Hands of many colors!

I have this old window that I'm going to do some beachy/ocean/mermaidish/Florida thing with.  It's going in my shop WHEN I get it done.  It's only in the planning stages, but I got some fabric scraps "dyed" today, and as you can see, it was a rather messy job!  Instead of using dye, I used craft paint that I squirted over the fabric that I'd laid in the sink.  Then I folded, squeezed, and rubbed.  I got some nice blends of color.  It dried stiff in the warm sun. Some looks like the old-fashioned tie-dye fabrics that ran rampant in the 60s (and today as well.)  I'm going to use fabric and paper for my ocean inspired collage, and maybe I'll paint something as well.  I have a cardboard backing that I painted a light turquoise, and we'll go from there.  I will post the finished product, but here are the bits and pieces so far.  I intend to cut up the fabrics into smaller pieces, and I love the ocean colors I've already got going. 

Inchies and Tabby...

I was making some "inchies," scraps of fabric that I sewed together with some batting in the middle, then glued to a canvas.  I think a good name for it is Squared...  Anyway, the neighbor's kitty wanted in on the action, so the shoot became "Tabby modeling herself and blending in perfectly with her surroundings."  We have a thick mat of wild oak leaves on the ground now since they fall off when the new leaves are coming in.  I liked the background for my mostly blue Squared.  These are not real inches, they are 2 inches square.  One inch would just be too tiny to work with and then combine into a pleasing pattern.  It's kind of like quilting, you can't really go wrong if the colors harmonize.  So, this is what I do when I watch TV, which is not very often.  But they come together mindlessly, a meditation in fabric! 

Spring colors against the drab gray and brown...

I went outside and took a couple of pictures of the lovely spring colors around here.  It has been so drab this winter, and today it was raining oak leaves.  When the new leaves shoot out on the live oaks it starts raining brown oak leaves, literally.  At least you don't get wet, but you'll find leaves in your hair and in your pocket.  They are like leather and almost as enduring.  To live in FL the vegetation has to be pretty hardy to survive our summer heat (which I love.) :) 

The view from my front porch

                                                                        More azaleas

This is a shoot straight out of the end of a piece of shrub.  How exuberant, don't you think?

The backyard is covered with violets.  It was pretty windy out there and difficult to get a good shot.

A fresh shoot of saw palmetto.  It looks like a praying mantis, don't you think?  Or some kind of spider. 
I so enjoy this time of year.  The sun is bright and warm, life is boiling under the surface, and overnight, it seems, it just explodes with the new season.  Must say spring is my favorite season.  And there's some green on St. Paddy's Day. 

Fly Butterfly, fly!

I saw this beautiful glass pendant of a butterfly and thought of the possibilities.  I made a simple strand of glass beads and crystal to support this stunner!  So much fun.  I like the subtle glitter of the crystal beads, but that doesn't really show in the pictures.
On a roll, I created another bracelet with torch-fired enamels, this one with icons, symbols we all know and love. So here are pictures of Icons and "Madame" Butterfly.

Creative day in the rain...

It has been raining cats and dogs all day here in FL. (Why do people say that??)  The trees are happy and waving their branches, some of them fuzzy green.  The azaleas are Finally blooming.  They are about 6 weeks late blooming this year, the ones that survived continued Mr. Hard Frost.  So pretty in pink!


I just finished a charm bracelet that has more of my torch-fired enamel beads.  I'm low on supply, but "you take what you have" as Kajsa Varg used to say (famous Swedish cook way back when.) I added some sea inspired items, some pale beads, and wings-charms!  So the piece is titled Wngs.  We could all use a pair of those... No security check at the airport.

Also, I started a pair of wool socks before Christmas that I wanted to felt.  I have never felted socks or mittens, but this time, I Would Do It, so I did.  I had knitted them bigger than usual since the felting makes them shrink quite a bit.  Funny part is that the heel didn't shrink as much though I used the same brand yarn.  So they ended up with quite a large heel and somewhat tight over the arch.  Pretty, however, if I may say so myself.  I used two strands of yarn the whole time, and they are WARM.  I might put them up on etsy even though the winter is just about over.

 

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Orsini's Angels...

My friend Marla in Upstate NY just started her blog ORSINI'S ANGELS.  She's an incredibly talented doll artist, and you can check out the pictures here.  Please leave a comment or two; I know she would be thrilled.  She's very modest, but there lives a very creative mind inside her.  I've known her for years and always sparked off her creativity.