#24 of 52 projects

Barely in under the wire, but, I did get week #24 done on time.

Components: Background is rust dyed heart printed fabric, gold Shiva paint stik heart on black fabric, handmade paper heart, and 3 heart brads. The paper heart is outlined with 3-D paint and the 4x6 inch piece is edge stitched with variegated thread.

Quote: Aim for the moon and if you miss you will still be among the stars. Les Brown

More handmade paper

These two were failures from last spring, or at least they were boring. The circle one has a new layer of pulp added on top near the bottom and the lines were re-rusted.

The other small 4x6 inch piece has quite a bit of layering added to it, more collage-like, plus a heart.

Rather than clog up this blog with photos, after all I already chat too much on it, I started one specifically for photos. I'm currently taking an online class, details of which are on the new blog, but don't ask for details about how the photos are done. Instead, sign up for a class. The blog is here: I studied fine art photography for years, not that it shows!, so snapshots are difficult for me to do. It's an entirely different mind-set.

Quote: Cats are rather delicate creatures and they are subject to a good many ailments, but I have never heard of one who suffered from insomnia. Joseph Wood Krutch

Energy Deficit

I'm battling fatigue which tends to make me cranky, enough so that when the seven month old Janome Platinum Jem refused to sew I seriously thought about tossing it into the trash can. The Redlands Sewing Center is about
1.5 hours from here and that of course made the situation even larger than it needed to be. In the yellow pages I discovered only two repair shops in the entire area, one of them isn't in the most desirable of locations. Happily, the second one isn't too far away and I was informed that if I got the machine in on Wednesday the repair guy was in their shop on Thursday so I could probably have my machine back on Friday. "I'll bet," I thought. Often I'm surprised when things turn out; the machine is back home after being reset to factory settings. I'm terrified to try it, what if it doesn't work? In the mood I'm in I wouldn't be able to handle it. Energy deficit due to insomnia, enough said.

I did however whip up two more batches of paper pulp with an additive that is supposed to help the paper become acid free. I forgot to mention that before. Two examples of some of the fragments and small sheets of paper that I made are below. The scans seem to make the paper look like one sheet rather than a small embossed fragment on top of a sheet of paper. I haven't adhered them together yet simply because I'm still wondering if I like them well enough. To achieve the blue tone on second one I used chalk pastels. I don't make delicate paper to write on, why bother when one can purchase beautiful papers. The paper I make is often chunky, highly textured, or chock full of things that appeal to me like herbs, dried flowers or whatever is on my work bench such as onion skins on their way to the compost pile. I think that the paper made better use of them.


The other thing that I tried was to use hand sanitizer, Purell, to transfer a photo I shot in Arles, France in 1997. This particular print was too dark. The details of the house in the background weren't evident. I do like the sunflowers so I tried the transfer on a sheet of handmade paper
I made years ago. Failed paper, failed print, what did I have to lose? I have a feeling that this process invented by Glenda Bailey is something I will continue to play with. I'm impressed with how easy it is to do. (Note: Glenda continues to add new information about the technique so scroll through her blog to the first entry.)


Quote: Insomnia is a gross feeder. It will nourish itself on any kind of thinking, including thinking about not thinking. Clifton Fadimen

Disintegrating.

Rain! The bundle I put outdoors on Sat. is receiving a nice soaking. I wondered what would happen to some of the photos I included and if the one in this photo is any indication there might not be any images left on May. 1. No wonder photo transfers sometimes work with just water! I tossed some some text pages from the French book onto the rusted cookie sheet and then placed a jar on them to flatten them. Love the circle imprint.

I was able to get out into the garage again today even though it was freezing! Where did this cold weather come from? A couple more batches of pulp including some for some paper casting I'm trying using molds I made yesterday when I glued some elements on mat board. So far I'm not impressed.

Quote: Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there. Will Rogers

In the Studio

It was a productive day, that is after I cleared some of the pile off of the work table in the garage. The blender is leaking sodium alginate that ended up clogging the motor. I couldn't find a used blender at any of the 4 thrift stores I tried last month so I ended up purchasing a new one for $12.95. Planning ahead is always a good thing; the urge to make paper struck late last night so today the new blender was finally released from the box and put to use. I have my own way of making paper that includes a handmade mold with built-in deckle. Velcro holds the window screen and plastic canvas in place and I pour pulp onto the mold. Lots of blotting with a sponge and kunin felt to remove as much water as I can, then the paper is left on felt to dry. (google "paper making" for the right way to make paper.)

I'm still creating art pieces with hearts in them. I found a set of cookie cutters at Target last week that I knew instantly would be make perfect molds for paper pulp. In the photo, pulp has been poured into the cookie cutters that were placed on a screen stapled to a frame. They were left to drain before removing the cutters and pressing between kunin felt to compress the pulp together. My pulp recipe? About 3 cups of water and a handful of paper blended until I like the looks of it. Today I used some brown paper bags from the grocery store and added some plastic coated paper along with a spicy salt that I tried on some chicken a couple of months ago. Yikes!! I thought that maybe the combination of herbs might add something to the paper. I also tried a batch of brown paper with some onion skins. A third batch of pulp was a combination of paper from the paper shredder, brown paper that I didn't clean out of the blender, and some onion skins. I placed some rusty washers on a few pieces.

The photo with the paper casting sitting on top of a painted paper towel was taken early this morning in the bathroom. The counter, covered with freezer paper, is the perfect place to paint when it's freezing or boiling in the garage, or in this case, when it's after midnight. I painted lutradur. Tip: because the lutradur is fibrous I like to put a paper towel, or another piece of lutradur, or fabric under the piece that is being painted. Otherwise, the paint ends up on the freezer paper. Often whatever is placed under the lutradur ends up being more interesting such as the paper towel in the photo. The casting was made using one sheet of paper towel.

When I made the bundles yesterday for the disintegration project I missed a page torn from a French book. I tossed it on a wet rusty cookie sheet and put a metal heart on it. The heart isn't as evident as I hoped it would be, but I love how the rust from the cookie sheet created an interesting design. (click on images to enlarge)

Quote: Art is when you do something just cockeyed from what is the right way to do it, then it's art. Will Rogers

Disintegration Project

Disintegration Project - another one of Seth's brilliant ideas. Check out his blog for details. I'm a little late getting started but the unveiling of the bundles isn't until May 1 so hopefully be then nature will have helped the papers to disintegrate.

Components: cardboard including one piece that was indented by seltzer water cans, newspaper, ink jet printed script, badly printed photos, text from both a dictionary and a French book, a cardboard tube, and a couple of painted and unpainted pieces of mat board. Along with twine the top bundle is wrapped with both copper and steel wire. The bundles are attached to a bamboo vine support that is presently tied to one of the pergola posts. If the grape vine starts growing I might move the bundles to another area in the garden. (click to enlarge the photo)

Valentine's Day is my parents anniversary, sadly, mom didn't remember that today. Her world is getting smaller all of the time.

Quotes: Without love, what are we worth? Eighty-nine cents! Eighty-nine cents worth of chemicals walking around lonely. M*A*S*H, Hawkeye

Happy Valentine's Day

#23 of 52 projects is a couple of days ahead of schedule. Hearts within hearts.

Components.: Red chiffon needle punched onto black kunin felt with a heart shape cut out of the center; I love the way chiffon ends up being distressed by the embellisher. Commercial fabric flecked with red hearts that was rust dyed with a metal heart. (The metal heart is metal flashing.) Copper wings with a patina, a purchased tin heart, and a tiny copper heart also with a rich turquoise patina. I tried to edge stitch this piece but the sewing machine didn't take kindly to the layers and kept freezing up. Oh well. (click image to enlarge)

Quotes: I don't understand why Cupid was chosen to represent Valentine's Day. When I think of romance, the last thing on my mind is a short, chubby toddler coming at me with a weapon. Author Unknown.

I claim there ain't
Another Saint
as Great as Valentine.
Ogden Nash

Who, being loved, is poor? Oscar Wilde

Blog Award

Oh my gosh! I forgot that I received this award from Val. Thank you for honoring me with another award. I'm supposed to list 5 blogs which I'm a bit reluctant to do; the last time I did that no one responded . . . So, these are some favs, in no particular order.

Linda (the beautiful tree in the Jan. 31 post is now in my collection!!!)

Julie

Rayna

Lynda

Marilyn

Abstract painting

I've got to figure out a way to get better photos of my work. A lighting tent perhaps? No place for one though, sadly. I finally started experimenting with different sizes of canvases in the hopes that I'll figure out what size is comfortable to work in. 6x6 inches isn't it! I reworked this one until the only hope for it was to stop and move on. The band of color is copper flashing. Acrylic paints, mostly Golden's fluid.

A close-up of the copper band. So, how did I get this look? Guess.

#22 of 52 projects

This is week #22, so I'm caught up!

Components: more glue resist fabric paint experimenting. This time I didn't wash the glue out; I liked the effect of the paint on the glue. Lots of rambling stitches in purple a long with grid-like work on the left side. I did touch up the areas inside of the circles with ochre, purple and turquoise. Size: 4x6 inches

Woke up late to blustery winter day. Wind and drizzle make for a break from the ever-ending blue sky that one would think couldn't become boring. After years of months upon months of dreary fog that blanket the Monterey Peninsula the wide open blue sky here in the desert dazzled me. When clouds cross the sky I now cheer! Too much of a good thing can become mundane.

Quote: Love is a symbol of eternity. It wipes out all sense of time, destroying all memory of a beginning and all fear of an end. Author unknown

#21 of 52 projects

One more to to then I'll be caught up with the 52 projects.

Components: Heart shaped glue resist. Wash of blue and green fabric paint. Blah! White paint splatters. Still blah. Needle felted heart, black stitching and hand made copper button. Much better.

Learned: basic straight stitching works well for a simple quilted effect. Making copper buttons from copper flashing is well worth the time!

Quote: Power can be taken, but not given. The process of the taking is empowerment in itself. Gloria Steinem

#20 of 52 projects

I'm catching up after falling into a dark hole, figuratively speaking. I hate to admit it, but occasionally the health issues that have plagued me since childhood completely take over my life. If I fight against them or ignore them I end up deeper in the hole which is where I've been for nearly two weeks. I can finally see a glimmer of light and hope to be in complete daylight again soon. In meantime I dabbled with a few more glue resist pieces. This time I drew some wavy lines on a stretched screen intended for screen printing with dyes but used fabric paint instead. The first print turned out better than I thought it might. The second print wasn't as bold. Not being in the mood to make another printing I used rubber stamps to fill in some areas which greatly improved the piece. Days later the red lines of satin stitching were added and I'm now happy with it. Both pieces are 4x6 inches on canvas fabric. While the glue washed out of the mesh the paint stained it. Being that I made the screens I can replace the mesh as needed.

Quote: Where does one go from a world of insanity? Somewhere on the other side of despair. T.S. Eliot

#19 0f 52 Projects

#19. One of the rules for creating a project is that a piece can’t be thrown out once it’s started. I nearly broke that rule during the creation of this one. Components: Needle punched roving, layers of brown, yellow, and blue that absolutely refused to blend together the way I wanted them to. I took the "what if" approach and ironed on a piece of gold painted wonder-under. Okay, sort of blah, "what if" the wonder-under is heavily distressed with a heat gun? Much better! Some of the blue was unearthed and the piece came to life. The black strip on the left is needle punched and distressed black kunin , a scrap left over from #12 . I seem to be in love with the dozen black painted foam hearts that were adhered onto the distressed felt. The three lines of satin stitching and edge stitching made the piece wonky so I took an iron to the piece which not only toned down the gold wonder-under but made the piece more cohesive. Who knew that heat would blend the layers so well?

Learned: Wonder-under can save a disaster!

Quote: Life is for most of a continuous process of getting used to things we hadn't expected.

#18 of 52 projects

#18 This one sort of reminds me of # 11, a bit craggy. Components: Armed with Elmer’s washable glue that I used for #16 & 17 shapes and dots were randomly applied to a piece of canvas fabric. The resist was allowed to dry. A wash of red fabric paint was applied and before it was dry a spritz of Quink Ink created some interesting marks. Once the fabric was dry it was rinsed in cold water to remove the glue resist and sadly some of the red color disappeared along with resist and needed to be touched up. Scraps of fabric were sewn on.

Learned: Elmer’s washable glue as a “simple” resist has some possibilities. Heat set the fabric paint "a lot" before washing out the glue resist.

Quote: There is something to be said about this immediate, spontaneous way of working, and that is this: in such moments, one is playing at the game of creation. Henry Miller

Southwest Arts Festival

The sky as we were leaving the arts festival at the Polo Grounds in Indio was amazing! Palm trees, to me at least, look their best as silhouettes.

I'm the proud owner of a Giclee print of the Wild Horses. It's a monotype print that was enhanced with oil pastels. The artist, Carolyn Counnas at: is to the left of her work. And, yes, we did buy some of the incredible Almond Toffee in the background just behind Carolyn.

The quality of the print is much better in person. I have a "thing" for horses, though, I've never had a yen to own one, but I'm deeply moved by them and this one shouted at me from across the aisle and the price was right! I can only imagine what the original, twice as large as the one in her booth, looks like; must be incredible.

What a day for an arts festival, not too hot, no wind, and the expected rain didn't happen. I feel energized and inspired. I always thought that Julia Cameron was right when she said that Artist's Dates are important. Seeing work up close and talking to the artists is definitely an excellent way to spend a day. (we had a new caregiver for mom and Stacy, which makes the hours spent away from home stress-free.)

Quote: A time of change has created a time for action. Get ready. Sally Huss (printed in the local paper the day after the inauguration.)

In the studio- glue resist

What does one do when something interesting happens on freezer paper? Make a mono-print. Thanks to Elis Cooke for the idea. While rummaging through a box of woodies looking for a heart shape that I never found, I placed a small frame on the work bench and viola! Instant painting. I had no idea how to preserve the tiny 3x4 inch print until I read the Jan 5th entry. Along time ago I did do something like this, by accident, but had forgotten how marvelous gel medium is.

Did I mention that I'm in love with Elmer's washable clear glue? The purple one probably needs more work, but until I figure out what I've left it alone. The one below is an attempt to recreate the gesso, quink ink, clear glue technique from yesterdays post. This time I painted some gesso onto canvas fabric and didn't texture it, sprayed on some Quink ink and allowed it to dry. The writing was done with clear glue and once dry color washes of fabric paint were applied. I lightly removed the glue leaving some of the brownish texture glue to give the piece more texture.

Quote: Every day is a new beginning. Treat it that way. Stay away from what might have been, and look at what can be. ~
Marsha Petrie

Note: The images maybe out of order. The framed piece is the freezer paper print lift, the purple one is the first glue print and the purple, yellow, and green is the last one mentioned. So, if there aren't 3 pieces displayed click on the subject line . . .

#16-17 of 52 projects and more

I couldn't find my blog, odd, so I googled it and discovered this: who knew that I was mentioned much less discovered by someone who thought my blog worthy or not of a mention. I'm touched - I think?
Speaking of discovering things, Elmer's washable clear glue is my new love!!! The above piece started out as a dreary gesso/quink ink one posted a few days ago.

#16 Components: badly composed gesso painted canvas fabric with Quink Ink over wash. Elmer’s washable clear glue was used as a resist allowed to nearly dry. (The grey and brown lines) Turquoise, red, and ochre fabric paint was layered on and allowed to dry. The piece was then soaked in cold water to soften the glue resist and with a little scrubbing most of it came off. If I had scrubbed of what looks like brown ink I don’t think the piece would have worked as well. Quink Ink, black, has a mind of its own meaning you never know what color it might become when applied over gesso.

Learned: After a few attempts of applying Quink Ink, aka calligraphy ink, I don’t think I’m going to be successful with this technique. From experience I’ve concluded that often the originator of a technique owns it and those of us trying to follow directions won’t even come close! It could be due to a lot of variables such as fabric, types of paint, water mixed with the ink, the way one holds ones mouth or even the moon! The fact that I was able to end up with a couple of interesting pieces after playing with gesso and ink (for what became the first layer) sort of makes me wonder if I’ve created a way of working with layers that only I can do.



#17 Components: another badly composed gesso painted canvas fabric. Elmer’s washable clear glue was once again used as a resist. I used violet and ochre fabric paint on this one. Only enough of the glue resist was removed with cold water to allow the black/brown lines to show; if I’d removed all of the resist the lines would have all gone grey. I’m doubtful that I can repeat this effect again.
A postcard piece that should have been in the mail! Components: Elmer's washable clear glue, Golden Fluid paint in yellow, purple(that turned brownish when it was painted over the still wet yellow, nice!), and turquoise. A red heart shaped button was painted purple and highlighted with Gold Treasure. I decided to not wash out the glue; it added some texture so I merely touched it up with white crayon.
Learned: buy lots of cheap buttons and paint them!!

Quote:All glory comes from daring to begin. Eugene F. Ware

#15 of 52 projects

#15 Components: Heart cut out of dragon/flame fabric (the same print used for Puft Heart #2) and appliquéd along with a scrap onto red felt. The fabric scrap landed on the floor in the exact shape I ended up using. Embellishment is foam heart painted black with highlights of Gold Treasure. This piece didn’t come to life until it was edge stitched with black thread.

Learned: Applique is not only fun but can create an elegant statement. Tip: paint any pre-cut foam shape with acrylic paint, this tones down the bright colors they often come in.

Quote: The secret to a rich life is to have more beginnings than endings. Dave Weinbaum

#14 of 52 projects

Catching up with the 52 projects. This should be week #18.

Yes, the edge stitching on the right side is even, the scan is wonky! The scanner bed needs some cleaning, well, actually, the protective sheet of plastic that is placed on the scanner bed needs to be replaced.

Components: base fabric is kunin felt. Really ugly tiny remnant of upholstery fabric purchased at WalMart for .38 before they decided to stop selling fabric. (DRAT!!) that I used to cut a heart shape out of. The fabric has yellow, red, and beige stripes and when needle punched from the back the heart became one with the felt, love that effect! The antique key is wrapped in a scrap of blue chiffon that was needle punched onto black felt. When heat blasted the scrap adhered itself around the key.

Learned: For needle punching, on the backside, it doesn't matter what a piece of fabric looks like as long as the colors are pleasing.

Quote: Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending. ~ Maria Robinson

Gesso

Gesso on fabric has some possibilities, though, right now all I see is how awful these two experiments are. Reminder to self: the first time trying something isn't always a success.

In Maggie Grey's new book, "Textile Translations," you'll find the instructions on how she uses gesso on vilene/pellon with a variety of paints and ink. I used a thick canvas fabric, medium thickness gesso, and Quink ink. (I found the Quink ink at Staples in their art supply section.) The ink was sprayed on before the gesso dried and while not evident in this scan, the ink turned mostly blue.

What did I learn? More texture is needed, maybe a heavier gesso. Hearts need to be larger or worked into the design. Try using 3:1 ratio of Quink ink, not the other way around. Try Pellon instead of canvas fabric. Idea: maybe these pieces can be incorporated into a larger piece?

And so it goes . . .

Quote: One kind word can warm three winter months. ~
Japanese proverb

Lucky #13 of 52 projects

This one started out as a scrap piece of mono-printed cotton fabric that was done last spring. Being a hoarder of everything does have its advantages. I have a nice collection of old keys that I've been fortunate enough to get from ebay. Why do keys and hearts go together? The key to my heart? After searching for way too long through containers I only found 3 heart rubber stamps, one of them of them being the postage one I used on this 4.6 inch postcard. I could have sworn that I had more hearts.

The heart series, at least for the time being, helps me concentrate on experimenting rather than trying to come up with a motif or design element. I've wanted to explore more ways to use gesso and play more with the embellisher and sewing machine so until at least February the heart series will continue.

I've been collecting a few links for inspiration and I think you can see them here: hearts galore. (Note: If you're a member of my yahoo group you'll find them in the links section.) Leave me a comment if you know about other sites and I'll add them.

Quote: Winter either bites with its teeth or lashes with its tail. ~ proverb

Puft Heart #2 and #12 of 52 projects

Often a piece of fabric screams at me to buy it even though I have no idea what I might do with it. Dragons and flames aren't my thing, but the richness of the colors definitely screamed at me. I cut out a heart shape and behold, instant design! Components for Puft Heart #2: Dimensional paint outlines, novelty yarn and a blue gem.

I'm about 6 weeks behind with the 52 projects; good thing it's at the beginning of the project, I just might be able to catch up. #12 may not appear to have much going on, but it took an entire day to create. Components: Blue shear polyester was first needle-punched onto black felt providing great texture for blue painted hearts in 3 colors of acrylic paint. Then the piece was blasted with a heat gun in the hopes the felt and polyester would melt, it did. Red felt backing, lots of red machine stitching and a twisted copper wire heart with a bead finished this 4x6 inch piece. (click photos to enlarge)

Quote: When joy plays hide-and-seek, keep looking. Another fab from Sally Huss

Day Trip and Heart Theme

A virus struck! While I had a "light" version of the monster that is making the rounds it certainly wasn't the plan I had for starting 2009 .The plan also didn't include the window that exploded in the front bathroom or battling with Social Security. She, being me, is searching for signs of peace, the chosen word for 2009. Creating hearts, a soothing shape to work with, is providing a fun challenge with a bit of diversion. Who doesn't need diversion from problem-solving the endless tedious daily things that require patience and time? I know that when I get hysterical about making phone calls or collecting information for Social Security that the peace I seek has escaped me once again. Reminder to self: problems that seem monumental today will only be a minor irritation tomorrow. Breathe!

The puft heart (a made-up name) began its life as a piece of needle punched fabric that was used for one of the 52 projects. A little free-form stitching, paint dyed cheesecloth, a metal embellishment from a thrift store, polyester stuffing and voila! Puft Heart.

A day-trip to the Palm Springs Museum two days ago was well worth the drive across the desert. Horses! While I don't have the urge to own one they move me beyond words. I've seen photos of driftwood horses but to see one in person - WOW! Sadly, it was difficult to take a really good photo of this beauty. I've often complained about the placement of art when it comes to photographing a piece; too much background clutter doesn't make for a pleasing shot, but then the viewer isn't supposed to photograph artwork other than to make a personal record of it . . .

Quote: From Sally Huss, who else? The best year is the one we are creating.

#11 of 52 projects and Hearts

I wonder if the most universally used motif is the heart followed by? Stars? I rarely use hearts in my work but while drafting a letter to the kidney donors family I suddenly felt very strongly about hearts. The donor will always a piece of my heart and with Valentine's Day approaching, the day my parents were married, what better way to celebrate than to perhaps make a heart series.

I love the look of distressed things but find it difficult to achieve just the right effect. Maybe the Virgo in me always leans toward "safe" work rather than imperfect craggy pieces. Love the word "craggy." The craggier the better!

The needle punched top fabric is similar to the one below, but punched onto green felt. The cut-out area is a piece of rust dyed fabric that I blogged about a few months ago. The stitches took on a life of their own when the thread frayed and refused to cooperate by making perfect stitches. Perfect! Not very evident in this scan are 7 tiny metal hearts scattered around the bottom area.

Quote: New Year's Day is every man's birthday. ~Charles Lamb

#10 of 52 projects

You might have guessed that the target date for this piece was last week ,somewhere around the 24Th or so. I should be up to #16 by now so why be on time?

Needle punched metallic fabric (red and white print with gold thread running through it) onto gold felt. When punched on both sides quite a lot of the gold came through giving the piece a tapestry effect. The green leaves and bell were cut from an embossed piece of felt. While its not a great piece I learned that any fabric can be transformed when needle punched. The metallic fabric was a remnant that I nearly didn't purchase, the colors didn't do much for me, but the texture is amazing. I also needle punched it onto green felt and will try black next.

One of the things that annoys me about this piece is that the top leaves look like reindeer antlers, but maybe that is indicative of the season rather than a faux pas?

Quote:

“Another fresh new year is here . . .

Another year to live!

To banish worry, doubt, and fear,

To love and laugh and give!

This bright new year is given me

To live each day with zest . . .

To daily grow and try to be

My highest and my best!

I have the opportunity

Once more to right some wrongs,

To pray for peace, to plant a tree,

And sing more joyful songs!”
William Arthur Ward

Two months later

The red heart marks the area, 4Th floor, where Stacy spent a total of 16 days in Oct. and Nov. after receiving the miracle of a kidney. This view was photographed above LLUMC, rear of the hospital, and shows the mountains that we looked at for hours on end while sitting at Stacy's bedside.

It will be two months tomorrow since the transplant and happily she continues to improve. Her BP is no longer a problem and she's now off of the 5 meds she was taking and much to my delight, she hasn't had one seizure! I predicted that the near daily occurrence of seizures would cease when she was no longer on dialysis. No one agreed with me, after all, I'm only a mother and not a neurologist. The seizures started 3 months after she started dialysis; the announcement of them came with the first Grand Mal I'd ever witnessed in person. She ended up in a coma for 24 hours and was in ICU for 3 days.

On a brighter note, my grandsons brought their parents to stay with us for 2 nights! Watching them open gifts and play with their new treasures was a much-needed event after the hospitalizations and numerous doctor appointments. As Sally Huss says, "To celebrate with family is the best of all presents."

The weather has been colder than the past two winters I've spent here in the desert and a lot wetter. We might be in for a true winter and not the usual dry desert kind. Love the snow-capped mountains.

#9 of 52 projects, purchased Peace . . .

This one didn't turn out anywhere near how I thought it might. One of the rules for the 52-projects, that I might just break, states that a piece needs to be completed no matter what. Acrylic painted cheesecloth, (sulphur green) needle punched onto black felt. Circles and star shapes worked from the back side along with lines. Interesting experiment that I plan to further explore. Actually, the backside the dominant blue stars is should have been the front, except that the composition doesn't work.

I'm excited! I just purchased on of Virginia Spiegel's pieces from her Peace Series. #20. Do check out the series. I try to keep up with her blog.

The word I've chosen for 2009 is peace of mind.

Quote: Set peace of mind as your highest goal, and organize your life around it. - Brian Tracy

#8 of 52 projects

I have no idea how many weeks I've missed, I guess I could look at a calendar, so I've decided to just say "#8" rather than week 8. The surface fabric is the same one I used on #5. This time instead of netting I experimented with red chiffon, at least I think that's what it is. I love how needle punching distresses fabric. I have the next piece started but who knows when it will be finished.

Thanks for all of the personal emails and comments on this blog! Means a lot to me.

Quote: A day filled with joy awaits your involvement. Sally Huss

Transplant, abstract painting, and . . .

I'm not sure why the image turned out looking cropped, but I have a feeling it's my lousy photography! The painting is more balanced in real life; the lines on the left aren't as short.
I painted this a few months ago before life became as stressful as it's been since Oct. 28th. Presently, I feel certain that I've lost all of the skills I worked hard to acquire such as working with acrylics and needle-punching. Hopefully, it's just fear.

I have a great fondness for Mandalas but after I painted the circle this painting came to an abrupt stop. Though, looking back it might be because the intense heat of summer also happened at the same time and I could no longer work in the garage. In mid October while walking past the painting on the work table for the umpteenth time I was compelled to work on the piece and a few hours later stopped. I'm pleased with it.

So, since I last posted some time last month Roger had surgery for melanoma which was successful. No sign of cancer spreading, but he picked up a nasty staph infection under his arm where one the drains was and is currently hooked up to a VAC pump 24 hours a day. The battery pack/machine is inside of a cloth bag that he carries over his shoulder. Hopefully, he'll be his old self again soon.

The day before Thanksgiving we ended up rushing to Loma Linda, 1.5 hours away, where Stacy was admitted again to the transplant unit. They gave us the bed next to the window this time in the same room she had in Oct. It took a couple of days to ascertain why she was so ill and by the time the second infection was discovered she was in crises. Her heart rate was so high they feared a stroke and her temp was rising. An emergency trip to the OR to remove the 4 year-old dialysis catheter instantly made a difference. She also had a bladder infection which happens frequently to those with kidney transplants. The third thing that was addressed was low blood levels that required a unit of blood and weekly shots of procrit.

On November 28th, one month exactly after the transplant, the new kidney started working!!! It was also the same day she started dialysis 8 years ago. We have so much to be thankful for and watching her daily improve has been absolutely amazing. She was going downhill rapidly before the transplant and I feared she wasn't going to be with us much longer and then when the new kidney didn't wake up and she became so ill that she wasn't eating I once again panicked. I should have known better though because she's always been my miracle child.

Life after transplant hasn't changed too much yet. We no longer go to dialysis 3 times a week, but Stacy needs to go to Loma Linda weekly for labs and a check-up and Roger is going to the wound center twice a week and mom has been to the ER. Doctors and hospitals have taken over our days! Stacy's diet isn't as restrictive as it was for the 8 years on dialysis, but it's still monitored with lab tests making sure that her potassium, magnesium, sodium, and calcium levels aren't too high or low. She needed potassium and magnesium IV's during her 9 day "tune-up" at Loma Linda.

The weather has been outstanding here in the desert and today there is a storm brewing that has created the perfect ambiance for winter. It's so much calmer here in the desert and we all sighed when we came over the Banning Pass after 9 days at Loma Linda Hospital. Loma Linda and the surrounding area isn't as hectic as the LA area, but it might as well be. I don't do well in crowds and the traffic wasn't easy to navigate, especially when one is exhausted and stressed. Mom and I stayed in a hotel at night and Roger, bless his heart, slept in a chair at Stacy's side every night. We didn't have anyone to leave mom with this time which added to the stress. But, it's over with and life goes on. Sadly, mom has quickly moved into the 3rd stage of Alzheimer's and only lives in her head now and I wonder when the day will arrive when she no longer knows me. I'm in awe that the kidney transplant happened when it did being that mom wouldn't be able to sit at Stacy's side during dialysis as she once loving did! Life! Who can figure it out?

This is a fun link:
http://www.icq.com/img/friendship/static/card_7944_rs.swf

Belated Halloween and Transplant!!

Week #7 of 52 projects is a tad late! I have a good excuse. Hold on to your seats! On October 28th the phone rang at 8am and the sweetest voice I've heard in a long time said, "We might have a kidney for Stacy, don't let her eat anything and we'll get back to you in a few hours after more checking is done. But it looks good enough to put you on notice." Being that I was in a deep sleep when the phone rang I wasn't positive that the phone call was real, especially when I assumed that it might be the local hospital calling with the pre-op info for R's surgery. (hopefully, he'll have the postponed surgery on the 21st.) I didn't know what to do but felt that if we started packing we might be disappointed so we only took showers and tried to figure out why mom was more confused than usual. (Sadly, mom is now closer the last stage of Alzheimer's and has no clue when she started living with me.) I phoned my daughter and SIL and they began to make plans to meet us at Loma Linda Medical Center to pick mom up. At 11:00 the phone rang again, "Come on in! It's a go. We're 99% positive that in a few hours Stacy will have a new kidney.

It's a 1.5 hour drive to LLMC and it was the most emotional trip we've ever had. Who was the donor who died during the night? Tragic!!! We arrived at LLMC at 1:45 and were immediately whisked into the room that would be Stacy's for the next week. A team of 7 asked a million questions most of which I couldn't remember answers to! My brain had left the planet. The surgeon , young from Nigeria, was fabulous and kept putting his arm around me and in a soothing voice led me through the questions and the information he needed to tell Stacy and me about the transplant. Stacy's veins had shut down meaning that the 20 or so vials of blood they needed to check everything out couldn't be drawn! My heart sank. But Dr. O..... quietly said, "Go and get a dialysis nurse to come in and use Stacy's catheter, lots of blood can be drawn there." DUH!! Her blood tests were quickly evaluated for possible infections etc. At 4pm Dr. O said all that it was time to re-check the donor kidney from a young man that was compatible for Stacy.

At 5:15 Stacy had finally entered a place of peace and was able to tell the OR nurse that, "you're going to cut me open, put in a kidney, sew me up and ship me out." Leave it to Stacy to simplify the details. I always fear that at the last moment Stacy will say, "Nope, I'm not doing this and want to got home!" She seems to know that even though she's scared she needs to follow through. (I'll write more about everything on my other blog.) But, we've had lots of complications and the kidney hasn't woken up yet so she's still on dialysis. I had never heard of the term "sleepy kidney" which is actually (ATN) Acute Tubular Necrosis but it isn't rare and can last from 2 weeks to 3 months!!! Talk about needing patience. There is always a chance that the kidney won't wake up, but as of last Tuesday the ultra sound showed enough improvement for the doctor to tell me that it's just a matter of time before it wakes up. We're counting on it!

Every day has been fraught with stress as we deal with side effects from the powerful anti-rejection drugs, numerous small seizures, need for transfusions, coma-like sleep, dialysis and other fun things.

Side Note: Stacy went onto the national kidney list on Sept. 15, two weeks later we received a newsletter with the staggering numbers that as of September there were 77,055 patients listed for a kidney transplant. On Oct. 28th Stacy received a donor gift just 4 days before her birthday and one month shy of 8 years of being on dialysis. Yes, it's surreal and won't sink in until she's off of dialysis!


Isn't this ATC amazing? Jan L. from TextileChallenges sent it to me; I had joined a swap. It was waiting for me when we returned from LLMUC, I always forget the university part of the name! It's a teaching hospital so I felt like we were in the middle of a Grey's Anatomy or ER episode!

My piece is: light grey and purple needle punched together and cut to resemble a city skyline. Further needle punching to join the skyline with the black felt background. The yellow moon and wispy clouds are roving. I also did some machine stitching.

Quote: "The age of miracles is forever here. "-- Thomas Carlyle

"We are miracles. Each of us is an absolute astonishment. So whether you believe in miracles or not, we still are. We still partake of 'miracledom.'"-- Ruby Doe