Blue Spirals Making an Appearance!

Carol's blue spirals

It's my month as Queen of The Printed Fabric Bee. I requested the theme of blue spirals for my fabrics. Fabrics from Hive members, Carol Eaton and Lynda Heines arrived the other day and they are just gorgeous! Here is a sneak peak...

Carol's blue spirals

Lynda's blue spirals

For those of you who are curious about The Printed Fabric Bee, here is a post about it.

If you'd like to know more about how Carol created her fabric, she has a wonderful post about it here.

I mentioned to the Hive that I love fabrics from all over the world so Lynda designed one based on Kente cloth. Isn't it lovely?

Lynda's blue spirals inspired by Kente cloth

Guess what? You will have a chance to win 6" squares of all the fabrics I receive this month! Look for info about the drawing here and at The Printed Fabric Bee in the next week or so.

I can't wait to see what arrives in the mail today!

Feeling Fierce!

This lucky lion arrived in the mail yesterday.

It could not have come at a better time.

I was starting to feel a bit like a scaredy cat looking at all that needs to get done on the book in the next few weeks.

This lion's fierce face reminds me to put my game face on and get it done!

Thanks Jeff and Robbin. My Good Luck Lion will be watching over me in the studio as I finish up the last chapters.

GRRRRRR.....

Turnips and Carrots and Pears...Oh My!

Floris F.: Lime and lentils

Yesterday, I taught my class, Beyond the Potato Print.

Floris F.: Carrot and turnip

Floris F.: Garlic and onion

Floris F.: Pomegranate

Floris F.: Broccoli and carrot

Turnips, carrots, onions, cucumbers, broccoli, pomegranates, pears and more were transformed into print blocks!

Barbara H.: Pear

Barbara H.: Pear

Barbara H.: Lime and pineapple

Barbara H.: Bay leaves

We had an occasional customer poke her head in...a bit perplexed...a cooking class in the fabric store?

Betty F.: Potato

Betty F.: Carrots and cabbage

What we were cooking up were some delicious fabrics!

Camilla L.: Pear and potato

Camilla L.: Pear, potato, turnip and carrot

Camilla L.: Lime, potato, turnip and carrot

On another note...I was so excited to receive my first paycheck from Quarry Books! Now I really CAN say that I'm an author.

Lynn Krawczyk has announced the winner of the fabric packet from The Printed Fabric Bee over at her blog, Smudged Textiles Studio --Congrats, Marsha!

The Printed Fabric Bee: Orange Circles and a Fabric Giveaway

In an earlier post, I mentioned that I'm a part of an online group called The Printed Fabric Bee. For the next year we all have a turn at being the Queen Bee. The Queen decides on a fabric theme for the month and the rest of the Hive gets to work! Lynn Krawczyk was the Queen for the month of October. Her theme request was orange circles.

Some test prints before jumping in to do the final pieces.

 After a couple of false starts, I decided to work with some coffee dyed fabric. Lynn says she's into that 70's palette of brown, orange and avocado green. Not a big fan of that combo myself but decided that the tan of the coffee fabric would be a great start (and close to brown). Next I decided to use some of the techniques that will be featured in my now-in-process book, Fabric Printing at Home. I printed a slightly darker tan background texture using a block made from rolled corrugated cardboard strips. This was followed by printing with orange fabric paint using a carved turnip! I did two versions of the fabric. One of them has the addition of some hand painted details in blue and dark brown.

Version without the hand painted details.

Each month, the group offers a drawing for 6" x 6" versions of the fabrics produced in the month's theme. Leave a comment by midnight, November 10th at The Printed Fabric Bee page or on Lynn Krawczyk's blog if you'd like to be eligible to win. The winner will be announced on November 11.

Here is the fabric pack that you can win!

For November, I'm Queen Bee and I've asked for blue spirals for my theme. I can't wait to see my fabrics!

Latin American Influences...Color-filled Day!

Judy P.

What a color-filled day...all inspired by textiles and designs from Latin America!

Judy P.

Judy P.

Ann S.

Ann S.

Nonie S.

Nonie S.

We had a riotous-good time! Thanks Ann, Barbara, Cheryl, Judy and Nonie...it was lots of fun spending the day with all of you! 

Cheryl's colorful table

Cheryl V.

Cheryl V.

Cheryl V.

Barbara H.

Barbara H.

Barbara brought in 3 quilted wall hangings using her fabrics from the African Influences class. Aren't they wonderful!

BOOOOO!

Hope you had a fun and scary Halloween!