Traditions

Big Day...

2012-05-16T11:01:00.002-06:00

Today is a BIG day for us.

We're going to sign a lease for this building:

It's an old building that is listed as an historical building in

Larimer County.

This will be the new home of Traditions, Ltd.,

Jerry's shop for doing what he loves best.

He'll be creating custom and one of a kind furniture,

built-ins, display and reproduction pieces, studio design and

whatever else his customers can dream up. If it's made of wood he

can build it. He's been without a workshop for over two years.

He's so creative and passionate about what he does

that he deserves to be able to follow his dreams.

Especially since I've taken over

half the house.

aka the dining room:

spare bedroom:

He's been an integral part of my dreams for years and my daily

encouragement to pursue those dreams of being a mixed

media artist and if I needed something, he just built it.

storage for my buttons:

And so a new adventure beings.

Hugs,

Kathleen

p.s. A new website will be coming this summer.

You can reach Jerry at 970-397-7859 if

you have any woodworking dreams that

you need interpreted.

Something Different...

2012-04-07T09:22:00.000-06:00

Bottle of Truth

I'm participating in an artful round robin swap through

Timeless Creations in Ft. Collins.

The rules are simple. Each participating artist (there are

14 of us) was to create a box in her chosen theme and the boxes would then

circulate, round robin style, and each artist would then

create a piece of art in her chosen medium that would reflect

the theme of the box. The first box I received was created

by my friend Kelly with the theme being

"Aunt Tilly's Tinctures, Tonics and Tiny Things Tasty."

I used a very, very old bottle, decoupaged the outside with some

fabulous tissue, hand dyed and painted the lace bits. Added some beads,

bling and velvet ribbon along with a vintage knob for the top.

The little scroll holds the following poem that inspired me:

Truth will ever Soothe

Truth will never die

It is patiently waiting

to come out one day

to be seen by all of us.

It may now lose a deal,

but it is calculating

to strike at the right time.

Its power, none can fathom.

When truth is spoken,

there Angels surround

and bless the soul

that fights for truth.

Truth will at last triumph.

It seems it has now lost,

but that is an illusion.

Truth will one day win.

So speak the truth always.

Uttering lie invites disgrace.

Whenever truth is suppressed

it, at the right time, erupts.

Mailrangam Visvanathan Venkataraman

A view of the back:

It doesn't really look this bright in real life, but the morning sun

(yay morning sun!) brightened it right up for the photo.

I hope my little artful piece will inspire you to

"Speak the truth always."

Hugs,

Kathleen

Remembering...

2012-01-19T09:37:00.000-07:00

It was a tough weekend.

My youngest sister passed away a year ago

and

I wanted to DO something, anything, that would honor

her.

I decided to create an art piece using a piece of her jewelry as a focal

point.

She loved all things vintage, especially art deco, so I started out with this:

a piece of 3 3/4 x 5 inch plastic and a 5 x 7 canvas.

I transformed the plastic into this:

using alcohol inks, crackle medium and distress inks.

I then applied it to the canvas and built up the layers with

molding paste, acrylic paints, glaze and embellishments. The

flower was die cut from fabric paper I made using Beryl Taylor's

techniques.

I love how it turned out and she would have, too.

Hugs,

Kathleen

A new beginning

2012-01-07T09:02:00.000-07:00

A New Year...

always means new beginnings to me.

A time to start fresh.

A fresh start for all those things unfinished and

all those things I've been 'meaning' to do.

Reviving my blog is the first step in that 'fresh start.'

This is my first little art piece for the new year.

I must take baby steps.

Hugs to you all...

$5.00 Fabric Storage

2011-08-21T19:20:00.000-06:00

     It's been a couple of months since I've blogged due to cataract surgery and I'm really anxious to get going again. My left eye still doesn't see as well as my right eye and I will still need glasses for distance. Distance being anything beyond three feet away. My surgeon wants to give my left eye some more time before getting new glasses. That being said, now that my left eye has been done, I can see the computer, sew, do needlework and read clearly. However, I just couldn't wait to share my new fabric storage piece, or, I should say, pieces. I just had to wing it on the photography since I couldn't bring the camera into focus.

     The bottom piece was solid maple and came complete with the little brass label holders. Hubby added the bun feet. This piece was free!

     The top piece was painted a dark brown and cost $5.00 at Goodwill (it was broken). Hubby sanded it back and added fluted molding to the bottom and then painted both pieces Navajo White (my very favorite white).

     I have very limited space so this allowed me to bring in some of my favorite fabrics from the storage cabinets in the garage.

I think it's just perfect!

A Gorgeous Giveaway

2011-06-27T12:05:00.000-06:00

There is a beautiful giveaway over at Lilly's Lace. This is a girl after my own heart!

Art Night at Studio Vino

2011-06-10T11:22:00.004-06:00

First and foremost, let me just say I am not a painter. I use paints in mixed media, collage and textile art, but I can't draw so this was going to be a challenge for me.

My friend Dee invited me to attend an evening at Studio Vino in Loveland.

Studio Vino is a "you paint it" type of entertainment. And it IS entertaining. It's led by an "Artertainer" that changes depending on the artwork. It's geared to all levels of artists, even beginners. You're taken step by step through the process to produce a finished piece of art.

Music, appetizers, a free glass of wine, all your supplies and a getting-to-know-you time before getting to work.

Then we were given our palette of paint, the colors of which were completely outside my comfort zone. PRIMARY COLORS!?! What in the world am I going to do with those?

This is the original piece:

And this is my feeble attempt at replication:

Despite my earlier apprehension, I ended up having a great time!

Hugs to you all,

Kathleen

Inspiration Kits

2011-06-03T16:32:00.006-06:00

Something else I've been busy with lately is

putting together what I call, "Inspiration Kits."

They will soon be in my Etsy shop.

One of the questions I'm asked most often, is

"What do I do with this?"

The short answer is, "whatever you want."

The long answer is, they can be used in textile collage,

altered books, mixed media art, journal pages,

ATCs....etc.

They are a mix of fabric, tags, buttons, beads, ribbons,

trim, flowers, fibers, threads, a little bit of bling,

and ephemera.

Not all of these elements are in every kit and

each kit is different.

I've used one of my favorite kits (pictured above)

in this short tutorial.

This kit contains four different fabrics, one

of which is a piece of chiffon.

I chose an image to transfer onto the

chiffon using TAP (Transfer Artist Paper)

I LOVE this product.

It's the brain child of Lesley Riley.

http://www.lesleyriley.com/

You can check out her website for more information on how to

use this product.

I then took some of the lace included in the kit

and stitched it along the sides of the image.

I then found a couple of pieces of

companion fabrics from my stash

(which is quite extensive, I admit).

I stitched those two layers together

and then stitched the velvet piece

from the kit on top of that

and then the image

on top of that.

Then the fun began.

Using elements from the kit and

extra elements that I had on hand, I

embellished the piece.

Not all elements from the kit were used in

this piece. You can use all

of the kit or just part of it. The creativity comes

from you.

I just provide the inspiration.

Have a creative day,

Kathleen

p.s. I'm having a giveaway on my facebook page. If you "like" my page, I will be giving away one of my kits when I reach 50 'likes.' You can find the link to my facebook page here.

Alecia's Bracelet

2011-05-26T08:14:00.002-06:00

Yesterday was my beautiful

daughter-in-law's birthday and

as promised,

Here are pictures of the piece

I created just for her.

This is a unique and beautiful piece

that matches my

daughter-in-law perfectly.

It's one of a kind and will never be

duplicated.

It's 2 1/2 inches wide,

designed on a vintage muted satin

with vintage lace and

embellished using all black glass

buttons and beads.

Hugs to all,

Kathleen

Tea on Tuesday

2011-05-24T09:41:00.004-06:00

Today is my very first post for

Tea on Tuesday

Kimmie at Art in Red Wagons

is the organizer of Tea on Tuesday so

make sure you stop by and

visit her.

It's a gloomy, overcast Tuesday in

Colorado

so I thought it called for a hearty

English Breakfast Tea

It's just what I need to finish

projects in my studio.

I have a gorgeous

bracelet to finish for my lovely

daughter-in-law.

A gift for her birthday.

I'd show you, but it's a surprise.

I'll post after tomorrow.

So for now, enjoy your cup of tea and

I will see you next Tuesday for Tea.

Kathleen

Mother's Day

2011-05-09T13:55:00.002-06:00

I had a beautiful Mother's Day.

The weather was absolutely gorgeous,

so we decided to go to one of my favorite cities in Colorado,

Boulder.

Pearl Street is unlike any other street so

I thought I would invite you to come along.

Walking out of the parking garage, we were

greeted by this gentleman on the back of

someone's shop.

Walking down Pearl Street there were flowers everywhere!

I did discover though, that one of my favorite stores

is closing its doors, Paper Doll. This little lady has been

outside their door for many years.

I sure hope someone buys her

and a few of her friends.

More flowers.

I found a couple of new favorite places.

This shop was an absolute visual delight:

And still more flowers:

A beautiful shop filled with chandeliers from Europe:

Finally, no post about Boulder would be complete without

a few photos of the entertainment:

Everywhere I looked, I couldn't help but smile.

Thanks for coming along with me.

Etsy shop

2011-05-03T11:52:00.001-06:00

I have finally started my

Etsy shop.

Traditions 1949

The 1949 of course is the

year I was born.

As I've said before, I love

the 20s, 30s and 40s.

And I LOVE

Tradition.

My goal is to keep the tradition

of hand sewing and vintage

things alive.

I absolutely adore

buttons,

beads,

ribbons,

textiles

and

trims.

This is my first piece that I have

listed and there will be lots

more to come.

I just had to share my

success at getting

an item listed.

It seems the older I

get the broader the learning

curve becomes.

Operation Rescrap

2011-04-26T11:05:00.000-06:00

We did a show this past weekend called

"Operation Rescrap"

It was the first of what I hope will be many more shows.

This beautiful display that greeted you as you entered the show

was created by the very talented ladies at

"Cozy Cottage" at Centerra and Flatirons

Our booth

We were very well received and I was very encouraged.

The show was a unique combination of consignment, craft, furniture and

handmade items . I LOVE the concept.

A few more artisans:

We had a great time and have plans to this show again

and hopefully many others. It's the perfect time in our lives to do this and

my husband Jerry is, hands down, the best person to

do a show with. I couldn't and wouldn't want to, do it by myself.

So thank you honey, for being the best part of me.

"Pink"

2011-04-08T12:13:00.000-06:00

"I love the color pink.

The softest blush of pink,

baby girl pink

bubblegum pink of the 1930s

hot pink of the 60s.

For me, pink represents calmness, sweetness, softness, whimsy,

all things girly and the persevering strength

of women."

These words are written on the inside cover of my altered book

titled "Pink" pictured above.

I collect things that are pink.

Inside the pink drawer of the button box:

And I have a thing for the 1930s and 40s. I was born in 1949

and somehow those eras became part of my heart

and soul.

Pink makes me feel pretty.

When I was about 12, I had a pair of pink ballet flats

that I wore until they fell off my feet.

I put cardboard on the inside when the holes in the

soles appeared and painted them with pink

shoe polish so the cracks in the leather

didn't show as badly.

I'm on a mission to find another pair.

One day my mother gave me a pink and black dress that she had

worn, I'm sure to play dress-up in, and to her horror

I wore it to the park wearing it with my pink ballet flats.

A boy I went to school with looked at me and said,

"Why are you wearing such an old-fashioned dress?"

I looked down at my dress and said

"Because it makes me feel pretty."

It still does.

The Magic Garden

2011-03-19T11:58:00.001-06:00

My Grandmother had a magic garden.

No, really.

It was filled with pansies, daisies,

Pink Lady Slippers, hollyhocks and

the most gorgeous apricot-colored climbing roses

you've ever seen.

It was the same garden my mother grew up in. Even though she

was more inclined to be swinging in the trees playing Tarzan

when she was a child,

it is here that she and my grandmother taught me to

make flower ladies.

Flower Ladies with big Pink Lady Slipper dresses and

hollyhock hats. And they could dance and dance

and dance.

My latest designs were inspired by "The Garden."

I spent hours and hours there in the shade

of a great big tree creating my

"magic" friends, wearing my

daisy chain crown that my mother taught me how to make.

I can't tell you how many daisy chains wilted

on my head in the warm California summer sun.

I created this design with a nod to my french grandmother

in whose garden I spent so many

enchanted hours.

Merci

Beading Bliss

2011-03-03T09:02:00.003-07:00

One of my favorite ways to create is to take a piece of ribbon and turn it into something even more beautiful. I'm inspired by the beautiful work of Helen Gibb, ribbon work designer extraordinaire!
This one has a base of vintage ribbon, silk trims, vintage button, glass leaves and lots and lots of beads.
In my next post I'll share my creative process.

Have a lovely, creative day.

In Memory of ....

2011-02-15T12:05:00.001-07:00

     Up until January 14, 2011, the worst day of my life was the day my mother died. And then I lost my youngest sister. Younger by 10 years. This just wasn't the way it was supposed to be.

     I've had a very difficult time wrapping my head around this, never mind my heart. It's hard for a heart to absorb things when there is a great big hole in it.

     Linn had a great capacity to love, trust and accept and you always knew where you stood with her. If you had problems, they were her problems. If you were hurt, she was hurt. She just had a great big heart.

     She knew more about music than anyone I've ever known. In fact, she was my 'phone a friend' should the need ever arise. She always knew who sang what and when and all the lyrics.

     And then there was ..."The Voice." An expressive and soulful voice that could bring me to tears. A lack of self-confidence and debilitating stage fright left the rest of the world unaware of that voice. We have a few recordings of her and I wanted to share one here, but I'm woefully inadequate when it comes to computer literacy. Maybe I will figure it out one day because I would love to share her with you.

     She was eclectic, colorful, fun, funny and "Auntie Mame" to my children. She would not want me to be so sad, but sometimes I just can't help myself.

Rest peacefully my sweet sister.

I love you

and

will miss you forever.

Cheers to the New Year

2011-01-10T12:38:00.000-07:00

I love that the new year always brings the promise of a better year. It gives me hope. I never make resolutions because I never keep them. BUT, I always have hope. Hope that I will take better care of myself, hope that people in general will be kinder, hope that I will find more creativity within. And I always make plans. Every year I plan to get started on my Christmas gifts early and plan to keep my blog current. Granted, those plans don't always come to fruition, but plans I have. I'm a list maker. I list my hopes, plans and creative ideas and refer to them quite often. Follow through is my downfall and so, to help with that, I'm going to attempt to keep a 'daily goals' list. If I don't complete a goal I will move it to tomorrow's 'daily goal' list. Eventually I should get tired of continually writing the same goal and actually get it accomplished. That's my hope anyway.

This year I'd like to start a little Etsy business assembling 'inspiration kits' focusing on textile collage. My passions have always been fabric, fibers, buttons, beads, ribbons and embellishments. And if they're vintage, even better. My hope is that these kits will be a source of inspiration.

My final hope for the new year is to see more kindness in the world. I try to be kind to other people, but I don't always succeed. I try to be kind to myself and that's an even bigger challenge. I think the power of kindness is underestimated, so this year I'm making an effort to be kinder, even if it's just a kind word.

That's my plan anyway.

Christmas Traditions

2010-12-15T20:36:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged in quite awhile so I decided to choose this time of the year to start my blog back up and commit to faithfully blogging in 2011, and beyond I hope.

Christmas has always been my favorite time of year. I shared on facebook recently how difficult the past nine Christmases have been. For those of you who aren't on facebook, my mother passed away at Christmas nine years ago and to say it's been tough would be an understatement. I realized today that one of the things that got me through the holidays was keeping our Christmas traditions, many of which were started when I was very young. My mother loved Christmas and my sisters and I shared that love with her. When she passed away we became caretakers of her Santas, snowmen and ornaments. These little guys are one of my favorites:

Mom bought these before I was even born, or shortly thereafter. Which, if you're trying to count, was over 60 years ago. They've held up quite well, don't you think? There are nine of them so the girls and I each have three, which in my mind represents the three of us. My sisters and I have a very strong bond and seeing these sitting on the mantle is a comforting reminder of that bond. They stay out all winter.

Unbeknownst to me, my sister Sam started collecting Christmas Tree pins and one year when Sam and Mom were visiting me, my mother decided that I, too, should become completely obsessed with collecting Christmas Tree pins. That probably wasn't her intent, but that was the outcome. Here's a small peek:

If I were to wear a different pin everyday I'd have to start in July. I think Sam has so many she'd have to start LAST New Year's Eve!

For the first time in nine years, Sam, Linn and I get to make new Christmas memories and traditions together. The time starts in two days. I'll be leaving Colorado and Linn will be leaving Alabama to join Sam in the California Sierras for our very own 12 Days of Christmas. And those cookies you see pictured above? Well, as Linn once said, "It's Tradition."

Hugs,
Kathleen

CHAIRity Auction

2009-09-26T08:34:00.000-06:00

I was recently asked to create a children's rocking chair for a rather unique auction to benefit Adoption: Advocacy and Alternatives. Their mission statement: To serve the needs of children, birth parents and adoptive parents with professional care, kindness and compassion. I was very honored to be asked to participate and this is my chair:

Pink is my favorite color so I knew from the beginning it would be pink. The rest took a while to come together. I had some great ideas but couldn't quite execute them so in the end I gave a nod to my French heritage:

The auction will be November 14th in Fort Collins at the Center for Fine Arts Photography and I understand the chairs will do a little traveling about town beforehand. If you would like to know more about the wonderful organization go to their website: www.adoptionaa.org.

Scary "60"

2009-09-06T10:11:00.000-06:00

I turned 60 last Friday. It seemed like such a scary number. Especially since I've had a couple of health scares the last couple of weeks so I felt as if I really was getting old. My day actually started the week before when my son Jason and his beautiful wife Alecia gave me these lovely flowers...

The big day was an absolutely gorgeous, perfect Colorado late summer day. And the flowers kept coming. These were sent by my wonderful "Circle." These are women I cannot live my life without. They are a group of caring, giving, loving, creative, artistic souls who make me a better person.
Then my youngest son, Scottie, arrived with these beauties and a sweater I had been coveting!

I spent most of the day with three beautiful art friends in my art studio. My friend Caterina blogged about the day and you can see the pictures here. I was gifted with wonderful artistic treasures to feed my artistic soul.

Cavallini and lace:

Botanical images:

A Botanical Book of Days:

And a gorgeous handmade journal full of watercolor pages:

That evening my very beautiful daughter Stacey and her boyfriend James took us out to dinner at Vesta Dipping Grill in Lodo. The food was absolutely incredible and has to be one of my very favorite places in Denver. Scottie surprised us with a bottle of champagne to toast the number "60. " My "other" daughter, Christianna was there and so was Monica, who is also "family." (See my earlier post about "family and friends"). I had so many emails, text messages, facebook posts and phone calls full of happy birthday wishes that it was truly overwhelming. I spent the day feeling loved and cherished for just being me.

60 isn't so scary after all.

The Ugly Duckling . . .

2009-08-22T18:49:00.001-06:00

A couple of months ago my husband stopped by a nearby garage sale late in the day and saw this unit. He knew I loved lots of drawers and even though it was painted an awful color with paint that had "texture" (aka sand) in it, he bought it thinking he would just sand down the texture and repaint. He paid $30 for it and when he got it home we took the drawers out and to our surprise it was solid walnut. My husband is a woodworker so he knows his wood. We decided to just strip the paint off and try and bring the walnut back to life. The upper unit drawers were turning out pretty cool.

But the biggest surprise came when Jerry discovered that the fronts of the drawers of the bottom unit, when the paint was stripped off, was just made of pine. He started looking very closely and realized he could just take off this extra piece and hopefully the wood underneath was still intact.

We were stunned with what was underneath. My $30 ugly duckling was about to become a beautiful swan.

Growth

2009-08-19T11:07:00.000-06:00

A few weeks ago I submitted a photography piece for consideration in a national juried art show in Estes Park and I promised my friends and family that I would post the entry when I heard whether I was accepted or not. So here it is:

I received the "thanks, but no thanks" email this morning and after indulging in a few moments of disappointment I realized just how far I've come. Entering this show was a HUGE step for me. I've always felt that putting myself out there was just setting myself up for rejection. And even though my piece was rejected, I was able to put it into perspective that it was, indeed, my piece that was rejected, not me. It doesn't take away from the fact that I love this picture. It was taken on our anniversary weekend last September in a small, teeny, tiny mountain town with this small, teeny, tiny junkyard. I'm still going to frame the picture and hang it in my house. This my friends, is growth.

Family or Friend...

2009-08-07T09:29:00.001-06:00

Definitions:

Family - a group of people related by ancestry or marriage.

Friend - One attached to another by affection or esteem.

The other day my husband was lamenting the fact that he had so many cousins he was having trouble remembering all their names and I was lamenting the fact that I had so few. And none my age. I have a LOT of in-laws, some I love dearly and some I . . . well, you know. I have a husband, four children and two younger sisters I love with all my heart, some extended family members and a smattering of "first cousins once removed," etc.

And then there is my 'other' family. My friends. Those caring, supportive, tell it like it is, here's a shoulder to cry on people who are so willing to share so much so often. I have been incredibly blessed by these friendships and I cannot imagine my life without them. I'm a very lucky woman.

Family and Friends. They may have different definitions, but to me they are one and the same.

Clotheslines

2009-08-02T11:55:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was possibly the most perfect Colorado summer day. The temperature was, for me, near perfection. It wasn't too hot and there was a delightful breeze. Even though the weather people tend to use the word 'breezy' rather loosely here in Colorado (most of the time it's downright windy!), it truly was what most people would define as breezy.

As I was sitting in my backyard I started contemplating my clothesline and decided to sketch it in my journal. You see, I view my clothesline as a work of art. It's made of wood and slightly weathered. I know there are a lot of people out there who think of clotheslines as just a lot of work or, at the very least, an eyesore. And they are entitled to their opinions just as I'm entitled to mine.

I started wondering what it is that my clothesline stirs in me. I grew up in a charming Craftsman bungalow in Northern California in the 1950s and 60s. You could hang all the laundry standing in one place! It had a pulley system from the back porch to the other side of the yard. Hanging out the laundry was one of my responsibilities and one I loved. There was such a sense of peace and calmness that enveloped me as I went through the repetition of clipping on each clothespin just right. Then there was the sense of satisfaction as I looked at all the clothes lined up moving gently in the breeze. Taking them down was even better. I took the time to fold each one as I put it in the basket. I still do. So you see, I could never live in a place where clotheslines are forbidden, because for me my clothesline is another of life's little pleasures.