w i l l . l o v e . l o g i c

upcoming...

2012-02-03T09:52:00.010-05:00

Announcing..... CREATE Mixed Media Retreat - New Jersey! I'll be teaching four workshops (Photo Expansion Quilts, Fabric Collage Pendants, Thread Painted Mini Art Quilts and Shrink Film Charms), July 18th and 19th. Come play with me.

Of course, if you can't wait 'til July, you can join me next month in VA Beach for Art & Soul!

[imaginative free-motion machine quilting | Art & Soul]

[fabric collage pendants | Art & Soul + CREATE NJ]

[photo expansion quilts | CREATE NJ]

[thread painted mini art quilts | CREATE NJ]

Upcoming...

2012-01-11T11:04:00.005-05:00

Well here we are in 2012. Time for me to start talking about 2012 stuff. I'll be teaching two workshops at Art+Soul in Virginia Beach, VA, March 5th. First up is Imaginative Free Motion Quilting , which happens to be the subject of my latest Quilting Arts Workshop DVD. Then in the evening it's Fabric Collage Pendants.

Come play with me!

happy holidaze 2011

2011-12-22T20:14:00.002-05:00

It's that time again......

(click here for a higher res version.)
peace

my day job

2011-12-11T14:53:00.005-05:00

Modeling and misbehaving for my brilliant friend Andrew Lattimore. It's okay, he encourages my bad behavior (and takes pictures!).

miracle on central park west, 2011

2011-11-28T00:05:00.005-05:00

Thanksgiving, y'all.

[Cee Lo! And little hockey players for some reason]

[three blonde dames]

peace

download me!

2011-10-17T15:41:00.005-04:00

Click here to download the e-version of my Quilting Arts Workshop Creative Machine Quilting or here to order the DVD .

creative machine quilting

2011-09-30T18:35:00.004-04:00

My new DVD, shot in Cleveland last month, will be released in late October. Doesn't it look purdy?

my day job

2011-09-26T22:40:00.003-04:00

This is a (still unfinished) portrait from Wende Caporale's summer workshop, beautifully painted by Abner Cope.

Adventures in Cleveland

2011-09-12T18:04:00.017-04:00

On my way home from CREATE in Chicago, I stopped in Cleveland for a few days, where I had the great pleasure of taping some segments for Quilting Arts TV (Series 900) and an instructional DVD (about machine quilting). I seem not to have taken many pictures, but here's what it looked like:

[QATV set]

[on the monitor]

[Loot! Generously provided by Havel's]

[Pokey Bolton, working hard in the green room]

[out on the town with my fellow QATV peeps, Susan, Judy and Candy!]

[the wildlife in my hotel lobby]

My little Zuzu dog was my traveling companion for this trip, as was my Bobby Darin Pandora station. Since we went by car, we were in six states in one week --- NY, NJ, PA, OH, IN, IL (and then back again). Here's how Zuzu spent her spare time:

[Toledo]

[Chicago]

[Cleveland]

peace

in stitches

2011-09-10T15:49:00.007-04:00

FYI, I have an article (and a goofy, but informative video) about drawing with bobbin thread, in the current in Stitches eMag --- available for both MAC and PC. Check it!

CREATE - Chicagoland

2011-09-05T15:14:00.000-04:00

Well, I'm back from my Chicagoland adventures (and also Cleveland adventures, but that's another story). Sadly, what was to be the second annual mini college reunion with my friends Brian and Norm didn't happen, due to circumstances beyond our control - or what Brian referred to as "stupid adulthood." Nonetheless, I had a marvelous time at CREATE Mixed Media Art Retreat.

Here's what it looked like:

[photo expansion quilt]

[I was lucky enough to be in a Bernina sponsored classroom so all the students got to use shiny new Berninas!]

[As promised students...here are some pictures of the cat photo expansion quilt that someone made in a previous workshop. Incredible, right?]

[(fabric) artist trading cards]

[fabric collage pendants]

[wearing the finished product!]

[one student decided to focus on the collage and not the jewelry-making...]

[having a mad, passionate love affair with the Bernina!]

Thanks to all my brilliant students, Pokey Bolton and all the peeps involved in organizing the event. If you were in my workshops and took any pictures during class, please send them to me - especially if I have jazz hands in the pictures!

Countdown to CREATE

2011-08-18T18:28:00.008-04:00

My CREATE workshops are next week, y'all. Come join me.

[Fabric Artist Trading Cards]

[Photo Expansion Quilt]

[Fabric Collage Jewelry]

upcoming...

2011-08-08T13:01:00.007-04:00

Hello peeps. Just a quick reminder... Chicagoland CREATE! is happening August 24 - 28, in Lisle, IL.

Click me for information about my workshops.

upcoming...

2011-07-07T16:22:00.003-04:00

I have two workshops coming up at the Greater Hartford Quilt Guild 2011 Quilt Show in East Windsor, CT. Click me for more info.

Drawing for Quilters | Saturday, August 6th
Fabric Collage | Sunday, August 7th

Chicagoland

2011-06-27T11:58:00.003-04:00

Hey HEY hey. Time is flying --- August and my CREATE Mixed Media Art Retreat : Chicagoland workshops are creeping up. Come and play with me...

Elin's CREATE workshops.

Holistic Hottie!

2011-05-16T14:48:00.006-04:00

New logo design - just finished this morning - for Holistic Hottie, Inc. Click me to find out why healthy is the new hot!

Art + Soul 2011

2011-05-08T11:42:00.012-04:00

Last week I had the pleasure of teaching workshops at Art + Soul in Hampton, VIrginia. Thanks to all my students and the team who organized the event. Here's what it looked like...

[Thread Painted Mini Art Quilts]

[Fabric Collage]

[Hampton Roads Convention Center]

upcoming...

2011-04-08T14:47:00.003-04:00

Yo peeps. Just a quick reminder that I have 2 fun-filled workshops coming up at Art & Soul in Hampton VA at the end of the month. Check it: click me

peace

casey call counseling

2011-03-20T23:12:00.000-04:00

Another logo design - this one for Casey Call Counseling, a family counseling center in Ft. Worth, TX.

peace

RSK

2011-03-20T22:47:00.003-04:00

My logo design for Rock Star Karaoke, the best live band karaoke in NYC!

rock on

fabric painting + printing + stuff like that

2011-03-15T15:25:00.010-04:00

Hello out there in blogland. I've been a busy little bee lately. Last week I taught two, count 'em two, Paint + Print on Fabric workshops - first at The Weaving Center, in Tarrytown, NY; then for the Greater Hartford Quilt Guild, in Berlin, CT. Much fun was had by all. Here's what it looked like...

[playing with Shiva Paintstiks at The Weaving Center]

[playing with fabric paint at the Greater Hartford Quilt Guild]

[beautiful fabric created with a bronze Paintstik and a gingko leaves rubbing plate - the photo doesn't do it justice!]

[playing with Shiva Paintstiks at the Greater Hartford Quilt Guild]

Thanks to all who participated in the workshops and to the many, many, many people who came to my Friday night lecture too. I hope you learned something new and fascinating!

peace y'all

P.S. The next opportunity to come and play with me: Art & Soul Retreat, Hampton, VA, April 28+29. Be there.

365: Make Something Every Day

2011-01-31T09:17:00.005-05:00

Some of y'all might remember that I spent 2008 making a block print a day. This adventure was largely inspired by my brilliant friend Noah and his Skull-A-Day project. Noah has a new book out called 365: Make Something Every Day and Change Your Life! (available at independent book stores and here). I'm honored to be featured in the book and on Noah's 365 blog .

watch: 365 Skulls in 1 minute

snow.

2011-01-26T19:31:00.006-05:00

I've lost count of how many snow storms we've had so far this year. As I type, my driveway is racking up the inches. I've been thinking a lot about Florida...

[the view out my living room window]

[Subaru shaped snow pile]

[Buddha's winter wardrobe]

And now, I'm off to shovel in the dark. Fun!

jingle bell time is a swell time

2010-12-24T09:37:00.005-05:00

for a higher res version, click here

Peace y'all.

we tripped the lights fantastic

2010-12-11T15:10:00.006-05:00

Old 97's | Music Hall of Williamsburg | Brooklyn | 12.10.10

Won't you linger, let me run my fingers through your hair?
Won't you stay? I can't play like I don't care.
I think you're dope, and I hope I'm making myself clear.
I think you're fly and that's why I'm getting out of here.

she appears in his dreams

2010-12-08T09:24:00.005-05:00

Two words ... Tweedy. Solo.

remember to remember me
standing still in your past
floating fast like a hummingbird

miracle on central park west, 2010

2010-11-27T10:54:00.001-05:00

everybody wants a taste of your honey

2010-11-06T12:44:00.003-04:00

This week's musical diversion: Shawn Mullins. No cameras allowed.

[as always, I fell victim to the merch table]

I just want to light you up
light you up
like a fire

but I know, one thing

2010-11-01T00:20:00.005-04:00

Michael Franti y'all. Coolest man on the planet.

you're the one I wanna be with
when the sun goes down
that's the sound
of sunshine
coming down

Dear Chicago

2010-10-04T09:16:00.012-04:00

It's been a while since my CREATE gig in Chicago, but life has been ... life, I guess. Lots of stuff going on (good and bad, mostly bad), so I'm just now making time to post about it. I was not myself in Chicago, as my sweet little doggie died the night I arrived. I thank all my students, my fellow instructors and the CREATE organizers for their kindness, sympathy and understanding. Most of the students didn't know why I was such a hot mess, but they put up with me and supported me anyway. Here's what it looked like...

[day 1 - Thread Painted Mini Art Quilts]

[My classrooms were sponsored by Bernina. I'm very brand loyal, and Bernina is right up there with Apple and Capezio.]

[day 2 - Fabric Journals]

[one student, who took both my workshops, brought me a flower to raise my spirits. it did. thank you.]

Two of my college friends, who I hadn't seen since college, scooped me up each night after my workshops and took care of me. One night even included a barefoot, moonlit walk on the beach. With fireworks. Thanks boys.

[with Norm + Brian at Tommy Guns]

[driving tour of Chicago]

Until we meet again, Chicago...

peace

art is...

2010-09-05T10:35:00.005-04:00

I'm not really up to blogging yet, but I just wanted to give a last call for the Art is You... East Coast Art Retreat, as there are only two more days to register. I'm teaching Thread Painted Mini Art Quilts (Friday 10/8) and Fabric Journals (Saturday 10/9) in Danbury, CT (only 12 miles from my house - slightly closer than my last gig, in Chicago). When I come out of my emotional hangover (see my last post), I'll blog about my adventures in Chicago at CREATE! and with my college buddies, who took care of me while I was there. Meanwhile, here are a couple student blog posts:

Muppin.com (Cheryl Sleboda)

Ad Libitum (Joanne Theime Huffman)

thanks y'all.

best. dog. ever.

2010-08-26T22:03:00.004-04:00

My best friend for the past 14 years... I will love you and miss you forever.

Go back to sleep now
My darling
And I'll keep all the bad dreams away
Breathe now, think sweet things
And I'll think of all the right words to say

One day we’ll disappear together in a dream
However short or long our lives are going to be
I will live in you or you will live in me
Until we disappear together in a dream

on the long, long lashes of your look

2010-08-22T08:47:00.005-04:00

Rhett Miller. Forgot my camera. Here are a couple little half song clips from last night, shot with my iPhone.

[nineteen]

[I Will Remain - by (my) request - thank you Rhett]

I could be so far away that I would be a memory
but every time I hold you in my arms
there's no place I'd rather be
I could live on your love
and nothin' else if I had to

let's say you're in Chicago

2010-08-17T07:50:00.008-04:00

hey HEY hey! I'm gearing up for my workshops at CREATE! in Rosemont, IL (just outside Chicago) next week. There's still room for more students in the Fabric Journal class and (just a couple spots) in the Thread Painted Mini Art Quilt class. Please join me. I'm fun.

If you're an East Coasty type and you can't make it to Chicago, never fear - I'll be teaching similar workshops at the Art is you in Danbury, CT, October 7 -10.

camp! [2010]

2010-08-13T16:01:00.012-04:00

So. I just finished my last week of camp. I had a very large, loud, rambunctious group of kids who really didn't like it when I tried to take pictures of them. Consequently, not so many pictures. The theme of the week was world crafts. Here's what it looked like.

[Monday | Mexico | Dia de los Muertos Nichos]

[Tuesday | Panama | Molas]

[Wednesday | Ghana | Adinkra block prints

[Thursday | Japan | Koinobori]

[Friday | United States of America | Zuni fetish necklaces]

[crazy girls]

[me. and glue.]

over and out, campers

I'm gonna be the one

2010-08-13T14:28:00.012-04:00

I spent last evening at the City Winery watching and listening to the lovely and talented Rhett mmmmMiller do what he referred to as a "quarter century" of songs (25 songs on the setlist). He played a bunch of stuff from the forthcoming Old 97's album, The Grand Theatre Volume One (pronounced thee-AY-ter) including one inspired by a phrase he uttered during his last City Winery gig (and which was the title of my blog about his last City Winery gig). A fellow audience member turned to me at one point and said "He's on FIRE tonight." I think it was the whiskey.

[really bad quality, iPhone recording of a little bit of a new song, with me whoo hooing loudly at the end]

I wandered around my old neighborhood before the gig...

when you gonna be mine?
when you gonna close your eyes? call my name?
your self shines, your heart's true
here I come ...
well I'm gonna be the one for you

time, love

2010-08-09T23:35:00.003-04:00

I went to see Josh Ritter Saturday night. His musical stylings and bouncy enthusiasm were a welcome distraction from my last several weeks of too much stress and too much emotion. Thank you Josh.

Some incredibly brilliant person had the incredibly brilliant idea to pass out glow sticks to the audience members. We lit them at the first notes of Lantern, much to Josh's surprise and delight. Incredibly brilliant idea, whoever you were.

I had a dream last night
and when I opened my eyes
your shoulder blade, your spine
were shorelines in the moonlight
new worlds for the weary
new lands for the living
I could make it if I tried
I closed my eyes I kept on swimming

time, love
it's only a change of time

camp! [2010]

2010-08-08T19:11:00.003-04:00

Still in the midst of summer camp. This past week's camps were Repurposed Art and Jewelry Making. My favorite conversation of the week - between a 7 year old girl (above) and me:

G (holding an octopus puppet): "This is Elephant."
me: "Elephant?"
G: "Just go with it."

I didn't take enough pictures but here's a little bit of what it looked like...

[repurposed]

[the Statue of Peacesignity]

[ice cream day]

[iPhone app "fantasy" photos]

[jewelry]

>

One more camp to go.

my day job

2010-08-06T19:18:00.008-04:00

So, yeah. I'm behind on my blogging. This was Daniel Greene's portrait workshop. Not many pictures, 'cause I was workin'.

[photos of a few of Daniel's paintings]

UPDATE: a photo of the gang...

Todd gets hitched!

2010-07-26T21:39:00.010-04:00

I spent yesterday in upstate NY at my friend Todd's wedding! It was a rockin' good time and one of the few weddings I've been to at which it was completely appropriate to yell "yee haw". The reception offered a rockabilly band, goodie bags of lavender m&ms printed with the bride and groom's names (I'd take a picture of them, but I already ate them all) and a photo booth. Brilliant. Congrats Todd and Megan.

[the beautiful bride - you can't even be jealous of her perfectness, because she's so freakin' nice!]

[cake!]

[the groom (Todd) and the best man (Drew) sit in with the wedding band (The Dixons)]

[playing in the photo booth]

my day job

2010-07-25T10:45:00.000-04:00

I spent last week with the delightful Burt Silverman at his annual drawing and painting workshop. Always a highlight of my summer. Here's what it looked like...

camp! [2010] v 2

2010-07-24T18:33:00.006-04:00

Jewelry Making at Katonah Art Center.

camp! [2010]

2010-07-17T17:32:00.033-04:00

Just finished a week of famous artists camp at Katonah Art Center. Thank you to my fabulous campers (and assistants). Here's what it looked like...

[Monday - Thursday (mostly Monday) - Romare Bearden]

[Tuesday - Alexander Calder]

[Wednesday + Thursday - Joseph Cornell]

[our finished Bearden "block"]

[Friday - Wayne Thiebaud]

[hot NY July day + cream cheese icing = death of the red velvet cake]

[playing with my iPhone apps]

[dancin' and flexin' to Mos Def, Badfinger and Michael Franti]

2010-07-15T21:06:00.004-04:00

Im'ma be CREATEing up a storm in Chicago in August...check it. And yes, I know that's not how you spell creating.

VQF - Saturday + Sunday

2010-06-27T23:38:00.013-04:00

After a long drive through a monsoon (I was not aware that Connecticut had a monsoon season, but okay), I'm home from my VQF adventure. Saturday's workshop was Fabric College and today's was Color Mixing (a hands on color theory class where you learn by painting). Most evenings after my super awesome workshops, I practiced yoga at the two lovely yoga studios I found in Burlington, which made it even more delightful. And besides having the best students, I also had the best roommates
(Melody Crust, Brenda Henning and Ann Fahl). Thanks everyone for your creativity and enthusiasm. Love you muchly. Now I have to go to bed, because summer camp starts tomorrow!!!!!!!!

[Saturday]

[I said they should bring a lot of fabric. They believed me.]

[The crowd at Saturday night's event... I made them all wave to me while I took their picture, and then I sang Danke Schoen. If you put me in front of hundreds people and stick a microphone in my face, Im'ma go all lounge singer on ya. 'Cause that's how I roll.]

[Sunday]

P.S. My next fiber arty gig is in Chicago at Create, August 27 + 28.

VQF - Friday

2010-06-26T19:18:00.006-04:00

Okay, Friday was Thread Painting + Bobbin Drawing day. I didn't take nearly as many photos as I thought (and none of the finished thread paintings, duh), but here are a few shots of my busy little students...

[the one finished bobbin drawing I got a good shot of...]

VQF - Thursday

2010-06-25T21:27:00.012-04:00

hey HEY hey, boys and girls. I'm having a lovely time here in beautiful Vermont at the Vermont Quilt Festival. Thursday's workshop was Photo Expansion - students start with a photo (printed on fabric) and expand the area beyond the edges of the photo with fabric. I had a rockin' group of students who all did incredible work (and I'm not just saying that). Here's what it looked like...

A big thanks to all my wonderful students.

peace out

P.S. Your next opportunity to take this workshop (actually, a variation of this technique) is at the East Coast Art Retreat in Danbury, CT in October 2010.

thread painting workshops, et al

2010-06-16T20:42:00.007-04:00

Okay, so my thread painting workshop at VQF is sold out (as is the fabric collage workshop), but I believe there's still room in the photo expansion and color mixing classes. I'll be teaching several workshops, including thread painty ones (see the above rat), at Create in Rosemont, IL (just outside Chicago) in August and Art is You - East Coast Art Retreat in Danbury, CT in October. Register now dudes, before those are sold out too. You don't have to make a rat. Not everyone likes rats. Call me crazy, I think they're cute.

NCQS > VQF

2010-06-09T14:25:00.010-04:00

So. I got back from the North Carolina Quilt Symposium Monday, but I've been a little crazed, so I'm just now bloggin'. I took very few pictures and most of them are blurry. Not even artistic-blurry, just regular blurry. I'm posting a few anyway. Thank you to everyone involved - y'all were so good to me. (I feel I'm allowed to say y'all in this case. I was in the south after all.) I had a wonderful time. A super special thank you to Grace Howes, DeLane Rosenau and Susan Brubaker Knapp for taking such good care of me.

[students hard at work in the Fabric Journals class]

[judging an "Iron Chef" type competition with Laura Wasilowski and David Taylor|

[I'm wearing gigantic underwear like a shrug. Don't ask.]

[Charlotte]

Now I'm gearing up for the Vermont Quilt Festival in a few short weeks. I know two of my workshops are sold out, but there are some spaces left in the other two (Photo Expansion and Color Mixing for Fabric Painting). Check it out here. Be there. Aloha.

[Photo Expansion class sample]

NCQS

2010-05-25T10:49:00.003-04:00

The countdown to North Carolina is on, peeps. Don't know if there's any space available in my workshops or lecture, but check it and see...

North Carolina Quilt Symposium (June 3 - 6, 2010, Charlotte, NC)
click here for more info

indie girl love adventures

2010-05-11T17:41:00.003-04:00

Check out Indie Girl Love Adventures, a newly launched website for all the single ladies, for which I designed the above wicked cool logo.
word.

NCQS

2010-05-03T18:41:00.005-04:00

Hey hey all you art quilty type peeps. It's almost NCQS time - I'll be teaching 2 workshops (Fabric Collage and Fabric Journals) and giving a lecture (Finding Your Voice, which is like Art History according to Elin) at the North Carolina Quilt Symposium (June 3 - 6, 2010, Charlotte, NC). Click here for more info. And need I remind you that I'm wicked fun and I've been known to break out into song and/or dance while teaching? So, yeah, I hope to see y'all there...

The Art of the Portrait

2010-04-26T15:00:00.007-04:00

I spent much of last week in Reston, VA (just outside DC) working at the Portrait Society of America's annual "Art of the Portrait" conference, where I had the great fortune to be painted (and drawn) by some of the finest artists around.

I didn't take many pictures, on accounta I was workin', but here are a few. These are from the face off - 15 artists painting simultaneously (3 artists per model) for 2 1/2 hours. I was painted by Clayton Beck, Tony Ryder and Robert Liberace.

[Tony at work]

[Clayton Beck]

[Tony Ryder]

[Robert Liberace]

[sadly, this was not a legitimate bid...]

The image at the top of the entry is a 15 minute(ish) sketch/demo that Rob did in one of his drawing workshops.

Many thanks to all the peeps at PSoA for the incredible event. Click here for more info and images (including all 15 face off paintings).

rock on

2010-04-17T20:31:00.002-04:00

some rock 'n roll posters, for your viewing pleasure...

QCN

2010-04-14T15:25:00.003-04:00

Read about my quirky artistic habits (and other fun stuff) on Quilter's Choice Network.

you’re the deepest well I’ve ever fallen into

2010-04-10T01:20:00.002-04:00

You and I
We might be strangers
However close we get sometimes
It’s like we never met

outta mind (outta sight)

2010-04-04T17:10:00.002-04:00

outtasite (outta mind)

[Friday night]

[Saturday night]

They have a very strict no photography policy :(

let the whiskey take the reins

2010-03-21T21:56:00.003-04:00

Rhett Miller | City Winery | 3.20.10

click me for video of Rhett's cover of Alex Chilton's O, Dana.

snowpocalypse ...

2010-02-26T16:09:00.004-05:00

part 4 or 5 - I've lost count.

Snoverdose.

strange birds v 2.0

2010-02-24T11:11:00.004-05:00

A ridiculously long time ago, I started working on a new batch of art*o*mat birdies. I have finally finished them. Chances are there will only be 50 of these guys evah ('cause I think I'll do something different for the next batch), so get 'em while you can.

Mi Corazón (again)

2010-02-15T11:18:00.007-05:00

The preview for tomorrow's "Tote Tuesday" is viewable on Virginia Spiegel's site. Here's what Virgina has to say about it...

"Warm up that charge card for the good cause that also lets you have a great time shopping. There will be 13 themed totes (art quilts, custom totes, fiber collages, gift certificates, books, yarn, buttons, hand-dyed fabrics, custom-made journals, more, more, more) AND three very special individual artworks by Gerrie Congdon, Terri Stegmiller, and Elin Waterston.

Go to the preview for ToteTuesday 3 here to see it all:

http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/ToteTuesdayFeb16.html

Bookmark that webpage as it will also be the site of the auction beginning at 11 a.m. CST tomorrow, Tuesday, February 16.

Thank you in advance for your generous support of this Fiberart For A Cause fundraiser for the American Cancer Society. Our goal is $10,000 with $5675 already raised."

update: SOLD!
A generous donation was made by Judi Eichler in memory of Sylvia Ezor (her grandmother) and in honor of her daughter, Lauren, who has a congenital heart defect.

NCQS

2010-02-03T14:38:00.006-05:00

Alright, alright boys and girls... registration is now open for the North Carolina Quilt Symposium (June 3 - 6, 2010, Charlotte, NC). I'll be teaching 2 - count 'em - 2 workshops (Fabric Collage and Fabric Journals) and giving 1 - um, count it - 1 lecture. All the pertinent information can be found here. And I'm a lot of fun, so you should register.

IF ... focused

2010-01-30T08:54:00.003-05:00

This is old, but it fits the Illo Friday theme so Im'ma use it.

Mi Corazón

2010-01-27T12:38:00.009-05:00

Tote Tuesday, a Fiberart For A Cause fundraiser for the American Cancer Society, organized by Virginia Spiegel, will open Tuesday, February 2 and continue through March. Mi Corazón (above) is my donation piece for Peggy Schroder's "Have a Heart" tote. See Virginia's website for details. I have also donated copies of The Art Quilt Workbook, Art Quilts at Play and the dvd Jane Davila & Elin Waterston Teach You Art Quilting Basics, but I'm not sure which tote they'll end up in.

A little 411 on Mi Corazón ... I printed the heart (one of my print a day blocks) on a new material, developed for the Italian fashion industry, which is made of recycled paper and plant fibers. This stuff was sent to me by my friend Alex of Aurifil and, as I told Alex, I'm diggin' it! (He's Italian and I like to teach him Americanisms). More to come about this product as I play with it more.

beach yoga (in the dead of winter)

2010-01-24T20:33:00.003-05:00

This was actually right after Christmas - the windchill was something below zero. brrrrr.

art is ...

2010-01-18T10:52:00.006-05:00

Yo. I've been suspiciously absent from the internets so far in twentyten. That's 'cause I've been working on samples for my Art is...you Art Retreat workshops. More info, pictures and official web linkage coming soon, but just to tempt you a little - Art is...you, an annual art retreat now in it's fourth year, will take place October 7th - 11th, in Danbury, CT. Registration begins February 1st.

peace

let's be jolly

2009-12-24T20:36:00.004-05:00

for a higher res version, click here

Peace y'all.

thanksgiving

2009-12-02T08:33:00.003-05:00

Cool Cat

2009-11-19T11:27:00.007-05:00

Hey animal lovers - I just listed an art quilt (above) on ebay to benefit A Place to Bark, a no kill foster and adoption rescue dedicated to the welfare of animals founded by the lovely and talented Bernie Berlin. Check it! And even if you don't buy my piece, look around at the other items for sale that benefit A Place to Bark or consider making a donation. Thanks y'all.

click me to see the ebay listing

update: SOLD!

screen printing workshop

2009-11-07T20:12:00.009-05:00

@ KAC

birthdays

2009-10-21T08:32:00.004-04:00

...thinking about my beautiful boy child and missing my mama on this, their shared birthday.

[cutest. boy. ever.]

[San Francisco]

[his high school yearbook picture - taken in the photo booth at the Andy Warhol Museum]

[Italy]

[my mama and her dog Rags]

reconnecting

2009-10-13T16:43:00.007-04:00

I love social networking. Although nobody ever talks to me on myspace any more and I only ever go there to change my playlist. Poor myspace. But I digress. Several months ago I reconnected (via facebook) with some high school friends that I haven't seen since, well, since high school. Many, many years ago. I have to say that not all of my reconnects have been good ones, but these were. I had the opportunity to spend some time with them (in Boston) last month and it was wicked. The picture above is us in 2009. I won't show you any from high school, but trust me, we've aged beautifully.

Liquitexalicious

2009-10-03T08:26:00.011-04:00

Remember a couple weeks ago I said I had gotten a box of goodies from C&T Publishing? Well, here's the dealio. C&T has a new product - the Liquitex® Surface Design Center - a line of surface design materials meant to appeal to artists interested in fabric painting or art quilting. So I got some samples to play with. I'm already a Liquitex user (now I guess I'm a pusher too), because I like their Basics line of acrylic primary colors and use them in my color mixing workshops. But some of these products were new to me and me likey. Here's the scoop ...

For the piece above (and detail below): I block printed the Jizo, squares and double happiness character using Liquitex Soft Body acrylics, which have a very yummy texture and a nice hand. For the lotus flowers, I used the Basics acrylic paint. When the printed images were dry, I did an ink wash over the whole piece (with the ink!s from my original post about this). Very cool - really deep saturated colors with a super liquidy viscosity.

For the Cherry Blossom piece (below): I screen printed the background and stem using the Soft Body acrylics mixed with Fabric Medium and painted the blossoms with the acrylic inks.

[Luckily, I like the imperfect prints]

Sweet. Thank you Liquitex and C&T!

IF ... pattern

2009-09-27T13:02:00.005-04:00

My first Illustration Friday entry in more than a year!

beach yoga (finale)

2009-09-26T17:21:00.008-04:00

Alas, my favorite thing about this summer has come to an end. I guess it had to. And frankly, there was something fundamentally wrong with looking for my winter gloves while wearing a bikini this morning. Thanks to yogi Greg for a marvelous run.

[all bundled up and serious before class]

[nobody wanted class to end :( ]

[playing on the beach after class]

Namaste.

beach yoga (continued)

2009-09-24T07:15:00.004-04:00

I practice yoga on the beach in Rowayton, CT every Saturday morning (and yes, that's as glorious as it sounds). For the last several weeks it's been "the last one" of the summer. But every week, the teacher (Greg) says..."okay, we'll go one more week." I envision us going on forever, doing downward dog in January, in boots and winter coats. It could happen, right?

[already cold and it's only September!]

[Greg doing Tai Chi on the dock after class]

[p.s. thanks for the pictures, Stephanie!]

I'm dressed all in white

2009-09-20T21:21:00.009-04:00

Rhett mmmmmmmmmMiller at my least favorite NYC music venue (Webster Hall) last night.

and I remember the night
you came on to me and opened up my heart
I was hollow then 'til you filled me in
now I'm empty again
I should have never let it start

ink! ink! ink!

2009-09-18T16:43:00.005-04:00

Yo. I just got a box o' yummy stuff to play with (not just the aforementioned ink ink ink), from C&T Publishing. Stay tuned - I'm gonna get my hands into it all tomorrow (after beach yoga and before Rhett Miller).

you get a second chance, it's with you every day

2009-09-16T08:53:00.008-04:00

Rhett Miller and the Serial Lady Killers at The Chance, Poughkeepsie, NY.

And to the guy who started rubbing and scratching my back for no apparent reason, and then said "Is this too forward?" Um...yes.

I bet you said
what have I done to deserve this mess
that’s as easy as a question gets
well, you should have said yes
but you couldn’t care less

my day job (continued)

2009-08-27T13:35:00.005-04:00

"Elin - Waiting"
oil on canvas, 43" x 30"
by the amazing, remarkable Daniel Greene

camp! [one more time]

2009-08-19T20:14:00.002-04:00

Last week's camps...

Repurposed Art
[recycled newspaper coil thingies that don't have a name picture frames]

[candy wrapper + ticket stub boxes]

[sweater fish - the kids drew pictures of fish, cut up old sweaters in the fish shapes, sewed and stuffed them]

[we stuffed the fish using old vhs tape that we rescued from the trash. the tape was like catnip - everybody went crazy rolling around in it and throwing it in the air. who knew?]

[the eyeballs were made from the wrappers of my Builder Bars]

[finished fish]

[candy tin + bottle cap collages]

FAMOUS ARTISTS
Romare Bearden

Joseph Cornell

Wayne Thiebaud

note: we did Jackson Pollock paintings too, but I don't have a single picture. pffft.

So. Last week's dance party was not so much requested by a student, more announced. First thing Monday morning I was explaining about the week and what projects we were going to do and whatnot when a student said "AND we have a dance party on the last day!" We had two - one in the morning, one in the afternoon. Honestly, I think I could just do a whole week of dance party summer camp. Six hours a day of dance parties. Who's with me?

[morning dance party]

[afternoon dance party]

[after the end of camp on the last day]

[sometimes I think I'm Bob Fosse]

I love you and miss you, my little campers.

camp! [again and again and again]

2009-08-09T15:02:00.005-04:00

SURFACE DESIGN
[Shibori/compression dyeing]

[resist painting]

[block printing]

[more compression dyeing]

[screen printing]

JEWELRY MAKING
[beading]

[wood + paper]

[buttons + more beading]

[polymer clay]

[PMC]

[post ice cream truck visit]

[what my living room looks like on Sunday nights]

I want you

2009-08-06T00:42:00.008-04:00

to want me

I'm not one for celebrity crushes, but this guy is on my very, very short list.

what a wicked game to play
to make me feel this way
what a wicked thing to do
to let me dream of you

camp! [again]

2009-08-02T22:06:00.002-04:00

Another week of summer camp down - 3 (maybe 4) weeks to go. Here's what this week looked like...

JEWELRY MAKING
[beading]

[wood + paper]

[polymer clay + Pearl Ex]

[clay silver]

[David firing the clay silver pieces with a blow torch]

[putting everything together]

[some of the finished clay silver pieces]

WORLD CRAFTS
Dia de los Muertos Nichos [Mexico]

Daruma Dolls [Japan]

Adinkra Cloth [Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire, West Africa]

Kachinas [Hopi and Zuni tribes, United States of America]

weekly dance party...I didn't realize until after the fact that we danced to lost love/broken heart songs (Always Something There to Remind Me + Tainted Love/Where Did Our Love Go - see lyrics below).

I can't help recalling how it felt to kiss and hold you tight
how can I forget you
when there is always something there to remind me
I was born to love you
and I will never be free