Friday Favorites

I have been really busy this week.  I've been working my way through Rayna Gillman's new  book.  You will need to go to And Then We Set It On Fire to see my progress.    I have also started to add more needlework and beads to The Center of the Universe.  I hurriedly finished it to enter into a show earlier this year.  When it was not juried into the show, I simply set it aside for awhile but I was never really satisfied with how encrusted it was.  The center of the universe should be much more dense with shiny things.  So, now I am adding more.  Pictures later.

Friday Favorites
I have some of these Mystery Foam blocks but have not used them yet. Judy in the Dyes show some  real inspiration for what you can do with Mystery Foam.  I ordered some during the summer but have yet to use it.  Maybe this will inspire me.

Constance Rose is giving away a 10 x10 quilt named All that Glitters.  You can see it here and leave a comment to enter for a chance to win it.

Lynn Krawczyk gives a review of the  Gelli Art gel printing plate.  She likes it.  I haven't tried it yet because I generally don't really care for monoprints.  I agree with Lynn's sentiment that monoprints generally need several more layers to make them presentable.  I am less likely to try it now that she says the instructions caution the artist from using dyes with the plates.  I wonder what happens?  Does the dye eat through the plate?  Do the dyes just bubble up and give a poor impression?  That might be interesting in itself.  Perhaps the problem is that the dyes are thin but then the artist could thicken the dyes. Does anyone know the answer to these questions?

Two thought provoking pieces were written this week. The first is by Arlee on the creative process.  The second is by Elizabeth Barton on why quilts have not been accepted into the main stream art community.  Both are just opinions but are well thought out opinions with explanation about how they got to their decision.

And let me close by sending you to Ink Spiller's Attic for a New Year wish from Neil Gaiman.  It is beautiful and I wish it for you!