bee creative

it made me smile

This year I signed up for 2021 Carla's Year Long Class in hopes that I would do a bit more...

15+ minutes of playing with the art supplies.

15+ minutes of wondering why?

Well...it made me smile and I hope you do too.

 

untangle

Untangled a skein of yarn and divided into 6 uneven balls.

15+ minutes

By dividing the yarn into uneven amounts I will get different sized stripes for the Insomnia blanket. 

There is plenty right now that could cause insomnia.

Widget is getting more comfortable.

Tuna is key.

Lola is in denial..."just keep the treats coming and I will ignore the scary little hair raising beast."

 

 

open house, day eighteen

I was almost distracted from finishing today's project by...

It's supposed to warm up and turn back to rain so it will probably all be gone by morning.

Still it made for an eventful afternoon!

And now for the project...

Most of the pillows in my house have a little history to them.  I just finished this one today. It's been way past it's use as a blanket for a long time, I just haven't been sure what to do with it until yesterday. 

There is a little bit more to the story...when I was nine we came down from where we lived in Alaska to Seattle and then drove to California to spend Christmas with family. As we were getting ready to drive back to Seattle, Nana became concerned we would be cold and thought we needed a blanket in the car for the trip. I've packed this blanket around since then. 

This is the pillow that I used my Christmas Dress for (mentioned in this post).  Fabric from the dress was used for the backside

of this pillow that is looking a little ragged as it has been much loved.

The flower design in the middle is a drawing that my grandmother did for her mother as a child.  I copied it on to silk fabric and then added stitching around the lines.  The lace to the side was some made by Grandma Iside (my grandmother's mother) so it's all in the family. 

Now I'm wondering...did I do even better than that?

Where did my dress come from?

open house, day seventeen

Closer, but not quite there yet...

Sunrise: 8:00

Sunset:  4:16

open house, day sixteen

First...

Still holding together even after a day (yesterday) of winds with gusts between 30-40 MPH.

A few rose hips missing on one of them though.

And then...following up on the coasters:

I use plain stone tiles from the local ReStore when I can find them (they carry used materials or surplus from other projects) but I've found them at building supply stores too.  The tiles need to be unfinished.

My printer is an Epson and I use Golden Matte Medium.  Other combinations work but results vary.  All I can say is, practice.

This transfer was done with regular printer paper and the one on yesterday's post was done with matte photo paper.  The photo paper is harder to peel off but makes a clearer print.

Apply a layer of medium to the stone and to the paper then lay the paper ink side down on the tile.  The paper should be burnished with something like the backside of a spoon.

It might be important to remember this, the image will be a mirror image.  If this is a concern remember to flip the image.

Let it dry for a couple hours at least, overnight is best.  Really.

Wet the paper and rub gently. Do this over a piece of scrap paper, not in the sink (learned this lesson the hard way). It takes practice to get the right amount of pressure and it's best to do a few practice tiles. 

With heavier paper it can be helpful to wet the tile and let the paper soak a bit before rubbing.  Sometimes, if you are lucky, the paper will peel up as a large piece.

This one is almost done, just a little more rubbing I think.

I would say I have a success rate of about 4 turning out well for every one that I do. It's not a perfect process. Some images turn out much better than others. This is what the print looked like before transferring. The transfer on yesterday's coaster transferred completely.

I've found the transfers to be very durable but also sprayed the ones that I sold with a clear finish to be sure. I strongly recommend not taking custom orders from someone where they pick photos (also learned this the hard way).

Have fun if you give this a try!

 

 

 

open house, day thirteen

There is always something that doesn't quite go as planned...

Second try and I still can't get my ice candle holder to freeze in the shape I want.

open house, day ten

Having something to do is nice at a party...

Card making?  I am just getting started.

Secret Santa socks are all done.

 

open house, day two

Today I decorated my tree.

About 15 years or so ago I asked my dad to make me a metal tree. It has a base, a "trunk" and then branches that slide into holders along the trunk.

The ornaments are a collection of me-made, gifts, locally made, family ornaments, including some from one set of great grandparents; and some made by my mom.  The green round one and the red disk towards the back are two of my favorites that Mom has made.

Here's how my tree came together today:

There doesn't have to be presents for under a tree.  I like to put additional ornaments, origami, candle holders, a pair of cowgirl boots I wore when I was a toddler, tins, toys, books, and house plants under mine. 

It's not quite done, more to come...

December: open house

This month I have the thought to have an "open house..." With blog posts about home projects, favorite December recipes, and winter decorations.

Of course, every party should have a playlist, so music too.

To start...

Every year I make a wreath  built of branches that have fallen out of the neighbor's Doug Fir (there is always a good windstorm to help this along) and things from my garden.

Here's how I build my wreath plus a bit of bird song and a few other things I did last weekend.

 

1st layer: Old dusty grapevine wreath.

2nd layer:  Douglas Fir

3rd: Rose hips.

4th: Hop vine

5th: Ivy trimmings

6th: Holly (volunteer in the garden, probably planted by the birds)

My goal is to post daily throughout the rest of the month, so I'll be back tomorrow.

 

the moon in silver

I don't think I could have chosen a better goal than to work with images that are black and white and the shades in between for the month of November.

A few things:

As much as I love color, it can be a distraction.

I knew this at the beginning of the month and am now even more convinced; there really isn't black and white, it is so much more. 

Tonight I stood outside.

There is a full moon and stars.

Maybe even a planet (I think Venus).

So much is possible.

Men have walked on that moon...