WIP ~ Fiber Sculpture ~ Day Three!!

Working on another component of the fiber sculpture.  Using a little of this....

And a little of this....

Some of this one too!!!....

Just a touch of this one....

Add a dash of this...

Mix well on the embellishing machine and you get this...

Oops...I forgot to photograph the green material.  Oh well...you can see it here!!

Another piece of the puzzle has been finished.  On to bigger and better things.

The new sheet of paper is almost dry.  So far the color is a little more vibrant.  I don't know if I will like that or not.  The other piece is so subtle and beautiful!  We will see!  It has about two or three more days at least, to dry.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a magical and blessed day!
Hugging you
SueAnn

Random Tuesday....The rains have stopped!!

At least for now I have blue skies and mild breezes so I poured another sheet of paper and it is now drying.  I will show you a pic when it has dried and I pull it into my studio.  Dr. John helped me out today.  He is such a trouper and always a great assistant!

Good news!  I am going to see the grandkids this coming weekend!  It is the prom and I didn't miss it after all.  I am so excited.  Taking several cameras with me so I can make sure and capture this event.  The prom is Saturday night!!  So cool!!

I worked on a small painting while I was waiting for the weather to cooperate.  Here are some pics of the process....

I have also begun sewing the pieces that I will need for the big fiber piece.  The embellisher is so much fun!  I am hoping to get all the parts done and then start mounting on the canvas.  Tomorrow I makes the tubes that the piece will need.  Again, I will show the process...so my camera will be close by at all times.

I am so on a plateau, weight wise...totally bumming me out!  It has been six weeks...the same.  Sigh!!  If I would quit procrastinating and exercise I am sure it would break that cycle.  At this rate...it will take two years to lose the balance that I want to lose.  (100 lbs)  So I best get on the stick!!  Here is a recent pic of me now....

Above is a picture taken of me last year around November.  You can see the difference already!!
So you can see I still have a ways to go!  But I am determined.  I have come too far and gone through too much to slough off now!

I think this enough randomness for now.  You all have a wonderful week!  A magical and blessed week!

Hugging you

SueAnn

WIP ~ Fiber Sculpture ~ Day Two!

As the sun rises...I go out and check to see if the paper has finally dried! 

We lift off the tarp and the paper is good to go!!  WooHoo!!  So we take it out of the form and bring it into the studio.  Here is what it looks like now!

So there is the first sheet of paper.  As you can see..the color is much more subtle but the texture is pronounced.  It is a little thicker than I hoped for but I can work with that.  Now I have to do another sheet and then I will be done.   I won't bore you with showing the process again.  I think you pretty much have figured out how this works.

The sun is going down and  I have had a pretty successful day.  I took my sewing machine in because it was getting rather loud.  Oh!! Oh!!  We went to the Bernina shop.  Oops!!  So while they are servicing my machine I bought a Bernina...woohoo!!!   It is just the basic one...but it has more horsepower.  Which I need for this project.  I gave it a test run today and it is fantastic!!!!

Have a wonderful and magical evening and a great Monday!!

Hugging you
SueAnn

Eclipse!! WooHoo!

Premiering June 30th which is the day after my birthday!! Very cool!! A must see!
Especially for the Twilight Fans!! As you can see...I am one of them!!

Hugging you
SueAnn

Silent Saturday ~ Part Twelve!!!

Monday of last week was sunny and 78 degrees!!  Yesterday was 30 degrees, windy and two inches of snow!!  Talk about weather changes!!!

I don't know about you, but I need a Silent Saturday!

We visited the  Albuquerque Rose Garden and it was such a beautiful day!  Roses aren't in bloom yet but the plants themselves were so green.   And  they had the most beautiful red edges to the leaves!
Relax and enjoy the images.....

Shhh...and early rose bud!!

Ouch!!

Had to throw in the bouquet of pink roses that I received from Dr. John!!  Aren't they gorgeous?!

Have a wonderful, magical and blessed weekend!  Thanks so much for stopping by....
Hugging you
SueAnn

Thursday's Things!

Come on in and sit awhile.  I have brewed some freshly ground coffee and I feel like a chat.  There are a few things that happened to me this week that I wanted to share.

First, I received this award from Ethelmae from The Adventures of Fred and Ethel.  If you haven't visited her blog...you should.  She has made me laugh so many times.  Wonderful writer.  Anyway, she gave me this award the other day and I feel so honored.  She gave this to several of her blog friends and she included me in the "friend" circle.  Wow!  Blogland is amazing, isn't it?  Thank you sweetie!!

These are just a few of the things I won over at Fern Creek Cottage .  Another beautiful blog and it was a wonderful giveaway!!    Stop by and visit Lisa if you have a chance.  Her blog is gorgeous!!!  I also got a beautiful vintage card and a ceramic bird and the cuties little bird house!  Woohoo!!  A bounty for sure!

Then I was a runner up in a giveaway at Good Mourning Glory by Diane !!!  And I won a bottle of China Glaze Nail Polish in a beautiful deep dark purple!!  It is a gorgeous shade. 

 You all know Diane I hope!  Fabulous blog...!!!  She also has a blog called Wouldn't you like to  see something strange.  This blog introduces you to some novel and amazing art work!  So take a moment and visit both of the blogs.  Well worth the visit!!!  Diane is the bomb!!

I also got some new bras...but that I didn't take a photo of!  HA!  They fit perfectly!  The girls are happy!  And so am I!!

The paper is drying slowly but surely.  It is still raining off and on.  So it may take all week at this rate.  Sigh!!  Of all times for the desert to be rainy!!  Sheesh!!

On a fun note!  My peach tree is so happy and blossoming all over the place!!

Just had to share.  The blooms are amazing!!  Hope we will actually get peaches this year.  How exciting is that?

Hope you all have a magical and blessed day!
Hugging you
SueAnn

Random Tuesday....Now the rains come!!

Just when I need warm breezy days...I get the dark clouds and rain!  Sigh!  I am going to have a hard time getting this paper dry.  And that could be a problem!  Here's to hoping that today brings the sun.  The above picture is one we took last night.  Sunset! 

So I am supposed to be exercising every day!  I know!  I know!!  And last week I did it two days...woohoo!!  Two whole days!!  And this week so far...zero.  Well it is only Tuesday so today I will do better.  I on a plateau right now and this is the only way I am going to break it.  I just hate to exercise.  I mean, I really hate to do it.


Yesterday I organized my sewing area so that I would have plenty of room to work on the fiber piece.  And that is all I got done too!  I did want to make the fabric tubes...but ran out of time.  Today is a new day.  Do we see a theme here?  Everything is starting today!!  Wow!  I am tired already!

The machine in front is an embellishing machine.  I love it!!  I can get many layers of material (whether it be paper, thin metals or fabric) to fuse together.  It uses felting needles (five of them) to force the fibers into one another.  So each layer is connected to the next.

Here you can see a strip I did on the prototype.  It has six layers of fabric all joined together.  There is silk, cotton, wool, organza, and a couple of upholstering fabrics.  Isn't it the coolest ever?


One thing with Gastric Bypass...you have to take your vitamins every day.  Especially, B-12!!  I had been forgetting to take that one.  All of a sudden, the top of my left foot started burning and anything touching it would send hot pokers of pain up my leg.  I was like WTH??   After some research, we discovered that if you are depleted of B-12 you can develop Neuropathy.  Which is nerve damage!  Yikes!  I definitely don't want that!  So I took my B-12 and in three days, the pain went away!!  Coolness!  I will be a good girl from now on.  No missing my vitamins.

So, I have lost 135 lbs.!!!  And my body is shrinking!  Which has been the perfect excuse to shop.  I need clothes!  The biggest problem I have is keeping up with the new bra sizes!  (Sorry guys)  I have had to order new bras four times now!!  And you know girls, it is always a pain in the a$$ to find the right fit in a bra.  It has been interesting to say the least.  But clothes shopping has been a blast and I love my new outfits.  I feel fantastic!!

Picture from Wikipedia...shopping in downtown Toronto in 1937!!  Check out the outfits??!!


Well I am sure this is enough Randomness for today.  Make sure and stop by Keeley's at UnMom to see some other RTT blogs!!

Have a blessed and magical rain-free day!
For that is my prayer too!
Hugging you
SueAnn

We begin! WIP ~ Fiber Sculpture ~ Day One!

This is how my day started out.  Foggy and no sun!!  What a day to be working outside...chance of rain!!  Sigh!  But I have to get the paper started so it will be ready to use.  I ordered paper pulp from Twinrocker and they sent me some fabulous pulp.  Clean and white....tooth whitened white!!!

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Isn't it beautiful.  They also sell sheets of already made paper in many different textures and styles.  It is just a blast to visit their site....cool stuff!  Anywho...there is the pulp.  Now to make the form.

I laid down a sheet of 3/4 plywood, exterior grade, so that it would hold the weight of the pulp.  Then I used two by fours to make the form.  The clamps secure the form to the plywood so it won't shift during the drying process.
I usually make paper indoors but these sheets are 4 feet by 8 feet and I just don't have the room inside for that.  Not to mention the water that will be dripping out...what a mess that would be.  When I ordered the paper, I had them put in extra stabilizer so this large sheet would hold together.  We will see!!

As you can see, I laid twigs and branches into the form.  I also covered the plywood with black plastic.  There is one draw back to using plastic on the bottom of the pulp.  It will make the paper somewhat shiny on one side.   But that will be the side I glue down to the piece, so I am not overly concerned.  I also keep the plastic bunched up to give more texture.

Now to add the pulp.  I colored one batch with Burnt Sienna and a touch of Red.  Then I layered the different colors onto the form.   Burnt Sienna and white!

I just used my hands and a scrap two by four to settle the pulp down into the form.  The form is two inches higher on one side to facilitate drainage.  The rain keeps threatening, so we have a tarp standing by.  I am not sure how long this will take to dry.  Since I live in an arid climate...it shouldn't take too long. 

These are some close ups so you can see the branches being held by the pulp.  You can also see the colors and how they flow one into another.  When this dries...it won't be as bright.  Right now it glistens because of the water.

As predicted, the rains did come.  So we covered it securely with the blue tarp and now I have to wait.  I will keep you posted.  Tomorrow I make the undulating tubes that will give the piece it's movement and depth.
I will take pics along the way.

I have two canvases.  Both are four feet wide by eight feet wide.  They will sit, one on top of the other.  So to speak.  There will be a space between them.  Just wanted to remind you of how big this piece will be.  I have my studio reorganized so that I will be able to work on each canvas, one at a time.  Ought to be interesting.

Thanks for stopping by and viewing this work in progress!

Have a magical and blessed day!
Hugging you
SueAnn