Art Saves Lives! A stamped table collaboration
A few days ago while I was stamping this table, I started thinking about how good a project like this makes me feel. For one thing, it’s always been a collaborative project. My husband Steve originally made this table in 2012 and for any subsequent variations, he sands off the old design and repaints. Then a new design is stamped on the table by me. When it’s dry, Steve will seal it with a protective coat of epoxy. The most recent collaboration we did was the 4th time in 11 years!
2012: A new table - 1st time I stamped this table. I originally stamped a different, larger table in 1998.
The 2nd time we worked on this together was in 2014.
For the 3rd time, nature printing was how I decorated the table. Click the link for basic instructions.
Our latest collaborative effort in 2023 is our favorite! You can see a sample of it in process here.
While I was stamping the table I thought about how much this creative time affected my mood. I was in the creating zone; playing with paint, choosing colors, making design choices and feeling happy! It cemented my sense of self; creating is truly a big part of who I am. Zing! I knew I had a few rubber stamps expressing this feeling. I found them and stamped them on an index card to share with you.
Art Stamps from my collection
Some of my rubber stamps are 30 years old!
I’m starting to get into the swing of creating a bit more after going through a quieter period. If you are not doing a lot of art for whatever reason, do not despair. Keep your hand in creative endeavors like cooking, gardening, reading poetry or quotes. See what happens if you challenge yourself to paint, draw or make a quick collage in just 15 minutes. You could be surprised at how much that small effort can give you a spark to do more art.
52 Stitches Project for 2023:
I’m happy to say I've completed 2 more weeks of this project. Anne Brooke taught us 2 different ways of sewing sequins on and we also learned the buttonhole stitch. I added them to my tiny stitch book, see below. This little book is only 2.5” x 2.5” and will hold just one stitch per week for 52 weeks!
I am also very excited to finish the 10th and final row of my Colour Mix 2 Quilt! The quilt top is now finished with mostly bold Kaffe Fassett fabrics. Next up, I need to add a border, batting & backing fabric, then quilt it, to be entirely completed. I have some fun fabric to use for the back, but I will leave it as a surprise for now. . . below a few photos Steve took of me with all 100 blocks sewn together.
To see the first Colour Mix Quilt I made in 2020 for the 100 day project, check out this page on my website. It’s made using the same pattern by my friend Frieda Oxenham, but in totally different fabrics, more soft and pastel in color.
Thanks as always for reading & commenting!
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“When you have surrendered to the flow of the process, when you let go of your control and need to perfect, when you just show up to the creative call - it becomes unclear whether you are creating the journey or whether the journey is creating you.”