The Renee Award

 

   Marie awarded my blog with the Renee Award some time ago and I’m finally getting around to posting about it…   

    The Renee award was created by two friends of Renee to honor her.  Renee’s blog, http://circlingmyhead.blogspot.com/  is extremely worthy to read, if you get a chance.  Her most recent post is to her now adult children  made me think of how wonderful it must be to have her as a Mother.  I don’t know a lot of parents that would do this for their children this way and it really is beautiful.  

   I should tell you that Renee has stage 4 cancer so has a different perspective going on.  I understand how chronic, life threatening illness really hones down your life to only the most key, and important stuff.   I have a more normal life now and can see things from two sides of that fence.  I get how we forget the ultimately important stuff day to day when there isn’t something like this to remind us to stop sweating the small stuff or delight in the littlest things.  Still I think we should make the effort to do whatever we can to remind ourselves that this is our life, here and now, and if you don’t choose to live it how you want then how are you living it?  If not *your* choice, then whose?

  Maybe a touchstone in your pocket that you carry around every day would be a reminder to you to stop for a moment, breathe and be.   One of the questions I ask myself throughout the day is: will this really matter when I’m 87?  How about an hour from now?  It weeds things out quickly for me!

  Marie’s comment on her blog about the Renee award is lengthy but she ended it with: Welcome to the Singe Sisters Sorority at the Hellinback College of Hard Knocks.  =)

  I love you Marie and am honored.  Thank you for all the stuff we’ve traveled through together through the years.  Thank you for being my family. I can’t tell you how important that is to me and how much respect I have for you.  I will always want the best for you, whatever you deem that to be, no matter what.   xxoo

Polymer Clay and Meeting Up with Marie

  Well, it’s big packing time again.  I’m off to West Virginia to the Polymer Clay Collaborative and Mixed Media Retreat at Sheperdstown University on Monday.  I’m really looking forward to this event!   I don’t get to attend very many polymer clay oriented events, much less teach at them so this is a real treat.  Teaching about polymer clay is one of my most favorite things to do because I get to see the possibilities that my students discover bonk them in the head!  It’s really fun to see the dawning of potential and their excitement about it and how they apply that.  What a great job, eh?

  I’m going  to be meeting up with my very close friend, Marie Segal, in Chicago and flying into Dulles together!  How fun is that?  I so rarely get to travel WITH anyone that this will be a real treat.  We both land in Chicago at the same time so we’ll meet at the gate.  We’re on the same plane leaving Dulles next week, too.   I know splitting up in Chicago will be interesting for us after living together for the week but we’ve lived together before, many years ago at Ravensdale 1998.   That’s when I learned Howard snores and sounds like a bear.  =)
  You can see Howard in a recent picture on Marie’s blog:

http://mariesegal.blogspot.com/2009/05/i-love-this-picture.html 

  He’s the one bundled up and driving…  he’s hilarious.

New Directions and Addictions

Felting Fashion by Lizzie Houghton is due out August 4, 2009.

        OMIGOSH!  It’s really incredible how one thing leads to another. It’s like the old nursery rhyme “For the want of a nail, the shoe was lost”.    So who knew that not being able to knit was keeping me blind to a bunch of possibilities? When I was young and the local yarn shop tried to teach me how to knit, they realized that I was left handed so all they had to do (they thought), was sit in front of me and have me copy what I saw. I learned many years later, as an adult, that what I thought was knitting was actually purling.
      So here comes a couple of months ago, I started loom knitting.  As it began to dawn on me that I could knit, actually knit, the wheels in my head started to turn like crazy.  I started working with wool because I wanted to felt.  Then I bought natural colored wool because I wanted to dye my own colors for the felted pieces.    

Excellent book 'complete feltmaking' by Gillian Harris

       I wet felted some knitted purses and then I needle felted some things that I would like to make into jewelry. The needle felting was my downfall though. I ruined my hands with the repetitive motion and for the last two weeks I’ve been unable to do a lot with them. Tomorrow I see a hand surgeon. HMPH. 
     So today as I’m chomping on the bit to finish this felted project and do more needle felting and mulling over what to do, I mentioned to my husband about needle felting machines. I explained to him that they are pretty expensive, like a sewing machine but more then I would pay, and how I would like to move along on my projects. He pops out with a simple question: why can’t we convert your old sewing machine into a needle felting machine? So that sets me off on the internet to see what anyone has to say about that and lo and behold! There is such a thing as a needle adapter for converting a sewing machine into a needle felting machine. I even found the adapter on Ebay at a discount from regular price with extra needles and foam. Apparently you pull the bobbin assembly out and the feed dogs/plate on the machine. In their place you put high density foam in the cavity so that the needles will sink into that. It keeps them from breaking.    My old sewing machine is a cast iron special from Mongomery Ward and weighs a ton. It should be able to stand up to whatever I throw at it. It is a two tone, aqua/teal, VERY retro and I can’t wait to be able to needle felt again. I know my hands will appreciate it, too!

     On that note, when we went up to Vancouver day before yesterday I didn’t even take my laptop with me. It was weird to be without it since it goes everywhere with me but my hands appreciated the break. I did loom knit another purse in the car going up and back though.

  We had a wonderful time and the weather was absolutely beautiful.  I’ll post on that next.

Shiver Me Infidels! Clay Camp was Fun!

View from the dining hall at Clay Camp

    Clay Camp was a blast, as always.  What better way to leave distractions behind, experiment, play and really get some good work time and lifelong laughs while hanging with the cream of the crop?
   Some of the highlights include a gift my dear friend, Autumn, gave me:  Mad Libs, the Pirate version! Friday night we played “How to talk like a pirate” and N.G. (short for Nice Guy), came up with ‘infidels’ for a noun that left us with:  Shiver me infidels! HILARIOUS! He says he’ll never look at infidels quite the same way ever again. Autumn popped up with ‘killdeer’ for a noun so we had a ‘tri-cornered killdeer’ as the hat of choice in our pirate story.

Autumn playing with doll hands she made at camp.

 

   We have so many goofy associations with camp now from so many years of quirky behavior ranging from peeps to pirates that it’s just funny to go to camp.  It’s all about artists breaking loose and having some great laughs. Who needs exercise when you laugh that hard?
Next up is a road trip to Canada this weekend. I am planning on finally getting to Maiwa on Granville Island. Maiwa (www.maiwa.com) carries hand carved wood textile stamps. These stamps are carved in India and they have lots of them. I have never been able to find them but I have it scoped out now. I’m hoping to add to my collection of these original stamps. I use them in my work with polymer and metal clays and fabric decorating. Maiwa also carries everything for the fabric/textile arts including silk paints, silk, tools, dyes, and more. I told my travel mates that they will have to plan on slouching about the Farmer’s Market while I’m in Maiwa because I will be taking my time!

My work area at camp. See my new Hello Kitty spritzer bottle? I got it in the brown bag gift exchange!

Next week it’s off to West Virginia for the Polymer Clay Collaborative Mixed Media Retreat at Sheperdstown University. I’ll be teaching classes on Silk Beds and also Polymer Clay Bound Books. I’ll post on that later, of course.

Clay Camp 2009 group photo

It’s Clay Camp! WOOHOO!

Late Nighter and Early Riser cabins at Camp Huston

Every year the N.W. Polymer Clay Guild hosts Clay Camp at Huston Camp and Conference Center in Gold Bar, WA the weekend after Mother’s Day.   And every year it’s like going to another place that feels like home.
Clay Camp is the first event that I ever organized so it has a special place in my heart. I have seen it grow from being housed in 1995 at Camp Long in Seattle,  moved to Camp Don Bosco in Carnation and finally to Camp Huston where it has been for many years now.
  Some real shenanigans have been known to occur at this camp through the years. There are often many photo opportunities, peep wars, laughter over odd/risque Japanese books (Kokigami anyone?),  group creations and hilarity as well as classes, free demonstrations, strange hors d’oeuvres and amazing artistic inspirations.

This year there are two classes available and everyone gets to learn about resins and try some.  Marie and Howard Segal have sent some sort of surprise for us to play with,too,  I hear.   THANK YOU, Marie and Howard!! 

    Howard and Marie own The Clay Factory in Escondido, CA (www.clayfactory.net).  They’re part of the family at the N.W. Polymer Clay Guild and we love it when they get to come to camp though that isn’t the case this year.   We will miss your presence, kids, but thank you for your presents. xxoo

  We get to play with polymer clay in the 24 hour community work area, make multiple field trips to the Ben Franklin in Monroe for the cool products we learned about in the demos (they give us a special group discount coupon!), be fed home baked bread and family style meals all to just generally play and most especially be silly.

  What’s not to love?  

 

Puget Sound Bead Festival, July 10-12

Etched metal disc bracelet by Meredith Arnold

Only 3 seats left!!
Metal Etching Made Easy, July 11 from 7-10 p.m.

Puget Sound Bead Festival will be in Tacoma, WA. Here it is May and there only 3 seats left in my class to make an etched metal bracelet. I’ve taught my Metal Etching Made Easy program all over the U.S. for the last 3 years or so and this will be the first time I’ve taught this in my own home state so I’m happy that people are interested in it. I can guarantee that everyone will be wildly successful in this class and I will also provide information on Sherri and Dan Haab’s new etching process, the E3 Etching machine. Sherri is also teaching her class on the E3 process at this event.

Silk Bead necklace by Meredith Arnold, 2005

 

Silk bead on a necklace with hand braided cord by Meredith Arnold

  I’m also teaching my Silk Beads program (they’ve titled it Fantastic Fabric Beads).  It’s amazing how many people go totally nuts when I wear my silk bead necklaces and bracelets.    The best part is that in a class  everyone’s look different!   I’ve taught this program from Seattle to Miami, even Philadelphia and every set of beads that I have seen made all have a unique signature.  There isn’t a better way to experience color and pattern play then with this process because of  painting the silk and layering.  Then to top it all off with bead embroidery, sequins or simple wire wrapping makes them exquisite.

    I will be selling my silk jewelry among other things in:

June 1-6 :  Polymer Clay Collaborative Mixed Media Retreat, W. Virginia at Sheperdstown University

July 9-11:   Puget Sound Bead Festival

Aug. 20-23:   BeadFest Phildadelphia

Sept. 19-20:  Edmonds Studio Tour at Sue Robertson’s studio,  Joyful Art, Edmonds, WA

Nov. 5-8:   Bubikon, Switzerland (outside of Zurich) at the KunstHandwerker show in the Knights Hospitalier castle.

  I’m also experimenting with felting wool to make jewelry and one of a kind purses for these upcoming events.  As usual, all my pieces often combine different materials so expect the unexpected!  I have been designing a bracelet that is felted nests each holding a bead made from polymer clay.  It’s part of my bird series in a roundabout way.  I hope to have pictures soon.

Definitely an Imogen Heap Day!

Sighted in Spokane, WA last Fall.

Is it possible to have such a great day after having a Mother’s Day with food poisoning?  YUP!
The story goes: my husband, nice man that he is, decided to take me out to dinner for Mother’s Day on Sat. night. I found out on my way home from teaching a wonderfully successful class at a college that I’ve just started with. How nice to not have to think about dishes, I thought…
By the time I get home and we get situated it is 6 p.m. and wouldn’t you know that our favorite Chinese place is stacked out the door with people waiting. Bummer. So we opted to try the Tofu House around the corner. Usually it was chock full of people but not that night.
We ordered some stuff we had never heard of but thought we would try. One was a mix of stuff on rice (carrots, sprouts, mushrooms, etc.) and it was pretty good. We each ended up with a small, whole fish – looking at us, no less. UGH. It wasn’t so okay but I was hungry, (I covered the eyes of mine with a clam shell). The tofu soup was almost solid tofu with a clam and a shrimp in it. It was good. Then I noticed it had beef in it. Beef doesn’t like me at all. That was the first sign of trouble.
     Long story short: I spent Mother’s Day close to home instead of going up to Whidbey Island for a family dinner. Very disappointing. I haven’t really seen any of my family much since Thanksgiving. We usually only get together 3 times a year. Our next usual meet up would be in the park on Whidbey for Father’s Day. I’ve been able to make that once (last year) because I’m always teaching on weekends.
     So here it is today. I got up and I’m feeling better. In my email is a message that someone loves my work and thinks I should write a book about art dolls. That was such a nice way to start the day! All day this kept popping up in my mind, formulating what would be in such a book, the techniques and information. So I’m game! I’m initiating the process of proposing just such a book now despite the fact that I’m one of a group producing a book for the Tucson show next year.
     Heck, why not? Many years ago now, we were at a local little lake with our daughter having a picnic. A man was walking by wearing shoes about three sizes too big for him, pants way too short and a cache pot on his head. Some teenagers nearby yelled at him “HEY! Mister, how come you have a flower pot on your head?” and he stopped for a moment and said: “How come you don’t?”
So  today I worked in my office at ArtWorks (www.artworks-edmonds.org) and happily played Imogen Heap, thinking “How come you don’t?”.

Polymer Clay/Mixed Media Retreat June 1-6

It’s a mixed media retreat in Sheperdstown, W. Virginia that includes workshops on metal clay, polymer clay, making books, dolls and more for only $475 for the week. The price includes all your meals, lodging and place to play with like minded artists experimenting with many materials.
I’m really looking forward to the fun of just being able to hang out, make stuff, and create some good laughs and memories. And no dishes to do! See the details at: www.pccmmretreat.com
I hope to see you there!