Friday AMA's #1

Today is our first AMAs - Ask Me Any question.

Here's your chance to ask me any (AMA) questions you have.  It could be about the techniques we learned during the past week or about anything related to living a creative life.

Everyone is welcomed to jump in with their answers opinions and follow-up questions, This is intended to be a community discussion time.  So it's open to all.

 Since this is our first, I’m going to open up Q&A time by answering 3 of the more frequently asked questions I get. Then I’ll wait for specific questions from you.

Question:  What kind of machine do you use?

Answer: I have a JUKI 2010Q and I love it.  It helps me do such wonderful work.  Although I must say it’s an oil- guzzler. Often, when it gives me trouble it’s because I haven’t given it enough oil. When it gets a good drink of oil it puts on it’s best behavior.

Question: How did you become so proficient at drawing with your sewing machine?

Answer: Consistent, deliberate and intentional practice.  I don’t know any other way to say it but to say it’s practice.  I practiced consistently for a long time till I started seeing results.

Question: I’ve got so many creative ideas.  I’ve learned so many techniques but I can’t find time for my creative work.  How do you find time?

Answer: Schedules. I schedule time for my creative work just like I schedule time for doctors appointments and other appointments.  There’s a saying that goes something like, “if it doesn’t get scheduled it doesn’t get done”

Now it’s your turn to give me your questions.  It'll be nice for you to also share your work in progress if you've been following along.  Let's hear about both your frustrations and your wins.

I’ll be waiting.

Warmest Regards,

Clara.
ClaraNartey.com

Supplies Needed for Designing with Stitch

Drawing on fabric with your sewing machine is fun bit it takes a little practice and as with anything else, you need the right tools and supplies.

So in this post, I’m going to share with you the supplies and tools I’ve found useful in my drawing on fabric journey.

So here we go.

• Mid Weight Stabilizer: I use a sew-in stabilizer or interface called  Pellon 910.  Any light weight to mend weight interface / stabilizer should work if you can’t find this particular type. You can also use two layers of light weight stabilizer if you can’t find a mid weight stabilizer.

• Sewing Machine Needles: Universal or Embroidery 80/20, 90/14; Topstitch 90/14
• Threads: I use light weight polyester threads (40 weight) because I like the sheen of polyester as opposed to cotton. Also, lightweight means I can build up thread in areas where I want dark shading as well as light shading. 

Polyester Threads for Drawing on Fabric

• Bobbin Threads: I use the same thread in my bobbin as on top. You can use rayon threads as well.
• FMQ Teflon Mat: I use a teflon mat on my machine bed to help me easily move my fabric around. I initially had the Supreme Slider for a while but when it got worn out, I tried a different one. And I love this new one I got from SewSlip. It’s a little bit bigger 12”x 18” compared to the Queen size Supreme Slider- 11 1/2 x 17 and it’s thinner; which makes it sit seamlessly on my machine bed.

• Quilting Gloves: I have a couple from Fons and Porter and from Machingers to help me control the fabric and keep a firm grip. I love Machingers the best but its the most difficult to keep clean. However, any type of quilting gloves will do.
• Batting: - I use polyester felt in my quilt sandwich, you can use light weight cotton or cotton/polyester blend batting if you want.
• Sewing Machine for FMQ : You'll need a sewing machine with the ability to have feed dogs down and a darning foot attached

Get your sewing machine in good working order, oiled , cleaned, and serviced.  We just need a straight stitch for these exercises. Oh, and the ability to free motion quilt. Use the weekend to get all your supplies. Let me know in the comments if you have any questions.

I’ll see you on Monday when I’ll help you set up your sewing machine for drawing.

See you soon.

Warmest Regards,

Clara
ClaraNartey.com

31 Days of Stitch Design

Hello everyone and welcome to the month of March.  

This is my first time posting here on the Fire Blog, although I’ve followed the blog for years. My name is Clara Nartey and I’m a textile artist blogging at ClaraNartey.com

This month, I’ll be doing something a little different from what you’re used to. I won’t be doing surface design techniques.  Although sometimes, I’ll use fabric that I created using surface design techniques.  When I use my own hand-dyed fabrics, I’ll talk a little bit about the process I went through to create the fabric.

However, my main focus this month will be to show you how I use thread, rather than dyes and paints as  design elements on fabric.

I  love creative challenges. So, I challenged myself to use stitching as a form of design to create one piece of stitched work every week for 52 weeks.  I'm creating my 50^th piece this week. Thus, I’ve got only 2 more to go to finish my challenge. 

So here’s what I want to do with you - a 31-day challenge, where we use our sewing machines not for decorative stitches but for drawing and creating design elements on cloth.

This is not embroidery.  It’s going to be free motion drawing using a sewing machine.  So you don’t need an embroidery unit attached to your sewing machine.

I’ll see you on Friday with the tools and supplies you’ll need to follow along in this challenge.  You’ll have the weekend to get your supplies together and we’ll start working next week. 

For all the other Fridays in March, we’ll do an open Q & A thread, where you get to Ask Me Any question (AMAs).  Sometimes, the internet can be so impersonal it’s easy to lose the human touch.  

So I like to make people know they’re interacting with another human being by not only giving them the chance to ask questions but also, get answers to their questions.  That way you know there’s a human on the other end of your computer screen. :-)

I’ll answer all your questions as soon as I can. Please feel free to chime in with an answer or give your opinion on any question. Questions can be on any topic - creativity, art quilts, blogging, surface design -  any topic. I think Friday AMAs will be fun.

I’m excited to get started with this.

See you on Friday.

Warmest Regards,

Clara.

the continuing story of beads

Hi, it's Anne Marie again! My pieces always start off with a colour, shape, object, or germ of an idea. I work intuitively, so am reluctant to sketch, or commit anything to paper. Although frustrating at times, it seems to work! I start with a shape &/or theme, choose and attach the main focal (always with an off-centre placement), audition clusters of beads and found objects, take a quick photo, then begin stitching. Depending on the size, I may decide to add smaller focals/clusters, and possibly a path (linear division). As I get closer to the edge, I flatten the texture, using a unifying stitch (moss/boucle), and size 11 seed beads. Where do I get my ideas, you say? Imagination, dreams, and the stash of a magpie! ..... I pull the colours from my main focal (but not always), gather a bunch of beads, shop if I must, and then start stitching. Somewhere in this process, the piece starts talking to me, and the flow begins. Trust your instincts, listen to your imagination, don't worry about the end result, tell a story, and just focus on the joy of the process! I leave you with photos of some of my 2013 and 2014 Bead Journal Project pieces.

The little houses, in my 2012 series, all include a number(s), corresponding to the month, a vintage button, and one or more buttons from the family button jar. My unifying theme for the 2014 series, is the shapes of the leaves (collected in the fall of 2012). I love to blend techniques, and include gifted items, found objects, and recycled items in my pieces. I challenge you to include some in your art! If you'd like to see/read more, I invite you to wander over to my blog.