Pump Up The Volume

I seem to be rebuilding my work momentum now that summer activities are winding down and September is just three weeks away. Not that I haven't been working steadily all summer, but it's been interspersed with cottage weekends, clambakes and mini-getaways. My creative burner, that was on simmer, is heating up. I'm climbing back into the frying pan and kicking up the temperature on my artistic production. I'm back to writing lists of goals and action items and establishing intentions for this next year in my artistic life. There's a lot going on in my head and as much if not more bursting out in every art-related space in my home.

Walk in the den and you'll see my evening "relaxation" -- I'm back to stitching at the end of the day. I'm back to work on completing this second painted embroidery that will be framed to sell. Target date on those two is the end of this month. Hopefully some day I'll get better about organizing my embroidery threads -- for now, they get shoved into plastic storage bags and plastic bins and tend to become a tangled mess when I start working on a project, even a small one like this. I have purchased some great little organizers for embroidery threads, problem is that I don't actually use them! And when I separate strands, the colors end up in little nests of two, four and six strand bits and lengths that end up sticking to whatever I'm wearing and dropping in the strangest places around the house. I could be more organized -- hey couldn't we all -- but that takes more time than I'm willing to invest at the moment. Still, someday I might get a handle on my embroidery habits and keep track of the threads better!

Then there's the fifth Pages piece, now underway, which looks pretty somber and Plain Jane at this stage. Once I finished dyeing, printing, cutting and gluing the pages pieces --this time they're much larger, 2.5" x3.5"-- to the water soluble fabric, I sandwiched them beneath another layer of water soluble, pinned and started stitching all the horizontal rows. Because this piece is going to have at least one additional layer of elements added to this construction and possibly two, I am completing all the stitching to hold it together first before I add the more interesting design elements to the piece.

Can't forget to note that there's dyeing and printing that's been going on in the studio too. No additional pictures of those for you, I forgot to take my camera with me today. But in every direction I've got new work in progress.

When I'm here in my office at my computer, I'm still working with Holly on the redesign of my website, which is coming along slowly as I debate some major changes and hopefully will be up and live by September. And I'm settling back in to writing blogs two to three times a week. It all seems to be a sure sign that September is on its way and my "back to school" mentality from childhood is still ingrained in my psyche!