by ruralpearl | May 12, 2011 | News & Events
Hahaha…
I’ll admit– the only thing that I feel halfway competent sewing are pillow covers.. Here’s three that I’ve done lately. The owl pillow I’ve shown you before, and will SOON be listed in my Etsy shop.. I’ve got to get some good photos taken of it for the listing and blah blah blah. It will be there soon… The other two pillows I’m rather proud of because the materials cost pennies. The “Blue Bird” is a flour sack produced in Hutchinson, Kansas. I got it for $1, sewed up the ends and stuffed it. The other pillow with the circular design came to be after a trip to Wal-Mart and my local thrift store. The front is actually a bandana that I found in the purse/ accessories section of Wal-Mart (for $1!) and the backing material is a magenta corduroy which I found several yards of at my favorite thrift store. The entire sheet of that material cost maybe 50 cents. So, on a day I should have been working on paper cuttings, I spent antique store prowling and pillow making. My excuse is this: I played around with a volleyball the other evening and my hands are killing me.. Giving the ol’ fingers a rest. This is the first time they’ve felt arthritic. I’m hoping it’s only temporary.
Here’s the rest of what’s going on in my world: I’m making a pretty big move into a house in August with lots more live/ work space, so there’s constant preparations for that. I’ve got 6 shows between June and July — 2 in Kansas, 1 in Iowa, and 3 in Colorado. Constant prep for those.. I’ve got about 6 commissions in the pipeline, and I’m also working on a cool project for a Kansas City based fashion magazine. More details on that to come. I’ve also got another cool announcement regarding a t-shirt dealy. I’ll fill you in soon. Thanks for reading this rant! New things to come!
by ruralpearl | May 6, 2011 | News & Events
ALT for damerne, a leading women’s magazine in Denmark, has included my “Summer Garden” print in their current printed and online issue. I’m very honored! Click the link to check it out: http://www.altfordamerne.dk/galleri/bolig/luft-under-vingerne/
Here’s a couple screen shots from my phone:
by ruralpearl | Apr 26, 2011 | Art Fairs & Art Travels, News & Events
It’s been a busy few weeks trying to get myself together for these upcoming shows…
Come out this Friday, April 29, for Atchison’s first ever Art Walk. I’ll be stationed at The River House at 101 Commercial, Atchison, KS, from 5:30 to 8:30pm. Lots of shops throughout Atchison will be hosting an artist and there will be live music all along the way. The weather is forecasted to be nice, so, fingers crossed. For more information, including participating businesses, check this link: http://www.atchisonkansas.net/ArtWalk/art_walk_01.html.
Then, this Sunday, May 1, is Art in the Park in Lawrence, KS. This was my best show last year, and I’m hoping again for great weather and a great crowd. This year also marks the 50th Anniversary of Art in the Park, and I’m happy to be a part of that. There will be 150 artists spread throughout South Park at 12th and Massachusetts Streets. The hours run from 11am to 5pm. Check out the event info on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=193087550708156. Hope to see you out there!
by ruralpearl | Mar 31, 2011 | Art Fairs & Art Travels, News & Events
Come out to Notre Dame De Sion tonight — I will be there selling my wares. Notre Dame De Sion is located at 3823 Locust St. in Kansas City, MO.
Here’s the info from the organizer: Please come see us on Thursday, March 31, from 5:30 to 8:30 at the inaugural Sion Spring Shopping Fling benefiting the Notre Dame de Sion Lower Campus. A fabulous night is planned with a cooking demonstration by Jasper Mirabile, Jr. of Jasper’s Ristorante, as well as over 25 vendors for shopping merriment! Light apps and wine provided by Green Acres, Room 39, Genghis Khan, Brookside Market and Lew’s Grill and Bar and The Well-Bar-Grill-Rooftop in Waldo. Please come see us at 3823 Locust Street (Notre Dame de Sion Lower Campus) in the gymnasium. Tickets are just $10 at the door. All funds from this event will go towards upgrading the lower school kitchen. It will be a fantastic night!
by ruralpearl | Mar 30, 2011 | News & Events
Screen, emulsion applied, dried, exposed to light with owl negative, and rinsed. Ready to print.
100% Cotton/ Muslin fabric with owl printed on it. Set aside to dry before I heat set it.
Pillow prototype with 16 inch pillow insert.
Things are coming along in the world of screen printing and sewing. I bought my own sewing machine, firstly, so I don’t have to borrow others’ machines since I think this is something I want to do more of. I did a proto-type that turned out fairly well, but I do admit to having trouble sewing in a straight line.. I’m working on that.. I had a few failures during printing where one brand of ink bled through the screen, and upon trying another (I bought two just to be safe), some of the first had dried on the screen and my image did not come out very uniformly.. so I lost a few things. But overall, it’s been going great, and it’s exciting for me! I like trying new things. (I said that in a muppet voice).
by ruralpearl | Mar 23, 2011 | News & Events
I posted the other day that I was going to try my hand again at printing and sewing my own pillows.. Read it HERE. So, I’ve officially begun work, starting with step 1 (in my jumbled order of steps): Prepare Owl transparency for screen printing. Next up: transfer image to screen using emulsion sheet.. I have a Yudu screen printing machine. I’m not sure I really understand it, but it worked the last and only time I used it over a year ago.. So fingers crossed.. Still trying to decide whether to make square pillow covers for 16 inch pillow inserts or make actual owl shaped pillows. I’m open to suggestions!
by ruralpearl | Mar 19, 2011 | News & Events
This is a Photoshop modified version of my original paper cutting titled “Night Owl” that I made last August (see it HERE). I’m going to try my hand at screen printing and pillow sewing once again, using this as the design and shape.. This may or may not work. We shall see..
by ruralpearl | Mar 14, 2011 | Cut Paper, New Work!, News & Events
11 x 14 inch hand cut paper cutting with tissue paper for color. See a larger version HERE.
This is for the Lawrence Art Auction, which will take place at the Lawrence Arts Center on April 9, 2011, in Lawrence, KS. For more details, go HERE.
by ruralpearl | Mar 13, 2011 | Cut Paper, News & Events
I’ve been invited to be a participating artist in the 31st Annual Lawrence Art Auction at the Lawrence Arts Center in Lawrence, KS. Let me just say “Lawrence” one more time. haha. See details here: http://www.lawrenceartscenter.org/Auction/2011/index.html
by ruralpearl | Mar 10, 2011 | News & Events
I’ve been invited to be part of a 3 person art exhibit titled “Scratch, Sprinkle, and Cut: Conversations in Black and White” at the Carnegie Cultural Center in Ottawa, KS, during the months of Aug. and Sept. The other artists are Azyz Sharafy, professor at Washburn University, and Lora Jost, a freelance artist, author and art instructor in Lawrence. More details to come.
