January Shop Preview

The dye pots have been cooking for the past few days. I started dyeing up some Falkland and Merino fibers in long color repeats and playing around with grey. The grey that I tried for last month didn't come out as expected at all. Poking around at the palettes I created at colourlovers revealed many interesting color combos that paired grey with various colors both bright and deep. So I challenged myself to recreate some of these palettes for January in the Grey series.

The Maki below was spun and navajo plied on my Kundert drop spindle using 1 oz of Falkland top dyed in the Acid Trail palette. It's only about 30 yd of bulky weight but it's very squooshy and I love the color transitions.

I love fiber dyed this way! You can split it for shorter repeats or spin directly from the end for super long repeats (that's what I did with this yarn.) You could also separate the colors for even longer repeats or ply the different colors together for a different effect. The Falkland is crimpy but easy to draft and perfect for beginning spinners.

And don't forget we're having an After Christmas Sale! Come by Play at Life Fiber Arts and check out some gorgeous reclaimed and first quality yarns at a great price!

December Shop Preview

Happy Fiber Friday!!!

December is here and yarn has been dyed! I had been feeling kind

of ho-hum about Christmas but dyeing yarn in such fun colors from my childhood really has gotten me more in the mood. Tomorrow we'll be putting up our tree and I'm hoping all the lights will work!

Jest Sock - Twinkle Lights

Jumping Joy skeins will now have more yardage with no price increase! Older skeins will have their prices reduced and all new skeins will have a full 500yd. That's plenty for knee socks or an infant sweater and two skeins is enough for a Featherweight Cardigan!

Jumping Joy Sock - Blue Spruce

The first December update will be Saturday the 5th. Gift Certificates will be available for purchase in $15, $25, and $50 denominations. Exciting new things to come in January - custom Maki, hand dyed Fibers, new yarn lines!!!

More great Fiber Friday goodness at http://www.alpacafarmgirl.com/

Nostalgic December

I have been agonizing over what theme to do for the December yarns! Part of me wants to just ignore the December holidays all together. But the kid in me really does love all the colors and memories that surface at this time of year. The husband and I have been working at establishing our own traditions for some time now and I still don't feel like we've got it just right yet! And now that we live so far away from our family and H is 4 and fully aware of what Christmas is about, it's really necessary for us to make our own version of Christmas.

Nostalgia is a series of colorways that represents the colors I remember from my childhood Decembers - lots of deep, rich color punctuated by the drab, grey skies of New England. References to candy and twinkly lights will show up too of course!

IF - Flying

Learn to Fly, 6"x6.25", Mixed Media on paper

I'm doing my first Random Act of Kindness for one of my online groups. This will be going out to a fellow member in the next few days. I had a great time making it and I hope she likes it!

Happy Socktober!!!

Things are going well at KG Krafts! I dropped these off today :

Good News and a preview!

Play at life fiber arts yarns are now available at KG Crafts! Located at 260 New Boston Rd
Fall River, MA Phone (508) 676-3336, KG Crafts is a great little yarn store with a nice selection, a great owner, and many other craft supplies. They also have classes for everything from sock knitting to basket weaving and making holiday centerpieces. The store is in a great area, right across the street from a little bakery and a few doors down from Ugly American Burger where you can get fabulous burgers, zucchini and sweet potato fries and grilled asparagus!

These beauties will be trickling into the online shop starting today. October brings the Socktober series of colorways. Here's a sneak preview :

Color by COLOURlovers

Color by COLOURlovers

WMOA Sneak Peek

The show is up at the Warwick Museum of Art!

All pieces were done for my art motivation group, now called Art Right Now. We meet twice a month to view and chat about pieces of art we make based on the same theme. Each meeting a new theme is chosen for the next meeting and we do a creativity exercise. We are lucky to have had members affiliated with the Warwick Museum of Art and have been able to have an annual exhibit to showcase our work. The group has helped me to stay motivated and keep up with my illustration. I've been able to experiment and gain confidence with new mediums and the camaraderie and support is amazing. If you are in RI or SE Mass. come check out the show!

New - Jest and BlitheFuL Sock yarns!!!

Here's a little preview of the new yarn bases and colorways that will be trickling into the shop in the next week. Jest Sock is a 2 ply SW Merino with a tight twist; it's super soft and positively sproingy! BlitheFuL Sock is a 4 ply SW BFL that is soooo soft but somehow sturdy at the same time. This month's Series is based on text message acronyms, LOL Speak and other interweb lingo.

Asp Urchin in BlitheFuL Sockie Maki and Jest Sock

Variations on Teal Deer in Jest Sockie Maki, Jest Sock and BlitheFuL Sock

Edumacation in Jest Sock, Merry Lace Maki and Lace and Worsted Reclaimed Maki

Caution/Fruit

Caution! Apple Booty Crossing, Acrylic and Collage, 6.25"x7.25"

My task was to somehow combine my Art Group theme of Fruit with the IF prompt of Caution. My first thought was of course Eve and an apple. Then I thought of children standing on pumpkins to get to something they shouldn't. The husband suggested banana peels and then I thought of prickly pears...then this title popped in my head. So I did an image search for pedestrian crossing signs and came up with this idea. I almost did it in illustrator, but it's not really my style.

New Bases

They're here! New sock yarn bases in 2 ply tightly twisted SW merino and 4 ply SW BFL! The BFL has a lovely sheepy smell. I seriously could roll in this stuff. The samples I dyed up were gorgeous! I've got some Merry Lace, Merino yet to be named and reclaimed yarns in the dye pot as I type. I'm hoping to crank out a bunch more this weekend for the Sept. 1 shop update!

IF - Wrapped

Into the Night, gouache

It's been so long since I contributed to IF!

I did this one a while ago, but it really fits in with this weeks prompt.

Preview!

Coming September 1st at play at life fiber arts - LOL series hand dyed yarn!

I'm basing this series on the LOLSpeak dictionary. There will be lots and lots of fun colors and some new sock yarn bases too!

I've been noodling around at colourlovers.com to hammer out some palette ideas. I love this site! So far I have these two - Enjoy!

Color by COLOURlovers

Color by COLOURlovers

Instrument

Little Boy Yellow, 2.5"x3.5", acrylic and collage

I have been neglecting my blog badly! So here's an update - from my Art Motivation Group. The theme was "instrument." I got the idea from my youngest son H. He told me about a dream he had that had a man in a bird suit. I couldn't get him to say much more than that. I immediately got the idea for this illustration from his telling of it.

Intricate Vase

Intricate Vase - 8" x 7.25"mixed media collage 

I'm doubling up again this week. I've been dyeing a lot of yarn for my Etsy shop lately so I haven't had much time for my art work. The theme for my Art Motivation group is Vase and IF's prompt is Intricate so I made an Intricate Vase. 

I think I still want to tweak this a bit. I was inspired by a project in Cloth, Paper, Scissors. I love that magazine. I'm trying to figure out how to fit all this fun with paper and glue into my illustrations and this was a great way to do that.

Climbing Scarecrow

Scarecrow means business - Acrylic and Collage, 6"x8"

Climbing the corporate ladder is especially tough when you're a scarecrow.

I shall explain: The theme this week for my Art Motivation group is "scarecrow." Which I decided to combine with this week's IF prompt (climbing) when the Art Doll I was making just wasn't working out. I don't know where on earth this sentence came from, but here she is...a scarecrow trying to make her name in the business world.

I do still want to make that Art Doll for my soon to be Etsy shop. This is approximately what she will look like. I was going to give her some appropriate scarecrow props, but now I'm thinking she'll need a briefcase instead.

IF - Pale

Pale - ACEO Colored Pencil, Craypas 2.5"x3.5"

I have a thing with Mimes lately. I'm gearing up to make some more Art Dolls and I've decided my theme will be "the painted face." The prompt the last two weeks at IF has kinda fit in with that. I'll probably put these ACEOs up at my new Etsy shop when I have some inventory.

CPSIA and you

In the process of getting my Etsy shop up, I learned about the new Consumer Product Safety Commission law. I had been thinking of using the scraps or overly felted bits of sweater I had to make dolls and stuffies for children.

Turns out I'd have to have anything I made tested for lead and phthalates after Feb 10. Thankfully hadn't started making anything yet and I can still make art dolls as long as they are clearly marked as not for children.

I feel for those who already have a business selling children's items. Many will have to shut down because of this law, even if they make and sell items inherently free from lead and plastic. 

For more info check out these links - 

What the cost would be

Wall Street Journal article

How the law affects libraries

CPSC page on CPSIA

Flame

I had a dream about the sun - 14"x11", acrylic and collage

A painting for my Art Motivation Group; this weeks' theme - flame.  I really did have a dream about this painting. It was on a wall and a bunch of us we talking about it. But it was big, really big; much bigger than this. So I'm considering this a study because it doesn't feel finished or big enough for me. I'm going to do another one on paper, but I really feel like this needs to be an art quilt.

Some details

IF - Contain

I have two entries for this week's IF prompt

Contained - mixed media ACEO, 2.5"x3.5"

Imp - mixed media ACEO, 2.5"x3.5"

His cuteness would not be contained by a 2.5"x3.5" piece of mat board.

play at life fiber arts

Silken Stout - hand dyed recycled silk blend yarn

I now officially have an Etsy shop! Please tell all of your friends and stop by and buy alot of yarn!!!!

I will eventually also have a shop with my mixed media art. One thing at a time.

www.playatlifefiberarts.etsy.com

IF - Resolve

Grocery Shopping - 4x5 acrylic and collage

This week's prompt had me thinking how much resolve I have to have when I go to the grocery store. I make a menu for the week so I know what to buy and scan the flyers so I can make a list and then I have to remember to bring it. I have to remember to bring my reusable bags so I can be kind to the environment. I look for the best deals and price per unit. I read labels and weigh the good and bad (my kids like it, is it full of crap? This one is not so bad - but will my kids eat it?!?!) I wait in line and usually end up bagging my own groceries. And I do this with a 3 year old in tow which is where the resolve really comes in! Having all this resolve is exhausting!