I'm having trouble with blogsot - HELP!

Hello Friends!
I hope you can help me resolve a problem. For some reason when I click the icon to upload pictures from my computer files, the "browse" icon doesn't appear. Therefore I can no longer upload photos... I'm so distraught! I've been all over the blogspot website trying to trouble shoot but there are no options for what I'm experiencing. So far I've been unable to locate any human contact from the site.

Help!
Carol

Stencils, Fabric Dyeing and More!

I love the idea of starting a New Year. The world is wide open for exploring and creating! I got caught up with two projects at the end of December that made me think in a very focused and narrow way. I can only do that for so long before my brain cramps up and demands free time. Over the past few days I was able to carve out free studio time and I feel energetic and happy again... my inner balance was restored.

I recently purchased some of Terri Stegmiller's stencils from Stencil Girl Products. I'm not very familiar with stencils but after following Terri's blog and seeing how she incorporates stencils into her artwork I thought I'd give it a try. Take a peek at Terri's blog - she provides tutorials on her approach which is a real treat! Also, check out Stencil Girl Products; they carry fellow artists stencil designs and are a pleasure to do business with.

Terri's stencil designs are the circles to the far left and to the far right

Here I used Terri's circle stencil along with a dragonfly stencil. The fabric is dyed using the Confetti Method along with many layers of stamping and discharging.

In this piece I used Terri's stencil along with bubble wrap. The lighter colored circles are created by applying Softscrub rather than dye or fabric paint. The bleach in the Softscrub removes or discharges the dye from the fabric.

Next I focused on ice dyeing and Confetti Dyeing to try out some new dyes that arrived from Dharma Trading. I love my new dyes and never tire of seeing the fabric come out of the dye baths.

I had some ideas on color combinations when dyeing with the Confetti technique. I must have made a dozen or more fat quarters. Below is a sampling of colors I found interesting.

Over Dyed

Black Dye

Yellow and Blue

I dragged a comb across the dye to disperse

 

Finally I decided to try my hand at silk screening and created a template from pressed leaves. I applied to two pieces of fabric I've been working on that remind me of Connecticut's woodlands.

The fabric is dyed, batiked, painted, stamped and discharged

Detail of above piece

This fabric started with Confetti Dyeing and then batiked, discharged
stamped and over dyed

Detail of above piece

The last fabric I pulled from the dye bath was created by folding and clamping the fabric before dyeing.

The colors are Imperial Purple and Lavender

Happy New Year!

Although my blog has been quiet for a few weeks it doesn't mean I haven't been busy in the studio! My goal for the first day of 2013 is to catch up on photos of recent work and get back to blogging regularly!

See you soon!
Carol

Looking for inspiration on a snowshoe trek!

Curator In Training Program: SAQA

SAQA has a Curator In Training program that was recently opened up to the general membership. They asked for proposals with a well stated and clear theme that would appeal to their broad membership base. I saw the proposal as a wonderful opportunity to learn how a large scale exhibition is put together from developing a theme, to securing a juror, designing the exhibition space and all the details in-between!

I'm delighted to announce my submission was accepted and I'll be curating, "Color Wheel of Emotions" in 2013 - 2014! I was inspired by a sense of wonder and constant excitement when exploring color and our reactions to it. The calls for entry will be available on the SAQA website in early January. My proposal is stated below but as a training program my mentor, Kathleen McCabe, may suggest some tweaking here and tweaking there.

Color Wheel of Emotions - How do colors reflect our emotions? Have you ever seen red, felt blue or been green with envy? Spin the color wheel and your mood may encompass the full spectrum of the rainbow. The range of color used in this exhibit will convey a sense of emotion or feeling expressed by the artists. Viewers will interpret the theme based on their understanding and response to the color palette and overall design 

I look forward to the challenges ahead and the knowledge I will gain. Please look for the prospectus and call for entry as we ring in the New Year.

Start those creative juices flowing!

I Won... I Won!

I won a subscription to Fiber Arts magazine! I am really excited and look forward to the January edition coming! I encourage you all to find inspiration between their pages...

Artists Studio: Getting Organized

I was delighted to have had an opportunity to bring my collection of fabrics to a recent  meeting for the Connecticut chapter of the SAQA organisation. If you aren't familiar with the organization I encourage you to click on the links. You will meet other like minded artists and have a ball learning new techniques and making new friends! It was a thrill to receive such a positive response for my fabrics from the other artists. It helped with my confidence to have  my approach to surface design  validated, (yes - I'm still feeling vulnerable even into middle age!).

Whenever I have a big push to get a project out the studio door I return to a chaotic and crazed workplace. My personality requires calm so I took the opportunity to look at my space with fresh eyes. I framed my observations around how to get the most use of space and where to keep the materials I most frequently use. I emptied cupboards and bookcases moving things around until finally I felt like the environment was right again... my yin and yang were happy!

I can't wait to go down to the studio in the morning and start a new ice dyed project. I've had a color combination rolling around in my head for a few days and I need to get going! The studio won't look this tidy again until I go for another round of "purging" so I thought I'd document the cleanliness as most folks will never see it!

The studio looks out into wetlands. We have deer, turkeys and many other visitors each season. My gardens are just outside the windows providing endless inspiration!

This view looks towards my design wall which never seems to be empty. If I'm stuck on a design I'll leave it up and fuss with it over time until it feels done. I'm sure most of you work that way... tweaking here and moving an element there!