A New Magazine and more buttons...

The first issue of  Fiber Art Now has been issued. You can see some of the premiere issue here. Since Fiberarts Magazine is no longer publishing, this looks like a promising replacement.

And, of course more buttons, brooches and toggles have been made in Karen's class. This is the last week of class and I have been inspired to go in many different directions.

a soft button for my wrapping cloth

a brooch for a friend in NYC

shortened some jacket sleeves and now there is a brooch to match

a puff made with a lace hexagon and some embroidery and needle weaving

and the latest is a toggle

Click on the images for a closer view. Some of these pieces will be placed on the edge of my wrapping cloth that is still in progress.

You might also like to read this article featuring Karen Ruane and her work over here. Scroll down to the post for Oct. 24, 2011.

a gathering...

Day has become Night and it is time for a gathering on the Universe of Feathers...
These feathers are on their way to Jude for the Magic Feather Project. The piece is 7" square.

bits and pieces of this fabric was gifted to me

Several people asked me what I would be doing with the 'funky puffs' I'm making in Karen's class. They will be added to the edge of my cloth as embellishment. Here is the edge of the sampler pillow I made with some funky puffs.

sampler pillow with funky puffs, prairie point and rouleau loops

I've also been working on a neck piece in bobbin lace. The pattern is so large that I had to make a pillow extension so the bobbins would be supported on the edge.

pillow extension helps hold the bobbins in place.

close-up of collar with beaded edge

And just an idea...
Walgreens was offering free pill cases. I decorated it with duct tape and it's a great little case to hold buttons and things to carry around for my stitching project.

pill case decorated with duct tape

my new favorite cup...

I stopped at a new Goodwill thrift shop yesterday and spent only 99¢. An Emma Bridgewater cup from England. I just love it. It even made my morning tea taste better.
Click on all the images for a closer view.

the inner rim says 'BLACK AND WHITE CAT'

Here are the latest pieces made for Karen Ruane's class that is nearing the end.

funky puff with lace and bead

more funky puffs and an attempt at making one with a cathedral window design

a new piece started to add to the others

Karen has a new class starting on Monday called Buttons and More. Check out the description here. Maybe you'd like to join in. I've signed up.

And finally, a new basket I made this week for a friend. I hope she will like it.

the avocado and eucalyptus reveal...

A while back I experimented with 2 avocados and some cloth. The colors achieved are nice but not worth all the trouble I went to with the avocados. When I unwrapped them I was unable to tell one from the other. I had turned one inside out but didn't mark it. I don't really keep track of how I do the dyeing. I'm just playing and if I had to keep track it would take the fun out of it for me. Here is a photo of the 2 pieces of dyed silk. Click on the images for a closer view.

cloth wrapped around avocado pit and embedded in shell

I also experimented with eucalyptus leaves bundled around copper pipe. It all started back here . I really like the way these turned out.

the light color is linen and the dark one is silk

love the green from the copper pipe

wish I could get those string marks throughout the piece

And here are the latest pieces I've worked on for Karen's embroidery class.

chinese knots made with silk velvet

funky puffs

Only one more week left until the end of Karen's wonderful class. If you think you're interested in a class with Karen, keep watching her blog for new classes being offered.