The tutu is made from white Walmart shopping bags, fused together and then fashioned into a skirt that ties in the back, so it’s very adjustable.

The top is from a green mesh “corn sack” that I received from a local farm (ie, the bag that was used to transport corn). I usually pair the green tube top with the larger hoop-skirt that I made from tan Kroger bags. The necklace is made from clear plastic drink bottles. The boots…well, I haven’t started making shoes yet—but we’ll see about that!

Also, I’ve got a few exhibits to announce for the coming months:
“Wearable Art” at The Living Arts and Science Center’s Gloria Singletary Gallery, Feb 15th – April 2nd … and my Solo Show at the Anne Wright Wilson Fine Arts Gallery, Georgetown College, February 25th – April 8th.

I’m also planning to apply for several other art events going on in the Lexington area, so keep yer fingers crossed for me!

Where do you get your materials?
Pack ratting, lucky finds on walks, anywhere I can find things other people have discarded. But I especially love it when people collect materials for me–I never know what new project will be inspired by the things I’m given.

How did you come up with this stuff?
My ideas come from the materials themselves. I very rarely plan out an entire project from start to finish. I sit down in front of a pile of materials that I’ve collected and just start playing with the objects until something starts to happen. At that point, I will start to envision what type of form the art will take, whether it’s an entire gown or just an accessory.

How do you put all these things together?
I mostly use a sewing machine, so I make a lot of “plastic fabric” by melting layers of plastic together with a household clothes iron. I also use a wood burner for etching and cutting plastic. I do a lot of melting things. I love using plastic, and it is very easy to cut, melt, bolt together, burn holes in. And it’s very durable and lightweight. And it’s everywhere you look! What I can’t fit into a sewing machine, I use different types of grommets and rivets to attach one piece to another. Wire and duct tape are also staple ingredients my art.

What does your art mean?
Obviously, I support reducing-reusing-recycling, but I’m not quick to get on a soap box about how terrible our pollution problem is. I recycle not only because it’s a good thing to do for the planet, but because I enjoy it and because it’s a challenge. I think about gender roles a lot, and sometimes I end up making a statement about feminism or what it might feel like to be in a different “skin” by wearing something that is normally not accepted in our culture. I have a strong belief in cultural relevance–that is, a person from one background can’t truly understand the workings of another culture. So I suppose that I’m simply tinkering with the associations we make between objects and what they symbolize. And tinkering with gender stereotypes along the way wherever I can.

Will you make something for me?
I’d love to! I often do commissioned works. Jewelry and bags are the easiest because they are more “onesize-fits-all.” Most of the clothes that I make are tailored to fit the measurements of a specific person. And since I collect so many materials, I can often readily make another article of clothing from the same or similar ingredients. Just ask, I love a good challenge!

This is a detail of a particular Quilted Painting that I’m dropping off today at the Lexington Art League — their annual Member’s Open show starts with a “4th Friday” celebration on July 24th! Each member of the Art League submits a piece to this show, which equals about 120 artworks in the exhibit.

My Quilted Paintings series is largely inspired by dreams, sketches, and mental images that come from reading novels and works of fiction. It’s all fair game…I’m attempting to express in two-dimensions anything that I can squeeze out of my mind-grapes and put into more concrete visual terms.

This particular work was the very first in the entire series, and has a partner piece (entitled Inspired by Fiction, Scene 2) which was purchased in early 2008. I was sad to see these two particular works part ways with one another, but ultimately each image can certainly stand alone, with the ability to be interpreted and valued as a separate entity from the original pair.

These Quilted Paintings have been a fairly regular exercise for me, and definitely a welcome change from more traditional painting techniques. It’s been a little over a year since I started these, and I have many in progess that I’m anxious to finish!

Oh yeah—and be prepared for some new clothing projects too. I’m really anxious to hold a new photoshoot with my photographer, and I’m getting on my horse right now, this very minute!

Yep…I bet you didn’t know it, but I’m learning how to “pour” watercolor paintings, taught right here in Scott County by Stefanie Vallee. Stefanie is not only a superb artist whose work is widely known and shown, but a wonderful and delightful person as well! She is one of those people that is so full of joy and wisdom that you can’t help but be inspired…I’m so glad to have the opportunity to learn from her. And being around the other dozen-or-so artists in the workshop has been a welcome change as well! She’s also doing a demo and talk on Saturday.

I’m really enjoying the spontaneity…in the new art technique/approach, and also in our class conversations and miscellaneous group adventures around town! I know that I’ll be able to apply this technique to my fabric art in the future.

The image above is a closeup of one of my paintings so far, which was “painted” by pouring color onto the wet paper, no brushes were used so far (except to apply the masking fluid to keep the white parts of the paper from absorbing color). When I remove the masking fluid, we’ll see how I feel about it. I’ve got some pencil marks in there that will have to be removed also (…oops). Maybe I’ll just leave it be, and not use any brush-work at all!

(I couldn’t help but try out this “slideshow” here…)
Been thinking lately about how in the heck to link all my sites together. (Argh!)
And there are still plans for an entirely new site with a new look, and definitely with better organization.

How, oh-how, in the world can we categorize the plethora of things here?!—I’m still working on it. In the meantime, enjoy the show.

Exciting update: I’ll be having another solo-show near the end of this year! More details and dates to come later. Cheers!

This lil’ one here is about 3.5 by 7 inches. Hand painted; both hand and machine stitched. Honestly, I just got into the groove of painting one day and randomly painted this on a scrap of cotton. I liked where it was going, and just ran with it.

I can’t wait to get it framed! These would be perfect for those boring spaces where nothing else will fit…perhaps bathrooms, definitely hallways. Anywho, hopefully I’ll have some super cool photos to share next time I post. You never know.

This “mini-sized” quilted painting is just right for a One-Day project…it can honestly be done in a few hours. It’s only 5 inches by 3.5 inches, and made it in the same manner as my larger quilted paintings. Both hand and machine sewn, only completed much, much faster! I have a second one completed this week already, too. So satisfying!

I painted the little horses using previous sketches that I had as a reference. I’m also starting to get the hang of the binding on these things…I usually don’t like to bind my full-size quilts, but it makes such a nice little frame around these smaller items.

And today I took some awesome photos of the ice outside…
You know, sometimes being snowed-in has its benefits. Perhaps I’ll get some MORE done today!

This coin purse was sewn from part of a dogfood bag, which happens to be organic food I might add! (I hope the person who gave the bag to me decides to continue buying that food…it’s very unique packaging.) The lining is from scrap fabric—I think it looks good with the shiny-gold outside. Although each of these coin purses are one of a kind, I may have to make myself one from another part of this particular gold plastic.

I also have a purse already cut out from the same dogfood bag, which will be hard for me to give away once I’m done with it!

I’ve got quite a few projects that I would like to get done before Christmas, so between working and eating and sleeping, the projects will have to start taking priority! (Has it really already been a whole year since I was last saying this to myself?!)

Travelin’ Sasquatch comes equipped with a removable “travel bag on a stick” …what are those called, do they have an official name?!?… which hides two Oreo cookies, a Lemon frosted cookie, and a paintbrush. (You know, just in case he’s feeling artsy in his travels. Maybe he will see a magnificent sunset and suddenly feel inspired to paint.)

He will be available for purchase at the Gifty Thrifty & Under $50 sale at Jennifer Zingg Studio & Gallery next Friday and Saturday (Dec. 5th and 6th).

*For awhile—before I became educated on the subject—I was calling him a “Travelin’ Yeti.” But then I learned that Yetis are white, because they are found in the Himalayas. So I’ll probably have to make one of those soon. They can be brothers, separated at birth.

I’ve also made a few more handbags, some tree ornaments, and of course recycled jewelry which will be at the sale as well. Hope to see ya there!