Late night pondering

It seems to be that no matter how much I enjoy blogging and posting photos I don't seem to be able to keep the blog up dated on any kind of regular basis. I have struggled with the purpose of doing so since I started posting here a couple of years ago . Is this for business or pleasure...self discovery or self indulgence.

I'm sure that my bi-polar life and hobbies can't be helping this struggle. Am I a burlesque dancer, producer or teacher...can I be one without the others. Am I a bellydancer, a yogi, an artist, a seamstress, a partner, a mother to be....can I be all these things and be really happy with any of them while I juggle all the rest?

I'm sure I would post here all the time if I could let myself honestly say how I was feeling and indulgence in vulnerable exchange with the masses. A piece of me knows that's why this all began...as a way of using you as therapy. But it's taken years of convoluted posts to even begin to be brave enough to say that I have any sort of real feelings about anything.

I'm trying to figure out a way to feel more connected to myself, my life and my work. It seems silly to think I might find such a feeling typing in the middle of the night and sending it out into the wasteland of Internet blogs but who knows...it is where I find myself pulled tonight, out of my bed and to the keyboard.

Picture: Dancing Fairy, paper pinwheel. They dance when the air catches their skirts...and every once in awhile they fall off their sticks. Seems appropriate...good night xoxo

You can never have too many flowers...right?

More flowers!! Holy moly!! I'm going to try and promise that this will be it for a bit...no more hair flowers...I promise... really! There have been a lot of multiples of things being posted because I'm heading into the fair but be patient with me I don't imagine this will keep up for much longer. Keep in mind that if you come in and buy them that I won't have any left to take pictures of and I will have to move on to something else. It would be like a good deed, you could save me from myself and then we would both feel better.

Girls like roses... right?

This is just another experiment with mixing colours on these coffee filter roses. I'm sure you are all getting sick of seeing these by now...so am I really but I don't have many things that I can just sit down away from my work table and not really think to much about while I'm working on them. Making roses is my version of knitting. I can carry on a conversation and watch a little T.V. so it doesn't feel like I'm squired away on my own or locked up in the studio. I guess what I'm trying to say is that you will probably be seeing more roses in the future, I just can't help it.

If anyone would like to see them done in a particular colour combination let me know and I'll try it out.

No More Surprises

Well it's all over now and there are no more secret holiday presents hidden away or wrapped up under little trees. There were a few more crafty gifts but they weren't as easy to capture in a photo. One of them was a scrap book/box with jars of sand and labeled rocks and as strange as that sounds it was appreciated. This was for my sister who has everything and I never know what to get for her. So for the past couple of years I've been making little things for her. In the very least I will know she doesn't own one just like it.

Birthday Bouquet

Still neck deep in the land of the booty shake and regretting that I have not been crafting anything other than dance costumes lately I was happy when a good crafting excuse came up. What better reason to whip something up then someones birthday? Lately in my spare time I have been working on perfecting the coffee filter rose, there are dozens of the smaller ones sitting in vases (beer steins really) in the studio. I was looking at them and thinking that they deserved a better home then that and decided to put this few together for a friend.

Vintage Fabric

I'm a sucker for a good piece of vintage fabric....well almost any fabric really. I found this piece last year and it has been waiting patiently in with the rest of the stash. Moving recently into maybe the first place I have ever really felt truly at home has given me tons of motivation to decorate. This fabric must now feel like it's been spread a bit thin as it's now on two bar stools, one computer chair and a throw cushion for my crazy great curvy sectional. Oh the domestic bliss.

Pillows for Mom

Every so often I come across a piece of fabric that just has to be brought home. This time it was something I just knew had to be my mother's. Unfortunately it took me a few years to do anything with it. When I conceded and just gave it to her as is she smartly requested pillows. Anything left to sit around as long as this fabric didn't need a complicated project to encourage any more procrastination.

Family Ties

This is a machine embroidery piece inspired by special family belongings. I did this a really long time ago in a embroidery class and it was an interesting use of the sewing machine. I learned a lot and have adapted this technique into many different projects.

Caterpillars and Butterflies

I made this butterfly for my nephew Jack and it has been passed down to his little brother Frankie(shown in the picture). If you don't know who Eric Carle is you really must go find his books. This piece was taken from the book The very Hungry Caterpillar. I just love this guys work.

Close up

This was originally a set of three nature studies but the other two seem to have gone missing where they live at my mother's home. It's a shame because if my memory serves me correctly I liked the others more. Of course when I find them this might not be the case. One of them was a peacock feather and I had to have stronger feelings about that one because if I'm honest I don't even remember what this one was supposed to be. Hold on. Maybe I shouldn't have told you all this. Not that it matters because if you have been hanging out here for any amount of time you already know that none of this is uncommon. For my old lady days seem to be getting more frequent and this is one of them. A girl of twenty eight should not be losing her glasses while they rest upon her face. Can you hear me loudly sighing while I fain concern for my on going eccentricities? The state of things gets more paralyse by the day.

Mixed Media Embroidery

Doggie Dog

Someone told me that the dogs are not aloud on the couch and the dogs themselves seem to understand that. They also seem to understand that when they are home alone with me all the rules get thrown out the window. For the most part this is OK because I love their company and I'm a sucker for those sad faces. On the other side of things it is all love and no respect they don't listen to anything I say unless they had planned to go that route anyway. I think one Of them thinks I'm his girlfriend and the other thinks I'm friendly competition. It turns out I'm part of the pack. Who knew?

Clay and paint in shadow boxes

Tree of Life

I just want to thank my mother for always letting me and even requesting that I paint all over her house. This has been going on for a long time now starting some fifteen years ago and with another birthday coming up that makes me sound really old. I'll let you guess where this door leads I'm sure your fantasy will be more exciting then what the reality of it really is.

Mother's Cupboards

I painted these chickens for my mother a few years back and I hadn't thought about taking a picture of them until I was visiting over Christmas. They are in one of the highest traffic areas in my mother's house and I wasn't sure how much longer they would last. So I'll put them here in blog land for safe keeping. Happy New Year!

Dye Job

I have a pretty good fabric stash as you might imagine but the store bought stuff never really measures up to how I feel about my smaller collection of hand dyed pieces. There is always something a little unpredictable about them when they are being made and afterwards every time I pick them up there seems to be something new in the fabric that I didn't notice the time before.

Hand dyed fabric samples

Bring on the snow!

I must say there is only one thing I like about the winter and that is I always seem to get more work done. I don't know if I feel more inspired or if it's just that I'm stuck in the house more. I went from really feeling like I was in a bit of a rut to not being able to get away from the sewing machine. Bring on the snow!

Log Cabin Pillow Case

Good luck and protection

Cat's eye, horse shoes, rabbit's foot, silver dollars, these are all things that people carry with them or deploy around their homes for protection or luck. It couldn't hurt and sometimes all it takes for something to work is for you to really believe that it will. I hooked this rug for my families home with symbols to represent them and things I believe will protect their home. I hope it serves them well.

Hooked rug

Wanted:Free blender

I have a whole box of paper egg cartons waiting to be turned into bowls. It's not going to happen is it? I'd really like to make them but I would have to sacrifice a blender and that's just not something that I'm prepared to do right now. Of course if anybody has an extra blender they don't need I'd be happy to get started.

Recycled paper bowl

Sheep farm

I should start making a list of all the reasons why I should have sheep. Sometimes when you write things down it seems to start the process of making it a reality as if the wish has been sent out into the universe.

1. Those cute little faces
2. The funny sounds they make
3. Spinning
   
4. Felting
5. Knitting
6. ....maybe I should have put all the crafty stuff under the same number
7. .............I'll keep thinking

Alter in progress

I love the excitement of starting a new project especially when it's a medium I've never tried before. When things work out it leaves me with the best feeling of accomplishment but it is always up in the air until the end. This piece ended up so heavy that instead of being hung on the wall a shelf had to be built for it. I'll keep that in mind for next time.

Mosaic Alter

Poor J.O.

No matter how organized I am with the rest of my art and craft supplies I always seem to be a little absent minded with my sewing needles. I have really misplaced them everywhere including inside my cat. I noticed one evening that Miss Jackie O wasn't in any of her usual hangouts and when I finally found her hiding under the pull out sofa in the basement she didn't look very good. After hours of coaxing her out and trying to get her to drink or eat anything it was now the middle of the night and she needed to go to the vet. We got into the truck and drove into the city where one of the vets first questions was "Is it possible that she swallowed a sewing needle?". She had been eating thread again but this time it had been threaded through a hand sewing needle and it was stuck in her throat. So with one sleepless night without J.O. and a six hundred dollar vet bill I was inspired to make a case for my needles. Needless to say J.O. is still eating thread so I've gotten very good at putting my needles away.