Happening Today

I've just opened the two boxes I received today. I'm excited to say the least. 

First box was the Aztec air brush that I ordered. I am sure I need more accs but for now I need to just learn how it works. I'm thinking it'll do some unique stencil designs onto fabric. 

Second box was from Superior Threads. I joined Superior University and this is my first shipment. I'm looking forward to learning new techniques with new materials. There was an assortment of thread, needles, and a formable stabilizer. Along with DVD and information booklet. I'll post pics of my work as I do each lesson. You can work at your own pace. Once a month you get a shipment of unique threads and notions, along with information on how to use them, and a project. 

More excitement was had as I opened the lid of the dye chest and saw how beautiful the banana fabric is looking. My only concern is, I'm so loving how it looks NOW, and I know things change by the time I'm ironing the finished out fabrics. Only time will tell if I get some of those intense colors you see on the side without the ice cubes, in this photo below. 

  

Well, I'm off to make lunch, have some tea, and dream (daydream) in color. 

My hubby just came in with the rest of the mail,,yeah,,,another piece of fabric from a Stitchin fingers friend!

I am blessed,

Luann

Dyed Fabrics and Moving On

 

Today I want to show you what became of the fabrics that hit the dye bath on Friday. 

This was a deep orange to begin with. I absolutely adore the little person in the middle. In a close up you can see that her arm is extended forward and raised, as if dangling a bug from her finger. 

This is about a yard of muslin, natural. Oh, the possibilities these bring to mind!

And now for the shots of before and afters. 

 

 

 

 This was that first one it's about a yard piece. 

 

 This one is actually 18x108. I'm thinking of wall hanging, would go nicely in the  vaulted ceiling area of my stairwell. 

Here are four pieces of folded and rubber banded pfd white  

 

 

 

 

Well those are the pieces that are done to this point. I've also posted them on my Pinterest page, Luann Fischer , this board is at the bottom at this time. I will need to get on the PC upstairs to move it to the front area. 

Time to go pull out some muslin, and pfd that I'm washing.  Next it goes into the so da ash bath, then drying and pressing. 

Until next time,

Let's Create Today,

Luann

Fabric Dyeing Day

I've decided to share today's adventure of fabric dyeing. 

Yesterday I purchased 10# of ice. 

Today, I chose which fabrics are going to be the volunteers for a little experiment. 

I've chosen unbleached muslin, a piece of mottled golden color, several colorful prints that have a metallic thread in them, and an orange batik-looking piece. These are all in the wash at present, with some synthropol. My new machine is energy efficient, so I spend some time tricking it into doing things my way!!  

Fabrics before going into the bucket of soda ash mixture. 

Soda ash water is now ready and on the porch, along with rubber bands, table covering, bucket with rack over it for the fabric and the ice to sit on, garbage bags, and ice cubes. 

Now, I'm going to fold, wrap, roll, or whatever each piece. Then it will be onto the rack, cover with ice, sprinkle dye powders, and then, WAIT ! Hardest part of all. 

A change of plans. First of all when I put my fabrics into the soda ash solution, the water turned a deep orangebrown. This alerted me to not being able to save it, as dye from one or more of the fabrics had contaminated it. Darn. I twisted and tied up the muslin with rubber bands. The rest is loosely scrunched.  I had wanted to fold and tie but I realize with ice dyeing you have the possibility of non dyed areas anyhow. With this in mind I started to put the ice cubes on top and,,,,, another bit of change in plan. I couldn't find the plate lifter that I used as my rack inside my rectangle bucket, so I found a rack that would sit on top. Only thing is, there aren't  sides to keep the ice cubes piled up, so as they started falling into the bucket I switched things around. I put the fabrics in the bottom of the bucket, ice cubes next and pewter and black dye powders on top. I plan to watch the melting progress and at some point I will do the messy job of lifting the fabric out of the waters and on to the rack, or into ziplock bags and then let them cure for a day or two. 

This is what that looked like:

Now for a cup of coffee, and a chat with MaryEllen. 

Here is a picture of four more pieces that are prepared for dyeing. I did not presoak these in soda ash mixture as I am out. I believe I can get supplies tomorrow to use before everything is done?  I placed these down in the water that was still in my bucket after removing the other fabrics. Those were placed in a plastic bag so they will stay moist until it's time to rinse. I liked what I saw as I took them out of the murky water but the surprise will come after rinse out. 

I enjoy dyeing so much. I have never disliked any of my experiments. Not even those that disappointed me as far as the results I was trying for. Like the time I tried to get 12 shades of brown and I got some lovely blues, purples, aquas, but no real brown. Someday I will again experiment with brown as my focus. I know I could just purchase dye in any number of shades of brown. But, part of what I like is the  trying to mix the three primaries to get what I want. I did purchase black and pewter, besides the two sets of primaries, as I wanted to be able to tone and shade colors.  I have started using them independently of the primaries because I enjoy the thrill of "and what will happen if I ,,,,,". If you happen to be a dyer also, I bet you understand. 

Everything is sitting and processing it's way into the night.  Tomorrow I will take a peak at them and see where I want to go from there. So, till then

Let's Create Today and again tomorrow!

Luann

February Review

I was looking back over a few previous posts and I realize that I just plainly put too much on my plate at any one time. Does this happen to you?  I have every intention to get things moving but for some reason or another my plans don't manifest into accomplishments. What to do, what to do? The only thing I know to do is,,, keep on doing! Eventually things get done or I make the decision to move on. If that's the way things go, so be it. I never let truly important things lapse. But there are just so many peripheral things that need to be let go of. 

Are you wondering what's gotten off the list?  

1.Well, to start with, I realize those boxes in the office contain someone else's books.  They really aren't my responsibility to get unpacked. So that's the first thing that I'm letting go of.

2.Second item is from the online workshop, Color Intensive. I have read all the information and found it to be quite interesting. I don't need to download all of this, as a PDF will be given to us by the end of March. There was a great deal of thought provoking ideas that I'm sure I will refer to in the future. 

3. I made a third hat for Joann in time to take it along with me the last time I went to visit her. She liked all three of them, but didn't feel a need for a closet full. Why I feel a need to "mass produce" is beyond me. She would have been pleased with one, and I know that. So, the crochet hook can rest for awhile.

4.Life Book 2014 is so full of exercises.  I will continue to listen to each week's offering, but doing the exercises may take some time. I will need to download everything before Feb. 1st of next year, but there's plenty of time to get that done. So I'm not sweating that, at this moment. 

5.And along those same lines, the other art, sewing, quilting etc classes I've signed up for are to further my abilities, not add stress to my life. My decisions with these are to stay abreast of the knowledge being offered but not to feel as though I MUST do this or that within a week!  

6.Pinterest boards are for my benefit, and others that may enjoy them. They are not an assignment that if they aren't current, I will be kept in from recess! So, I will post for enjoyment, as the mood hits. 

So, by now you're probably wondering just what IS on my radar at this time. 

A. I will keep current with my Stitchin Fingers friends and the swaps I'm in. I enjoy this immensely and I won't let them down. 

B. I will be continuing to make this house into our new HOME. This is very time consuming, our furniture doesn't fit it, the style of house is different from any I've ever lived in, and a lot of what needs to be decided on is costly. Obviously I want to make wise choices. 

C. I am staying current with all daily, weekly, and monthly information generated by my classes. As time permits I will be working on choice projects. 

D. My daily Bible Study and journaling are what keep me grounded and lifted up. No way will I give them up. 

E. A major focus right now has to be: getting healthy!  

I must lose weight, recover my energy levels, increase my stamina and flexibility, and on, and on, and on! ! I'm sure you get the picture. I've let myself go to the counter top, not even the back burner, and I'm paying for it big time. I've used comfort foods to get through some rough times and now my mind thinks of them as good choices. After all, I don't do this, or that other thing,, whatever it may be.  Why on earth I let myself talk to myself like that is beyond comprehension, right?  I'd never tell a good friend that it's ok  to eat some of the stuff I eat, and never in the proportions either. I need to start being my own best friend. 

Well, enough whining! I'll keep you posted. (Probably on a monthly basis from now on)

And for now,,, 

Let's create something today!

Luann

Edisto Beach Inspirations

Today we went down to Edisto Beach. The tourists haven't returned yet, so it was pretty quiet. We visited the State Park at the beach and Environmental Center. Below is a picture of some of the treasures I found. 

 

They are so interesting. Especially the yellow and pink ones in the center. The yellow is half a shell, the pinkish ones are the inside of pieces.  I find it magical to be by the ocean. I just relax and forget all the other things that are on my mind. It is truly refreshing for me to visit the beach. 

When I got home, I checked on the weather back in the Midwest and I will keep everyone's safety in my prayers. Seems like it just keeps socking it to the areas with cold, wind, and snow.  Hopefully no ice or sleet as that makes it treacherous for a long time. 

I've been making ATCs, Post Cards, and fabric book pages to swap with my friends over at Stitchinfingers.ning.com. I'm also involved with the altered fabric swaps that are done monthly. This has been great fun. Sending and receiving some very interesting pieces. Below are 3 Birthday pieces I have gotten.

And now for a little Gramma bragging, a picture of Seth, Jr. Writing his name for the first time all by himself

Well, I'll go for now.  I've got some fabrics calling my name!

Let's Create Today,

Luann

January Review

A little summation of what was done in January 2014. 

Life Book 2014 got underway. I spent time in the Art, Heart, and Healing lessons. I totally enjoy doing these exercises. I've been keeping an eye on some blogs that encourage art explorations. I have a very colorful planner. I colored pages using water color crayons. That was lots of fun. I got my stamps out and put snowflakes in. YES, we had ice and snow this past week here in South Carolina. Hard to believe I know, but it did happen. 

In my creative room, much was accomplished. The building blocks Quiltalong with Leah Day got off to a great start. I finished piecing 6 block sets. A total of 7 blocks were quilted and trimmed.  Two ATCs and two postcards were made for my swap groups. I sent out altered fabric to 7 swappers. I also crocheted two hats for Joann. These have a row of double treble that makes a nice weaving area for a skinny scarf that gets tied on one side just above the ear. I will make more of these.  They were easy enough and I like getting something done in just a few hours. Great for tv time, or when we take a ride somewhere. I've also gotten my interactive color board ready for Color Intensive Workshop that starts on Feb 3.  It was a bit of a challenge but I conquered it. 

We hired painters to get some of our house interior done. After my painting the FROG before Christmas, I am very glad to have someone else doing these high ceilings and the walls that go up to them. There was a lot of furniture and STUFF moved out and then back into the greatroom and dining area. 

I've spent a few days with my sister-in-law, up in Charlotte, NC. She's going thru chemo treatments and I'm glad I can be of any help. I've also spent a bit of time with my Mom-in-law, visiting and getting her some groceries. George had a colonoscopy done (everything is fine) so that was a couple of days hanging out at home with a man that couldn't have his usual food choices. He did quite well I must admit. 

George and I did the tourist thing too. On our way to Georgetown we stopped by to see the red wolves exhibit. That was very interesting and informative. Went down to Folly Beach just to prove we could, even though it wasn't very warm on that day. We actually got an ice and snow storm 2 days later. A rarity for SC. 

We went in to Charleston and had dinner with the Bennett's and office staff that George has been involved with. He certainly enjoys the interaction with such nice folks. They all are so friendly and welcoming.

We've asked for membership at Summerville's Cornerstone Baptist Chuch. We've been attending there and truly feel that we were led by God to attend there and to become a part of this family. We've been involved in picture taking, and evening Bible study as well. And I continue to do my personal Bible study daily. 

I've agreed to do a class on Flower Pounding at Baker's Pond and Garden Center in March. We were going to do it in February, but it may not be warm enough so we moved it to March. I've done this on fabrics in the past. This time we want to do it onto paper. Making bookmarks, postcards, or stationery items will give the participants that don't sew some useful pieces to take home with them. More work needs to be done for class samples. 

Blogs are getting more attention.  My Pinterest boards have been upgraded and pics of MY work have been added. I've been staying on track with my intentional work items and it's paying off. 

I am very pleased to be getting things off the to-do list.  I have more things coming up, but I'll save that info for another post. I think this one is long enough. If you've read this far, drop me a line and let me know how you're getting along with your 2014 Intentions. I'd enjoy hearing from you. 

And now, I'm off to create something interesting,

Luann

Intention List Update

I realize I'm in the middle of my time allotment for completing my Top Thirty List. I have reviewed it and some of the things on it are not important to me at this time. So, I'm putting together an adjusted list and I think I should probably do this monthly. (Actually, this is my second time writing this post, as my first one got lost in cyber space when I updated my privacy settings to allow for posting of pictures.)

1. Spend time with family members that need a little help at this time. 

2. Hire painters to continue with the updating of this house. 

3. Get all art supplies gathered together. 

4. Books, papers, etc. unpacked in the office. 

5. Printouts for all online classes into notebooks. 

6. Pics taken of ongoing projects posted to proper Pinterest boards. 

7. Craftsy classes reviewed and scheduled. 

8. LifeBook 2014 lessons up to date. 

9. Stitchinfingers.ning.com  Four swaps up to date

10. Other Willowing.ning.com  classes up to date

11. Leah Day's Building Blocks Quilt-along lessons up to date

12. Color Intensive workshop lessons up to date

13. Hand work basket filled and ready at all times for a day away

14. Kitchen reclaimed after the painting is done

15. Master bedroom reclaimed after painting is done

16. Great room furniture from La Z Boy should be delivered

17. Pillowcases started for all the Grandkids

18. Post to blogs weekly, include pics

Here are some pics from Life Book 2014:

 

 

Now for some from the Building Blocks Quiltalong:

 And three from my Stitchinfingers group swaps, and the first pic is of my interactive color board for Color Intensive workshop.