Quilt Archaeology

This post comes to you thanks to my friend The Amazing Alice who is not only crafty, but organized! Last January, I finally got around to doing a big studio clean-up. At the end of all of my hard work, I discovered that I'd accidentally thrown out a bag of vintage linens. I was especially sad to lose the cutter quilt, that I'd used as the background for Heartfelt, and the rest of the feed sack that I'd used for Seed Sower. I told my sad story to Sister Alice, and a few weeks later, she gifted me with this gorgeous cutter quilt. (Alice actually gets rid of things on purpose!)

You can see how delicate the old fabric was. In some areas it was practically falling apart in my hands. When I looked inside the openings in the fabric, I could see that there was another quilt layered under the first one. I gently removed the green floral border, and then began the process of removing the knots so that I could peel off the top of the quilt to see what was underneath.

This is the quilt that I found underneath. The first quilt top fit a double bed. The quilt underneath was the size of a single bed. I'd like to think that a young bride extended the size of the quilt when she got married.


Guess what was used to extend the quilt? Feed sacks! I was so thrilled.

After I removed the feed sacks, I got to see the original twin-sized quilt. I folded over the back so you can see the black and white floral print  fabric that was on the other side.

I can't wait to use it in a future project. In the meantime, I folded each of the pieces very neatly and put them in a clear plastic bag, so that there is no possibility that this treasure will get discarded.

Collaborative Jewelry Work

Elizabeth Woodford and have been working on a collaborative jewelry set to donate to the LibertyTown Patron's Show in May. We decided on an ocean theme, and then combed through each of our bead stashes to assemble a group of beads to work from.

Elizabeth created this stunning bracelet. I borrowed this photo from her blog, where you can read more about her creative process, and see more images. She had to rework the piece several times to get it just right. I did some reworking myself, mainly due to the fact that I had to come up with something that would be a suitable companion to Elizabeth's gorgeous piece!

I decided to do one of my salt shaker pendants, and add a little more beading than usual. I had purchased a mermaid bead from Green Girl Studios when I was on vacation in Ashland, North Carolina and this seemed like the perfect  time to use it.

She is dangling from the bottom of the salt shaker, along with a variety of beads from our collective stash. I added a beaded section on the top of the salt shaker. I like the effect, and intend to explore the idea further in the future. I added chain to the very top, to coordinate with the salt shaker and mermaid, and then added a splash of beads on the bottom half of the chain. (You can click on the image for a closer look.)

The middle photo above also shows the earrings. They have shells with a variety of beachy beads spilling out of them.

There are still tickets available for the patron's show. Tickets are $150, and each ticket guarantees the ticket holder an original piece of artwork. (Or, in this case, three original pieces!) I hope you'll consider coming down to join the fun! For more information, you can visit the website at http://www.libertytownarts.com/.

Running with Scissors

Whew! The last few weeks have been crazy busy. Seriously crazy. Seriously busy. I was working three part-time jobs and trying to squeeze in studio time where I could. All of them were great opportunities, and I'm really glad I didn't have to miss out on any of them. Here are the art projects I managed to squeeze in:

Pictured below is the beginning of my fat-book pocket-skirt swap for Art and Soul. I can't reveal any more right now, but it's coming along, and I'll share the whole book with you when I get back from A&S.

I also completed this piece, "See The Show" which is part of my circus series. The background is a copper printing plate, with gel medium transfers. The 3-D objects are brass candle holders, brass charms, a vintage baby doll and an antique rubber stamp. The title of the piece is stamped in gold at the bottom.

This piece, titled "In the Kitchen" is currently in the Food for Thought show at Liberty Town through the month of April.

I'm so grateful that things are a little quieter now. I never got the house decorated for Easter, but there are worse things in the world, right? Easter bunny did get to do a little shopping, so there will be brimming baskets in the morning, followed by a fun day at Grandma's.


And who knows, maybe Easter bunny will get the urge to do a little decorating while the eggs are being hidden tonight!