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It's Hina Matsuri, and here is my display! I have a few more things in my Hina collection for this year, including a solar bobble doll set, a beautiful cotton scarf that is hanging as the background, candy from a trip to Mitsuwa in Arlington Heights, and my weekly quilt from my Japanese Doll series. The center item on the platform is sugar candy.
Click here to see my display from last year!
I still have my kimono Hello Kitty doll, but she's not in the picture. I bought some hina-arare but I ate it already. There some more hina snacks in the plastic bag on the left of the picture I saved to the actual day. My DH has become quite enamored with the mochi cakes in the fridge I bought, so let's hope they last until tonight!
The next festival is Hanami, or cherry blossom viewing. It's far too cold here yet for that, we still have snow. But it would be a welcome to spring!
Project hours: About 8 hours Design and materials: about 4
Execution: 4 hours
I took a Golden Acrylics paint class with an accredited Golden Acrylics teacher to learn how to use their materials in fabric projects. I was surprised at the variety of the mediums they offer. I have used gel matte and gloss mediums before, but I had never used pastes and some of their other products before.
Our teacher showed us how to use the paints on a wet or dry surface, using GAC-100 as a resist, using moulding pastes through pieces of lace and many many other cool things.
Shown here are two pieces from my class. The background was made by using GAC-100 in dots that acted as a resist when dry. Then the rest of the piece was dry painted using a paper towel and regular fluid paints. They blended nicely in the center. The middle piece, which did not scan well, is a "skin" made from layers of heavy gloss gel medium and some sparkly gauzy scraps in similar colors.
I included my education in the above time-frame, and drying time in the execution hours.
In other news, I'm working on workshop proposals, an article submission proposal, and a lecture to shop around to local guilds. And there's 500 ish flowers to be made for my sister's wedding! Fun year planned ahead!
The technique of the week is on it's way but was delayed by a minor scheduling problem I had from the weekend (read: nap and Olympics watching that dlayed my posting).
It will hopefully be up later tonight! Can't wait for you to see it!
Project Hours: About 2 hours
Design and materials: 1/2 hour
Execution: 1 1/2 hours
I have to admit, this week's project was a bust all around. I was a bit stuck for ideas to try, and pulled this together at the last minute. It looks like it, too. Well, not every week can be a success.
I painted the lutradur with fabric paints and let it dry. I sewed it on with the cross hatching hoping that when it burned away the areas that were stitched down would stay in the "valleys" and the middles would burn away leaving a harlequin look. The end result, not so much... Use in a ventilated area or use a breathing mask, this stuff gives off noxious fumes. Perhaps I will continue to embellish the center as a collage.
I did make a nice long list of techniques I still want to try, so I have about 20 weeks worth on a list so that I'm not stuck like this week.
Project Hours: About 2 hours
Design and materials: 1 hour
Execution: 1 hour
Part of this week's project should include a long amount of time being "stumped" for which technique I wanted to try next. There are so many. I thought of doing something based on a "freezer paper resist" technique I learned from Melanie Testa. But, as this whole technique of the week thing is supposed to be about learning something new, I thought I would reverse her process and just use the freezer paper as a stencil.
Finding stencils that are free to use is pretty easy online, and this one came from Spraypaintstencils.com. Cutting was quick using an X-Acto knife. The paint needed a bit of white in it to make it more opaque. I also used a really heavy weight thread to do the flames.
This was for the Valentine's Day weekend, when you see lots of diamond commercials on TV, and especially "Hearts on Fire" diamonds.
Later this week when things are not so busy, I'll post my "snowmageddon" quilt made while stuck in my hotel room in Baltimore on a recent work trip.
It's Hina Matsuri, and here is my display! I have a few more things in my Hina collection for this year, including a solar bobble doll set, a beautiful cotton scarf that is hanging as the background, candy from a trip to Mitsuwa in Arlington Heights, and my weekly quilt from my Japanese Doll series. The center item on the platform is sugar candy. 
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