Silkscreenin'

Here are some of my first silk-screened images from my Surface Design class.

The Boat

Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing, absolutely nothing half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.
- Rat to Mole in The Wind in the Willows


We were in Bellingham last weekend visiting the Bandstras. Andrew and Aaron spent a few hours aboard the Cape Anne.




Here is the boat that Aaron built. Isn't it beautiful?!!




**gasp** who is that handsome man at the stern?




ARRrrr! It's Andrew!

The Things He Carries

I'm taking a children's literature class and I have the trill of reading The Hobbit once again. I just finished the chapter which introduces one of my favorite literary characters, Gollum. I thought all you Gollum fans out there might enjoy this little list taken from Chapter V:

The Things Gollum Keeps in His Pockets
fish-bones
goblins' teeth
wet shells
a bit of bat wing
a sharp stone to sharpen his fangs on
and other nasty things

Dyeing With Bugs

That's right bugs. This beetle is the cochineal. They are plucked from cacti in Central and South America and their carcases are ground into a powder and used as dye. The dye has been used for hundreds of years by the indigenous of that part of the world. When the Europeans arrived, they went wild for colours it produced and for a time, the dye was a hottest export from the New World.


I was lucky enough to be a part of the cochineal group during the natural dye section of my "Precision Dyeing" class. Here the little ones themselves (may they rest in peace).




This is the ground up cochineal. Look at the change in colour! Nothing was added-- that is pure bug.



Oooo, so red. The cloth has to simmer for about 45 minutes.


Voila! The darker fabric is the protein fibres (wool and silk), the paler fabric is cellulose fibres (in this case, cotton/hemp and linen).

Have a Lovely Weekend

Here is our breakfast table from last weekend. Baked french toast is one of my very favorite breakfast dishes. This one is adapted from the Smitten Kitchen recipe. I added less milk and shoved some late summer blueberries in between the slices of cheap french bread before baking. It was delicious, all smothered in maple syrup!
Well, this weekend we are off for an impromptu visit to the Bandstras' in Bellingham. Ta for now.

I Have a Thing for Sock Monkeys

My latest: a monkey for my bicycle-building brother, Christopher. The wonderful block print on the t-shirt was made by my talented friend and classmate, Emmily (yes, that's right, with two m's).

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Speaking of monkeys... Andrew and Sarah gave me this book for my birthday:


Each sock monkey has so much personality.



Nothing puts a smile on my face like a pile o' monkeys!

In the Loom Room

Our weaving studio. In the textiles department space is a commodity. Look at all those looms!


My good friend Kimberly gets some help with her warp.
We spent most of the first day of weaving class warping up the floor looms. The "warp" are the fibres that run length-wise and remain under tension as you weave. (The "weft" is what you weave with, threads that cross over the warp) For me, warping up is the most tedious part of the process. I feel so relieved after finishing: now I can get down to weaving.


Here is the warp on my loom. It's a little boring, I know. There will be more pictures to come. We will be working on transparencies and inlay... stay tuned.

Back-to-School Pouch

Made in anticipation of my first day of classes tomorrow. Look at that wonderful bear patch! Sarah sent it to me well over a year ago. I believe she got it at a craft fair in Boston. I'll have to find out were it comes from so that I can give due props.

***The bear patch was made by Wonderland Q***

Hand Embroidery

I participated in an international hand embroidery competition this summer. I had a great time sewing and am pleased with the work so far. I didn't make it past the first round so I relaxed a bit in late July and August and the pieces are not quite finished. Here's what I have so far:

The must-have accessory for fall...

a little velvet scorpion purse!



This piece was inspired by Albrecht Durer's Hare. It hopes to be made into a little purse someday.



Here's a (not-so-great) picture of the final piece stretched on a frame. Because of the type of stitches I used, I needed to stretch the linen very tight.



The blouse that it is meant to be is still in pieces. It is very close to completion and I hope to be able to finish it with the help of my sewing teacher before school gets too crazy. I'll be sure to post some more pictures then.

Late Summer Lovin'

We just got back from a fabulous trip to Boston where we celebrated the wedding of my brother David and the lovely and amazing Alison. Here are just a few pictures:

Dave and Alison rehearse their nuptials.




We love our cousin Ben!



Our brother Christopher and Uncle Peter discuss music under the wedding tree.



Alison prepares with the help of her sister. Alison tried so hard to remain calm, cool and collected. It was 95 degrees and she could not have been wearing more petticoats!



Blurry, champagne fun with Maryka and Kevin at the reception



Dining with Eden

Let's See How This Goes...

I'm sure all of you who know me as the techno-phobe that I am, will be shocked to discover that I'm starting a blog. I decided that the week before the start of my second and final year in the Textlie Arts Program at Capillano College was as good a time as any to begin a blog. I'm expecting the next year to be an exciting and creative time for me and I hope to use this space to share the process of creating.

No craft or art yet, just a bunny enjoying the waning days of summer.