BARNS

 I love to travel around the area I live in and take photographs of different  farms and wildlife.  I took this photo of an old wore out barn with many repairs that have been made over the years now also falling apart.  I love the texture in this piece and it will be what I make next.

It all starts with a sketch. 

"Deer Trace"

"Deer Trace"

25 1/2" X 18"

Raw edged fused applique

Inktense pencil

Tulle Fog

I must admit that this piece had its challenges and I almost gave up on it.  However, I persevered and am fairly happy with the results.  I always remember looking down into the field by our house growing up, and seeing the deer in the early morning.  They would be nervous as the daylight crept in but could not resist a few more bites of the fresh spring grass before heading back into the woods.

Not sure I would use the tulle as extensively the next time.  I hate working with invisible thread even though it moved through the machine well.  It is just hard to handle and not my favorite but for the fog it does disappear well.   I chose to try using a new product I have been hearing about which is the inktense pencil.  It is like a colored pencil but if you take a wet brush to it afterwards it blends right in.  I used it to shade the edges of the tree and its branches and I thought it worked nicely.  I also used it on the deer's bodies for shading    Hope you enjoyed the rocky road journey with me.   On to another adventure.

This piece will be available in my Etsy Shoppe:                  Etsy Shoppe

Saved By The Bell

The last time  you heard from me I was about to give up on this one.   Then you all came to my rescue and made me feel  better about the piece as well as suggested what may help with the problem.  One of you,  Libby Fife, suggested more branches.  It was then that I realized it was not the branches that existed that were the problem but that there were not enough of them.  So.....I added being careful to not cover the view of the barns in the background.  Woolah!   Success!  So happy with it now.  So I am moving forward....not finished....more to come.

Thank you all so much for helping with this one....you all got me over the hump!

Fog Added

This new piece will be a little more subtle and softer.   I have added a layer of fog…not too dense this time.  I like the feel of it….lots more to come.

Cleaned my studio today.  Took most of the morning and into the afternoon but it needed it.  Washed the cat's beds and then the ceiling fan blades and shelves etc.  It is amazing how fast the studio can get dusty and fuzzy.  Looks great now.  Purged some books and magazines as well.  Will take them down to the St. Vincent De Paul tomorrow.  Over all a very productive day so far.

Website New Piece & Planking

I must apologize for being absent for a while but I have been busy creating my own Website which is now open for viewing so please visit if you have time at:

www.bslartquilts.com

Then I have also begun a new piece….here is the very beginnings of it…..I am currently quilting those trees and then will continue moving forward on the piece.  Stay tuned to take the journey with me.

And last but not least…….

I have added "Planking" to my daily stretching exercises.  It strengthens your core and I believe it now that I have done it for almost one week.  If you try this….start out slow as you will feel it in the morning.  To top if off my friend, Debra told me about placing yourself against a wall and sliding down until you are looking like you are sitting on a chair but there is no chair and your back is against the wall.  So….that one…is also a killer on the legs but…..I think I will be rewarded when I am back to biking in spring.

So…..

It has been very busy here….snowing today too and we are supposed to get 6-8 inches when it is finished and then the wind starts and the drifting.  So that always means it is much worse then the measurement.

Went to see "Saving Mr. Banks".  Excellent movie…much more then what the promos make it seem like.  I would highly recommend it.

Progress & Good Cat Bad Cat

Continuing to work on my Farm scene today.  The weekend was a lot of fun with grandkids and a shopping trip with my daughter Molly.  However, today it is back to business and moving ahead on this piece.  I will quilt these buildings now before moving into the foreground.

In the meantime I continue to have my studio cats with me.

 Watson is so good….sleeps in his bed…rarely gets in my way…just keeps me company.

Zoey is a different story….she has to be right in the thick of things, like here, where she is draped across my teflon sheet while I am constructing those little sheds for my new piece.  Just wants to be where you are working and with a hot iron I must be very careful to watch her so she does not get in trouble.  She is a sweety pie so you can not get mad at her at all.  Well maybe sometimes, but I get over it really fast.

"Hanging On"

 "Hanging On"

22" X 28 1/2"

Rawedged Fused Applique

Fabric Paint

Machine Quilted

 "Hanging On" is my tribute to the small farmer who it losing ground to the large corporate farmer who is buying up all the land around.

 He struggles to keep up with his farm but he is growing old and his equipment and barns are too.

 His herd of dairy cows is dwindling and he can't compete with the large herds that are now his neighbors knocking on his door.

However he still has his pride and his farm has been in the family for over 150 years.  It is hard to let go and he will fight as long as he is able.

This is part of Americana.   We will miss this when it is gone.  Our grandchildren may not know
this life existed.  Will the splendid wooden post and beam barns that sprinkle our landscape disappear and be replaced by the more economical metal barns that can be built in a few days but have no beauty onto themselves?    It happens so slowly that we better wake up and before it is too late. 

Birches

 I have added some birch trees and a couple other structures in the background.

 Here is a closeup of some ot the quilting  on the small structures in the far background.  I usually do not do anything fancy with my quilting.  I just try to reflect nature and in some cases the allusion of leaves or grass etc.

This is the larger barns and sheds. You can see the grasses growing around the base of the shed and the beginnings of a fence line. 

Off to my mother's now to help her out with a few things (she is 88) and then back home to the studio.  Taking my camera just in case I see something inspiring when I am there.