My Mixed Media Art Dolls From ART-S2-307 The Imaginarium: Anthologies of an Art Doll with Mary Jane Chadbourne At Artful Gathering 2014 2nd Session

For the last two weeks I have been having a blast taking my 5th class at Artful Gathering. The class is ART-S2-307 The Imaginarium: Anthologies of an Art Doll with Mary Jane Chadbourne and it is a delightful mixed media art doll class.

I'd been anxiously awaiting the start of this class as I have never created mixed media art dolls so it was going to be an adventure for me. And, adventure it was. I never realized how much fun this was, how much work was involved in creating mixed media art dolls and all the different supplies you would need.

I had decided to buy one of Mary Jane's art doll wood kits and to try and accumulate all the art supplies and printables I would need ahead of time. The wood kit contained the wood needed to make 3 different art dolls.

My Artful Gathering 2014 Session 1 Finished Project Piece - Let's Go For A Ride

I had been anxiously awaiting the start of Session 1 for Artful Gathering and was so happy when class finally started on June 6.

This is my 3rd year taking online classes at Artful Gathering and I have to say I have loved each and every class I've taken. The instructors are fantastic and I've had a blast in each class learning something new and, best of all, making wonderful new friends.

There were so many fabulous classes to choose from this year it was hard to decide. I really only had time for two and decided to take Julie Haymaker Thompson's Let's Go For A Ride class in Session 1 and  Mary Jane Chadbourne's The Imaginarium: Anthologies of an Art Doll class in Session 2. Both classes dealt with mixed media, which I've been anxious to try.

So, for the last two weeks I have been taking my 4th online class and working on my project. The project called for making an adorable little mixed media shadow box scene with 3 pets sticking their heads out the window of a car that was driving over a hill. The class looked like it would be a lot of fun to take.

A kit was available for purchase from Julie's Etsy shop so I ordered one as it's a lot easier to do that than run around to get supplies. The kit came with everything you needed to create the project including thread and needle. It was fabulous.

For my online classes I like to view all the video's first and then go back to watching them as I follow along with the instructions. Here's where my Ipad comes in really, really handy. It's great for this as I can zoom in and out of the video pictures, advance and reverse them as needed, etc.

I tend to be a bit of a rebel when it comes to my classes. For the most part I follow the instructions, but sometimes I just have to be me and do it my way. Such was the case with my "Let's Go For A Ride" project.

Linda's Review - Winter Chill Cross-Stitch Shadow Box Picture - Mill Hill Buttons & Beads Cross-Stitch Kit - MHCB245

Of all the cross-stitch shadow boxes I have made I realized I didn't have anything specifically for the winter season so I decided to make a shadowbox to add to my collection. I don't know why I would want anything depicting the beauty of the winter as I hate the winter - especially this winter. TOO MUCH SNOW. I can hardly wait for the spring.

However, I wanted my collection of shadowbox cross-stitch pictures to be representative of all the seasons and holidays and realized I was lacking a winter scene. So, I decided to make one.

Like the other Mill Hill - Buttons & Beads Series patterns I had bought the Mill Hill Winter Chill Winter Buttons and Beads Counted Cross Stitch Kit which included the pattern, embroidery thread, brown perforated paper, beads, button, 2 needles and instructions.

The Winter Chill pattern uses full counted cross-stitch and straight stitching as well as beads and buttons for emphasis and depth. The pattern also calls for certain areas of the perforated paper to be left untouched as the background. In this case they were leaving sections of the brown perforated paper background untouched.

I, once again, decided to frame my finished cross-stitch picture in a 5" by 5" white shadow box frame that is 1 1/2" deep and can stand on it's own or with its back picture stand (like the picture above) as I've been really happy with the way all my other cross-stitch shadowbox pictures have come out.

Linda's Review of Joy To The World Mill Hill Buttons & Beads MH14-8301 Cross Stitch Kit

It's no secret I love to cross-stitch. I also tend to be a very sentimental and love crafts and handmade goods that have the word "JOY" in them because my Mom's name was Joy. So, it should be no surprise that I was drawn to the Joy To The World Beaded Cross Stitch Kit.

Like the other Mill Hill - Buttons & Beads Series patterns I had bought the Joy To The World kit included the pattern, embroidery thread, blue perforated paper, beads, house button, 2 needles and instructions.

The Joy To The World pattern uses full counted cross-stitch and straight stitching as well as beads and buttons for emphasis and depth. The pattern also calls for certain areas of the blue perforated paper to be left untouched as the background.

As this was a very dark design I decided to frame my finished cross-stitch picture in a picture frame with a white mat and chose an 8" x 8" tabletop picture frame that had a double mat in it. As this particular design had beads on the edges and was 5" by 5" finished I knew the mat opening had to be exactly 5" by 5". The inner mat only allowed for an 4 3/4" by 4 3/4" opening which wasn't going to work with the beads along the edge. The outer mat had a 5" by 5" opening so I removed the inner mat.

I thought that adding some colorful seasonal stencils to the bright white mat would be festive and colorful and wouldn't distract from the design. I had several EK Success Brand Jolees stickers to choose from and decided to go with the festive pine-cones.

Linda's Review of Dimensions Counted Cross-Stitch Tree Ornament Kit

I just love to cross-stitch and always have a cross-stitch project half finished. Some of my projects are finished quickly while others seem to linger for months on end. My cross-stitch tree ornament is in the lingering category. I don't remember when I started my tree ornament. My guess is sometime last spring.

So, with the Christmas holidays looming I thought it was time to finish it.

The Dimensions Counted Cross Stitch, Tree Ornament kit contained the presorted thread, 14 count plastic canvas, needle, and instructions.  The  pattern uses full counted cross-stitch and outline stitching for emphasis and depth.

The pattern came with starting, stitching, finishing and even cleaning instructions as well as samples of the various stitches required, and color coded keys (with code #'s, color names, and cross-stitch symbols) and a chart with color coded symbols. The colors and symbols on the keys and chart were easy to read and follow.

While I was very pleased with the end results of this design there are some things in the kit and in the instructions that can be improved upon.

Dyeing Alpaca Fiber & Roving and Creating Carded Alpaca Fiber Batts

I have been in love with needle felting creations like art dolls since they started becoming more and more popular several years ago. And, when my sister became an alpaca farmer I was definitely smitten. I LOVE fiber - especially alpaca fiber.

My sister has been teasing me with fiber surprises all year. Several times now when checking the mail  hubby has brought in a package in from my sister. The packages are usually filled to the brim. When you open them they literally explode with the fiber trying to get out.

The last package she sent contained a wonderful selection of alpaca fiber she had hand dyed. They looked so pretty in the package. Almost too pretty to use...

So, when planning my trip to Rock Garden Alpacas and Rock Garden Alpacas Fiber last month she told me I was going to learn how to dye roving and washed fiber and learn how to create carded batts. If you don't know what carded batts are they are lengths and widths of fiber produced on a drum carding machine like my sister's which is shown below:

You can card natural washed fibers alone or in a combination of natural colors, card dyed fibers alone or in a combination of dyed colors, or add various other fibers like Angelina silk to natural or dyed fibers. The possibilities seem endless.

We decided to set several days aside for dying and carding our fibers. I should say we set several days aside to play and have fun. And, have fun we did.

Linda's Review of Embroidered Quilt Shoppe by Chickadee Hollow Designs

Several years ago I bought a couple of creative embroidery and stitchery patterns for making ornaments that I wanted to make into little pictures and decided last May that it was time to make them. One was for a birdhouse vintage ornament that I blogged about in a Linda's Blog post entitled, "My Embroidered Vintage Birdhouse Picture."  The other was for an embroidered vintage quilt shoppe ornament that I turned into a picture.

Vintage Ornament #18 is a pattern for an embroidered quilt shoppe from Chickadee Hollow Designs. The pattern included the design on pre-printed pre-colored fabric, as well as a basic embroidery stitches sheet and sheet of basic instructions for completing their ornaments.

I had decided ahead of time that I wanted to frame my ornament as a small picture instead of using it as an ornament.

My Mermaid From Judy Johnson's "Lovely Sea Maiden" Class At Artful Gathering

I have to tell you that I've been in blissful heaven for the last three days. If you're wondering why it's because I've been needle felting a mermaid for Judy Johnson's "Lovely Sea Maiden" class at Artful Gathering that I'm taking.

I'm completely in awe of the ability to mold and sculpt the fiber to get it to be exactly what you want.

It's simply amazing and, once again, I've fallen in love with a new crafting medium.

Before taking Judy's class I never would have dreamed of all the ways you can felt and handle the roving.

Judy is a fabulous teacher and she shows you exactly what she wants you to do step by step.

I have to tell you that I thoroughly enjoyed this class and now my head is spinning as to the possibilities. There are so many ideas running through my head right now I cannot keep them straight.

This is dangerous territory for me. There are so many things I want to try and, once again, not enough hours in the day. I need to prioritize - but, right now that is almost impossible.

This is the 3rd class I've taken at Artful Gathering and every one of them has been fantastic.  I took Pat Winter's Crazy Quilting 101 class last year, Colleen Moody's "Briley The Birdie" paper clay class in the first session this year and Judy Johnson's "Lovely Sea Maiden" in the 2nd session.   If you've never taken an online class I highly recommend any of the Artful Gathering classes.  They're fantastic.

Next year I'm definitely going to be taking more.  I wonder what will strike my fancy next year?

Linda's Review of #195 Puppy Love Penny Rug Pattern By Barrie Sue Gaudet Of Bareroots.com

I know I've told you many times that I LOVE creating with wool felt. Whether it's an ornament, a pillow, a wall-hanging, or a penny rug - I just LOVE it.

Several years ago I was introduced to penny rugs during a shopping trip with my Mother in Sturbridge. One of the shops we liked to visit carried penny rug patterns. As I was looking through the patterns one of the shop owners told me she'd be happy to put a few kits together for me. She suggested we go to lunch at a restaurant down they street that she liked and come back after lunch to pick up our purchase.

So, I picked out three that I liked, went to lunch with my Mom, and returned after lunch to pick up my kits. Thinking about that now I have to say that was one "savvy" shop owner. What a great way to get not only a pattern sale, but sales of wool fabric and embroidery floss.

The "Birdies" and "Dollies" Had Their Way- Artful Gathering 2013 Session 1 - Briley The Birdie by Colleen Moody

I should have known better than to ever let the "dollies" mingle with the trio of "birdies" I was making for my Artful Gathering "Briley The Birdie" class with Colleen Moody. The "dollies" convinced the "birdies" they should be different than "Briley."

So, despite my best efforts to get them to conform my trio of "birdies" decided to be rebellious and be the class radicals. They decided they didn't want to be cream colored. They  wanted to be sponge painted. They insisted on it and then they had all the "dollies" urge me to sponge paint them.

There were just too many "dollies" clamoring for this that I had to acquiesce. Now I know you all know I hate to give in to the "dollies" demands but with the trio of "birdies" and all the "dollies" clamoring I was sorely outnumbered.

I thought if I gave in to the trio of "birdies" on this they'd calm down and let me create them the way I wanted to. Au contraire!  Each one had already developed a personality of their own and therefore a style they thought was best for them. Who was I to argue? I was just their creator. So, once again, I acquiesced.

Linda's Review Of "Crazy Autumn" Stitchery By Carol L. Steffensen Of Chickadee Hollow Designs

Several years ago I bought a couple of creative embroidery and stitchery kits that I thought would be fun to do and have been trying to find some time to complete them ever since. Two weeks ago I finally had some time to work on one of them and decided to make the Fall themed stitchery from Chickadee Hollow Designs that I had bought.

The kit  included the embroidery floss and the pattern included the design on pre-printed pre-colored fabric, as well as a basic embroidery stitches sheet and sheet of basic instructions for completing their stitchery.

I had decided ahead of time that I wanted to frame my stitchery as a picture instead of finishing it the way the pattern had suggested which was to add strips to the sides and finish it as a small quilt. I opted instead to finish mine as a stitchery picture and blanket stitch around the edges.

Linda’s How-Do-I Series? How To Make Our Flower Panel Fabric Picture Free E-Book

I have been anxious to use my flower picture large panel fabric design for a few months. With Spring finally arriving I decided it was time to create my “Flower Panel Flower Picture.”

I had decided to frame my fabric picture in a finished frame as I wanted to hang it as a picture in one of my bathrooms. So, I chose a finished gold frame that I had used for some press flower pictures I had created years ago that were faded now. I thought the gold frame was perfect for the cheery flower fabric. I also thought a dark teal blue 16” by 20” mat with 11” by 14” opening would be a perfect compliment to my flower fabric picture. I had also decided ahead of time that I wanted to add some dimension to my picture and thought a few silk ribbon flower heads would be perfect for that.

Linda's How-Do-I Series? How To Make Our Flower Panel Fabric Picture Free E-Book

Linda's Review Of Vintage Birdhouse Embroidery by Carol L. Steffensen Of Chickadee Hollow Designs

Several years ago I bought a couple of creative embroidery and stitchery patterns for making ornaments that I wanted to make into little pictures and have been trying to find some time to complete them.  I decided that with the beautiful Spring weather this would be the perfect time to work on some of them outside.

I decided to start with a Vintage Ornament #6 embroidered birdhouse ornament from Chickadee Hollow Designs as it was cute and looked relatively easy to complete.  The pattern included the design on pre-printed pre-colored fabric, as well as a basic embroidery stitches sheet and sheet of basic instructions for completing their ornaments.

I had decided ahead of time that I wanted to frame my ornament as a small picture instead of using it as an ornament.

Linda's Review of Haunted Library - Mill Hill Buttons & Bows Cross-Stitch Kit #MH14-0201

One of my all time favorite holidays is Halloween. I think it's the large number of creatures that you can make for this one holiday that draws me to it. So, of course, I was drawn to some of the Haunted Library Cross Stitch Kit from Mill Hill.

Like the other Mill Hill - Buttons & Beads Series patterns I had bought the  Haunted Library kit included the pattern, embroidery thread, perforated paper, beads, ghost button, 2 needles and instructions.

The Haunted Library pattern uses full counted cross-stitch and outline stitching as well as beads and buttons for emphasis and depth. The pattern also calls for certain areas of the perforated paper to be left untouched as the background. In this case they were leaving sections of the dark blue perforated paper background untouched.