Decay

I am fascinated by decay. Things getting eroded, rusty things, wood or color with patina, really anything that shows the time it has endured. These pictures show one tree stump in various stages of decay.
Aged things are much more interesting than new things. They show wear and tear, you can see what the weather did to them if they are outside. Look at stone eroding - perhaps I am in love with these processes because they show that nothing is really forever. So who am I to complain that my life, too, will come to an end...
Don't get me wrong: I am not morbid. I wasn't just diagnosed - this fascination with decay and old age has been with me for decades. I love the faces of old people: They tell of joy and sorrow and the struggles they had during their life. These faces are by far more beautiful than those of any model.

Easter Monday

Would you believe it? Icicles about 5 inches long! The birds are really in need of a flight controller the way they are flocking about. I have to refill the house at least twice a day.

Happy Easter!

Yes, it is Easter! Although you would not believe it looking at these photos, would you? This was the sight that greeted us this morning. Seems we have now more snow than in the whole previous winter. Oh well, of course Easter is very early this year, but snow at the end of March? Okay, we are not actually snowed under, but.... You can tell that I am looking forward to warmer times, more light, more sun, and yes, less snow!

Inchies swap

These are the inchies from a swap with Janet from the inchies-group. Janet sent me paper inchies which were something new for me. Those I sent back are just plain fabric inchies. It has been some time that I last made these small items and was quite amazed how well it went - seems I didn't forget how to make them :-)

Spring

At last - the almond trees are in blossom! Although my favorite time of the year is autumn I love the almond trees. There are about 15 of them, not very tall, along one of the streets I have to drive through when heading for our neighboring town. These fragile clouds of pink impress me every year. Alas, this beauty can only be admired for a few days. This year, however, they are taking their time. It is rather cool and damp and the blossoms seem to last longer than in other years. At least something to help me ignore that the time for wearing sandals and short sleeves is still in the future.

Driftwood

Tomorrow is my father's birthday. This is the birthday card I made for him. But since I am going to visit him I did not send it *g* but rather framed it. It is a highly three dimensional piece done with silk paper, fabric, silk hankies and silk throwster waste as well as some hand dyed cheesecloth. The embellishments are partially hidden in folds and I couldn't resist putting some UTEE on it. It looks like being washed up on the seashore - okay, apart from the gold thing....

Inspiration

Aspergos was the Hellenistic town in Turkey with the great amphitheater. It was quite a climb up there but worth while - great view of the mountains, too.
I like the carved stones. Perhaps I can turn these into a quilting design.

It's all about structure

Would you believe that these are all details from palm trees? And not even from different sort of palm trees but from one. I saw these in Turkey and wondered how different the trunks looked. It is all defined by the way the leaves are cut off in order to give the tree a nice top. At least that is how I think it is, maybe I am totally wrong. If somebody cares to inform me...

Heart swap

These are the hearts I received during the swap with the art4card group. Isn't it really fascinating what people can do with the heart shape in mind! I love swaps because this way you get an insight into other artists' work; there is such a large variety even if the general idea is the same.

Turkey

Returned from a trip to Turkey. The photos you see here were made in Perge, an ancient town or rather the remains of an ancient town. The time of the year was really perfect for this kind of visit since there are not many tourists around (you should visit there in summer, or rather not!). So I was able to shoot photos without any humans on it. These columns are so awe inspiring - erected several thousand years ago and still so beautiful.

More skinny book pages

These are not all but my most favorite pages from the skinny book. I will not bother you with all 25 of them.

Skinny book swap

At long last - my skinny book arrived yesterday! I had been waiting for it for months. The exchange should have taken place last year but due to the fact that several artists dropped out Chrysti had to look for replacements. So with a delay of about two months yesterday it arrived, and it was well worth waiting for. I am absolutely happy to have such a beautiful objet d'art.
Chrysti did something extraordinary by binding the pages and doing the covers front and back. This book is everything I hoped for and I suppose I will be pestering you with several pictures these days. I rather hope you enjoy looking at them as much as I do. Chrysti announced that she will be hosting some more swaps and you bet I will be looking for these, too!

Cyber fyber exhibition

This is an interesting and - at least for me - rather daunting project. Susan Lenz has 163 ATCs she is trading via her blog

cyberfyberexhibitionpostcards.blogspot.com/

You can choose one of her cards and send her one of your own in return. Those she receives in this exchange will be shown in an exhibition at Vista Studios in Columbia.
I opted for one of her cards which show a larger piece done by herself which was cut up and centered in the ATC. Somehow it reminds me of baroque costumes since it is so extensively embellished. In return I sent her one of my really expressive cards called "Rush hour".
Take a look at her blog - it is really worth while.

Addicted

These are the hearts I did for the heart swap of the art4card list.
Somebody should have warned me: This is addictive! It started harmless enough by using up fabric and scraps from the friendship cushion-swap. But when I began making the hearts from felt, I suddenly had the feeling that I couldn't stop any more. They are so soft! You always want to touch them. And the ideas how to embellish them kept just popping up in my head....

Art book

Just started a new book project together with Britta, Renate, Peggy and Ulla. This is something the internet makes possible: To work together with people you never met in person, but whose interests and style you know nevertheless.
The photos show the booklet I send on its way detailing my wishes for the book as well as letting the participating artists jot down their ideas and inspirations. Both this booklet and the art book itself will make a journey practically all over Germany - and will hopefully do so more than once since we intend to work in rounds.

Friendship cushions

These are the friendship cushions I received. Some are really elegant, others are funny (I love that cat!), and the felted ones are really, really cuddly. Each one has a sort of personality, don't you think so, too? My personal favorite is the one from Ulla, made from brocade and dotted with tiny golden pearls. Whow! This is the Louis XIV among the cushions.

Embellisher project

This is the first real project I did with my embellisher. So far I only experimented in order to find out what materials can be used - sometimes I think the question is rather what cannot be used! So far I only found out that paper is not so suitable since you see the resulting holes ;-)
In this piece (it is called "storm at sea") I used a piece of batting as background. Thereon I felted fabric, silk paper, scrim, sheers, rovings, Lutradur and several special yarns. At last I added cording and beads to make the shoreline more interesting.
What I like very much about this kind of work is the way you can leave the outer borders without finish. Somehow this adds to the organic look.

Links

I added some more links and made sure that those already there are working. Naturally I add links to blogs that I like because of what the artists have to say or to show. However from a legal point of view this "linking" can be harmful insofar as you can be made responsible for contents of blogs or websites you have linked to. I do not know if it is really enough to do so, but I entered the following text (only in German, since my English is not sufficient for real legal jargon) hoping that nobody will make me pay for links that are not kosher.
Wichtiger Hinweis zu allen Links auf meiner Internetseite: Mit Urteil vom 12. Mai 1998 hat das Landgericht Hamburg entschieden, dass man durch die Einbindung eines Links gegebenenfalls für die Inhalte der gelinkten Seite mit verantwortlich ist. Dies kann nur dadurch verhindert werden, dass man sich ausdrücklich von diesen Inhalten distanziert. Ich habe auf diesem Blog Links zu anderen Seiten im Internet. Ich möchte ausdrücklich betonen, dass ich keinerlei Einfluss auf die Gestaltung und die Inhalte der gelinkten Seiten habe. Deshalb distanziere ich mich ausdrücklich von allen Inhalten aller gelinkten Seiten auf meinem Blog und machen mir deren Inhalte nicht zu Eigen. Diese Erklärung gilt für alle auf meinem Blog eingebundenen Links.
Schutzrechtsverletzung: Falls Sie vermuten, dass von dieser Internetpräsentation aus eines Ihrer Schutzrechte verletzt wird, teilen Sie mir das bitte umgehend per E-Mail mit, damit ich zügig Abhilfe schaffen kann.

Discussion on art

There is always an discussion on art in the one or other list. If you really want a true insight into what art is, you just have to watch this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDo_vs3Aip4

Hearts

 
 
These are the first of (I think it was) 10 hearts I am going to make for another swap with the art4card list. Once again I did vintage style, but only because there were several pieces of fabric with roses left from the friendship cushion set. The next hearts will definitely be something other. I think of trying out something with the embellisher and perhaps of sewing some from linen and then stitch them. You will be kept informed.