My creativity is only reined in by my ability to access raw material. Never having been one to dally in 'fine art supplies', I have always been the one who looks at a pile of what others view as nothing, and then I reorganize a component of it, and VIOLA ICI, we have art/design/form meets function and something useful, unique and beautiful.
Here then, is an assortment of the different ways I get my art therapy fix on...
Walking beaches requires a meditation that keeps me upright as sand and the surf are an uneven surface to walk and my equilibrium is challenged on the best of days. By looking closely at the ground, I discover all manner of treasure in the form of sand eroded beach glass that I've learned has been called 'mermaid tears' . I combine this with different filaments/threads/strings and a combination of knitting/crocheting/knotting/macrame/needlepoint and beading to make novel necklaces for summer gifting.
Give rosebud art a try this summer. Collect wild and domestic buds when they are just opening. They keep well in tupperware or a baggy if you add a damp bit of tissue and keep them out of direct sunlight til you can work with them. A long needle, thread and your creativity and you have a beautiful gift to share that lasts all year as well as smells marvelous. (Try one in the car)
There was a t shirt that I bought the year my son was born (ask me the story of the power failure and c section by candlelight after a state-wide power failure during my labour) and I kept it for years. When he was an adult, I hated the thought of losing it and it was showing a lot of wear but the poster on the thinning shirt was so historic with the volcano erupting and the location of the t shirt's provider, the Anchorage House of Harley, was such a big part of my life in Alaska, back in the day, that I made it into embellishements on two shirts for him.
Here you see the front of the tshirt's design, it even had the hospital Dan was born in...
And here is how I appliqued the back to a dress shirt. I used lots of random zig zag machine embroidery to affix it... whether or not he ever wore it, I have to guess, but I am sure pleased with this way to recontemporize a treasured memory.
I enjoy bike riding and have made sure that my bike is distinctive which I suspect deters thievery. After losing my previous bike to theft, I took it upon myself to dress the new bike so it will never be mistaken as being unloved. Meet 'Comet'. I now have a little bag I keep in the front on the handlebars for my little canine ptsd companion, Maggie...
This was the first attempt at mounting something and was a hurried job combining my little backpack with a few bungee cords I keep in it and Maggie adjusted by curling up in a little ball with her head poked out. Her little ears flapping as the trail flew by, is one of my best memories of the summer.
My travels have me bringing all manner of minutiae home to do something with later. Here, I have incorporated beach stones, a couple of chips of blue glass mermaid tears and some waxed linen filament to make a component that was added to a collage quilt for a Victoria BC project last summer. My first Victoria Art Gallery informal installation!
How about some little tiny dragon mittens for that sweet child on your gift list? I crafted these for a friend's son who was fascinated with the creatures. No pattern, just whipped 'em up.
How about those stash buster projects that you always intend to get to? I enjoy winging designs with my stash busters and pick up thrifted yarn in my travels that allow me to create hostess gifts on the fly for the kind people who let me hang out with them while I pass through.
I also make a lot of upcycled knits but there are previous posts about those. These are just a few of the other things I like to create to keep my mind and spirit fed.
I will put the graphic arts I enjoy dabbling in on another blog of its own but here is a preview...
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