Wednesday, December 17, 2008

"Gathering"


"Gathering"
Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

This piece is on its way to our local Wildlife Refuge Center to hang in their bookstore. They have been very kind in displaying my felt work and offering it for sale. I hope to start on some new pieces for them soon as some of the proceeds benefit the refuge.

Cyber Fyber Exhibition 2009

Check it out! Susan Lenz has posted videos of postcard and ATC entires for the 2009 Cyber Fyber Exhibition. The show will hang January 8 - 20th at Gallery 80808 in Columbia, South Carolina. 

Saturday, November 29, 2008

International Fiber Collaborative

IFC has announced its 2008-2009 project: Interdependence. Participants will create a full-sized tree for display in April 2009 at Big Springs International Park in Huntsville, Alabama. 
Much like a living tree is interdependent on its leaves and roots for survival, societies are interdependent on the greater whole, family units, communities and countries. 
Participants from around the world are invited to create leaves to contribute to the creation of the tree. In total, up to 30,000 leaves may be used. For more details on this project or to download an entry form, please visit the International Fiber Collaborative website for more information.

Friday, November 14, 2008

Mariners' Shrine


Mariners' Shrine
Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

Shadow Box Shrine made from an old dresser drawer. The inside was lined with a nautical chart of Kodiak Island and assorted photo transfers, beach metals, fishing net and other odds & ends. The coral is a drawing I transfered and mounted on foam core. The fish image is mounted on plexiglass.

Sea Monster


Sea Monster
Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

Made from recycled sweaters, tights and felt. I started construction on this at ArtFiberFest 2007 in Keeley Barham's WOOLY BEASTS workshop. I think he'll be tagging along to ARTFEST 2009!

Saturday, November 01, 2008

Day of the Dead Themed Show








Now hanging in the Harbor Building for the month of November is an ATC Day of the Dead themed show. These are just a few of the many works presented by local artists.

Tidal Windows


Tidal Windows
Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

I started this piece ages ago and finally got around to finishing it. I've been trying to complete all of my unfinished art projects before I start anything new in an effort to clear out my creative space and start fresh with some new ideas. This piece and others will be hanging at The Fly-By next month.

Sunday, September 28, 2008

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Exquisite Corpse Textiles

I've been taking part in an interesting project for the past few months- an Exquisite Corpse Textile exchange. I haven't mentioned it before because I'm not allowed to post any pic's of my work until the entire project has been completed. Each participant creates a design on fabric that is segmented into 6"x6" squares. One square is chosen and the design within the square embellished and worked in colors chosen by the creator of the piece. The finished square is then covered with fabric, front and back, and sent to the next person in the group to work on. Each person remains blind to what the person before them has done. The only guide is the drawing on the fabric and the color choices given at the start. When each square has been completed, the piece is returned to the person who started it and all the squares are then uncovered to reveal the finished piece.  So when I finally get my "corpse" back, 5 other artists will have worked on it and I myself will have worked on a total of 6 different designs. I'm currently on my fourth square/piece. It's been fun to see each person's designs and the creative challenges each piece brings. Since I'm participating in the 2nd round of Exquisite Corpse, there are some round 1 photos starting to trickle in now that its ended. You can see them here.

Teesha's Yarn- Chapter 2

Here's a peek at the next section of Teesha's yarn that I'm spinning. I'm using fabric scraps for this one and a few add-in's to embellish. I've got lots of fun bits (beads, charms, etc) that I'll be plying in when the whole yarn is finished. I'd better make a note to self the order of each section I've spun, as I'm going to have to thread all those bits on my ply thread to correspond to each section!

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Teesha's Yarn Project

I've been wanting to make a yarn for Teesha Moore for ages now. When I met her last year, I mentioned the project to her and she generously offered me some fabric collage sheets to use. Since then I've been thinking about the technical aspects of the project, gathering and assembling bits and waiting for my muse to visit. She finally came round the other night and I've started work at long last! Here is a peek at the first pile of fibers to be spun... There was more additions than what is shown here, but it should give you an idea. The whole yarn will be made up of entirely different sections- like pages in one of Teesha's journals, each section will be unique but will compliment the others. For this project I'm using every spinning trick I know, and have come up with a new addition that I hope will work out as planned. I'll post pic's of each section I'm about to spin and keep you posted on where I'm at in the project.

ArtFest 2009 Confirmation!

Got confirmation in the mail that I made it in to ArtFest 2009! I've got classes with Linda & Opie O'Brien on Thursday, Theo Ellsworth on Friday and Micheal DeMeng on Saturday. Can't wait!!!

Monday, September 15, 2008

ATC Trades for ArtFest 2009


ATC Trades for ArtFest 2009
Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

Getting started on trades for ArtFest!

Sunday, September 07, 2008

ArtFest 2009

Registration for ArtFest 2009 opened up this past week, and hopefully I'll get to attend this time around. I've sent in my registration, however this event fills up FAST and my paperwork is still in the postal system. I've got my fingers crossed! I attended last year's ArtFiberFest and completely thrived on the energy and atmosphere. ArtFest is like ArtFiberFest to the 5th degree drawing 500+ people, whereas AFF was a modest 150 or so. I'm holding my breath until the confirmation parcel arrives. 

Monday, July 28, 2008

Cyber Fyber Exhibition 2009


Cyber Fyber Exhibition 2009
Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

Cyber Fyber is an international Postcard & ATC swap hosted by Susan Lenz, that will be exhibited at Gallery 80808/Vista Studios in downtown Columbia, South Carolina January 8-20th 2009. The focus of the exhibition is to highlight the influences of internet access for todays fiber artists. To participate in the swap and/or sponsor this event please visit: 

Cyber Fyber Exhibition

Monday, July 21, 2008

More from the Scrap Pile



Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

Here is another yarn spun from salvaged bits from various projects. This yarn contains wool, alpaca, angora, recycled silk, some unidentified sheer fabric and burned out velvet.

still single



Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

This yarn was spun from merino fiber carded up with felty bits I received in a swap with Wooldancer in Australia.

the single life...



Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

I seem to be favoring singles here lately...

Extreme Tweed


Extreme Tweed
Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

Extreme Tweed


Extreme Tweed
Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

Extreme Tweed


Extreme Tweed
Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

Natural silver romney wool carded with lots of fiber scrapage!

Saturday, July 12, 2008

Art in a Carton


Art in a Carton
Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

Here are two of the cartons I put together... I've got another finished and 3 more to make.

ATC 's in the Works


ATC 's
Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

I've been slowly working on these. They are made of watercolor paper I had done some printing on during a journal making workshop. The second layer is made up of leftover bits of painted papers and end cuts from other mixed-media projects. I have one more layer of textile elements to add before they are finished.

Wednesday, July 09, 2008

Art in a Carton

Here is the contents of what I received in my Art in a Carton. This came from Germany. I tried to upload a pic of the carton, but for some reason blogger and my new mac book just are not working well together. It took me ages just to get this photo to upload. Blogging through flickr seems to work at light speed, however I can only blog one pic at a time unless I put together a mosaic. 

Tuesday, June 24, 2008



Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

Loop's Spontaneous Spinning Club



I fell in love with the gorgeous colors and textures of the spinning batts produced by Loop. It was more or less an obsession at first sight, and even though I could card up similar batts of my own, I couldn't resist joining Loop's Spontaneous Spinning Club. I guess the allure is the anticipation of not knowing what's coming next, but knowing it will be something that inspires me. Each month a new and wondrous batt arrives in my mail box- an exquisite treat that has me running for my wheel as soon as I get home. I even forgot to take a photo of the batt for the last yarn I spun cause I couldn't wait to spin it! 

Monday, June 23, 2008

Goth Rave


Goth Rave
Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

Scrounging up Leftovers



Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

Sometimes when you are driven to spin something, and all you have at hand are leftovers from other projects, you create something quite wonderful and unexpected. I love how this yarn shifts from coils, to standard ply to crazy plied. The colors and textures are continually shifting throughout the yarn.

Silver Lining- The Yarns


Silver Lining- The Yarns
Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

Here are the yarns spun from my silver lining batts. You can see more details of these yarns on my flickr page.

Sunday, June 08, 2008

Dyed & Printed Fabric


Dyed & Printed Fabric
Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

Worked on dying and printing a piece of fabric this week that I've cut into smaller sections for working into mixed-media art quilts, ATC's, Postcards, etc. This is only one section. To see more visit my flickr page.

Weaving Works in Seattle


Weaving Works in Seattle
Originally uploaded by yarnpunk

Check out Weaving Works next time you are in the Seattle area. They have an amazing selection of yarn and fiber. I had a very limited time when I was there and felt so overwhelmed. Make sure you have at least a couple of hours to kill, otherwise you are just torturing yourself.

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Glen and Mar Rock Seattle



Two words for this show: Fucking Brilliant! I managed to video the first song before I got busted by one of the bouncers, so once I figure out how to upload video from my flip camera I'll get it posted somewhere online. Snapped one pic of the show, but was worried about getting kicked out for a second offense so didn't risk any more photos than that. Got to meet them afterwards, as I was staying in the same building, and have to say they are both very warm, amicable human beings. I wish them all the best and hope they make it up to Alaska some day...

Monday, April 28, 2008

The Swell Season

Tomorrow I'm heading for Seattle to catch The Swell Season perform at The Moore Theater. Irish singer/songwriter Glen Hansard of The Frames  and pianist Marketa Irglova (who make up the band The Swell Season) starred in  the movie Once together and also wrote the soundtrack. I caught this film last time I flew to Seattle for ArtFiberFest in October. I'm a huge Frames fan, so finding this movie on the inflight digi-player en-route to Seattle was AMAZING! 

Printed Matter


These are the prints I made in a block printing class I recently participated in... I've already sold one of the fish prints in our local Whale Fest art show this week. The star fish I plan to frame vertically in a series of prints matted together in one frame. I haven't decided if I'm going to put four prints together to make one long dramatic piece, or three and leave the fourth as a single print to sell.  I have two more prints where the starfish are darker in the middle. Those I plan to mount horizontal as shown above in a single frame.

Monday, April 07, 2008

Silver Lining

So... I went to the thrift store looking for inspiration and found some silver sparkle threads to deconstruct. The shirt I shredded and the sweater unraveled and brutally ripped apart...

which created this wonderful, glittering pile of crimped fiber that I love, love, love.
Combined with merino/silk, wool, angelina and novelty yarn...

and wildly carded on the drum carder...
creates these decadently soft metallic batts that I'm dying to get spinning on. I've got some bits to add in during the spinning process and some complimentary threads for plying.






Art + Yarn

I can't believe I forgot to blog this:




This is the amazing package that I received in a seasonal swap from Australian spinner Wooldancer in early February. I sent her my "Spring Eternal" yarn (the one with the branches and bird nest) in exchange for this autumn inspired work of art. This was so worth the wait!