Saturday, June 30, 2007

PaintStik Experiments


By JoAnne's Daughter














Two pieces by JoAnne :































Experiments by Marilyn :






















By Marie.
Gold PaintStik on leather (below) :






















Two by Julie (below) :

































Two by Katy (below) :

































Michele's "Forest for the Trees" :

Sizzling Summer Fabric Postcards


Michele finished her post cards from last month.
The Turtle pattern above appeared in a recent issue of Quilter's Newsletter Magazine.
To see the rest of Michele's Turtles, visit her blog at Sweet Leaf Notebook.


Not wanting to waste anything, I took the curls cut out of the turtle's shells and turned them into this bouquet.

Meet Helga (or Hilda)


Helga (or Hilda) Whoever by Marilyn.

Sunday, June 24, 2007

Newsletter June 2007

Several of us were fortunate to take a class with Shelly Stokes, the godmother of Paintstiks on cloth in the U.S., and all I have to say is, “Ooh, we are going to have so much fun this month!” And the time is nearly upon us…gather some nifty textures and meet us at the library on Thursday!
Katy

Recap of May Meeting (May 31, 2007)
Show and tell! Marilyn brought her prizewinning scarf for a visit, along with a delightful purple doll. Karen brought greeting cards she’d made, plus her art journal. She uses it so organize samples and experiments. Michele brought her journal too, and it was great to see all the ideas bursting out. She also had a dazzling book, The Art of Landscape Quilting by Nancy Zieman and Natalie Sewell, to show.

Several reconnaissance scouts noted that the exhibit “Fashion in Film” at the Paine Museum in Oshkosh is excellent. The exhibit runs until September 30. If you’re looking for some artistically minded fellow quilters, Teresa informed us that the Plymouth shop (The Sewing Basket) has regular art sew times. Also, Susan Stein (her work is likely familiar to anyone who’s visited Colorful Quilts in Minneapolis) will be coming to Women Who Run with Scissors.

Mary presented the evening’s program: making fabric postcards. A few notes: The Post Office defines a postcard as being no smaller than 3” by 5”, and no larger than 4” by 6”. They must be less than a quarter inch thick, and nothing can protrude from the surface or off the edge. Make sure your address is legible (a light colored, non-busy postcard back is essential). Another option is self-stick postcard labels sold in photo departments. These are perfectly sized at 4” by 6”. Mary notes that Peltex, which is double sided fusible, makes a nice firm card and machines nicely. And yes, stamps do stick to fabric just fine!

Announcements and reminders
We’ve established a challenge for 2007. We’re calling it “A Finishing Odyssey.” Whether you have one UFO, or 2001, sort through your piles and choose one to bring to the June meeting, in whatever stage of disarray it’s in! (While the challenge is to finish a UFO, we’re starting small…just pick one out for starters! We can share ideas with each other, as desired, at the meeting.
September’s meeting will be a sewing room organization roundtable, by member request. How do you keep track of your stuff? How do you make the most of your sewing time? We’ll talk and share in September.

Marilyn has a copy of Shelly Stokes’s Paintstiks book for sale. Also, if you’re looking to buy your own Paintstiks, Jerry’s Artarama is the place to go online. The cost is close to half that anywhere else. http://www.jerrysartarama.com/. Another excellent option is the company that makes Paintstiks, right here in Kimberly! Jack Richeson & Co. is located at 557 Marcella St in Kimberly, and they have a bargain room!

June Meeting (Thursday June 28, 2007) at the Menasha Public Library
Paintstiks! Here’s what to bring:

  • If you have Shiva Paintstiks, bring them; otherwise we’ll share.
  • A small paring knife can be helpful to get the skin off the paintstiks.
  • A little trash bag and a roll of paper towels
  • Stencil brushes and a cup for water
  • Fabric! Dark and light are both fun. Marilyn will have FQ of black and white available for $1.50. Pieces as small as 10” square will work just fine.
  • Textured surfaces such as stamps (not too complicated), rubbing tiles, paper with a variety of densities (cardstock, construction paper, box, scrapbooking, etc.)
  • Stencils (anything you have on hand, or make one out of freezer paper)
  • A palette: a piece of freezer or parchment paper paper taped to cardboard or plastic (shiny side up), or a piece of specialty “palette paper” if you have it
  • Wear old clothes or an apron…just in case!

Don’t forget your “Finishing Odyssey” piece!

Upcoming Events
June 28, 2007: June meeting, 6:30. Paintstiks with Marilyn.
July 26, 2007: July meeting, 6:30. Couching. Katy and Karen will lead.
August 30, 2007: August meeting, 6:30. Chenilling. Gill will lead.
September 27, 2007: September meeting, 6:30. Sewing room organization roundtable

Conversations with Cloth meets the last Thursday of each month at 6:30 at the Menasha Public Library.

Sunday, June 03, 2007

Member Showcase : Marylin

Marylin was the only one to actually finished a fabric post card at the May meeting (We hope to have more to display next month!). She used a silk cocoon, and Anglina, among other things.:


Marylin also shared the doll she made recently.
She calls it "Beehives are Back" :


Marylin also brought back the Thread Scarf she finished last summer :