Monthly Archives: January 2018

Year in review

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Baby quilts awaiting delivery

Surface design/book play

First crop – I explored growing our own summer vegetables in pots on the deck.Our salad bar was a huge success and this was our first crop of beans-the resident hummingbirds loved the heritage variety and they provided great screening/privacy from our neighbors.

Cover detail of a tool pocket created to hold a set of jewelry making tools which replaced a set which were stolen from an artist’s car while she visited her sick husband in hospital.

Dottee dolls created for an auction raising funds for Ladybug House proposed children hospice in Seattle area

Sample teenager for Baton Rouge project.Sadly this package was returned as contact didn’t pick it up from mailing office.So if anyone wants to pick up this project it’s all ready to go in the studio !

A variety of pieces from 2017 but thought I would share.I have also created a series of boro place mats which are still a work in process so there will be more in the future.I have just recieved my renewal for American Craft Council membership and look forward to reading the magazine and maybe funding my artistic voice this year.

Thursday Therapy

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For around 8 months I have been helping at the Bellevue Botanical Gardens with maintenance in the perennial border.We have a great time and once month have a weed and feed session potluck lunch).I love the team work and sense of accomplishment in a garden that is available to all.I was most surprised after joining the NW Perennial Alliance to find myself in this months newsletter.Yes I love that hat !

Happy rainy morning volunteering at Bellevue Botanical Gardens.

We are working to potentially make our garden open in a couple of years as an example of a wildlife friendly urban garden.I have just been editing images from last year our wildlife visitors include deer,rabbits,coyotes,bear (yearling while we where in Hawaii) and a stunning bobcat who it seems was responsible for the destruction of our old fencing.We discovered over the holidays that we had been accidentally feeding a family of raccoons when they visited our deck bird feeder while we were a dinner one evening.We have repositioned the feeder and consumption has reduced significantly.I am currently adding new areas to support birds and wildlife, removing non native species.We have 5 species of woodpeckers visiting and a gang of teenage juncos resident over the winter.My favorite daily visitor is a wren, such a personality, along with our two resident male hummingbirds who guard the feeders to the North and South of the house.

After a long absence I have also started to participate in Postcrossing again.I received a great set of Washington stamps to add to postcards and used them for the first set I sent but they seem to have disappear in the ephemera in the studio – I’m sure they will turn up soon.

New Adventures

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The New Year brings the opportunity to develop skills.I will be going on retreat for the first time with a group to explore seed beading techniques.I have been experimenting with peyote stitch for around a year which will be included in a series of necklaces.I collected many beads and found objects during my travels and hope to continue to explore with these objects.I have joined the seed bead society so am looking forward to meeting and meeting new members.

In the run up to Christmas I attended my first Oddball Convention at Bellevue College.So many talented artists.I was looking for a personal handmade project for my parents to take back for my nieces and nephew and adapted an article about making boro brush holders when I “found” some oilcloth which had been in my stash.This seemed to be a more practical application as ever I now have extra “unfinished objects” in my studio space.

Small series of oil cloth brush holder.Screen prints patches by chibiyeti.com