Newport News Fall Festival!

I know I've been MIA for a while but it's because WE BOUGHT A HOUSE!! So this summer was all about purging old junk and moving to our new place.  As soon as the boys went back to school I told myself that I really needed to buckle down and get ready for this year's fall festival.  So here are a few pictures from this weekend:

One of my new items this fall was my zendoodle notecards.  Here's a better picture I took before the festival:

My booth may look totally different next year because as I was sitting there assessing what people were buying (and not buying) and what creative endeavor I like to spend my time doing now... I think I'm "reinventing" myself.  

I probably won't shut this blog down but I will be devoting more time to my newer blog over here: Timeless Tangles Thanks for looking!

The 2017 Newport News Fall Festival of Folk Life

I absolutely love this festival!  I grew up in Newport News so coming back to do the festival just warms my heart.  I have been on the juried side in the past, and my mom has been on the marketplace side BUT since they are moving to Wisconsin I decided that I wanted to be in my mom's place this year.  My mom has taught adult art classes through the NN Parks and Rec for 40+ years so she has a huge following in Newport News.  Since she is moving I wanted to do this for all of her students who want to keep up with her and my dad and their new adventures closer to my brother and his family.

Because I was on the marketplace side this year I was able to combine my sewing and painting talents under one tent.  Had I been on the juried side I would have to pick one category.  I realized a long time ago that my brain doesn't work like that, I am definitely all over the place when it comes to my artistic endeavors.  Here are a few photos of my tent at the Fall Festival:

 

 

Thanks for stopping by!

Save the Date!

October 7-8th, 2017... I've been accepted into the Newport News Fall Festival of Folklife so please come see me!!  Here is a temporary link NN Fall Festival  I will update this link as they update their website.  I don't have my booth number yet but you all will be the first to know where to find me.

I will still be selling my fabric bowls but will have new items as well.  A new line I will be introducing is my whimsical hand-painted home decor.  Here is a sneak peek of my pink and black end table:

Before

After

A close-up of the base:

I am also working on a child's bench that I will have in the show so stay tuned I'll be posting pictures soon.

About my personal life, sadness on so many different levels

I normally don't share a lot of my personal life on this blog but tonight I need to.  I need to let my readers know why I haven't posted since June.  During the last week of school my younger son (age six) was hospitalized for six days with pneumonia.  Because of my baby being in the hospital I was unable to go on my "mommy getaway".  Two weeks after school ended my older son (age eight) came down with pneumonia also but did not need to be hospitalized.  I will not talk about everything that has gone on at work but let's just say it has added to my stress level that I wasn't prepared for.  Because of work I decided not to go on our family vacation.  

I live in Portsmouth, Virginia and as I type we are getting pummeled with rain from Hurricane Joaquin (pronounced WaKeen).  The hurricane isn't projected to hit land anymore but there is major flooding in all cities around me.  Today I was supposed to be setting up my artwork for the Newport News Fall Festival of Folklife this weekend.  It was cancelled, thanks Joaquin, NOT! I have been preparing all summer for this once-a-year festival.

And finally the worse part of these last few months?  This morning I had to put down my pet.  She was the sweetest and kindest and most gentle animal you could ever meet.  I loved her so very much.  She is not in pain anymore but I miss her tremendously.

RIP Duchess, my little girlie:

Jewels for the Wall

For Christmas I received a subscription to Quilting Arts Magazine.  I love this magazine because it combines quilting with other mediums (right up my alley!).  I started making art quilts about 1-2 years ago, embellishing with found objects and beads.  This magazine shows me how to create my own fabrics with dyes, stamps and silk screening.  An article in the December2014/January2015 issue entitled Jewels for the Wall by Natalya Aikens inspired my next creations.  She made mini art quilts, framed them and then painted the frames to match the colors in the quilts.  Mine, of course, looks nothing like hers but that's the beauty of art!  Every artist has their own talents and interpretations of their world.

This was my very first one:
I only used fabric, beads and paint.

And because I love owls this was my second one:
For this creation I used fabric (the owl), upholstery (the gray background and the blue branch) and puffy paint (little designs coming off the branches).  There are also beads sewn on the eyes.

My third one is my absolute favorite because it's not as tight or structured as the last two.  I call it Steampunk and Butterflies.
(again I used fabric, upholstery, beads, clock parts and other hardware)

(top part):

(bottom part):

This is the start of two new creations.  I will be embellishing with seashells, sea grass and of course more beadwork.  The horizontal frame will be the seashore and the vertical frame will have lighthouse fabric in it.

These and many more creations will be for sale in my booth at the Newport News Fall Festival of Folk Life first weekend in October, please come out and see me!

The Newport News Fall Festival

I have loved going to the Newport News Fall Festival since I was a little girl.  My mom has been doing this show with her artwork for a number of years (25+) and I have helped her set up since I was young.  Two years ago she suggested that I apply (I had to be juried in with my own artwork) and sell my stuff.  I was honored and humbled to say the least.  I have always looked up to my mom, she is an amazing artist and for her to acknowledge my work validated me.  I was accepted in last year AND this year and it was a total blast!  I love that it's the first weekend in October, the weather was perfect and because it's in a park the woodsy smell is just heaven.  

A big huge thank you to everyone that came out and supported me!  I was sad that my cousin Susan couldn't come down from Northern Va to help me out so my dad had to do double time between my mom and me (giving us potty breaks, etc.) 

Here are some pictures from this past weekend:

 On Sunday my creative juices were flowing so I sketched 3 pages of notes!  I am so excited to start my new ideas so stay tuned because next year's NN Fall Festival will be definitely be better than this year's! 

New ideas for my fabric bowls...

New fabric bowls that will debut at the Newport News Fall Festival held the first weekend in October.

I am now painting pedestals and attaching my fabric bowls to them.  If you are hosting a Christmas party and need more room on the table you could use this one to 1. give height to your table and 2. create more space on the table (mints could go in this basket)

But before Christmas let's talk about Halloween!   Here are two of my newest creations:

(I still haven't decided yet if I'm going to paint eyes on this cat, I kinda like it without eyes.  Can't you just imagine this on your dining room table with Snickers bars in it!)

You can't see the spiders legs too well from this photo but I made them out of wire and painted the eyes with a toothpick.

I have also come up with a new spin on the old jewelry box.  With this one I have incorporated my love of Zentangles.  In the bowl you can store your necklaces and watch and then on the hooks beneath you can hang your rings and bracelets:

 And with this one you can hang jewelry from the hooks at the top and store them in the basket below:

Here are a few more every day whimsical bowls I've created:

I have a lot more that will debut at the Newport News Fall Festival in Newport News, VA the first weekend (Saturday and Sunday) in NN Park so please come out and see me!