squirrels,birds and red nails

So much for my plan to blog a couple times a week. The thought is there but not the time and I often wonder what to show and tell. I am busy working on work for "Articulation's"next exhibit which is in April at the McMullen Gallery in Edmonton then will travel to Winnipeg in September to the Mennonite Heritage Museum . I 'll have pictures of the finished work at a later date.
I'm always experimenting with something, for the last week it has been with dyes and I am happy to report the samples look good. I did take some time out this morning to experiment with my new camera. There was a male Cardinal in the cedars that I was trying to get a shot of but with no luck. And the Chickadee was a bit difficult

They barely stop long enough to get a really good shot. This one is a bit dark.

Now this little guy never moved except to stuff more seeds in to his mouth.

And then I went and had a manicure and had the nails painted brilliant red just for a change of pace.

Photos

Last day of the first month, time sure does fly. Some days faster then others but in the winter months it does feel that spring will never get here. Today was a bit of a snow day so I thought I would play with some of my photos from last summer to add a bit of colour in to my life.
I'm still fairly new at taking pictures with the digital and I do have a lot of fun with it. Some days I get a decent shot and its perfect for manipulating.

But then I get the perfect shot (for me) and it doesn't need anything but maybe enlarged , print and frame. The bug was a surprise.

ICE 101

Another chilly day on the hillside but only -24 this morning which is up from a few days ago when it was -34. Yet we do get the odd warm day -1 with freezing rain! Ice can offer so much with photos and played with in an altering image program .

Exploring pattern ...... Ice on the clothes line

Staff and Still Lifes

I am sure if I found the right staff I would get so much more work done. But the pay of a good rubbing and a bit of cat nip really doesn't get me much except being entertained.
Such a Monday!
We woke to -3c this morning compared to Friday when it was -33c! And with freezing rain it was another good day to stay in the studio to work on some major projects. Buying cut flowers is always a good start for me to set up a colour study. I'll also pose the setting a few times to see if there is anything I can work with.

Depending on what I am doing I will even keep notes in a sketch book which really comes in handy a few month(years) later.

This is my favorite and have plans on the drawing board for it.

New Year

The year is over 2 weeks old now and I'm a little slow getting in to the swing of Blogging. Life is busy but I have been working daily in the studio on a number of projects. In the last 2 weeks I completed a quilt that I pieced together 10 years ago on the Maga Quilter. This is the first quilt that I have quilted using the frame and machine so very much a learning lesson. And so much more to learn.

I also made a cushion for my sister using left over material from a window seat cover that she had made. One side of the cushion is woven with 2 different materials then satin stitch over the raw edges. The other side is panels over laid to one and other and 3 different size yo yos to make a rosette to use for the closure.

Season Greetings

This is a picture of Dargo ( Ragdoll) and Higby ( Dalmatian) taken in Cold Lake AB 2004. Dargo was only a year old and Higby was 7. Good thing about pets they really don't change much over the years. Both are still doing very well.

This next picture is of Rudy this year. Rudy is about a year and a half . He found Higby and I when we were out for a walk last summer (07). He was is in rough shape but knew a good thing when he saw it and though it doesn't show in this picture he has to be one of the happiest and smartest animals that I have owned.

Colour Wheel

I like dyeing my fibers and I try to keep a record of what I do. In these colour wheels I used G&S dyes (http://www.gsdye.com/) with very good results. The material is cotton and the threads are rayon ( inside) cotton and silk(out side).