Mixed Media Artist

A Bead A Day Ever been to sunny Beadland? Lisa shares details of her recent trip...Is this the real life or is this just fantasy? Anniversary Quilt: Middles and Ends Cherie continues working on her quilt project. Carmi's Art/Life World How to turn a group of brooches into a necklace! Cinnabar Chinese Lantern Earrings & Necklace Eileen set out to make a set of jewelry for Valentine's Day. When she went to her red bead stash, her eyes locked on some beautiful red carved cinnabar beads just perfect for the design she had in mind anyway! #Durathon Iron Giveaway! An iron is used for everyday house chores, but it is also an important tool for many needlework crafters. Find out how you can win an awesome new Hamilton Beach Durathon irong. Mixed Media Artist Check out how you can use dryer sheets to "paint" a quilt! Resin Crafts Blog How to make a mold with a half doll body. Snap out of it, Jean! There's beading to be done! Jean writes a poem...

Yarn Bombing 18th Street by Arzu Arda Kosar Vintage Projects: 18 Projects Inspired by the Past by Vivienne Bolton Stitch and Structure: Design and Technique in Two- and Three-Dimensional Textiles by Jean Draper Memories Sew Sweet by Sandra Berry Creative Block: Get Unstuck, Discover New Ideas. Advice & Projects from 50 Successful Artists by Danielle Krysa Quilted Projects with Wool and Wool Felt: Easy Techniques with Full-Size Templates by Rachel Pellman and Beth Oberholtzer Simply Amazing Quilted Photography: Learn How To Make Art Quilts The Easy Way! (Art Quilt Books) by Tammie Bowser More Amazing Quilted Photography: Easy Art Quilts With More Shapes, More Textures and Many More Easy Techniques. .. by Tammie Bowser Embroidery & Patchwork Revisited-An Illustrated Guide to Hand Stitching by Janice Vaine Technorati Tags: mixed media , collage , assemblage , digital art , photography , altered books , art journals

I showed you this photo last week, as it was my initial inspiration shot for my current project.  But I wanted more detail in the glacier, so I turned to this shot: For my actual quilt design, I decided to cheat a bit.  Do you ever do that? I combined the detail of the second shot with the basic composition of the first.  This is just a rough idea of how it will look, with more pronounced jagged tops, but against a sky background (really cheating there!) and with the bay showing at the bottom.  This completely changes the proportions, but so what?  It's my fantasy! You'll notice that my drawing skills leave a lot to be desired, and that's just fine since most of my work is abstracted rather than strictly representational. Without cutting anything, I folded some of the dryer sheets to figure out the color placement and size of the finished piece.  Many of the colors are quite similar, but by layering them and using them like an impre...

Art Bead Scene Have you always wanted to try Kumihimo? Try out guest blogger Ema Kilroy's handy tutorial for combining Kumihimo and art beads! Beading Arts Cyndi shares part one of her tutorial on how she integrated soutache braid into her bead embroidery. Carmi's Art/Life World There is a truly exciting way to create a scarf that does not require you using knitting or crochet needles. Take a peak at what you can make with water soluble stabilizer. Charlene Sevier Jewelry Yes, you too can learn to solder and make gorgeous jewelry using techniques traditionally used to make stained glass. Charlene reviews a book that shows you how. Crocheting and Playing Tammy takes a look at a relatively new book from Running Press that has some adorable baby and young children's projects. Downton Abbey Inspired Earrings & Bracelet Truth be told, the set wasn't inspired by Downton Abbey. The earrings were inspired by a moonstone ring for which Eileen couldn'...

All of the quilts in Kate Henderson's new book Strip Savvy are created with 2 1/2 inch strips of fabric.  What could be easier?  No matter how complex the patterns look on first glance, you'll find that that all break down into super-simple variations on the 2 1/2 inch theme! Kate explains that the reason she favors these strips is because so many fabric companies package precut strips of the fabrics in their lines, so that gives you so many options for coloring and designing your quilts.  Don't feel that you have to use the exact colors that Kate calls for in each project...you can easily have fun with substitutions.  As with all Martingale quilting books, all the basics that you will need are covered, making this another good beginner book.  And if you're an unrepentant collector of fabrics, strip piecing might be just what you've been looking for! The first section of the book covers the basics, followed quickly by the projects!   Strip Sa...

To continue with my goal of using up and recycling supplies that I already have, I decided to experiment with dryer sheets.  I've been saving a stack of them for months (actually a LOT of months!), and it's probably past time to figure out a project for them.  But my desires are not simply because I am sooooo green.  Nope.  The decision was really based more upon the fact that the used sheets seem like a great way to capture the look of Alaskan snow and ice, and full-out glaciers! To get the ball rolling, I started with the acylic color sample I had previously made for myself and added a few more colors to it. And then I began painting, adding thinned washes of the various colors (almost, but not quite, all of them) to used up dryer sheets.  One color per sheet.  I used freezer paper to protect my surfaces. Here they all are, hanging to dry in my kitchen, with an ugly red drop cloth beneath them.  At least it makes them stand...

A Bead A Day Tweet Me Valentine! Lisa found the cutest group of charms that are perfect for Valentine's Day. Beading Arts Cyndi has ventured into the exciting world of working with soutache, and has worked up some practice exercises to sharpen our skills! Carmi's Art/ Life There is nothing like a fabulous bezel to inspire an equally fabulous felted collar. Chipboard Heart Bracelet and Earrings Eileen made this heart jewelry set with Valentine's Day in mind, but loved it so much, she wore it early. Her friends asked where they could get one. She said, "Make your own." Eileen wasn't being snide or nasty. These are fun and inexpensive to make. Check it out! Postcard: Thanks to the Lord Cherie works on postcard art for June's mail exchange. Resin Crafts Blog This week I had an opportunity to experiment with a new medium, Powertex, which allowed me to turn crocheted doilies into bezels I can pour resin into. Snap out of it, Jean! There...

Kristin Roylance has 6 cute kids of her own, so you can bet she has a lot of experience making Cute Quilts for Kids .  If you've never made a quilt before, this might be the book for you.  What could be more motivating than creating a special treasure for a baby or small child that you love? The book starts with quiltmaking basics, so never fear if you are a beginner.  In short order, it covers materials and tools, basic piecing, fusible applique, machine quilting, hand embroidery, binding and finishing the edges. The bulk of the book is 9 projects, which include yardage requirements and patterns so that you can make them exactly as shown if you like or you're a beginner. Although Kristin doesn't really address varying the color choices, if you have any quilting experience, you'll easily be able to see how to customize the quilts to your liking.  Some specifically for boys and some for girls, but with a slight change in colors, you could easily morph an...

Click for a larger view! Designed by Michael Curry for Disney World's Magic Kingdom parade, Maleficent is also scheduled to roar to life on the big screen this May!  Our daughter Dani worked on this project, so we feel a special sort of pride in seeing the photos that Disney recently released on their blog! See more about her on the Disney Parks blog Technorati Tags: mixed media , collage , assemblage , digital art , photography , altered books , art journals

Anniversary Quilt - The Middles Cherie works on the middle squares of her mixed media quilt project. Art Bead Scene Check out this month's new challenge artwork - The Rose Garden by Paul Klee. You will not fail to be inspired! Beading Arts  Cyndi set off in search of a way to combine the "charm" of a charm bracelet with the control of a cuff. Craft Instantly For those who love immediate gratification type projects, this new book published by Ulysses Press gives you lots of fast and easy crafting options. Snap out of it, Jean! There's beading to be done! Jean reviews a great jewelry book compiled by Karin Van Voorhees: STYLISH JEWELRY YOUR WAY. There is even a super DVD which comes along with it! You will love it! Stamped Valentine's Day Card Tutorial Hurry! You still have time to make a few of these for your loved ones. The Writing and Art of Andrew Thornton Andrew was recently interviewed by Jennifer VanBrenschoten for Beading Daily. The art...

Mike has been working on restoring a reproducing player piano for years (and years!).  He only tends to work on it during the winter, since there are just so many other things that need doing during the summer.  But all the hard work has finally paid off and he has it working.  There are still some work left to be done, but we were all so happy for him that the end is now in sight! Video of the piano in action Sorry guys...I tried to embed this video, but even after correcting the wonky url, it was making the entire screen go white.  No idea why. Copyright 2014 Cyndi Lavin. All rights reserved. Not to be reprinted, resold, or redistributed for profit. May be printed out for personal use or distributed electronically provided that entire file, including this notice, remains intact. Technorati Tags: mixed media , collage , assemblage , digital art , photography , altered books , art journals

I can't believe that I set this quilt aside for sooooo long!  I started it back in August 2012, completed the layout, and then just stalled.  So here's a link to "Part one", if I'm even allowed to call it that!  That post shows you how to turn your photos into sepia prints using Photoshop .  And now, please allow me to pick up from there... I took these shots of Mike during our trip to Hawai'i, and the fabrics came from a wonderful shop on the Big Island, called Kimura Fabrics .  I wanted to make a very personal quilt that would be a scrapbookish reminder of our trip. 1. Cut out fabric pieces for the top and arrange them with slight overlaps.  I used 4 large rectangles as you see above. 2. Cut out "windows" in each rectangle for pictures to slip under. 3. Cut out batting.  I cut it larger than the pieced top would be so that I could do the "wrap and tuck" binding method . 4. Stitch the pieced top and the pictur...