Journal
Random Musings on Art and LIfe
by Shelly Stokes, Founder and Creative Mentor A couple of years ago, I got bit by the hand-stitching bug. Hard. I am not saying it was a bad thing – just that it totally changed the way I think about painted fabric. It started with just a little bit of embellishment for a handbag. Then…
by Shelly Stokes, Founder and Creative Mentor I have just returned from a whirlwind trip to Quilt Market in Houston, TX. I have worked every market for the past 8 years, and it was time for a break. It was a delightful trip in more ways than my tired little brain can count right now.…
Would you stop on the way to your destination to look at a bunch of sticks? If you’re traveling along I-94 in Central Minnesota, I sure hope so! Just off the freeway near St. John’s University, there is an amazing outdoor art installation. Think of it as fiber art on steroids! Better yet, think about…
I was visiting with one of my friends last week and our conversation turned to the Shape Shifter Community Challenge. She is planning to make a handbag and she wanted my opinion on which Paintstik colors would look best on her fabric. I remembered a fantastic idea for testing colors from Nancy Kazlauckas, as well…
While I was teaching my Build A Better Background Class in Houston, someone asked about adding Paintstik color to a quilt after it has been quilted. Can it be done? Oh yes – and here are some beautiful samples to inspire you. Sue Kelly joined me for the trek to Cleveland to film some segments…
Many of you have acquired Paintstiks Blenders over the years, and I get a lot of questions about how to use them. Let’s start with what a blender is, and then tackle whether or not we need them. You might be surprised by my advice about these sticks. First of all, let’s be clear about…
Last week, we talked about paintstik appliqué – and how it’s a whole lot faster to add images to fabric with paintstik color than with traditional appliqué. Today, I want to go one step further and talk about “extreme appliqué.” In case you’re wondering, I’m talking about those magnificent two-color Hawaiian quilts. Think about it……
Last summer, I took part in the Merchant Mall at Bernina University in Orlando. Most of the people at the conference were sewing machine dealers and their employees. With my new Design Magic book in hand, I offered the dealers and shop owners a free DesignMagic stencil along with a free project. I was really…
In last Monday’s post, I talked about projects you can make with the Primrose Stencils including the big (huge?) Woodland Flowers Quilt. If you missed it, I also said this was NOT the first Design project I would tackle if I were new to paintstiks or Design Magic. (It’s not a difficult quilt, just a…
Whenever I do paintstik demos, someone inevitably asks “how do I clean up?” After playing with these paints for 10 years, I’ve gone through a lot of different cleaning products. Here are my favorites. Cleaning Brushes My favorite cleaning for cleaning brushes depends on how long they sit before I clean them. If I clean…
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