The Art Dept

        Recently we went to Shipshewana for a getaway weekend. That is Amish country in northern Indiana. I walked into a fabric store and within a few minutes was mesmerized. It wasn't the type of fabrics that was a big deal, because all they had was cotton and cotton blends. Quilt making is huge in this part of the country; hence, there are bolts and bolts of cotton fabric.       What got me intrigued, awakened my imagination, won me over and made me not want to leave,  was the great variety of patterns in black and white. In my mind I designed an entire room done in black and white, complete with upholstered furniture, pillows, cushions, framed art, draperies and accessories all in black and white. Okay, maybe with just a touch of blue or red.  This is the aisle that got me:   Okay so let's be straight on this: I am not a quilter. I have no desire to quilt (sorry, I know it's a beautiful art form, but just not for me). F...

In my on going adventure of finding beads I acquired a beautiful conglomerate of what I think is jasper. Not being an expert on gems, I am simply attracted to the colors and textures of stones and love the process of combining them with parts of art. This piece lived in my jewelry bead box for at least a year, waiting its turn for how it would be used. Then along came some beautiful double drilled jasper squares with hues of olive and sepia. I then found a delicious slice of acrylic paint with visual layers of spotted and marbled tans, dark chocolate brown, and pastel baby blue. It all came together with some gray pearl and clay beads. It made its debut on my Etsy store as the Natural Beauty necklace. It sat for four months, waiting patiently for its owner to find it. But no one came forward to call Natural beauty their favorite. When it came time to renew its time on Etsy, I pulled it out to re- photo it. Then it sat on my work table for a few days in the bundle of...