Well, we went a whole month without a dog and then this little guy needed a home. We call him Jack, after the famous pirate Jack Sparrow. So far it fits. He's now 8 weeks old, very active and VERY clever! I'd forgotten how much work a puppy can be.
He has already wormed his way into our hearts and filled a bit of the space left from losing Cappy. I'm already getting greetings when i come home, they're just smaller.
Jack's dad is a border collie (55 pounds) and mom is a german shepard/giant schnauzer mix (110 pounds). Should be interesting. Right now he looks like a shepard pup-his ears are even starting to point up. We'll see what he looks like in a few months.

These pieces were made using "Paintsticks"-oil based sticks of paint. These techniques will be explored in the oil on fabric class at Walkerworks.

Many of the fabrics used in these two pieces were painted and texturized using water-based paint. These are the techniques we'll be exploring in the class at Walkerworks.

New January classes at Walkerworks in Stittsville.
I am trying something new and reaching out to artists in other media as well as my fibre sisters. I will be teaching two three-part classes at Walkerworks- a framing studio. The classes should be posted on their web site soon www.walkerworks.ca
Monday afternoons, Jan 26-Feb 9 we will be doing water-based paint on fabric
Thursday evenings, Jan 29-Feb 12 we will be doing oil-based paintsticks on fabric
Check with Walkerworks or email me for more info. Should be a lot of fun!

It's been awhile since my last post and lots has been going on. I've picked up a "paying" job to help fund my fabric addiction, booked some new classes for the new year and worked on some new stuff.
November was a hard month. My family lost a cherished pal, our dog Cappy, mid-November. He was a very special animal and a treasured family member. We miss him terribly. I am trying, so far unsuccessfully, to create something in his memory. I had been working on some "Cappy" pieces and am not sure what to do with them just yet. Think I'll put them aside for awhile until I can look at them and not be so sad.


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Techniques used to make the "snapshots":
Left to Right: Oil paintsticks on fabric; needle felting and Textiva film, machine stitched.

Detail of "snapshots"

Left to Right: Rocks made from tissue paper and gel medium, hand painted; water colour pencil on fabric, quilted; hand painted fabric, hand applique.

Just finished a small art show at The Goulbourn Museum with my "Like Minds" group and some others. A beautiful day, a nice setting and a really nice show. This is a mixed media piece I took to the show. Each of the "snapshots" on the quilt are a different textile technique. It was a lot of fun to make and allowed me to explore a bunch of techniques.

Think I'm finally catching up with what I need for the museum show. Next project is to prep for a workshop I'm teaching on photo transfer. It's being offered through the Ottawa Valley Quilters Guild and I believe there are still a couple of open spots. If interested, contact me or the guild. It's being held on October 29 from 10-2.

Getting ready for a show! Great group of artists, great location. It's a small way to help support our local museum.

Here are a few more ATC's. The current challenge is "O" for one group and "Spooky" for the other. We'll see what happens......

I belong to a couple of Artist Trading Card groups.
Here are a few cards.

This quilt is a more traditional style and was donated to the charity "An Evening With Abigail". I love flannel and homespun fabrics and have always loved Teddy Bears.
The title was "Some of my bestest friends are bears".
I think it may be time to revisit my bear friends in a quilt soon.

My family loves to camp and one of the best places is Killarney Provincial Park.This stained glass style quilt depicts George lake where the brilliant white quartzite of the La Cloche range meets the pink granite common to the Canadian Shield. Tall, wind blown pines cling to the rocks-it's a spectacular place!
This piece was called "Killarney" and is now in a private collection.

Thought i'd start by posting a few of my favourite pieces.
This one is called "My Favourite Birch" and it is a stained glass style quilt of my poor old tree that sits outside my front window. After the ice storm we thought we might lose it but it has recovered (it's just shaped a bit funny now). I wanted to celebrate it's survival by picturing it in front of the landscape it deserves to be in.

They say that today is the first day of the rest of your life. They also say you should try something new everyday. Well, here goes.....
Today I embrace the blog. Got it set up, now I just have to figure out what to do with it!