Mixed media fabric paper – part 1

Posted on May 16, 2012 by Linda Matthews

I took my video camera out for a spin the other day mostly to see if it still works since I haven’t done any videos in ages, and while I had it out I let it run while I worked on a piece of fabric paper which took most of the afternoon. But with a little creative editing I managed to speed things up considerably and condense it into about 5 minutes of video. Now if I can just figure out how to work so fast in real life, just imagine how much I could get done!

So here’s a peek inside what my afternoon looked like. Working intuitively doesn’t always end well, but this piece has potential so I’ll continue working with it and film part 2 and post it at a later date. I hope it inspires you to get your playthings out and experiment a little!

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Gratitude

Posted on May 4, 2012 by Linda Matthews

This video landed in my inbox several times this week from various sources and obviously needs to be shared. Be inspired and grateful.

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It’s raining purses, totes and bags

Posted on April 30, 2012 by Linda Matthews

Updated for April 2012

This month I hit 400 links to free tutorials for purses, totes and handbags! Phew – it’s hard imagine there could be that many diffrent ways to make a bag!

Here’s all the new listings for April 2012. Click on the thumbnails below and the links will take you over to my website at Free Purse, Bag & Tote Patterns & Tutorials where you’ll find the links to the tutorials.

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Fun with fabric paper

Posted on April 23, 2012 by Linda Matthews

I hope you all had a great weekend! I personally think it’s always a good weekend when you can get in a little playtime in the studio which was exactly what I did this weekend. My fabric paper stash was running a little low so I thought I’d whip up a few new pieces.

For these pieces I thought I’d try a slightly different technique than I usually use. Instead of focusing on creating texture which is what I normally do when I make fabric paper, this time I focused on design instead, and layered the fabric with bits of colored papers before adding only a slight textured surface by slightly scrunching a layer of tissue paper on top before painting.

I like this piece – I think it will make an interesting background.

Fabric Paper

The texture is nice and subtle.

Fabric Paper

This piece turned out fun. … Continue reading →

Be inspired – be very inspired!

Posted on April 20, 2012 by Linda Matthews

I shared this video recently with members of The Creative Explorer’s Club, but I think this is so awesomely inspiring, I need to share it with you also ..

Have an inspired weekend everyone!

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How do you see yourself?

Posted on April 18, 2012 by Linda Matthews

I finally managed to get a little sewing in recently and finally finished a self-portrait challenge for my local fiber art group.

I wanted to do this piece all in fabric but I don’t work much with commercial fabrics any more and after I moved recently I gave away practically all of my stash of commercial fabrics (that’s right – it’s all gone!). So I don’t have a large selection of fabrics anymore and for this piece I really needed something that was a little more traditional than what’s left in my stash. So what’s a girl to do? … Continue reading →

Being creatively inspired

Posted on April 16, 2012 by Linda Matthews

Last week my friend Mary and I took a day trip to check out one of the local art galleries – the Jeanine Taylor Folk Art Gallery – to see their current exhibition of textile art called “Frayed Edges” by a couple of local fiber artists, Midge Baudouin and Allison Stilwell.

It’s always exciting and a great source of creative inspiration to see what other textile artists are doing and I really enjoyed this exhibition; it was fun as well as visually exciting, and included wall art as well as three dimensional art and even furniture.

Frayed Edges

I loved their bird art and there were several similar pieces in this series. Those little black dots you see around the edges of the frame are nails, and the art quilts are in fact nailed to the frame. A creative way to hang a quilt and it sure beats making those fiddly quilt sleeves.

Frayed Edges

A handy reminder for some of us. … Continue reading →

Grow

Posted on April 11, 2012 by Linda Matthews

And the day came
when the risk to remain tight in a bud
was more painful
than the risk it took to blossom.
Anaïs Nin

Each month in The Creative Explorer’s Club, I encourage members to set a vision and select a focus word that will guide them right throughout the month. I also encourage them to work with a process for making a “one word vision card” which is a tool that can be used to help support their vision. My vision card for this month is “Grow”. … Continue reading →

Bag Purse & Tote Tutorials – Link Updates

Posted on April 6, 2012 by Linda Matthews

Comment

I just realized I haven’t posted any Bag/Purse/Tote tutorial link updates here for quite some time so here’s a roundup for the last three months.

Click on the thumbnails below and the links will take you over to my website at Free Purse, Bag & Tote Patterns & Tutorials where you’ll find the links to the tutorials.

There are some really nice tutorials listed so I’m sure you’ll find something to inspire!

March 2012

February 2012

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Business plan vs business vision

Posted on April 4, 2012 by Linda Matthews

I’m sure by now you know how much I enjoy working with vision cards; it seems I talk about them a lot. I do that mainly because they have made such an impact in my life. I’ve been using them for a while now as a tool to help me achieve my goals and focus on the changes I want to make in my life, and more recently as a way to stay positively focused as I work through several personal issues. I’ve found that using the combination of a single word with visual images creates a very strong focus and is a very powerful way to bring about change and healing.

Vision Card

So as I was preparing to review and update my business plan recently, and knowing how helpful vision cards have been to me on a personal level, I wondered if it was possible to also use them in my business.

Business plans are generally typed or written and are pretty much a left-brain activity (insert great big yawn) so I wondered if adding a little right-brain creativity by including images would have any impact.

I started with my business values and made these two cards so far.

Business Vision Card