Procion Dyeing

I took a Dye, Stencil and Stitch class at the local art gallery this summer from artist and friend, Robin Mayberry.  I was supposed to make square coasters, but my rebel self decided I like rectangles better and made a set of quilty art hangings.

I had so much fun working with the fabric--the class really sparked something in me!

I came home, got my Dharma procion dyes out and started messing with my own fabrics.

And watercolor paper

 and clothesline and doilies and crochet cotton...

Using last year's driftwood Xmas tree as a drying rack

I even managed to dye the back deck a bit

 

Ugliest award definitely went to the wedding gown lace

 You never know, though, I may find it's perfect for something.

Moving Forward

 It's been forever since I've blogged and like many, I've vowed to start up again.  

 I think I'll share a little bit of what I've done in my blogosphere absence, as well as what I'm doing now. 

Let's start with rust printing.

Cotton fabric soaked in white vinegar   

90 lb cold press watercolor paper soaked in vinegar

Doodling with white, black and brown marker

The method that works best for me is to soak fabric or heavy paper in white vinegar for at least half and hour.  Be sure to wet each piece of fabric or paper separately before stacking to ensure that all surfaces are soaked.

Then I layer the pieces onto an iron plate that I found over by our local RR tracks.

  I sandwich different types of teas, leaves, berries and rusty pieces of metal in between the layers of fabric and then place another iron plate on top.

 I cover the entire pile with a plastic bag to seal in moisture and then leave it overnight.

In the morning I unwrap all the layers, shake off tea, berries, leaves, etc.  IMPORTANT: Then I soak the fabric and paper in salt water (I fill one side of my sink with warm water and add 1 cup salt) to stop the rusting action which can eat away the fabric and paper.

Zentangle In The Round

I'm a Zentangle newbie.  I took a class just two weeks ago and the number of tangles in my wheelhouse is limited.

I have found that I prefer doing it within a circular border.    

 

Feeling a bit breezy (the wind is blowing like mad today) and centered, I think.

 

 

This one is my favorite so far.

I didn't even see the tree until I was finished.  I was delighted when I found it.

 

 

Bacteria has been on my mind lately...hmmmm....

 

 

My original idea was to use circular tiles, but I don't have a circle cutter and didn't want to attempt cutting fifty 3 1/2" circles out of 90lb cold press.

I also found that the circles caused my zentangles to become square and I didn't like that.

Drawing a circle for my border within a square provides me with the perfect circular zen that I need.

Thanks for stopping by!

Tabithahttps://www.zentangle.com/

 

Surface Design

I've been finding myself obssessed with not only circles lately, but also surface design.
I think I've been influenced by several magical blogs I've been reading:

...And The We Set It On Fire 
A surface design blog authored by several textile artists and featuring a new technique each month.

notjustnat Creative Blog

She does a lot of ecodying

threadnoodle
Lots of ecodying and surface manipulation!

Summer is for Circles

So I've decided to explore circular boundaries this summer.

Earlier this month it occured to me that my artistic boundaries are usually square or rectangular.  

Seems kinda like being in a box!

Some inspiration for going all circular this summer.

Lots of GREAT projects!!!

Eyes of the Beholder

 More Steampunk!

Another mannequin/paper mache' dress form--I've actually decided it would be fun to work in a series.  You can check out #1 in my dress form series here.

Number Two (drum roll, please)...

 

 Inspired by this month's theme at Sandee & Amelie's Steampunk Challenge: "Eyes Tested"\

and the back...

 I gave the paper mache' a leather-like effect by crumpling packing paper, inking with distress ink and then mod-podging it to the dress form.

The gold emboss swirls were added by stamping on tissue paper that had been inked with distress stain, carefully cut out and then applied with glossy mod-podge.

The eyes are dolls eyes.  I drilled into the form and then sanded to create a hole wide enough to fit & recess them a bit and then glued them in place.

Brass colored brads were added for a more metallic effect.

The base was made from a wooden candlestick, distress ink and mod-podged tissue. 

I then secured a skewer and some soft wire to the hole in the candlestick with plaster of paris.

Thanks for stopping by!

Art Faeries

A quote from Daisy Yellow's blog post today...

" Please don't waste good art time waiting for the art faerie. That's fruitless; she's busy wrapping up a big gallery show in Reykjavík. "

I LOVE IT!!!

I love the fact that she's buys in Reykjavik!

 

Head over to Daisy Yellow for LOTS of FREE art journalling, index carding, and colorful fun.

If you're experiencing angst about being judged on your not so perfect art, having art block or just need a swift kick in the art butt, turn to Daisy Yellow for inspiration!

Drawing Lace

Home sick today

My puppy, Boo, has inspected my art supplies and approved them for rehabilitation.

I tend to be more of a tactile maker, but I enjoy sketching and watercolors, so I've been trying to incorporate a quick sketch into my daily practice.

Today's attempt: a mason jar covered in crochet lace with a plant cutting.

Lace is not easy to draw!  Especially when you're doing a quick sketch.  I started out trying to be perfect and the decided to just go for the look of a spidery lace.

Some other creations...

Hyacinth bulbs.  I like adding the color palette to the piece.  Makes it seem a bit more sketchy.

A whimsical interpretation of a lake nearby.  I sat out in the sunshine and had fun with my daughter on the day I did this.

Do you enjoy doing something your perhaps not so great at?  Then do it anyway!  Nothing wrong with enjoying your time and you sure won't get any better if you don't practice!

Unfinished Steamy Fempunk...ya, that's what I'll call it.

Another Steampunk project and it's for Sandee & Amelie's Steampunk Challenge...AGAIN.

What can I say--I love steampunk.

The challenge this month is "unfinished'.

This was a hard one for me.  What to do? What to do?

I didn't want to make something and just not actually finish the item, although a few of the people in the challenge have and did some really cool looking stuff.  I wanted to uber-challenge myself and make "unfinished" part of my finished project.

Here it is...my steampunk bot? steampunk machine? steampunk fembot?  steampunk mannequin?

I dunno what to call it to be honest.

 Steambot?  Steamy Fempunk?

She still needs a head and arms, but for my part, as a project it is finished.

I started with a paper mache' mannequin from Michael's, hollowed it out, caved in some seams to look like metal pieces, painted it black and then metallized it with rub n' buff.  I also added some small grommets for a more steampunky look.

Inside the hollow I added a soldered metal concoction made up of jewelry, gears, wings and wire to create Steamy Fempunk guts and glue that in.

I reattached the door with copper tape that doubles as a hinge.

I wish I'd planned the doors a little better so I could use actual hinges, but once the Styrofoam was cut, it was a done deal.

I added a skewer that I metallized to the bottom of the mannequin and then embedded it in a wooden candlestick base that I also metallized.  Gears and a flourish were then added because it IS steampunk and ordinary just won't suffice!

To cover the hole in the candlestick I added a medallion that I purchased at craft warehouse some time ago. 

 Last, but certainly not least because it MAKES the theme work, are the wires that lead to the head connection.  I used copper, aluminum and some plastic coated--some of it I curled, some left straight.

There we have it!

My Steamy Fempunk!

Steampunk Wishes to you all and happy creating!

~Tabitha



Third-Eye at the Opera

Another steampunk challenge at Sandee & Amelie's!

I do love my steampunk.

January's theme is the number 3

I decided to repurpose a plastic six-pack beer can topper that's used to hold the cans together.

After some cutting, some spray paint, rub n' buffing, shrinky dinking and embellishing I came up with...

 Any steampunker worth there salt would simply have to have access to a third-eye while at something as populated as an opera. 

Why not make it fashionable.

 

 The lens were created from shrink plastic, which I've found is NOT an exact science.

A dremel ended up being quite useful in sanding my shrinked (shrunk?) discs down to size which were then glued into place.

 The signature third-eye, complete with gauges for adjustment.

Navigational eye

A normal lens for actually seeing the opera.

I used a wire hanger, homemade gauges, beads and embellishments for the dainty holder.

Again, fashion is important.

I just KNOW they'll be the talk of the town!

Happy Day to everyone!