Category Archives: Winter Apples

Spring Approaches?

 

Hello,

March in its typical approach can not seem to decide if it is ready for spring or if winter should still dominate.  I saw these Snow Drops on my walk yesterday and I did hear a Robin’s song this morning.  But there is also snow in the air and in the forecast  for this evening and tomorrow.     Mother Nature is a bit fickle.

Progress Report:  Indian Pipe   This work is 16” t X 20” w.     The background is felted and it is  based on a photo of a rock cut along a  road in Washington state.  IMG_0480  I selected the Indian Pipes as my subject from one of my mother’s slides.   The steams are made from organza that is wrapped around a pipe cleaner and the heads are satin ribbon.IMG_0481

Winter Apples This work is 27.5” t X 29.5” l.   It is based on a photo I took of a crabapple tree at Thanksgiving when we visited the Turning Stone Cession for our family dinner.    IMG_0494The crystalline snow is made up of silk with a lacy ribbon on top.   IMG_0495

Radiating Joy  I am to the quilting step with my work on this piece.  I did reflective quilting in the rainbow letters and I am doing strait line quilting in the dark areas.

 IMG_0459Frozen   I continue to move very slowly on this piece.   I am just about ready to cut the wholes in the ice where the rocks stick through.

Glyph IV I am happy with the progress on this piece as the top  of the O is now complete and I am working down the right side.

 

Spring Forest    I am done with the quilting on this pieces as well  and have moved onto the beading of the trees.  I had help selecting the beads that I am using.IMG_0469

   IMG_0465Afghan    This work is now done.  I like the colors and it is worm.

Daily PracticeIMG_0474The daily hand work is moving along.  All of the parts are at least tacked down with stitches now.    I look forward to playing with decorative   stitches on the rest of the surface.

New Work IMG_0477 I pulled greens out of the stash to begin a new piece based on an image of asters.   IMG_0489

Star Gazers   This is collage #9 and is called Star Gazers.

Card- Medusa IMG_0490  I always saw Medusa as a very tragic figure.   All that constant noise and motion around her head all the time.  Must have been tiring.

3 Witches  These three women from a clothing add made me think of  the 3 witches from Macbeth.  They seem to conjuring  trouble to me.

Keep being creative

Carol

Snow Fall

Hello,

After several warms days with warm temperatures and lots of melting we back to winter again  this morning.  Beautiful big fat flakes are falling now.    It looks like a crayon  drawing out there.   This week has been busy.   Liz and I taught a collage card workshop for Associated Artists on Sat.Workshop 2 Everyone had a good time and asked us to do it again in the furture.   FAB meant yesterday and  Nancy had three projects to share.   I think she did a great job with movement with her interpretation of  Aerobic  Twist.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Progress Report: Zapped  This work is 35” w X 34 “ l.   I think this new form  of the word Zap works better then the old version as it is crisper and sharper.  IMG_0434 I used fabric that I hand dyed for the letters this time and I even used some in the background too.   Liz and I are doing a personal challenge to use our hand dyed fabric in our work this winter.   I am having fun doing so.IMG_0433

IMG_0425Radiating Joy  I am to the point where I am doing the zig-zag applique step on this work now.   It is backed with tear away paper so it is stable with all the turns and changes in direction I should be able to avoid bubbling and have a flat final piece .

Winter Apples All the satin apples are hand stitched appliqued now.  It took several trials before I found a way to show the crisp crystalline snow  on the fruit.   It has layer of white satin with  silver ribbon on top to get the effect I am after.  I am stitching it down by hand too as each apple  has a different type of snow cap on it.

IMG_0427Frozen  The  operation has hampered my progress on this project and others as I can not yet work for a long time at the machine.  I also need to look a lot before I add  new lines to the surface of the ice here.

New Work    This new project  is full filling two challenges.  The Associated Artists next show  theme is Rebirth.   Spring certainly is a time of new things and that is what this project is designed to do.  This piece also fits with the Liz challenge .    I designed the stencil and l printed it  at one of the open   studio weekends at the Schweinfurth a while back.  I am free motion quilting with two different colored threads in the top of my machine to  draw in the limbs of the trees here.

Daily Practice IMG_0440   A personal challenge for this project is to try to use as many variations on the strait stitch as I can on this work.  I continue to work on this project during the news every night.

IMG_0437New Daily Practice    Sometimes chance play a part in what I do.  This is and example of that  happening.  When I was cutting up the fabric for Zapped it happened to be piled on top of this piece of  purple  hand dyed.  I liked how it looked and realized I had never tried orange and purple together before.  So I decided to go with that thought for my next base  in this series.

Collage- Blue on Blue After watching my friends have a good time on Saturday at the workshop, I sat down at home and created this bit of collage myself.  It is too big to be a part of the series but I sure had fun.

IMG_0413Collage- Fading Memories  This is 8.5” X 11” and is # 7 in the collage series.   It has a little stitching in it too.

Card Sharman  This is my high priest card.

Keep Creating

Carol

Operation

 

IMG_0411Hello,

I had my operation for carpel tunnel on my left hand yesterday.   It went well and because I had the right wrist done 14 years ago I felt no fear.  The world of medical has  improved sense that first one  and it all seems to be smoother.   I can already do a few things that I know took a week to do last time.    Simple things like touch index finger to thumb.     The Doctor anticipated a smaller opening this time too- but because it is all wrapped up under the soft bandage I can not see that yet.   One Hopes for the best.

Progress Report :  Glyph IV
I did a lot of beading on this project this week and I am at the intersection of the O and L at this point.   I am pleased with how it is going.

.Frozen   I have started to applique the cording down to represent theIMG_0398frozen edges of the ice on this work.   Because I want the organza to only be connected to the base were the stones stick up through the ice, it is still free floating on top.

ZAP   I layered this work and started by stitching down all the text.   I have even begun the reflective quilting around the forms.   I am unsure about what way is up, so every time I hang it between work sessions, I try a different orientation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Joy I used the pattern that I showed in last weeks blog to create the shapes for this radial design.  It is based on the word JOY.  It is easiest to decipher when you look at the fourth of the pattern on the left.

Winter Apples This new work is based on a photo that I took last winter of snow on a crab apple tree.  IMG_0402

This is the shot.  I made a paper window and focused in on a smaller section.

IMG_0401This small section is what I decided to build the new work on.   I have selected a printed fabric that goes along with the theme and I have free motion quilted down the limbs I cut in wool.   I have made about twenty Satan apples  to hand applique down on top.   I used the double fabric method  to create the apples .   After I turn all the apples  I will applique them  and add steams.  I am still thinking about how to create the snow.     IMG_0403

Daily Practice  I have started with the second of my hand work daily pieces.    The fabric shapes are all cut-aways from other projects and all of them except the orange ones are fused to the background.

Collage 6

I am continuing to do the collage work.   Perhaps I need to start to think about adding titles to these pieces.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Amber Empress  This is my newest card for Susan’s challenge.

Happy Chinese New year.    It is the year of the Dog.

Keep Creating

Carol