Our farmhouse is so quiet now that the year's first group of "Getting Stitched on the Farm" students have gone on their way.
I'm sitting on the porch, the chickens are clucking and cooing, the wind is blowing a gentle breeze, the dogs are at my feet and the litter of kittens (minus two) are stretched out nursing on the kilim rug. The air has not a drop of humidity and the sky is a beautiful shade of blue There is knitting on the coffee table and a new World of Interiors Magazine I am dying to tuck into and get lost in. But first for a two part wrap-up.
The women who came this weekend drove from Baltimore, Maryland. They were returning to the farm after their very successful visit last year (see here and here). This year, they wanted to branch out past knitting and crochet and dip their toes into some of the other crafts I have used to decorate our farmhouse. They chose to make painted lampshades. Each of them brought a fabric lampshade and I supplied the fabric paint, the brushes, and the help and encouragement to make them believe that they could paint a colorful lampshade on their own. I was lucky to have my sister Lynn here helping out with the prep work and in the kitchen a bit. Lynn is an accomplished embroiderer. You may remember her blue jeans and jacket that I have written about here and here and here. She also paints using acrylics when she is inspired. She sat with everyone as they painted and coached them through their fears.
We set up a lampshade painting workshop in my old studio. There everyone dipped and extended and created away. It was such a great site - seeing everyone take their initial idea and turn it into what they had envisioned in their heads. We used Jacquard Textile Colors which are easy to use and bright and happy. To thin the paint and lighten the colors, we used their Colorless Extender. This is great stuff. I have used it over the years and I love the way it works. When finished and lit, the lampshades give the feeling of stained glass. The creativity was flowing and even Julia joined in.
FYI -- You can purchase the Jacquard Textile Colors at many better art supply houses including Dick Blick and Jerry's Artarama. I find these fabric paints far superior to the fabric paints that are available commonly at Michael's and Joanne's.
The Border Collies offered moral support and could not be away from the action.
Ann planned her lampshade out on paper and painted for two days. Here is her "hydrangea lampshade" in process......
After Day One.......
I'm sitting on the porch, the chickens are clucking and cooing, the wind is blowing a gentle breeze, the dogs are at my feet and the litter of kittens (minus two) are stretched out nursing on the kilim rug. The air has not a drop of humidity and the sky is a beautiful shade of blue There is knitting on the coffee table and a new World of Interiors Magazine I am dying to tuck into and get lost in. But first for a two part wrap-up.
The women who came this weekend drove from Baltimore, Maryland. They were returning to the farm after their very successful visit last year (see here and here). This year, they wanted to branch out past knitting and crochet and dip their toes into some of the other crafts I have used to decorate our farmhouse. They chose to make painted lampshades. Each of them brought a fabric lampshade and I supplied the fabric paint, the brushes, and the help and encouragement to make them believe that they could paint a colorful lampshade on their own. I was lucky to have my sister Lynn here helping out with the prep work and in the kitchen a bit. Lynn is an accomplished embroiderer. You may remember her blue jeans and jacket that I have written about here and here and here. She also paints using acrylics when she is inspired. She sat with everyone as they painted and coached them through their fears.
We set up a lampshade painting workshop in my old studio. There everyone dipped and extended and created away. It was such a great site - seeing everyone take their initial idea and turn it into what they had envisioned in their heads. We used Jacquard Textile Colors which are easy to use and bright and happy. To thin the paint and lighten the colors, we used their Colorless Extender. This is great stuff. I have used it over the years and I love the way it works. When finished and lit, the lampshades give the feeling of stained glass. The creativity was flowing and even Julia joined in.
FYI -- You can purchase the Jacquard Textile Colors at many better art supply houses including Dick Blick and Jerry's Artarama. I find these fabric paints far superior to the fabric paints that are available commonly at Michael's and Joanne's.
The Border Collies offered moral support and could not be away from the action.
Ann planned her lampshade out on paper and painted for two days. Here is her "hydrangea lampshade" in process......
After Day One.......
And finished! Gorgeous! Ann works and teaches at Black Sheep Yarn Shop in Cockeysville, MD and her lampshade will be hanging proudly in the store. Stop by and check it out if you live close-by.
Here's some of the others that were painted this weekend. Aren't they fabulous?
Here's Lynn with her two lampshades before she left early to go back to New Jersey.
More on the weekend tomorrow - including what everyone knit and crocheted.
This lampshade workshop was such a success I may offer it this fall as a special one day event. If you are interested, please sign up for the "once in a while" newsletter at the upper right of the sidebar.
1 comment:
What a great class idea. They're all amazing!
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