Susan’s So Thankful Give-Away #14: Random Arts’ Wholey Paper

I spent much of today taking a class at Random Arts in Saluda, NC. Saluda is a great little town up in the mountains about 2 hours drive west of Charlotte; it has some wonderful shops in its historic downtown, and an amazing number of gourmet restaurants for its size. 

Random Arts is a shop that offers “assorted goods for creative mindfulness,” mostly mixed media supplies, including tons of delicious antique/junky tidbits – ephemera, vintage papers,  paper packets for altered books, collage art, mixed media, book arts & book binding, rubber stamps, hand made papers, stamp pads, art supplies, die cut packets, assorted vintage playing cards… you get the idea.

I was there to take a soldering class to make little pendants. First, we created small collages, put them between thin layers of glass, and taped the edges with copper tape. I used an image of one of my art quilts on one side:

And a little collage on the back:

After this, we soldered over the copper tape. My results were not too great. In fact, I think I was the worst student in the class… but it was really fun. I bought supplies and will “try, try again” until I get better results. I think I was supposed to be gliding the solder on, and I was pressing too hard, so that I actually melted the copper tape! Anyway, here’s how mine turned out:

This is the second workshop I’ve taken at Random Arts; I took a great class with Jane LaFazio there last summer. Since then, the shop has moved into its new digs, a craftsman style bungalow with a bright orange front door, and lots of space inside to spread out. It is such a welcoming and fun place... you can spend hours looking at everything, and absorbing the creative vibes, and getting great ideas. 

Can’t get to Saluda? Some of the shop’s goods are offered on their website and their eBay store.

Lots of cool stuff!

Hello? Hello?

A birdcage holds rolled sheets of music

The spacious new classroom

Painted pendant banner with necklaces

Paper globes atop a bookcase

Tree branches decorated with paper leaves and other lovely things

Window treatment with mixed media flowers

Here’s Jane (below) with one of her new products: Wholey Paper. The package contains rare, vintage punch paper. She has no idea what its original use was; do you? It could be computer punch paper, but I'm not sure. It would be great for altered books, printing, texture, stencils, weaving, or plaster embellishment. When I told Jane about my give-away, she kindly offered up a pack for me to give away!

 

Owner Jane Powell with her “Wholey Paper”

A pack of Wholey Paper

Look at what you can do with Wholey Paper!

Here’s your chance to win! Leave a comment after this post and tell me if you do any mixed media projects that need Wholey Paper. I’ll pull a name at random at 9 p.m. on Sunday Dec. 11, and send you the pack. AND THE WINNER IS: usagypsy!

Susan’s So Thankful Give-Away #13: Quilting Arts and Stitch magazine

Yep, it’s two more magazines! Both are published by Interweave. The first is the October/November 2011 issue of Quilting Arts, and the second is the Winter 2011 issue of Stitch. 

If you read my blog because you love or make art quilts, there’s a pretty good chance that you also read Quilting Arts magazine, which is the best magazine out there dedicated to art quilting (in my humble opinion!). But you may not have checked out Stitch, which includes projects for modern sewers, such as garments, home decor items, and crafts. I simply love the Wool Petals Pillow on the cover! It is one of a bevy of projects in this issue made with wool felt.

Here’s your chance to win! Leave a comment after this post and tell me about your favorite quilting or sewing magazine. I’ll pull two names at random at 9 p.m. on Saturday Dec. 10, and send you each a magazine. AND THE WINNERS ARE: Claudia Becker (QA) and Kimberly (Stitch).

Susan’s So Thankful Give-Away #12: 101 Patchwork Projects & Quilts

Today’s give-away is a copy of 101 Patchwork Projects + Quilts, a special publication by the publishers of Quilting Arts magazine. The hefty 196-page magazine retails for $19.99, and includes two projects I designed. The first is a dog bed (that’s my dog Sophie on it):

The second is a business card case:

Here’s your chance to win! Leave a comment after this post and tell me about a tradition you keep during the holidays, and why it is important to you. I’ll pull a name at random at 9 p.m. on Friday Dec. 9, and send you the magazine. AND THE WINNER IS: QuiltingGranny!

Susan’s So Thankful Give-Away #11: Six Fat Quarters

This is my new kitten, Wicked, with a collection of six pretty fat quarters in shades of yellow, peach, pink and blue. They look to me like they are from a collection of 1930s fabrics, but I don’t have any more information about them! (If you know the designer or fabric company that makes them, please leave a comment and let me know, so I can share it.) They came in the goodie bag given to teachers at International Quilt Festival.

Here’s your chance to win! Leave a comment after this post and tell me a bit about your pet, if you have one. I’ll pull a name at random at 9 p.m. on Thursday Dec. 8, and send you the fabrics. (But not the kitten. She’s mine!) THE WINNER IS: Rhonda G!

Chocolate Ginger Crinkles

Let the holiday baking begin! These are one of my favorite cookies; they are highly spiced, and require at least one big glass of milk as an accompaniment. They are slightly chewy, not crisp – as long as you don’t cook them too long – and are best served warm. (You can heat the cooled cookies up in the microwave by heating them for just a few seconds.)

Susan’s So Thankful Give-Away #10: Festival Tote Bag

This is the official tote bag of the 2011 International Quilt Festival – Houston! It is made from recycled water bottles and other recycled plastics. You can use it until it wears out, and then recycle it again. It is spacious and sturdy, and features a beautiful contemporary quilt called “Starry Night” by Shirley Fowlkes-Stevenson, from the exhibit Texas Quilts Today: Selections from the Book Lone Stars III: A  Legacy of Texas Quilts 1986-2011. This quilt is featured on the front and back, and there are beautiful stars from the quilt on the sides.

One of the things I love about this tote is that is structured inside. It has a section inside that folds out with spaces to hold three large bottles. The bottom is also reinforced. 

Here’s your chance to win! Leave a comment after this post and tell me what you’d be toting in your tote bag if you win it. I’ll pull a name at random at 9 p.m. on Wednesday Dec. 7, and send you the tote bag. AND THE WINNER IS: Judy Cooper Textile Images!

Susan’s So Thankful Give-Away #9: Quilting Arts Gifts

Here is a give-away for an item you need NOW if you want to whip up some hand-made Christmas gifts in a jiffy! It’s the 2011 issue of Quilting Arts Gifts – 148 pages of fabulous ideas, including two projects by moi! It retails for $14.99.

There’s an iPad sleeve, smartphone covers, tree skirt and fireplace screen ensemble, garlands, stockings, pillows, ornaments, floral brooches, table runners, coasters, journal covers, bags for wine bottles, laptop bag, journal covers, and tons more. Whew!

Plus, you get the recipe for my Tiropetes Greek appetizer, and my kids’ favorite, Chocolate Dream Pie. And lots more recipes by contributing artists. 

Here are my projects – Nametag Pouches: 

And Fire and Ice Candle Wraps:

Here’s your chance to win! Leave a comment after this post and tell me if you plan to make a hand-made gift for someone this year, and if so, what you are making. I’ll pull a name at random at 9 p.m. on Tuesday Dec. 6, and send you Quilting Arts Gifts 2011. And the winner is: Linecat!

Susan’s So Thankful Give-Away #8: EazyPeazy Patterns

I met Margaret Travis of EazyPeazy Quilts at Fall Quilt Market in Houston last year. This year she was back with some wonderful new designs, and she gave me some to share with you! (She is a wonderfully kind woman!)

EazyPeazy’s slogan is “Sew So Easy,” and Margaret aims to create patterns that are simple to make. Many would make great gift items, and hey – you could probably whip them up in time for the holidays. 


This Twistin’ Diamonds Tote uses ByAnnie’s Soft and Stable as a stabilizer, and the Double Diamond Ruler by Bright Quilting Notions to create the very cool (and easy) diamond pattern on the front of the tote. (Please note that these notions are not included in the pattern giveaway; sorry!)

Margaret’s MeeWow Bag would be great for a cat lover! Margaret recommends Soft and Stable for this bag, too:

And here is another stylish, yet easy to make tote bag: the Twist ’n Shop Tote. It has cute twisted handles, and uses Soft and Stable and the Sweet ’n Sassy Rombus Template by Creative Grids.

 

Make sure you check out Margaret’s Eazier Livin’ line. It includes products – such as a walker saddlebag and a wheelchair backpack – to make everyday life easier for people who use walkers or wheelchairs. 

Here’s your chance to win! Take a look at the EazyPeazy website, and then leave a comment after this post and tell me which of Margaret’s designs you like best. (It can be any of the patterns on the website, not just the ones here.) I’ll pull three names at random at 9 p.m. on Monday Dec. 5, and send you each a pattern. THE WINNERS: Marcia W., Woolen Sails, and Deb.

Susan’s So Thankful Give-Away #7: “Celebrate Great Quilts!”

Here’s a give-away for those of you out there who love traditional historic quilts. Celebrate Great Quilts! Circa 1825-1940 (C&T Publishing, 2004) is a book by cousins Karey Patterson Bresenhan and Nancy O’Bryant Puentes, who founded the International Quilt Association (with their mothers). The quilts featured in this book are from their International Quilt Festival Collection.

In the introduction, they tell how they collected these quilts, over many years, when one caught their eye or captured their heart. “We believe that a quilt must make your heart sing and your eyes dance. If it doesn’t, then it’s not meant for you.” If you love old quilts, you know exactly what they mean. (Unfortunately, I have found a number of old quilts that make my eyes dance and my heart sing, but have not had enough money to purchase them!) This is collection to make one drool. 

The quilts are shown by period (1825-1849, 1850-1874, 1875-1899, 1900-1924, and 1925-1940). The book features beautiful photos of each quilt, with what is known about it (materials, techniques, quilting stitches per inch, etc.), as well as general information about the styles, techniques and patterns typical of each era. 


This book is fabulous eye candy and a research volume all wrapped into one. If you love old quilts, you’ll love it.

Here’s your chance to win! Leave a comment after this post and tell me if you have purchased an old quilt, and if so, what it is like and why you love it. I’ll pull one name at random at 9 p.m. on Tuesday Nov. 29, and send you the book. WINNER: Laura T. 

Susan’s So Thankful Giveaway #6: Artistcellar stencils

A few weeks ago, Lisa Cousineau of artistcellar sent me some new stencils to try out. Artistcellar sells several brands of stencils, but this is their own, newly designed and produced line, marketed under their name. 

I’ve used stencils a good amount in the past few years, both in my own projects and when teaching my Surface Design Madness class. Here’s what I look for when choosing stencils: First, they have to be cool, or funky, or just downright beautiful. They have to provide striking designs, or patterns that act as subtle background texture. But almost as important is that they are sturdy, because they have to be able to take what ever I throw at them – acrylic paint, oil paint sticks, dyes, inks, markers – and then withstand a good cleaning. Artistcellar stencils deliver on both counts, and are very affordable, too.

All of artistcellar’s stencils are 6" square, and are laser cut from tough 10mil polyester material. They are very sturdy! All are made in the USA, and retail for $4.40, or sell in sets of four (all of the series) for $15.99. 

I’m planning to use these stencils on fabric (wouldn’t it be beautiful to make a notepad cover or some other useable or wearable item out of hand-stenciled fabrics?) and on paper (they’d make great background textures in a sketchbook). 

Here are the four series:

Cathedral Series– This series was inspired by windows in French gothic cathedrals. Here is “Amiens,” stenciled four times to form a circular design. I used blue metallic acrylic textile paint on a strongly patterned pink batik.

Traditional Japanese Series– Inspired by classic Japanese motifs, all stencils in this series can be used alone or as a repeating pattern. I love the dragonfly; I think I’ll be ordering that one!

Japanese Geometric Series. These repeatable patterns are inspired by traditional Japanese textiles. I tested the “Seven Jewels” stencil here using watered-down metallic textile paint, to get a bit of a bleed:

For a crisper design, I used the paint straight, without watering it down, and stenciled several times for a layered look:

And here it is on paper, using watercolors:

Steampunk Series– This line is inspired by gears and mechanical assemblies, and has an urban grunge feel. I love how “Industria” looks stenciled in silver textile paint on fabric:

This one was stenciled first, then brushed with watercolor. While it was still wet, I “stitched” using black paint, and let it bleed and drip.

I also love artistcellar’s “Art is NOT optional” tote bag (left). If you order $50 in products from them (excluding taxes and shipping), you can get one for free!

I have to say that I really love all the stencils she sent me, and I want to keep them all for myself! But I’m trying very hard not to be greedy, and my give-away is about sharing the love – and the goodies! I think I can part with a few, so…

Here’s your chance to win! Leave a comment after this post and tell me how you use stencils in your work (or if you never have, tell me what you’d like to try). I’ll pull two names at random at 9 p.m. on Monday Nov. 28, and send you each a stencil to try. WINNERS: Ruth and Tesuque both won a stencil. 

Susan’s So Thankful Giveaway #5: Patterns

 

Today’s give-away is a bunch of great patterns by different designers. First up is a groovy garment pattern, the BoHo Frock by Cheryl Kuczek of Paradiso Designs. Cheryl has some very arty designs for bags, skirts, jackets, dresses and vests on her website, so make sure to check them out. 

I have three patterns by Aunties Two, who offer lots of creative bag designs, plus baskets, bowls, boxes, and rugs. Here is their Saturday Shopper pattern, which features four pockets inside, and outside easy-access slash pockets on the outside, plus two side pockets that work well for water bottles. The handles are very sturdy, so you can pack a bunch of stuff inside.

Their Dufflette pattern is great for organizing and storing small items, such as toiletries, or stuff for sports, school or quilting. And they are so darn cute!

These sweet little Finger Pouches can be carried either on a finger (there's a loop on the back), or hung around your wrist: 

If you are a penguin lover, this one is for you! Castilleja Cotton has a bunch of different penguin designs, including this one called Catching Hearts for a small wallhanging:

Indygo Junction’s Koozie Kouture pattern by Amy Barickman has multiple designs that would make fast, fun gifts. Use up some of your special fabric scraps making designs for all types of drinks you need to keep hot or cold – soda or beer cans, coffee cups, water bottles or wine glasses.

Okay, here’s the deal: Leave a comment after this post and tell me which pattern you’d most like to win, and why. I’ll pull six names at random at 9 p.m. on Sunday Nov. 27, and try to match you up with the pattern you want. WINNERS: Jan in AZ wins the Koozie pattern; Louise wins Catching Hearts; Doreen K wins Finger Pouches; Linda Dalton wins Dufflettes; Julia in NZ wins Saturday Shopper; and EverythingQuilts wins BoHo Frock!