Occasional Threads – Ellen Guerrant

Mixed Media Pin by PJ Howard created completely from recycled materials

I’ve long admired the fun and quirky work of fiber artist PJ Howard.    In chatting with PJ, recently,  I told her I’d always wanted to buy a piece of her art.  Minutes later she handed me the above pin.  I love it and  don’t know how she knew my favorite color is purple!  She wouldn’t let me buy the pin,  but asked for a handkerchief from my vintage textile collection in return.  ”Printed or white and lacy?” I asked.  :White and lacy” was the response.  White and lacy it shall be.

To read more about PJ and the fiber art group to which she belongs, click here:

http://fiberartoptions.blogspot.com/2009/01/pj-howard.html

This beautiful California poppies piece is shown by its maker, Kay Dellinger.  It was created in a Lenore Crawford class.

I spent this morning with the Piecemakers Quilt Guild in beautiful Lincolnton NC.  Mist was still rising from the Catawba River as I headed to the foothills of the Blue Ridge.  I should have planned better and taken a day to enjoy the mountain color.  The leaves are gorgeous.

I was greeted warmly by Fran Love who helped unload my “trunk show.”  I think quilters always enjoy seeing and examining the actual quilts.  We had a great time together seeing lots of my work and members’ show and tell.

I was thrilled to see long-time friend  Doris Phillips in the audience.  Doris was one of the first to welcome me to the Charlotte Quilters Guild when I was a new member many moons ago.  A quilter extraordinaire whose pieces are always perfectly square and hug the wall, Doris is a master in that regard.  I’m sorry we didn’t get our picture taken together.  Next time……

Following the meeting, a bunch of us gathered at The Lincoln House for lunch.  Thanks, everyone.  It was such a fun day!

A few of the great quilters from the Lincolnton Piecemakers Quilt Guild.

I have lots of blog links, but the one I love most is Posie Gets Cozy, written by Alicia Paulson of Portland, Oregon.   I love her writing, her imagination, her talents (she has books and patterns available) and most of all her photography.

Alicia and her husband Andy recently went to the Clackamas County Fair, where she captured some amazing shots.  Who doesn’t love looking at all things county fair?

You can see Alicia’s blog (Posie Gets Cozy on my right sidebar) by clicking here: http://rosylittlethings.typepad.com/

Alicia’s photos have piqued my interest in finding an area fair. I haven’t been to one in years and years, and to our NC State Fair just once.  We went to the latter by train, as my DH and son are/were serious rail fans.  It was great fun and brought back so many memories of my childhood.  I don’t remember seeing any of the bizarre foods they have now, such as fried Twinkies, fried butter, fried Snickers, etc.  Back in the day there were corn dogs, sno-cones and cotton candy.  The only thing fried was dough (what’s not to love?)  which was then sprinkled with powdered sugar and called funnel cake.

When I was a kid in 4-H, my three sisters and I competed in the DeKalb County Fair, known as the Sandwich Fair (IL) every year.  It was a really big deal then, and still is.  Baking, sewing and yeast breads were my specialty.  I was lucky enough to win 1st place for my Swedish Tea Ring one year.  I wonder what happened to my 4-H ribbons?  I know there were several, as all competitors got at least an honorable mention just for entering!

My Original Photo

PhotoShopped by Bill Guerrant, my DH

We have morning glories growing all along the fence next to our garden, purposefully planted to act as a “screen.”  They are in lovely shades of blues, pinks and violets.   I shot several one recent morning, but was then disappointed at what I saw on the computer monitor.  No longer was the blue the vibrant color I’d seen just moments before.  My efforts at PhotoShop did not suit me.  The colors were still washed out.  Whine!

DH, who has been a very good, award-winning  photographer most of his life, learned  tricks in the darkroom he applies to Photoshop.  Things such as “adjusting” and “burning.”  I know how to adjust the brightness, etc., but nothing as sophisticated as DH can do.

The photos above illustrate what a little (or a lot) of skill can accomplish.  I think the difference is outstanding.

I’m a photographer wanna be – living with a guy with a lifetime of experience but not enough patience to teach a novice.  Our son and daughter-in-law have degrees in photography so I learn a lot by following them around and really looking at their shots. Check their site here: http://mattandsuzie.com/

Additionally, our DIL is a PhotoShop Guru, having won the national award a few years ago.  Want that staircase removed from your photo?  She can do that for ya.

If you’re into trains, check my son’s site:  http://www.railpictures.net/showphotos.php?userid=28734 I think he has some awesome shots.

Altered Mail Art by Frances Holliday Alford

 Facebook friend Frances Holliday Alford creates wonderful, vibrant art.  She’s especialy fond of collecting postmarks from different locations.  I was the lucky recipient of one of Frances’s signed, dated and framed altered mail art collages this spring (see last image on post).  I agreed at that time to send a piece of my art to another sometime during this calendar year. 

Along with the framed piece, Frances sent  two of her already begun altered mail art pieces to complete and then send back to her, making sure the art was hand canceled.  What fun!

I added postmarked scraps, colored with Caran d’Ache Neocolor crayons, a bit of a tea bag wrapper, mica flakes and a gummed star to the first piece, shown above.   The collage had arrived pre-addressed and bearing the print border and the graphic horizontal strip.  

Altered Mail Art by Frances Holliday Alford

The colors and tone of Frances’s second piece were very soft and lovely. I hesitated to add much to her text and lavendar imagery so settled on yellow as a colorant, a strip of woven fiber, a torn strip from inside an envelope and a bit of watercol pencil.

Below is the original altered mail art Frances sent me earlier this year.  Isn’t it fabulous?  That my favorite color is purple is only part of the reason I love it.

Frances is an amazingly talented artist.  To learn more about Frances (did you know she once served in the United States Peace Corps?) and to see lots of her work, click here:  www.franceshollidayalford.com