The ACEO Swap

by FabricGreetings

A few months ago I wrote about an ACEO swap that I had decided to participate it. I was teamed with a fellow from Flower Mound, Texas and we had to decide on a theme for our swap. Since it was the middle of Winter, we decided on "Winter" as out theme. I know - not all that original, but it gave us some common ground to work with.

I immediately knew what I was going to do. The only other men I get excited about besides my wonderful husband - known on our Etsy team as Mr. Fabric - are snowmen. I simply love them. So my ACEO card would be a fabric snowman appliqued to some wintery looking sky fabric. Of course the snowman needs earmuffs and a scarf to keep away the chill. The finishing touch would be some alphabet beads spelling "brr". This is what my card looked like when it was finished.

It was exciting to wait for my swap card to come. The fellow I was teamed with is a portrait artist. He works in acrylics, watercolors and colored pencils. When my card arrived, it thrilled me to pieces.

Here was this little figure walking in a snowstorm with a scarf blowing in the wind. It is called "Blizzard Stroll".  Now here is the interesting part of this swap. I grew up in Connecticut and we walked to school. There were no school buses and very few days when school was canceled because of snow. So all of us wore scarves tied around our necks and/or over our faces to protect from the winter winds and snow. And more often than not, those scarves blew in the wind just like the one on my ACEO. What a fun memory this little card has stirred up.

If you would like to see all of the cards that were swapped, check out this blog -
http://theaceochallenge.blogspot.ca

Paths through the rock

Grand Canyon National Park

By RobinsFlight


Over the holiday break I had the privilege of visiting a number of the canyons and parks in northern Arizona and southern Utah.  The list included the wonders of the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon and Zion National Park.  

Bryce Canyon National Park

Zion National Park

Thankfully I had a large storage card for my camera, because over the course of the week I took over one thousand pictures.  Amazing as the sights at these three parks were, and they were truly incredible, the place I took the most pictures in the shortest span of time was not any of these three.  That distinction belongs to Lower Antelope Canyon.  Indeed, my visit there may have been one of the most amazing single hours of my life.


Lower Antelope Canyon is part of a slot canyon system located near Page, AZ, on Navajo lands.  Also called "the corkscrew," in the Navajo language it is called Hasdestwazi, which means "spiral rock arches."  Its sister Upper Antelope Canyon, located a short distance to the south, is called "the crack."  The Navajo name, Tse' bighanilini, means "the place where water runs through rocks," and here you find the origin of these amazing landforms.  In this desert land storms frequently cause flash floods.  Over time the raging waters have eroded the soft sandstone of the region, leaving amazing rock formations below the surface.  The slots in the ceiling of the canyons allow the sunlight to enter and illuminate the formations in breathtaking contrasts and shadows.

From what I have read, Upper Antelope Canyon is more frequently visited, and is much more accessible than the Lower canyon.  The floor of the Upper canyon is wide, and visitors can walk right into the formations without an elevation change.  But in researching for the trip, I also read that, while more strenuous, some consider the Lower canyon's rock formations even more stunning.  Always up for a challenge, we opted for the Lower canyon tour, and dutifully printed out the map from Ken's Guided Tour to direct us.

The approach to the "entrance" of the tour was a bit dubious.  An unmarked drive off a narrow paved side road led to a gravel parking lot with a few portapotties lining one side.  A few Navajo men sat in a small shack, while a handful of visitors huddled against the chill along a split rail fence.  But the attendant at the booth was friendly while collecting our tour fees and having us sign an attendance form (presumably to be able to identify who was in the canyon in the case of us being swept away by a flash flood).  He also gave us information about the Upper canyon tour, in case wanted to see that one after we were done, with a clear bit of friendly rivalry about the "competition" thrown in.

Entrance to Lower Antelope Canyon

Our tour guide, dressed all in black with a hood and face mask to shield him from the brisk wind, looked oddly like a Ninja.  But he too was friendly, and we chatted a bit as we walked across the contoured rock for a few minutes to the actual entrance to the canyon.  I was glad he was leading- there were no obvious markers as to where we were going.  Once we reached the entrance, it was a bit like the earth swallowing him, as he stepped into the crack and continued into the ground.  And that was how it was done-- step onto a ledge a foot or so down in the crack, and lo and behold, there was a ladder leading down.  


 
At the bottom we finally had a chance to see what we had gotten ourselves into.  And the amazement began.  


Sculptures of rock, swirls and ripples and points and waves.  

  


Interplays of light and shadow.  




 


































  

Shades of browns and oranges and purples.  




 




At times light from the near-noon sun would be visible through the crack in the ceiling of the canyon.  



 
















 
As we walked, the width of the canyon would vary, sometimes opening into a decent sized room that could hold 10-20 people, other times narrowing to a few feet at most.  The path often was only the width of your foot, forming a curving inverse balance beam of sorts.  At times more ladders were necessary- some only a few steps, some more than a story in height.  

But around every curve and bend there was more- yet another formation that made you stop in your tracks.  It was interesting to see how a single formation changed as you walked around it, seeing different angles.  

 It was also interesting to see how my husband's camera and mine caught the light differently, yielding different pictures of the same scene.  At both canyons, photographer passes are available for those with SLR cameras wanting to spend more time (two hours instead of one) in the canyon in order to photograph in more detail.  Lacking a SLR camera and the extra time, the standard tour gave plenty of time for us to snap pictures as we walked, and to stop and just look.  The tendency is to succumb to the lure of the perfect photo, seeing everything through the viewfinder.  But what a shame it would be to get the perfect picture and never have seen it truly with your own eyes.  And so I forced myself at times to put the camera down and just look at the surreal beauty that surrounded me.

We reached the end of the trail- the canyon continued but, alas, the path did not and the ladders beckoned upward.  

Our hour was up, and it was time to return to the surface.  Into the sun we climbed, squinting after the sheltered light at the bottom, and followed the path of stacked stones across the rippled rock back to the parking lot.  And it was not without a bit of reticence that we climbed back into the car to continue our trip to more varied and stunning sights.

The Art of Stained Glass

by Nancy of DesignsStainedGlass

I have always admired the beauty of stained glass, the beautiful colors, and the wonderful textures. I never thought it was something that I could make in my own home. I’d like to share with you some of the steps that are involved in making a simple stained glass panel.

First you need to start with a pattern. There are many available on-line, at the library, or if you are feeling creative you can design your own pattern.

Once you find the pattern that you would like to use, the next step is to purchase the glass. Glass is sold by the square foot or by the pound. Choose the colors and textures that you like and you feel will complement each other in the pattern you are working with.

For most patterns you will need two copies – one you will use to trace your pieces on the glass and the other will be for placement. I number each piece in the pattern which makes it easier to identify each one after they have been cut.  To transfer the pattern to the glass, if it is transparent, you can lay the glass on top of the pattern and trace it with a special marking pen. If your glass is opaque and you cannot see the pattern through the glass, then you need to cut out your pieces from your second copy of the pattern, place them on top of the glass and trace around the edges. After each piece has been copied onto all the glass it is time to cut.

There are different types of cutting tools. I prefer a brass handled carbide cutter. With this style you place the tip on the glass and pull the cutter towards you. Starting at one end of a drawn line on your glass, position the cutter and pull it towards you. You can hear the scratching cutting noise – this is a good score. Do not go over the line again – only one cut is all you need. The next step will be to use breaking pliers or running pliers to separate the piece from the sheet of glass. Align the pliers with the scored line and carefully pull down on the pliers and the glass will break off. After you have scored and cut all around the lines of one piece it is time to use the glass grinder.

An electric glass grinder has a diamond bit and a tray of water underneath. It pumps water up to a sponge that keeps the glass dust down and the glass cool so it doesn’t break. You need to grind around all of the edges of each piece.  After each piece is done, place it on top of the first copy of the pattern – very much like making a puzzle. You also need to keep your pattern from moving and make sure it is squared. There are squaring bars and pegs to use to secure the pattern on to a work board.

The next step is to apply copper foil onto each piece. I take out one piece at a time and clean it to remove any powder from the grinder. The copper foil comes in various widths, depending on how thick your glass is and how you want your piece to look will depend on what size foil you use. The foil has one smooth side and one sticky side. The sticky side is wrapped around each piece of glass making sure it overhangs each side of the glass equally. Then you use a burnishing tool to smooth and press it against the glass all around the edges, top and bottom. Return that one piece to the work board and repeat this process until each piece of your pattern has been done. You may find that you need to grind a few more pieces in order for them to have a nice tight fit against each other.

Next and most important is the soldering. This is the one step that takes a lot of practice and patience. Using flux, which is a cleaner that prepares the copper foil to accept the solder, apply it with a brush onto the copper foil. With your soldering iron and solder you will join each piece by melting the solder into the joints and on top of all the copper foil. Reapplying the flux, adding more solder to build up a nice smooth line.

Turn your piece over and repeat this process – again this takes a lot of practice to get the back side looking as smooth as the front side.

Framing your piece will be the next step. It can be placed into a window, wood frame, or lead or zinc channel. For most of my panels I use zinc channel.  After measuring and cutting the channel it is soldered into place around the edges of the panel. Hooks and chain for hanging are attached at this time.

Almost done – but it needs to be cleaned. Washing is very important and there are different chemicals that can be used.  Some artists use special glass cleaning solvent others use dish washing liquid. I have a secret for cleaning my panels.  After cleaning and drying the panel, you have a choice to leave the solder lines in their natural silver state, rubbing them with steel wool to give them a pewter look, or apply black or copper patina. This is done with a brush and then washed off.  Apply stained glass wax and buff it until it shines.

Hang it in your favorite window, stand back and enjoy its beauty for many years.

A New Crafting Year -a fresh start , search for improvement or just something new ?

By Sewsouk

My fresh start was 4 years ago when I moved to Morocco. Each New Year is now part of a lifelong journey of textile discovery. My love of sewing and craft took a new twist which helped me to settle in my new home and enabled me to fulfill a dream ,I didn't know I had until it popped into my head, of having my own etsy store sewsouk

Now the Medina- or old city- with its narrow streets full of artisan workshops and small businesses carrying on ancient traditional crafts has become my draw and is surprisingly where I feel most alive. I can still only speak limited Arabic and my French is poor too but the people speak my language- they make things- and the ability to create and craft is a universal language which garners respect and appreciation whatever your origin.

The braid or sfifa  ( in Arabic) suppliers are grouped together with floor to ceiling shelves full of yarn of every hue ,wound on to bamboo spools, sparkling like jewels in the sunlight. Long poles with hooks on are used to pull the spools from the upper shelves- sometimes resulting in bamboo tumbling to the floor or hitting you on the head! Colours are matched, small pieces are spun with hand spinning bobbins to check the colour of cord and braid as the thread is darker when spun. Other customers are consulted for their opinions. Sometimes there are disagreements but everyones’ views are considered.

 I asked my yarn supplier what was his most popular colour- his answer was  a little baffling- the colour I don’t have. Did he mean he never seemed to stock what was popular or that he sold out quickly of popular colours? Or was he tired of checking colours all day? Tailors, their runners and those that sew for themselves all bustle about on their mission to match the 2 or 3 colours in their fabric.

Morocco is one of the few places on the planet where you can design your own braid, cord or trim and have it made in the colourway of your choice- in relatively small quantities – 5 or 10 metres for a minimum order. Some but not all the shops have small machines attached to their premises where they make the braid using techniques that have been used for hundreds of years.  Some are actually braided by hand. Cord is spun in the street- a nail in the wall used as a hook and metres of yarn wound round it and down the street– at head level so watch out!- a tiny gadget then spins  the yarn at high speed before the maker winds it back on the bamboo bobbin. Looms can also still be seen in places where fabric is woven on hand looms often using a mix of threads and yarns.  . These are places in our modern mass produced world which should be treasured but are taken for granted. The options and choices are almost limitless but in many more developed countries it is hard to even find trim let alone have such a wide choice!

Behind closed door s in workshops and homes people work with the yarn to create handmade items for furnishings, celebrations and special occasions and here people still go to their tailor for a new suit, a new djellaba- loose outer garment a cross between a cloak and a coat -or a new party dress- and the tailor creates the vision for the customer- often using techniques and stitching and embroidery that has evolved over hundreds of years-most is still sewn or finished by hand. There are fashions too of which the tailor must keep abreast- my sister in law tells me tiny art silk buttons are old fashioned and bigger ones are now the trend- both use techniques that were used 300 to 400 years ago!

The level of fine hand work would be respected in a Saville Row suit or an haute couture design house – and reflected in the price too!-but somehow here it is taken for granted.

Passementarie – elaborate trimming- is engrained-it’s on furnishings, clothes and everyday objects.  

Moroccans still have a love for the detail and ornate style that the French love so much – Morocco was once a French Protectorate- but Morocco has developed its own textile style incorporating tribal and Arabic designs, shapes and colours too.

The Medina always has a surprise- there is always something new or different-it is a mix of colour, noise and smells. A week or so ago I went to the same street I have been going to for the past few years but turning the corner I was almost bowled over by a strong smell- lavender!  The grinding store which usually grinds grain was grinding lavender and the smell was magnificent! Purchasing my braid and trims that day was a real treat.