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Archive for August, 2008

A Whirlwind Wednesday

Wednesday, August 6th, 2008

OK, before I blather on about my life, I know you want pretty pictures. I decided the indigo scarf that I was rust dyeing was done. Here it is:

I love how that bamboo looking motif that emerged. I am very happy with my first attempt at rust dyeing. It really took a somewhat boring scarf to a new level. I am definitely addicted.

I seem to have very busy Wednesdays. I have to get up and out of the house for my 9:30 WW weigh-in. I usually do some grocery shopping on my way home. Every other Wednesday, Maryama is here to clean up after me. Which means, I have to do some uncluttering before she gets here. During the summer, I have to get to the farmer’s market around 3:30. Once a month I have a Trinity Website meeting at 5:30. So, it is always difficult to sandwich in the things I want to do or need to do in my office and studio.

Today, I finished some reorganizing in my office. My desk was driving me nuts. Too much stufff. I was losing things — like bills that needed to be paid. I was trying to keep too many files on the desk and decided that I would not be so lazy and put them in a file drawer in the credenza. We moved the Grand’s toy stuff to the other end of the room. I was tired of looking down and seeing and tripping over the legos, etc on the floor, left from their last visit. Tomorrow, I am going to finish spiffing up the studio. I also need to move my clothes into my new closet from the guest room because Lisa is coming for a week. I don’t think she would appreciate my using her bedroom as my dressing room. Vladimir and his son Sergi painted it today. Mr C is installing the components as I sit here blogging and enjoying Project Runway.

Here are some photos of the gorgeous cabinets that our son-in-law, Jack designed and Tom, the hippy dippy cabinet maker crafted. Notice the beautiful grain in the rift sawn white oak. Tom says it is his new favorite wood. This is the tall cabinet in the corner, just inside the door. It was difficult to photograph.

This is the base of the cabinet in the entry to the bathroom and closet. Notice how the grain matches all the way down. Tomorrow, we have to go out to the granite place and make sure we are happy with the piece we reserved so that it can be cut. It will go on top of these drawers.

It was such a pretty day, I thought I would take some photos at the farmer’s market. These are clickable for a larger view.

Oh, just to be honest, I gained a pound this week. I am in one of those plateaus where clothes are getting to big, but I am not losing weight. That’s my diet life!!

This and That

Monday, August 4th, 2008

Today, I attended my first Columbia Stitchery Guild Board meeting. I am now the president elect. I realized today that one of my big jobs this year is to cement some relationships with worker bees who will serve on the board when I am president. Reva and I drove together; she will be doing the newsletter, with another person. It is a very nice group of women. We had a nice lunch prepared by the old board.

I arrived home to find the new cabinets in the bathroom almost finished. They are so gorgeous. It was too dark to take a photo by the time our incredible cabinet maker left for the day. In the tall cabinet in the bathroom, there is a large door, two small drawers and another large door on the bottom. He cut these from the rift sawn white oak so that the grain matches just perfectly as you scan down the piece. It is really a work of art.

One of my Coupeville classmates sent this photo of the class, today. We had the maintenance guy take the photo. I think it is a great photo of all of us.

From the left, Judy, Nita (our fabulous class assistant) Teresa, Moi, Akemi, Patricia and Elaine. I can’t believe Judy was wearing a plain white t-shirt because most days, she wore one of her fabulous Complexitees.

My rusting experiment of the indigo scarf is really looking good. I am not sure how long I need to leave it. It is so hot and dry that I have to keep pouring water over it. My rusting source said not to put plastic on it because you want to have oxygen available to create rust.

Tomorrow, I have to clean up my studio, again!! I have started working on a design for my 3-D fabric teapot for a High Fiber Diet Challenge. I do not work in 3D very often so this will be a real challenge for me.

Good Things

Sunday, August 3rd, 2008

We have had pretty lousy weather for the last few days. When it gets overcast in the summer, I wilt. I need the sun for energy. This afternoon, it came back, and it was lovely.

I have had some good things going on, despite the weather.

Some Good Mail: I found a manila envelope in the mail yesterday from my blogging/complex cloth friend, Kathy Sands. She saved hundreds of dryer sheets and dyed them. Then, she had a contest to guess how many there were. I was way off, but she sent me some anyway!! I am going to find some fun uses for these.

I had forgotten that I ordered Laura Cater-Wood’s new workbook -Idea to Image, Tempting Your Muse. It arrived last week, and I am looking forward to using it to get my creative juices going.

Trying a New Technique: I have been itching to try rust dyeing. I love the look of rust dyeing combined with indigo. I had a scarf that I had done last year in the Indigo Dyeing class which was sort of wimpy. I decided to try rust dyeing with it. When we dismantled our bathroom for the renovation, I hung on to the expansion metal pole with baskets for shampoo etc, because it was rusting. I have wrapped the scarf around it and secured it with steel wire. I soaked it with vinegar water. I will keep it damp for a few days and see what happens.

Shopping for the Bathroom/Closet Renovation: We are getting close to the end of the bathroom/closet work. Yesterday, we ordered some FLOR carpet tiles for my little walk-in closet. I chose the heathered, brushed felt in dusty turquoise. I am in love with this and can’t wait to feel it under my bare feet.

Then, we headed out to the Container Store to order the fixtures for my closet. A very perky and competent designer plugged the closet measurements into the computer and away we went, designing the storage that I need. There will be shelves able to hold 50+ pairs of shoes, 12 feet of hanging storage and four drawers, plus shelves for miscellaneous stuff. So, it will be similar to this, but a different configuration. Mr C is picking up the elements and will install it after they get the new closet floor done this week.

So, lots of good things to be happy about. M & M and their parents are camping until Wednesday and I missed them this week-end. But, I am happy that they are out in the woods having a good time.

Gilded Pears

Friday, August 1st, 2008

Detail:

(Finally, Blogger has unlocked the blog and we are posting our pieces.) This is my illumination piece for the 12 X 12 challenge. I was inspired by paintings by the masters that seem to glow. The term for this is chiaroscuro.

Chiaroscuro – In drawing, painting, and the graphic arts, chiaroscuro (ke-ära-skooro) concerns the rendering of forms through a balanced contrast between light and dark areas. The technique that was introduced during the Renaissance, is effective in creating an illusion of depth and space around the principal figures in a composition. Leonardo Da Vinci and Rembrandt were painters who excelled in the use of this technique.

I love pears — they have such voluptuous curves and look so wonderful in a still life. I had some hand-dyed fabrics that just screamed pears! This is how the composition looked before I added the gold foil.

I think this would have worked as an illuminated piece, but i just had to add the foil. The background is silk dupioni.

I really enjoyed this challenge. I wonder what theme Terri will come up with for our next challenge?