Fianally Finished the Jade bed and quilt!

I have been moving slowly the past week or so, sinus stuff only, no worries. But, as a virus, so the Dr. stated, I have stayed home from work. First few days I slept! Good for the body and the mind. I'm still sleeping much more than I am accustom. Time has been occupied with my miniature muse. I did try to go to work on Wednesday for a few hours, I couldn't keep a track on my tasks, needed too much energy to focus, was a restful afternoon once I got home. Enough of the personal! On with the muse.

I have accepted the Jade Bed as finished. I had a hard time realizing it was not going to be part of a furniture 'set' but a stand alone bed! Then I had to accept the quilt was just perfect the shape it was so I could get the outline quilting completed and be done! Then it was about 2 weeks ago I actually took photos in the shade of an awesome sunny morning. Short stints at editing photos... you get the picture I am sure! So here is the final results of the Jade bed, the quilt colors are soft vintage colors and patterns in an original paper pieced pentagon. I have been playing with the pentagon shape for some time now! As I am sure I have said before, I must not be done. I had this image flash of all these little quiltlets to be used as candle mats and or table mats, etc. It would sure get a ton of these 8 to 12 inch pentagons I made for the Remember Me quilt... And so the muse plays at home in my stash! I also picked up a bag of fabric at the local Goodwill for $1.99, all estimates in it is about 5 to 6 yards... a nice variety of pinks, fat quarters mostly. Another fun design path. So I will post the Jade Bed set. Go list it on Etsy, then get some rest. It is good to let myself design for fun while resting! There are 2 challenges I want to explore this summer. June holds a call for an Obama quilt, my image of the impact, etc. This for a possible publication. It would be fun. There is also the postcard contest this July. I didn't send anything last year, I want to make something new this year! Goals are good. I am starting to feel better! Rest is good.

The room is the castle display box I made. The hand carved throne is from my personal collection. I purchased it from: www.Jemjoop.etsy.com ! I found the miniature spinning wheel at a local antique 'mall', fun place to wonder around on occasion! The trunk is one I will eventually add to a set, filled and draped with my accessories. The amazing Fairies are also in my personal collection, these were purchased from: www.LollyPLady.etsy.com ! Visit my shop to see more detailed images of the bed and quilt!

Unique Art Collection

The other day I discovered an interesting site. It is called MVSEVM intentionally with a unique spelling! It is a collection of art that I found appealing and fun to browse through.

Grab a cup of coffee, visit the site: http://cloudery.typepad.com/mvsevm/
and enjoy the view~

I have also chosen to advertise through this venue. It was an opportunity, and I liked the idea of supporting another artist's display of work they find interesting. I also like her choices, I appreciate unique art! There is no need for me to be 'involved' with this venue beyond enjoying the art selected for viewing. A way to get traffic to my shop with out required activity on my part. That sounds like a plan to me!

This weekend I made a pair of pants... perhaps a start to the clothing muse I have been missing for some time! Usually I make dresses, I need a new one of those too!

The day job calls!

Miniatures finally listed on Etsy!

I have been trying to remember what sparked the start of my current muse for miniatures... with out much success. Probably a slow build up from viewing all the awesome miniature artists on Etsy! Combine that with my mother's amazing talent displayed in her miniatures, made for my sister and I, when I was growing up!

I finally listed a set of Fantasy Furniture! It was reserved(potentially sold) within 24 hours of listing. Quite the encouragement to keep doing what I'm doing! :) Here is the set:

The listing was only for the furniture, you can see some of my accessories as seen in my previous post of my shadow box of unique miniature things!

The jade bed has it's mattress! I am designing the mini quilt in my head still... I have cut coordinating 1 1/2 inch strips to play with! I have been entertaining sewing up a few of the table toppers I have yet top finish, more serious consideration that I have done since last fall! There is hope I will return to sewing soon!

I must get ready for the ever interfering day job! Enjoy the spring weather in the northern hemisphere people!

Spring, ever an awakening!

I have added a new link, upper right hand corner, to http://www.designstyleguide.net/ Design Style Guide. This is a unique site for seeing some of the most creative and quality work for the discriminating home decor seekers. A community I joined and posted about back in December! Spring brings energy to invest my time to share more details.

To see my work:

Follow the link in the left margin to Paintings and Wall Art to http://www.designstyleguide.net/byDepartment.php?dp=6&pr=25&ps=1
the directory to Art categories in left margin follow Fiber Art to http://www.designstyleguide.net/byCategory.php?dp=6&ct=146&pr=25&ps=1
page 1 of the gallery displaying some of the most wonderful fiber art I am happy to share the wall with!

Currently a few of my pieces are displayed on the Last Page, you can jump there http://www.designstyleguide.net/byCategory.php?tm=&mi=0&dp=6&ct=146&cl=0&st=0&rm=0&mt=0&ps=1&pr=25&btnLast=Last+Page
and see my work and follow the link back to my individual gallery, with links to my Etsy Shop, www.Cobaltquilter.etsy.com.

If you enjoy fiber art, get a cup of coffee and enjoy the tour. No need to start with my work though, I am still creeping out of the winter darkness, not much new art posted for some time. It is as I said, a wonderful collection of a fiber art techniques, all with links on to additional galleries of each individuals work. An easy place to wonder for a few minutes to regain the personal perspective, my experience, I express in my work in creative reflection of others perspectives.

A friend and I recently discussed the whole, over all hindrance to 'culturalution' (evolution of our human culture, might be a word I made up! :) may well come down to our amazing human ability to see order in chaos. Personal perspective. Community equals shared perspective. In all it's individual choices. From the art I like to the spiritual perspective I ascribe to, I belong to different communities. This wonderful human talent hinders the opportunity for two greatly opposed perspectives gaining momentum, culturalution, to bring us to a global awareness of 'whose perspective' might be the one to advance us to a more human existence, for all of us, regardless of our circumstances. Sounds simple enough to step in and tip the balance with sharing perspective for the one 'right' perspective. The balance is much more delicate and fluid than a bipolar limitation.

A rather wordy support for art education/exposure/discussion/expression! From the beginning, because it's fun! As the weather heads toward more light and less gray in the Pacific North West I enjoy the returning creative energy. No new images to show... still trying to satisfy the miniature muse. I have yet to take the time to figure out how to cut and paste in the create or edit mode of blogging yet so in hind sight I see this post may well seem disjointed, or random some might say! The self promotion was a surprising thing to see! I must start somewhere~ speaking of starting, there is a list I want to work on!

In the spirit of more frequent personal observations

I have a better awareness of why I blog, the realization, once again, that this is self observation. A simple healthy way to touch base with myself... and in this situation, publicly. Clearly satisfying the narcissist in me! A bit of narrowing of the scope of observation is in order. My creative endeavors.

Yesterday I made a list of unfinished projects that I know isn't complete. I stopped searching my brain at 14, and several of them are potential series or large works, like queen sized contemporary utility quilts. It made me once again contemplate what it is that causes me to move on to a new project before the current one is finished. Perhaps it is the defiant side of my nature rejecting the Puritan work ethics superimposed on my mental patterning! Okay, maybe I just get bored easily!!

I am making progress on the miniature furniture. The latest screaming muse! Covering the white frame bed with marbled decoupage paper as the foundation for embellishing the bed as a fantasy furniture piece! I am having fun. This is a good thing! :)

I have done a bit of 'sorting' always helps clear the way for creating to take place. Puts all those projects that are pushing into the same space a better perspective on their place in line! I am personally challenging myself to get some overdue projects completed. A good plan to clear the way for more!

Maybe I move to another project, sometimes a new one, when I can no longer figure out where the piece I am working on is going and what it will look like that makes me want to see it finished?

I'm going to focus work/play today on embellishing the jade bed, my new name for it! I have made some 3D fabric plant elements to play with as well as beads. I'm off to play!

Disadvantage of infrequent posts

I realized how counter productive long gaps between posts to my blog must actually be. I then tend to ramble on and on about my current randomness! Pretty silly. Suffice it to say that I have been playing with miniatures! I have horded quite a unique collection of props to use in my displays for selling my miniature 'creations.' Some were sent to me by my mother and include a needlepoint rug my grandmother made for my mother when she was making miniatures, when I was a kid! I finished the Castle Room Box! I have made a little blue & patterned chair that matches a bed seen in my last post. They will be offered on Etsy soon! I picked up a shadow box, oiled with mineral oil and have it set up to hold my mini collection.

Etsy Shops I have collected some amazing miniatures from!

Bella the Ladybug Baby Fairy and her sisters from http://www.lollyplady.etsy.com/
Glitzy chick from http://www.distinctlydiana.etsy.com/
Crystal ball http://www.kaleidoskopicromance.etsy.com/
Book of shadows
Bible
Quiji boards
Elemental circle http://www.mysticshoppe.etsy.com/

Bird cage http://www.sparklespunksupply.etsy.com/
Pitcher & Bowl http://www.minipotterybyanita.etsy.com/

There are several little odds and ends that are mine, such as the little maps, I glued 2 pieces of tissue paper together to make those! There are a few charms/beads as well.

The Castle Room Box has been a blast to create, I'm working up to displaying items for sale. I am always much slower than I intend!

I thought I had an image of the castle to share. Will have to wait until another day! Too much to do, so little time.... :)

Progress, progress, progress

I am chewing away at my list!. I had an, 'ah ha!', about my response to mending or repair work and why it takes me so long to get it done. It isn't fun, and seldom can I make it fun. Hence, I put it off, and stress over not getting it done. Then I remember that if I don't make art I go crazy... so once again I give myself permission to play. One of these times, soon, I will listen to myself and believe the length of time any mending job takes is, as a necessity to my mental health, going to include spurts of my creative expression amidst the timeline. So, the update from my miniature muse!

The craft stick bed went together well with wood glue. The 3 coats of white acrylic may just be an adequate primed surface. I am considering 'painting' it with my doodling! I have a piece of white/off white' pre quilted' batting I'm going to use to make the mattress for this miniature bed! It is a bit over sized, as a California King might be at 5.5" X 7.75 ".

I have also been playing with cardboard. I covered the box with a tufted 'mattress' in a dark blue. I then covered each of the headboards separately in a fantastic print I have been using bit by bit for several years before attaching them to the bed. I didn't take progress pictures because I really wasn't sure this one was going to come out. I did no pattern, no measuring beyond against the pieces. It is fully 'glued' with frabri-tac. I even used it to attach the wooden bead feet. This little bed is 4.75" X 7", If I make another bed from recycled cardboard I'll take progress pictures! There are a few dancing in my head, but I only need so many different props for my displays I may not get the beds made. We shall see!

I have been knotting the edge of a tie dyed 'throw', bed spread, wall hanging thingy. I'll be getting a few of these listed on Etsy soon. The stamped series is making slower progress... still has stamping to do. But I did get a second stamp done!

I found a piece of yard sale fabric that would take dye, it feels like rayon maybe, perhaps silk. I did it a bit differently. I used the fabric wet, after a good wash with mild detergent in hot water and rinsed in hot and cold. I lay the dye ties across on a double thickness and steamed in the microwave. I did rework it once after it had dried because there had been limited transfer of the dye. Not sure what the future is for this piece if fabric!

And I got one fourth of the remaining mending done on the lining to a jacket for a friend! I have a list!