Something About Nothing

The theme for January at The Printed Fabric Bee was Petroglyphs.  My family loves petroglyphs and we have taken many hikes to explore areas with glyphs. One of the images that has always stayed with me are the hands.  I feel a connection to these hands and their drawings.  They were people that really lived thousands of years ago.  I decided I wanted to add my own hand to the images I would put on a stencil so I scanned my hand and traced it using the design software for my Silhouette electronic cutter. Of course I had to make my hand much smaller to fit on the fabric. . . I started the fabric out by dyeing it a burnt orange to represent the beautiful rocks of southern Utah.  To add a little texture I decided to spatter some silver onto the fabric, but honestly I think I ended up with more paint on my fingers than anywhere else!  Next came the painting of the stencil.  I opted for using cosmetic sponges rather that the quick and easy s...

A simple tutorial on how to make this Snowflake Card I made for my friend's birthday. Materials: 8 1/2 x 11" piece of turquoise card stock White craft paint or White Sharpie Poster Marker (water based) Blue craft paint Cosmetic sponge triangle Snowflake Stencil (I created my stencil with my Silhouette electronic cutter) Angelina Fiber Mistyfuse Goddess Sheet or Parchment paper Do-dad such as a button, or other embellishment for snowflake center Sewing machine with free motion foot Matching thread Iron and ironing board 1. Cut the sheet of card stock in half so that you have two 5 1/2 x 8 1/2 pieces.  Fold one of them in half.  This will be the top of your card. 2. Stencil snowflakes onto your card.  I used the paint from my white Sharpie Poster Marker by pressing the tip into a cosmetic sponge.  Dab the sponge across the stencil to transfer the snowflakes onto the front of the card. 3. Place a small fluff of Angelina Fiber onto your God...

It's no secret that I like Map art so when Mixed media artist, Jill K. Berry , put out her second call to create a map of our personal vision of 2015 I joined!  This year I decided to play with the idea of a city map.  I had the idea of a round-about with my family as the center and everything else I do coming out from there.  My first sketch reminded me of a spider's web.  It wasn't what I wanted.  After a few weeks of mental processing I decided to play with another idea putting little circles in the center for each family member and making buildings along each road. Nope, something wasn't right. More processing time needed.  I wondered if I didn't like it because I hadn't added color yet.  I then remembered some stencils I made some time ago and thought they might be perfect to make a colorful page. I cut a couple circle masks, pulled out my square stencils, my Inktense blocks and a paintbrush and went to work. I put the circle m...

Saturday, my friend and I boarded a bus and took a 2 hour ride to Delta, Utah, a small town of about 4,000 people 133 miles south of Salt Lake City. Why would we travel so far on a Saturday?  Because Scotty Hill, pictured below, Mayor Gayle Bunker, bottom left, and Jane Beckwith, not pictured, invited us to come.   They were very excited to share the opening of the  Topaz Museum  with as many people as possible. Topaz, a Japanese American WWII Internment Camp, is located 15 miles west of Delta.  Follow this link to learn more about this terrible scar in our US History. The Topaz museum has been over 12 years in the making and so Saturday's grand opening was a monumental step in honoring the lives of those Japanese American's whose rights were violated in the name of "military necessity."  The museum will eventually house more exhibits about Topaz but currently is showing an exhibit of art created by Topaz internees between 1942-1945....

First of all I want to congratulate Upstate Lisa on her win this month for The Printed Fabric Bee Giveaway!  I am very excited to be able to share these fabrics with her!  (Look for the email I sent you Lisa!) It seems there are a number of Hive members who also need a big congratulations today!   I was reading my latest copy of Quilting Arts Magazine and found this great article about Seed Stitching written by Jane Davila, one of our newer hive members.  Lots of great ideas in the article and some quotes and eye candy from fellow hive members Gerrie Congdon and Deborah Boschert too! Hive member, Leslie Jenison and her cohort in quilt crimes, Jamie Fingal, have an article highlighting their wonderful curated exhibits "What's for Dinner?" And last but certainly not least is The Last Word column by former Hive member, Lesley Riley.  Lesley's column was just what I needed to hear right now.  If you haven't seen the latest issue...

I have been fascinated with maps for years and when I discovered map art I was hooked!  With my month as Queen Bee, I decided to see what the hives take would be on the topic of Old World Maps.  It has been a big challenge for everyone and I love what they have created!  A few of the members are still working on theirs and they will be added as they become available. If you would like a chance at winning a 6x6" square of all 11 pieces then leave a comment below or on The Printed Fabric Bee blog .   Comments will close on January 15th and a winner announced on the 16th! And then go stop by the other members blogs to see how they created their pieces. Lynda Heines Deborah Boschert Carol R. Eaton Jackie Lams Gerrie Congdon Lynn Krawczyk Julie Booth Leslie Jenison Judy Gula Jane Davila Susan Purney Mark