Days 9 & 10

Finishing this project up took two of my studio times, yesterday's and today's.

What a lot of fun it was, though. I really enjoyed the slow pace of the hand work, sewing each of the little beads on, and I got quite a thrill out of seeing the pops of color on my piece.

This piece was also done for my color class, and was also taken from a photo I took while on holiday. This particular photo was taken in the Cinque Terre, Italy in early June and all of the streets were vibrant with color in the forms of the homes and the flowers everywhere. It was a beautiful feast for the eyes!

I sketched this onto fabric, free motion quilted the solid lines and heavy areas in black thread, then "colored" in with dry pastels, adding water to give me the watercolor effect. I then added some other quilting/coloring in colored thread, and then it sat for a long time.

It's been pinned up on my design wall for ages and it called out to me yesterday when I needed some quiet hand work to do. It was a joy to work on and finish.

Day 8

First an explanation.

I am taking this challenge to form a habit- a habit of being creative every day.

No- that's not entirely correct- a habit of TAKING TIME every day to do something creative outside of the norm of my every day life.

I love to cook and put a lot into the dinners we eat- but every once in a while, I go the extra mile, even for me. lol Those particular days I count as being creative.

But most days, I don't get into my studio or even pull out a pencil to doodle because I will be honest- I waste time.

Not always on purpose, mind you. Most days it happens without my knowing it. I spend a little too long on the computer or I get sidetracked reorganizing something or I do something that could wait. I don't always prioritize my time the way I should.

I don't make enough time for my art nor for myself and it's become glaringly obvious to me that I'm doing myself a grave disservice.

So, going forward, starting with this challenge and from here on in, I'm endeavoring to make a better effort to take some time every day to do something creative that makes me happy, something that sets a good tone for my day, something that brings joy to my soul!

And in this challenge, it might mean doing a small little project start to finish in a day, or it might mean finally finishing something that has been sitting in my studio, patiently waiting for me to get it done so it can be fulfill it's purpose. I LOVE getting something done, don't you?

Many of the things I like to do on aren't able to be done in a day; the ideas seem to come to me bits at a time until they are finally finished.

Anyway, for Day 8, I finally completed an "old" color class project- the front was done except for the description, and it needed the hanging sleeve on the back sewn down. Not much in the way of work, but it took a while and it was just the kind of creative work I needed for that day.

I'd tried to quilt- but after breaking 4 needles in quick succession, I realized that I was far too tense to quilt and needed something else to do. Hand work was just the ticket, and that pretty little piece was just there waiting :)

I love this piece because it started as a photo I took on the Stockholm Archipelago on our last night in the city when we were on the boat tour. It was a very simple photo, which I first turned into a sketch and then a watercolor, using my Derwent Inktense pencils.

For color class, I then took a plain piece of muslin and drew the picture on there, "drew" the outline with my sewing machine in black thread, and then colored the rest of the picture in with dry pastels. I then wet the cloth, and the colors blended together like watercolors, it was wonderful! I used some free motion quilting in other colors to emphasize other things like the water and the sun, used a little bit of glitter and such, and then left the thing alone! (I tend to overdo things. lol)