The letters S, T, U, V and W inspired the following postcards:
S is for Singer by Sarah Ann Smith
T is for Toile by Franki Kohler
U is for Up and Away by Kay Laboda
V is for Valentine (and violin!) by Sherry Boram
W is for a Walk in the Sand by Vivian Aumond-Capone
See what other letters of the alphabet inspired here, here, here, here and here.
The letters N, O, P, Q, and R inspired the following postcards:
N is for Nasturtium by Kay Laboda
O is for Orange Oval by Lynn Chinnis
O is for O Tangle by Vivian Aumond-Capone
P is for Postcards! by Sherry Boram
Q is for 4 Quarters by Evie Harris
R is for Rhino by Maureen Callahan
See what other letters of the alphabet inspired here, here, here, and here.
Member Laurie Dhandapani has generously shared her technique for embossing craft foam and using it in making her art. Check it out here.
And if you try this, be sure to come back to us and share your experience.
Each year, Blarney Books and Art in Port Fairy, Victoria, Australia hosts a major competition and exhibition of art made from books. Rita Summers, who was the only Tasmanian entrant this year, submitted Agatha’s Wardrobe, a mixed media artwork incorporating pages from an 1835 publication entitled Agatha’s Husband.
Rita’s entry, described by the judges as a ‘very subtle and emotional piece’, was awarded the grand prize of $1,500. Blarney Books and Art have also purchased Rita’s winning entry for their permanent collection.
Art is a way of life for Rita, as can be seen from her original poem, included with her entry:
art is like breathing to me
life and thoughts impressed on paper, cloth, the air
fleeting sounds and images
captured before they escape forever
Rita explains, ‘I like to push the boundaries in my art to create my own original style. My qualifications and background focus on visual contemporary art, craft and design, and stitching is my chosen medium. I often incorporate upcycled materials and found objects. I like to combine a mix of artistic processes: stitching, photography, digital manipulation, printmaking, collage, sculpture, painting, drawing and books or text.’
Agatha’s Wardrobe represents the hopes and dreams of a young woman from the 1800′s as she prepares for her wedding: the shy delight she feels as she chooses her trousseau; the stitching of precious silks and laces for her ‘hope chest’ or ‘glory box’ (probably begun while she was still a child); the anticipation as she tries on her wedding dress; the mystery and uncertainty of love and its passions; the solemnity of the marriage vows.
Love makes us vulnerable to pain, as Agatha discovers. Rita experienced this with her as she read the book and created this artwork. She felt Agatha’s pain as she faced loss, betrayal, isolation, and a deep despair which almost drove her to suicide. Ultimately, love triumphed, but not before it almost destroyed both her and her husband.
There are twelve dresses in the box – a dress for each month of the year. Each dress has a swing label attached to it; each label features a phrase from the traditional marriage vows.
Rita added a key to the box lid as both a symbolic and practical embellishment – ‘the key to my heart’; the key which makes precious items secure; the key which keeps things private.
Safety pins and buttons – again, both practical and symbolic. Hand crocheted lace, vintage (torn) silk, stitching – everything is given a hidden meaning beyond their intrinsic beauty and structure.
Things hinted at and not always explained. Materials and skills which women have implemented through the ages.
In transforming the original book into something beyond the printed word, Rita hopes that Agatha’s Wardrobe touches the hearts of everyone who sees and absorbs what it has become.
Materials: mixed media – wood, cardboard, vintage silk, found objects, specialty paper, old book pages, old sheet music, vintage lace, buttons, vintage key, dressmaker pattern tissue, stitch
Rita Summers is co-owner and operator of Gone Rustic Studio & Gallery, situated in Tasmania, Australia.
To find out more about Rita and to see more of her art, you can visit her blog at www.gonerustic.com, or her Facebook page www.facebook.com/gonerusticstudiogallery.
This month we are in Connecticut visiting with Jane Davila.
Do you call it a studio or sewing room? To yourself, to friends and family? Why do you think this is so? Difference in starting point between quilting and art? Thinking of this as a business rather than a hobby?
It’s definitely a studio. First because so much more than sewing goes on in there, and secondly because I’m an artist and artists work in studios *smile*. I started out as a printmaker and was introduced to quilting when I joined my mom, Claire Oehler, in the quilt shop she opened in 1990 in Somers, NY, the Country Quilter. My work morphed into art quilts from there, although I usually use either printmaking techniques or paper in my fiber art, as a nod to my beginnings. I earn my living as an author, writer, teacher, editor, designer, and vendor in the quilting industry, so this is definitely a business for me!
What do you have in the room? machines, supplies, fabrics, paints, etc. Anything that might surprise the rest of us?
My studio contains both my art making working space and supplies, and my office and all that entails – printers, filing cabinets, computer, etc. It’s very much a multi-purpose room that, while small, is usually well-organized and well stocked. I also display part of my art collection in this room and like to swap things out periodically to freshen up my view. I don’t think there’s anything surprising in here, but maybe you’d be surprised at all the room holds yet doesn’t feel crowded or too small.
How is your “stuff” organized? How do you organize your fabric? By color? Amount? Any separate categories (batiks, hand dyes)? How do you organize your thread (color, weight)?
After having worked in a quilt store for almost 20 years (we closed when my mom retired 4 years ago), I had quite a substantial fabric collection. I’ve been winnowing it down for the last few years to a much more manageable size. I’ve come to realize that I work small and I’ll most likely always work small, and it’s not super practical to own fabric in 3 yard lengths when most of your work is less than 16” on the longest side. My remaining fabric is organized by color and is neatly folded on bookshelves so I can see what I have. The bookshelves are currently lacking all of their doors, but another trip to Ikea is on my list! I never buy more than a fat quarter of anything now (and even that is big enough for most backs), and if I did need something larger I would probably make a purchase specifically for that purpose. Because the ceilings in our house are 10 feet (just over 3 meters) tall I added extensions to the top of my bookshelves (the ubiquitous Billy from Ikea). I have 6 white metal bins in these extensions and they contain bulky supplies like adhesives, ribbons, pieces of silks and wools, and found objects.
My thread is stored in plastic snap cases for the most part. My favorite thread is Mettler silk-finish cotton so I have 2 cases devoted to that with a spool in each color available. Each case has a slot for each color and all of the slots are labeled so I know when I’m out of a color and can replace it. Not that I’m OCD or anything! Okay, maybe a little.
The paint I use most frequently is in a drawer in my cutting table and the rest of my paint is organized by type and stored in plastic Artbin cases. On the inside of the lid of each box I taped a color chart of the type and brand of paint that box contains. Again, this lets me see what I might be out of so I can easily replace it.
Do you have anything, supplies, more machines, etc. tucked away in any other rooms of the house. How many other rooms? (My husband likes to talk about that one.) Has a family member or significant other ever accused you of “taking over” the entire house? If you have a separate building, we want lots of pictures.
I do have some supplies stored on wooden shelves in the basement. Because I travel to teach, and each workshop needs one or more bins of supplies and samples, there has to be more storage than my one studio can hold. Organizing all of the extra equipment and supplies is an ongoing project. My husband is also an artist and has his own studio in our house too. We coexist very amicably and respect each other’s tools, spaces, and time. He is a sculptor and painter and he works in a very large-scale (typically 4-6 feet and larger) so claiming wall space at home to hang art is a tad competitive! He tends to take the larger open walls and I take the odd small walls and nooks and crannies to hang my work.
How much horizontal surface do you have, and is it ever enough? Do you have to move piles of stuff to cut anything bigger than a fat quarter?
Always! I call it the “Law of Flat Surfaces” which states that as soon as there is a cleared-off flat surface, something will immediately fill it and you will once again be reduced to working in a 12” x 12” space. It doesn’t even really matter how large a space you start with, you always end up with that square foot.
My desk is L shaped and the computer sits on one leg and my sewing machine on the other. Above the sewing machine side of the desk is a bulletin board I made from insulation board covered with linen. Next to the bulletin board are 2 ceramic kitchen organizers hanging on the wall to hold my scissors. Above the computer side are the same organizers with pens, pencils, and paper scissors. I find a lot of good storage ideas in the kitchen department of various stores.
I have a free-standing kitchen island with 12 drawers from Ikea as my cutting table – the height is perfect! Above the cutting table is another piece of insulation board covered in linen that acts as a design wall. I keep my finished quilts (I work small, remember?) in labeled boxes beneath my cutting table.
Next to my cutting table is a door to a closet which contains my husband’s clothes, so no storage there for me! Our house was built in the late 1880′s and has a total of 3, count ‘em 3, closets in the entire house. We’ve got to be a little creative with storage. On the outside of this closet door I’ve attached 2 magnetic boards and these hold my calendar for teaching and vending. I use magnetic tape on the back of each month so I can reprint and replace as things change, and so I can remove old months and add new as needed. Almost 2 years in total fits on the door.
Between art projects and office paperwork, there isn’t often a completely clear surface. Sometimes I’ll just spread out on the floor and paint or print.
Do you straighten/organize as you go, putting each fabric away as you cut, or do you clean up after a project? How many projects do you work on at a time and how do you keep them organized?
The cleaning-up-as-you-go approach is my preferred one but it is always dependent on what kind of deadline I’m working under. Tight deadlines mean that messes are usually left to the end to put away. I find that I can’t think in too much clutter and I must stop and put everything back in its place before starting new projects. Otherwise it’s “hello, hives!” Clutter makes me itch.
I used to work on large numbers of projects at one time (lots of samples for the quilt shop, for instance), until we had a huge flood in our previous house due to hurricane Wilma. I literally had every single unfinished project destroyed in one day. Nothing was salvageable. Talk about having the slate wiped clean! I did regret the loss of the projects, the supplies, and the time I put into everything, but I eventually viewed it as a fresh beginning and have only ever worked on one or two things at a time since then. I have nearly no unfinished projects and it’s going to stay that way. After I got over the loss and grieved a little for it, I found it to be unbelievably liberating. I don’t recommend such an extreme approach, but it definitely changed the way I work.
Anything more you want to add about your studio, organization, working methods, etc., please do.
In our previous house I had a separate studio and office and found it much easier to work in either mode because the spaces were in different rooms. In our current house, where there is no room for that separation, I find it much harder to work on my artwork. It’s definitely a mind-set thing and it just doesn’t feel as natural and the work doesn’t “flow” as well here. Over the 2.5 years that we’ve been here I’ve tried changing things as much as I could but didn’t find that any of the changes helped enough.
My husband and I recently made the decision to rent loft space and to combine our two studios into one giant space. We found an old factory building in a nearby town that houses artists’ lofts and independent musicians’ recording studios. We’ve never worked in one space together before, so it should be an interesting challenge; but the space is quite large and my office will remain at home. I’m really looking forward to having a studio devoted to only art again. We just started moving in there and should be completing the move in another few weeks, as we build shelves and tables, etc. I’ll keep you posted on my progress in the new space!
Thank you so much for the tour and the chance to see some of your art. We look forward to seeing your new space.
For more information about Jane’s art, her teaching schedule, and workshops, visit her at www.janedavila.com
Next month: Our member Rita Summers has arranged for us to visit a Tasmanian textile artist.
The letters K, L and M inspired the following postcards during our Alphabet trades:
K is for Kite by Sherry Boram
K is for Kite by Karin McElvein
L is for Leopard by Kay Laboda
L is for Leaves by Kay Laboda
L is for Ludwig by Sarah Ann Smith
M is for Mandala by Diana Welte
M by Marjorie DeQuincy
See earlier postings about the alphabet trades here, here, and here.
This month we are traveling to Friday Harbor, Washington, to visit Marie Johansen.
Do you call it a studio or sewing room?
I do have a “studio room” that is in the eaves of our house, but I cannot stand upright in it. Since having two major back surgeries in 2010 I have not been as agile going up and down the ladder that gets me there and so my new ‘studio’ has become a large table in the living room.
It’s not really very adequate, but it is what is at the moment. My dream, of course, would be to have a room, where I could can organize everything, and could actually stand up in! My fabrics are all still contained “up the ladder” while all of more mixed media and fiber supplies are scattered around my table!
This large desk/table is my little creative spot. It’s well used and well loved. A sewing machine sits on the right end and my computer is on the left. I have storage underneath the table for many of my supplies. All of my wealth in fabric is “upstairs” – up the ladder.
To yourself, to friends and family?
I don’t really use the word ‘sewing room’ because I don’t only sew – it’s a studio room to me and I dream of having a real studio! Don’t we all?!
Why do you think this is so?
See answer above…. It’s so much more than just sewing!
Difference in starting point between quilting and art?
I began quilting in 1976! Before that I was a weaver and spinner (my uncle was pleased to point out that in German ‘spinner’ meant something like ‘crazy’! I loved making (and in the early years selling) bed quilts. To this day I love to make bed quilts and sleep under more traditional patterns.
I think that I made the transition to art quilts as a natural extension of my bed sized quilts. It was always a matter of thinking “what if?” Of course, thinking “what if?” is also what started me on the mixed media road too. In 2006, during a trip to Houston with my friend Sarah Smith, I distinctly recall saying (as we walked by a mixed media booth) that I “would never do mixed media.” How utterly foolish of me, because, since I made that statement, I have become immersed in mixed media and am thoroughly enjoying the ride! I feel that it all adds so much dimension that I can translate to mark making on cloth. It’s all one big circle to me!
Thinking of this as a business rather than a hobby?
I have made things to sell, but have never really had the time to think of it as a business. For me, time has always been an issue; time coupled with limited energy and my daily ‘pay for health insurance’ job! After June of this year though I will, most assuredly, be hoping to sell more of my work and I will be, once again, entering shows and contests.
What do you have in the room table? machines, supplies, fabrics, paints, etc. Anything that might surprise the rest of us?
I keep one of my sewing machine out on my table at all times. I keep my felting machine under the table and ready to go. I have my computer and many mixed media art supplies on my table – most within an easy reach. My threads are stored both “up the ladder” and on my work table in a dedicated case.
Under my table live four large organizers with four drawers each, There I keep my paints (acrylics & watercolor), papers, inks, markers, pencils, stamps, metal work supplies, embossing machine and all of “must have” tools. The books that I use the most are also kept on the table in a special book rack that a dear friend made especially for me.
My best friend’s husband made this great little bookshelf for me – it was specially designed to fit the spot on the table. It holds the books that I am currently using the most. The contents sometimes vary but not too often. These books all provide a lot of creative energy for me.
My dip pens, pencils, brushes and watercolor adjuncts all share a happy little space on another specially built little shelf. Everything is in easy reach!
Here are the four matching storage containers that live underneath my “create-a-spot” table. They actually work rather well, keeping my things relatively organized and I can usually find what I am looking for – on a good day!
How is your “stuff” organized?
Organized is a relative term for at this point! I love to be organized, but that is very difficult for me to be right now. I can’t say that it does not make me crazy at times. I feel like I am “Gaslighting” myself sometimes!
How do you organize your fabric? By color? Amount? Any separate categories (batiks, hand dyes)?
I like to keep my fabrics sorted solids, batiks and prints and then, loosely, in color families; blue, red, yellow etc. Since I seem to use far more solids than prints these days, I find myself with far too many prints in my collection that are going unused. One of my priorities is to sort them all out and find somewhere that needs fabric donations! Anyone know of anywhere in the US that needs fabrics?!
How do you organize your thread (color, weight)?
I sort my thread my weight and then color.
Most of my threads are stored “upstairs” with my fabrics, but I keep several containers of the threads that I use the most underneath my “create-a-spot” table. This one holds some of my stash of Sulky 12 wt which I am very fond of using – especially on my quifelted bags (QuiFelt = Felted bags that are free motion quilted)
Do you have anything, supplies, more machines, etc. tucked away in any other rooms of the house?
Oh! This question cracks me up! I think I have supplies of one sort or another in every room of the house. I don’t like it that way and hope to someday change it! I store my yarns and knitting things in a spare bedroom closet – along with fleece and spinnable products.
Other sewing machines (three Featherweight and some vintage Singers) are stored in various spots. I keep the Featherweights all in good working order and love using them for workshops!
How many other rooms?
ALL of them!
Has a family member or significant other ever accused you of “taking over” the entire house?
DH has never ‘accused me of it’ but I sure know that he thinks it!
If you have a separate building, we want lots of pictures.
Oh! How I wish, and if I did have a separate building or space I would delight in providing photos of it !
How much horizontal surface do you have, and is it ever enough?
I have very little horizontal space and yes, I DO have to move things when I need to cut large pieces of fabric. Many times, despite my back issues, I have to lay large cutting boards on the floor and cut fabric that way. Another of my dreams is to have a cutting area that is at a comfortable height to stand at. I know that my cutting would be FAR more accurate if I had that space!
Do you have to move piles of stuff to cut anything bigger than a fat quarter?
Well, larger than a half yard!
Do you straighten/organize as you go, putting each fabric away as you cut, or do you clean up after a project?
Because I have so little space I tend to clean up as I go along. Generally that will mean tidying up daily when I am working on something mixed media, or weekly for a larger sewing/quilt project.
It’s rather funny really because I hate to be cluttered and disorganized, but that is how my ‘studio table’ makes me be at the moment – so I just try to work as best I can and keep things as orderly as possible along the way. I ‘lose’ things with regularity though, because every time I tidy up I forget where I have stashed things! I find that I need to have a space and everything must be returned to that space in order to be able to find my tools easily and without much fuss. If I leave a technique alone for too long though I generally have to hunt and sift for a bit to locate the need items. Ugh! Of course, I think my life would be much easier if I could cut down on the number of things that I love to do.
I work with cloth, of course, but I also knit, paint, mono-print, felt, use photographic tools and, as I mentioned before, have fallen deeply engrossed I the “many tools” world of mixed media art! All of these passions add up to needing space, which is a real premium for me. The problem is that when I think about what I would might “give up” doing, and, thereby, give up needing space for– I can’t think of anything that I would want to NOT do!
How many projects do you work on at a time and how do you keep them organized?
I generally have one knitting project, one cloth project and one mixed media project going at a time. Knitting is generally relegated to the evening hours while sewing and mixed media is for during the day. Sometimes deadlines will dictate what and when I work on something. If I have a project for a company to do then I always make that a priority. Next up are my ATC and small art trades. I have realized that I really want to dedicate some more time to working on larger, multi media and cloth projects – so I anticipate that my priorities will shift just a bit in the near future
Anything more you want to add about your studio, organization, working methods, etc., please do.
I know a lot of people who have an idea first and then work based on their idea. I almost never have an idea until I start a project. Sometimes I think that I will never find the way to represent a theme, but then, once I actually begin by putting pen to paper or thread to cloth, the ideas begin to pop up. I’ve always wished that I could be one of those people who has a concept and works from it – but I seem to work the opposite way. There are times when I have a seed thought, but even if I start from that, the finished project is never the way I thought it would be. I seem to have to look at the paints, fabrics, threads or materials that I plan to use in order for the muse to chat with me! I find it fascinating how we all process art so differently, and also at how differently we all learn. I’ve always been sort of a hands on learner and artist. I wonder if these various preferences are something that we learn or are they something that we are each sort of hard-wired for?
Thank you Marie for letting us visit and for your thoughts on the various paths through the creative process.
To learn more about Marie, visit her website or book blog.
Next month: Jane Davila
This month we visit Karin McElvein in Norfolk, Virginia.
Do you call it a studio or sewing room? To yourself, to friends and family? Why do you think this is so? Difference in starting point between quilting and art? Thinking of this as a business rather than a hobby?
I fluctuate between calling it a studio or a sewing room. I sewed for many years before getting into art quilting, so I try to say studio, but often just say sewing room. I moved from straight quilting into more art forms just before I started making postcards. I began taking more technique classes, such as adding paint with Esterita Austin in 2004. I still think of this as a hobby. I sell more quilt-related items than art quilts. I can’t seem to part with the few I have made.
What do you have in the room? machines, supplies, fabrics, paints, etc. Anything that might surprise the rest of us?
My studio has the usual stuff listed above. I can’t think of anything that would surprise anyone.
How is your “stuff” organized? How do you organize your fabric? By color? Amount? Any separate categories (batiks, hand dyes)? How do you organize your thread (color, weight)?
My thread is in 3 separate plastic storage units. The small spools are in one (all colors) and large spools in another (again all colors). I also have a four-drawer unit where I separate them by polyester, cotton, decorative and special (silks,quilting, fusible, etc).
I recently moved and used the opportunity to rearrange fabric. I bought cardboard stock used for comic books and used a whole piece to wrap yardage, cutting it in half for half yards, and in fourths for fat quarters. I cut all the extra fabric pieces into varying strips, but at the moment they are all in the same plastic tub in the attic. The fat quarters are in a storage unit separated by color. The yardage and half yards are separate, and both are sorted by color in bookcases.
You’ll notice that my room contains a lot of bookcases. I keep notions, ribbons, yarns, paints, etc., all in separate containers, stored on book shelves. They are easily accessible this way.
I also have a wine rack where I store things that are rolled, such as parchment paper and Do-Sew.
Do you have anything, supplies, more machines, etc., tucked away in any other rooms of the house? How many other rooms? (My husband likes to talk about that one.) Has a family member or significant other ever accused you of “taking over” the entire house? If you have a separate building, we want lots of pictures.
I have lots of stuff in other places. My new studio is 10′ x 10′ and will never hold it all. I have under-the-bed storage in two rooms.
The ironing board always gets set up in another small bedroom. At least it makes me get up and stretch and move.
I also have pull-down stairs to the attic. I keep batting and several large plastic storage containers of fabric right at the top for easy access. I do need to make a list so I know where everything is.
How much horizontal surface do you have, and is it ever enough? Do you have to move piles of stuff to cut anything bigger than a fat quarter?
I have one table on which I usually have a large cutting board. I sometimes also put a small ironing surface on the table. My daughter turned a lazy susan into a padded ironing surface for me one Christmas. It really comes in handy when working on small pieces. I always have to move piles, and often store several plastic storage tubs on the table, as well as two baskets.
Recently I moved a kitchen stool from the kitchen into the room. It now holds cut pieces that need to be sewn.
Do you straighten/organize as you go, putting each fabric away as you cut, or do you clean up after a project? How many projects do you work on at a time and how do you keep them organized?
I do try to clean up often. The room is so small, that I have to. I usually have several things going at once. If they are small, I pin them to the design wall. The chair is holding one cut baby quilt. I am also quilting a lap quilt that is a wedding present.
Anything more you want to add about your studio, organization, working methods, etc., please do.
I don’t tend to work in the studio in the evening, as my other half likes me to sit with him and watch TV. I like hand work in the evening. I recently finished knitting 3 Starbella curly scarves. One night I ripped out part of some quilting I had just done. I have pieced several quilts by hand and I appliqué.
Thank you Karin for letting us visit. I love the wine rack idea.
Next month: Marie Johansen
I shared earlier trades in the alphabet series here. I’ll share what the letters G, H and I inspired next.
G is for Garden by Vivian Aumond-Capone
G is for Gray, several versions by Franki Kohler
H is for Hot Potato by Suzanna Bond
H is for Half Hour by Evie Harris
I is for Imagine by Jan Johnson
I is for Iris by Dian Stanley
J is for Jelly by Maureen Callahan
J is for Jack in the Pulpit by Lynn Chinnis
Next up: K, L and M.
Vivian Helena Aumond-Capone and Heather Lair have new art on their gallery pages. Check ‘em out!
