Craftside

Beautiful Dolls- Both living and handcrafted

Creative Cloth Explorations

Adventures with Fairy-Inspired Fiber Art

By

Patti Medaris Culea

Available this fall!

This book is the fifth installment on making creative cloth fiber arts from popular art doll designer, fiber artist, and workshop instructor Patti Culea, following Creative Cloth Doll Making, Creative Cloth Doll Faces, Creative Cloth Doll Couture, and Creative Cloth Doll Beading. Readers will learn to make flat figures, fabric books, and a fairy-style fan.

This book builds on the previous four by delving into how to make fun and elaborate-looking projects using similar materials for unique projects and book structures. Culea covers the basics and provides new techniques–such as using Shiva paint sticks and stencils, working with silk rods and waste, and using lace and trims–while teaching you to how create a flat-figure doll, a memory journal with embellished cloth pages, and a beautiful fan. Professional tips, ideas for embellishments, cutting-edge techniques, and complete patterns for all the projects are included.

Patti Medaris Culea studied art in Los Angeles and Japan and began as a painter and portrait artist. She has a full-line of cloth doll patterns and her work has appeared in books, magazines, and galleries. She is the author of Creative Cloth Doll Making, Creative Cloth Doll Faces, Creative Cloth Doll Couture , and Creative Cloth Doll Beading.

Another bit of news to come:

Mary Ann Hall and Barbara Willis 

Barbara Willis’s new book is Cloth Doll Artistry: Design and Costuming Techniques for Flat and Fully Sculpted Figures

Available next spring!

Readers will learn to design by creating color boards using fabric swatches and trims, they will create a flat doll starting with a 2D image for the bodice, and then dress her with a lovely skirt and embellishments, they will create a basic cloth doll, and then finally create an elaborate doll sculpted face. Barbara has created lovely projects—her dolls have old world sophistication, a fresh Victorian lovliness—and a dash of whimsy.

Pop on over to Barbra's website to get a taste of her magic.

These pictures are thanks to Mary Ann Hall, Executive Editor, Aquisitions, Rockport Publishers/Quarry Books, Quayside Publishing Group.

Patti Culea and of course a beautiful doll! 

On Friday, May 16th, Mary Ann drove out to the lovely Aurora Inn, where the Doll Gatherers Doll Club held their annual workshop event. She is always happy to see the lovely smile of one of our favorite Quarry authors Patti Medaris Culea.

And Mary Ann got to meet in person for the first time, Barbara Willis, who she recently has been working with on her exciting new book due out next Spring—both Patti and Barbara were teaching at the event, along with great doll maker Elinor Peace Bailey and Karen Shifton, who makes some extremely charming frogs, among other things.  

Left to right in this group of living dolls is Mary Ann Hall, Patti Culea, Barbara Willis, and Li Hertzi.

This is a group photo of the instructor’s dolls (displayed cleverly with flower-foam cake) that were being taught at the event.

This doll is by Barbara Willis. What a beauty!

Mary Ann said, "I loved seeing all the beautiful, diverse, and interesting work by the club members that were on display. Lots of talent here in the Midwest."

 

She also convinced Art Doll Adventures author, Li Hertzi (also known as “her new best friend”) to meet her there. Li has recently moved from Southern CA to North Canton OH, where her folks reside, and she knows these all these fellow artists well. While Patti and Barbara were fairly tied up visiting with their students and manning their tables, Li and Mary Ann got to cozy up to the bar with their tea and discover other appreciations that they share (old punk rock, older bluegrass, even older swing, Dortmunder Gold, botanical illustration...the list goes on).

Mary Ann said, "Li is a real talent, and a joy to know."

I hope you have enjoyed seeing a bit inside the Doll Gatherers Doll Club annual workshop event and a sneak peek at two new titles coming from Quayside Publishing Group. Click here to see more upcoming titles on other subjects!

To see a couple of fun Dolls from inside Art Doll Adventures and Creative Cloth Doll Couture click here.

Making Designer Mixed-Media and Memory Jewelry

Making Designer Mixed-Media and Memory Jewelry
Fun and Experimental Techniques and Materials for the Home Studio

By

Tammy Powley

Using beads and other materials to make unique jewelry

Boutiques and department stores are filled with jewelry featuring charms, photos, fibers, shells, recycled materials, and other exciting embellishments. This book teaches home crafters new tricks and techniques to expand the styles of fashion jewelry they create with beads and other materials. Compiled by Tammy Powley, the book includes the work of many exciting jewelry artists who are breaking new ground using mixed media materials and techniques in their work, along with step-by-step instructions.

Tammy Powley is a writer and jewelry maker. She writes about arts and crafts in books and articles for print and digital media, and is the host of About.com's jewelry-making site. Tammy sells her work primarily through galleries and commissions. Tammy lives in Port St. Lucey, FL

Read a great interview with her over at CraftGossip

This was my absolute favorite piece in the book. I think the flat bead was an excelent choice to alter.

(Click on images to enlarge)

I love squares and so off to the stash I went after seeing the "gem' of a necklace!

I found these clear square beads that had a nice simple modern look to them. Then I had to put my thinkin' cap on how I was going to turn this into an "Altered Art Piece"

Well, this is the necklace I made.

I'm calling it, "Round Bunny on a Square Bead"

I double-dog-dare you to figure out what I did and what I used to alter this bead. Leave a guess by July 9th in the comments. All entries will be considered for a random drawing to

win a copy of Making Designer Mixed-Media and Memory Jewelry

by my fellow crafty blogger, the fabulous Tammy Powley.

And if you're into winning books about jewelry making check out June 12th's post:

Whoo-hoo Wing Nuts-NEW!- Making Designer Jewelry with Hardware, Gems, and Beads

http://craftside.typepad.com/craftside/2008/06/whoo-hoo-wing-n.html

There is a chance to win a copy of:

Making Designer Jewelry from Hardware, Beads, and Gems

by

Nicole Noelle Sherman

Crochet Kid Stuff- Hacky Sacks

Kid's are so much fun to make things for and this book is packed full of great projects for them!

Crochet Kid Stuff:
20 easy crochet projects for girl and boy apparel and accessories
By
Sharon Mann and Phyllis Sandford

Crochet is cool in elementary school. The kids love the beanies, the retro sweaters, the chunky scarves, the backpack dangles. Moms, grandmothers, and aunts are furiously crocheting for this age group, but they're having trouble finding current patterns, especially for boys.

Here are the quick, colorful, fun projects they're looking for. While there are more and more books of hip knitting and crochet for women, this book offers a unique collection of crochet patterns for this special underserved age group.

Girls will love the cute hats, sweaters, mini-bags, and hair flair; boys will actually wear the hoody, rugged sweater, skateboarder beanie, and fingerless gloves; and everybody will show off backpack danglies, pencil buddies, and hacky sacks.

All the projects featured use the latest yarns, including popular and fun super-soft and very textural yarns in bright in energetic colors. Patterns, with simple stitches, mostly single and double crochet, provide three levels of sizing and classic styles perfect for this age range. Each project includes creative touches that kids will love.

Sharon Mann's designs have been published in several knitting and crochet books, Bead Unique magazine and Clotilde's Sewing Savvy. Sharon has a B.A. degree in Art from California State University, Northridge. She lives in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Phyllis Sandford, a freelance designer and author, owns Totally Tole and teaches classes in her studio. Her designs have been featured in Crafts, Crafts'n Things, Quick and Easy Crafts, Kalmbach Publishing, and Create and Decorate. She has done project sheets for Delta Technical Coatings, Inc., Plaid, and Beacon Adhesives. Phyllis lives in Beacon, New York.

Other Books of Interest:
Ready, Set, Crochet
BabyKnits Hats & Booties
Hooked Throws
Hooked for Toddlers

(click on image to enlarge)

So not only can you be creative and give a kid a gift- you are encouraging exercise and fun! What a great combo. You might even get in on the hacky sack action!

Sewing Some Jean Therapy- A Recycled Denim Bird Pillow

Today I bring you another fun project inspired by the

DOMESTIC ARTS FOR CRAFTY GIRLS SERIES:

Jean Therapy
Denim Deconstruction for the Conscientious Crafter
By
Scatha G. Allison with Marla Stefanelli
(Foreword by Wendy Tremayne, creator of Swap-O-Rama-Rama)

I've been making a lot of stuff from Jean Therapy and I have a fun project today to share with you that uses one of the full size patterns included in the book and one I made included here.

This bird pattern comes with a big swoopy wing and I needed a little one to fit on my pillow. So I sketched a smaller wing and made a pattern.

(Click on pattern to enlarge.)

It took me quite some time to decide exactly where to place the bird body pattern. There were so many choices on this cool black and white toile fabric.

I then laid out my two bird pieces onto an old denim skirt and squared up the denim.

I top stitched the bird body onto the denim and then the wing. I then sewed three sides of the denim square together with right sides facing. Then turned it right side out, popped the pillow in and whip stitched up the fourth side.

Now lean back on your cushie new pillow and read this excerpt from Jean Therapy. I really agree with what Wendy has to say!

Foreword by Wendy Tremayne, creator of Swap-O-Rama-Rama

"I was intrigued to learn that the title of this book included the word therapy. While our generation has inherited thousands of years of innovation at seemingly little cost, we have also lost a few precious things along the way, namely our birthright as "makers". Creativity is not only a form of therapy, it is the joy of life and the essence of being human. So often we find ourselves pawning off creativity. We buy objects that others have mass-produced, which creates an illusion of leisure time. But what then do we do with this leisure time? Most often it is spent shopping, consuming, and watching TV. Our minds' creative capacity is switched off and this dull, numbing version of reality asks little more from us than to select what pleases us. We choose TV channels, clothing, colors, and items to adorn our world--how as consumers we express our uniqueness.

One hundred years ago, streets were not lined with trash, and landfills were virtually nonexistent. We had less waste because the objects in our lives were imbued with meaning. Many goods were still handmade by people we knew, and these objects told our stories and the stories of our community. Mass-production was then still a relatively new concept. Today the objects that surround us are created by machines as well as by unfair labor practices and misuses of raw materials. Rolling down the factory conveyor belts wrapped in plastic, these goods land on stale shelves in large box buildings, and as quickly as they are purchased are kicked to the curb. It is no wonder they can fill our homes, but not our hearts!

Jean Therapy invites the reader to become reacquainted with a part of life that is essential to our happiness--creativity. Once we become "makers" we begin to unravel the magic inherent in the making of things. The maker learns that every idea and all materials are the results of generations of innovation and an abundant planet. We link to a sacred chain through which the knowledge of past generations arrives at our own doorsteps. Time compresses as we glimpse the faces of those who have lovingly passed this creativity to us. As we discover our materials we also move closer to their source, the Earth. This intimate view enables us to see what is provided for us and at what cost. In this way, the maker is the inheritor of something of genuine worth--responsibility--which is absent in an over-commodified culture.

Today the very idea of what it is to be human is in question. We ask ourselves, "Are we limited and mechanistic or are we unbounded and creative? Are we consumers or creators?" At a time when culture is driven by capital, and the sacred is scarcely found, our generation is set to the task of revivifying the human adventure--something that can be done through the creation of objects.

We have access to the greatest material surplus the earth has ever known. We may use this surplus to create without consuming raw materials. Artists and makers, including our author Scatha Allison, lead this creative revolution. While they demonstrate how to transform the old into the new, they reconnect us with what has been lost: a connection to nature, our creativity, knowledge, community, and responsibility.

Now is the time to scream with full lungs, "We are not limited and mechanistic, we are unbounded and creative—we are creators!" As you flip through the pages of this book and journey into the world of creative reuse, remember that your "therapy" is the most precious gift that has ever been offered. Enjoy!"

—Wendy Tremayne

(Wendy Tremayne is the creator of Swap-O-Rama-Rama, an international community clothing swap and series of DIY workshops designed to offer people an alternative to consumerism. She is a regular columnist in Craft magazine. She currently lives in Truth or Consequences, New Mexico, where she is building an off-grid hotel and cultural center made out of reuse. She is a conceptual artist, event producer, and yoga teacher. http://gaiatreehouse.com )

And if you're in the LA Area there is a Swap-o-rama rama on June 28th

If you need to see more denim recycling and upcycling Click on Scatha G. Allison below or in the right column!

And and in other crafty goodness, It's Monday and that means I have crafty links to bring you!

Aileen's Musings
View Aileen's Textured Deli Wrap Journal Tutorial

Crafty Princess Diaries
Thinking of submitting your craft designs to magazines? Do your homework first! Here is lesson 2 on getting your crafts published.

Cross Stitch at About.com
Stitch a Hopeful Quote from Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time.

Polymer Clay @ Craftgossip.com
Bangles, cuffs and dangles - it's a plethora of polymer clay bracelets!

Stefanie Girard's Sweater Surgery
Check out another vintage Craft that repurposes old labels and buttons into something with a purpose

The Impatient Blogger
Join The Impatient Crafter™ Margot Potter in this fun filled video lesson where she shows you how to make inked and collaged pendants. Oo la la!