Hexies > Algebra

Hexies > Algebra

Weird but true: I like Algebra.  Granted, I am taking remedial math, but it's kind of fun.  (Don't tell anyone.)  I managed to join three of my favorite hexagons the other day, between algebra and human development Superfun Studytime.  I think I'll just sew these onto a hoodie perhaps?  I am really into surprises, though, and am considering sewing them to the lining of my winter jacket... Maybe I'll decide before the semester is up.

sewing in the winter months

When the temperature drops, you can find me nestled in my wingback chair, needle in hand, stork scissors close by, slowly stitching the day away.  (Evidence found here.)

This is my latest undertaking, which involves hand-dyeing, reverse applique, and lots of embroidery or quilting, if you rather.  I can't decide if I'll call it a table runner or a wall hanging, but I promise to share more photos once I have more to show for myself!

Inspiration:

• ralli quilts: wiki and on Design*Sponge
• Kuna molas: wiki and decently-sized photo gallery
• Kathryn Clark's Foreclosure Quilts

We only have a handful of hours left in 2011, and I am not sad to see it go.  It was a chaotically busy year, during which I moved from Knoxville (my home of 9 months) to Cookeville.  I began my first semester of university, maintained a 4.0 GPA, held a part-time job, and sewed for school and for my business.  I attended craft shows in Greenville SC, Cincinnati OH, and Nashville TN during the semester, plus several other events before school began.  I learned to draw and to weave, and to manage my time like a total boss.

I look forward to 2012, don't you?

farewell first semester!

My first semester of university is officially behind me, and I couldn't be more relieved!  At the same time, I don't quite know what to do with my newfound free time, but there are far worse problems to have.

Look!  This is my final project for Intro to Fibers:

Aaaah!  I think it's kinda cute.  The main tree and squirrel fabric (as well as the acorn) was dyed and woven by yours truly.

You know the anxiety you feel when you cut into a favorite piece of fabric, perhaps one long out-of-print or almost too adorable to hack up?  Well, imagine if you lovingly (or hastily, as it were) painted each warp fiber by hand, then threaded them individually through the dents and heddles of the loom, then tied them on to this and that beam, and finally spent hours tromping the treadles and throwing the shuttle back and forth, over and over until you have about 45" of cloth.  And THEN you have to cut it up?  Please!  I'm telling you, I had to psych myself up for a good while before I could cut into the fabric I wove by hand.

But I finally did and I am pleased with the outcome.  This is a plushie set designed with imaginative play in mind.  I appliqued Velcro to the squirrel's tum so the acorn sticks to it.  (It's backed with wool felt.)  Is the squirrel holding the acorn, or did he eat it?  I look forward to watching a little 'un play with this so I can discover the answer.

And here is my final project for Drawing I:

This class was really the first time I'd drawn since high school almost 10 years ago, and I started the semester all but convinced I didn't have the stuff to make it through Week 1.  I was fortunate enough to have a wonderful instructor, however, and now have a little more confidence in my ability!

The final assignment was to create a still life portrait of a person/people/relationship with someone, and so I chose to illustrate my relationship with a couple of my closest friends circa 2005, when we all lived together.  I put about 3 dozen hours into this drawing, which means I spent a solid week streaked with charcoal dust, holed up in my apartment and living off of canned goods like an apocalypse survivor.

And survive I did, with an A in every class.  Hooray!

I never posted about my midterm project in Fibers--an improv-pieced baby quilt, composed entirely of fabrics I dyed and printed by hand.  I'll share as soon as I take some pictures!

Surfaces

Holy...! School has kept me far more busy than I ever imagined possible. Among others, I am taking a drawing class and Intro to Fibers, two studio classes that together occupy the lion's share of my waking hours.

Right now we are concluding the surface design section of the semester in Fibers.  I get so excited about screenprinting fabric that I can't fall asleep; my mind is racing with new ideas!  It's kind of bad news.

Thus far, we've covered solid shade dyeing, low water immersion, itajime (that weekend's assignment of 4 yards took 22 hours to complete!), and different methods of surface design. I'll post photos of my better work soon!

blueberry pickin'

How I spent my Thursday afternoon:

Yes! I went to Hidden Springs Orchard in Cookeville with a couple of new friends, and it was a lovely time despite the heat.  The blueberry patch is indeed hidden, tucked down a dirt road deep in a holler (er, hollow?) in Jackson County.  And what could be better than gathering blueberries with friends?  Very little, except perhaps:

Fresh-baked blueberry buttermilk coffee cake!  With lemon zest crumb topping.  I've been on a bit of a baking tear since settling into my new kitchen, and am freezing about half of what I bake to get me through my first semester of college.  This recipe yields one 9" cake (which I baked in an 8" dish so it turned out very tall), of which I froze half.

So here you go!  Recipe after the jump.  If you use this recipe, I would love to hear (or see) how it turns out.

a postcard from Putnam County, USA

[The view from my kitchen window.]

I now live in Cookeville, Tennessee!  My internet connection is spotty but will be worked out soon.  Some facts about my new home:

• My apartment is next door to an abandoned house, and next to that is a small and overgrown cemetery.
• Early in the morning I can hear a rooster crow; some afternoons, I hear what I am guessing is a donkey braying.
• I live down a state road a couple miles from the University.  At night it is so dark I can't see the cars parked below my apartment.
• A little further down the state road is a pasture of cows belonging to the school's Agriculture Department, as well as a field of sheep, and lots of barns and farmland.  Also: a This n' That Store and a biker bar that allegedly doubles as a bike shop.

In short: Cookeville is wonderful!  I am done with city living for the foreseeable future, and couldn't be happier.  Now, to get my sewing area set up...

migratory birds

Pictured below are some of my favorite fabrics.  They are so beloved that in most cases, I have kept them for years, untouched, in my fabric stash.  My favorite color (and the lion's share of my fabric collection) is bright golden yellow, and I've amassed a decent chunk of that weird chartreusey-citron color that was everywhere last year.

I finally decided to stop being a crazy person and just USE these, all together, in one quilt.  So!  Thus far, I've pulled these lovelies for use in a throw-sized flying geese quilt.  For the background of the geese, I wanted to use a saturated blue, like the flowers in the central Heather Bailey print.  Not surprisingly, it's almost impossible to match!  After searching several different shops, I went to one outside of Nashville with a huge selection of Kaffe Fassett shot cottons and behold:

The perfect blue!  (For reference, this one is called Spruce.  I think.)  I often turn to shot cottons when trying to match weird colors.  I think their different warp and weft colors give them a chamelion-like versatility.

So, here it is: the start of a new quilt!  It's been far too long.

handmade weekend

My hometown of Nashville, TN is known around the world for its main creative export: music.  This Saturday, the first ever Porter Flea is putting Nashville on the map for indie craft and I couldn't be more thrilled!

So, readers, I know some of you are from the Nashville area!  Won't you stop by the Owlette table and say hello?  And if you're in the Asheville, NC area this Sunday, my esteemed partner Jessica will be tabling for Owlette at the Big Crafty.  It's a good weekend for handmade!