I can't believe how time has passed and no entries

I have been working, believe it or not.  I've been way too silent.

I'm on my laptop in my studio. A rainy, stormy day - but I still enjoy gazing out to the sea, though it's a bit turbulent.  The beach sunflowers are blowing this way and that.  The bird feeders are swinging back and forth as well.  The prickly pear cacti are pillars of strength - they are blooming big beautiful yellow flowers.

Me, I'm grateful to be inside, cocooned in my studio.

I've been taking an online class from Jude Hill - Sun, Moon, Stars - I'm learning so much.  I had started some hand stitching on the ice dyed fabrics my sister and I dyed awhile back.  This began my journey back to hand work.  The peaceful in abnd out of the needle and thread pleases me.  It's a relaxing and meditative activity.  Here's an image on the last piece I created.  I had the best time working on this one.  I have a couple more ice dyed pieces but the images are on the regular computer.  Melted Fusion I and II are on display at my Island Art Association.   I'll post the images soon.

Circle Play 21x6"  $185

Back to Jude Hill's class - I love her quiet, gentle way of sharing her love of creating through stitch.  Another class is in the horizon!   The following piece is influenced by her work.   I wove the fabrics and stitched them down before I started Jude's online class.  I have since learned an easier way to hand stitch pieces down.  I don't want to say how as I don't want to take anything away from Jude's teaching. Check out her classes!  It's a work in progress.  I've been stitching daily - using Jude's ideas and some from my research on stitching on the Internet - moon jellies and the sea star.



WIP

The next two are pieces I started in planning for a hand embroidery intro for children at Jacksonville's MOMA - my FAN group is displaying, demonstrating, and sharing fiber art to folks - young and old . Next Saturday is a program highlighting a fiber artist, Memphis Woods - who spent part of her life in Jacksonville and was an early supporter of the museum.  The project I've planned is simple applique on felt, using hand stitching.  These two pieces were part of my playtime.  My class with Jude has lengthened the fun.  Check in later for the finished products.

WIP

WIP

I'll be doing some hand stitching of this just created dry felted piece.

These two wonders were my take on a children's art project at my local art gallery - Island Art Association- led by my artist friend Anne Howden.  The fabrics are part of my collection of fabrics/ties/shirts from my father and father-in-law.  I wanted to pass on my love anb fond memories of both these men, especially my dad!  How he would have enjoyed these grandchildren of mine.  Max and Brenna will received these dolls when they visit as the end of the month!


Max and Brenna's dolls

The two next images are products of my raw edged applique and machine quilting.  A fun, relaxing time of creating.  I really ought to title these.

10x10 $85

6x6" $40

The following quilts are hanging at the Island Art Association for the Nouveau Art Exhibit entitled Wildlife.  The heron was awarded Honorable Mention!  Yeah!!!!!!  I don't have the titles/sizes/prizes.  They were last minute creations..........

On display at Island Art, 12x9"

On display at Island Art

This took awhile.  Maybe if I write more frequently,.........  There's always hoping.

Til later, Peace and joy be with you, Diane

Low Tide

"Low Tide"  12 x 12" created by Diane Hamburg $150

"Low Tide" detail.

www.fanfarejax.blogspot.com (please visit this blog to see what the others have created) is the blog that 19 fiber artists of Jacksonville, FL is sharing their art pieces of different themes.  The first theme was "Free to Play."  I choose to use an image of my grandson Max, playing freely on the beach.  He had a great time!  And this grandma, Granny, had a great time watching him explore the place she holds quite dear.  I used my standby technique of Ellen Lindner - double reverse applique.  I worked harder with the background which was quite enjoyable.  I'm pleased with the result and plan on developing more images of Max at the beach in the near future.

Oh, it's been way to long

Why, oh, why was it so hard to get back to blogging??????  I have been working in the studio, even taking images........

I plan on blogging frequently in the next few days in order to catch up.

Today's entry is all about being accepted by my local theater - Amelia Community Theater.  Each time there is a wonderful new play performed by local actors an art exhibit is shown in the lobby.  I've been slow to enter but enter I did this time.  The play is "In the Woods"  and the theme of the exhibit is "Forests and Fairy Tales."  I entered three very different pieces and to my delight, all 3 were accepted.  So now you get to see them.

Walking in the Mountains, 31 x 22", $250 created by Diane Hamburg

Can't See the Forest, 20 x 28"  $280, created by Diane Hamburg

Can't see the Forest detail

Trees, 10 x10"  $75, created by Diane Hamburg

The first is a piece I created a couple years back.  The background is raw-edged applique using a variety of fabrics.  I was going for an abstract view of tree trunks.  The floating leaves were the result of hand printing real leaves and then fusing them to the background.  And, of course, there's lots of machine quilting.

"Can't see the Forest" was just created beginning with a manipulated photograph (using Photoshop Elements) and intrepreting it with fabrics and the double reverse applique method of Ellen Lindner.  Extensive machine quilting finished the piece.

The last is a small piece using the monotype technique - on cloth - with a tree paper applique on top and machine quilting.  This one is mounted on a canvas wrapped frame.

I'll be going to the play later this month and plan to take a picture of the show.

Valerie Goodwin's Workshop

Last weekend I attended a workshop by Valerie Goodwin and created the above map piece.  Valerie had several templates printed out for us as well as the towers printed on fabric.  I'm not for one "doing a project" but I did have a great time.  The highlight of the whole weekend was Valerie's method of creating her background.  That in itself was worth the workshop fee.  I hope I can do justice to the process:  crinoline is used as the foundation (I've been using crinoline in my fabric portraits and love how it allows the finished quilt to be very flat with a straight edge) sew pieces of fabric down using the flip and sew method until the crinoline is covered - any fabric raw edges are machine or hand stitched down.  Next comes some fused pieces of transparent fabric like organza, which can be painted or dyed.  Then some painting - roughly and only in places.  That's the background.  I just love it.

So I came home and created the background to my "3 of Clubs" - oh, I know I did 3 turtles but they'll work for the playing card challenge of my fiber group FAN - Fiber Artists Network.  I followed Valerie's technique and added some stamping as well.

Also, one of the other members of FAN shared a technique of using fused transparent fabric like organza and tracing a motif (the tiny Pisa tower in the above piece and the turtles in this piece) and then fusing the motif to another fabric or to the background.  Cool!