Art, Craft and Needlework, October, 2012

[Harriet]

What does your creative October hold? If you spend October creatively, will you be sharper mentally by November?

Found a MARVELOUS webinar reprint and will include it in the second post here - literally MAKES YOU THINK.. ....

Creativity is the healthy exercise your brain needs.

Learn a new method of your art,
develop your own color combinations,
attempt a difficult pattern!
Try out your own tweaks and changes to challenge your brain, have fun, and create a thing of beauty.

In our busy September:

BookSaver included 15 mins per day doing an action related to sewing!
Emptynester completed a stitched school-photo mat and posted a photo for us
(Mr. Emptynester made the frame!)
Harmony started to cut out her next quilt, found the quilt shop that had moved (whew)
Ivy is working on a 5-point Granny Afghan and concentrating on Christmas crochet
Nancy has been working in sage green, finishing a prayer shawl and a potholder
Harriet concentrated on decorating in September
ellyphant brought us encouragement!

[Harriet]

Here is a portion of a January 5, 2011 webinar from the National Center for Creative Aging, entitled Creativity, Brain Health and Cognitive Enhancement

We need flexible and inventive minds to survive and prosper.

• Exercise of our creative abilities strengthens the physical structures of the brain, particularly those structures that support creativity itself.
• Because creative cognition is a complex activity that engages multiple parts of the brain and nervous system, exercise of our creative brain functions is like cross-training for the brain and body. It leverages the positive plastic potential of the human brain to grow and strengthen brain cells and to build dense connections between different brain areas – including all of the muscles and sinews that are stimulated by our nervous system.
• As a result, creativity stimulates neurogenesis, the growth of new nerve cells. It stimulates the growth of dendrites and synapses that create the communication pathways between our brain cells. Creativity strengthens the myelination process. Myelin insulates the axons that form the connections between different regions and functional modules across both hemispheres of our brain.
• In addition to keeping our brains healthy and functioning at peak capacity, creativity has the added benefit of building the reserve capacity of the brain, which provides protection against brain injuries and diseases. The more brain capacity we create and maintain, the better we can compensate for breakdown of brain functions that tend to become more prevalent with advanced age.

Creativity “really” matters. It continues to gives us our adaptive edge. It has enabled us to create (for better and worse) civilization and culture. Creativity offers us the chance to correct the myriad self-destructive mistakes we have made. And, above all, it is fun. Creativity offers us the gift of pleasure and exultation in the positive power of human imagination. Go forth. Be creative. Your brain will be better for it.

[Nancy]

Thanks for putting that up Harriet!

This weekend I started a prayer scarf in fuzzy pastel colors and white it's fun to work on new colors! Did a few rows today on this project.

[BookSaver]

Harriet ~ Thanks for taking the time to copy that article. Very interesting!

I did not get as much actual sewing done in September as I had hoped, but I spent at least 15 minutes every day studying patterns, reading about techniques I want to practise, sorting through patterns and supplies, and getting ready for the 4-day sewing retreat that starts tomorrow afternoon.

I think I have edited down my project list to a reasonable number to haul to the camping lodge. I don't expect to finish very many. My goal is to do the things that take a lot of space, which I don't have at home.

Things like spreading out a dress pattern and comparing it to a dress that I know fits, to see how much the pattern will need to be altered. That's something that is difficult to do with 3 curious cats.

I'm taking the origami blouse pattern to cut out, and I should get most of that sewn together.

I'm taking the Friends of the Library Tshirt (way too small) and a cotton print dress that I found at Goodwill, to combine into an apron with H back.

I have 3 projects that involve recycled Tshirts, so I have a box of those to dismantle into the usable parts. That's something I easily can do when everyone else in the room is chatting, because it won't take any concentration.

1 of those Tshirt projects is to try out a pattern for gloves. That might be too complicated to sew with everyone else around, but I can at least get all the pieces cut out.

I'm taking the fabric for the folded fabric stars that I'll be teaching in December. I need to practice it a few more times and maybe try to teach another person, to decide if it will be easy enough for the make&take program. If it is, then the fabric all needs to be cut into enough strips for 30 people.

I'm taking 2 pairs of pants to hem for DH. Other than those and the folded stars, everything else I'm taking is for ME. I'll get back to sewing for charity next week.

[BookSaver]

Last night's meeting with the whole sewing group was a lot of fun. The program speaker talked about using Derwent Inktense pencils to draw and color on fabric, which she then transforms into various quilted projects. Then ... she passed out supplies so we could all try the pencils for ourselves! We spent about half an hour coloring and giggling like little girls.

This is one of those things using tools from another craft that I had never even seen before, because I am not a drawing-and-painting kind of artist.

General method:
1) tape white muslin fabric to a plastic-covered white surface
2) sketch a design and color it with the Inktense pencils
3) add a gel to brighten and set the colors, and let the gel dry
4) wash out the gel and let the fabric dry
5) if desired, use black ink to outline detail the design

The presenter brought a trunk show of items made with these same basic instructions. Bookmarks, artist trading cards, wall hangings, framed art pieces, and whole quilts. Instead of doing piecework with fabric, she painted designs into blocks and then quilted them. Such beautiful multi-color and shaded designs!

She has also taught the technique to children of all ages. The kids draw/color their own pictures and use the setting gel, then she takes them and converts to quilted blocks for the kids to hang in their rooms or give as gifts.

Now, I admit that I cannot draw and I am not a quilter, so I doubt I'll ever use this for quilting. However ... I can see coloring a table runner, or adding a design to the neckline of a top or the lapel of a jacket. She said the colors become permanent and washable.

[Nancy]

Re doing some granny squares to get them more uniform in size.

I have some calico fabric for bags or some thing to do up. Soon as the eggs are off the counter in the basement. {It's my sewing zone.}

[Harmony]

That sounds like a fun craft, Booksaver.

I've been working on my quilt, so that I can put everything away when DGD comes. I have 17 squares made. They are simple with just 3 shapes in them, a 4 x 12, a 4 x 8 and an 8 x 8 put together to make a 12" square. I'm doing them in different orders so they'll not look all the same, and the 8 x 8 part are bright sporty fabrics. I only have 7 more to go, then the sashing and borders.

[Nancy]

Got a pot holder about 5 rows from completion and did not have enough yarn so I ripped it back a ways and put in a stripe of another color. Ok that worked glad for that it's done now I have two completed but they are not quite the same size ~sigh~ oh well!

Knitted prayer scarf is 2/3 rds of the way done as well.

[BookSaver]

Project results of sewing retreat long weekend:
* shortened 2 pr of DH's pants
* mended an apron
* re-sorted the bags of blouse/dress fabrics & Tshirts to make better choices of appropriate pieces
* finished a UFO apron coverall from over a year ago
* got a good start on samples from the origami blouse pattern and glove pattern
* traced a pattern from a favorite dress that is worn out, and compared that traced pattern to 3 dress patterns that I've been wanting to try, to see how much they will need to be altered to fit

Did not even get to start the library logo/apron project.

Did not do as much sewing as I wanted to do because of multiple interruptions and extra kitchen duties. Still, writing out the list above and comparing it to my planned list makes me feel better about how much I accomplished.

[Harmony]

All 24 of my squares are finished. They are gathered together in one neat stack, all in order. I had to box everything up and put everything away... DGD2 might be in to stuff so all sharp things had to be put away and the machine closed up. I might be able to sew for a couple hours in the eve. after she's asleep, but I suspect I will be too tired!