Stripping Away

You might remember this folk art assemblage quilt I had pieced together a few posts back, having been inspired by the work of Janet Cooper.

I finally began to permanently assemble it, but in order to do so I first had to remove all the assemblage pieces so that I could start to sew the foundation together.

I started with a border of red eyelash trim around the old doll quilt. If you look at the original photo, you won't see it, I hadn't planned to use it before, but as I put it together I knew it needed to be included. Just that tiny embellishment made the quilt come alive visually.

Next came the red and white doilie down the middle, then the vintage linen hanky with its fresh Spring like border. I have folded it to create a little pocket.



And finally the centerpiece is some sort of odd ladies hat. As much as I am delighting with the way it looks here on my quilt, it amuses me to think of this on somebody's head.



As I started to sew the foundation together I began to think about all the pieces I had to remove in order to start. Even though the quilt looked finished in the photo I took, it would not have held together if it was moved. It made me think about how much, once again, my art was hinting at what was happening in my life.

When this season of storms began for my husband and I, I "happened" to hear a radio program in which the speaker said "Sometimes God will allow everything we rely on to be stripped away in order to teach us to only rely on Him." And that is what has been happening ever since my husband was laid off from his job.

One by one God has been loosening my grip on the things I believed were my security, the things that I could count on in my life and as I recognize what has been happening, I realize that He isn't finished yet.

I believe that not only is He teaching me to rely on Him alone, but He is showing me that while my life may have had the appearance of being put together, nothing was securely attached. The foundation wasn't solid enough and if He had answered the prayers I have been praying for Him to answer, we would not have held together. It sounds backwards, but He has to take it all apart in order to put it together the right way.

As I attach each piece to my quilt, it becomes more and more beautiful to me. When I am finished it may look a lot different then I first envisioned it. I'm betting it will look even better then I imagined it.

With God as my Creator, I'm betting my life will too.

The Long Arm of My Love

This art was inspired by and is dedicated to my online art friend Reverend Carol Maclaren.

In response to the many hardships my husband and I have been going through for many months now, Carol sent me a major blessing just before Christmas, and with it she wrote that the Lord had told her to tell me that His arm isn't too short to help me.

I wrote Carol my thank-you's and told her that I felt the tide was turning and surely her gift was a sign. I wrote the same thing here on my blog a few posts back, that I felt that this season of storms was coming to an end. I was wrong. Shortly after that post things seemed to turn from bad to worse and this time I completely fell apart. I was under so much stress from it all that I broke and wound up moving out of the bedroom and sleeping on a mattress on my studio floor for over a week. Neither my husband, nor I was willing to reach out to the other. The enemy must have been having a heyday with that.

But Carol was right, the arm of the Lord is long, and He is more then able to reach into our lives and save. He worked His love in our hearts and brought us back together and has renewed our strength to face another day.




This piece is based on the scripture from Isaiah 59:1 "Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save."

No not too short to save. He sent me encouragement all the way from England through my friend Carol. I'll be sending one of these heart danglies out to her on Monday along with one each to the ten women in one of the two Valentines Day swaps I'm participating in.

Both swaps are heart themed but I can't show you what I've made for the other one until after mine have been opened by the participants on the second day of February.

I'll be posting directions to two different projects here in February so be sure to check back.

And I've got a few extra's to share, one for my Etsy shop and one for Ebay if you want one of your very own!

Whats on your work table?

Not my entire studio, just on my work table. This is what I've been tinkering with since New Years day. With the exception of a few minor details, its all laid out and ready for me to start permanently assembling it. Bad lighting but you get the idea.
So what's on your work table? Leave me a note and post a picture on your blog.

Ringing in the New Year Playing With Art

This is a pretty bad picture of a really cute necklace that I FINALLY made from the 25 charms I received in the "Just Simply Charming" charm swap.

Its hard to tell but the charms are all attached to a pouch I made from the end of a wire mesh lint sock. The chain is a vintage watch fob. It clasps in front.

I wore it all afternoon and it creates the most awesome jangle when I move. Little pieces of art all swinging around my neck together. Music to my ears!

It makes me think of the scripture "Where your treasure is there your heart will be also." Luke 12:34

These little charms truly are a treasure to me. Art is my passion and I have such limited time to spend on it, but today I have had the opportunity to spend many hours playing in my studio. A great way to start the New Year!

It is January 1, 2007. I'm so excited to see where the Lord leads this year. I hope you had a Christ filled Christmas and your New Year is filled with His blessing of peace!

Do Not Be Afraid...Sheltered By The Tree Of Life

I think I'm finally done with this assemblage. It has been sitting in my studio about 90% complete for a few months now. I kept thinking I'd set aside an afternoon to finish it, instead I worked on the finishing touches little by little each evening this past week and wha-la! I'm done!



This is the second assemblage I've done using an antique cuckoo clock case as the foundation. I love the house shape and little windows on the side.

I found this half round cast iron disk shape thing at a flea market in a basket of junk. I excitedly paid 50 cents to a puzzled looking vendor. I was even more excited at home when I washed away the grime to reveal the details. I have no idea what it was used for but this little camera lens fit perfectly. I've collaged a hand rubbed bit of text from an antique book to the glass lens. The word "Faith" is a theme I have been meditating on over the past few months while my husband was unemployed.



This piece overlaps a couple of themes I've been exploring during this season of storms. It is the fifth installation in my "Tree of Life" series, in which the tree represents the Cross and the sacrifice Christ made, through which, we can have eternal life. But the Tree of Life is not just about an eternity in heaven, it is about Christ providing for us here and now.



I love the way the branches curve over the couple praying in the background in a sheltering, protective way.

I had another picture picked out to collage onto the antique mirror, but I rubbed a hole through it. When I found this one and I knew it was meant to be here.



One of the many blessings that has come from this season for my husband and I, is that we started praying together nearly every morning. In the beginning, ever the optimist, I prayed eagerly asking for bold things from God. Midway through, there were days when we each could barely pray. Sometimes I would just sob on my husbands shoulder as he prayed.

But things began to change as we persisted in our prayers. Not in the circumstances, but in the hope and the peace that we felt. We have been through so much more then I have written in these posts, but by the time the oven broke the week before Thanksgiving, The deer ran into the car the week after, and the plumbing backed up just the other day, we couldn't be shaken.



"He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit." Jeremiah 17:8



"Are not two sparrows sold for a penny ? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father."



"So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows."



The storm is finally passing. I can feel it. Things don't look exactly like I thought they would, but I know God is still working out his plan. His ways are better then our ways. He has the complete picture from beginning to end. I'm already praising Him for not answering some of my prayers. My husband started a new job this week. He took the opportunity to change careers and is now training to be a manager in a field he will be much happier in then before. I will continue to work so that he can do this, and the silver lining to that is I will be able to afford to take several art workshops this year!