Thanks For The Boost...

Only one design element left...I'm adding beaded "dangles" under the piece of dicroic glass at the bottom of the mandela. It will be a wall hanging - almost like a dream catcher - when it's finished.

I'd like to thank everyone who left such kind comments about this project. Also, thanks to everyone who offered to take it off my hands if I decided not to gift it to the original recipient. You gals are just the best! Just when a girl is losing a little self-confidence, you go ahead and dish out a super size helping of Confidence Booster! Thanks so much!

The recipient of this gift is a 20-something, single mom, and I think she's going to like having it as a new piece of decor to hang in her home. I've added a little sparkle within the colorwork, and then the major bling at the bottom. It's already quilted - in my signature doodle pattern from my younger days - and bound in a sage green batik. Lastly, I'll add the rings for hanging it. Another project will be completed today, and then I'll start on Grammie's Jammies!
These are the fabrics I've chosen for this year's Christmas Eve jammies for our grandchildren. I'm going to move right along on these. Three pairs of pajamas by the end of the week.

My sister leaves today to return to the frozen wilds of Minnesota. It's been great having her here to visit with us. She's been running around in shorts during our current cold snap (in the low 60s during the day and into the 40s at night). I shiver just looking at her. What a tourist! (lol)

H.E.L.P...

I spent more time working on my mandala yesterday. I'm having a great time with the technique, but I'm not sure about my execution. Perhaps you could give me a little feedback, please.
Should it be more uniform? Do I have to keep my colors inside the lines? What if it looks more primitive? Is that alright, or is it meant to be more "perfect"? Carol's pieces seem to be flawless. I did use a tone-on-tone fabric. Maybe I should have used a solid fabric instead. I'm second-guessing myself now. My Type A personality wants everything to be "just so", while my ability is so imperfect. How do you feel about this?
When I had completed the outline stitching on my machine (using Carol's specified #12 perle cotton), I forged ahead and did a few rows of echo stitching. I looked at it for a while, and then decided to stitch a doodle pattern that I used to draw for hours at a time onto paper when I was in high school.

So, do you think I should consider this my "practice" piece? Or, do you think the imperfect quality of this piece still merit "gift" status? H.E.L.P...

Don't feel that you'll hurt my feelings by being honest. Heck, if I send this to the intended recipient and she thinks a kindergartner did it, I'd just faint. I'd rather have you tell me I should use it for a dishcloth (if that's what you think), than to send out a mediocre effort.

The Fine Art Of Coloring With Crayons...

I'm a follower of Mamacjt blog. It is written by a talented artist named Carol, who lives in Wisconsin. I have enjoyed reading about her projects, and have been especially intrigued by one technique in particular...her fabric coloring with crayon process.

In search of more information, I read back a number of posts and found my way to her tutorial. It seemed to be a technique I would enjoy, so I assembled my supplies and set about trying my hand at it.
I needed freezer paper, fabric, a pencil and a box of crayons. Yes. You're right. I spent part of my day Sunday coloring!

I downloaded the designs - called mandalas - from another blog called eyepopart. Carol was kind enough to provide the link. (I'll add the links to Carol's blog and the mandala art at the end of this post.) Once I downloaded the free coloring pages, I could get started.
I followed Carol's instructions and began my project by taking a piece of fabric - I used a white cotton with a tone-on-tone design, cut 22" square - and placed it on my light table with one of the mandala designs taped underneath. It helps if you locate the center of the fabric first and mark it with a faint pencil dot. I then traced the design onto the fabric.

Once the design was traced, I ironed the fabric to a piece of freezer paper (waxy side against the wrong side of the fabric). It provides a measure of stability for the fabric during the coloring process. When I had finished coloring the design onto the fabric, the freezer paper easily peeled away from the cotton without leaving any residue.

I have more to do before this project will be complete, but the first image in today's post is as much as I've done so far. I'll share my project as I work my way through the tutorial.

If you'd like to try your hand at this, you can read the full tutorial at Carol's blog. Click here to read more. Click here for the link to the coloring pages on eyepopart's blog. (You'll need to scroll down the right sidebar to find the download link.)

One thing that Carol mentioned - and it's important - is to keep your crayons sharp. For a person who usually colors outside the lines, I needed to control my urges! Sharper crayons would have made it easier. I'm not sure how much I'll love my very first effort (it's a bit messy), but I can assure you that I'll be making a second and third, or more. A woman could feel like a girl again, losing herself in the fine art of coloring with crayons.