Lil Ms. Stars in Her Eyes

I finally get to share the entire doll! This is the Dotee Swap doll I made for my partner Kathy in Michigan. Isn't it a scream that we made purple dolls for each other?

I miss writing to my blog. It is my final day of temporary admin support for a busy lawyer in Fairbanks Ranch. Beginning next week I will have two jobs outside of home (instead of three), and can get back to work on inventory for shows, YIPPEE! I miss my life too. Thank you for hanging in there with me.

Who's Matt?

I have no idea, but his video is happy, fun and clever, and I'm all for sharing what makes me smile! Maybe everyone else has seen this -- I might be the last to know. Anyway, click to play, then read more about him on his website.

Ms. Verbena

I'd like to introduce Ms. Verbena, the Dotee Doll that my swap-partner sent to me who now resides just above my sewing machine. She's LOVELY! Her eyes are in my favorite pose (nap-like) and she has a loving heart-shaped mouth. I wasn't able to photograph her successfully, but the color is primarily eggplant, with other rich brights, esp in her hair. The funny thing about this swap was that Kathy generously asked what my favorite colors are. I wanted something of Kathy and left her to choose -- it was as if she read my mind! Kathy used embroidery and beadwork, and I really like the charms Ms. Verbena is sprinkled with. See the green vine trim? I like! Thank you, Kathy. It's been a pleasure and I will treasure her. See Kathy's work on her blog (which I check regularly).

This is a test pocket for catnip quilts. The cat-color is based on our boy Magellan, even tho he doesn't have lavender eyes or a red nose, heehee!

Postcard's Done

My fabric postcard is finished and I'm satisfied I did a good job. I like the spray glitter on the roses. It adds just a little oomph which, in this case, is exactly enough.

Rust, rose, green and blue was inspired by a Cloth Paper Scissors magazine cover. The silk ribbon was hand dyed, wow, just beautiful stuff.

Stitch Fix

I really shouldn't be up until 2a, but I needed a stitch-fix and, anyway it's not a 'school night.' I reworked the message by writing on antiqued canvas. One more stitch-session and I hope to have it completed.

Mommy's Little Helper

This is the help I get. Coppélia provides the kind of company I enjoy: quiet, unconditional love and an appreciation for my handiwork. This was my first attempt at couching threads. Now I can see my stitches are loose -- as my basket teacher would remind me, "It's made by hand." The fabric I wrote on is a kimono scrap. Makes it hard to toss even the little bits when everything can be used.

Maybe you've noticed my preference for white flowers. My new boss cut this from his colorful garden for me. The huge blossom is slightly past its prime, but it's still lovely.

Fabric Postcard (to be)

ATCs, inchies, fabric postcards, I gotta try them all. The 4.5"x6" fabric choice was inspired by the name Nicole Kidman chose for her baby, 'Sunday Rose' -- I love it. Some years ago a co-worker aptly named his little red-haired girl 'Briar Rose,' another unforgettable name. (Please, Lauren, get back on point.) The coordinating fabric with small roses was adhered to WonderUnder. I see adding beads, ribbon and embroidery floss, maybe even a tiny kimono flower too. It's handy to have lots of pre-drawn doll faces handy. At some point I'll have to draw more.

Cranking Quilts

Eight more little quilt tops have been finished. These fat stripes were purposely cut on a slight diagonal.

These flannels remind me of my friend Fong. Purple irises are her favorite flower.

Magellan and Coppélia, our cats, see the sewing activity and ask, "But Mom, what about US??" A sorry little quilt from the leftovers for my furry friends and an example of "the cobbler's children have no shoes..." Hopefully, cats are blind to poor design. I won't share their other quilts here; they're all pretty bad.

Cultural Ghosts

Hiromi said something really important to me, "...being an artist is your main career!" You know, I never thought of it that way, or maybe I never allowed myself that attitude. For one thing, it doesn't pay the bills (yet). Also, we Asian Americans are told to strive for careers as doctors, lawyers or engineers, none of which I fancied. Many years ago I realized what my sister was earning and it became clear that if I were going to provide admin support, that I should follow Janine's lead and work for lawyers. Anal responsibilities appealed to the organizer/perfectionist in me. Still, it's as if being an artisan is not valid, so I continue doing legal work. It's a struggle.

I cranked out small quilts. The square ones are approximately 16"x16". I've had some of these fabrics for 10+ years - time to stitch 'em up! More to come in the days ahead. The sewing room floor is piled with fabrics which will become quilts.

Dotee Swap Doll

I finished the Dotee Doll for the stitchin'fingers swap. Heehee, I'm pretty excited -- I like the way she came out. I can't show you the entire doll just yet. It's only fair that my swap partner sees her first, but here is a peek.

Stitch So Good

Since stitching hasn't been in my schedule, I've been feeling cranky. I also miss posting to my blog.

As soon as I could begin again, I started this doll. More on her when she's done. As you can see, I love to work with purple.

Our epiphyllum bloomed. There is only one blossom this time but I feel the need to share, even though the flower looks exactly the same as in September. This is the inside and the outside. What a fantastic flower it is. The tube of seed beads is there for scale.

I am kicking myself for accepting a two week temp job (see first paragraph) which requires 3 full days a week. Being a temp is not easy: I must learn processes specific to this office (although the rest is a cinch) -- no fun because, as a perfectionist I'm hard on myself. The long days will kill me (a little drama here). With six shows till year end, I'll buckle down and work diligently. The benefit is I'm supporting a quality lawyer.

Love My New Dress

This dress was so simple to make but I can't get over the results. No doubt it was time consumming to make all those little flowers, but it was just the right thing to do, giving even more texture to the already textured cloth.

The next series of dolls won't start until Catnip Quilts are sewn, but OH BOY, did I find inspiration: John Galliano is a genius. Every dress inspired me. It's worth clicking through all 45 images. Note the hair and eyebrows. Can you just see a doll like one of these?

I started my new part-time job today (now I have two permanent PT jobs, three if you count art work). I support someone who provides expert witness services. Besides managing the office, I also transcribe depositions, which are interesting. I am finally in an area of law where human beings take center stage, rather than the operations of corporate entities. The office is one block from the beach in Del Mar, a converted bait shop. After work I might go wiggle my toes in the sand.

Pretty Yoruba

She's done, she's really beautiful and she is my new favorite. Looking straight on at her face, her avant-garde hair is not visible. My hair inspiration is shown here too, although I don't know who the photographer was.

The photo was taken from my new favorite community blog. I love fashion photography as an art form. Texas-pal M2 turned me onto this.

In case there's any wonder about how the doll's hair was done, I built a cone, sewed it to her head, covered the form with yarn, then sprinkled the hair with stars I made from seed beads. Yes, this doll was difficult to photograph. The color and the angles came out wonky, but you get the idea, right?

Inspired Cobbling

Cool little gladiator sandals, right? They were the inspiration for this doll's footwear. Can you see how I got to this? I like my pair better -- there are stars on the doll's tip toes.

Dotee Doll #1

This is a birth prez for Masami. It's my first try from these instructions for a Dotee Doll. She turned out to be 8" tall. A new and fun embellishment was fabric glitter spray from a pump bottle. The gold glitter is very, very fine, so fine that even when the image is enlarged, it can't be seen. Now I want to try all seven colors. Stay tuned for another Dotee Doll in a couple of weeks.

Gosh, can you believe June is ending already? My next show is in mid-August.

Stuck in the 80s

Colors become outdated, just like everything else, and time often passes without notice. Going through my store of embroidery floss, the hues are strong but out of favor. I'm still attracted to colors I loved during the days of shoulder pads and leg warmers. To me, "old lady-ish" is created with former trends -- by my own definition I'm an Old Lady. While there isn't anything wrong with this, it can inadvertently place my output in a certain time period. Here is where borrowing from ads in current fashion magazines have a usefulness. I can tear out an inspiring page and match the colors. Final thought: selecting new embroidery floss is an inexpensive way to update my stash. How can I resist at 29 cents per skein? It satisfies the need to shop.

I seem to have committed myself to FOUR jobs: (1) artisan, (2) corporate office administrator, (3) secretary/admin and (4) temporary personal admin. Note that these titles are at separate entities -- not four hats worn in one organization. My creative output will likely be stifled for the next three weeks until the temporary job ends.