every-single-day

QN, Birds and crashed computers

Just before David and I left for Quilt National and our trip out east, my computer crashed and had to be sent to the doctor. That is the way of it, isn't it? I wanted to post images of the outfit I made but, blah, blah, blah. You know the story.
Quilt National was fantastic. I made some connections and contacts that are invaluable. I have not yet ingested it all.
I am in Connecticut visiting my mom and dad with David and we are about to eat.
This photo is a picture of a Crackle I helped place back into a tree where it could be fed by its mom and dad.
Gotta go eat from my own folks kitchen, so bye for now!

Omigod.

I am showing you my journal... Normally my journal is all my own, private. But I got it in my mind to do a flip through. Sorta like a walk through. It runs about a minute and a half. Put your sound on to get the full page turning effect!
The book is a Moleskine Sketchbook. Gouache is a perfect paint for the paper used in these books; it is substantial and glides onto the page smoothly. I am at the end of the book and I have glued so much into it and stuffed the pocket in the back so full that the binding is broken. I am sad that I am almost to the last page. This book has been a refuge, a page of self love and artistic commitment. It has helped and soothed me through this move.
I have a new book, a hand-made book with watercolor paper all set up and ready to go but am not sure if I can move away from Moleskine right now. The watercolor paper will make me think about using the book in a different manner and I am having too much fun with the pages I am doing right now.
This fall I am going to teach a mixed media journaling class at the Coconino Community College. I have never taught this sort of thing before. It will be fun.
I sometimes use papers found stapled onto telephone poles, miniature golf tally cards, reciepts, any old found bit will do.
Sometimes I draw from life while I have my coffee at Macy's, my favorite local coffee digs. When I draw birds they are taken from photographs from the pages of my favorite bird magazines.
Sometimes when I want to learn how another painter did something... I trace paint. I lay a piece of tracing paper over an image and paint it. Like the third page- the greek female.
Sometimes I use tracing paper to draw on because when I glue it onto the page transparencies begin to occur and I like to play them up. In my mind tracing paper is akin to silk organza, when i get to the point of translating a page into a work in fiber. Thinking in this way really helps me if I get to the place where a page is asking to be made into quilt art.
So I hope you enjoy this walk through! Please leave comments, I would love to hear from you. Maybe some of you will do a video walk through to show me how you journal!?

The Bluebird

Um...Has my commenting system been broken? Would someone please comment? I think I fixed it...

I finished the Bluebird piece. It feels good to finish something.

Here is another detail of the machine quilting. It isn't easy to get good detail shots.
I like this piece. It is my first piece of any size (18x24") to have been started and finished since we got here. I would like to work on the man and have not been feeling inspired by him. I will try to get him under the needle today.
I have already said these things but will reiterate, I screen-printed the orange "x's" in dye, then resisted out the bird and painted the background. I then painted the bird in dye, acrylic paint and oil crayons. I did the floating bubbles in oil crayons too and freezerpaper screen-printed the tiny blue dots (off to the upper right) before quilting the piece.

Girly doo.

I had to get my hair cut again.

You might think I am crazy when I tell you that I am growing my hair out. But this is why the 'bangs' in this cut are long and hanging in my face. I want them to grow the length of my sides. Am I the only person who gets thier hair cut in order to let it grow?

Really I just had to get rid of the mullet like effect that was going on in the back. Why does the back of your hair grow faster than any other part?

And here is the back. There is a little fringy part off to the left which is because I left the place with product in my hair. It isn't like that right now and I am not going to take the photo over. My hair is straight and I mean straight. Even with product in it, it will join with gravitational pull and have it's way.
So here's to bangs growing out. I am aiming for an A-line bob with the front just long enough to tuck behind my ears.

Tomorrow I will have to tell you the tale of G.S. Hurkimer. A pesky little friend.

Today I had an errand filled day.
I washed some fabric for delivery.
Picked my guy up for an eye doctors appt.
Bought cat food.
Called around in preparation for our date with G.S. Hurkimer.
Picked my guy up.
Had lunch with my guy.
Went to consult with the hairdresser; stylist sounds more modern, doesn't it?
Picked up needed stuff for G.S. Hurkimer.
Dropped off the cloth.
Got my hair cut.
Hooked up with Harry for a short walk.
Bought nails for two different projects we are working on.
Picked up my guy. Sounds like alot doesn't it? Sounds like a full-time job to me.

Picked my guy up.

Preparing to network

I had businesscards printed in preparation for Quilt National. I used Vista Print . I designed and uploaded the design according to thier suggestions. They did a really good job and were quite timely. They even gave decent coupons for further service. I will use them again.
The card itself has better color than the photograph of it, and I blurred out my phone number so that I could put it online.
The small pink geese over to the right is a business card holder. it has elastic to keep the cards in the folder and velcro for easy access. It holds 3/8" worth of cards.
I am dyeing a shirt to 'go with' the skirt I made. I went shopping this week. You know what? I suck at shopping. I went to the Gap. I brought the skirt and rtied every white shirt and blouse they had.
Now, understand, I am a tom-boyish female person. I like getting dolled up but I can't take the tom-boy out of this woman!
So I wanted a flirty, low neckline and imagined super feminine. I found a sleevless white cotton hoodie. The neckline is sorta low, but not flirty feminine.
I didn't have the energy to keep shopping after an hour of try-ons. It was cheap, though. 9$. And I found a new hoodie sweatshirt too. I am dying it now and am going to shorten it before I show it off here in blogland.
All this has been making me want to sell a line of surface designed t-shirts...

Hello, my name is Miss Melly.

Lisa asked me to write out a tutorial on the use of You Tube. Not that I have infinite knowledge on the topic. It is just plain easy to do.
I uploaded this video of Ravens over the Grand Canyon taken on September 26, 2006. This was on the South Rim at Hermits Rest.
I also just plain like having photos to show on my blog so, it all works out.

This is my favorite you tube video:

Like all internet stuff, you can find some gems over there...

I took on a new part time job, I am an art teacher for children. I am to introduce myself as Miss Melly. I taught my first class today. It is a good choice for me. They don't have late night hours and it is truely part-time, where the other job was full time when they needed it and part time when they needed it.
So.
Can anyone raise thier hand and tell me how much we love making art?

Bubble Skirt

I have been creatively busy. I made the fabric for this skirt and then made the skirt today. I felt all sorts of snazzy because I made the pattern too. I am getting ready for the Quilt National opening. What a boring web site that is... and for such an exciting event!

Hey... did you notice you can just mouse over the link and see where I am directing you? A new and exciting all-nerd-plug-in.

Oh and I forgot to tell you, I was recently called a nerd. I have always wanted to be a nerd. This person said it totally without prompting too! I mean, I was being nerdy.

So I made the skirt, now I need a blouse, or top. The idea is to make it myself, dye it, make it memorable. I think I need to go to a pattern store for this top. I love this
but I can't dye it and I don't want to spend 48$$ on a t-shirt. This is totally dye-able but again 48$. I just don't have that money right now. Maybe I should go t-shirt shopping tomorrow morning. That would be easier than making my own shirt. Then I can just focus on the surface design aspect! Where the real fun is.

So here is a wonky detail shot, timed photos will do that. Note the scrape on my thumb and the blue-tinged-dyers nail. I can take myself out all dressed up, but there will always be a blip in the armor.
This cloth was made with soy wax, on cotton satin. The seams totally show. I love raw edges. I zig-zagged over the opened seam with rayon embroidery thread. Thought you would want to know.

Now can we just take a moment to look at two more things within this photo?
Monk... Doesn't he look scrummy-yummy? And so attentive. He had to know what was making the beeping noise-I used the timer for this photo.
The floor? Hard wood...my feet feel all clean and spiffy walking on this surface...