I finished these two Tree Studies for the shop update. Painting with free motion stitching and hand stitching. With little bits of metallic stitching, it's very subtle but when the light hits it just right you can see a little bling. 

This lady may look familiar to you. She was a study that I started for a work called "The Messenger" that became a tapestry. In the tapestry there is a door and a crow also. Here I was working only on the lady and I decided to weave the image instead. Today I decided to finish this study and if all goes well she may make it to my shop but not this Thursday. Maybe next week. I'm working on a new way to present them without a Mat and frame. Fingers crossed that my idea works.  

Here is another that I've been working on. Not finished yet but I'm happy with her so far. 

My background is casting purple. Not sure why. I'll reshoot tomorrow with better light. But for now you get the idea. 

Today's topic....when is a piece of artwork done? Good question. Sometimes it just hits you over the head. This is done! Other times not so much. I hate the other times. All the questions that start to arise. Should I add more or take away perhaps or what? All artist I think go thru this to some degree. I have to put the work aside and work on something else when this happens. I have to just stop! If I don't then it can go the wrong way and feel overworked to me. But this is just me. I've had pieces that I felt were not my best and they sold. And other works that I loved and they didn't sell. It has always been that way; even with the yarn dyeing business years ago.

​There were colors that I adored and they didn't move as fast as I thought they would. And others I didn't even want to list and I did it anyway and they sold out fast; leaving me scratching my head in wonder. This is the way of the world. Everyone has different taste and you can't really predict it, so as an artist you just have to keep on doing what you love and what feels right for you and it will find the right person and a forever home.

So today I was working and that feeling of "Is this done or not"? was really bugging me so I walked away for a hot cup of tea and some time to rest my eyes and my mind from it. So here I am talking about it sipping my tea and getting my mind right before I go back into the studio to dive back in. Some days everything falls into place beautifully and others well, they require more tea and thought. So I'm heading back to the Studio to look and think and see if I really begin to see not just look if you know what I mean. Hopefully, I'll be back with pics later. 

Ok back with some pics from yesterdays stretched canvas. She's done. This piece will be in the shop update next Thursday. Aug.6th. Time for dinner. Ta Ta for now. 
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Ok so I'm off to a good start with this daily practice. Working on paper and collage with stitching and stitching little scraps of linen that I have in baskets all over the studio. I'm just working with what is close at hand. I love using up those small bits that are here and there. I found some hand dyed velvet that dates all the way back to graduate school. That's twenty two years ago and it still looks great. That is in the basket photo above. The color had not faded at all. Maybe being in the bottom of the bin helped with that. I have these bins full of pieces of fabric from my art quilt days. Maybe I should make up some kits for sale to share them with others. Need to put that on my long to do list. Also working on some journal pages and I found a little tree I stitched about 2 years ago in a pile. Does that count? It's amazing what you can find when you clean up the studio a bit. 

Well, it seems that when I made some changes to the site and did an upgrade and  I lost my journal. Maybe that is a sign. A new fresh start for 2018. So pictured above are some new paintings that I'm working on. Painting on ceramic tiles and Aqua board. Some might become small tapestries as well. Still thinking about that. 

Also back to my sewing machine for some stitching on these mixed media paintings. I'm keeping the palette fairly monochrome and I really like the feel so far.