"wayward threads" wedding stole

I've gotten a couple of calls recently inquiring about a wedding stole I made that was published in last year's Somerset Studio Wedding 3 edition. It's coming upon the time of year young lover's plan their weddings. After the winter chilliness, in spring at the dawn of summer. So I'm collecting vintage laces, and soft elegant yarns to make them. Here is a sample of one I finished. I think it drapes nicely and just love it really. This is the one I pictured laid out in the previous post. I hope to have a few more made soon to show and sell.

"wayward threads" samples - Art Unraveled registration begins today!

I've been experimenting with different materials for making "wayward threads". One with only a vintage stretchy lace I was able to obtain a huge roll of.



I have another one laid out. This is stole sized and I've displayed some of the laces I've been purchasing to use.




I dyed some charmeuse silk and tore it into strips to make one .




This one uses Midori dupioni silk bias ribbon.




I'll be teaching a "wayward threads" class at Art Unraveled in Phoenix this summer. registration begins today!!

Brighter Days

Yes the sun has been shining and it lifts my spirits and causes me to want to create more!! Our kitties Moo & Ducky are enjoying the warm mid 60's degree weather we're having too.

























Even the daffodils and paperwhites are blooming!













I have been in the studio dyeing lots of ribbons and fabrics and then I hit a snag ........ searching for this card of antique glass buttons that are sewn onto a cardboard in the shape of a fan. I have looked at these intricate little buttons for many months not wanting to cut them away from each other, but I have to do it. I want to use them in some new flower pins. So I went to find it and couldn't. It was in that special place you put things when you want to be able to find them. It took me an hour and a prayer to St. Anthony (the patron St. of lost things) before I had the "aha!" moment and knew where it was. Here is a photo of these beautiful little glass creations.




I'm off now to San Jose to the Quilt & Textile museum to switch out some items I have for sale there but tomorrow I'll be back in my studio happily creating as long as the sun is shining so brightly!

New ribbon experiments

I've been looking to invest in different ribbons. I found this great ruffled silk grosgrain only to be told by the source that it's a discontinued one. Drat! Of course I really like it! it's the one on the right of the photo. I also like the Silk Plisse ribbon shown in the center but it comes from the same source and she is retail only whifrom and see about wholesale but it's not always easy. The third ribbon shown in the photo is a velvet which dyed very darkly so I need to work with it a bit more.



The ribbon below shows a dupioni silk which is a bias cut ribbon. A true ribbon is woven and has edges, this is bias cut from fabric and sewn together at intervals. I like how the edges fray after dyeing and washing. I also have this in a wider size .



I'm still waiting to get my order from the Gift Fair and after I experiment with those ribbons I will be putting together some necklaces to show and sell. I know it has taken me a while to follow through but sometimes that's just the way it goes. Thank you to those who have been inquiring.

I used my scanner to photograph these and I'm not happy with it. I need a different scanner, so until that happens I'll go back to using my digital camera.

San Francisco Gift Fair

Attending a gift fair is daunting in the least and down right dangerous when it comes to finances!! And to think I was there for only one day, a show that is held for 4 -5 days. Thousands of vendors set up booths to sell to shop owners and retail moguls. Then there is me, searching for wholesale lines of ribbons and laces to use in my artistic creations of "wayward threads" and pieces to dye and resell or use in altered art. It's the best place to make the connections you need for supplies but there is so much there and you want it all!

I found a new line of silk ribbon that is woven in Switzerland and looks like a better quality than what I have been getting out of China lately. But I only saw samples and the wholesale opening order was steep. I bit the bullet and ordered the minimum. Mostly silk ribbon but also some french wired ribbon and then there was the separate Midori order of velvets and dupioni bias strips. I can hardly wait for the order to get here and begin dyeing. I also went into the Vintage section which had a cash and carry policy. I was able to buy some vintage lace pieces, some very nice soldered photo pendants to hang on my dyed ribbons. You can see the digital copy of a woman that I drew many years ago peeking through the package holding the photo frames. I have put her in the pendant and like her there so I will be doing more of her.



These lace pieces will be dyed using natural dyes, one of them will be indigo, but also madder, cochineal, chestnut and my favorite cutch. Cutch is a rich tobacco color but it's very gummy and a bear to get to dissolve. You have to work with it and I dislike that part of it. I guess cutch is a good name for it (sort of like it's a bitch? LOL) cutch, bitch, you get it.........



I met a woman who made these cool pendants that I'm also going to string onto my dyed ribbons. I copied her little card write up and if you read you'll know that she makes these frames out of recycled cans. She had some lovely heart pendants and larger ones but by the time I found her I was nearing the credit card max out time!





Now my problem these days is "not enough time". I had to go to the dentist today and then run errands and retrieve my son after school. Tomorrow is one of my exercise days and I'm trying really hard not to blow those off, then I have a voice lesson followed by taking said son to get new shoes and then another singing practice as my husband and a couple of band members will be performing this Sat. night. Wed. is my writing class , Thursday and Friday are booked up sporadically. I think maybe I schedule too much into my life. How does one step back? Don't you want to do it all? When to say no?

I used to be the kind of person that would stay up until midnight working on a project but I don't have the juice flowing at night anymore. I get up early and feel most creative then. So I won't be going to my studio to crank up the heater and wait for the space to get warm so I can work now. I'll have to wait until this the weekend and next week I really am going to say no to anything but working in my studio!!

Winterland

I awoke this morning to a white world. Snow is rare for this part of the country except we do live in the mountains at about 2500 feet elevation so if it snows we get it. It's coming down in flurries and the prediction is for a big winter storm to hit us tomorrow. We're stocking up on food that can be cooked on a stove top because usually with lots of rain, snow, or high winds the power lines do come down and there goes the lights!

It is the perfect time for me to work on projects in my studio (as long as we have electricity!) I've ordered some new ribbons to experiment dyeing and I'm excited to do that so as soon as my studio is heated up I'm off to work (play?).

I'm planning a trip to the San Francisco International Gift Fair that is held Jan.26 - 29th. Not sure which day I'll go up but lots of ribbon reps will be there and I'm anxious to see what they have.

Dyed silk ribbons & cords

I received an email from a friend yesterday asking if I could dye some silk cords and ribbons for her to use with her lamp work beads to make necklaces. Interesting because I had just used a dyed strip of habotai silk that I burned the edges of along with a dyed silk cord with one of her beads as a pendant to send her. It's always serendipitous to me how these things work. I of course am interested and have already been corresponding with her. You can click on my "other places to visit" links "Caty Porter " to see her work. Here's the piece I put together. She is going to make closures from PMC to finish the pieces off. Very classy, who wants one?



And here are some other little pendants I put together.