Fiber on a Whim

New McKenna Ryan Patterns

2012-02-09T15:27:00.004-05:00

We are still totally hooked on anything that has to do with birds and trees. Check out the patterns we just got in by McKenna Ryan. Very easy raw-edge applique blocks that look very intricate. The cutting goes surprisingly quick since the blocks are only 8 x8" or 12 x 12".

McKenna Ryan Patterns

Inktense Pencil Tutorial & Sale of the Week

2012-02-02T11:29:00.016-05:00

Okay.....so we know this is really late and we apologize. Better late then never though right!! This is our little tutorial on using Derwent Inktense Pencils. They can be found at Fiber on a Whim for 10% off a 24pk totaling $44.99 Also the book Mixed Media Color is 10% off and shows a lot of different painting techniques including Inktense Pencils. First, and foremost these pencils are an ink based watersoluble pencil. Once you have wet the ink on the fabric, whether by wet brush after application or by damp brush to apply, and it dries it is PERMANENT. You can heat set it if you wish but it is not necessary. This means they can be on a quilt you wish to wash and there won't be any problems.

The first picture shows a plain white fabric being taped down on freezer paper to prevent the pencils from coming through on to your table.

Here everything is finally ready to start playing with the pencils, paintbrushes, paper towel, water, and fabric.

This pic shows you a couple different techniques and the looks they get you. Each has been described in a caption next to the drawing. A damp brush means she wet the brush then dabbed some of the water off on her paper towel before picking up color off the pencil tip or before applying it to the pencil drawing already on the fabric.

This fabric used soy wax and paint to create this initial layer.

The Inktense Pencils were then used to "doodle" inside to create another layer of design.

This dogwood piece started off as a piece of plain white PFD fabric. The whole image was created using the pencils with the damp brush technique. Once it was done it was too strong of a color saturation for the look and it was flipped over. This is the back of the fabric. That is why the colors are so soft and watercolor looking.

The blue and green background is a piece of hand painted fabric once again. You have more control it seems over the pencils on an already painted background. You can see in the technique image above the amount of bleeding on a plain white fabric. The branches were drawn in using the pencils.

Test fabric

Closeup of final piece.

The right fabric didn't present itself for the wall of the church. The back of a printed cotton was chosen, taped off using 1/4" tape, and colored in with the Inktense pencils.

Test fabric

Closeup of final piece.

Thermofax Screens

2012-01-22T15:34:00.004-05:00

Thermofax screens are a great thing to add to your toolbox! You can have a screen made from just about anything. A photo you've taken, a word, a letter, and the list goes on and on. The main thing to keep in mind is that it has to be a high contrast black and white image/copy in order for the thermofax machine to make a great screen.

We have pre-made screens as well as the ability to custom order one of your own design at:

http://www.fiberonawhim.com/shop/Surface-Design-Supplies/Thermofax-Screens.htm

Online Sale of the Week 20% off pre-made thermofax screens.

Here's a little video about thermofax screens. More information follows:

(For some reason I had difficulty getting the video on to the blog....I think it's too big. So the link will take you to the video on youtube.)

http://youtu.be/ItM8AG98y8Q

A little step by step process of using a thermofax screen to screen print!

1) Either put your screen into a plastic frame using duct tape or use the duct tape alone to create a frame.

2) Make sure you have a good padded surface to work on.

3) Pick your paint. Can be Golden Fluid Acrylic, Setacolor Opaque, Prochem Textile paint, or even Lumiere paint. The mica in the Lumiere can clog up the screen so you have to be really good about cleaning it immediately after use.

4) Make sure you have a tool to move the paint across the screen to push the paint through. The plastic/hard paper cards that come with credit card offers are great.

5) Lay out your fabric on your padded surface.

6) Put your screen shiny side down where you would like the image to print. (There are two sides to the screen. Shiny and matte. You will be able to tell.)

7) Squirt the paint in a line down the length of your image or use a popsicle stick to get the paint out of the jar and into a line.

8) Use the tool to pull the paint across the image and push it through the screen onto your fabric.

9) Pull up the corner to see if you've gotten the image as clear as you want it. If not, lay it back down and pull more paint through the image with your tool/card.

10) When you are done with the screen clean it immediately so that you ensure a long life for your screen. You want to be able to use it over and over.

My 12 Connected Challenge Piece for "Home" Theme: "Family Makes It a Home" by Jan Girod

2012-01-15T21:13:00.005-05:00

I was very late with my "Home" piece for the final challenge of the group 12 Connected that I committed to two years ago. Honestly, life just kept getting in my way...work, family holiday plans and illnesses. I know it's the same for all of us...I chose to live by the saying, "better late, than never".

As always when the new word is announced I have to mull it over for awhile, ideas and thoughts need to ferment. Having always felt that home was wherever my family is, so began my thoughts for this piece. With that in mind I knew that somehow this house photo and a collage of vintage family photos would be the "heart" of this piece...just like a real home.
With that in mind I didn't know how to achieve the look I was after, so I printed each on pre-treated inkjet cotton and on ExtravOrganza. Then I auditioned them on the background fabric and decided that the first layer would be the house printed on the cotton. The next layer is the family photo collage on the ExtravOrganza, shown by itself below. Doesn't look like much does it?
But look what happens when pinned over the house print....very ethereal...exactly the affect I was trying to achieve. Yes!!! The background fabric is called Etchings by 3sisters for Moda...absolutely perfect.
I then removed the ExtravOrganza print and machine quilted the piece. including the house. Once that was done I fringed the edges of the family photo, which is easy to do with organza..because it is silk I could have burned the edges but I thought that might give it too hard an edge. Layered it back over the house and hand embroidered around the edges using a simple featherstitch.
Then I simply embellished with my Grandmothers' mother-of-pearl buttons, tied at the corners, added a small key and a Habitat for Humanity charm that says, "Bless this House", exactly the right concept for this challenge quilt.
When I read what the final word would be..."Home", my musings were that it seemed so fitting...our first word was "Sanctuary" and now our final word is "Home". Many times I've said, "my home is my sanctuary" and I've always hoped that I've created a "home" for my family that gives them that warmhearted feeling.

If you would like to see the groups work please check out the blog, www.12connected@blogspot.com

Quilter's Marketplace Sanford, NC Jan 6 & 7

2012-01-03T16:25:00.002-05:00

We will be vending at the Quilter's Marketplace in Sanford, NC January 6 & 7, 2012. If you are in the area, stop on by. There will be 34 vendors at this event. It is NOT a quilt show but merely a marketplace filled with goodies for all you quilters, mixed media artists, and knitters/crocheters. We will be a little different in set up for this show. Half of the booth will be our normal items that are our everyday staples. We will also have lots of fabric in yardage with us for this show. The other half of the booth will be "spring cleaning" a little early. We need to make room in order to get space for some new stuff. This half will have items 30-90% off. There is even some fabric coming with us that will be $5/yard!! Stop on by and see us!!!! Booth #40.

Keep an eye out for changes coming this year. We will be posting something "new" every Monday! We hope that many of you will enjoy this new aspect. We know that we are excited to start it.

Last Day Inventory Blowout Sale

2012-01-01T08:50:00.001-05:00

Last Day: Inventory Blowout Sale
Sunday January 1, 2012

Get your last orders in today!

www.fiberonawhim.com

Day 6 Sale:

40% off ONE item!!

You get to pick your sale! This can be 1 book, 1 piece of fabric (ie...if you order more then one yard of the same fabric you will get 40% off it all because it is ONE item), 1 kit, 1 of whatever you choose. Excludes clearance items.

Our system can not put 40% off to just one item so place your order and complete the paypal authorization. We will adjust your order as we fill it to give you the 40% off your most expensive item. We will only capture/charge you the appropriate cost.

No other offers/coupons accepted.

Day 4: Ephemera/Embellishment Day

2011-12-30T05:27:00.000-05:00

Day 4: Inventory Blowout Sale
Friday December 30, 2011

www.fiberonawhim.com

Day #4 Sale:

25% off Tim Holtz Idea-ology, Distress Stain & Distress Ink

25% off 7 Gypsies (Scrapbook Section)

Day #4 Blowout:

50% off Grungeboard (Tim Holtz Section)

Day 3: Inventory Blowout Sale Paints & Dyes Day

2011-12-29T06:48:00.000-05:00

Day 3: Inventory Blowout Sale
Thursday December 29, 2011

www.fiberonawhim.com

Day #3 Sale:

10% off Thermofax Screens (Surface Design Supplies)

25% off Exciter Packs of Dye-na-Flow, Textile Traditionals & Lumiere (Painting & Dyeing Supplies)

25% off the following:
Derwent Inktense Pencils (Surface Design Supplies)
Cindy Walter's Stabilized Fabric (Misc. Dyeing & Painting Supplies)
Claudine Hellmuth Studio Gesso (Surface Design Supplies: Misc Supplies)

Day #3 Blowout:

50% off the following:
Liquitex Black Lava Setacolor Paints
Tsukineko Inks Shiva Paintstiks
Procion MX Dyes Super Hand Cleaner
Fabrico Markers

Don't forget that we will hold orders to combine shipping over the 6 day sale. You will get FREE domestic shipping if your combined orders total $75 or over. You must check out each day and your shipping will be adjusted on any following sales. Keep in mind our everyday prices are already 10% off suggested retail prices. (The sale price is 15% or 40% off the everyday price due to this.) No other offers/coupons will be accepted.

Day 2: Inventory Blowout Sale

2011-12-28T06:01:00.001-05:00

Day 2: Inventory Blowout Sale
Wednesday December 28, 2011

www.fiberonawhim.com

Day #2 Sale:

25% off ALL Inkjet Fabrics

25% off ALL Australian Fabrics

Day #2 Blowout:

50% off all Hotfix Swarovski Crystals (Embellishments/Fiber section)
50% off Bead Mixes, Shisha Mirrors & Silver Beads (Beads/Buttons section)

Day #1 Inventory Blowout Sale

2011-12-27T05:58:00.001-05:00

Day 1: Inventory Blowout Sale
Tuesday December 27, 2011

Day #1 Sale:

25% off ALL Books

Day #1 Blowout:

50% off all Roving and Needlefelting Supplies (Embellishments/Fiber section)
50% off Art Gallery Purse Kits (Kits section)

www.fiberonawhim.com
Don't forget that we will hold orders to combine shipping over the 6 day sale. You will get FREE domestic shipping if your combined orders total $75 or over. You must check out each day and your shipping will be adjusted on any following sales. Keep in mind our everyday prices are already 10% off suggested retail prices. (The sale price is 15% or 40% off the everyday price due to this.) No other offers/coupons will be accepted.

6 Day Inventory Blowout Sale

2011-12-22T07:38:00.001-05:00

As the year comes to a close, it gets closer and closer to inventory time. Seeing as how we don't really want to count ALL of the stuff we have we're going to have a sale! Here's how it's going to work:

1) It's 6 days worth of savings.
2) Starts December 27th and ends January 1st.
3) Each day will have a new category featured with a sale.
4) There will be one or two deeply discounted "blowout" sale items/category each day.
5) The last 2 days Dec. 31st and Jan. 1st will have a special twist.
6) We will gladly hold orders to combine shipping of items
purchased through the 6 days but you will have to
complete your order each day. Shipping costs
will be adjusted on any following
orders in the 6 days.

It's Beginning to Look, Part 2....

2011-12-19T23:03:00.003-05:00

I liked the placement of the Christmas tree so much last year, that I repeated it's placement this year. The quilt behind it is called "Winter's Blanket" and is part of a Bargello style series I did about my home state of Minnesota. I think it goes great with the holiday decor.
This is a sampling of the ornaments on the tree; the top 2 are the newest additions to my Santa collection. Thank you for my special gifts. The bottom 2; well you move a Midwestern girl to the South and this is what happens...corn cobs and cotton bolls find there way onto the tree....somewhere on here there is even a "Okra"Santa.

The stockings are all hung.....I know there are 5 and none of these coordinate but I'm a "bit" sentimental when it comes to the holidays and it just wouldn't be Christmas without my childhood stocking or my husbands, so...that's how it will always be.

I collect Santa Clauses! This is no accident, someone began this collection years ago, the Santa below was my first and I cannot even tell you how old I was, cause I've "always" had it. It still works and when I take him out I know it's holiday time!

Happy Holidays Everyone!

It's Beginning to Look......

2011-12-18T23:29:00.004-05:00

While the "cat" was away this past week the "mouse" did play...I managed to decorate our home for the holidays. I must confess that I did not put out even 1/3 of what we have, must be getting old or just plain lazy. Looks good to me. This tour starts in the entryway (if you follow this blog this piece of furniture will look familiar...but I swear I changed it up a little this year).
I think we bought this house just so I could decorate the stairway...I love it. This year I did this portion of the decorating in record time...a couple of hours before our Holiday Open House. Then I had to add the Star and box with door knobs and all after viewing a holiday blog tour of homes.
Just a few from our Nativity collection were placed in the bookcase. I found the vintage pop-up paper one on the trip to Houston for the International Quilt Festival in 2010...I forgot I had it last year, so it is making it's first appearance. We try to stop and check out a couple of antique shops along our drive, amazing what the "young one" will do to make sure I keep moving and/or driving. She says she has no patience, but I beg to differ with her.
After our Holiday Open House was cleaned away, I created a dining room for the special holiday meals in the space, with my grandson telling me this morning that it "looks cute". Guess that was a resounding stamp of approval.
This last room tonight is just a little glimpse of the kitchen. These were the only spots that were clean after family breakfast today.
Tomorrow I will post a few more pictures. Thanks for stopping by.

Holiday Open House Goodies

2011-12-01T22:35:00.045-05:00

Thanks for joining us for our Holiday Open House!!

Here's how it's going to work. If you see something below that you want, email us at fiberonawhim@yahoo.com and tell us which item you'd like. Tell us if you'd like to pay via Paypal or include your phone number if you'd like to pay via credit card. If the item is still available, we will either give you a call or invoice you through Paypal with the total amount including shipping/tax.

Framed Landscapes

Wine Country by Janelle Girod $35

Sea Fence by Janelle Girod $35

Winter Mountain by Janelle Girod (Acquired)

Winter Woods by Janelle Girod $35

Green by Janelle Girod $35

By the Water by Janelle Girod $35

Collages

Deck the Halls by Kristin Rodriguez (Canvas) $35

Untitled (Girl w/Spool) $45

Beauty by Kristin Rodriguez $45

#42 by Kristin Rodriguez $35

Notes by Kristin Rodriguez $25

Untitled (Canvas) by Kristin Rodriguez $20

Fly Away by Kristin Rodriguez $25

Artist Gift Packs

The picture below gives you an idea of what is contained in the gift pack.
Each box contains 3 jars full of goodies. It also has ribbons, tags, a journaling ticket, and much more. Perfect for collages or art quilts.

Imagine Gift Pack $25

Adventure Gift Pack $25

Bird Cage Gift Pack $25

Ticket Gift Pack $25

Journaling

Journaling Gift Pack (2 available) $9.95

Sing Journal Acquired

Friend Journal $15

Accordian Books in their box $15 each

Steampunk Jewelry

$12 each (Play, Live, Journey) Approx 18 -20"

Thoughts Necklace $20 Approx 20"

Time Necklace - Acquired

Toggle Necklace $25 Approx 20"

Charm Bracelet #1 $25

Charm Bracelet #2 $25

Gear Bracelet $18 (2 available)

Ornaments
$10 each or 3 for $25

(Doll, Flower, Lamp, Bear)

(Angel, Bird, Let it Snow, Santa)

Small Gift Tags $3.50 each

$10 each or 3 for $25

Cherubs

$15 each

Beaded Jewelry

Pink Leaf $75 18" (Abalone, Pearls, and Sterling Silver)

Blue Flower $60 20" (Abalone, Pearls, and Sterling Silver)

Open House Sneak Peek #5

2011-11-29T13:34:00.001-05:00

Here is an example of a Journaling Gift Pack. It includes a 7 Gypsies book cover, binding rings, paper, and other ephemera/scrapbook paper by 7 Gypsies and Tim Holtz. It would make a great gift.

Open House Sneak Peek #4

2011-11-28T17:39:00.002-05:00

Here are a couple pieces of "steampunk" style jewelry that will be available at the Open House. Above is an example of the necklaces, the words and gears may vary. Below is a bracelet.

Houston:Special Exhibit; In Full Bloom

2011-11-27T22:20:00.004-05:00

As I prepped Open House Sneak Peek #3 I came across a Houston photo that hadn't made it to the blog yet...so indulge a proud Mom. Here is Kristin standing in front of her quilt, "Lotus" which was part of the "In Full Bloom 2011: Floral Quilts in Memory of Helen Pearce O'Byrant".

Open House Sneak Peek #3

2011-11-27T22:08:00.003-05:00

I know today's sneak peek is a little late...but better late than never. These are 2 of several landscapes that will be available at the Open House. Using fabric as paint and embellishments to add texture/depth each is a little snippet of a photo or what is out the window.

Open House Sneak Peek #2

2011-11-27T09:59:00.002-05:00

I missed yesterday's sneak peek so today you'll get 2. This first one is some more ornaments/gift tags. They are not complete quite yet but will eventually have an eyelet with ribbon to hang from. Check back later for the other sneak peek.

Open House Sneak Peek #1

2011-11-25T17:31:00.009-05:00

I'm going to do my best to post at least one picture of some of the items that will be found in our open house each day leading up to it. It is Friday Dec 2nd from 9-5 and Saturday Dec 3rd from 9-2. Don't forget some of the items will be posted on the blog so that those who can't make it can do holiday shopping with us as well.

Here are a few mixed media ornaments!!

This was the start of some fun for the Artist Inspiration Boxes. (The store owner thought we were a little mad when we said we wanted 20 or so empty boxes.)

Here's the outside of one of the boxes.

The inside contains 3 glass jars. The jars have Tim Holtz/7 Gypsies ephemera, buttons, and found objects. Also there are shipping tags, ribbon, green burlap, a journaling ticket, & a bird tag.
Each box is slightly different then the next.

Addition to our Holiday Open House

2011-11-10T13:42:00.002-05:00

We will also have on hand for gifts savory snacks and delectable sweets by Magilatootsie's here in Marietta. She will be giving us Savannah Crunch, Blond Peanut Brittle, "Dream About Me" Fudge and more. All homemade and super yummy. These will be fabulous gifts or holiday treats for yourself as well.

Holiday Open House Dec 2nd & 3rd

2011-11-09T17:56:00.006-05:00

Here's some of our recent artwork and this gives you an idea some of what could be at our open house.

We are hosting an open house that will have so many things to give as gifts or to add to your stash for your own inspiration.

When: Friday December 2nd from 9AM-5PM and Saturday the 3rd from 9AM-2PM
Where: 4317 Sprucebough Dr.
Marietta, GA 30062
Phone: 404-705-9164

What to expect:
Keep watching here for peaks at what to expect. We will also do our best to add items here so that those of you who can't join us can still do your gift buying for yourself or for that artsy friend!!

Artist Gift Packs - Creative Inspiration for yourself or your friend (Journaling, Art Quilt, Collage & Ephemera Themed Packs/Kits)
Accordian Books
Ornaments
Steampunk Jewelry
Journals
Notecard Sets
Mixed Media/Ephemera Embellishments
Framed Collage & Landscape Pieces
Fat Quarter Gift Sets
Baby Quilts
Lap Quilts
& Much More!!!

Accordian Book using Tim Holtz ephemera, vintage photos, grungeboard and more.

This piece was done to show what the Adirondack Color Wash can do on fabric and paper. It is a water based dye that you spray on to your surface. It is permanent once heat set on fabric!!!! So simple cause no mixing of a powder or liquid. Just spray and move around with a wet paintbrush. ***This will be back in stock on our website the week of Nov. 14th***
www.fiberonawhim.com

Booth #800 at Houston

2011-11-05T08:30:00.005-04:00

This is the way the booth looked when we walked up to it on Tuesday. A blank canvas.

Curtains hung and now time to start getting all the product out.

Here's the final view on Wednesday just before opening night.

Look how close we are to the front of the building!! We can see daylight....lol.

Of course our booth no longer looks exactly like this as we sell out of product and we have to rearrange but it did look all nice and crisp at one point!!!

Trip to Houston

2011-11-01T13:21:00.004-04:00

We are here in Houston and just waiting a few more hours until set up will begin for this year's Quilt Festival. Here is a couple photos of the van full of product that we have with us!! We couldn't help but notice that we had more space we could have filled. Then again we only have a 10 x 10' space!! Can't wait till tomorrow night when we will start seeing many of you come through the booth for yet another year. This year we are NOT in MIU but in a much better booth space. Booth #800 just to the left inside the main entrance. See you there!!!

Wedding Gift

2011-10-15T15:19:00.002-04:00

This is what I came up with when I decided to make a quick wedding gift for a friend of mine getting married today. This is similar to the design she had on her wedding invitation! Hope she likes it. Can't say I've ever done a painting before!

Prep work for Houston Part II

2011-10-11T12:23:00.007-04:00

Finally making that cool Faux Leather Journal that Sue Bleiweiss had in Cloth Paper Scissors a year ago. This has been so much easier then I imagined. This is to highlight both the Golden Fluid Acrylic we carry as well as the Grungeboard. Both can be found at www.fiberonawhim.com

We also are waiting for the arrival of Adirondack Color Wash which can be used on fabric, paper and other fibers. Here's what I was playing with on the piece of fabric below.

The Lettuce Green was put on while for fabric was totally dry and a wet paintbrush was used to move around the color. The Stream color on the bottom was applied to the fabric after it was wet. Then a wet paintbrush was used to fill in the white portions.

Then I used the Color Wash on a canvas. I applied the color and let it dry. Then I applied the 7 Gypsies tissue paper, coming soon, over the top. Now to add some dimensional bits to it.

These tags are in process and will be used on a piece but the are also spritzed with the Adirondack Color Wash.

Prep work for Houston

2011-10-08T12:47:00.003-04:00

We are working on getting a few new display things ready for our front row booth in Houston. Here's a couple of new boxes to hold our found objects. I think they turned out really cool and want to make a few more...lol!!! Stay tuned for more updates. Many of the orders have gone in and the stuff should be arriving shortly. Then the play begins. Soooooooooo many new things in store for us.

Latest T-shirt Quilt

2011-08-03T23:21:00.003-04:00

This is the latest t-shirt quilt. This woman wanted all of her sorority t-shirts made up into something she could use. It turned out to be 68" wide x 74" tall. She asked for shabby chic and I think the fabric turned out perfectly for this one!!

My 12 Connected Challenge Piece for "Yes" Theme: "Yes, In Any Language" by Jan Girod

2011-08-01T23:02:00.003-04:00

This is not the quilt that I set out to make. How many times has that happened to you? The idea of using the word "Yes" in several languages was part of my thought process for this challenge from the beginning, but not the techniques used or the end result. Once again my daughter had to flat out tell me that I was hung up on the techniques, clearly they were not getting me where I wanted to go and that I needed to forget the plan. Well she was so very right. I actually had to grovel tonight. I thanked her for the "kick in the pants", that I actually love the way this piece turned out and that it is probably better than expected. Actually kissed her cheek in gratitude for her bluntness...which by the way she is very good at.
I am sorry that the colors in the photo's seem so different, I wanted to get these posted and did not wish to take time to set up my photography lighting. The top photo is the accurate photo, but in order for you to see the writing clearly I had to illuminate my design wall with my work lamp.

View the group's work at http://www.12connected.blogspot.com Thank you!

AQS Knoxville Class

2011-07-17T22:03:00.004-04:00

AQS Knoxville is now a thing of the past! This was their last year there and are now switching to Grand Rapids, MI. I was honored to be asked to teach a class when they had a teacher back out. I was also mildly surprised that they were willing to pick up a mixed media collage class. I was then further surprised that it was SOLD OUT!! I had so much fun teaching the class. These are the only two pictures I managed since of course Murphy's Law meant that my camera battery died.

Students working away! Most completed two 5x7" collages and four ATCs.

SDA Conference

2011-06-06T16:55:00.002-04:00

We will be vending at Confluence; 2011 International Surface Design Association Conference in Minneapolis-St. Paul. You will find us at the Radison University Hotel in the Vendor Mall beginning Thursday, June 9th 6:00-8:00 PM; Friday, June 10th 8:30-2:00, Break-back 6:00-10:00 PM; Saturday, June 11th 8:30-5:00; Sunday, June 12th 8:30-10:00 AM. Come on by and introduce yourself, it's always fun to put a face with a name.

My 12 Connected Challenge Piece for "Spring" Theme: "Ain't No Spring Chicken" by Jan Girod

2011-06-01T22:07:00.003-04:00

This is not what I orginally planned to create, but a nap with the dictionary and I awoke with a whole new plan. After recently cleaning and organizing our studio spaces, I found so many things long forgotten about. This chicken block was left over from a Mary Lou Weidman quilt I made eons ago. She provided just enough attitude to create a great looking "spring chicken".

Her curls were originally the springs in 3 older ball point pens, those pens don't work anymore and hubbys' collection is a few less. A trip to the party store provided her legs and feet. Dismantling little notebooks left me with great legs, just the right length and her feet were part of a hand clapping toy. She has made me smile and giggle ever since she was done.

You can see the other "Spring" challenge pieces by other members of the group at http://www.12connected@blogspot.com

Studios by ClothPaperScissors Summer 2011

2011-05-31T17:26:00.002-04:00

We are excited to be included in the summer issue of "Studios" magazine in the section devoted to mother's and daughter's who share studio space. When we were invited to participate, we took one look at our mess, took action and finally organized the spaces. We now have a sewing studio and a mixed media studio, close enough to get input from the other, but not be right on top of each other. Our photographer was Jeremy Girod....son/brother.....keeping it all in the family. Since everyone who has seen the photos says the spaces are too neat for anyone to be creative in, we have talked about posting "after" photos. Hmmmm! Maybe we will have to do that.

My 12 Connected Challenge Piece for the "Bird" Theme: "Blue Bird, Blue Bird" by Jan Girod

2011-05-31T16:55:00.003-04:00

Tomorrow, June 1st is the day for the 12 Connected Group to unveil their latest challenge and I realized that I had not posted the April 1st challenge, here it is.
When the word for this challenge was announced I leapt with joy as I have been using these birds in my work quite frequently....this would be so easy. At midnight last night (March 31st)as I stitched away I was thinking, oh what a fool you are, but it is done and I feel absolute relief. For several years now I keep finding myself using trees and birds in piece after piece....sketchbook too. I have attributed it to growing up in Minnesota, following behind my uncle who became a wildlife biologist. My friends never did get my affinity for snakes, oh well to each his own.
I began with a unique piece of hand painted fabric I had been saving for a special project, it fit perfectly. The branches are drawn in freehand and colored using Derwent Inktense Pencils...love using them. Once everything had dried I transferred on the birds using TAP-Transfer Artist Paper. Leaves are a combination of painted Wonder-Under, sheer fabrics and free motion quilting.

Yipppppeeeeee.........

2011-05-27T17:09:00.003-04:00

I just got notice today that my quilt was accepted in to the In Full Bloom exhibit for Houston!! This quilt, other then one for the journal quilt project, will be my first one to hang at a national show!! I'm so excited!! I don't know if they allow you to post pics so I'm going to err on the side of caution and not post any!! Yipppeeeee......this has been a great month......acceptance of a quilt and our studio in Studios Magazine!!

Altered Clothing

2011-05-12T09:57:00.000-04:00

I was going to donate this top since it was long sleeve and is now too big. Then I figured....hmmmm....wonder if I could alter it to be something I could wear now. So I sat down this past weekend and worked on it.

Here's the finished top:

I took in the side seams so that it isn't as baggy anymore. I cut off the sleeves and then used a piece from one of them to create the flower. It actually turned out!! Now I think I'll have to look at other tops a little differently before I throw them out.

Marietta Art Walk April 1st

2011-03-09T15:18:00.003-05:00

We are so excited!! We were invited to participate in Marietta Square's Art Walk. We will be the featured artists at the Cobb Museum of Art on April 1st, 2011! We will be doing demos and also have finished artwork to sell. East Cobb Quilt Guild also has a quilt exhibit called "The Art of the Quilt" that will be on display inside the museum. Come on out to this great event. See you then!

My 12 Connected Challenge Piece for the "Change" theme; "The Game of Life" by Jan Girod

2011-01-31T21:52:00.004-05:00

Change, a word with many layers….life changes occur whether we “want” them to or not, some good, some bad. So as I pondered the meaning of this word I was a bit overwhelmed by the ideas of how I could proceed. Then lightening struck…..simplify! Take the medium we all love to work with, fabric, alter it through surface design or simply cut and paste, so to speak. A couple of the commercial fabrics were used as is; on others the following techniques were used by me or friends to “change” the cloth: hand-dyeing, shibori and discharge. I then tore, cut, fused or stitched the fabrics together into a random composition that I found pleasing…simple as that.

If you would like to view the other group members "Change" pieces please go to the group website. www.12connected.blogspot.com

Recent Projects

2011-01-29T18:00:00.004-05:00

Here's a few things I've made this weekend. It was a baby project weekend. I made a few burp cloths for friends. Also got asked to knit a pair of baby booties for a friend. I just had to make these Mary Jane's!!!!

Woohoo.....Teaching at AQS Knoxville in July!!!

2011-01-27T16:12:00.004-05:00

Woohoo.....we got asked to teach a class at AQS Knoxville in July!!! The class is on Thursday July 14th from 1-4PM and will be taught by Kristin Rodriguez. The class is titled Fabric and Paper Mixed Media Collage. Catalogs are being finalized now and should be mailed out shortly by AQS.

Here's the class:

Don't we all need instant gratification? While in the midst of all those large quilting projects sometimes we just need to feel like we've accomplished something. Collages are the perfect way to get that sense of completion to keep you moving. In this workshop, you will work with both fabric and paper. You will create two 5 x 7" collages. One will be fabric based and the other will be on a watercolor paper background that you create yourself. You will also create four ATCs that you may choose to swap at the end of class. This class uses TAP, Misty-fuse, cheesecloth, painting, stamping, scrapbooking products, embellishments, ephemera, and more!!!

2011-01-18T15:04:00.003-05:00

Join us at:

MYRTLE BEACH QUILT PARTY

Jan. 20 ,21, & 22, 2011
Thurs./Friday 10:00 -6:00
Sat. 10:00 -5:00
Myrtle Beach Convention Center

Southern Living

2011-01-10T16:10:00.003-05:00

Southern living, really I swear it is. This is the porch at the house today in Georgia, where we are "confined". It may be a couple of days or more before we will be out and about. Most everything is closed, government offices, businesses and now they are pleading with motorists to stay off the interstates. If I can get the Christmas decorations down (I know I'm a little slow) and packed away I may be able to make some "art".

Quilt and Fiber Art Marketplace Jan 7 & 8th

2011-01-06T06:02:00.002-05:00

Come join us if you can at the Quilt and Fiber Art Marketplace in Sanford, NC!!!

Temporary Interruption of Website Service

2010-12-28T22:21:00.001-05:00

Hi everyone! We apologize for any inconvenience but our website will be down temporarily as we switch to a new host. The current website will go down on Wednesday Dec. 29th and the new one will go live on Thursday Dec. 30th. Thanks for your patience and understanding.
Kristin and Jan

Peek at our Christmas Touches

2010-12-17T22:25:00.003-05:00

Season's Greetings!
Thought I'd let ya'll have a peak at our home decorations. I have been collecting Christmas decorations for years, some people say I have way too much....maybe I do and maybe I don't....kind of like a fabric stash you just never know what you will need. Notice the quilt...you just knew I'd relate this to "fiber" somehow, didn't you. This is "Winters Blanket", part of my Minnesota series. Every few years I get nostalgic, make a quilt to honor where I grew up and then come to my senses...and remember how cold and long the winter's were. Still love to visit but after the Fourth of July. The skates were actually Kristins when she was little.
Found this Santa at a craft show in 1991, he's by Boardwalk Originals. This year he's standing guard on the hearth in the family room.
Our entry is 2 stories, every year I decorate the stairway and then the space looks unbalanced ...not finished. So this year I went vertical....well as much as I dared cause I have a teeny tiny fear of heights.

My 12 Connected Challenge Piece for the "Icon" theme; "Simply An Icon" by Jan Girod

2010-12-01T21:45:00.005-05:00

Have you ever fought within yourself over doing what first pops into your head, in a test it is called "second guessing" I used to do it all the time. The moment the new word was "unveiled" 2 months ago I pictured doing this piece, at least in some fashion. However, I spent the entire time trying to talk myself into doing another piece when all was said and done I found myself back at the first thought, the first image that had come to me.Several years ago I had the opportunity to tour the Hermitage in St. Petersburg, Russia. When we found ourselves in the space with the Russian Icons, I was stopped in my tracks. Have you ever felt like your moving in slow motion? There I was standing in one spot, turning slowly, wondering how I was going to look at them all. They were exquisite! Some extremely ornate, some expertly painted, others were very primitive; but all were very beautiful. I could have stayed there all day; however I heard someone rather loudly instructing me to move on, move on. All I could think ....was oh no....please let me stay here...I swear I will be on the bus in time. Poor guide was afraid she would loose her job, I moved on, but have always felt like I missed out. Someday, maybe someday I will return.

Please check out www.12connected.blogspot.com to see the challenge groups work. It is amazing how different everyone's work is and how each person interprets the given word.

Cyber Monday Sale Now Open

2010-11-29T08:52:00.000-05:00

Our Cyber Monday sale is now in effect and runs through 12/3. The discounts are as follows:

10% off Books, Tim Holtz, 7 Gypsies, Glimmer Mist, Scrapbooking and Metal Supplies
15% off Inkjet Fabrics, Patterns and Silk Items
20% off Thread, Notions, Paints (excluding Golden Fluid Acrylic), Dyes, and Paintstiks.
25% off Fabric (excluding $6/yd clearance fabric)

Don't forget Free Domestic Shipping on orders $75 and over. Items must be in stock to receive the discount.

Whoopee! We Survived Houston

2010-11-09T23:35:00.003-05:00

International Quilt Festival, Houston 2010 is but a memory...we have survived to tell about it. After many long hours of setting up our booth Kristin is just a wee bit slap happy. Our booth is ready for opening night, even if we could have used a quick nap. They opened the doors at 5 PM Wednesday for Preview Night and the crowds were still there at 10 PM absolutely ready for a weekend of fun. Our booth looked pretty good when we finally finished, packed full of goodies just waiting to find a new home.

For those of you who have not been to Houston this is the Make It University "MIU" open classroom. We each taught 2 classes, we had loads of fun and hope all those who participated did too.

Kristin worked in Open Studios showing how she makes her Mixed Media Collages on watercolor paper on Satuday. Here she is enjoying chatting with the attendees. She also made several ATC (Artist Trading Cards) for trading. Attendees come to the "tree" in MIU just to trade their artwork and chat with like minded souls. Kristin enjoyed trading her little pieces of art.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by to shop and chat. We love seeing old friends and making new ones. We are now off to the Mancuso show in West Palm Beach, FL; November 12-14....stop on by.

Yippeeeeee!

2010-10-27T11:12:00.005-04:00

We finished our kit preparation for MIU Houston yesterday. Whoopeeee! This doesn't look to bad, does it? Now consider these are only 1 of ours and a small glimpse at that.

Here is the full picture (just one of us though...no space large enough for both) and I even cleaned up the floor before I took the photo....couldn't let anyone see that mess it was awful. Even the dog was trying to figure out how to reach his bed. Hope you can join us in Houston for some fun and laughs. Some how people always hear us laughing aisles away...just follow the happy sound.

Make It University & Open Studios International Quilt Festival

2010-10-19T15:20:00.007-04:00

Open Studios

Saturday November 6th 4-6PM Kristin Rodriguez

Make It University

Thursday November 4th 1:30-2:30

Tag Journal by Janelle Girod

Alter shipping tags using Glimmer Mist and Distress Inks. Then use papers, fabrics, found objects and stamping to complete your journal.

Thursday November 4th 4:30-5:30PM

Mixed Media Card by Kristin Rodriguez

Use paint to alter commercial scrapbook paper in order to make a unique card. Use paper, paint, stamps, and found objects to create.

Friday November 5th 4:30-5:30PM

Mixed Media Collage by Kristin Rodriguez

Using watercolor paper as the base you create your own colorwashed/stamped background. Then use fabric, paper, ribbons, found objects, and TAP photo transfer to create your collage.

Saturday November 6th 10:15-11:15AM

Canvas Journal by Janelle Girod

Participants will use painted MistyFuse, watersoluble crayons, canvas, papers, TAP photo transfer, metal embossing, and more to create an art journal.

"Sheer Delight or Hubba Bubba"-Jan Girod-Ebullient

2010-09-29T21:18:00.004-04:00

This piece has been a struggle from beginning to end. The word itself was a challenge all on its own, I searched through multiple definitions, I tried multiple color combinations and as you can see by the title I could not even choose a name for it.

When I saw phrases like "full of joy, unrestrained high spirits, effervescent bubbles" as well as a definition of "boiling", I latched on to those and began my creative meditation....this is not the same as procrastination. Mainly my work is realistic, however "ebullient" is an emotion and I could only see it as abstract, not my strong suit.

Over the last several years I have been experimenting/playing with techniques where synthetic fabrics are distorted using heat. I knew that nylon organza would give me the look I was envisioning, however I tried three different colorways before making my final decision. My dog was not thrilled, as he followed me up and down the stairs to go outside to do this technique (safety first...proper ventilation for me and the dog), he really just wanted to lay in the sunshine but you know that phrase "curiosity killed the cat", well that applies to him.

First I ripped the organza in strips of varying widths, took them outdoors and used my heat gun on them, which caused them to bubble and shrink lengthwise and a bit widthwise. After trying to weave them I realized I would need to seal the edges or all those stray threads were going to drive me crazy, so I took out the soldering iron and sealed all the edges of my strips. I choose to use the "ombre" organza because once woven I could adjust the colors back and forth, up and down to get various color combinations.
To accentuate the bubbles, a simple running stitch with metallic thread around the perimeter definitely gave me the look I was striving to achieve. Then in the "concave" bubbles I beaded circles. Try as I might I could not trim the edges straight and even, they needed to be irregular. This decision was certainly one of those times when I waited for the piece to tell me what it wanted. I think this piece represents my "ebullient" personality.
If you would like to see the whole groups pieces please go to www.12connected.blogspot.com

Last Weekly Sale of our Birthday Month!!

2010-09-26T10:44:00.001-04:00

Our last weekly sale of our birthday month is HUGE!!! Scoop them up now at www.fiberonawhim.com before they are all gone.!!

Our weekly sale 9/26-10/3: an additional 45% off select fabric categories. They include Amy Butler (quilting cottons and Nigella), Joel Dewberry, Textile Creations, Kona Bay, and Robert Kaufman (Color Theory and Another Iota).

Also 45% off Art Gallery purse patterns and kits.

Birthday Sale

2010-09-15T12:00:00.002-04:00

Our 5th birthday sale is as follows 9/15-9/17:

5% off all Books, Magazines, Inkjet Fabrics, Shiva Paintstiks, and Mixed Media/Scrapbooking Supplies

10% off all Fabrics, Silk Products, and Threads

15% off Patterns, Lumiere, Setacolor, Dye-na-flow, and Tsukineko Inks

25% off all Notions, Beads & Accessories, Misc Clearance Items, and Foil

35% off Art Gallery Purse Kits

We will be running doorbuster sales each day from 8-10AM EST and 5-7PM EST.

Creativity Explodes...maybe it was just me!

2010-09-11T21:25:00.007-04:00

Would you believe this studio was cleaned recently? Really it was. Usually I do this before I start a new project, there is something about touching all those fibers and “stuff” that stimulates my creative juices.

Surprise!

We found it was time to create examples for our proposals for MIU (Make It University) this November at the International Quilt Festival in Houston. The ideas began percolating a couple of months ago while brainstorming over soup and salad at Chili’s. No time left to procrastinate (favorite pastime)….the deadline is now. Help! The only thing to do is dump all those “bitz” of stuff out in plain sight. That’s my excuse for this mess and I’m sticking to it.
The last few years I have really been into journals (yeah I know they are hot right now...I have years of them on the shelves). However I am only happy when I incorporate “bitz”, those can be anything from papers, fabrics, random fiber, found objects and words. While prepping for vending at the Believe Retreat in Blowing Rock, North Carolina I rediscovered Glimmer Mist…somehow those bottles just appeared amid my mess, but the shimmer was just what my project needed.

Kristin needed a place to work (sharing space isn't what we do well)….a sweep of her arm and she cleans a corner of the table for her work space. She’s into collage using fabric, paper, together or on their own…nothing is safe when she gets in the groove. But first she makes up a product sample….have you seen Jess Italia Lincolns’ Altered Metal Journals in the September/October 2010 issue of cloth.paper.scissors magazine? Great project!

My 12 Connected Challenge Piece for "Reminiscence" theme; "Family Stories" by Jan Girod

2010-09-07T22:16:00.007-04:00

This is my latest challenge group piece it was due on August 1st and somehow I made that deadline; however I did not get it posted here in such a timely manner.

Family stories, listening to the elders of our families tell the tales about their ancestors, we aren't always sure if they are accurate or a "tall tale". I became the caretaker of those reminiscences and the treasures of their lives for both my husbands and my own families several years ago.

After moving to Georgia 30 years ago I made the trek each summer to Minnesota with my two children so that they would know their great-grandparents, grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins. This was an important part of my childhood and I wanted my children to have those memories. Breakfasts with my husbands grandfather became a highlight of those trips. He was a natural born story teller, his life was full and long. His stories about his father's family were wonderful, entertaining and a bit farfetched at times, but nonetheless his family "stories".
In more recent years my daughter expressed disbielf that she would not be included in her paternal family tree as it only reflected "male" names back to 1491. I innocently began my search for those womens names, facts and stories, very slowly learning a few names. Some of her great-grandfathers stories we have been able to establish as true, we have gained additional stories from distant family members and others may only be best equated to "big fish tales", but they are still part of our family stories.

This piece was made by printing old Swiss documents and photographs onto TAP (Transfer Artist Paper) and transferring them to a batik and copper metal. I coated the paper map with Golden Matte Medium, giving it more strength so I could easily sew through it. Then I dug around till I found vintage laces, tatting and watch parts as many Girod's were watchmakers.

Our Birthday Month!!!

2010-09-02T11:59:00.002-04:00

We are celebrating our 5th birthday this month and we want to celebrate in style! Here's what you should look forward to:

1) Weekly Specials - This week's is 25% off bead mixes, silver beads, beading accessories, and cabochons.

2) One lucky winner per week will receive an extra "goodie" in their order. (ie- the 5th order of the week)

3) From 9/15- 9/17 we will have blue light specials that will be huge discounts (40% off specific item) but for a short period of time.

Keep in mind that domestic shipping starts at $75. Also there are several of you that are close to the 2500 inches! Lonni Rossi's Asian Harmonies line is double inches this month. The first person to hit the 2500 mark will receive a prize basket valued at approximately $50!!! Happy Shopping!

Brazenly Radiant Art Auction Now Open!!

2010-08-13T09:42:00.003-04:00

Bidding on these 5 x 7" pieces is NOW OPEN and will be open till August 14th 5PM EST. Bids will be a $30 minimum, unless otherwise stated, for each item. There are a total of 38 pieces to choose from. Email us at fiberonawhim@yahoo.com with the number of the piece/s you wish to acquire. You will then receive a confirmation email with a link to make your donation. Please remember this is a tax deductible donation. Thank you so much for contributing to this cause! We appreciate all of your support.

#38 Out My Window by Janelle Girod

Brazenly Radiant Art Auction

2010-08-11T14:37:00.046-04:00

The artwork is finally in!! This is the preview for the Brazenly Radiant Art Auction for the Atlanta 2-Day Walk for breast cancer. Bidding on these 5 x 7" pieces will open on August 13th at 10AM EST and be open till August 14th 5PM EST. Bids will be $30, unless otherwise stated, for each item. Email us at fiberonawhim@yahoo.com with the number of the piece/s you wish to acquire. You will then receive a confirmation email with a link to make your donation. Please remember this is a tax deductible donation. Thanks so much for checking out the artwork and keep an eye out for the possibility of an additional piece or two before the opening of the auction this Friday.

The Traveler (Acquired) by Kristin Rodriguez

#2 The Gull by Janelle Girod

Family Stories II (Acquired) by Janelle Girod

#4 Home is Where the Heart Is by Judy Momenzadeh

#5 Roses are Red by Kristin Rodriguez

#6 Queen for a Day by Kristin Rodriguez

(Acquired) Silk Garden by Janelle Girod

#8 Moments by Kristin Rodriguez

#9 Daisy by Kristin Rodriguez

#10 Days Gone By by Kristin Rodriguez

#11 Untitled by Kristin Rodriguez

#12 Frog Necklace 23" by Karla Stuber ($40 donation requested)

Watercolor painting (Acquired) by Barbara Flexner

#14 Untitled by Kristin Rodriguez

#15 Leaf II by Kristin Rodriguez

#16 Necklace 18" by Karla Stuber ($40 donation requested)

#17 Going in Circles II by Janelle Girod

#18 Flower Garden by Kristin Rodriguez

#19 Tough Necklace 20" by Karla Stuber

Silk Garden II (Acquired) by Janelle Girod

#21 Calla Lily by Kristin Rodriguez

#22 Star Flower by Kristin Rodriguez

#23 Untitled by Pamela Walker

#24 Untitled by Sylvia Weir

#25 Going in Circles I by Janelle Girod

#26 Cherry Quartz Necklace & Earrings 19" by Karla Stuber ($40 donation requested)

#27 Flora by Pamela Walker

#28 Fabric Bracelet 8" Sherrie Tootle

#29 Life is Good by Heather Lair

Bamboo (Acquired) by Kristin Rodriguez

(Acquired) Untitled by Sylvia Weir

#32 Simply Believe by Kristin Rodriguez

#33 Glitterati II by Dale Ashera-Davis

Untitled (Aquired) by Kristin Rodriguez

(Acquired) Breast Armour by Virginia Greaves

#36 Open a New Door by Karla Stuber

#37 Untitled by Pamela Walker

Quilt Extravorganza Berea, KY

2010-08-05T08:15:00.001-04:00

We are headed out in just a few hours to Berea, KY. We have setup today and the show is open Friday and Saturday from 10-4 at the Berea Community School. This is Quilt Extravorganza's 7th year. Stop on by if you can and check us out. We will have a double booth at this show with both supplies and finished artwork!!

Four Brazenly Radiant Art (BRA) Pieces

2010-07-31T15:16:00.005-04:00

Here are four pieces that I made for my Brazenly Radiant Art (BRA) Auction that is just in a few weeks. This is my fundraiser for my Atlanta 2-Day walk to help fight breast cancer! These 4 pieces and many more will be available soon on this blog for bid. A $30 donation to the breast cancer walk and one of these collages could be yours. Stay tuned......

2 Recent Projects

2010-07-31T10:55:00.005-04:00

Here are just a few projects that were done in the month of July. The t-shirt quilt is one of three completed this month and the sweater was the only thing I knit for the month! We'll post more in the next few days as we've both been working on fun little projects these last couple of days!

AQS Knoxville Booth #1510

2010-07-12T21:57:00.002-04:00

The car is packed and we head out in the morning at the very chipper hour of 5AM for AQS Knoxville!! This will be the first time we are vending with AQS and are looking forward to it. We are in booth #1510 right near the food court.

We've got so many new products in for this show. We've got Tsukineko Psst Shimmer Spritz, Walnut Hollow Metal sheets and embossing tools, new Tim Holtz product, Inktense Pencils, and we are back to carrying Golden Fluid Acrylics! Like the previous post it is Christmas in July! We hope you can make it to the show....see you there!

Officially Christmas in July

2010-07-03T22:28:00.004-04:00

Can you believe this tabletop....every day this week the bell has rung...and we had all sorts of boxes being delivered by those "cute" people from FedEx and UPS, it felt just like Christmas and we got to open them right away. No fighting either!!! Well almost none. We needed to restock some favorites before AQS Knoxville (booth 1510) and after NQA in Columbus, Ohio we made a few decisions regarding inventory/product lines going into the rest of this year. Don't worry those shelves are only empty because we never unpacked show totes....which by the way has made filling online orders rather challenging.
We decided to streamline our paints/inks, therefore we are once again carrying a selection of Golden Fluid Acrylics. Just in time too, because Chris Cozen's new book Mixed Media and Color is fantastic. (you can find it at http://www.fiberonawhim.com/ look in the catalog under Just In) She is a Working Artist for Golden Acrylic Colors and has combined her knowledge of their products and fabric......woohoo!!!!! I'm in heaven! We will also be carrying an Open Acrylics Introduction Set, she explains how to use them for monoprinting and more. Open Acrylics are unique in many ways, for one they do not skin over as quickly as regular acrylic paints.....so you have more working time. We also brought in the acrylic mediums to use with these paints in order to do some of the techniques she writes about. You can also find the Digital Mixed Media Sample Set, which are to be used on various surfaces, enabling them to receive inkjet inks......let your imagination soar. Oh yes this book has lots and lots of photos so you can clearly see how to use these products......ahhhh time to curl up and read!

The decision to carry Golden products again is based on their versatility.....I use them to color fabric, paper, lutradur and other stabilizers. They are the first paints I grab. I know for me this will minimize multiple storage containers on the shelves, all my Golden paints fit in one (and no the bin is not the size of a trunk). I'm all for simplifying my life and "stuff".

Really hate to admit this but, I bought several colors of Open Acyrilics when they first came out on the market....have not even "opened" them to try them out. Sound familiar??? Hmmm!! I think it may be time to take them out and play...come back and check out what happens next. Whatever I do I will be working in a 5"x7" size so my results can be used in our BRA (Brazenly Radiant Art) fundraiser. Kristin is once again taking the challenge of walking in the Atlanta 2-Day walk for breast cancer. She is excited to participate again as she could not last year. Contact us at fiberonawhim@yahoo.com for more information.

Streamlining??? I'll leave you to wonder what on earth we are up to....I promise to write again soon and post pictures so you can keep up with us.

My 12 Connected Challenge Piece for "Green" theme; "Kudzu" by Jan Girod

2010-06-01T21:10:00.004-04:00

Kudzu is a vine found in the Southeastern United States. It was introduced from Japan in 1876 at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition where it was highly toted. I've been told by native Georgian's that they claimed it would help control erosion....but today it runs rampant. It grows over everything, trees, buildings...lore has it that it can grow a foot a night, so don't close your eyes. I'm orginally from Minnesota, nothing comes through the winters. The biggest shock for me 30 years ago when I arrived in Georgia was the size of Poison Ivy down here and Kudzu. When driving back from IQA in Chicago this spring I knew I was getting close to home when the roadsides had there own "monsters" watching us go by. The trees become anything you can imagine.

I knew I had my idea....the background for this piece is painted Lutradur (a fantastic stabilizer). Vines were achieved by zig-zagging sisal cord with thread, the leaves were done using water soluble stabilizer, a sheer fabric in a simple leaf shape and thread. The flowers....well I will leave that story for another time...

Check out the entire groups work at http://www.12connected@blogspot.com You can follow our 2 year committment to make a piece of work every other month....anyone who knows me cannot believe I made that kind of committment.

New T-shirt Quilt

2010-05-18T16:32:00.003-04:00

Here's the most recent t-shirt quilt I just finished. Decided to keep it simple since the shirts had so much on them. The individual is a "graphic novel" fan so went with blue and red as they are the colors of many a superhero!!

Brazenly Radiant Art (BRA) Fundraiser!

2010-05-04T12:51:00.019-04:00

Once again I'm participating in the Atlanta 2-Day walk for breast cancer. In 2008, I did an art fundraiser that helped me raise the necessary $1000! I'm once again putting art up for donations. These mixed media needlecases measure 4.5" tall by 3.25" wide. They have a wrap closure with 4 pages of felt to hold your needles. Each of these is available for a $15 donation to the Atlanta 2-Day. Please email Kristin at fiberonawhim@yahoo.com with the name of the needlecase you'd like. I will then send you the link to make the donation and once made I'll mail it out via first class mail!

Flower Garden (Acquired)

Dream (Aquired)

Adore (Orange)

Bliss (Orange)

Hope (Acquired)

Soar (Green)

Bliss (green)

Hope (Green)

Love (pink)

Angel (pink)

Dream (Pink)

Giggle (pink)

Brown Needlecase

Tree Needlecase

Prep Work for Make It University- Chicago

2010-04-09T19:36:00.001-04:00

Well we are little less than a week away from International Quilt Festival in Chicago. We are furiously working away at prepping our 125 total kits for Make It University. This is how our table looked just a few short hours ago. Most of it has now been bagged up and finished. We just have a few more things to gather together and we are ready!! I don't think we've ever been this ahead of the game. Hmmmmmmm..............now to put together our Open Studios work!!!

My 12 Connected Challenge Piece for "Color" theme; Punk-a-Doodle Color Book

2010-04-01T21:18:00.004-04:00

My work is usually done in bold saturated colors, therefore when the theme of this challenge, "color" was announced my mind instantly went to an idea I'd been mulling over. A color book for and of my grandson using Transfer Artist Paper (TAP) by Lesley Riley. Ever since finding out you could use various art materials to color the transfer paper, I have wanted to "experiment".
To simplify things I decided to turn my photographs of "Punk-a-Doodle" into line drawings. There was only one problem....I didn't know how, which meant learning a new process in Photoshop Elements....not always as easy as I'd like it to be. Then I also needed to experiment with a variety of art materials to see which would give me the look and/or depth of colors I wanted. The page on the left was done with watersoluble oil pastels, I love how it looks like an old coloring book page. For the page on the right I wanted the colors to be more vibrant, that was achieved by using Crayola Sketching bright colored markers.

The only problem for me was the rough, blotchy effect the watersoluble oil pastels....as I sat staring at the colored transfer paper the "lightbulb" went off, why not even out the strokes with a damp paint brush. It worked just as I hoped it would .

The cover needed to be a bright yellow, like the color books of my childhood...at least that is my recollection. Below the piece is shown flat, however it does fold nicely (as shown at the beginning of this entry) and that is how it will be used. I placed staples along the binding with the plan of adding more pages. It even has it's own barcode just like the other books in Grandma and Kristins' shop, where he has always helped out.

When I began working on this he began planning, so "we" will choose 4 additional photographs, alter them and let him apply the color. Hopefully it will become a special keepsake to remember his Grandma by.

Another T-shirt Quilt Done

2010-03-31T14:40:00.003-04:00

Here are some photos of the most recent t-shirt quilt completed. I'm really pleased with the colors and how this turned out. Not the best lighting for taking pics but it's all the time I had.

I like doing them two-sided so that way the person can have more shirts included and it can change up depending on the mood of the person.

Quilt Show by the Sea Ft. Lauderdale, FL

2010-03-19T20:06:00.008-04:00

Here's a picture of our booth!!

Our new collapsible shelves!

The vintage buttons we just introduced.

A cool tree just outside of the auditorium.

Chicago Make It University Schedule

2010-03-01T16:41:00.006-05:00

The schedule of Make It University classes just came out. If you are planning on attending IQF Chicago April 15-18 check out the MIU section. We are teaching 5 of the hour long projects. You will put your name in a lottery for the classes you want and if you are called you pay $10. This gets you everything you need to complete the project. Here are the projects:

Mixed Media Needlecase by Kristin Rodriguez

Taught: April 15 from 6-7P

April 18 from 1:30-2:30P

You will use fabric, papers, and fusible web to create a one-of-a-kind needlecase.

What's In Your Closet by Kristin Rodriguez

Taught April 16 3-4P

You will have various laces and papers to create a mixed media canvas.

Lutradur Postcard by Janelle Girod

Taught: April 16 from 6-7P
You will use handpainted lutradur/batting to create a postcard. Then learn several embroidery stitches to further embellish it.

Vintage Domino Necklace by Janelle Girod

Taught: April 17 from 4:15-5:15PM

You will learn how to take a domino and attach pictures and other items to create a unique necklace. This pic shows a Santa but there will be a variety of pictures offered.

Let's make MIU a raging success yet again at the Chicago show. This is our first time vending in Chicago and we want it to be memorable!

New Clubs & Website Changes

2010-02-14T16:42:00.009-05:00

Alright.....we have changed around quite a bit of things on our website and also added a few great new things.

First, we now offer FREE domestic shipping on orders $100 or over. Doesn't matter what you buy....heavy books, lots of fabric, or whatever else heavy you can find!

We've introduced 2 new clubs to our website.

Our first club is our 2500 Inch by Inch Club. The goal is to get to 2500 inches of quilting cottons/PFDs purchased in one year. You will get 250 bonus inches just for joining. Then you will get prize packages at 500, 1000, 1750, and 2500 inches. If you make it all the way to the 2500 inch club you will earn extra priveledges such as early access to sales, credits and more. Each month there will be a fabric collection/style that will earn you either 50% or 100% more inches. For the rest of February Lonni Rossi's Asian Harmony line will earn you double inches! This means if you purchase 36" (1 yard) you will get credit for 72" (2 yards). This club is free.

Our next club is our Undercover Club. This is our version of a block of the month club that will make contemporary lap quilts. You will become an undercover agent with your first mission in Australia. You will receive your first assignment on May 1st. This mission will include 6 total assignments. The deadline to finish the mission will be November 1, 2010. If you can provide proof (pic) of the completed mission you will be entered in to a drawing for a prize package!

You can find information on these clubs on our catalog page of http://www.fiberonawhim.com/ or you can find FAQs about these at http://www.fiberonawhim.com/about.html. If you have any other questions about these clubs don't hesitate to call us at 404-705-9164 or email us at fiberonawhim@yahoo.com

Happy Stitching!!!

My 12 Connected Challenge Group Piece "La Puerta"

2010-02-12T20:06:00.007-05:00

Late in 2009 Sue Bleiweiss posted on QuiltArt about a challenge group she was organizing, so many members responded inquiring about joining in, that she wound up assisting in the organization of several groups. It was a 2 year commitment, requiring each challenge member to make a small quilt every 2 months, based on a word. At that time I was struggling to find time to be creative so I gave it some thought prior to making my inquiry, however I thought it would be a great way to "make" myself set aside time to work. How many times are we told to go into our workrooms to make the work, make the work, make the work. Our first word was "sanctuary". My piece is named "La Puerta". Sanctuary, this word brought many images to mind. The immediate images were of my personal places of refuge; such as the forests of northern Minnesota where I grew up or the warm beaches found along the Gulf Coast. They are also where I typically turn for inspiration and I wanted to use these challenges to stretch myself. So I went back to contemplating the word, its definitions and synonyms; hoping for a light bulb moment. One definition kept creeping back into my thoughts; "any gateway marking an entrance or exit from one place or state to another; at heavens door". For years I have taken photographs of doors, for me doors are the passage way by which we take refuge. Immediately a wonderful photo of a cathedral door in the El Socolo in Mexico City came to mind and the phrase from the definition "at heavens door" popped into my head. How could I create this piece and stretch myself? That nagging question played over and over in my mind, during daytime hours and even while I slept.

Finally I pulled an ugly fabric from my stash, using 1/4" tape I laid out a grid for the building wall on the wrong side of the fabric. Then I used watercolor pencils and textile medium to shade my blocks, after drying they looked like a wall. The door needed to look rugged, hand hewn, so I used brown packing paper, crumpled and flattened numerous times to break down the fibers, coloring it with shoe polish gave it a worn leather look.

Embroidery and embellishments were used to give the piece dimension and the look of age. I love it when someone looks at a piece of my work, see's the overall composition, moves in to take a closer look, discovers small details and becomes excited by them.
Please check out the group's blog and follow along with our 2 year adventure, our next word is "color". Hmmmmm!!!

New Arrivals

2010-01-28T14:18:00.001-05:00

Sixteen lovely bolts of Australian fabric just rolled in today!!! Here is just a peek at 8 of them. Check out the other fabrics at www.fiberonawhim.com.

Fiber on a Whim's first online class!!!

2010-01-26T15:46:00.002-05:00

We have been asked so many times about offering an online class so we've finally listed one. You can find extensive details by following the link below.

http://www.classschedule.net/cgi-server/schedules/classdisplay.cgi?account=fiberonawhim&action=display&record=9778

Brief Description: 4 week online class starting March 6, 2010. If you've always wanted to try water solubles but have been a bit hesitant this is the class for you. You will be guided through Vanishing Act #1 by Jan Beaney as you learn which product is best for you for what techniques. Each week you will have various examples to work through on different products. The last week you will be assisted in choosing one of the examples and creating a more finished piece of art. A kit is included in the class fee. It will provide the harder to find materials and allow you to try more products without the expense of buying more than you might want. You may either register for the class that includes the book or for the one that doesn't (if you already own it). Either way you will need the book for the class.

We hope that several of you join us for this class. We will be announcing a few more classes as in the next couple of weeks.

Recent Work

2010-01-23T17:57:00.011-05:00

So I've already broken the resolution of attempting to post once a week to this blog!!! That doesn't mean we haven't been working though. Here are bits of some of the things:

Mom is currently working on a piece that has a deadline of Jan. 31st. Here is a little snippet of the beginning of it.

We taught a class at a local guild this past Thursday. The workshop was for small landscapes. These are some of our examples.

This one is of silks, home decs, and sheers.

This is all quilting cottons done monochromatically.

This one also turned out to be monochromatically but she didn't intentionally do it.

I worked up even smaller scaled landscapes!

This is what I've been working up knitting wise. This is a purse that I have just finished the base of. I have to embellish it with another yarn in the holes and seam it up.

Here is a slouchy style beret hat that I've almost finished for mom. I ran out of yarn and had to go get some more. Now I can finish it up.

This one is also going to be for mom. It was recently in Interweave Knits Fall 2009.

Here's the first bit of it. I'm just starting the pattern of it with the cables. We'll see how far I can get in the next couple of days on all these projects. I'll post again soon.

What we are working on.....

2010-01-11T11:26:00.004-05:00

Both of us have gotten some work done during this "lovely" weather we are having. Here is a little taste of the pieces.

Of course Jan is back to her handwork. She is having a blast with this piece and funny enough.....purple is not one of her normal colors.

I'm working on another confetti style quilt. It is only about 20 x 24". Here is the base of it.

Then here is a little snippet of a corner of it with a bright pop of color. We'll see how this turns out as I'm not working from any photograph just an idea in my mind.

New Year!!

2010-01-08T17:29:00.008-05:00

Well we made it through 2009 thankfully. We are hoping that 2010 is less of a bumpy road personally than last year. We are both hoping to get more art done in the new year. We are also hoping to post more about the things we are doing or receiving in as well. Here's a few things that rounded out last year and began this one.

Two days ago we had a business trip up to North Carolina. Good thing was that it ran us right by Mary Jo's in Gastonia. We went in with the list of plumping up our blues and yellows as we do not buy much of those both personally or for the store. We thought this would be the best opportunity to stock the stash for future use.

You can see we veered off course just slightly! You can see a decent amount of blue but this pic doesn't really show any yellow!! We felt a little bit better upon realizing Mary Jo doesn't buy a lot of yellow either. Hmmmmm......we will have to hunt harder. Lol......now we know the question is coming......Why are you out buying fabric when you own a fabric store? Who knows maybe it is just for excuses to stop at stores like this one!

In the month of December I had two t-shirt quilts that I was hired to make. Here are the photos for them. Both are two-sided and about 50 x 50".

I really liked how this first one photographed.

For this one I was told her favorite color was purple. I decided to do a log cabin and run like colors together to build it out. I think I could have done this a little bit better with blocking out the colors to make a better pattern. Lol.....only part that matters though is that she loved it.

We are in the middle of working on several projects and have many new products due in. I'm making a resolution to post at least 2 days a week. I'm hoping for more than that but trying to be a little realistic with myself!!! Happy New Year to all.

Atlanta 2-Day Walk & Brazenly Radiant Art Fundraiser

2009-12-16T15:03:00.003-05:00

I am once again taking the challenge of walking in the Atlanta 2-Day walk for breast cancer. It is a 2-day, 30 mile event that really is life changing. I am so excited to participate again as I was not able to this past year. Here is the info on our fundraising project.

Brazenly Radiant Art(BRA)

You can make a difference!!

Simply make a 5 x 7" piece of art using whatever medium you wish and donate it to Brazenly Radiant Art (BRA) sponsored by Fiber on a Whim for It's the Journey, Inc. ITJ is a non-profit organization located in Atlanta, GA. They support local research, awareness and support of breast cancer. FOAW will start collecting donated artwork immediately. Please make sure it is some of your best. Your donation will be put up for auction March 29-31, 2010. The artwork will be available for a $30 donation to It's the Journey, Inc. Please make sure all donations arrive to us by March 22, 2010 to allow time for photographing and posting. Please mail pieces to our office at FOAW 4317 Sprucebough Dr. Marietta, GA 30062. For more information on It's the Journey please visit http://www.itsthejourney.org/

To make a direct donation please visit:

www.2daywalk.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=314340&lis=1&kntae314340=21AF47EAACB947C380B9A852EA99A10B&supId=274259378

Also feel free to join our Yahoo Group: BrazenlyRadiantArt_BRA

Artist Open House

2009-11-29T21:55:00.000-05:00

Fiber on a Whim presents:

Artist’s Holiday Open House
December 4th 9am-6pm
December 5th 9am-4pm

This open house will have a variety of items to choose from. This includes some shop models as well as other items made by us or invited artists. We have quilts, jewelry, pillows, garments, scarves, hats, mixed media gifts, and more. Stock up on handmade gifts for the holiday or splurge on an item for yourself.
Less than 1 mile from the Apple Annie’s event. Look for signs as to exact house.
Sprucebough Dr. Marietta, GA 30062 Ph: 404-705-9164

Day #9-16 AED & Space Shuttle Launch

2009-11-16T17:20:00.012-05:00

Somehow we find ourselves in Florida. I guess even though we are absolutely tired of traveling we decided to take a vacation. We are down here in Orlando and heard about the shuttle launch over at Kennedy Space Center. So all of a sudden this morning on a complete WHIM we decided to head to the coast to go watch. Never having been or knowing what to expect was a blast. Here are some of the photos.

Gotta love the two men sitting on top of their semi!!!

I've been so bad about posting to the blog the pics of what all I've been doing this month so here is what I've been working on in the past week.

This is actually a quilt top mom is working on with scraps from a shop model from years ago.

We decided that even though we were on vacation we were going to make it more like a retreat. Look at the dining room table. This is on mom's side of the condo. I have an equally messy table on the other side of the condo.

Here is a little baby quilt I've pieced from a flannel charm pack.

Here is the T-shirt quilt I've been working on for the customer. I still have to back it and quilt it. I've got 5 more t-shirts to work into the backing of it.

Here is a scarf I've been knitting in the car. It will be felted so that is why it is so wide.

Here is a scarf that I crocheted last night. Lol....can you see that I get bored easily and have to change projectsjust so that I keep working on something.

Will post more as we complete more work this week. Hmmmm......as long as the pool doesn't call out too loud to either one of us!!! I mean it is in the 80's here and for us to be able to sit by a pool in November is quite weird.

Website Problems

2009-11-09T18:46:00.002-05:00

We apologize for any inconvenience this current problem is creating. Our website has been done for over 3 hours now. We are aware of the problem and have been in communication with the company that hosts our site. They are doing everything in their power to correct the down server and get the site back up and running. In the 4 1/2yrs that we've been with this company this has never happened before. Once again we apologize as I know we sent out a newsletter with information and sales that you can't get to since the site is down. We will keep our fingers crossed that everything is corrected soon.

Day #8 AEDM

2009-11-08T20:13:00.003-05:00

This project of art every day has not started out on the good side so far. I've slacked the past couple of days. We all know how life gets in the way some times. On Friday I did work on something in the morning. It didn't turn out at all like what it was in my head. I think it still needs something so I haven't finished it nor taken a pic of it. Then in the afternoon I got to pick up this cutie pie pictured below. He is my 4 year old nephew and it was his birthday. So I spent the rest of the day with him. That ate up Day #6 with no photo or art completed :( but it was well worth it.

Day #7 was then spent at a friend's baby shower and my nephew's birthday party. The best I could do yesterday was say that I gave a crocheted afghan to my friend. Lol....didn't make art but gave art that was already completed.

So that leads us to today Day #8. I've been a little sick this week so I basically took it easy and watched football but here are pics of what I did accomplish.

I got hired to make a t-shirt quilt for a customer. Here are several of the t-shirts that I've gotten cut and on to interfacing. Only a few more to go. Then have to figure out how I want to lay it out. She only wants a throw quilt so it might end up being a two-sided one. Hmmmm......how to best quilt that? I'll have to keep thinking about that.

I finished the scarf. Yippeee.....no more pics of the orange scarf. I've got to come up with some other knitting projects. I've also gotten hired to knit a sweater for a customer and am just waiting for her to drop off the yarn. Can never be without at least one project on the needles or hook.

Day #5 AEDM

2009-11-05T22:32:00.002-05:00

Well.....somehow have no photos today. Decided against photographing the scarf again! Lol....I got a lot of work done on it and it is almost complete. I also was working on the mixed-media canvas I mentioned. I'm not finished with it as I ran into a slight dilemma. The soft gel wouldn't adhere the paper to the styrofoam balls! I know this sounds funny but I wanted the canvas to be dimensional and styrofoam was the most logical. Didn't realize it would be so hard to get it to do what I wanted. Ended up putting gesso on them to seal them somewhat. Had to let that dry and then I was able to adhere the papers. Have a few touches left to add so I didn't want to photo it till it was done. Should be able to finish it tomorrow.

Day #4 AEDM

2009-11-04T21:40:00.005-05:00

So as I'm sure you've realized there was no art yesterday! We attended the funeral of a fellow shop owner/friend yesterday and I don't think either one of us felt like doing much after that. I knitted a few rows on the scarf but nothing noticeable.

Today author Kate Jacobs, who wrote The Friday Night Knitting Club series, spoke at Georgia Center for the Book in Decatur. She is promoting her third book of the series that just came out yesterday. I talked a friend of mine into going with me to hear her. I thought it was going to be more of a knitting event. There were people knitting but there were far more people just there to hear her speak. She talked a lot about how she got started writing, her creation of the characters, and how she got into knitting. She is a very funny and insightful individual. Here she is in the middle of her talk.

This is my friend Ndidi who is currently mad at me for encouraging her to knit a baby sweater on size 3 needles!! This is her first sweater and she's doing great. She just feels she's moving at a snail's pace. Size 3 needles will do that to you!

Here's the scarf as it currently stands. I'll probably work a little more on it tonight.

Tomorrow I've got planned out a mixed-media canvas to do and I'll finally get that pic of mom's quilt she's piecing.

Day #2 AEDM

2009-11-03T07:45:00.002-05:00

Would have posted this last night but the internet went down. Yesterday ended up crazy busy with appointments and such so that there wasn't too much time for art. I did manage to work on the scarf while sitting at guild last night. I'll also snap a pic of the quilt mom was working on some yesterday and post it.

Day #1 Art Every Day Month

2009-11-01T19:55:00.012-05:00

Waking up today to a bright sunny day was an absolute amazing feeling. We've dealt with so much rain and clouds here in Atlanta lately that it seems like the sun is some foreign object. Stepping outside to find the temp was great too just made it a day for exploring. So off to Helen, GA with cameras in tow we headed. Here are some of the photos we collected along the way.

This structure sits atop an Indian mound.

Along the way I was knitting. I finished up this scarf on the way back home. A friend of mine bought this yarn but found she couldn't handle it well. I told her I would knit it up for her. Now I just have to do the finishing work and maybe some fringe and it will be complete.

Since I finished that one I had to start something else. Lol....so here is another scarf in the works.

See you tomorrow.

Art Every Day Month

2009-10-31T17:44:00.004-04:00

It has definitely been a crazy year for us. With all the business travels and personal issues we haven't made a whole lot of art. Even today we found out some sad news that Nancy Briley had passed away yesterday. Our thoughts are with everyone of the Ashby Sewing Family during this difficult time.

I decided (after seeing Jane Davila's challenge) to participate in Art Every Day Month. I will try to work on art every day for the month of November and post to the blog about it. This challenge will be not only with the art but to get me back in to posting regularly on the blog. So if you'd like to join in as well click on the link below and register.

http://creativeeveryday.com/art-every-day-month

Houston 2009 Day #1

2009-10-15T23:15:00.010-04:00

I've finally gotten a moment to blog about Houston. It is the end of day #1 and Festival is going strong! We are having fun visiting with everyone! One year can be an eternity but somehow it feels like you just saw the person the other day. Here are a few photos that we've snapped since the beginning.

Set up day brings a bunch of people to a queue of sorts waiting to get in to unload. Here is a pic of all of us waiting.

Unfortunately there was so much rain on Monday that it created mud pits where we were waiting!!

Here is a pic of our booth one set up was complete.

My first Make It University was on preview night and here is a pic during the middle of the class.

Here is a pic of Judy Gula of Artistic Artifacts doing her MIU class this morning.

Here is Jane Davila upon realizing she couldn't find a very important key that she

needed in order to ring up sales!!!

Here she is much happier prepping for her MIU class.

This is Cara Gulati of Doodlepress enjoying her day of shopping.

Houston 2009 & Atlanta 2-Day Walk 2010

2009-10-10T21:53:00.002-04:00

We have finally arrived in Houston. Tomorrow we will attend market and see what is new and exciting. Then we get to have Monday off to finish all the prep work for Festival. Tuesday brings set up and Wednesday brings the start of the show. Overall we are here for 9 days and even though the work is hard we have so much fun. Seeing all the friends we've made over the years will be awesome. We have a camera along and we will keep you posted on all the fun. If you are here, stop by and say hi! We are in booth #1158 in the MIU section of the floor.

Some of you might remember that I participated in the Atlanta 2-Day Walk for Breast Cancer in 2008. It was an absolutely humbling experience. I didn't get to participate this year but have registered for the 2010 walk. It is Oct. 2nd & 3rd in Atlanta, GA. I've convinced a friend to walk with me but if anyone else would like to join us simply let me know.

I have to raise at least $1,000 for the walk and in 2008 had a blast hosting Brazenly Radiant Art (BRA). I think I will do that yet again. I have some pieces that remained from the 2008 event and will have those available in our booth here in Houston. Check us out at booth #1158 to see if you'd like to take one home. In the coming weeks I'll post a call for new artwork with the size remaining at 5 x 7". Each piece was available for a $30 donation to It's the Journey, Inc. So if you read this and would like to contribute a piece of art be looking for a post in the near future containing more details.

If you would just like to make a simple donation and sponsor me you can do so at the following link: http://www.2daywalk.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=314340&lis=1&kntae314340=B1504363B4D74F4793B0592FA509F22B&supId=274259378

Keep in mind your donation is completely tax deductible and you receive an immediate receipt with online donation. Thanks for reading and for your consideration of making a donation whether it be monetary or that of art.

Make It University Houston 2009

2009-09-01T16:34:00.007-04:00

It's official! We are once again participating in MIU at International Quilt Festival in Houston. We will be located in booth #1158. Make sure to stop on by this great section while you are at the show. You can enter your name into the lottery bins for your chance to take a class. If your name is drawn from the bin then you are in and the cost is only $10! You will be given a kit that includes everything you need to complete the project in the hour long class. We will be featured twice with our Mixed-Media Needlecase project. You can find us at the following times:

Preview Night Wednesday Oct. 14th from 9-10P

Saturday Oct. 17th from 11:45A-12:45P

Here are just a few pictures of the project that you can make in class!

Mixed-Media Needlecase by Kristin Rodriguez

New York City

2009-08-13T22:03:00.013-04:00

First let me start by saying that I'd never been to New York City before. When my friend called to say that she had gotten engaged and was going to be getting married I nearly shot through the roof. Finally a great reason/excuse to go to the city. I'd always wanted to go but never had gotten a chance. I'm glad that my chance came when it did because 6 years ago I wouldn't have even thought to go to the Garment District or hunt out quilt shops. Now I did.

I had a total of 3 days to run around in Manhattan after the wedding. My ultimate last stop was The City Quilter on W 25th St. Wow what a shop!!! At first I thought I wasn't headed in the right direction on the street because it all seemed residential. Then the red awning popped into view. I was so excited about going in that I missed the sign that said "Ring bell to enter". Lol.....my fault that I was jumping ahead of myself. Once inside I could appreciate their use of the space they have. Some quilt stores go overboard trying to cram so much into a small space so as not to miss out. The City Quilter is just right! They have a lot of product in a small space but with such a light open feeling. It makes you want to stay for a long time and browse.

Unfortunately my pic doesn't do justice to the inside of the place. They have very bright contemporary/funky novelty/great silks/NYC motif/Ethnic fabrics as well as some more traditional. They have a great selection of books and patterns. Then here is the be all and end all......they have GREAT customer service. The ladies inside were very welcoming and extremely helpful. All in all I say if you are ever in the city you have to make this a priority to stop at!

Walking around the city your head feels as if it is on a swivel. There is so much to look at both at street level and at sky level sometimes you just don't know where to stop. I found myself photographing clocks all over the city. This is just one of the many ones I found.....I believe it was on 6th Ave.

Just loved how the buildings looked through the street lights.

Sunday morning I woke early and went down into Times Square. I quickly found my way to Duffy Square at Broadway and W47th where there is a TKTS booth that sells same day Broadway tickets at a discount. They don't have tickets to all shows but a decent variety. At the window I somehow found myself with a 5th row Orchestra ticket to Rock of Ages. It was a great show!!!!!!! It was all centered around 80s music and was like going to a concert. The whole audience was singing along at times. Here is a pic of the theater where the show is on W 47th.

On Monday I went to the Empire State Building. Here is a view of it from the street.

After the ESB I went to the Garment District. It is so much fun to walk the streets and see fabric store after fabric store. I have to admit though at a certain point it was so overwhelming. I felt like I was trying to follow the Project Runway footsteps and found Parsons School of Design which somehow I didn't take a pic of. I also found Mood fabrics which lets just say I got into the most trouble there. They have an absolutely amazing collection of buttons!!!

This pic though is of NY Elegant Fabrics on W40th street. This is just a part of their back wall. Most stores were like this with fabric stacked floor to ceiling. Hence you can see why one can get so overwhelmed.

At Paron Fabrics I found this gorgeous piece of gray fabric that was iridescent from a chartreuse green to a purple. It just screamed out background fabric.

On my last day Tuesday I took the Ferry out to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. It was a truly amazing experience. One I recommend to anyone that can.

This is a part of a window on the main building at Ellis Island. The amount of work they have done to create an Immigration Museum is incredible. I could have spent hours upon hours in the museum. It was very humbling to see the passports and ship manifests. Not to mention reading the statements of immigrants as to what they went through just to reach this country.

After the ferry I walked up Broadway from Battery Park. I saw the bull associated with Wall St. At the intersection of Broadway and Wall St. is Trinity Church. The architecture of this church is gorgeous. This is a side view from the cemetery.

I then walked over to Ground Zero where they are currently working. They have it fenced off as they are working so you can't see the main portion of it. However, after walking down the streets filled with skyscrapers the impact of this immense open area is beyond words. They have made a museum nearby but I was unfortunately not able to make it there. I heard it is amazing though.

Alas my trip ended to0 soon. Hopefully I'll be able to make it up there again soon as there is so much of the city I was not able to see. What I did see though made a lasting impression of what a great city New York is.

Minnesota Pics

2009-07-29T14:22:00.011-04:00

Here's some more pics from our trip up to central Minnesota.

Like true quilters we had to find and stop at a quilt store. It just so happened that without knowing it this one was only 3 miles down the road from where we stayed.

Country Caboose Wahkon, MN

Then one day I woke everybody up early because I wanted to go pick raspberries. Lol.....man were they ticked at me at 7AM!!!! Here is the raspberry portion at Great River Gardens in Aitken, MN.

Yummy.....we've had a lot of raspberries since!!!

We also spent a lot of time at Father Hennipen State Park in Isle, MN. It had a great beach area for Lake Mille Lacs.

What a nice view for a picnic.

Then here was a pic out the car window of a storm we passed through somewhere in IA. Let me tell you this was the best looking part of it. We stopped for dinner and it grew pitch black. We asked one of the employees about the weather and he said that there were 70-80mph winds and golf ball size hail expected to start momentarily. Let's just say we got back on the highway and zoomed towards the south!

Next week I get to go to New York City for a friend's wedding. I plan on spending a day bumming around the garment district and visiting other quilty places so I'll be sure to post pics of that when I can. Thanks to Paula Nadelstern's 3hr tour (posted on her webpage) I think it should be some fun browsing.

Beautiful Minnesota

2009-07-19T20:51:00.005-04:00

I know we don't really post personal stuff but here is a short blip of what we've been doing. We've now been here in Minnesota for 2 1/2 days. We spent yesterday driving up to the northern woods for a family event at a small country church, then to visit an old family farm, and then the long drive home. My little nephew has been able to make the trip with us as his first ever trip to Minnesota where the majority of our family is from. He loved the farm and didn't want to leave there. Today we spent the day at my grandparent's cabin in central MN. The cabin is on a lake where we went out on a paddleboat and then onto a bigger one so that we could go fishing. Here are a few pics from today. I'll try and post more as we go. We've got some gorgeous lake shots and some country roads too.

Here is a shot of my brother and nephew dancing to the Beatles! It was a long day in the sun!!

View from our townhouse of the second largest lake in MN Lake Mille Lacs.

Lol.....and I'm a little burnt too!!!!

Works in Progress & Booth Photos

2009-07-14T21:51:00.004-04:00

Wow...I can't believe a month has passed since the last post. I really am getting bad at this. I need to work on posting more often. Here are a couple of photos from the last month.

Our booth at NQA Show in Columbus, OH

"Poppies" by Kristin Rodriguez
Originally made for the Quilting Arts Calendar Challenge.

Quilt started at the Focus on Fiber Retreat in March 2009 still not done.

Newest confetti quilt started after taking Noriko's class at QSDS. I did this in the hotel room up there in Columbus but decided to wait on quilting it. As you can see it is still sitting waiting for the quilting. Hopefully will get to this before the end of August.

We are headed to Minnesota next week for a family affair. We are going to be staying on the banks of Lake Mille Lacs. I'll see what photos I can get and post them as we are up there. Hopefully can get some beautiful lake shots with the sun rising or setting!!!

Noriko Endo Class at QSDS!!!!

2009-06-14T18:04:00.011-04:00

I had so much fun the last 2 days. I'm exhausted but at the same time ready to plug in the machine and do more!!! I took photos during each day so that you could see the progress to the almost finished item. Noriko is an amazing teacher. I fully recommend taking a class from her if you have the opportunity. Also QSDS is a great symposium to attend. They do this every year in the Columbus, OH area and bring in high quality teachers. I'm proud that I was selected to win one of their scholarships and had an absolutely fabulous time. I feel like I learned so much and can not believe the knowledge I walked away with.

Here is the photo I used for inspiration. Lol...gotta love the pad as I was using it to cut down the photo.

Here are all the fabrics I pulled to use in the project.

This photo is a little blurry but you can see how fine I chopped the fabric. I had started cutting the fabric and Noriko walked by and said it was much too big. She took my rotary cutter and started cutting them a lot smaller.

Here is the start of putting the fabric down.

This is with most of the background down.

This is the end of Day 1 with the far tree trunks in place and tulle down over the whole piece. A lot of quilting was already done to keep the bits in place.

Here is after about 30mins on Day 2 and Noriko doing her "magic" as she calls it.

This is with all bits in place and tulle down. Now I'm ready to do the decorative quilting.

Here is the almost finished piece. I still have some more highlighting to do on the tree trunks(unfortunately I ran out of thread) and binding and such. I can't believe I did so much in 2 days. The piece is about 20" x 24". I can't wait to finish this piece and start on another. I either have to wait till I get home or find a store so that I have more thread!!

Tomorrow we are going to run around and visit Sacred Threads and another quilt show. Tuesday we are going to visit Quilt National before we begin our setup for NQA. Then it is work time Wed-Sat. If you are in the Columbus, OH area come on by to see us in booth #748.

Recent Projects

2009-06-08T14:17:00.008-04:00

We haven't posted any of our work in a long time. This is some of the things I've done this year. It is not much and most are not all the way complete but that's typical right?

I made wedding invitations for a friend of mine as her gift. Lol.....that was an experience. I had a lot of fun making them and she absolutely loved them which is the best part. Hand tying 100 bows and making them all similar was a riot!

Here's one of the quilts that I pieced. It is a pattern out of a Quilts and More magazine.

All the fabrics are Art Gallery Quilt fabrics. This was the first time I'd ever worked with them and I have to say that the fabric is incredible!! The quality of them is so high. The fabrics had almost no shrinkage or bleeding. The pattern called for 3/4yd of many of the pieces and I only had 1/2yds. I lost less then a quarter of an inch with washing and drying. That is almost unheard of. I highly recommend working with these fabrics!

This is another quilt top I'm in the middle of pieceing. I'll add some borders to it but don't know what quite yet!

I made this apron in Florida so that I could do some painting and dyeing at the retreat. This fabric was awesome as it hid all of the dye and paint that got on it somehow. I want to add a button to the middle of the flower.

This purse was made from a kit. I liked the pattern but hated working with the fabrics that were in kit. Oh well.....it came out cool.

More new arrivals!

2009-05-26T12:11:00.005-04:00

Here are some of the new arrivals that showed up this week. Two great new books, a new CPS Studios, and a Premier edition of Art Quilting Studio. You can find all these at www.fiberonawhim.com

Printmaking + Mixed Media by Dorit Elisha

Freestyle Machine Embroidery by Carol Shinn

Premier Issue of Art Quilting Studio by Stampington & Co.

Summer Issue of CPS Studios

New Arrivals

2009-05-04T13:55:00.007-04:00

So many new things have come in over the past couple of weeks. Most of them are books are magazines though. Thought I'd give you a preview of some that can be found at www.fiberonawhim.com

Textile Translations by Maggie Grey

Embellish & Stitch by Maggie Grey & Valerie Campbell-Harding

Inspired to Quilt by Melanie Testa **Just Arrived Today**

Cloth Paper Scissors May/June 2009

Haute Handbags Spring 2009

Stitch Spring 2009 **Just Arrived 5/2**

Happy Creating!!

Focus on Fiber 2009

2009-03-30T15:03:00.031-04:00

We got back yesterday from our week at Focus on Fiber down in New Smyrna Beach, FL. We had an amazing time. This was mom's second year going and my first. The ladies that go are quite the group and Mary McBride does a fabulous job putting it on. The retreat is a full week of unguided art. Basically you bring and work on whatever floats your boat! Here are a number of pictures I took from the week so you all can get an idea of the fun we had.

The back end of the car totally jam packed with supplies.

Pics of the cabin we stayed in down at ACA (Atlantic Center for the Arts)

Me packing some stuff up in the kitchen.

View out to the boardwalk.

The Dance Studio which was the sewing room that held about 18 of us.

We spent a morning at the beach......

A pic of the boardwalk that winds back to the cabins.

Liz Berg spent much of her time out on this patio dyeing fabric.

Mara Whitridge in the Sculpture Studio where we had a table to paint.

Mom working on discharging.

This was the Painting Studio that had about 6 people working in it.

These two pics are of a sculpture that Pamela Allen and Rosemary Claus-Gray made.

Close up of the sculpture.

View from the "Pod" in the center of the campus.

Happy hours were a must during the retreat and here is the view of the "coffee table" with some dead soldiers one afternoon.

The commons where we ate every meal.

This is of all the ladies that belong to SAQA.

The papparazzi that was following them!

Janet B. and Rosalie trying gelatin printing. We had some extra left over that would have gotten thrown away so they decided to try it out.

Rosalie with Marian looking on.

Some of the prints.

Janet B. working hard on her painting.

Rosemary Claus-Gray right before our last dinner which was Morrocan themed.

Chef Sue arranged for belly dancers to come perform.

Rosemary jumped up to dance at the end of their performance. Man can she shake her hips!!!

I got many more photos this past week. I really recommend that if you are able to attend a quilting retreat you should. There was a fun, creative atmosphere at Focus on Fiber that made the week speed by and end all too quickly. Hopefully we will be able to attend next year which already has it's dates set for March 13-21, 2010. We'll keep our fingers crossed that it will be possible for us.