Sunday, May 14, 2017

So many new things, so little time!

I have been in a flurry of activity lately, and really enjoying it, but have neglected to write about it! Let me see if I can remember everything and make note of it now.
First off, I have been working over the past year on several coiled vessels, such as this one:

I wanted to make a vase-like structure, then decided to make some flowers to go with it.  The flowers I made for this one were out of fabric scraps, and they took a long time to complete, but they did the job.  
Other vessels were embellished with dried arrangements, but I wanted more options.  So my next step was to try making paper flowers.  Here is one of my first attempts:


I like these, but they are limited and size-wise are fairly large.  So out to the internet I went on a quest for information, and I ended up ordering this book:

This of course let me to start gathering various papers, stem materials, etc. to begin learning the fine art of making paper flowers.  I will be reporting about this in future posts... have yet to find time to get into it, but hope to clear the worktable off soon!

Meanwhile, I recently joined a Facebook group of fellow bowl and vessel makers, and have been truly inspired by all their beautiful work!  And I have finally begun to learn how to make vessels with necks, such as this:
I just finished this one yesterday, and hope to have flowers to go with it soon!

So while all that has been going on, I also joined another Facebook group on Alcohol Inks... a very exciting medium, and one I have wanted to explore for awhile now.  While I was waiting to order some supplies, I reached back into my cache of saved inspirations and decided to revisit using permanent markers and alcohol to color silk scarves.  I had a few Chiffon scarves that I had bought to dye with regular Procion MX dyes, but the first few I tried last year came out horrid (in my opinion!), so I decided I would experiment on Chiffon with the markers & alcohol.  I drew some simple designs on the first one, and thought it would end up in the trash can until I applied 91% alcohol to it... I wish I had made a video of the transformation, but here is the end result:


That sold me...  I had to try more!  And I have written about it on "...And Then We Set it on Fire", scheduled for later this month.  I'm guest blogging this month, so check it out. 
Needless to say, I am now shopping for more permanent markers... only thing is I need to wait to get back to this until I can open the windows to air out the alcohol smell, so stay tuned on that!
And most recently, I have added a new summer dress to my clothing line:

This is a flat-weave rayon, cut for a loose easy fit with side slits... takes the dyes beautifully, and I hope they will be a big seller for summer.  
Okay, time to get back to all these fun activities!  I will do my best to post a little more frequently, but can't promise... just not enough time to do all the things I keep finding to try!  






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