Permission to Play Freely, Sir

I'm not sure why, but sometimes I think I need to grant myself permission to play. And then I expect everything to be perfect. Or at least chic.

Today I played. Or maybe I just willed myself to play.

Sometimes (maybe mostly), my first idea is best. Version 1 was better than version 2 which was boring. And version 3 was ugly. So back to version 1. 

Fabrics in my on-going DOL piece

It started at Design Outside the Lines (DOL) - a RTW shirt that a friend gave me. And she gave me permission to give it a spin with Diane Ericson at DOL. I'm still spinning.

I love the piece of printed linen in the picture. The colors are richer in reality. It's a piece from Sawyer Brook that I initially found to be a disappointment because it is printed slightly off grain. 

Now I find myself incorporating it into lots of pieces as an accent, sometimes a hidden accent. It's funny how a piece of fabric can have that effect. In fact, I would have to say that, after Diane Ericson, this fabric is the primary influence on my on-going DOL project.

Yesterday I did finish this simple piece I started at DOL.  It was fun because it reminds me of the wonderful time I had at that retreat. And I thoroughly enjoyed the play with paint.

laugh until you are in stitches

We were all given a piece of cotton canvas, maybe 15x24. A nice surface for experimentation. 

And one of my personal goals at DOL was to become more comfortable with painted fabric. My first few tries were uninspired. Then after seeing some layering being done by Sharon at DOL, I decided to just paint over my first try. Some of the initial screen printing is still visible, which I rather like. The silk screens are from Marcy Tilton.

Given the French theme, I lined this bag with some cotton I purchased in Paris, or maybe Arls (in Provence) in 2004. It is almost the last of the Provençial cotton I brought back. More fond memories.

Now back to version 1..