“By the Sea: Wave”; series of tapestry artist trading cards, woven for trading at Art & Soul in early May. Woven on cardboard loom. Linen warp, cotton weft. 3.5 x 2.5 inches.

“By the Sea: Tidal Pools”; series of tapestry artist trading cards, woven for trading at Art & Soul in early May. I drew on memories of Sunset Beach and Tubbs Inlet for these seascapes. Woven on cardboard loom. Linen warp, wool weft. 3.5 x 2.5 inches.

The next two will be pins:

I’m not done embellishing the one on the right - I plan to bead an edge around it.
Left: Linen warp, cotton, wool, and chenille weft, shells. 3 5/8 x 2 3/4 inches.
Right: Linen warp, cotton, wool, and chenille weft, shells. 3 1/4 x 2 5/8 inches.

“By the Sea: Overcast Low Tide” - I think that we’ll keep this one, as it is too big for an ATC and I’m rather fond of it. The wool for the sky was space dyed leftovers from a weaving years ago. Linen warp, wool weft. 3.75 x 2.75 inches.

My goal today was to complete a woven artist trading card, and I achieved that goal! Well, almost. I have to put a backing on it, but I think that I’m going to wait until I get about half a dozen woven and back all of them at the same time.

Earlier this month, I wove two other little tapestries which I meant to be artist trading cards, but the size was not quite right. The only two restrictions for an artist trading card is that it can’t be sold and it must be 2 1/2 by 3 1/2 inches. Think baseball card. So those two will be pins. When I hit the size right, it will be an ATC, and when I don’t, it will be a pin.

The theme of Art & Soul is “By the Sea.” From what I understand, most of the attendees carry with them lots of little handcrafted goodies to trade. I’m weaving these tapesties on little cardboard squares, and they are doing double duty - they will be trades and they are studies for my next tapestry bag.

Weaving these little tapestries is one of the most relaxing things I’ve done for a long time, and it is so easy. Taking photos of the little weavings, not!!!!! Also, I planned to do a lot of beading on my collages and art quilts and fabric journals and weavings. I might need to get my bifocals first - it is definitely ten times harder than it used to be to thread a needle and poke it through those tiny little holes. So, to recap, weaving = fun! Photography and beading = frustration.

I swear, this was not my intention of what to do with my unhatched chickens from the guvmint. But I couldn’t help myself. I was sucked in by forces way beyond my control. I am hypnotised. My jaw has dropped, and I am drooling. I feel quite faint.

This is the danger of the combination of the Internet, a paid off credit card, and a long period of denial.

I’ve been bopping around some fantastic web sites lately. Quite frankly, the only reason I haven’t spent more time on the art internet is because I find it completely overwhelming, as if I am looking into infinity. One of my earliest toddler memories is a cup with a picture of a cow drinking from the same cup with a picture of a cow drinking from the same cup with a picture of a cow drinking from the same cup… This has brought that feeling back to me.

Yesterday, I was farting around with my Sitemeter referrals when I found a blog called Joyce Makes Art by way of a Google search page in Russian for images of “Squirt.” Turns out that Joyce also has a cat named Squirt, and it turns out that she is a multimedia collage and fiber artist. So I was looking through her site when I clicked on this button and fell down the rabbit hole:

It didn’t take much to convince me to register for Keith Lo Bue’s Precious Little: the Poetics of Found Object Jewelry two-day workshop. Then I meandered my way to his virtual gallery and web site.

Holy crap. I feel like a stray dog and someone has offered me a cheeseburger and a warm place to stay.

So that I don’t follow Keith home wagging my tail, I am taking Sandy with me and he’ll explore the nearby museums while I am in class all day Saturday and Sunday. We’ll stay in a very nice hotel and enjoy Friday and our two evenings together.

I’m going to learn how to use tools and make art out of all the junk I have trash-picked, picked up off the pavement, cut out of magazines, and stored in little jars and bowls all over the house, all in the anticipation that one day, this time would come.

Not only that, it’s already February 1 in Australia, and so the February Take It Further Challenge has begun. Next post.