Rooted in Mississippi

Vee asked for more information on LightScribe. It is a an HP technology that uses the laser that reads/writes CDs and DVDs, can burn an image into special media, creating a custom label by etching it with a laser. It requires a special CD/DVD burner and a special media, but the cost is actually less than custom printing your own CD labels. And as pretty as those labels can be, they are BAD for your player and can cause jams. To see a video, check out the HP site.

I am not doing very well on my reading deprivation from the Artist’s Way. I have read email and blogs. I have not read any books, but I did read the rules for my Master Craftsman program. I have been very good about writing my morning pages, but I have missed a few days. Ironic that I wrote about synchronicity just before the chapter that asks if you have experienced it.

I did try TV deprivation, when I was home during the day, which I find much more effective. I am getting better at turning off the TV. I mean, how many episodes of Matlock can I watch? How many Sci-Fi mini-marathons? Apparently a hell of a lot.

I am heading up to Northeast Alabama for the EGA Tennessee Valley Region business meeting. I have packed a mish-mash of things into my bags, so I can knit or stitch in my spare time. I also packed a small sketch book and my pencils. I have had a lot of stuff bubbling up since I got the inspiration last week. I hope I can ride this wave long enough to complete the Master Craftsman step, so that I can submit it.

I also decided I need to start submitting work more often for competitions. I just have to push aside that fear of failure and start sending things in to be judged.

Comments(2)

Okay, there is an upside to being home sick. I finished this design and I am actually pleased with it. I also made a search of the upstairs to find the stuff about the Master Craftsman Program in Surface Embroidery. Okay I have moved and been through Hurricane Katrina since I enrolled, but it is time to stop making excuses! I need to get my act together and work on the program, especially since the step is silk ribbon.

Comments(5)

Today at lunch I pulled out a light weight denim vest and some 7 MM ribbon and I did this:

I plan to add some more SRE to the bottom right of the vest, but I have been allergy girl today! My head is pounding and my sinuses are going nuts. Despite that, I managed to get upstairs and use my husband’s LightScribe CD/DVD burner to laser etch an image into a CD-ROM. It was so cool. Okay, I am a serious geek. All hail Rissa, Queen of Geeks! The hardest part was that my husband had no decent graphic software on his computer, so I had to keep coming back to my machine to fart around with the image. When I got tired of that, I used a stock photo and was surprisingly pleased with the results.

This is a scan of the actual laser etched CD-ROM. I just can’t get over how absolutely amazing this technology really is. I was hooked the first time I read an article in one of my geek magazines. I am so glad Ben needed a new PC and got one that had this feature.

Comments(5)

The shop owner from the previous post suggested that what she really needs are beginner classes to get people interested in Embroidery. She carries a little of everything in her shop, so I decided to start with one of my favorites. As always, the feedback got me thinking, which is a good thing. So I marched upstairs, got out the ribbons and some silk dupioni. Next I did a Google image search for iris photos, then I set about executing it in silk ribbon. I tried a few different stitch combinations before I found one that made me happy.

What I came up with was this proto-type design. This is a temporary frame until I can get by the frame shop and get a mat cut and buy a nice frame.

The flowers were done with just a few basic stitches in just a few hours. I really think that this would make a good beginner project. Now to find some guinea pigs!

Comments(5)

A friend is working on getting together a stitching retreat in Dallas in 2007. She asked what classes I would be willing to teach and it really got me thinking. It will be nice to teach outside of the confines of my own EGA Chapter again! It has been a couple of years since my last gig in Dallas. I get requests every now and again, but with the day job, it is really hard to go somewhere to teach. I really do love to teach and I love the whole process of preparing for a class, but I put so much into it, that it is hard to do with a day job.

So while I was pondering what I wanted to try to offer at the local college, I got the note from my friend and came up with several things off the top of my head that are well suited the Crazy Quilting crowd. I worry that I won’t generate enough interest to fill the classes, but I took the leap and made the offer to teach the following depending on interest, time and inclination. I will let the organizers have the last say on what I offer:

There are even more things I would be willing to teach, but I was sort of trying to tailor it for a specific type of audience. The more I work on developing classes, the more I know it is what I really want to do. I even contacted as shop owner that previously asked me to teach and let her know that I would be available in the next six months and that we could discuss potential classes. She has a great shop and carries absolutely everything, so basically the only rate limiting factor is the wants and needs of her patrons and my willingness to travel two hours each way.

I guess this is what Jung would refer to as staking my whole being. It is a very scary step, but I think I am almost there.

Comments(2)

I am so thrilled to be able to take a class with Lily Chin! It will be exciting to finally meet someone who can crochet faster than I can. No, seriously, I am happy that she will be in Mississippi at Natchez Needlearts in just a few weeks and that I was able to get a spot in one of her classes. I was hoping to go down for the whole weekend, but was deflated when Cynthia pointed out that I was scheduled to teach Introduction to Needle Tatting on the same weekend. Lucky for me, I am married to one of the nicest men in the world and he offered to drive me down to Natchez after my EGA meeting.

The class I will be teaching is Introduction to Needle Tatting for my EGA Chapter. I will only cover the basics during our regular monthly meeting. I have asked everyone who wants to learn to buy a copy of the Barbara Foster Learn Needle Tatting Step-by-Step booklet and a set of tatting needles. I plan to bring crochet thread and raw wool for everyone. In case you are wondering, the raw wool is for protecting the tatting needles so they don’t rust, which is a real problem here in the hot and humid south.

I would like to teach community enrichment class at Millsaps College. I called them this morning to get all of the information regarding class proposals. The more I think about it, the more I think that Needle Tatting would be a great six to eight week course. I wonder if I can get enough people interested to make a go of it? I wrote to Barbara Foster at Handy Hands Tatting to see how she felt about it, since I would want to use her booklets as my textbooks! The tatted ornament covers I made were a modified version of her pattern from Needle Tatting With Style Book 1. If you want to see a bunch of them on my gallery page, click here.

Comments(3)

Here is the fiber necklace I worked on during the last meeting of the Chimneyville Weavers and Spinners Guild. It is made up of dozens of different hand-dyed threads, yarns and ribbons. I used a lot of rayon perle and chainette in a variety of widths. First, you braid all of the fibers, then you secure with wire. I decided to use copper and make a decorative clasp. Later I added beads, lots and lots of beads. I have to say, the ribbon overwhelmed the other fibers. Most people used a lot of eyelash yarns and their necklaces were fuzzy and fun. Mine was also much thinner than the rest of the group. I decided to leave the ribbons and threads dangling and I made the clasp in the shape of a modified heart.

I also took a few more photos of my orchids, including some I have not photographed before, including the white one that Ben bought me for Valentines day. It needed time to grow into itself. It looks much better now than five weeks ago.

And finally, because Liz said I needed to post another photo of my little beasties…here is the obligatory photo of my dog.

Comments(6)

It occurs to me what an odd title that is for a post. Regardless, I have photos of the modified Slouch Sock for the Big-legged Woman and some of my blooming orchids. I was hoping for a little sunshine, but I gave up and took photos in the artificial light. I finished one of the socks during the business part of Spinning and Weaving Guild meeting. Later I participated in the program, making a fiber necklace. I only just begun adding beads, so it will be a while before I am ready to share photos of my project.

I was sick most of the weekend with a sinus headache, due to allergies and the changes in barrometric pressure. However, I did manage to get a little bit done. I started a to do list in addition to my morning pages, to help me focus on the things that need to be done each day. It seems to have helped a little. I did get most of the things I wanted done, including posting some photos of my sock and my orchids!

Rather than bore everyone with close-ups of the different orchids, I thought I would put them on my webpage. If you are interested in more orchid photos, then you can go here to see them.

Comments(8)

Well, I won’t be going to the Alpaca Farm today. They decided that the weather was too bad, so we are going to the regular Guild meeting instead. The CWSG is doing a program on fiber necklaces and I spent the morning digging out beads. My problem is that I have so many beads, it is hard to choose. I ended up just tossing a slew of them into a bag and will decide what to use at the meeting.

Also, while cruising knitting blogs, I saw these last night and just had to share. Theses gloves are so cool. Really much superior to the original sock pattern. I just love it when people think outside of the box! craftoholic: Mermaid Gloves

I should have at least one fiber photo posted this weekend and maybe even a few orchid pictures.

Comments(2)

I was hopeful when I first got to Biloxi, because the clinic where I was had little Hurricane Katrina damage and things seemed to be essentially no worse than they were in Hattiesburg a few months earlier. Then I headed down to the beach and HWY 90. The destruction was bad, the debris was frightening, but it was what was missing that had the most profound effect on me. As I drove down the road, most landmarks were obliterated. Six months after Hurricane Katrina, it would seem like the only places rebuilding are the Casinos. I stayed at the Isle of Capri, because they were the only hotel with available rooms. I was sort of shocked that they were able to get it all together in time for Spring Break…and a little freaked out by the number of people gambling.

The tourists were acting badly. I mean, I know that gambling is supposed to be good for the economy, but it seemed so strange that some dillweed nearly hit me, then screamed at me out of his window, because I had the nerve to stop while the tram turned in front of me. He stomped the accelerator and burned rubber to punctuate his shouting. I guess he wanted to teach me a lesson. I mentioned how hostile people were and the desk person said “you must have been in the parking lot.” Later when I met Cass and Joe for dinner, they said that they had a similar experience, except that it was a woman screaming at them because they got into the wrong lane. I guess I just don’t get it. Are these people just complete dick-heads? Do they not realize that there was a hurricane? Do they not notice all the crazy construction? Is there need to gamble so intense, that they are unable or unwilling to extend even the most basic of courtesies in such trying times? Or is it that they are just pissed that their Spring Break was ruined by the inconvenience? I wish they could learn a little empathy…or at they just sociopaths?

I guess part of my problem is guilt. I feel guilt because I have not done enough to help. I feel guilt because I had the nerve to complain about my own Katrina experience. I feel guilt, because I was enjoying my dinner with friends. It boggles my mind to think of all the people whose homes were destroyed or damaged. Seeing it in person, I have to ask, will it ever be the same again? Mostly because it is so unimaginable. How can a person see that and then get all worked up over me how slow the person in front of you is driving? I understand how important gambling is to the economy, but it left me with a very bad taste in my mouth.

Comments(6)