Squigglechick Designs: Squiggles

Showing posts with label Squiggles. Show all posts

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

I'm Going to be Published, TWICE!!!

Remember this...............

Sandra Salamony was seeking submissions for her new book, 1000 Artisan Textiles. I submitted Green Apple Martini & it was accepted!! The book is slated to be published May 2010. (I'm not sure if I can wait that long!!)

I also have another piece that is to be published in Marion Barnett's new book, Exquisite Evolon. The publish date for that is right around the corner. Sorry no pics to show of that piece yet, I sent it out the next day after I completed it & didn't have time to photograph it. Marion promised me some digital photos.

I am hoping to add a third piece to my "being published" list this year. I submitted art work to Greencraft Magazine. The deadline was last week & I'm waiting to hear back. Sorry, I can't go into detail with what this may be (don't want to jinx it) but will tell you it's for Greencraft Magazine, that's totally dedicated to art made from recycled materials & it's something I've never created before. :)

Fingers & toes are crossed!!

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Potato Chip Quilt Block to Mini Wallets

Remember the Croatin potato Crisp (chip) bag quilt block? I wanted to try to create a clutch purse with the remaining chip bags that I had but wasn't sure how to protect those "bags" after they were sewn together for durability. Some artist friends suggested using clear vinyl for the "outside" of the clutch.

Over the weekend, I started playing with the vinyl & look what happened!! I figured I'd start small & work up to the clutch.

A friend of mine had commented on how she had such a hard time finding a mini wallet, so I made one for her. After I put my biz card in the clear pocket, I realized, "hey, why not a clear sleeve for your ID?"

This wallet was made from some fabric that I had left over from another project (LOVE that color) :) This time, I added the clear sleeve for the ID & an extra sleeve behind it for credit cards/cash, etc. The fabric is hand dyed bamboo, hand stamped with Lumiere, Angelina Fibers, Misty Fuse, machine stitching & hand dyed cheesecloth.

By then, I felt comfortable sewing with the vinyl so I ventured on with some scraps left over from the chip bags (I really liked how it turned out)!!

Since I liked how well this turned out, I tried the one below. I brought it in to show co-workers & sold it in 10 minutes!!

If you'd like to see the others that I made with Dr Pepper bottle labels, other cheetoh wrappers & hand dyed fabrics, they're posted in my Etsy Shop. (I haven't gotten around to making the clutch yet since I'm having so much fun making the mini wallets!!)

I try really hard to not be a pack rat, but now, since I've discovered these mini wallets, I'm saving chip bags, soda bottle labels, beer labels, etc. I hate the idea of collecting trash, but look what wonderful things can be done with something that you'd just normally throw away. I've asked my friends to start saving me their trash, otherwise, I've informed my DH that we're going to have to start eating more junk food (just for the wrappers) & we really don't want to do that :)

(think of me the next time you throw away that empty Dorito's bag) :)

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Smaller Journals

Love the size of these & am thinking of making some to sell in my shop. They're each approxiamately 5" by 6".

I included two pictures of them since in the top photo you can see the Angelina Fibers better in the Green, Turquoise & Purple Squiggle journals & the variation of color in the top left journal.

The bottom picture shows the texture better in the middle brown journal.

These journals were made for a swap in the Surface Design Group.

I'll try to explain from top to bottom what each journal is made from.................

the top left journal (peacock colors) & the middle brown journal were made by manipulating modeling paste & then adding color with Golden Acrylics.

The green & brown with turquoise journals were made of hand dyed bamboo fabric, Angelina Fibers & eyelash yarn that were free motion quilted. The purple journal embellished with metal squiggles, was hand dyed cotton with layers of rubber stamping, Angelina Fibers & hand dyed cheesecloth.

I think the colors turned out great in each of the journals & I hope the ladies on the receiving end of these enjoy them as much as I did making them :)

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

A Journal for Me

Looking back at the journals I've made, I think I only kept the first one & all of the rest have either been given away as gifts or sold in my shop or as special orders at my "day job". So, I decided to make myself one for my upcoming trip to Rome/Croatia, which is now only 2 1/2 days away. (I don't think it will sink in until I board the plane on Saturday, that I'm actually going to Rome.) :)

So here she is.......................... (I'm really happy with her)

I just LOVE the textures that you can get with modeling paste & fortunately, with this design, if the paste cracks, as it dries, it totally works with the piece.

This was painted with Golden Acrylics, thank you Lynda & Carol for introducing me to such wonder paint!!

I unfortunately, did not dye the interior fabric. I found this beautifully hand dyed cotton in a quilt store. (This is the first time I've ever included commercial fabric in one of my pieces & I kind of felt dirty for doing it, but I figured I wasn't marketing it as MY work, trying to sell it to anyone & I thought it fit nicely with the piece.)

Ok, so the interior signatures, I couldn't decide between dragonflies & squiggles, so I figured, what the heck, this journal is staying with me, do both :)

On another note, I was very happy to see that my "Green Woven Squiggles" that I donated for Fiberart For a Cause sold the first day!! Thank you, Heather for "bidding" on it & donating to a very important cause!! (Heather, I sent you an email requesting your address, so should it go into spam & you don't see it & you happen to read this post, please email me your address) :)

(You still have time to "purchase" wonderful collages at Collage Mania 2009, for the next two days, so go check it out!!)

Thursday, April 23, 2009

EtsyRAIN Springtime in Seattle

One of the groups that I belong to in Etsy is called teamEtsyRain. It consists of artists that live in the Puget Sound (Seattle, Washington) area. It's a great way to get to know other local artists in the area & it gives one (should you live locally) the opportunity to support & buy from local artists.

Jenny of Flandersfield Photography chose my Lemon Lime Squiggles ACEO for her EtsyRAIN Springtime in Seattle Treasury.

Aren't the colors YUMMY!! :)

(sorry guys, the photograph of the flowers in the top left corner has been sold to ME) but then I'm sure some of you aren't surprised! :)

Thanks, Jenny for adding me to your Treasury!!

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Making my art wearable?

I came across Sandy's Etsy shop, The Gilded Lily, in an Etsy Treasury. She creates beautiful pendants from Scrabble tiles. If you get the chance, check out her shop, she has TONS of really fun pendants!!

After viewing some of her pendants, I had the idea, "I wonder if she'd create some custom pendants with my work featured on them?" Sandy was awesome to work with!! I sent her digital photos of some of my pieces & look what she came back with.........................

Aren't they wonderful?!! Of course, I had to have them all & some others that I didn't get photographed for this post :) I think it's kind of nice to be able to carry around a small piece of your work with you all the time & what better way, in a pendant!!

Sandy created & got these pendants out to me in about three days, which I thought was VERY quick!! She was absolutely fabulous to work with & knows I'll be back bringing her more business!! Thanks, Sandy!!

(See it does pay to have your work seen in a Treasury!!)

Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Squiggle ACEO's

Lemon Lime Squiggles ACEO

This is my first attempt at creating a series of ACEO's. Generally, I'll create one or two but this time I made over 17 Squiggle ACEO's of different colors. (I think the Lemon Lime ACEO, might be my favorite, with the Metallic Silver following right behind it.)

Metallic Silver ACEO

Each of these ACEO's were hand painted with Lumiere Paint on cotton muslin & then rubber stamped.

Cherry Red Squiggles, ACEO

I then added layers of irridescent Angelina Fibers, which unfortunately do not photograph well (so I enclosed a closeup so you could see them.)

Grape Squiggles, ACEO

closeup of Angelina Fibers

I then added different colored metal "squiggles" as embellishments.

Dark Chocolate Squiggles, ACEO

I normally don't work in browns, so I was unsure of both brown ACEO's, but the feedback I've been receiving seems to be positive.

Milk Chocolate Squiggles, ACEO

Neon Green ACEO

I had a lot of fun making these & although, I'm questionable about the brown ACEO's & the Cherry Red ACEO (red is another color I normally don't work in), I'm happy with how they turned out.

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Collage for FFAC

I am very happy to donate "Green Woven Squiggles" to the Fiberart For A Cause auction & I'm even happier with myself that I got it done before deadline, which is April 1st. (I'm such a procrastinator!!)

Green Woven Squiggles is made from hand dyed bamboo & cheesecloth, with Angelina Fibers, (that don't like to show themselves in photographs) machine stitching & lumiere paint that was then hand woven together & embellished with painted metal squiggles. I hope that someone is as excited about making a donation for this piece as I was in making it!!

Those that know my work, know that this is the true color of the piece & that the photo hasn't been overexposed :)

Green Woven Squiggles has been donated in memory of my Uncle that passed away due to lung cancer.

Monday, December 22, 2008

This & That........

Sorry, it's been awhile since my last post. Remember the cold I thought I had? It ended up being a sinus infection AND it happened around the same time as the snow storms we keep seeming to have. Eventhough, the snow kept me from getting to work, I really didn't feel well enough to do any creating except for the journal below, that was a custom order for one of my co-workers.

This journal is made from raw silk, hand dyed brown, Angelina fibers & turquoise eyelash yarn. The turquoise strap is leather & I just love that dragonfly button. I've actually found a bead store that carries these in quite a few different colors.

I was very excited to see that one of my molding paste journal pictures was chosen for the Yahoo Group, Surface Design's home page photo.

I have to say, this might be my most favorite journal yet!!

I mentioned the snow earlier..........first of all, let me say, in Seattle, we might see a total of 2" of snow all winter (if we're lucky) & many winters we don't see any. Over this past week, we have seen up to 18" of snow in some areas. At my house............9". We've had two snow storms, one with wind gusts in the foothills as high as 90 mph. We're to see another snow storm tomorrow night. I'm really tired of shoveling my sidewalks and driveway, which I might add, no one else seems to know to do this. The DH and I grew up in Iowa, so we learned, after a snow, you dig out. You can tell who the transplants are around here by who shovels after a snow. (I bet the neighbors thought that we were nuts shoveling at night and first thing in the mornings.) But I have to tell you, we're the only ones around now with dry sidewalks & the driveway.

Here's just a couple of pics from of our house and all of the snow. How soon 'til summer?

Friday, December 12, 2008

A Little Bling...............

Well, the visiting family is gone & now back to work!! Am so excited, a co-worker placed a 4 piece custom order (possibly 5) with me & she needs it by Christmas. Fortunately, the company I had was understanding enough to allow me to do a little each night to work on these four pieces. Should every thing go as planned (which it never seems to do), I should have them finished by Monday & I can start working on another custom order that I just received yesterday from another co-worker. If I don't think about it too much, I won't stress that I have only two more weeks to get all of the pieces that I had planned to get done, done by Christmas.

Every year, the company that I work for, picks 1 or 2 families that might need a little extra help at Christmas. We all sign up for different items on their wish lists. I saw that the mother wished for bracelets, so I signed up & made these for her. The two outside bracelets are made from Bali silver & fresh water pearls. I scored those brown spiral beads in the center bracelet, while I was shopping for something completely different at a bead store. Don't worry, I picked up extra "just in case" I want to use them for something for me. :)

(I hope the mother likes these.)

I came across this necklace below, this past weekend while out doing the "tourist" shopping thing with my visiting family.

I fell in love with it right away. One of my friends loves Celtic things so I bought it for her for Christmas. I might have to go back & see if they have another one for ME :)

(if you're wondering, because it was my first question too, this is not made from bone, it's actually made from porcelain)

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Ornaments for the Holidays or for Whenever

I always enjoy making these!!

They're both approximately 8 1/2" long by 3.5" to 4" wide. They're both made of hand dyed bamboo poplin (of course) & hand dyed cheesecloth.

The blue ornament below, has been machine stitched & hand stamped with squiggles. Angelina Fibers (the iridescence that you can see) were then fused between the bamboo poplin & hand dyed cheesecloth. If you're curious about Angelina Fibers make sure you check out Embellishment Village's vodcast on Beginning Angelina Basics. It's an excellent 10 minute video on how to use Angelina Fibers.

For sale in my Etsy shop

The red ornament (yes the color is that vibrant), also from hand dyed bamboo, has layers of machine stitching, fused cheesecloth (the white misty fuse gives it a nice little bit of added glitz), more machine stitching & hand beading.

For sale in my Etsy Shop

The nice thing about these is that with the colors & designs I use, they can be used all year around. They'd hang nicely on a Christmas tree or wrapped gift or hang in your studio or office. It would be nice if you could hang them from your rear view mirror, but the direct sun light would fade the dyed fabric.

I have ornaments in different stages, waiting to be finished, in my studio in colors of purple, possibly turquoise & of course my signature neon green. I'm also working on some embossed hand dyed velvet. I'll post them here when I finished. (Am hoping with this 4 day holiday weekend, I'll have a lot to post here next week!!)

Monday, November 10, 2008

Yummy Journals............

Remember the burgundy journal a couple of posts back for a custom order? Here's the other one that goes along with it. I never grow tired of the green & turquoise :) This is made from hand dyed bamboo poplin, black misty fuse, Angelina Fibers & green & turquoise eyelash yarn. I've posted a closeup of the threads & the fabulous button I found for the closure, below. Love how the button works with the piece.

For the signatures, I used turquoise & green Lohkta paper. I love that handmade paper look. Something I discovered with this paper, I couldn't tear it to keep that nice uneven edge. It was as if some of the fibers in the paper were plastic & it wouldn't budge on tearing.

Please click on the photos (if you can) to see the detail better. (I'm slowly getting better with my free hand machine stitched squiggles.)

The journal below is a belated birthday present for a very dear friend of mine. This is the journal that I've been giving you peaks of over the last couple of weeks.

I just love, love, love this!! :) Normally, it would not take me as long to create a journal, however, I was using materials that I had never used before, so there was a huge learning curve AND I'm very proud of myself in sticking with it & not giving up.

The base material for the journal is cotton fabric, I then added modeling paste, scribed into the paste while it was still wet & placed the metal squiggles into it as well. After the paste dried, I lifted the metal squiggles & machine stitched over the dried paste. After the stitching, I then applied Prussian Blue acrylic paint & replaced the metal squiggles & waited for it to dry. To seal the paint & help adhere the squiggles to the journal, I then applied a polymer medium, which gave it that glossy appearance. The journal, has a really nice hand to it. One would think with the modeling paste & the polymer medium it would be very stiff, however, it's not, a friend of mine said it reminded her of eel skin.

Inside, for the signatures, I used hand made paper instead of the normal bright white I normally use. I hope my friend is better at using this than if it were me. I received a beautiful leather journal with hand made paper for a birthday gift, back in September & I still haven't been able to bring myself to sketching in it yet.

I have plans to make more of these for my Etsy shop. (There are actually 3 in progress right now sitting on my studio table.)