Pink

 Work has begun on "the pink one", a textile collage for my 2026 series. For now, I am working on layout and beginning to stitch and beads blocks. 

16/100

 

The photo I covered. It is me sitting on my grandmother's lap. I think my dad is saying, "when you grow up, I will take you fishing, teach you about gardening, help you with your high school math, and be there when you need me." All true. He also wanted me to be an engineer. I said, "no way". 

The "ghost print" after printing on the photo. 

And what did I use? A block from my childhood. It was a set of stacking blocks - this is the only one I have from the set. 

15/ 100 Why photographs?

 I am still plugging along with using old photos as a printing surface for the #100 day project. Now that I am a few weeks into this, I've had time to think about the pros and cons of this surface. 

A down side is that many of the photos curl up when wetted. Some curl, just a little, and some almost roll up completely. The thin rolling ones will actually end up the best for adding to a journal page. Very thin paper. 

On the positive side - I like that the surface already has "marks". Some of the prints have totally covered the photos, others leave the pic showing thru. I like this!

14/100 - Inspired by a beautiful sunrise

 Jon shared with me that his favorite art teacher in school had the class draw a bunch of random lines on their paper and then challenged them to find something in the chaos. I thought about our conversation during the early morning hours when the sunrise pulled me out to the edge of the woods:

I put my own twist on his teacher's assignment, and used a room key to create lines.

13/100

 Another quick and easy print using a cosmetic sponge. I didn't want to be a slave to this daily ritual. Using a sponge creates nice texture with a surface begging for another layer. Not today...

12/100

 The simple joy of using a cosmetic sponge for a quick print. 

Brooch from Japan

 We found this fabulous fabric and craft shop in Kyoto, Japan. I purchased a kit and finished my brooch early this morning. Now I wish I had sprung for more kits! So much fun to create.

I dug out my bee's wax and found it ever so helpful to keep from tangling my thread. This wax was from college days when I purchased boxes of wax for future batik projects. Very wabi-sabi... 

11/100

 I was slicing an onion to sauté for miso soup and saved the end for some printing:

Avocado dye

 After simmering my eucalyptus silk bundles I was left with very brown water. It seemed like a great opportunity to add avocado pits and peels for some experimenting. The wool that went into the bath was all natural white/cream wool. I believe the big difference was that some was scoured clean and some still had some lanolin protection. Next time - no eucalyptus. I will stick with plain avocado. I like the blush pink color much better than the brown.

10/100

 1/10th done! Didn't plan for the eye on the leaf, but I rather like it - in a creepy way!

9/100

 Feeling a quilt design coming on... The mini gelli was a fun choice for this print.

8/100

 I rode the train into Chicago, this past week, to handle my Visa for my upcoming trip to China. My ticket was purchased on board - the old fashioned way. The sound of the punch on my ticket was a wonderful memory. How perfect to find an old photo of a train and then create a mini stencil using a hole punch. 

7/100

 Printed with a fork on a photo of a dining room table set for a holiday feast. 

6/100

 As I sit here, rain is pouring. Why didn't I take the trash to the road last night?!

 Actually I know why. I was so tired from a quick day trip to Chicago to pick up my passport/visa from the Chinese consulate.  I left home at 5:30, drove to Elburn (1.5 hours in horrible fog), and boarded the train for an hour and a half ride to downtown. Next, a 30 minute walk to my destination.  After waiting my turn, I did it all in reverse. Positive thing - it is done. 

On to 6/100

A quick note about this petite gelli - it was brand new when I borrowed it from Beth. Now look at it! 

I ❤️ this line of paints. 

After adding a little bit of washi and some ink to tone it down, I am done for now. The cats are crying for breakfast and the wash is ready for the dryer. Plus, my finger tips are pink. Fun day ahead!

4 & 5/100

 Doily on the gelli plate. Ready for another layer...

Stamping directly on the photo. Nice clear circles

Circles printed on the gelli. I used too much paint! The "ghost" print on the paper was made after the photo print.