Lee Thomson

May 18 before paint
Originally uploaded by Dancing Crow.

Cearly I am smitten with these little patchy backgrounds. I made a couple of them quickly to use for the next couple of days.

I like this idea, but I think it needs a wash of green paint over it to unify it and make the leaves pop. I did try that, but since the paint isn’t dried yet, and I need to get myself to sleep, I’ll post the final object tomorrow. Still wet, it looks thusly:

Alice is better, thank you all. It was something she ate, and not something she has to suffer through. She had a blissful day of TV, errands and being consulted on nearly every stage of my day. I need exercise and chocolate. She is well and chipper.

May 17
Originally uploaded by Dancing Crow.

My neighbor Joan, of the lawn, has this wonderful tree in her front yard. It has these red, deeply cut, elegant leaves, and I adore them.

I made the background by applying and roughly sewing in place a series of fringe-edged squares from the ends of fabrics I’ve been using. It looked great before I decided to paint it with Pebeo transparent paints, and stick the leaf on it. When light reaches the paint, it darkens, where light is blocked the paint migrates away/lightens, forming these lovely sun prints. I am thinking the paint could be thinner, letting more of the background through, but I do like the way the leaf printed.

Poor Alice is ill, and I am going to bed now so that I can wake up when necessary.

May 16
Originally uploaded by Dancing Crow.

She had her cake on Saturday, but it wasn’t until today she really and truly turned nine. In a fit of brilliance I commissioned this mask from a man who makes outrageous masks right next to the building where the circus classes are held.

Alice was investigating last week, and we found this man at work behind what seemed like acres of cow masks. Some were simple black and white Holstein faces, others were, well,  psychedelic. He was very kind about showing Alice how he made the plasticine bases and layered up glue soaked paper and fabric over the top. The cows are for the Strolling of the Heifers through Brattleboro the first weekend in June. He says he’s aiming at Mardi Gras and a handful of other festivals in that area next spring.

I have the mold this mask was made on (he let us take the tiger home not-quite-dry) and I am thinking of building another cat face onto it, maybe a jaguar, and taking it back as a demonstration of what a great employee I’d be. Like I don’t have enough to do.

I had a quiet day at the barn today. The wheelbarrow didn’t mug me again, although it thought about it. I rode the red horse, walking, but decided against the sideways golden pony today. All the muscles across my ribs and upper chest still hurt, and the bruise on my boob is the most astounding colors – complementary purple and yellow at the moment.

May 15
Originally uploaded by Dancing Crow.

Feed your inner artist. “They” always tell you that. Go look at stuff that is interesting and makes you happy, or is along the lines of what you do, or wish you did. So I did, and found this postcard waiting for me after pages of irritation and feeling insufficient. Roughly pieced background, cut silk leaf, heavily embroidered. I think I’ve got something interesting, but I wish I could make the edges fluffier.

Maybe I’ll stick the hamster to it. She’s fluffy enough for any three postcards.

No, no, I wouldn’t really do that.

But I might shear the hamster and felt the fluff into something interesting. And microscopic.

May 14
Originally uploaded by Dancing Crow.

I found a little fern stamp, and used it on some more of these great wooden circles. My great punch works on the wooden coins as well as the regular metal kind, so I can string them on things. And the fusible works, so I can fuse fabric or foil from chocolate bars onto them.

Kate helped, so her name is on the back of this one too. She’ll go pick up her daughter at Mt Holyoke tomorrow and return home in time to watch House Tuesday evening.

It is nice to be home again.

May 13
Originally uploaded by Dancing Crow.

A stamped leaf applied to a wooden coin, the whole applied to painted and stamped fabric… I like the way it pops out at me when I hold it in my hand.

The sleepover was a huge success.

We’re off to see the favorite uncle. They started Hospice Friday. This is hard.

May 12
Originally uploaded by Dancing Crow.

Alice’s real birthday is next Wednesday. Today is really my mother’s birthday. Happy Birthday Mum!

The little girl has her party today. Four friends (including a treasured friend who moved to New Zealand last summer and is back for a visit at EXACTLY the right moment) for supper and much shrieking in the back yard, followed by Miyazaki movies. They chose The Cat Returns and Totoro. Sleep will be attempted. Kiki may be viewed in the morning, depending on time of rising and need for (relative) quiet for other house members.

I managed to make it through Family Circus class, but pulled my poor mugged chest muscles and was hunched with pain all afternoon. It seems to have eased some. I also made it to my Quilt Journal class, but left early to come get Alice and house ready for the party. Can I say how wise I was to make the cake yesterday? I was very wise.

Still. Need. More. Sleep.

May 11
Originally uploaded by Dancing Crow.

Seeing fiddlehead ferns unroll in the spring makes me giddy with delight.

Must. Have. More. Sleep.

May 10
Originally uploaded by Dancing Crow.

The Dynaflow paints made squares when dropped on this piece of silk. I was so astonished I spent a lot of time experimenting with it, and dragged a bunch of random friends over to come see it do it again. No one believed it until they saw it. This scrap looked like a wall, so I added some leaves to it. I like the one peeking out from the bottom corner best.

I had another idea before this. I was channeling Chuck Close and trying to make this leaf

into this postcard

BUT I realized I had a couple hours of embroidering to do, and had to apply a little more logic to the printing of it before I got to the embroidering of it… so you got the other one instead.

I also offer a dolly quilt:

and a pair of dollies that I thought were going to Etsy but Alice decided could not leave the house. Meet Marina and Penny.

I managed to mail a bunch of stuff – look for postcards if I owe you one – and get the elastic that holds my pannier on my bike so wrapped around the axle that it needs the nice bike dudes to take it apart and fix it for me. So I get to go flirt with them tomorrow. And bake Alice a cake. And prepare for an influx of 9 year old girls. woot woot!

May 9
Originally uploaded by Dancing Crow.

Still enchanted with my little leaf stamp, this time I took rubbings off it, using the Pentel dye sticks which are remarkably like oil pastels for fabric. Once ironed, the stuff sinks into the fabric, and acts as a resist for the Dynaflow paints. I had (temporarily) forgotten that the point of owning the materials and supplies is to USE THEM UP. You don’t get points for having saved stuff from your youth. So I am going after the stash with joyful abandon.

Still smitten with the thread too. It’n it purdy?