My New Blog Site

A note to all the 'followers' of this blog.   In order to expand my blog and merge it with my website I have switched to another blog host:    You can now find me at:    

Guila's New Blog and Web Site


 (http://guilagreerart.com )
Thanks for all of your support!

A Very Special Shopping Trip

I got to do something last night that was pretty ordinary for most but deliciously special for me.  My oldest granddaughter (14) was complaining that she had no one around to help her with cosmetics – choosing makeup and the like.  The immediate issue was that today is picture taking day at her school (entering high school) and she had a big ole blemish developing on the side of her nose.  She complained that her mom had no knowledge and no interest in makeup (true – my DIL has rarely used any).   I haven’t been using much either for the last few years but there was a time that I was and like riding a bicycle you don’t forget how to apply eyeliner.

Of course, at 14 she doesn’t need any makeup but she’s so keen on it and such a girly girl.

So I took her shopping and we bought everything from Clearasil to liquid eyeliner.  And did a lot of talking.  I shared little bits of grandmotherly wisdom and we had some laughs too. 

Today I will take her to her new school and we will go on the tour.  When it’s her turn for the picture taking she will be confident and ready.

You can’t create special times like this – they just happen when they happen.

Haiku Art for August 2011 - Prompt Word is Journey

I had been thinking about the change that I made a couple of months ago to working full time on developing my art and wondering if this was something I should have done years ago.  Since making this decision I have been so energized.  Not only is creating art something that I WANT to do but I feel that it's something that I HAVE to do. I feel that I'm really in my element now.

Should I have done this i.e. made the switch - years ago?  I could write pages about why not but the short answer is - No.  Do I regret all the years spent doing other things?  Was the time wasted?  Absolutely not. 

And here's where the August prompt word makes its appearance in such a timely fashion.  The word is "Journey".  I thought of Life's Journey.   About how EVERYTHING that we do has an impact on us.  How everyone we meet leaves their mark.  How we may look at some events as distractions or detours from our chosen path but that ultimately all these experiences (positive or negative) contribute to who we are.  And often they equip us with the emotional skills that we need to forge ahead.  I have confidence now that I didn't have 20 years ago; I have certain practical skills to handle the business side of art; I have a sack full of life experiences to draw upon and I have gained perspective and understanding about what is important to me - especially at this time.


Here is the Haiku - Journey

detours? distractions?
unplanned stops, uneven road
part of the journey

 

 Techniques for "Journey"

• color wash
• random stamping using household utensils and distress ink 
• road map collaged on
• manila tag painted and overpainted with distress inks
• attached to page with ribbon and brad
• messages in ink on art paper applied randomly to tag and page.
  
  

July Haiku Art

Balance - what comes into your mind when hearing this prompt word?  I thought of my 10 year old granddaughter Abigail balancing on her unicycle and of the determined look on her face as she struggles to maintain her balance on the low wire.  I thought of commonly used expressions such as "balance your checkbook" or "eat a balanced diet".

Ultimately - what balance means to me these days is the attempt to put the mind and body into a balanced or integrated state as we do through Yoga practice.

This is the 2nd of a series about Yoga practice.  It incorporates the words: "Shanti" which means peace and "so hum" .  This is a mantra that we use for focus while doing deep breathing.

The Haiku

close your eyes breathe in

jasmine scented air swirling

find your center - stay

Shanti 2

Drowning

dreaming of drowning

battling the undertow

sink to the bottom

June Haiku Art: Waterfalls

My theme for this month seems to be "change" - new directions, new resolve, fresh ideas.

I first thought that I would have to take a pass on the June Haiku project - so much else going on this month. But when presented with the prompt word:  Waterways - I knew that I'd have to do something.  The Haiku came pretty easily.  Having grown up on the Great Lakes and steeped in the history and lore of the St. Lawrence Seaway I immediately thought of Niagara Falls.  And a more recent Falls discovery - Minnehaha Falls.

I am currently working on a couple of water related quilt art projects and did not want to start another one right now.  So I turned to another art form and designed and made Waterfall earrings.  Our Haiku Art project can be in whatever form we wish.  

Waterfalls    the Haiku

cascading splendor

mists rising torrents swirling

mighty falls thunder

and the Art

Waterfalls

 

 

 

 

 

Swarovski Crystals and Sterling Silver

Haiku Art for May 2011

The prompt word this month is "soft".  Now this will be interesting to see - how many directions will the artists go with this word.  The possibilities are endless.

This one didn't require too much deliberation on my part.  During a trip to Ireland a few years back I latched on to the phrase "soft Irish day".  It really captured my imagination.

It rains a lot in Ireland.  Sometimes it rains hard; sometimes the rain settles over the earth like a misty blanket. They call this a "soft day".

steady gentle rain

Irish hills shrouded in mist

another soft day

I used fairly vivid commercial quilt cottons for the stylized hills then couched the edges with decorative fibers.  Then I quilted the whole thing with 40 wt. variegated cotton in shades of green.

I arranged a piece of tulle over the quilt and tacked it down with vintage buttons. Finally I topped it with a piece of lace (Irish lace?) .

another fun Haiku Art challenge

Haiku Art for April 2011

The word prompt for April is "procrastination".   Good one.
Process: first thought of "why" we procrastinate - in general.  Could be some underlying fear of failure or for some - fear of success.  Maybe we don't think that we have the specific skill required or talent needed to complete the task and that we will face ridicule.  Maybe we're in conflict about the task at hand and aren't even sure it's something that we want to do. Maybe we're overwhelmed by other demands in our lives and can't give adequate attention to this newer demand. Maybe we don't have a clear enough image of exactly what it is we want to accomplish.  Maybe the task is boring compared to some other activity that could substitute.
I considered these ideas and wrote the following Haiku:

      Demands, wants, needs, musts
      I want to..........I don't want to
      Relentless tick - tock

I decided that I would set specific goals for the art work:
1. to complete the work in a set amount of time - time that I alternatively would have spent that evening playing a game online .   I thought that it was not unreasonable to have the main designing and rough assembly done in 45 minutes.  I would do the quilting and finishing the following day.
2.  I have a plastic storage box full of previously fused cotton scraps - some of which are remnants from previous projects.  My challenge was to use ONLY fabrics from that particular box.  Believe me there were plenty to choose from.

Done!   The completed piece is approximately 12 inches by 12 inches.  It is entitled Fragments of Time.  It demonstrates how focus, definition and time limits overcame procrastination in one dedicated to that art.

Fragments of Time

 Demands, wants, needs, musts
I want to I don't want to
Relentless tick - tock

The March word is.....................Sunshine!

I am fascinated by the patterns made by sunshine as it is filtered through dense foliage.

                Forest Canopy

                Clefts in rain soaked branches         

                Sunbeams bursting through                         

                                         

Armstrong Redwoods State Park

On My Design Wall

Just took a fresh look at my "design wall" and decided what to finish up this weekend. I'll have the house to myself  - no excuses not to finish at least one of these projects.

This is Beach Buddies.

Almost finished the quilting - just the sky and details of the clothing.  Then I will bind it and attach a hanging sleeve.

This is an original design based on some photography that I did a few years ago.

I've got mostly handwork left on this watery, fishy piece so it'll be a good one to work on too.

And if I need a break from the stitching I'll pull out my paints and get back to work on KR.  He really needs to be finished.

Faultlines of the Heart

When presented with the February word: "love" I thought of many ways to go with it - parental, romantic, physical, familial - even love of music, nature and so on.  But what I really wanted to deal with was loss of love - specifically loss of loved ones.  When my Mom passed away last year I had to deal with the sadness of her loss plus the fact that she was the last one. Her passing followed my Dad's (by many years) and my brother and sister's deaths more recently.  I reflected on how we all suffer loss of love - or loved ones - then have to face our publics as though everything was completely right in our world.
Here you have a heart that has been fractured into many pieces along the faultlines that were there all along.  And floating over the pieces of the heart are a tangle of ribbons attempting to hide the tears underneath.

Letting go of love

Hot salty tears flow freely

Bruised battered heart cracks.

All the red "shards" combine to form one complete heart. The pieces have been attached to the background with a lot of heavy quilting. I used heavy cotton plus metallic. The ribbons are hand tacked. Under the ribbons are tear-shaped beads peeking out. I purposefully left the thread tails and frayed edges alone as they are part of the over all feeling that I wanted to generate.

Boulevard of Broken Dreams_0002.wmv

Received New Word in Haiku-Art

As promised we received our inspiration word for February late yesterday.  The word is "love".  What else for the month of February?  I have some ideas spinning around in my head already.  They aren't of the lacy heart variety.  Stay tuned.

January Haiku-Art Fiber Piece

My goal was to illustrate nature's propensity to new beginnings in the face of adversity.

A secondary goal was to try some new creative techniques or materials.


Lutradur - burned edges, stamped and painted with pearl-ex
Angelina fibers - stamped
 Rosebud photos printed on cotton, appliqued and thread painted.
Purchased leafy vine appliqued
Haiku printed on Extravorganza - edges fringed and painted
Scattered beads
Sheer tulle layered over the piece
Layered and quilted
Edges finished with  zigzag stitch

January Word

Here is my Haiku for our January word:  Beginnings....

Treacherous frost lurks

Tender shoots defy the chill

Hardy rosebuds thrive.

PhotoArt by Guila Greer

Come take a look at all the beautiful art work on our blog: http://haikuart.blogspot.com

I'm working on the fiber art that will accompany this Haiku and will post it within the week.

Goals and Gotta-Dos

One of the shows that I wanted to submit to has a deadline only 4 days from now.  There's no way I'll finish the quilting on the piece that I wanted to submit.  Darn.  Time just slipped by.  And I've been caught up in doing some very mundane quilting.  As in items that I promised to people and must get done. 

However, all that said, I'm looking forward to receiving the first "challenge word" this week from our Haiku-Art group.  It'll be "ready, set, go" with only a week to create and finish the Haiku and the art piece.

So far as my "mundane" work - actually they are 2 quilts that I'll enjoy doing.  One is the softy sea for my younger granddaughter and I've got all the elements ready now to put together.  It's been a fun designing process. The other is a lap quilt (a wedding gift) and I just finished cutting out the first round of strips.