Big Day...

Today is a BIG day for us.

We're going to sign a lease for this building:

 It's an old building that is listed as an historical building in

Larimer County.

This will be the new home of Traditions, Ltd.,

Jerry's shop for doing what he loves best.

He'll be creating custom and one of a kind furniture,

built-ins, display and reproduction pieces, studio design and

whatever else his customers can dream up.  If it's made of wood he

can build it.  He's been without a workshop for over two years. 

He's so creative and passionate about what he does

that he deserves to be able to follow his dreams. 

 Especially since I've taken over

half the house.

aka the dining room:

spare bedroom:

 

He's been an integral part of my dreams for years and my daily

encouragement to pursue those dreams of being a mixed

media artist and if I needed something, he just built it.

 storage for my buttons:

And so a new adventure beings.

Hugs,

Kathleen

p.s.  A new website will be coming this summer.

       You can reach Jerry at 970-397-7859 if

       you have any woodworking dreams that 

       you need interpreted. 

Something Different...

Bottle of Truth

 I'm participating in an artful round robin swap through

Timeless Creations in Ft. Collins.

The rules are simple.  Each participating artist (there are

14 of us) was to create a box in her chosen theme and the boxes would then 

circulate, round robin style, and each artist would then

create a piece of art in her chosen medium that would reflect

the theme of the box.  The first box I received was created

by my friend Kelly with the theme being

"Aunt Tilly's Tinctures, Tonics and Tiny Things Tasty."

I used a very, very old bottle, decoupaged the outside with some

fabulous tissue, hand dyed and painted the lace bits.  Added some beads,

bling and velvet ribbon along with a vintage knob for the top.  

The little scroll holds the following poem that inspired me:

Truth will ever Soothe

Truth will never die

It is patiently waiting

to come out one day

to be seen by all of us.

It may now lose a deal,

but  it is calculating

to strike at the right time.

Its power, none can fathom.

When truth is spoken,

there Angels surround

and bless the soul

that fights for truth.

Truth will at last triumph.

It seems it has now lost,

but that is an illusion.

Truth will one day win.

So speak the truth always.

Uttering lie invites disgrace. 

Whenever truth is suppressed

it, at the right time, erupts.

Mailrangam Visvanathan Venkataraman

 A view of the back:

 It doesn't really look this bright in real life, but the morning sun

(yay morning sun!) brightened it right up for the photo.

I hope my little artful piece will inspire you to

"Speak the truth always."

Hugs,

Kathleen

Remembering...

 It was a tough weekend.

My youngest sister passed away a year ago

and 

I wanted to DO something, anything, that would honor

her.

I decided to create an art piece using a piece of her jewelry as a focal

point.

She loved all things vintage, especially art deco, so I started out with this:

 a piece of 3 3/4 x 5 inch plastic and a 5 x 7 canvas.

I transformed the plastic into this:

using alcohol inks, crackle medium and distress inks.

I then applied it to the canvas and built up the layers with

molding paste, acrylic paints, glaze and embellishments.  The 

flower was die cut from fabric paper I made using Beryl Taylor's

techniques.

I love how it turned out and she would have, too.

Hugs,

Kathleen

A new beginning

A New Year...

always means new beginnings to me.

A time to start fresh.

A fresh start for all those things unfinished and

all those things I've been 'meaning' to do.

Reviving my blog is the first step in that 'fresh start.'

This is my first little art piece for the new year.

I must take baby steps.

Hugs to you all...

$5.00 Fabric Storage

     It's been a couple of months since I've blogged due to cataract surgery and I'm really anxious to get going again.  My left eye still doesn't see as well as my right eye and I will still need glasses for distance.  Distance being anything beyond three feet away.  My surgeon wants to give my left eye some more time before getting new glasses.  That being said, now that my left eye has been done, I can see the computer, sew, do needlework and read clearly.  However, I just couldn't wait to share my new fabric storage piece, or, I should say, pieces.  I just had to wing it on the photography since I couldn't bring the camera into focus.

     The bottom piece was solid maple and came complete with the little brass label holders.  Hubby added the bun feet.  This piece was free!

     The top piece was painted a dark brown and cost $5.00 at Goodwill (it was broken).  Hubby sanded it back and added fluted molding to the bottom and then painted both pieces Navajo White (my very favorite white).  

     I have very limited space so this allowed me to bring in some of my favorite fabrics from the storage cabinets in the garage.

I think it's just perfect!

A Gorgeous Giveaway

 There is a beautiful giveaway over at Lilly's Lace.  This is a girl after my own heart! 

Art Night at Studio Vino

First and foremost, let me just say I am not a painter.  I use paints in mixed media, collage and textile art, but I can't draw so this was going to be a challenge for me.

My friend Dee invited me to attend an evening at Studio Vino in Loveland.

 

Studio Vino is a "you paint it" type of entertainment.  And it IS entertaining.   It's led by an "Artertainer" that changes depending on the artwork.  It's geared to all levels of artists, even beginners.  You're taken step by step through the process to produce a finished piece of art.

Music, appetizers, a free glass of wine, all your supplies and a getting-to-know-you time before getting to work.

Then we were given our palette of paint, the colors of which were completely outside my comfort zone.  PRIMARY COLORS!?!  What in the world am I going to do with those?

This is the original piece:

And this is my feeble attempt at replication:

Despite my earlier apprehension, I ended up having a great time! 

Hugs to you all,

Kathleen

Inspiration Kits

Something else I've been busy with lately is

putting together what I call, "Inspiration Kits."

They will soon be in my Etsy shop.

One of the questions I'm asked most often, is

"What do I do with this?"

The short answer is, "whatever you want."

The long answer is, they can be used in textile collage,

altered books, mixed media art, journal pages,

ATCs....etc.

They are a mix of fabric, tags, buttons, beads, ribbons,

trim, flowers, fibers, threads, a little bit of bling,

and ephemera.

Not all of these elements are in every kit and

each kit is different.

I've used one of my favorite kits (pictured above)

in this short tutorial.

This kit contains four different fabrics, one

of which is a piece of chiffon. 

I chose an image to transfer onto the

chiffon using TAP (Transfer Artist Paper)

I LOVE this product.

It's the brain child of Lesley Riley.

http://www.lesleyriley.com/ 

You can check out her website for more information on how to

use this product.

I then took some of the lace included in the kit

and stitched it along the sides of the image.

I then found a couple of pieces of

companion fabrics from my stash

(which is quite extensive, I admit).

I stitched those two layers together

and then stitched the velvet piece

from the kit on top of that

and then the image

on top of that.

Then the fun began.

Using elements from the kit and

extra elements that I had on hand, I

embellished the piece.

Not all elements from the kit were used in

this piece.  You can use all

of the kit or just part of it.  The creativity comes

from you. 

I just provide the inspiration.

Have a creative day,

Kathleen

p.s.  I'm having a giveaway on my facebook page.  If you "like" my page, I will be giving away one of my kits when I reach 50 'likes.'  You can find the link to my facebook page here.

Alecia's Bracelet

Yesterday was my beautiful

daughter-in-law's birthday and

as promised,

Here are pictures of the piece

I created just for her.

This is a unique and beautiful piece

that matches my

daughter-in-law perfectly.

It's one of a kind and will never be

duplicated.

It's 2 1/2 inches wide,

designed on a vintage muted satin

with vintage lace and

embellished using all black glass

buttons and beads.

Hugs to all,

Kathleen

Tea on Tuesday

Today is my very first post for

Tea on Tuesday

Kimmie at Art in Red Wagons

is the organizer of Tea on Tuesday so

make sure you stop by and

visit her.

It's a gloomy, overcast Tuesday in

Colorado

so I thought it called for a hearty

English Breakfast Tea

It's just what I need to finish

projects in my studio.

I have a gorgeous

bracelet to finish for my lovely

daughter-in-law.

A gift for her birthday.

I'd show you, but it's a surprise.

I'll post after tomorrow.

So for now, enjoy your cup of tea and

I will see you next Tuesday for Tea.

Kathleen