Whew, It’s Over

The Funk In The City “art festival” was a total bust for me.  I like what another vendor said…”I sell more than this at my crappiest shows”.  Yeh, what she said.  There was a gal next to me selling ceramic mushrooms for $5-$6…could that have anything to do with it? And the more I thought about it…surely they had to come from China.  So what’s there to say about a show like this?  How about…I won’t be back!  And so many people I know have raved about this show.  Sigh.

I did meet some nice people next to me to whom I am completely indebted for helping me load up.  Due to incoming storms the festival closed up an hour early.  Their help made sure all my stuff didn’t get wet, because a big downpour did come.  Thanks to Sean Troy of Wood Turned Dreams and his helper.   His old website was shut down by the host, but his new one is almost up and running.  Check out his wonderful wood turning work when you get a chance at www.woodturneddreams.com

Anyway, on to the next thing…I have some classes scheduled, a trip out of town where I will be visiting with friends and seeing Quilt National (yeh!), and a one day quilt show event.  Perhaps I can even work on some art this month… that would be fun.  I am feeling inspired to do some printing so that I can continue exploring with the piece of cloth from the previous post.  I am stirred to create.

Another task is to begin photographing all the things that didn’t sell! to start listing in my Etsy shop.

Photo…gray hand dye that I “painted” with soy wax, froze, crumpled, then brushed dish gel over it to discharge it.

Serendipity Printing

I’ve been sickly this week, just a cold, but still had to push on and get some silk scarves dyed and printed for another art festival this weekend.  Starting life as the dropcloth for printing a scarf…I think I see the start of a new piece…I added some more marks to it.

Besides black, I used Dharma’s Greenish Brown color, doubled.  It looks really brown when first printed, but after batching and washing, it looks more olive brown, drab olive, whatever.  I like it.  This is on cotton, not silk.

This Week…

I am working today making more bags…just two more festivals to go and then maybe I can “rest” a little. Ha!

But I also took a little time for play…

This is a fat quarter of black cotton sateen.  I waxed it, then crinkled it, then brushed automatic dishwashing gel on it.  I’m thinkin’ I’m in love…

Dropcloth Art…

It’s not finished!

Farm Progress Show Follow Up

Dear Readers: In my haste to get ready, load up the van and get to breakfast on time yesterday, it never once entered my head to get the camera!  I’m just not in the habit of carrying it with me to meals…yet!  I am going to have to get advice from Gerrie since she always has lovely pictures of food and meals, even when they eat out.

But I can describe it for you…we had a fruit dish of bananas and strawberries, small stack of pancakes, sausage patties, hard fried eggs with a soft white cheese melted on top (never had that before!), juice and coffee.  Yes, it was another wonderful breakfast.  If anyone questions my infatuation with my breakfasts the past few days…let me explain.  My husband goes to work early and we don’t fix breakfast.  Every morning I have a bowl of bran flakes with soy milk and dried cranberries on top…that is it.  Being at the bed and breakfast this week was quite a treat as far as breakfast was concerned!  And someone else was fixing it…and it was way better than the continental breakfasts you get at a motel for the same price.

Anyway, I sold a few more scarves yesterday…that was very encouraging.  Right before I left, I worked on some large square chiffon scarves and was quite pleased with how they turned out.  Every day I draped a new one over my “dummy” to see public reaction.  The third one sold, and it was one I ran out of time on and planned on doing more to it when I got back.  The sale saved me more work!

I still have these two…the one that sold was a bit more reddish than the orange one above.  I discharged it the same way, but didn’t like the color so I overdyed it.  The discharged areas were more muted.  I also used the same screen print on it that the orange one has.  It is a Thermofax print of a picture of tree branches.

I’m back home now and need to re-stock my inventory…next art show is in two weeks.

Farm Progress Show

Here, reporting to you  (almost) live from the Farm Progress Show in cool Decatur, IL…there have been TONS of people come through the booths yesterday and today.  My ArtfulCloth Bags have been selling well, scarves not so well.  I’m pleased with my sales and hope to do even better tomorrow, the last day.  There has been interest in a particularly large wallhanging (Southwest Impressions can be seen on my website) and I am interested to see if there will be any followup in the form of cash or charge!

I have forgotten to take pictures of our extremely wonderful breakfasts we are being served at the B & B where I am staying.  Ah…there is one more morning…perhaps I will remember the camera tomorrow!  Fit for a king…this a.m. it was scrambled eggs with sauteed onions and green pepper and cheese gravy (or sauce), sausage patties, homemade biscuits, fresh peaches, juice and coffee. Mmmm…wonderful.  This B & B is situated in an historical part of town and the homes are very old here…like over 100 years old. I should get a picture of it too.

Signing off now…gotta get cleaned up and head up to my room…there aren’t very many three pronged outlets in a 100 year old house, so I am in the kitchen catching up on emails, blogs, and writing this.