365 Days of Art – Day 56

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….getting papers ready for my Inspired by Lives and Letters class

Lendon Noe has encouraged us to make some art papers using inks, watercolour paper and tissue to use in future projects. I mixed up my walnut crystals to make walnut coloured ink and I experimented with purple and red ink.

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The next step is to cut up these papers into squares and rectangles.

On the white tissue paper I used three different techniques. One was crumpling up the paper and dipping it into ink. Using red ink gives it the appearance of blood (not sure if that was a wise choice). The second technique involved folding the paper multiple times until it couldn’t be folded anymore and then dipping the edges into ink. The last method involved folding the paper like a fan and then running a water soluble ink pen down over the folds. All these techniques involved spraying the paper with some water. Not too much or the paper falls apart.

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March Square – Happy St. Patrick’s Day

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….thanks to Becky B on this glorious March 17th for hosting March Square

What could be more fitting today than a quilted square from the Quilt Belonging collection representing Ireland.

What could be more Irish than the Celtic cross cross stitched on Cashel linen. This piece was hand stitched by Loralyn Reilly Gazdik whose grandmother emigrated to Canada for economic and political reasons. For over two centuries the Irish have made huge contributions to the fabric of Canadian culture.

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365 Days of Art – Complicated Colour Fields Part 1

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…..day 55

A week ago today Carla Sonheim asked us to create two colour fields of art using a variety of markers, pens, pencils, stickers, tape and stamps. This is the first part of a two part art lesson. Part 2 is already in my inbox so I thought I’d better get busy and do part 1. No idea where this going but it was fun doing it.

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What Happened to My Art Challenge

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….the last time I posted 365 days of art was 10 days ago

I’m feeling very stressed about not posting art projects that I’ve been working on. The truth is I’ve been doing very little art but I’ve been busy using my hands to create other projects.

A couple of weeks ago I signed up for beginner’s crochet class. So I wouldn’t forget what I’d learned I proceeded to use up yarn to make coffee cup holders and dish rags. I think I’m ready now for the next level.

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Before I tackle

a new crochet project I decided I needed to finish some knitting projects. I started a complicated lacy shawl and I’ve taken it apart now four times because each time I found a mistake that completely messed up the pattern. The problem with this project is that you have to cast on 361 stitches and if you don’t discover the mistake until you’ve gone on for two or more rows it means having to undo over 700 stitches. I tried doing that a couple of times but then I was dropping stitches and after hours of work I was ripping it all out anyway. Today I’ve started this project for the 5th time. Wish me luck.IMG_1187

My father also asked to borrow my sewing machine so that he could hem his jeans. By the time I pulled it out, found the thread he needed and lugged it down two flights of stairs I offered to sew them myself. It took me some time to clean off my art table but now I feel that when the machine comes down I’ll have a clean surface to start painting again. After I hemmed his pants I found a pair of my own that needed hemming and then I made curtains for my Dad’s apartment.

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The last 10 days haven’t been an art free zone. Every day I go on-line and open Carla Sonheim’s daily posts and I signed up for a class given by Lendon Noe called Inspired by Lives and Letters. In this class Lendon has taught us how to create two kinds of envelopes that can hold messages written on art squares that we create with watercolour paper and ink or plaster. Here are some of the envelopes that I’ve made so far.

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One of the things that I purchased for this class was Walnut ink. Actually I purchased the walnut ink crystals to make my own ink. When I saw the price of a small bottle of walnut ink I just about fainted ($46.00) so the store owner showed me the crystals at 6.95 a bag. I only need 1 tsp. for every 1/2 cup of water. There’s probably enough crystals in the bag for 3 or 4 cups of ink. When all is said and done the cost of one bottle will probably be $1.00. Stay tuned for the next 365 Days of Art post when I’ll show you how I use the ink.

Makes Me Think of Summer

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…..today’s post for March Squares are squares within circles within a square

Thanks to Becky B from Life with B for hosting a month of March Squares.

Gingham patterns always make me think of summer. This cheery display of colourful dishes instantly made me think of picnics and warm summer days.

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Share Your World – March 12, 2018

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….thanks to Cee for hosting Share Your World

If a distant uncle dies and you were always his favorite and leaves you $50,000 (any currency) in his will, what would you do?

I think I would use some of the money to do some repairs around the cottage and then take a chunk to travel to London, England. With any money left over I would divide it amongst my children.

What sound or sounds do you love?

I love the sound of birds in the morning, cicadas on a hot summer day and the laughter of children.

What’s your middle name?  Why?

My middle name is Hildegard. I was named after my maternal grandmother. I always hated the name and wouldn’t tell any of my friends for fear of being teased. I actually never realized until much later that I was named after my grandmother. I knew her name was Hilde but I never realized that it was shortened from Hildegard. I wouldn’t have had a problem telling people that my middle name was Hilde.

What did you appreciate or what made you smile this past week?  Feel free to use a quote, a photo, a story, or even a combination. 

This past week I attended two wonderful concerts with friends. The first was an afternoon concert featuring the Elias String Quartet and the second one was Tan Dun’s Water Passion After St. Matthew.

On Saturday my husband and I drove to Hamilton to spend the day with our daughter and granddaughter. Of course that brought huge smiles to our faces. As she gets older we find that we can actually carry on conversations with her and she happily instructs us on how   to play with her. IMG_1167.JPG

 

March Squares – A Little Piece of Italy

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…..March 13….thanks to Becky B from Life With B for hosting March Square

Back in the summer there was a wonderful exhibition of a giant quilt called The Quilt of Belonging. It was on display at the Canadian National Exhibition and each square represents the cultural legacies of all the First Peoples in Canada and every nation in the world. There are 263 blocks in this quilt that measures 120 feet long (36 metres) and 10.5 feet high (3.5 metres).

The first square that I’m sharing with you represents Italy. I wasn’t sure how this house showcased Italian culture but apparently the house in this block is based on a popular song called A Little House in Canada. The song describes the dream of many Italians to own a small house in Canada surrounded by a pool of fish and many lilacs.

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