Rose Petals

I have been practicing my sketching and watercolor painting for journaling, with the Sketchy 5150's group.  Our challenge this week was "petals" and since my bike is in the garage under tarp, I decided the easiest was going to the garden.  I have some awesome roses and iris this year.  The roses are very large, some 6-7 " across when fully opened.  This is one of my light pink roses that has a yellow base - very similar to my "Princess Diana Rose", but more pink.

I drew the rose this afternoon and posted it on the Sketchy 5150's blog and decided it needed more shading. Our instructor, Desiree, says that watercolor is very forgiving - and she is right.  I let me first part dry thoroughly and came back in to shade with watercolor crayons and a little finger rubbing and I am much more pleased with this page - I might even give it a little more dark at the very center top for a little more definition.

I am having fun revisiting my sketching and trying this "journal" thing, I will be taking my sketching and watercolor stuff with me on our vacation this year -- want to try some scenery - but the single items is giving me good practice.

Fun stuff

Took a class at "Create" Costa Mesa this week with Jane LaFazio on Fusing Sheers.  We used lots of fun paper and fabic, inluding napkins, organza, all kinds of sheer stuff, stamping, stenciling, thermo faxing, ribbon, and thread.  Hands were so covered with medium, I was still peeling off after  2 days.   Loved the class, fun co-students, wonderful, sharing instructor.  This is a photo of the three I finished.  They need some stitching and will do that later. When you hold them up to the light they are transparent, kind of like stained glass.

Student Work

I taught a class at Redlands Sewing Center this last month and thought I would post some of the students work.  It's always a pleasure to see the creativeness that comes out in each student as they move through the weeks.  Although most are not finished, you can see how each design using the "Steampunk" theme was interpreted.  All the fabric was dyed with "Seta Silk" in our first week of the class. Then they learned to connect the panels with a "lacey free-motion stitching".