Hi All,

Just a quick note from the sunny but not so warm beach.

The show season is over for 2010 and it is time to enjoy

family and friends,

sand and sun!

Have a wonderful Hoilday Season

and Thank You

for following the Embellished Spirit in the past year.

I look forward to sharing many new quilts,

artistic figures,

and techniques

with you in the New Year!

Robbie

Work for the Rivercity Figurative Artists' Guild Annual Show and Sale

Along for the Ride

The mermaid riding the turtle is finally complete (well, I may still add some beads to the turtle).

What a joy this doll has been. The idea was conceived in Virgina Beach, VA while walking on the beach in November of 2009, so she was a year in the making.

Posted here are views from the back and front

of this Artistic Figure in Cloth

Titled "Along for the Ride".

A Detail of her clothing, created with hand painted lace.

A Detail of her face.

Work for the Fall Gallery Show and Sale

Work continues on the turtle doll and the mermaid.

To be titled "Along for the Ride"

I have lots of help on this project, as you can see in these photos!

Before the week is over I'll send photos of the now

"underconstruction" mermaid and the finished sea turtle.

Please note my previous posting

that carries the information about the

Rivercity Figurative Artists' Guild Gallery Show and Sale,

coming up this weekend, November 13/14, 2010.

And finally I will catch you up on where most of the summer/fall has gone. Enjoying creating art

for the following shows happening this fall.

Dates and times are listed for all the events

and I hope you will attend!

Rivercity Figurative Artists' Guild

A show of Artistic Figures

13th Annual Gallery Show and Sale

Saturday November 13. 2010 10am-5pm

Sunday November 14, 2010 12pm-4pm

Kennedy Heights Art Center

6546 Montgomery Road

Cincinnati Ohio 45231

The Carnegie Visual and Performing Arts Center

A show of Mandala Quilts

1028 Scott Boulevard

Covington KY 41011

Opening Reception Friday October 22, 2010 6-9pm

Exibition runs through November 23, 2010

Annual Contemporary Quilt and Fiber Artists

Quilt Show and Boutique

October 22-24, 2010

9am-5pm

Cincinnati Nature Center

4949 Tealtown Road

Milford, Ohio 45150

Opening Reception Friday October 22, 2010 5-8pm

Pictured here is the Quilt I designed for

the Cincinnati Nature Center

Annual Quilt Raffle

Tickets can be purchased at the show

or anytime at the Nature Center this fall.

The drawing for the Raffle will be held in December, 2010.

Third . . . Wandering around New England

Second. . . Crusing. . .

pictured here sailing out of New York Harbor

past the Sature of Liberty.

Where has the summer gone?

For that matter where is the fall going?

This poor blog has gone unattended for months,

but I'll give you just a few hints about what has occupied my time.

First to the garden...........

SEA GLIDER A bead embellished Mermaid

Sea Glider was the first is a series of mermaid figures

designed to be "in motion".

She was created after many patterns were developed in muslin fabric.

(see an earlier post)

Her hair is composed of individually quilted sections

which echo the shape of the tail.

The beads that embellish her body were collected from bead stores in at least six different states including Maine, North Carolina and Minnesota.

Front View

Bead Details on the base Sea Glider's Sister

"The Magic is in the Hair" is shown in one of the first posts on my blog.

Figures that Flow

Designing a mermaid figure that expresses movement has been the goal of the most recent series of figures. So often mermaids are seen "sitting on their tails" but I want my figures to move through the space. (or water)

A Little Magic

Now here is a doll for you to see . . . my great grandson Aiden with his mother Irene at the zoo in Asheboro NC riding the endangered animals carousel.

Quiltfest Rising Sun, Indiana

The Rivercity Figurative Artists' Guild

spent the Weekend of April 9-11, 2010 in Rising Sun, Indiana

at the 2010 Quiltfest.

It was a beautiful venue and a lovely show of Quilts, Dolls and various other art. Pictured here is my part of the space we occupied in the

Ballroom of the Grand Victoria Casino.Doll Pins and other items

" My Garden is Growing on Me"

ART DOLL

Small Art Quilts and Dolls

As part of the actual Quilt Show I entered two Art Quilts.

My Sea Glass Reflections ( quilt laying on the table)

and Perfect Symmetry (dragonfly quilt on the wall)

won First and Second Place Ribbons. Robbie with her ribbon winning quilts

More Mermaid Work

The Turtle continues with the embellishing of the fins. The next step will be to sew the back onto the fin and slide it in place on the armature.

At last, the Village of Batavia is out of the snow. And here is a pix of the first flower to spring forth in my yard. I've taken two days off from "Mermaid Work" to clear flower beds and play in the yard.

YET ANOTHER MERMAID

The Mermaid I will be creating over the next few weeks is the third in a series of 18-24 inch bead embellished artistic figures.
The most difficult decision about this mermaid was how to create the sea turtle she will ride, without the turtle just looking like a stuffed animal.
Solution – A wire topiary armature under the fabric. I found the topiary structure in a garden store in Virginia Beach.

The first step, after the selection of the fabrics, was to mark the patterns for the turtle parts and the mermaid figure. All the pattern pieces are original drawings. It was a real challenge to create a mermaid in the correct proportions for the size of the turtle armature so she will look balanced.

I’ve cut fabric to cover and reshape the fins to look like a sea turtle. Each section of fabric will be backed with batting and sewn in a free motion technique. The finished section will be backed with fabric to create a sleeve. Then I can just slide the fins, tail and head into place over the wire. The shell will be covered with four sections of free motion quilted fabric.

Winter Art Inspired by the Snow

Snow on the Dogwood tree became the inspiration for this art quilt. A photo transfer technique was used to create the center of the design. The branches were embellished in satin ribbon. The outer part of the quilt was created with Batik fabric in a simple patchwork design.

Studio Cat as ART

Daisy has been a muse for several works of art. She was the motivation for the kitty in the pink dress seen in this photo. She is also pictured with her friends made by several artists in a workshop at Artistic Figures in Cloth.

Studio Cat

Today I would like to introduce you to my studio partner. Daisy May joined my little family after I rescued her from near death. At just a few weeks old, Daisy was shot thru the front leg. My daughter found Daisy in her garden and the cat was seriously wounded. A wonderful vet put Daisy back together and she has enjoyed a life in my studio for almost two years.

You will see here photos of Daisy the week I brought her home as a kitten, how here leg looks today and a photo of her obvious enjoyment of our studio space.

The Pink and Green Mermaid

The Magic is in the Hair

Mermaids have become a fantastic surface to experiment with beading techniques. They provide a unique opportunity to not worry about what an image really looks like. Who knows what a mermaid looks like - can she be pink and green?

Why I create what I create

My ART:
What does it mean to me “to embellish my art”?
A definition might be
- to make more beautiful with ornamentation
- to increase attractiveness with decoration and fanciful details
To me beads and embellishments are about a deeper meaning. Embellishing an art quilt or cloth figure captures my attention, my “spirit" and brings joy to the creative process.
The glitz and glitter of beads and sequins add joy to my work. My work sparkles with JOY and reflects the delight I feel in life.
My desire is that the viewer will not just see the work but feel the joy.
That is why I sign my work
Enjoy, Robbie