Stay Curious!

Gel Printmaking

I had a blast playing with my new 5" x 7" Gel Press plate, craft paints, ink, punched circles and rings! Although I have a large size plate, I was curious about the versatility of making smaller pieces. The small plate is perfect to use on left over pieces of paper, inside handmade or commercial journals, and even on card stock or computer paper. The compact size also offers the ability to use the plate as a stamp.

This print includes waterproof ink, which broke up the craft paint.

Creating during the Coronavirus

When the times started changing in March, I was very upset, emotionally and physically, and downright scared. Creativity was pushed pretty far back in my mind. When my campus began the phase of working remotely, my studio turned into my office. There was such a steep learning curve to figure out how to do my job virtually. Once that part got ironed out, the days got easier, my stomach settled down, and routines took on a rhythm. I am so very grateful I can still earn a living while so many people are really hurting because of the country shutting down and sheltering in place.

I made this crochet heart necklace with Tim Holtz metal embellishments from some heart shapes made a while ago.

Then, for several weeks, I worked on felt hanging birds. They are made from craft squares I had on hand and are hand-sewed as well as glued together, then stuffed. I made a big boo-boo on the second strand—the ribbon is on the outside instead of the inside. But it’s done and now hanging with little bells at the bottom and my husband and I can see them daily.

My friend several states away and I are working on journals that we will exchange. Our collaborative journals have interesting paper that can be removed, worked upon, and re-inserted. They aren’t too big or have too many pages, so we will work half in each and then mail to each other for the other’s contribution.

I had been curious about Dina Wakley’s denim journal having pages of blue denim, white burlap, and heavy cotton pages. I adore the color blue as well as blue denim, so I was attracted right away. On the first page, I sewed a piece of metal-embedded fabric I cut into the shape of my hand. It was a fabric remnant I happened upon and then used pressed into acrylic paint.

And, these yarn-wrapped sticks were inspired by Shelly Rhodes wonderful book “Sketchbook Explorations: For Mixed-Media and Textile Artists” as well as Amy Maricle’s spirit sticks.

Take care everyone--stay healthy and safe!