Getting October Started

I have started October's block a little bit early since I am going to spend the weekend in Baltimore meeting Robin Atkins (our wonderful leader for the BJP). She is going to be teaching classes and giving a presentation about last years BJP for the Needlework Guild there. I get to be her teacher's assistant which should be a lot of fun. Heck just talking and playing show and tell should be a lot of fun. I am really looking forward to my trip.








Since I will be going up there on the 2nd of October I wanted to have my block painted and ready to go. My original plan was to do my Tree Spirit this month but since I am going to be away from home the next 2 weekends and then having Wayne come home and there are some challenges to doing my tree spirit the way I want to I thought that maybe I should pick a month where things would be a little less hectic (if I can find any). Then I had to figure out which of the other blocks might feel right at this point. I have not assigned any particular blocks to specific months.
I chose the Butterflies since I wanted to do 2 butterflies to represent Wayne and me. With his homecoming happening this month something that represented us seemed rather appropriate.

I liked the way that I did my block for September so repeated the process. The background of the block was painted onto the poplin with fluid acrylics and the butterflies were painted onto the medium weight interfacing.

I am not sure how much of the painted butterflies will end up showing since I will be beading them and probably adding some embroidery as well. I used some of my left over painted fusible web to add leaves to my background before collaging the butterflies on to the background.

I chose our favorite colors for our butterflies. My favorite color is purple and Wayne's is blue. Each butterfly has a bit of the other's color on it to show that we each have some of the other in us. Color is one area where you could get seriously bogged down in symbolism so I will include some of the meanings for each but not spend days or weeks trying to wade through all the available meanings of each color.

Dark blue carries the blue symbolism of importance, confidence, power, and authority. Darker shades of blue are associated with intelligence, stability, unity, and conservatism. Blue is the most common favorite color. Blue is seen as trustworthy, dependable, loyal, faithful, and committed. The color of sky and the ocean, blue is perceived as a constant in our lives. As the collective color of the spirit, it is restful and calming. Blue is the least "gender specific" color, having equal appeal to both men and women.








Purple embodies the balance of red stimulation and blue calm. A sense of mystic and royal qualities, purple is a color often well liked by very creative or eccentric types. It can be uplifting and calming to the mind and nerves. It is also considered to encourage creativity. Often considered a feminine color since it is a favorite color largely among women.

Now onto the symbolism of butterflies, two butterflies represent marital happiness. The butterfly represents transformation and metamorphosis; very appropriate since we are both going through periods of personal growth and change.

Butterflies are considered a symbol of the soul. Since they shift shape they are connected to the faerie realm. They remind us that transformation is inevitable and that growth and change do not have to be traumatic. They encourage creativity and freedom and encourage us to get up and move, life is a dance.

Since the symbolism in this block is strongly about both Wayne and I the ivy that was climbing up the tree decided to grow when I wasn't looking and has climbed onto this block. Ivy speaks of attachment, eternal friendship, fidelity, and wedded love making it a perfect addition to this block. It is also another feminine symbol to add to a long list of symbols in this project that are feminine.

My Web Gallery- Includes photos of both of my BJP pages
Artistic Kreations and Passions- my website

BJP Website (my 2007-8 pieces)

Honu in Beads

Each of my pieces will be backed with a piece of dark purple felt. It will act as a frame so that the pieces will stand out from the collage and also give me a more substantial surface to work with. I also found that the stitching gives it a quilted look which I like.

Since I started planning this project I started looking for beads that I thought could work. Mostly this had included looking for leaf and flower beads I knew that I was going to include a honu and when I saw these mother of pearl shell beads I knew they would be perfect for the shell of the honu. I bought them in both a green and a beige. They were the first thing I added to this piece. Sort of like a puzzle I had to figure out what pieces would fit where to stay on the shell of the turtle. I filled in the rest of the shell with 15/0 beads so that the shell read as a whole better.

The next thing I added was the gold 15/0 beads as ripples in the water. I used the gold ripples of paint as a guide. I added a crystal sequin for the eye of the turtle. At this point it was time to follow my instinct. I considered adding more beads to the turtle but felt that I would lose the painting and overwhelm the piece. Instead I chose to add stitching to accentuate the scale like surfaces. I quickly found that satin stitch with cotton embroidery floss was perfect for the look I was after. I added variegated rayon thread to edge all of the scales. The last step was more ripples with more variegated rayon thread. I really love my block.

Turtles are connected to the feminine and are a symbol of the primal mother. They are a symbol of heaven and earth and help you unite the two in your life. They remind you that Mother Earth provides you with all of your needs and to take time for yourself.

They are keepers of the doors to the Faerie Realm. They help you awaken the senses on a physical and spiritual level and tell you when to go with the flow. They help you connect with your most primal essence letting you know when you need to go within your shell and only come out when your ideas are ready to expressed.

For my Sacred Tree piece part of what they are symbolizing for me is mothers. All mothers from my mother and mother-in-law to all of the other woman who have adopted me into their lives and given me support and love as I have lived in different areas. Also the motherhood of birthing new ideas and letting that creativity out into the world.

My Web Gallery- Includes photos of both of my BJP pages
Artistic Kreations and Passions- my website

BJP Website (my 2007-8 pieces)

Honu Swimming

It has almost taken me longer to get this piece posted than it do to do the piece. I swear it seems like my brain has melted lately. After 2 1/5 months of constant headaches I guess it makes sense although doesn't make it any more fun. I have been doing Physical therapy which is helping some.

On to more pleasant thoughts, Since this is the first block of the year I got to see if I would enjoy painting my blocks and then see about how I wanted to bead them. Like the photos that I used last year part of the challenge for this year will be balancing out the painting and the beading. I will also be using embroidery for the finer details.

I am using a poplin weight fabric as my "canvas". My first step was to prime it with acrylic medium. I am using Fluid acrylics mostly for my painting along with some of the different Jacquard brand fabric paints. This one was particularly easy to do since I didn't have any background details (like branches or roots) to include. I just sat down and had fun making a watery world for my honu to swim in. I layered a couple of different layers of techniques. One of the things I really like about the fluid acrylics is that you can treat them almost like watercolors. I enjoy working with watercolors but knew doing handwork on watercolors wouldn't work well.



After painting my background I copied my honu onto medium weight interfacing and painted it. using a separate layer for my honu allowed me to not have to mask out the space for it on my painting and to work in a more fluid way on the background. After she was painted I cut out my honu and then collaged her onto the background and then covered the whole piece with a coat of a thinned Lumiere paint which gave the hole a glistening quality like water.

I have a lot of information on symbolism of honu/turtles and will split it between the two posts for this piece. Honu is what the Hawaiians call the green sea turtles. We lived in Hawaii for 2 years (there are some nice advantages to moving with the military.) We went snorkeling a fair amount and found my times swimming with the Honu amazingly spiritual. I always felt calmer when I was with them. If you were calm and just being they would let you swim along with you often within touching distance. Since many of them are 4-5 feet long it is inspiring. I have them swim right towards me like they were as curious about me as I was about them. We have several pieces of art that include honu and they still call to me.

Sea Turtles symbolize the bravery of the young. They have a connection to the moon. They represent the ability to travel long distances to reach home (seems pretty appropriate with all of the moving and traveling I have done as a military spouse). They remind you of your duty to the completion of your life path. They symbolize wisdom, longevity, patience, tenacity, self-reliance and carrying your home on your back.

A Mountain of Strength

I am sorry that it has been so long since my last update. I went to Bead Fest in Philly and had a great time and bought a whole lot of beads to use on this years BJP. More colors of 15/0s and a really nice selection of leaf and flower beads. I got home and immediately got sick with a really bad head cold and it has kept me completely down and out, just starting to feel like time on the computer again. Now if I could just get rid of the headaches.

The next part of my background is stitched although I will be adding more to this area as I have time. (waterfalls anyone?) More rayon machine thread for the stitching in this area. I am using a lot of threads meant for machine sewing on this project, partially since I have them and that saves me buying as much tread for all of the embroidery work.

Actually the mountain was Wayne's idea and I liked it. Based loosely on the Na Pali coast mountains on Kauai (one of the Hawaiian islands). Mountains have a lot of symbolism attached to them. They are the meeting place of heaven and earth, as this they also represent the stages of spiritual ascent and transcendence. Spiritual attainment can be ours as we overcome our obstacles. They are places of communion with spirits and deities and the realm of meditation. They are a masculine symbol (one of the very few that seem to be making it onto my piece). They also represent wisdom, solitariness, power, assertiveness, resurrection, freedom, peace, strength and majesty.

My Web Gallery- Includes photos of both of my BJP pages
Artistic Kreations and Passions- my website

BJP Website (my 2007-8 pieces)

Stitching Grass

Stitching grass,  it just sounds so funny,  Like taking little blades of grass and stitching on them.  OK really I am not quite that nuts.

I used painted  green scrim (cheese cloth type fabric) The nice thing is that it is open enough to show the background through and fine enough to scrunch it some for areas of more density and texture.  I think that I may be adding wildflowers to the rolling  hills  of my meadow.  I am thinking of daisies and possibly other flowers as well. 

One note on the symbolism that I am including,  I am not going to include all of the possible symbolism to all of the parts, partially because their is a lot of symbolism to some of them and some have stuff that doesn't apply to me and my life and since this is a self portrait I am looking at  what applies to me, especially on things like the landscape that I put in to make the piece complete and weren't as special or didn't have personal meaning to me.

That said let's start with grass.  Green and lush grass is a symbol of a healthy land and fertility.  It also symbolizes humble usefulness, utility, submission and the fleeting quality of life.  I guess that means We only have so many years here to accomplish our passions and that we should make the best of our time.  At least my grass is lush and green. 

I couldn't decide exactly what type of geography this is so settled for rolling hills and meadow.  Hills  represent, aspirations, constancy, stability, innocent pleasures, freedom from care, eternity, fertility and is among 1 of the many feminine emblems in my piece.   Meadows have some less happy connotations that I am skipping because this is a happy place.  Along it's happier notes it represents peace, patience, dreaminess, gladness and is connected to the river of life.

My Web Gallery- Includes photos of both of my BJP pages
Artistic Kreations and Passions- my website

BJP Website (my 2007-8 pieces)

Moss at the Roots of my tree.

I have always loved moss and when Wayne and I are out hiking we often take photos of it.  I love all of the different types of moss that are out there and all of the itty bitty details they have.  They tend to grow in places that look inhospitable on the side of rock cliffs etc and I always appreciate that life can thrive no matter what kind of conditions there are.  

My moss is made up of french knots, lazy daisy stitches as well as a scattering of straight stitches.  They are the same stitches I used on my February BJP page only without any beads.  I used a mix of rayon and cotton threads.  I had already fused on a background of painted fusible web where I wanted the moss to go.  The webbing as a background gives the moss a nice  texture and depth.  

Now for what it symbolizes,  humility, service, friendship, boredom, a parasite and maternal love.  I am sure that on the items where I have a ton of information I will edit it down to the ones that have meaning to me but I thought the 2 obvious ones that I would delete were kind of funny.  Boredom,  I don't ever remember being bored in my life.  I love to read and creating gives me such joy that I couldn't consider what it would take to make me bored.  I can't even get my brain to slow down enough to successfully meditate.  The other is parasite,  I don't look at moss as a parasite and sure hope that nobody thinks I am a parasite.  I hadn't looked up the meanings behind moss before I included it on the piece and find it interesting that after what I wrote about the roots that I have put the moss at the base of the roots and that 2 of the things that moss represents is friendship and maternal love.  I have a strong feeling that I am being guided on this project.  Things that are meant to be will be.    

Getting to the Roots of the Matter

I haven't found as much informations written about the symbolism of roots yet but that is OK since I have plenty of personal meaning for them.

I will start with what I did.  The stitching is done with both a rayon thread and a cotton variegated  embroidery floss.  No particular stitches  mostly a mix of this and that to get what I wanted.

The symbolism that I could find for roots makes perfect sense.   Being grounded and personal background  are two that you would expect.  I did find one that was interesting: it was that roots are the foundation, but that they did not necessarily imply stability.   

OK now for the deep down and personal part of what roots have meant to me.  December 11th, 1970 my parents adopted my brother sister and I.   Two weeks before Christmas and they suddenly had a 1,2,and 3 year old.  As the oldest I always knew that I was adopted.  My parents got divorced when I was 6 and when I was 11 my Father died.  There were times when I had trouble with every thing going on in my life and the loss.  Although my Mother was always a stabilizing influence and loved me unconditionally there were many years in my teens and early 20's that I felt like I had no roots.  It was like I had come out of nowhere at 3 years of age.  I didn't remember anything before then and I felt a need for more.  

My Mom always supported my desire for more information but in small town Iowa getting even non-identifying information was next to impossible at that time.  I didn't really want to meet my biological parents ( I had a great Mom)  I just wanted to know where I came from.  I went through a period of depression during college but through the love and support of Family and Friends I managed to get through it.  I went through a lot of counseling during the summer between my junior and senior years in college and that helped.  

The next fall I met Wayne and fell deeply in love.  Wayne was very good for my self esteem which was not great when I met him.  I had some trust issues and feared being abandoned.  All of the things I went through taught me some very valuable lessons.  I no longer needed to find out about my biological family because I could make my own roots.  I already had a wonderful loving family, a man who loved me more than I had thought possible and through him even more family that loved and excepted me.  I also had some great friends who had seen me through some tough times.  

You can create your roots from what ever you want or need to.  You don't need to have a family linage that you can trace back generations.  I have added to my friends and family as we have moved around and now I have a foundation that is built with all of the love that we give to each other.   I reach out  my roots to all I love and now have a foundation that is very strong and deep.

My Web Gallery- Includes photos of both of my BJP pages 
Artistic Kreations and Passions- my website

BJP Website (my 2007-8 pieces)