please ignore the date stamp - at the time it was a new camera and I didn't know it would show up. All of the California photos were all taken in February of 2009.

This is in downtown Toronto outside an office building.

These last two photos (taken last month) of the same sculpture was taken just down the street from the previous photo. As you can see it is situated in a park.

March mini

I'm a few days late in posting this. It's the monthly (so far) 6" X 8" mini. Windy  and stark is how I thought to depict March trees.