Soulful Journey - CT Fiber Arts Collective Exhibit!

CT Fiber Arts Collective opened the Soulful Journey exhibit March 12th but I wasn't able to get to the Windsor Art Center until now. It's an inspirational show with over 30 fiber art pieces on display. The Windsor Art Center was great to work with and they've had strong attendance all month. I encourage you to stop by if you are in the area. The exhibit comes down April 24th. 

CtFAC members: Carol Vinik, Karen Loprete, Mary Lachman, Me, Christina Blais, Linda Martin and Wanda Seldon. Missing from the photo: Rosalind Spann, Antonia Torres & Diane Cadrain

The SAQA CT Chapter held their meeting at Windsor. The group is always so supportive when members have an exhibit. You can see some of the work on the walls behind the crowd. Co-Reps Kelly Caldwell and Christina Blais gave an enthusiastic update on a recent International SAQA conference hosted in Philadelphia. 

I had 2 pieces in the show. The first is Leaf Study I. I started by pressing the leaves onto cotton with thickened dye. Next I over dyed some of the leaves and added Inktense pencils. The individual leaves are lined and attached to 2 layers of organza. The organza provides transparency and is designed to move lightly as the wind blows. 31" X 44" 

The second piece is titled FaceScapes. The design celebrates the diversity of the Connecticut population. Each face is hand dyed wool roving and wet felted into faces. Next I used free motion stitching to give each face a personality. The beads separating each face were made from a map of CT. Background fabric is confetti dyed. 19" X 30" 

The SAQA meeting gives me a unique opportunity to
chat about surface design with other artists!

The SAQA CT Chapter is a warm and welcoming group. Each meeting I learn from other artists and get a better idea about upcoming events - lots of networking and giggles! Have you thought about joining your local SAQA Chapter? 

2016 SAQA Conference was Another Success!

If you haven't had an opportunity to get involved with the SAQA organization I encourage you to think about joining. I love attending the annual conferences to hear from industry leaders and understand where the fiber art community is going. The speakers provide a deeper knowledge of how exhibitions work and tips for being successful when submitting entry's. There were so many excellent speakers addressing multiple topics I couldn't possibly list them all. The conference allowed me to reconnect with friends and make new buddies! For the past 3 years I've also been a vendor allowing me to connect with soooo many fabulous artists. Being able to chat about fiber techniques, color and artistic vision with other like minded people is a treat! 

Will I see you at the 2017 conference? Lincoln, Nebraska is going to be the next hot spot! 

You gotta have your textile fix! 

I get very excited about fabric! 

It's fun to see so many fabrics all lined up and ready for a party! 

Here I am with fellow Printed Fabric Bee alumni Deborah Massie Boschert!  

I had my first professional photo shoot with Bonnie McCaffery. Bonnie is fabulous - she helped me relax and feel comfortable since having my photo taken is not a favorite thing! 

There was some down time for exploring Philadelphia. We wandered into the Fabric District after a friend had earlier discovered a stash of authentic Mud Cloth! I find myself unable to pass up collecting traditionally crafted cloth. These 4 pieces came home with me! 

I also happened upon a fabulous supply store having a 40% off sale on Speedball products = score! These babies are 32 ounces and with the primary colors taken care of I should have plenty of color experimenting in my future! 

We couldn't resist an outdoor cafe showered in sunshine on Spruce Street.

CHEERS TO GOOD FRIENDS, GOOD TIMES AND TO SAQA FOR BRINGING IT ALL TOGETHER!  

Time for the Annual SAQA Conference - Inspire*Connect*Engage!

I look forward to reconnecting with friends, hearing from wonderful speakers and the fun events planned at this years SAQA Conference - Inspire*Connect*Engage! 

Please stop by the Vendor Market / Thursday, March 31st /12:00 - 6:00 / 237 South Broad Street Philadelphia, PA. 

This picture is from a conference in VA... can't wait to explore PA this time! 

SAQA Conference Time!

Preparation is underway for the upcoming international SAQA conference ~ Inspire*Connect*Engage ~ 

March 31 - April 3

237 South Broad Street Philadelphia, PA

I joined a painting party at ProChemical in Fall River last weekend! It was a fun event with about 175 canvas bags completed and ready for thier conference debut. Each conference attendee will receive a bag filled with goodies - sweet! 

Allison Wilbur and Martha Sielman setting out some bags to dry! 

Marcia Young and Sandy Gregg are hard at work! 

Vicki Jensen from ProChemical kindly donated her time and materials to get this project off the ground! I look forward to taking some workshops there in the future.

The bags are drying and ready for Vicki to screen the SAQA logo across the back. 

I'll be vending on March 31 from 12:00 - 6:00 so please stop by to say hello! 

Look What Joyce Compton Did!

I love this piece, "Floral Fantasy" created by fiber artist Joyce Compton! I had the pleasure of meeting Joyce while attending the SAQA conference in Portland, OR last spring. The best thing about being a vendor at a show is meeting so many creative people. In looking over my stash of fabrics Joyce pulled out this Snow Dyed piece. Joyce said, "I knew immediately when I saw the fabric that I just wanted to quilt it to enhance the design created by the dyeing process". The piece was accepted into the upcoming Shenandoah Vineyards exhibit - a big congrats to Joyce! 

Joyce used crewel embroidery thread in bobbin to create the centers of the flowers. I've never been brave enough to try it but clearly Joyce has this technique down! For more information on Joyce's work hop over to her FaceBook page.