MOJO RETURNS!

No kidding!  I feel like a new woman, but one with so many ideas now and no time to pursue them.  THAT frustrates  me enormously!

I attended the Carolina Designer Craftsmen Guild show at the Raleigh Convention Center yesterday.  What a beautiful show!  Now filled with inspiration and new ideas, I am experimenting with a small felt today, but I also want to finish my Jane Thornley knit creation so I can wear it to work tomorrow at Port City Pottery & Fine Crafts.  And it's Sunday, so my usual chores remain (changing sheets, all the wash, and making a trail down the middle of my place - at least.

I have wondered recently why I have no ambition to entertain, and now I understand why.  I had thought it was due to the upheaval (literally and figuratively) of moving, but now we are mostly settled, so it's time to devote to me and my craft.  Tough decision!  Need to nurture friendships and maybe develop some new (that's a completely different story!) in our new environment.  I would much rather just make my felts and keep on knitting.  I wonder what that all says about me and my priorities.

Here is the Jane Thornley design in stages of progress:

LIFE HAPPENS!

March 4 was the last time I published anything on this blog!  That hardly seems possible, but then a few things have intervened:

• Prepared to downsize and sell a house
• Bought a condo but hadn't sold the house yet (June) - never a great idea!
• Prepared the condo (painting, electrical work, custom unit for living room, custom studio design for me!, sliding screen door, reupholstering some furniture, etc.)
• FINALLY sold the house (September!) and moved
• Granddaughter's wedding in SC (August)
• Trip to MA, CT, PA (August)
• Visits from family from France (October)
• The passing of a dear friend and neighbor (October)

That's enough to recall for now.  Meanwhile I'm still trying to get settled in the condo - downsized from almost 2900 to 1800+ square feet and manage to create some new work in felt, knot, and crochet.  My sales have been good for the past couple of months, so that is inspiring me to get going. I've found space in the new place to do it....as always it's a question of blocks of time to do it.  And it still involves using my kitchen counter once again, and in this galley kitchen, that means working around meal prep times and having it cleaned up nice and tidy!

I'm going to try to update this blog more frequently going forward - TRY!!!  I very recently documented my nuno felting process, and will post that in the next couple of days.  Many people have asked me how it's done, so rather than talk about it, I have photographed it.  That plus the resulting explanations will follow very soon.  Above is a taste of the resulting work.

Ww WON!!!! Thanks to all who voted for us and to those who support us every day of the year!

SCORE Small Business Championship!

Port City Pottery & Fine Crafts is honored to be entered in the SCORE Small Business Championship, in which two small businesses from each state have an opportunity to win $1000 from Sam's Club, an all-paid trip to a SCORE celebratory symposium/training, and a full-year of additional SCORE mentoring. Since SCORE Wilmington was involved from the start of Port City Pottery & Fine Crafts eight years ago, we have grown and flourished under their guidance, workshops, and more.  We are on the "Top-Rated" list's first page right now in this championship and could use your vote!  Please watch our video and vote here.

You can vote now through February 12 when the voting ends and the judging begins. 

 Let me tell you the story of creating our video!  Pat Holleman, President of Port City Pottery & Fine Crafts, and I determined to make this video, restricted to 30-60 SECONDS!  We prepared the script, she delivered it, and I served as videographer…..I with absolutely NO video experience (except what I produced for a brief demo for a SCORE workshop many months ago, thank you Toya Wilson-Smith.)

So we met last Sunday at our gallery, ready to do it with script, iPad, and tripod in hand, and we determined to do it BEFORE the gallery was to open at noon.  Since neither of us have video-editing experience, it had to be one take!  But of course, there must have been 20+ takes in a 2+ hour span of time.  But first there were issues with my iPad brightness and then sound, her Galaxy and my tripod, barking dogs in the hallway and at our favorite coffee shop 2 doors down (Java Dog), people walking in before we opened, getting the tripod NOT to creak as I turned it to view most of the gallery, and on and on.  There was a lot of laughing and groaning together (we can be silly at times!), and this is the final result!

So now we need your help to keep us in the running.  SCORE Wilmington has been instrumental in our success, and we are very grateful to Sara Raleigh, our lead mentor, for the support and encouragement shown in our short but successful 8-year enterprise.

WISH US LUCK!!!

We will certainly let you know the results!

Port City Pottery & Fine Crafts

You can go directly to the link below or click the "Watch Video" button on our FB Page @Port City Pottery & Fine Crafts or @Scarf It Up! to vote for us in the SCORE Small Business Championship. Please add your vote(s). http://championship.score.org/entry/8431760

Port City Pottery & Fine Crafts in the SCORE Small Business Championship! Please vote for us: http://j.mp/1BMWVmO

Remember the ROADKILL????

There's always a story!  I told one of them a while ago about the REAL roadkill.  Today I learned of another, once again relating to my work.  If you haven't read the first one (or if you just haven't got the stomach for it!), here is another.

I had coffee with my friend Sandy today, and she is a hoot!  She had asked me a while ago to make her a nuno felted brooch to "match" her array of animal prints.  I gladly complied because I had a number of such prints in silk that would felt into the wool nicely.  Here it is - er….um….was!:

Today she told me that she wore it to some friends' house on an evening when she had outfitted herself from head to toe in animal prints.  Some time later, she realized that she didn't have he brooch but had no idea where she might had left it or lost it.  After scouring everywhere, she gave up on it - and never told me…UNTIL TODAY!

Months later, she returned to this same friend's house where friend produced an almost unrecognizable "animal!"  What happened, you might ask…..it had apparently fallen off while she was entering her car after the dinner, where it subsequently was run over by her own car and probably several others before being discovered in the driveway.  Such is the outcome of the Roadkill Brooch - not to be outdone by the roadkill scarf!

I think I'll have to make her another with care instructions included.  You can't leave your "animal" in the driveway and expect it to survive!

The Perfect Rationale!

I've been absent from blogging mostly because I've been so busy - lots to report!  The result of the "lots to report" is that my house - truly almost the entire house - is in disarray due to my new passion for wet and nuno felting!  I don't have a studio per say; I have storage and some work space upstairs in the bonus room (called a FROG - Finished Room Over Garage in NC!).  But the only place I can do the wet felting is in my kitchen.  Here is where and how I must store my supplies:

• The merino wool roving and other fibers are in the laundry room.
• The silk and other fabrics - which consist of thrift store scarves, dresses, skirts (the larger size the better!) - are both in the laundry room AND in an under-bed storage container underneath the bed in the bonus room (which also serves as a guest room when needed where I can actually sleep SIX if needed!)
• Yarn, buttons, beads, sewing machine, threads, recycled jewelry, etc. are upstairs.
• Most of my knitting needles and crochet hooks are in my everything bag with some additional ones upstairs.
• Felting tools (bubble wrap, solar pool, cover, rug mats, palm washboard, netting, pool noodles, towels, soap) are stored in both the laundry room and in one of the cupboards in the family room (right off the kitchen!)
• My work space for felting has to be in the kitchen because I have a large island at counter height on which I can spread the pool covering.  It is still not large enough to consider doing another seamless vest, so that may be a one and only.  More about that in another post!  And I need access to hot water!

I think that covers it!  Thinking I'll need to stash it all today as we are having some guests over tonight for dinner.  Planning my precious work time and space is critical (but really I'd just like to leave it all in place so I could work at my leisure!

To be continued……….!

Customer Appreciation Day Celebration at Port City Pottery & Fine Crafts

Felting workshop with Beth Marx coming up soon. Sooooo excited!

The Finished Scrap Bag aka The Salvage Bag

Salvaging a Disaster - or TWO!!!!

The trials and tribulations of a felt artist!  Too many disaster recently, so I'm trying to rectify the errors but also to experiment even more to create something good from disasters.

First Disaster:  I bought some wool yarn at one of my favorite thrift shops in town, Bargain Box of Wilmington.  It was marked 100% wool, but it did NOT mention "Superwash."  For those unfamiliar with that term, it means washable wool.  It WILL NOT shrink or felt.  Two nights knitting it to make a bag; two cycles through the washing machine and absolutely nothing!  Not one iota of shrinkage.  Not willing to throw it away (just yet), and liking to repurpose materials, and focusing on hand/wet felting now, I decided to experiment with it.

No photos to show the subsequent process!  :(

I covered the bag with ALL the scraps of BFL roving that have been hanging around for years, deciding to call it "The Scrap Bag!"  No easy task, because truly the pieces were smallish and rather shaped like pencil roving, so it took forever to cover it.  Two layers on each side with a resist inserted inside the bag.  I had hoped the roving would merge THROUGH the knitting, connect to the layers underneath, and create a grid-like patterning throughout.  NOT SO MUCH!!!

I started on Sunday, felted it yesterday, and by this morning, I came to the astounding conclusion that this will not work!  So…..this morning I pulled out the knitted bag (it was attached but not securely), and I've been working on fulling it every since.

 Once I pulled out the knitting, I actually had a bag that I thought could be worked.  It has some holes and a few strange configurations, but it looks like it can be a reversible bag once I finish with the fulling process, decide on and add embellishments, repair (somehow!) the holes (maybe freeform crochet and needle felting!), and make a strap.

I am determined to make this work.  And next time, I will follow the specific directions and videos provided by Fiona Duthie in her current Felted Bag workshop.  I'm getting inspired to try again after seeing some of the bags created by fellow workshop participants.  I'll get to this AFTER the Beth Marx workshop in mid-October.

BTW, I threw the knitted white "bag" in the trash this morning!

FINAL photos coming later, after I figure out how to finish it and add a strap!

Stay Tuned!

State of the Art, Art of the State at Cameron Art Museum - September 20 - February 12

It only happens every three years, an event that features artwork from anyone in NC!  The work is accepted (no jurors, no fees) during a 24 hour period only, and the opening reception takes places only hours later.  It is an enormous opportunity to display one piece of art, speak with world-renowned curators, and see the huge variety of mediums, talents, and scope of creativity that exists in NC.

The event itself is awesome.  The process is daunting. The video posted on Cameron's website is of the 2011 event, when they gave themselves just ONE HOUR between accepting artwork and the opening reception.  More sane this time, but just as crazy for the staff, artists, curators, staff, and many volunteers!

I arrived at about 8 PM hoping it would be less crowded.  I had number 455, and they were only at 360 or thereabouts.  I had forgotten my phone but had my iPad and the museum's wifi, so I knew I could settle in and wait.  After talking to some artists I didn't know, I found a group of artists from my gallery, Port City Pottery & Fine Crafts, sitting at a table in the café right near the bar.  They had numbers before mine, but I knew I'd be well-entertained at least for a good while.  Thanks to Dick Heiser, Marilyn Blackard, Melanie Walter, Dianne Masi, and Pat Holleman - and then later to Pat and Harry Hart - for making it an TRULY enjoyable experience!  Much laughter and discussion, serious and not so serious!

I decided I didn't need to speak to a curator - although now I'm sorry I didn't - so my wait time was only three hours!  My erroneous rationale was that they probably didn't know much about felting.  My entered piece is this nuno felt wrap/shawl/ wallhanging/table runner, called Sea Inspiration.  I brought it on a hanger for display, knowing they would not have space for a mannequin.  In addition, I didn't want to be minus mannequin through Feb 12 when this show ends.

Imagine my delight when I saw the TOP panoramic photo on FB with my piece centered in the image! I does indeed have a very nice and prominent spot, which I noticed the moment I walked through the entrance to the exhibit.  AND….there was NOTHING else like it in the display of almost 700 artists.  HAPPY!

New, extended hours on Sundays at Port City Pottery & Fine Crafts - at least through the holidays. Mon-Sat: 10-5:30; Sun: 11-5

Felting Frenzy!

Why is it that some creative endeavors and experiments become passions?  I've found that happening with felting.  It has elements of design, color, texture, mystique and mystery, sensuousness, tactile pleasure and aggression, and so much more.  The play of silk (and other fabrics) and wool is magic. The surprise results keep one going even when exhausted, because its physicality endures long and hardy.  I CAN'T STOP FELTING!!!

This could be a problem, as the only place in my house where I can do this type of fiber artwork is in my kitchen.  I can manage to keep the mess for several days, neglecting most everything else, but then it's necessary to clean it all up.  I wish I had a permanent space to keep the mess, so it's always ready and available for even small amounts of time when I could dabble with design, give a roll, rub, or throw here or there, or even pull out potential material combinations for the next project.

Yesterday I started a new Fiona Duthie online class - this one in bag-making.  I've taken two other classes on seamless bag-making, but I've never repeated the process enough to feel I have a handle on it.  So….true to my "do it yesterday" modus operandi, I couldn't wait for the videos that accompany the class to be released today, but plunged ahead using only the written and photographed materials.  I'M STUCK!!!  Not sure if the instructions were unclear or if I just messed up, but I have an unfelted bag with resist on the kitchen counter, wool, bubble wrap, towels, soap, etc. all over the kitchen.  AND….I have to go to work today, so my felting time is limited!

To be continued……..!

Oh, and BTW, someone asked me if the wraps could be used decoratively as well as wearably, such as table runner or wall hanging.  While I think it would be difficult to decide which side to show, here are photos of these pieces on my dining room table.  What do you think?

No Photos But………..!

I neglected to take photos of the class I taught last week on Felting with ArtFelt Paper. But thanks to Toya Wilson-Smith of NexGen Digital Marketing Services and SCORE, and a very good class on SEO and Google+, I was able to produce my very FIRST video!  I chose to do it about Felting with ArtFelt Paper.

And I am about to purchase an iPad device to be able to use a tripod to do so much more for my own artwork production and Scarf It Up!, but also to promote Port City Pottery & Fine Crafts.  More to come soon, I hope!

DUH!

Just taught my class in Artfelt and forgot to take a single photo! DUH!!!  I can't believe it!  And it was a GOOD class!  Two students and a lurker!  2 and1/2 hours later, each had a cuff and a square sample from which to make a brooch on their own. The students were thrilled - as was I!

I've just emailed them both to see if they could photograph their pieces right away to show the felting and then to show how they have finished them for wearing or selling.  I think the results were stunning, and I know once dry and fashioned into a cuff and brooch respectively, they will be knock-outs!

In the meantime, I can only show my pieces….using wool roving and colors that I was happy to part with.  Not a fan of pinks and purples (except hot pink), these are not my faves. Tomorrow I'll finish them as brooch (left) and cuff (right) and show photos.  

A Class in Felting Using ARTFELT Paper

I'm biting the bullet!  People often ask if I teach felting.  I have and I do, but only one kind (amongst the four kinds I do).  I will teach how to use Artfelt paper to create felt and nuno felt without the physical  labor involved with hand- or wet-felting.  In my mind, each has a different purpose, and I don't yet feel qualified to teach wet felting.

So….on August 25 from 1-3pm, I will teach a class using Artfelt paper, the results of which will be a cuff and a squarish sample that can be turned into a brooch.  Here are some examples of cuffs and brooches from my own repertoire.

If you'd like more info, please leave a comment here or PM me on FB.  I'll get back to you right away.

  

Successful Sales and Show!

Statement Collar

Thank you, Wilmington friends, for braving the storms and coming out to see the sale items at my home last Saturday!  I'm happy that many of YOU were able to take advantage of the reductions on many items and to view some of my new work in felt and freeform.  I do still have many items at home with good prices.  Contact me personally if you'd like to see what still remains.  Some of the items have been returned to Port City Pottery & Fine Crafts where my prices can only be altered if I'm there.  I'll be there TODAY from 12-4; August 23 from 10-5:30, and August 31 from 12-4.

Purple Passion Schroodle

Selling one's work is a tricky thing.  Still, after so many years, I have some difficulty promoting myself, but marketing is crucial for anyone who sells.  Hence my use of this medium as well as FB, Twitter, flickr, and Constant Contact.  Follow me on FB to see new work as it comes off the hands.


I am also happy to report that the new work is selling - as well as the old.  So far, it's been a very good month for me….just yesterday at PCPFC, out went the very first Statement Collar, a new nuno felted scarf, and a Schroodle, among other things.

Nuno Felt Scarf