FIBERARTSY/craftsy

Mr. Robin flys to Washington

2012-01-26T19:55:00.002-05:00

Is it just me or has January flown by?!? I have been a busy little bee, working away on some things for my baby boy (oh and yeah--we found out it's a boy--eeek!) I decided to go with a woodland forest friends theme for the his little part of the world. Think raccoons, foxes, mushrooms etc. I think it's going to be super cute. Unfortunately we don't have the space to give him a full-on nursery, but he will have part of the spare room for now--he'll just have to share with the computer and my craft stuff. I'm pretty sure he won't mind--or really even know what's going on. But before I show you what I've been working on for the baby, I wanted to share this piece I stitched up for my sister's birthday. I've been wanting to do these patterns for so long now. They are the Ryan Berkeley transfers from Sublime Stitching.

I think Mr. Robin looks very regal in his suit don't you? I really want him to have a name like Sir Earl Pennyweather.

What a fun design. Now I really want to stitch up the others. Miss Kitty is definitely calling my name----meow. On another note I made it to the Sublime Stitching blog! So exciting!

Baby news: I'm 18 weeks now and the little bugger is squirming around! We are working away on names--who knew it would be so hard to come up with something!

Finishing more things I started.

2012-01-16T08:03:00.000-05:00

I finished a couple more projects. I had ironed on these patterns months ago and told myself that I had to finish these before moving on to anything else. I got tired of looking at them unfinished. I'm so glad that I finished them.

Sublime Stitching Michael Sieben pattern

I stitched this on a thrifted textile. The small flowers were already stitched and I think they really add a little something extra to the design.

I just adore these patterns. So whimsical and a bit odd. You may remember that I stitched another of his designs.

I really like the detailing of the eye. You could stitch this same pattern a hundred different ways and it would always be wonderful.

Sublime Stitching Jim Woodring pattern

I also stitched this pattern from the Jim Woodring artist set. I thought this little creature would be a great juxtaposition with the flowers in this thrifted textile. Again, the flowers were already stitched.

I kept him simple, stitching primarily in purple.

So that's it. I really feel like I can move on to new ideas now and start this year fresh. There are tons of patterns to stitch, sketches to sketch, paintings to paint. Now my mind is clear and ready. I've got big plans and a lot to do!

Finishing what I started...

2012-01-15T16:19:00.003-05:00

Well I finally finished my three Santas cross stitch that I started well before Christmas. I really thought about just packing it away and finishing it next Christmas, but I didn't have that much left to stitch so decided to just go ahead and finish it! Now it's ready for next Christmas, I'll just have to decide what to do with it. Frame it? Make it a pillow? I'll have plenty of time to think about it now that's it's all stitched up!

Details: The pattern, "A Ho-Ho-Ho of Santas" is from the November 2010 issue of Cross-Stitch & Needlework magazine. I stitched it on 14-count light blue aida. It did take me a while to finish it, but was a fairly simple project. So now on to the next project!

Can you say cute?

2012-01-11T19:47:00.003-05:00

Just wanted to drop in and share this too cute for words pattern. It's from The Frosted Pumpkin Stitchery and is part of a Dessert of the Month series. Each month I'll be getting a new (seriously cute) dessert to add to my sampler.

I mean really, can you stand the cute!! It was such a fun, quick project too.

I can't wait for next month's pattern--because this guy is getting lonely! I want to thank my pal Kristi, aka Stitchy Stitcherson, for letting me know about this. Check out her blog because she's awesome.

I think this year is going to be good----and super cute. So join in!

Where'd the time go?

2012-01-10T19:54:00.002-05:00

Wow--December flew by. We were super busy traveling this holiday season and it all seems like a blur! So now it's on to another year. I hope to do tons of stitching and painting this year, at least in the first half of the year because the second half, Colby and I will be a bit busier. We are going to have a baby so I know those first few months will pretty much be feeding and diaper detail--but oh what a wonderful thing! We are both over the moon about it and eager about our new adventure.

I thought I'd get together a little collage of the things I was able to make last year. I was pretty productive, even though I only churned out one painting--will have to do better. But this past year I really enjoyed just sitting on the couch, watching tv and stitching away. It's so relaxing for me, especially after working all day. This actually isn't even everything I worked on--I stitched a bunch of things for Christmas that I didn't even get pictures of!

1. Sock Monkey giving love, 2. Gypsy Tree, 3. L-O-V-E pillow, 4. Swirly Whirly Tree, 5. Tara McPherson pattern, 6. Michael Sieben pattern, 7. Sunflower, towel, 8. Swap piece, 9. SS Tara Mcpherson embroidery, 10. Golden Snitch, 11. Harry Potter, 12. Team Duckie, 13. Phat Quarter Swap Piece, 14. The Frankster, 15. Halloween kitchen towel, 16. "A Place To Be"

So I hope you had a wonderful 2011 and all the best for 2012!!

It's beginning to look a lot like...well you know!

2011-12-04T11:07:00.001-05:00

Oh how I love Christmas! It's my favorite time of the year, for sure. I love the decorations, the songs and the time with family and friends. I thought I'd share some great Christmas thrifty finds I've gotten over the past few months or so. I've also been working away on the Santa cross stitch I last updated here. So here we go!

Beautiful vintage angel. She reminds me of these dolls!

I could not resist this little angel ornament! Eek!!

I thought these were pretty great. A few fabric sheets of ornaments to stitch together--just cut them out and stitch them up!

This stocking has a little doll attached to it, and she comes out so you can play with her!

A few needlepoint plastic canvas ornaments and the awesome Rudolph refrigerator magnet!

These amazing vintage Santa's and a reindeer. Again, I just couldn't pass them up!! I will have to research these a bit. I'm very curious about the year of these.

Another needlepoint plastic canvas wall hanger.

Here's my tree for the year. I ended up just putting up my little pink tree this year because it's all I had the energy for. I usually have a large, beautiful white tree that I put up. You may notice the wee little angel on top and several plastic canvas ornaments that my grandmother gave me. I also found that small, green fabric tree while thrifting.


Here's the progress of the Three Santas cross stitch. I've just got one more Santa to go!

I'm also pretty sure that I've decided to make a wreath out of the balls like here. I really hope I find the time to do it. I've got so many balls and I just don't ever seem to use them all on the tree. Are you all decorated and ready to go!

Flickr Faves: Christmas wreaths

2011-11-13T11:10:00.001-05:00

It's been a while since I've done a flickr faves post! I've been thinking about making a different wreath this year for Christmas so I thought I'd turn to flickr for some inspiration. Here's a few of my faves!


I thought this one was quite lovely. You could display this one way past Christmas--I guess it's more of a winter wreath in that respect. I love the colors and the little bottle brush trees made by Danielle F.

This one by marmaladeandcream is so over the top--I love it!

Yo-Yo wreath! Yes Please! I love this wreath by kmel. The red yo-yo's look like mint candies!

I adore this scrappy fabric wreath by Flying Blind On A Rocket Cycle. You could take this in so many directions, for many different holidays and seasons just by the fabric you choose. The fabrics used here remind me of candy! Just lovely. There's another one here, here here and here! Really fun.

I love this one made with vintage ornaments by georgiapeachez. Again, kinda over the top but full of kitsch and I love it! It reminds me of the ones I've been drooling over on Betty Crafter's blog! She even has a great tutorial for how to make your own!

This one by Mrs. B is super cute and again could go in so many directions depending on the colors you choose. I really like the addition of the buttons and bells.

The simplicity of this one by Kristie at OCD makes this wreath beautiful. I like the thick, chubby, green yarn contrasting with the more delicate felt flowers. Really pretty.

This lovely paper wreath by Marie the Bee is so pretty. The use of decorative holiday papers with pages from a book is wonderful. You could use pages from Christmas books like A Christmas Carol. That would be a nice touch!

Linky Links--check out some others! This super bright one! This one made out of crayons! A gorgeous button wreath! This one is edible! A little stitchy pattern! If you've got a bunch of vintage Christmas light bulbs, you could make this! This pup is super adorable.

I'm still not quite sure what I'm going to do but I have found some great inspiration. All of these wreaths are so beautiful, enough to get my brain churning with ideas!

Progress...Three Santa's

2011-11-12T15:38:00.001-05:00

I've been stitching away on this cross stitch for a couple weeks now. I had wanted to stitch this last year but just couldn't find the time, so I'm starting early this year! So far, here's what I've got. These Santa's are just too adorable. The pattern is from the November 2010 Cross-Stitch and Needlework magazine. Are you already making things for Christmas?

Thrifty bits and birthday gifts

2011-11-11T11:09:00.001-05:00

My birthday was over a month ago and I'm finally getting around to sharing a few gifts I received! So here goes along with some of my latest thrifty finds.

My mom gave me this lovely blanket. It has wool fabric squares that are crocheted together. It's huge and I love it!

So does Maggie.

Mom also got me this vintage sewing basket. It's super cute and will be great for traveling with embroidery projects.

I've added to my milk glass collection. I bought a couple of these and my mom gave me one. My mom-in-law gave me the little shoe for my birthday! How adorable!

I got Maggie another blanket. She seems to like crocheted blankets as much as I do!

This beautiful embroidered piece with a sweet senorita being serenaded.

This is stitched so well.

Have you scored some thrifty goodies lately?

Side note: As I was bringing in some of my plants, I found this little guy living under one of my pots. Tiny and cute!

Bubbles Bubbles Toil and Trouble...

2011-10-29T22:12:00.002-04:00

Well friends, here's my last Halloween stitching of the year. Another great pattern from Super Colossal Iron-on Transfer Book that I found thrifting. I looked this book up on ebay so you could see what it looks like. I highly suggest you pick it up if you ever see it around. It's filled with tons of patterns that are perfect for embroidery. Some are super 80's cheesy, but most are definitely usable--particularly the holiday patterns. I really wanted to make this into something--pillow or all hanging, but may not get around to it this year. But at least it's all stitched up and ready for next year.

I've been taking it easy lately, the weather has turned cold here in NC and we've finally had to turn the heat on. I've been sipping hot chocolate,watching scary movies and snuggling with my hubby and kitty. October has just flown by! I can't believe it. Now I'm getting in the Christmas mood, I've started a cross stitch that I wanted to do last year but didn't get around to and thinking about gifts. It's never too early right? Til next time!

Spooky wreath

2011-10-28T20:19:00.002-04:00

I updated my Halloween wreath a bit this year and added a little cross stitch and fabric flower. I also added a hat to the crow. Now it's getting spooky in here! Are you all decorated and ready for Monday night?

There are a few batty people living here

Trick or Treat!

2011-10-22T09:28:00.001-04:00

Just another quick post on an embroidery for you. I felt like I needed another Halloween towel for my kitchen--I only have the one I made last year. So I decided to do this little monster trick-or treater for myself. I have stitched this up before for a tea towel tour swap. He's so cute, I thought I'd stitch him up again! Hope you're getting ready for Halloween!

Trip to the mountains

2011-10-16T15:27:00.000-04:00

Last weekend we took a trip up the mountains of NC and TN. The fall colors were not quite at peak but were still beautiful and the weather was pretty much perfect. We took a drive through Great Smoky Mountain National Park, spent a night in Knoxville, drove the Cherohala Parkway and spent a night in Cherokee (losing a little at the casino). It was a rejuvenating trip for sure.

House in the Horseshoe. We stopped here on the way out of town and so glad we did. Beautiful farm country and so quiet and isolated.

A tunnel on the Blue Ridge Parkway

Off the BRP

The Smokies

Hiking the AT in the Smokies

A friend along the trail

I thought this leaf was interesting--split in half down the middle--half red, half yellow.

The Smokies

The Sun Sphere in Knoxville, TN

Along the Cherohala Parkway

Along the Cherohala

Fontana Dam

Playing Star Trek slots at Harrah's in Cherokee.

Again, I've got more photos on flickr.

Weekend in Wytheville

2011-10-15T22:48:00.001-04:00

We took a weekend trip up to Wytheville, VA several weeks ago. I'm finally getting around to sharing a few photos. We did couple of hikes, including a small trip on the Appalachian Trail. We ate a would famous Skeeter-dog and just relaxed. It's a great area if you're ever in the neighborhood.

I've put more photos on flickr if you'd like to have a look-see.

The Frankster

2011-10-12T17:48:00.002-04:00

Are you getting ready for Halloween?? I know I am! Got my apartment decorated and just need to carve out a couple of jack-o-lanterns. The weather had turned cool and the leaves are beginning to change colors. This is my favorite time of year. I've been working so hard on this cross stitch so I could have it out for Halloween this year and can't wait to share now that's it's all finished. Check him out...The Frankster.

You may remember the pattern from this post. (I paid a whole quarter for the pattern) He was pretty easy to stitch, not too many colors and all whole stitches with a just a little back stitch for the spider legs and facial details.

The pattern is from Amy Breucken Designs and her website is here. She has tons of cute stuff on there, if that's your kind of style. I'm liking these two pumpkin designs.

The spiders are too cute and I love the crooked smile of this jack-o-lantern.

He fit perfectly into a 8X10 frame. I stitched on 22 count ivory-ish aida, just in case you were wondering.

So what have you been crafting for Halloween? I have tons more cross stitch patterns I would love to stitch (scored them all from the thrift) but probably won't get to them this year. I am working on a small piece to add to my Halloween wreath. Hopefully I'll finish it soon and I'll be able to hang my wreath. I really want to embroider this sweet design.

Alrighty folks...until next time---enjoy the crisp air!

P.S. I recently enjoyed a wonderful Avett Brothers concert this past Saturday night. Here's a little something from them. They played this song and it's one of my favorites.

Thrifty treasures

2011-10-07T22:35:00.000-04:00

Here's a few things I've purchased at the thrifts lately...

Another "big-eyed" kid picture for my collection.

This super cute paint-by number painting. How adorable is this puppy and kitty??

This lovely needlepoint. Love the oval frame.

I love the simplicity of the design, Very pretty.

A hand-painted wooden plate. I love the scene painted onto this.

OK another quick post and I'm off. Later dudes!

Let's catch up...

2011-10-06T18:51:00.000-04:00

I have so much to share with you all! I've really not been feeling like blogging lately so I'm a bit behind. So I'm going to do some quick catch-up posts to let you all know what's been going on. I have been busy though--stitching and thrifting and it was my birthday and I got awesome gifts. So first up--here's some things I've stitched lately!

I stitched this lovely kitty stitching up something pretty as a trade for Connie. She sent me some great metal hoops so I made this for her. I used this pattern from Aunt Martha's. It's so stinking cute I can't stand it.

This little cross stitch is a magnet and part of a kit from a Cross Stitcher magazine. Quick and easy project.

I stitched this up for a co-worker as part of a wedding shower gift. I am so in love with these patterns now that I want to do the entire set for myself. The chef is too cute.

That's it for now. I'll be back soon to chat about my thrift finds, my birthday gifts and a couple trips we've taken. We are actually off again this weekend on another adventure to Cherokee and Knoxville. I'm really looking forward to it. Til then!

Time flies.......

2011-10-02T13:19:00.000-04:00

Wow. Today is our first wedding anniversary. How time flies. How lucky I am to have such a wonderful man who puts up with my room full of craft stuff, snips of embroidery floss all over the house, walls full of thrift store finds and the occasional meltdown when I mess up something I'm working on. I sure snagged a good one!

Photo: Nicole Faby photography

Photo: Nicole Faby Photography

Photo: Nicole Faby Phootography

Words of wisdom......

2011-09-27T19:24:00.001-04:00

Check it out ya'll! Lookie what I got in the food themed swap!

The lovely LadyHazard stitched this up for me. It so amazing.

Don't ya just love this quote! Gotta love Julia. I thought it was such a coincidence to get this particular piece because I had just watched Julie and Julia for the first time the day before--how neat huh? Well at least I thought it was. I just love this piece and can't wait for another swap.

Who wants ice cream?

2011-09-24T15:27:00.000-04:00

Here's what I made for the most recent Phat Quarter swap. The theme this time around was food. My partner seemed to really like ice cream, she even makes her own! So, I stitched up some yummy flavors and a quote from Voltaire that I thought was quite appropriate.

More thrift scores

2011-08-25T20:10:00.001-04:00

Some more great thrift store crafty finds!

Halloween cross stitch patterns! They were either a quarter or fifty cent!

Including The Frankster--which I just had to get.

Some random cross stitch patterns.

Some embroidery transfers for fifty cents each!

Some more amazing embroidered/crocheted linens.

This one is a stamped piece---not quite finished.

This one is so beautifully done.

A nice crocheted throw

In other news:

*I am pretty much obsessed with Bon Iver at the moment. The newest album is so beautiful.

*I finally finished reading The Princess Bride. I've been reading it on and off for a while now. It was quite good with many more details than the movie.

*Colby has to do an experiment with crickets for one of his animal classes so we now have crickets in our house. It's actually kinda neat watching them and I can now tell a female cricket apart from from a make cricket.

*I'm longing for a journey...I totally blame the song below....I've been obsessively listening it to it lately for some reason...it's reminding me of Alaska.

New addition

2011-08-21T21:59:00.000-04:00

I found a new addition to my "big-eyed kids" art collection. I find so few of them at thrift stores these days. This is by Eden. A little sailor girl.

I think she'll fit in nicely with my collection....don't you think?

Local adventures....

2011-08-17T20:40:00.000-04:00

Colby and I took a little trip through Durham a couple of weekends ago. I love exploring the local area. As much as I love traveling to far off places, there's just as many interesting spots locally that we can visit. We've lived here for almost 5 years now and still there's so many places we haven't been. So we decided to check out one of them. We started off at the Duke Homestead, the home, farm, and first factory of the Duke family. They founded the American Tobacco Company and became very rich manufacturing cigarettes.


The home was quite lovely--built in the late 1800's.

I loved the colored glass around the door.


Old tobacco barn

They still demonstrate how they hang tobacco to cure. It smells so sweet.

The tobacco was blooming

In the museum, there was the "inspector"---inspecting the cigarettes off the rolling machine. She looked so happy.

Funny, old advertisement

This cat named Biscuit had lived there at the Homestead for 5 years now. He was a sweetie!

From there we went downtown, milling around Brightleaf Square for a bit. I didn't take any photos here though--wish I had. I found that the vintage store Dolly's was gone though!! It's moved to Main Street though so it still exists! Phew!


After Brightleaf, we drove to the American Tobacco Campus. We love going here. The Durham Bulls stadium is here too.

We had lunch at Piper's Deli--another new-to-us place. We had yummy sammies!

Then to Rita's for an Ice!

Nom Nom

That's about it. A fun day trip visiting a new place and a couple old favorites. I think we'll be having more of these little adventures now that Colby's started classes again. It's a great way to spend a day and learn a little about the local area.

A place to be...

2011-08-16T21:35:00.000-04:00

I have finished this painting finally....exploring the pull of places, particularly home. Places hold memories so strongly, at least for me they do. Some happy, some sad. Either way, I like to think about those memories sometimes...and think about where I am now in relation to where I was then.

Acrylic, fabric, embroidery

I embroidered the fence on this lovely fabric I've had for a while now. The fabric itself brings its own history memory to the piece.

embroidered and stuffed window

On to the next.

I solemnly swear.....

2011-08-03T18:19:00.000-04:00

OK, I know I said no more Harry Potter posts but.....you're just going to have to bear with me. I stitched up the Marauder's Map and just love it! Again, you can find the pattern here.

Also, this video had me in tears. OK, now I'll try to move on.

So what did you do to get in here......

2011-08-01T20:35:00.000-04:00

You may remember Andrew saying this in one of my favorite movies....The Breakfast Club!

Please look at this awesomeness I received from Becky for the movie swap!! A lovely pillow with this quote from Andy. This is why I love doing swaps. I always receive such wonderful things!

I mean are you serious?? How awesome is this?

I love all the little patterns and borders. So cool.

Thank you Becky!! You rock!

I would have chosen Duckie....

2011-07-29T23:20:00.000-04:00

Most Pretty in Pink fans are a bit bewildered that Andie chooses Blaine over Duckie--I mean really?? I certainly would have chosen Duckie---he had better hair and clothes and could dance WAY better.

So would Becky--my lovely stitchy friend and swap partner for a movie themed swap! When she listed Pretty in Pink as one of her favorites I just knew I had to do something for it. You may remember my love of John Hughes. I pondered for a bit of what to do...and it hit me...his rockin' shoes!! So that's what I did--Duckie's shoes with one of my favorite lines (a bit condensed). I call it "Team Duckie".

I stitched it up on light pink fabric and stitched the words in a brighter pink........cause well it's pretty in pink right?

I realize the lettering is a bit crooked, but I sorta figured it made it look a bit more like actual handwriting...at least that's what I'm going with. I stretched it over an 8X10 canvas I had and glued some polka dot paper underneath for a bit of 80's appeal. I am so happy with this piece actually and really had a hard time letting it go--but I know it's new owner will take good care of it. Please go check out Becky's blog!! She's an awesome stitcher, thrifter and cat lover. Go buy something from her, too! I can't WAIT to see what I get from her!! EEK!

Here's the scene from the movie with this line in it and a good shot of the real shoes (kinda crap video but it's the ~~first~~ only one I found) Catch ya later guys and gals!

Stitching the sadness away.....

2011-07-26T22:37:00.000-04:00

I've been stitching some Harry Potter patterns that I've been wanting to stitch for while now to cope with the sadness... There's a bunch of patterns here. Including the Golden Snitch and the Harry sprite below.

...sigh...

Maggie's a Gryffindor like me.

(OK I promise--no more Harry talk for while---or at least I will try very hard)

Quickie thrift find

2011-07-17T12:05:00.000-04:00

I finally got around to checking out the Re-Store in Durham. It's only been open for like a year! I was really just wanting to see what they had in the way of couches but had no luck. But I did find these two adorable little cross stitches. They were just perfect.

I look forward to checking out this place more regularly--I have a feeling they have good stuff coming through there.

Garden update

2011-07-16T19:47:00.000-04:00

Well my little garden is really doing great!!

Everything has grown so much--the lettuce mix and radishes are pretty much ready to eat! I've added some garlic and mint.

I've added a couple tomato plants that a co-worker gave me, too.

My two pots of impatiens are drawing in hummingbirds which I (and Maggie) love to watch.

The basil is taking off! I've got like 6 pots of the stuff!

I'm so excited! I didn't know if I would be able to grow anything honestly. Plus it's been so hot here that I didn't know if it would make it. But it's all doing well. Yippee.

**On another note: We went to see Harry Potter and it was so wonderful. I cried several times and was very pleased at the end. I didn't want to leave the theater because it was like saying goodbye for good to these wonderful characters. I know this probably sounds stupid to some--but I have a real sense of loss after seeing the movie--it was like I had lost an old friend. It's really over. Though I know there will be nothing new for Harry, I will always have the books and movies to remind me of why I love them so. OK--I promise to try to move on.

Ode to Harry Potter

2011-07-14T20:55:00.000-04:00

It was the summer of 2001, my first working in Denali. I had brought Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in my small stack of books to read that summer. I read it quickly and loved it so much. I immediately fell in love with the world that J.K. Rowling had created and with the characters that inhabited it. I let a friend borrow that book that summer and she also became an instant fan--so much so that the next time she could get to town, she bought the rest of the Harry Potter books that were out at the time. We both read them voraciously. We were hooked. Such began my love affair with Harry Potter. That winter of 2001 I was living in Colorado and the Sorcerer's Stone movie came out. I was so excited! I bought some Bertie Bott's to snack on while waiting in line to get in. The movie was magical. Colby watched that movie with me and we've seen all the other movies in the theater together. It's just something we do. He's never read the books but he does enjoy the movies. Now that the last movie is out, I feel a sense of loss. I've spent the last 10 years with these characters--that's longer than most things. What will I do now that it's truly over? (I secretly hope that Rowling will write some stories about Harry's parents) At least there's plenty of craftiness to look at. Here's some of my uber-faves I've found. I myself have stitched this Leaky Cauldron piece for my friend from that summer in Alaska 10 years ago and I recently received these kick-ass pieces in a swap.

I will miss you Harry.


This lovely stitched quote from Dumbledore by shaebay. I love the words with this frame. A beautifully simple piece. She's also stitched this this and this.

A few years back there was a Potterpuff craze (cross between Harry Potter characters with big Powerpuff Girls eyes). I don't remember where it all started--some site, but they are so adorable. spike_fan has stitched up several examples including my favorite--Remus Lupin. See others here, here and here.

ofenjen made this stunning quilt! 42 squares of Harry Potter love. Here re some of my favorite blocks.


This wonderful cross stitch of the dark mark by bombastitch,

There's tons more stuff out there. People are wild about Potter--the true mark of something great, is when folks make things based on it--in my opinion. So---so long for now Harry--until we meet again in the pages of my books.

Oh Maggie...

2011-07-13T21:13:00.000-04:00

We found Maggie in the hamper.

Flickr faves: Couches

2011-07-11T21:48:00.000-04:00

We need a new couch something fierce. The one we have is a hand-me-down from my grandmother. Let's just say it's seen better days. It's becoming less and less comfortable to sit on. We're not quite at the point where we are going to make a purchase though. So what do I do--drool over awesome couches online of course.

This orange striped couch looks cool-especially with the pink shag rug!


I'm loving this aqua sofa--ooh what I could do with this one!

This bright orange sofa is amazing. I love the shape. I actually love this entire room--when can I move in?

This one is so full of awesome (and it's a trundle bed, too!)


Dang! This doll even has a better couch than me.

Red velvet? Come to mama.

Oooh so comfy and sunny. I cold take a mean nap on this one.

Loving this pink--don't know if Colby would go for it though?

This awesome teal couch is so beautiful I can't stand it.

Lime green? Yes please.

Well I guess that's enough window shopping for now.I'm hesitant to buy a brand new couch because we are still apartment dwellers. I would hate to buy a new couch that would not fit into our someday home. Guess I'll go scope craigslist some more for a snazzy used one. Later!

Flickr Faves: Yellow Quilts

2011-06-26T07:52:00.002-04:00

I love drooling over quilts...especially when they are yellow. Yellow makes me happy. I keep promising myself that I will learn how to quilt. I sure hope that I keep my promise...someday.

Yellow Bloom Quilt

From vintage sheets

Modern Quilt Challenge

Yellow Cross Quilt

Vintage Fabric Inspired Quilt

Ode to my childhood cartoons

2011-06-25T12:12:00.000-04:00

I was reminiscing with my sister about old cartoons we used to watch when we were kids. We started combing through YouTube looking at all the ones we remembered; Transformers, He-Man, Snorks, She-Ra, Animaniacs and the list goes on. We had a blast just looking at all of them—some of them I had forgotten about—Mr. T anyone? I have actually been re-watching Jem on Hub and it’s been really interesting watching it again. They just don’t make cartoons like they used to. So I thought I’d see what craftiness is out there for all those good cartoons I grew up with.

A rocking Pizazz amigurami from chubbyninjcrafts. She was in the band Misfits--arch enemies of Jem and the Holograms. She's got a bad attitude but this little crocheted cutie almost makes her seem sweet (but don't be fooled, she will try to blow you up as evidenced in the carton). You can get Roxy and Stormer to complete the band!

You can fulfill your dream of finally being She-Ra Princes of Power with this wonderful handmade costume by tonyagergely. How rad is this!! I could totally rock this on Halloween---or on a Tuesday---whatever.

Another crocheted goodie--you can buy this pattern for All-Star Snork from erinscull and make your own cutie. I have watched the Snorks as an adult and it doesn't quite translate to adulthood--it was much better when I was a kid.

OK I wasn't a young child when I watched Animaniacs but so what. This cartoon is so good that I just loved it, even as a teen--I would totally watch it today and I don't care who knows it. This fabulous Brain cross stitch by PuzzlingPeach rocks my world! The best things about Animaniacs were the all the different characters they had and Pinky and The Brain were no exception. I also came across this super cute crochet Wakko doll from BunnieBard--she even includes the pattern so you can stitch this up yourself! I also totally want these magnets!

Care Bears were everywhere in the 80's and what's not to love--I mean seriously--they were just too cute. Micheleleigh stitched up this super cute design! She also did this one. I'm also pretty sure I want this for work badge and this cake for my next birthday.

The Smurfs were great and so it this sweet cross stitch of Smurfette by helby. Also, what kid wouldn't look adorable in this? I would also take this cake for my next birthday. I love this cross stitch of Grouchy Smurf.

The Beetlejuice cartoon was awesome! This is a great machine embroidered patch by Neither Sparky. If I had pierced ears I totally rock these and I sorts love this Lydia Deetz cham.

Well that's about it for now I guess--I may have to do a part 2 to this to look up even more cartoon awesomeness. I'm so glad that I refuse to truly grow up becuase I still get so much enjoyment out of these cartoons. Just pure joy really. So I'm going to leave with a few truly outrageous videos.

And by the way...What's your favorite cartoon?

In process...

2011-06-21T17:16:00.000-04:00

I finally worked a bit more on my latest painting. I'm liking the direction it's going.

I have this rather large piece of fabric hanging from the bottom that I can't decide if I want to cut it or not. I'm going to think a bit more on it. Still more to do...but it sure felt good to work on this again.

Mysterious ladies

2011-06-17T17:05:00.000-04:00

I don't know too much about these ladies. I found them a couple of years ago at the Hospice flea market and just had to have them. I love them, especially their faces.

They have bodies made out of a heavy paper cone, their heads are wooden.

I love the little touches of lace and sequins. I just think they are adorable, wherever they came from.

Inspiration: Elaine Bradford

2011-06-16T17:05:00.002-04:00

I stumbled across the works of Elaine Bradford and was immediately blown away. She makes wonderful sculptures with crochet, other mixed media materials and taxidermy animals. I would love to see them in person. You can check out her site and flickr for more info and photos. Here's a few of my favorites.


"Little Guy" 2010

I really like them when they are photographed outside. Adds a sense of surreality to them.

'Family Portrait as Panda Bears" 2010 This is one of favorite pieces. I love the little world she created.

'Harry, With Worlds on Top"

"Divided Attention" 2006

'Of course it Quacks, It's a Duck" This piece is amazing--the gold feet and bill are so great.

'No Legs" 2007

This elephant is just amazing. Can you just imagine the size of this? Wow.

Well I guess that's enough---please go check out all of her photos. She has a ton of work--each piece worth a look.

Ode to "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind"

2011-06-15T17:05:00.004-04:00

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is my favorite movie. It has a wonderful cast and the writing is perfect. It's a little quirky, but that just adds to the charm. At it's core, it is the perfect love story. The main characters, Clementine and Joel (played wonderfully by Kate Winslet and Jim Carrey) are in a relationship that has taken a turn for the worse. In their anger and hurt they both erase their memories of each other, which is where the delightful quirkiness comes to play. We travel with Joel through the erasing process and relive his memories of Clementine and their relationship--from how they first met, to the special moments they shared. Some are so absolutely touching that I cry every time. It is through this loss that they both truly realize their love is real and, in the end, they find each other again. What more can you ask for in the perfect love story. I thought I'd see if there are any other fans out there, perhaps getting a little creative--so here's what I found.

I am in love with this paper doll of Clementine by claudiavarosio. It comes with her orange sweatshirt and her ever changing hair colors. Way too cute.

This lovely pillow by schinders with the phrase "Meet Me in Montauk" a very significant line in the movie. You may remember this pillow that I received from her in a swap. She rocks! Check out her blog, too.


When I first saw this piece by theawkwardunicorn a couple years ago, I fell in love immediately. This line, "Please let me keep this memory-just this one" resonated so deeply with me. It's a perfect stitching the way the letters seem to fade away, just like the memory that was being erased, though Joel was trying so desperately to hold on to it. Just wonderful.

This lovely necklace by enamor is based on the necklace Joel was going to give to Joel. He bought it at a flea market because she's the type of girl that likes unique things. This is super cute.


I first saw this piece in a MrXStitch post. This is a movie poster created by Ezgi Genç. It's a wonderful representation of the frozen river scene. I love the little Clementine and Joel. Super cute.

I hope you were inspired by these wonderful pieces. I love when a movie inspires creativity. That is the true mark of something special, when fans start creating things based on their favorite movie or show or band or whatever. Here's my favorite scene from the movie ( I could only find this one) and also the music theme by the wonderful Jon Brion. I love the music in the movie too, and had planned on walking down the aisle to the theme before my disk messed up and I had to pick a new one last minute. But I imagined it in my head and it was beautiful.

Hollow hearts and balloons

2011-06-14T17:43:00.000-04:00

It's been H-O-T hot here in NC! I've had to stay inside with the A/C and stitch--poor me. So since I've been busy stitching I've got a finished embroidery to share. I'm really loving stitching up these Sublime patterns on found linens. I've got quite a series going now. This is another Tara Mcpherson pattern. (If you click that link you'll see my other Tara McPherson pattern being used on the SS site!--eek).

The flowers and border were already stitched on the fabric and the crocheted border was already there, too.

This pattern was really fun to stitch. I chose fun colors and kept the stitches simple. Now--I just have to decide what to stitch next! Although I really should paint some...I'm such a procrastinator when it comes to my paintings.

Yo-Yo dolls

2011-06-13T17:05:00.001-04:00

I have two yo-yo dolls. These are actually the only two yo-yo dolls I've ever seen. I'm always surprised that I don't see them in thrift or antique stores more often.

This one has a lovely painted face and yarn hair.

I love the face on this one.

I found a couple of great tutorials here and here to make your own yo-yo doll if you are so inclined. I would love to give it a try. I have tons of fabric scraps that would be perfect.

Favorite things

2011-06-12T10:53:00.002-04:00

I love this little vignette sitting on my TV stand. It's got several of my favorite things.

The flowers are my wedding bouquet that I made sitting in a beautiful milk glass vase. The smaller milk glass dish holds my "rock babies" that I received in the Chuck Palahniuk swap (based on the book Choke). The little figurines are all thrift store finds (the larger kitty now missing a chunk of her ear due to my real kitty). The print is by a fabulous artist, Pinkytoast and my sister gave it to me. Even the doilies are treasured, I received them at our wedding shower. It's just small things like this that make me smile.

Our "garden"

2011-06-11T10:51:00.000-04:00

The best thing about summer in my opinion is fresh produce. I look forward to going to Farmer's Markets, and getting things from family and friends. They always want to share! Since we are apartment dwellers we have no yard (sadsies), so I thought I'd try to grow a few things in containers this year.

We've got some herbs; basil, oregano and chives and I'm also trying radishes, swiss chard and a salad blend.

Everything has sprouted! It is so hot here in NC right now that I'm hoping everything will make it through. I would still like to get some cherry tomato plants, too.

So keep your fingers crossed for me that my little garden will be fruitful for us! What are you growing this summer?

Swap part 2!

2011-06-08T17:56:00.000-04:00

Holy Jeebus!! I received these super awesome stitchings from my partner for the Phat Quarter swap! They blew me away!!

It's Harry Potter and the gang!

Hermione, Harry and Ron

Hagrid, Ginny, Freg, George and Dumbledore!

Ron even has his broken wand! I love it!

Weasley's

Hagrid is one of my favorite characters in the books (he even has his little pink umbrella!

These are just so great. My partner really went above and beyond! It's definitely making me want to do more swaps. Check out my partner's stuff here! She does great work.

Also fittingly enough, I received a sweet package from a dear friend. She recently visited The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios and sent me a Chocolate Frog (it was tasty). I received the Godric Gryffindor Wizard card inside! Now I can start my collection!

I am both sad and excited about the final Harry Potter movie. I want to see it badly but knowing that it is the last one is definitely bittersweet. I'm sure I will need to bring a tissue or two. TTFN!

Swap time!

2011-06-06T22:43:00.000-04:00

I can finally post this now that my partner received the piece. I was in another Phat Quarter swap through flickr.and the theme was books. I had to send to the awesome Bex! I based this piece off of the book World War Z about the zombie apocalypse. I love this book and was so glad it was on her list, too! You should really read it. I struggled a bit at first though of what to do. I had several ideas including Patient Zero or the part where they kill the zombie with a crow bar in the snow. But I decided to go in a different direction and stitched up this piece about Phalanx, the drug that was used to cure "African Rabies" which, in the book, was what the zombies were thought to be afflicted with.

I was going for an ad for the drug, with pretty flowers and trees and the saying "Piece of Phalanx Peace of Mind" from the book. It's telling you that everything will be fine.

Just take this pill, and you will not start to eat people.

I included the small print also, "May prevent some viral infections."

But there is still a small threat with a zombie hanging in the shadows.

Overall, I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out. I hadn't done a swap in so long hat I forgot how fun they are. They really get the creative juices flowing to think of an idea based on a general theme. I look forward to doing another one really soon.

Craft Book Score!

2011-06-05T14:03:00.000-04:00

Look what my Grandma gave me! A buttload of craft books including all these cross stitch books.

There's some great ones in here.

These great alphabets. You can never have too many alphabet patterns in my opinion.

This one has a bunch of fun, small designs that will be great for holidays.

This one is in German. Trusty google translator says Stickmustertucher means "sampler."

It shows some fabulous historical samplers...

...then follows with charts that you can stitch. This is a really interesting book. I wish I remembered more of my high school German. There is also this book "Cats of the World in Cross Stitch."

I thought it'd be full of cheesy tiger and lion stitches that I would probably never stitch, but then I opened it up.

It's got several house cat charts that are really pretty ( like the Abyssinian above), so who knows, maybe I'll stitch one up.

There are a few random books too, some on beading and crochet.

Also, a pretty nice how-to book that includes tatting which I've been wanting to try. So yay for Grandma's!

Florida thrift finds

2011-06-03T17:01:00.001-04:00

Here's a few things I found at the thrift while on vacation in Florida a couple weeks ago. I found some great stuff!

Two curtain panels with awesome lace houses that I can't wait to use in my art work.

This mix of stuff...

Including this vintage crewel kit, never opened!

All this floss, aida cloth and a few small hoops for $4! I would say it was a successful day in FL.

Inspiration: Eva Hesse

2011-06-01T17:25:00.000-04:00

I first discovered Eva Hesse in college taking my Fiber Art classes. Her work is beyond compare: so tactile and raw. She had a wonderful sense of materials and space.

"Contingent" 1969

There was always sensuality to her work that I just couldn’t quite put my finger on.

As a female artist ( and a sculptor at that) working in the 1960’s, I can only imagine the struggles she had, especially with some of the materials she chose to use, like fiberglass and rope.

"Repetition Nineteen III" 1968

To say I’m a fan of her work doesn’t seem like enough praise—she transcends that for me and is a true inspiration.

"Right After" 1969

This is a great video about her work. If you'd like to see more of her work please go here.

Old thrift find

2011-05-31T16:40:00.002-04:00

I don't think I've ever posted this embroidery that I found a couple years back of these lovely cats with flowers. I just love it and the stitching is superb, especially the satin stitching on the flowers. This was a real find.

Vacation time

2011-05-30T16:39:00.000-04:00

Well the hubby and I got back from Florida last week. We had a nice, relaxing time. We chilled on the beach, caught some great live music and went to a Rays game ( I even scored a few things at the thrift). It was great to get away for a bit.

Back to reality......

Inspiration: Julianne W. Sterling

2011-05-13T17:00:00.000-04:00

I was strolling through etsy like I usually do when I'm a bit bored and uninspired and came across a wonderful artist, Julianne W. Sterling. She has some amazing work in her shop. Her artist statement is fantastic:

"I paint about the realities, complexities and absurdities of life as a woman. With some bittersweet humor I explore the place where I rub up against the gender conditioning of my youth and the expectations of being a woman, wife and mother. My paintings are about little secrets women keep to themselves. As Cornelia Otis Skinner said “...Women keep a special corner of their hearts for sins they have never committed.” I’m drawing from the rich history of portrait painting with this work, creating a likeness but also musing on cultural norms and ideals of women. My subjects are drawn from the women and children in my life."

She obviously is concerned with the "Princess" culture of girls and her "Pushing Fairy Tales" series explores that.

"Waiting for Snow White..IV"


"Waiting For Snow White"

The "Mommy Assassins" series is another fantastic commentary on modern motherhood and identity.

How amazing are the tinker-toy guns?

"The Mommy Assassins III"

"The Mommy Assassins II"

I love her layering. The subtle colors and layers leaving something just under the surface. And she draws damn good figures. I've never been that great with the figure so I'm always jealous of those that are.


"How To Live With A Man"

"Slip"

Really fantastic pieces. Please check out her other pieces on her site

and read through her bio. I'm so glad I stumbled across her work.

Inspiration: Emily Stout

2011-05-10T17:06:00.000-04:00

While flipping through the new issue of "New American Paintings" at the bookstore, I saw something so amazing I just had to post about it...the work of Emily Stout. Particularly this piece.

The Mermaids Charcoal drawings, Quilted tails

I was blown away by this imagery and the combination of the drawings with the patchwork quilts. Absolutely amazing. I'm so intrigued by these words from her statement:

Enchanted forms such as the mermaid, are symbols of the unexpected or unknown in my work. I frequently work with hybrid forms that violate natural law or more specifically contemporary scientific explanation. I am interested in the classic depiction of the mermaid in folk tales and legends as beautiful yet monstrous creatures. They are outcasts; abnormal curiosities. They are neither this nor that, they lie between, questioning the logic of natural order.

Further explorations of her website brought me to this piece:

Destructive Reconstructors Mixed media

I want to see this in person so badly. The legs of the male figure seem to be three-dimensional but made of what? Stuffed fabric, lighting trickery? Agh I must know!

S witch Board Apparition Theater Mixed media, Wood, Quilting, Paste-ups, Paint, Telephone Receiver Speakers

This piece was listed under "Puppet Show". If it was indeed used for a puppet show, I'm very curious what the show was about because the theater is quite remarkable.

I hope you've been just as blown away as me with Emily's work. I know I'm going to keep an eye for whatever she has planned next.

Ode to John Hughes

2011-05-09T17:30:00.000-04:00

I have seen some of John Hughes's movies at least 50 times. They are so wonderful; filled with love, sadness and hilarity. But for me, they speak to the truths of being a teenager. As a teen you will love someone that doesn't love you back, struggle with finding independence from your parents, rebel against stereotypes, make mistakes and be so miserable sometimes that even you can't stand yourself. Hughes had such a wonderful way of capturing these truths in my favorites of his movies--Pretty In Pink, The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, Some Kind of Wonderful and Ferris Bueller's Day Off. I thought I'd look around for fellow Hughes lovers and see what some folks have created.

"Some Kind of Wonderful Yarn Art" by BrandyLynnandPaul

This amazing cross stitch pattern of the Pretty In Pink cast by weelittlestitches

You can also get the Breakfast Club pattern

"Neomaxizoomdweebie" by bombastitch

"Breakfast Club Vampires" by paghababian

"Ferris Bueller You're my Hero" embroidery by alwaysinspired


"Try A Little Tenderness (Duckie)" by Jessica Deahl

Duckie is one of my favorite characters.

"The Donger" print by KRUSTYstuff

Judd Nelson in The Breakfast Club watercolor by alliefraley

Another favorite character and Colby and I share and common fondness of John. We quote him often. Luckily someone has put together the best of John Bender for us all to enjoy.

Cute Crochet

2011-05-08T09:00:00.000-04:00

I find myself picking up crochet items at the thrift--usually kitchen items like hot pads, pot holders or things I can use for dish rags. They're usually dirt cheap and you can just throw them in the wash. But every once in a while, I find something so totally cute that I just have to have it and it will not be used for anything other than to be cute in my kitchen.

Quick stitch....tea towel

2011-05-07T09:04:00.001-04:00

I finished a quick stitch on a tea towel for my cousin's house-warming gift. They are going with a sunflower theme for the kitchen. Pattern is from here (towel too--I love these towels). The best gifts are handmade.

Sleepy Kitty

2011-05-06T19:45:00.001-04:00

Well of course Maggie pretty much took over the little crocheted blanket that my mom me got for a whopping $1. But look how cute she is sleeping on it--much cuter that I would have looked using it.

Thrift finds...wowza tablecolth!

2011-05-05T09:00:00.001-04:00

Look what I found at the good 'ol Hospice Flea Market! This amazingly stitched tablecloth.

It's a good 4 ft by 4ft or so. It has beautiful Asian (Japanese I would guess) buildings, trees and decorative motifs.

It has the teeny tiniest stitches I've ever seen.

What a score!

Rediscovery

2011-05-03T20:20:00.000-04:00

While going through some of my old things, I found this handmade book I made back in college. Man did it bring back some memories. It was a very personal piece, I guess it still is. But seeing this again, made me remember the creativity I once felt--the feeling that I could really make something and the freedom of it. I made this in a pinhole photography class, the photographs are of toy horses, the larger one I've had since I was a child. The prints are cyanotype, a beautiful blue print. The papers are handmade and everything is hand-stitched, there's pieces of fabric incorporated also. I do miss having the space and resources to do things like this--make my own paper, access to a darkroom. Just a bit more inspiration for myself--I have been really dragging on this new painting--feeling very unmotivated and time is ticking away. So these sparks of inspirations I'm finding are really helping me clear my creative block.

Hey Man...

2011-05-01T11:02:00.000-04:00

I have finished a new piece using another Sublime Stitching artist series pattern. This time an amazing Michael Sieben design.

I also used another textile that I found at the thrift store. I love the crochet work on this one. The delicacy of it is a great juxtaposition of the embroidery itself--heavy stitches and color.

I've pretty pleased with my fill stitches though I still seem to have a bit of a problem with tension causing the fabric to pull. I don't know if that will just happen or if it's something I can prevent.

I tried to give some depth with colors in the hair. I like doing hair with split stitch becuase it gives texture. You can check out Michael Sieben's artwork here. I really like his work, it's very colorful and expressive. At first it seems quite simplistic, but it's heavy in content. Here's a few I like.

Lighter Or Darker
9" x 9" acrylic and pencil on panel

Need To Talk
9" x 9" acrylic and pencil on panel

Discovered
12" x 12" acrylic and pencil on panel

Look familiar?

Whats New
9" x 9" acrylic and pencil on panel

**In other news: Jenny Hart featured me on the Sublime Stitching blog! Color me excited! I am a big fan of Jenny's embroidery--check it out here! Also, the amazing Connie asked me to put this cross stitch on about.com's cross stitch page--pretty cool. She's doing a great job with the cross stitch page and has tons of free patterns if you want to give cross stitch a try--she's a great resource. I'm starting a couple new stitches and working on my painting--trying to stay busy. The weather is getting warm and everything's in bloom! We are heading to Florida in a couple weeks and I'm really looking forward to the down time. Til next time!

"Gay or Eagles" Recap

2011-04-30T12:51:00.000-04:00

I was fortunate enough to attend the opening for Gay For Eagles at Hotel Hadley Studios in Siler City. It was a couple weeks ago but I'm just getting around to posting about it--so sorry. This is a fiber art show inspired by the work of Alexandra Walters. The work was absolutely wonderful, so many representations of fiber art and stitching. I "know" a lot of the artists through online groups, blogs, flickr etc. so it was especially nice to see their work in person.It seems that over the past few years there has been a real resurgence of stitching as art and I'm loving it. The opening was in conjunction with Third Fridays of Siler City and it's nice to see them trying to revitalize the downtown area. The gallery/studios itself is a great space. Drucilla Pettibone is one of the artists that has a studio there and put the show together. So here are some shots of the night. Please go here to check out the list of artists and you can purchase anything you like (hint hint).

The studio/gallery space

View of the gallery

Another gallery shot These huge pieces by Bren Ahern were amazing.

This amazing quilt by Penny Nickels blew me away!

Alexandra Walters's pieces

Playing with Bridget Franckowiak's piece "Paranoid Android"

Hey it's me and Becky!

Again, please go here to check out all of the pieces that were in the show. I was very inspired by the artists and hope it will put a little fire under my butt to get going more on my own art.

Uni-girl and Sea-pony

2011-04-17T11:58:00.000-04:00

I have finished this embroidery of one of the Tara McPherson Sublime designs! I'm calling it Uni-girl and Sea-pony (though I guess it's really a Uni-Sea pony).

I stitched it on a linen I found at the thrift store. I have been wanting to stitch these patterns for a while now because I am a huge fan of Tara's work.

She has such a whimsy to her style that also has a touch of sensuality and oddness that I really love.

If you are not familiar with Tara's paintings, please go check them out on her site.

Here's a couple that I really like.

"The Love Space Gives Is as Deep as the Oceans" 2010

Does this look familier?

"Lost Constellations" 2008

I also recently attended the opening for Gay For Eagles, a fiber art show in Siler City, NC. It was an absolutely amazing show filled with great stitching and I will post about it soon.

Also in other news, I have made new friends in the stitching world! Who knew these fabulous ladies lived just down the road---how I love the internet. We got together to stitch and chat and it was lots of fun, so go check out their blogs here and here. They really inspired me and I can't wait to get together again!

Works in Progress

2011-04-13T18:27:00.001-04:00

Here's some things I've been working on lately...

A cross stitch for a friend--just need to finish the border.

A Tara McPherson pattern from Sublime Stitching. I've been wanting to stitch this up for while now.

A painting

Detail of painting in progress. (I'm sorta in love with the embroidered picket fence.)

I love being productive with my time. Makes me feel good!

Inspirations: Camille Rose Garcia

2011-04-09T20:43:00.001-04:00

What can I say about Camille Rose Garcia? Her work is so stunningly beautiful that there really are no words. When I look at her work, I am truly knocked speechless.

"Mirror, White Mirror" 2011

She creates worlds and characters that are both beautiful and frightening. I want to dive into her paintings and get lost for while. Really explore the layers of colors and darkness. They are beautifully haunting.

"Emerald Cavern Night Raid" 2006

The way she juxtaposes the idea of fairy tales and other happy creatures with the grimness of reality (detachment from nature, use of drugs to make yourself happy, false sense of security) truly amazes me. She uses her art to tell a story--a story of a grim truth based in a surreal landscape. She is definitely one of my inspirations.

"Royal Disorder Poison Party" 2005

She helps me to believe that the worlds I create in my art aren't really all that strange, but a reality of my own making. And that it is OK to really create the things that are in my head--even if they are not always pleasant.

"The Night Greed" 2004

Do yourself a favor and look at her work here. It will blow your mind. I just hope that I will be able to see one of her pieces in person, to really explore the depths of it.


"Arctic Cavern Hideway"

Here's are some links if you'd like to know more about her and her work.

*Article about her new show "Snow White and the Black Lagoon"

*A video showing her create one of her wonderful ink drawings

*A great interview with her

*She has a few books you can buy here, here, here, here, (I have a few of them and they are wonderful)

Ode to The Big Lebowski

2011-04-02T19:55:00.012-04:00

I really can't tell you how many times I've watched this movie---lots---and I never get tired of it and laugh hysterically every time. If you've never seen it, then you obviously have no taste and need to be bludgeoned, but anyway. The absurdity of this movie and it's characters is why I love it--I mean the main character is an unemployed bowler with an affinity for jelly shoes. The other characters are just as fantastic--Walter (who can get you a toe), Donnie (I am the walrus), Marge (do you like coitus), Jesus (don't f*ck with him), the Nihilists (we believe in nothing), Mr. Lebowski (grown men do cry)--the list goes on. It has so many great lines that can be used in everyday life ( I often use, "I'm staying, I'm finishing my coffee" for no real reason). There have been some amazing craftiness going on in the name of The Dude so I thought I'd share a few. *Note: I'm sure this has been done a thousand times--but oh well

These awesome prints by retrowhale

This amazing cross stitch by DefiantDamsel. I want this SO bad.

Another fantastic cross stitch by gillyweed25 with an awesome Walter quote.

The Dude in perler beads!! Seriously--how amazing is this??

ohbabytee's stencil of Walter on a onesie just tears me up! It is so hilarious.

This absolutely hilarious toe. I can just hear Walter saying "You want a toe, I can get you a toe---with green nail polish!"

This is a great embroidered Walter Sobchak by craftymcgee How great is this??

Follow that up with this amazing embroidery of the dream sequence with The Dude and Maude by mafiosagrrl She also has done a stellar Jesus embroidery.

I've been inspired to make something for His Dudeness---not sure what yet. So go watch the movie right now--even if you've seen it before and just remember, all the Dude ever wanted was his rug back.

Crafty finds

2011-03-26T21:09:00.014-04:00

Here's a couple more handmade things I found thrifting. They are quite interesting pieces actually. First up--this little stuffed doll with yarn hair. I'm pretty sure I paid fifty cents for it. It was another score from the Hospice Flea Market store.

I just couldn't resist the stripes and little button eyes. Or the fat belly and skinny legs.

How could I turn down that face???

I also found the stellar crocheted mobile at my trusty PTA thrift in Carrboro. I love this store--I always find something in there. I haven't been in a while so it was nice to find a few things.

This thing is huge too--at least three feet long.

It's got these wonderful birds, flowers and vines hanging from it. I just HAD to have it.

Red bird

Blue bird

Little flower. Now to find somewhere to hang it (out of Maggie's reach).

Lastly, these aren't handmade, or course, but I found them at the PTA thrift--a sweet milk glass cup to go with my collection and a sweet egg plate.

'Til next time!

Swirly tree full of birds (and a ladybug and a butterfly and a rabbit)

2011-03-26T20:49:00.007-04:00

Wow I've actually finished another (large to me) cross stitch. I'm not sure why I'm on such a cross stitch kick lately but I'm just rolling with it. I think it's the patterns really. This is another fabulous design by Jacqui Pearce published in the February Cross Stitcher magazine. I loved the whimsy of it.

Technically, it's not finished according to the design--it actually says to fill in the entire background with stitches and I'm just not up to that right now. Way too many stitches. I may revisit it later but for now, it's good.

I love the little owl and the pretty peacock. This design is super colorful---which I love.

The texture of the nest is pretty great, too. The ladybug kills me with cuteness.

Swirly-whirly roots and a wee rabbit. I definitely want to get this one into a frame and hang it in the apartment.

Embroidery finds

2011-03-26T14:07:00.016-04:00

If you didn't know--I love a good thrift store/flea market find. I found some amazing embroidery work the Hospice Flea Market that has opened a permanent shop for their stuff. I got most of these piece for $1 or $2! It kinda makes me sad to see such a price because I know how much time went into them, and they were made with love by someone. (Picture little old ladies stitching away.....)

Lovely deer doily embroidery with crochet border.

Close-up one of the deer

Little doily with wool flowers. I was thinking I could add something to this one.

This is a pretty large runner with the same image embroidered on the ends. Such a pretty design. This one shows a bit of wear but I love that some stitched it and used it in their home.

Close up of the other side.

This lovely pillow case with a little bird and flowers. I'm using this one right now. It is so pretty.

Detail of the sweet bird

Another pretty pillowcase with flowers and crochet border.

I love the pink crochet border.

This little piece with pink embroidery and crochet. I can add to this one, too.

Detail of one of the corners. Beautiful feather stitch and crochet.

Another little piece with some beautiful crochet work. Another I can add to.

I will definitely go back and see what I can rescue. I love giving these pieces a new place to live where they will appreciated.

Inspirations: Houses

2011-03-20T11:01:00.011-04:00

I'm going to start a new segment of this blog and talk about some inspirations of mine for my work. I use houses often in my artwork as a symbol of many things-mostly personal as so much of my work is (as most art is I think).

("Multiplying" detail)

It is such an iconic, familiar shape. I just like the actual shape of a house—there is something so inviting and comfortable about it--the square sides, the pointed roof. I think about the way children draw houses, the simple forms and shapes that actually mean a lot. Then there is, of course, the deeper meaning of houses and the lives led inside them can be so meaningful--both positive and negative. So here are some other images of houses that inspire me.

"White Swan Deluge" by the incomparable Camille Rose Garcia. She will soon get her own inspiration post because she is the most amazing painter working right now. Period.

"Lost and Found" by one of my heroes Miriam Shapiro I discovered her in college and she is so influential to me.

"Hey Courbet, Fresh Produce" by Emily Eibel. She creates these wonderful images with fabric and stitches.

Camilla Engman has the most beautiful blog. Her paper works are fantastic.

"Fever" by lanydevening The simplicity of this piece is what is so beautiful.

Doll House no 364by sushipot. This piece blew me away.

With these works, you can really see how the shape of a house is used in different ways. How they are used hold a different meaning for each piece. The beauty of art is that are always multiple translations.

L-O-V-E

2011-02-27T14:37:00.008-05:00

Well I finally finished this cross stitch. I've been working on it for a couple weeks on and off. I wasn't sure what I was going to do with the finished piece but decided to make it into a pillow. I'm not the best sewer in the world--I don't really like to measure so I just go with it. So I'm sure it's a little off in places but to me it just adds to the charm. I am actually very pleased with how it turned out--flaws and all. This cross stitch pattern is from the January 2001 issue of Cross Stitcher magazine (#234). It's a Jacqui Pearce design and she always has really hip patterns. I really love this magazine in general because it usually has several designs that I would love to stitch up.

I added a few strips of colorful fabric and some funky fringe that I found at a flea market for $1.

The stitching did take a while--and I messed up several times. I don't know what it is but I always seem to get off count when I work on larger cross stitches. But I just make it work--I don't like to pull out hundreds of stitches so I just roll with it.

L-V

O-E.....spells

So love to you all---flaws and all!

!WAR Trailer

2011-02-09T19:00:00.000-05:00

A Loving Wreath

2011-01-29T17:43:00.008-05:00

Well--I really want to share the wreath I made for Valentine's Day. I bought this pink tinsel wreath at Target after Christmas sale for 25 cents! I didn't know what I would use it for--possible something for next Christmas but the longer I thought about the color of it--I thought why not make a Valentine's wreath--so that's what I did.

I just took some felt scraps I had in white, pink and fuchsia and made little layered hearts and then added some super cute love bug foam stickers I picked up at Michael's on sale. Super simple but has a big impact.

I can't get over how cute those little stickers are!

It's a gloomy, rainy day here in NC. A perfect day to stay in, watch a little rugby and stitch. I'm currently working on a really cute cross stitch that I want to make into a new pillow for my couch. I really do need to paint again though--I'd really like to submit something for the upcoming Unfettered show at Visual Art Exchange. I've got a week to complete something. Maybe I should paint today instead...hmmm.

Happy Birthday Sis!

2011-01-29T15:20:00.011-05:00

Well my first real embroidery of the year was for my sister's birthday. She recently moved out of the state and I miss her something fierce! I had this tote from Sublime Stitching that I've been wanting to stitch something on so I decided to use it and give it to my sis---but what to stitch? I recently purchased some the new Stitcher's Revolution patterns from here and so decided to do this pattern of a super cool tree from the Gypsy Magic set.

I used bright, fun colors and am thrilled with the results! The tote itself was very easy to stitch on, too.

The "leaves" of the tree were really fun little designs--stars, hearts, etc.

I still struggle with french knots. Some days I do them with no problems, then there are times when I couldn't do one to save my life. I don't know what that's all about.

I also stitched up this little sock monkey!

I'm mean really---how cute is this guy!! The pattern is out of "Just Cross Stitch Christmas Ornaments 2010 (Vol 28, Num 6). It was designed as a Christmas pattern but I just stitched the hat in different colors so now he's totally ready to give some love year round. I really want to stitch it for myself too.

It felt great to be stitching again after such a hiatus from it due to the wedding. I've got many things planned that I'm sure will keep me busy throughout the year.

Wedding craftiness!

2011-01-29T13:16:00.024-05:00

So here's a few of the things I made for our wedding. I really did a lot myself (with tons of help from my sister and mom). It was very important to me to have a sense of of who we are represented in our wedding. I chose two main design themes of buttons and maps that did just that. The buttons were for me. I used buttons in my artwork and for me they are a literal translation of bringing two things together--in this case--me and hubby. The maps were representative of our love of travel and hubby is actually a total map geek and will study them for hours. So those elements along with bright colors was the theme of the entire wedding. (Beware: Lots of pics ahead)

These are the other bouquets I made for the ladies. A bit smaller then mine but with the same types of "flowers" made out of buttons, felt and fabric. I used the tutorial here for the fabric flowers. They are so easy and turned out really great. I think you can make all sorts of themed bouquets with these flowers for holidays and parties. Lots of possibilities. I made extras of all the bouquet "flowers" to use for the table decorations too!

I used my grandmother's Ball jars and some of my milk glass vases for the tabletops. We were on a pretty tight budget so i really tried to use things I already had--I didn't buy any fabric, buttons or ribbons for these. I only had to buy more wire for the stems.

There's even one in my hair.

This is our invitation. I wanted this to be the thing that tied all the themes together. So I sewed a button on each and used maps in the background. I used four ink colors. It was simple but really pretty. Again, I used things I already had. I used our old road atlases, buttons from my collection and we got the card stock free with hubby's Staples Rewards!

This is our program. I tried to make it look like a luggage tag to go with the travel theme and using the words "Away We Go." Again I made all of this using stuff I had. I used a lot of the scrapbook paper I've accumulated over the years. I also used little hearts punched out of maps on the front that I totally loved.

I ordered these totally awesome button-shaped suckers and had to display them somehow. I just made little "trees" out of Styrofoam covered in ribbon and stuck the suckers into them. Simple, easy, cute.

This gives a few of the tons of Martha Stewart tissue paper poufs I made in all sorts of colors. I had them hanging all throughout the barn which is where the reception was and I hung two in the oak tree where we had the ceremony. They are so easy to make and really look great hanging all together.

I used some of the leftover tissue paper to make smaller versions of the poufs and made some garlands that I put on the chairs at the ceremony and hung some inside the barn for the reception. Really added a punch of color to the boring brown chairs we used.

I also made garlands out of the maps I had. I really loved how these turned out. I had them lining the chairs down the aisle and again more inside the barn for the reception. Again, to me these were so simple but really made an impact and carried out the theme I was going for. I saved them too and have them hanging in our apartment.

These are the favors I made--just simple glass stone magnets. We punched a bunch of hearts out of map and glued them to the back of the glass, then covered that with a small colored piece of paper. Add a magnet to the back and it's done.

These are the napkins that my mom ordered. I used a tree symbol to echo the oak tree we were married under. Here you can also see the awesome cupcakes I got from Sam's. They were SO good. I also made cupcake picks with a Martha Stewart button punch I got at Michael's. I just punched then out of old magazines and glued them to a toothpick.

Here's another cupcake table shot. My stepfather made the amazing cupcake stand for us! Isn't it great. I just added a little ribbon and a button to the sides. I know we will use this for years to come. The top two cupcakes were for me and hubby. The toppers for those were some scrapbooking stickers I found on clearance at Michael's. How appropriate--they even had a little button on it and a tag saying "love". Too cute.

And to end things--I didn't make this--but check out that beautiful pork barbecue my uncle cooked for us! This is NC after all---what's a party without some good food.

Phew--that's about it I think. It was a lot of work but so worth it to me in the end (plus it saved us a ton of money). Our wedding really reflected the two of us as individuals and as the couple we've become.

We got married!

2011-01-29T12:27:00.009-05:00

So it's been a few months now since we've gotten married. I think back on that night with such happiness. I totally loved my wedding. We had a few hiccups (music didn't work so had to pick all new songs, minister had a family emergency so had to use the back up, Colby's car broke down) but all in all everyone had a great time and I married a wonderful man. We got married at a lovely old dairy farm. We absolutely fell in love with the place. It just felt like the perfect place for us. Here's some of my favorite shots from my awesome photographer Nicole Faby.

Me and my ladies--My sisters and my new niece.

The whole wedding party

We got married under this big, old oak tree. What a perfect symbol for a strong, healthy marriage.

One the my faves of us at the barn doors.

Fun party shot. I have all the photos on my flickr if you'd like to see them. I also made a ton of things for the wedding and am going to do a separate post on that.

It's 2011 and I can't believe it. I feel very optimistic about this year. I have also deemed this the year of super creativity--so more painting, stitching----everything! The wedding really took over my life last year so now I feel like I have more time to focus on things I want to do. Happy 2011 everyone.

no time

2010-09-04T23:29:00.005-04:00

I have been in full wedding planing mode and have made no art or stitches and I feel a little sad about that. But only a month left and I can really focus again. I am very excited to be getting married though. I have made tons of stuff for that of course--invitations, bouquets, corsages, flowers for tables, paper poufs etc. I'll go ahead and show my bouquet for the heck of it because it's grown on me. I didn't really like it at first but now totally love it. Very whimsical which I like. Felt, fabric and buttons.

The part around the "stems" is actually from my mom's wedding dress. She gave it to me and said I could do what I wanted with it. This part is from the sleeves with the white buttons. I like the sentiment.

It looks good in a vase too.

See you in a month!

Let's play catch up

2010-05-31T10:47:00.006-04:00

Well I've been a horrendous blogger lately. No excuses really--just haven't posted anything. I haven't felt much like doing anything lately and I've been a bit preoccupied with wedding planning. But I have done a few pieces for a flickr swap for the Hoop Up! group and received some really great pieces as well. I'll start with the ones I did shall I?

Satellite for alamodefabric

Little Red and her Forest Friends theme for sewdeerlyloved.

"O" is for Otter for twinfibers. She's making a book for her child with letters from his name.

I did another piece for our group leader modernsewl but forgot to take a picture of it because I'm forgetful.

I received wonderful pieces based off of my Tim Burton theme. I still need to take pics of them but will post as soon as I do.