Easy Peasy T-Shirt Fabric Flowers

There was a lot of interest for the Fabric Flowers from last weekend's workshop.  I thought I'd publish the pattern here, for anyone looking to keep on making flowers!  This pattern is the no-sew version.  If you are so inclined, it is very doable to put a tiny hand stitch in each fold as you go along, rather than the hot glue.  Either way, you'll have an adorable accessory by the time you are finished.

Easy Peasy T-Shirt Fabric Flowers

1.  Draw a circle on the back of your t-shirt scrap and cut it out.
2.  Mark the center of your circle with a small dot.
3.  Put a small amount of hot glue on the dot.  Fold the bottom edge of the circle up to meet the dot
     and glue.  Fold the top edge to the dot and glue.  Repeat for the two side edges, bringing them to 
     the center and gluing.  
4.  Take one corner and slightly unfold it.  Bring this up to the circle and glue.  Repeat for the other 
     three corners.
5.  Embellish the center with buttons, beads or gems.  DONE!  

The trickiest part of this pattern is Step 4.  It might help if you think about origami and how sometimes corners are unfolded and brought to the center.  It's the same idea.

Make lots!  Enjoy the process!

 
**all of the pictured flowers were made by my daughter.  :)

'Tis the Season...

For the second year in a row, I'm participating in Creative Arts Workshop's Celebration of American Crafts.  This is their 49th annual show, which is a juried holiday exhibit and sale of handmade crafts by makers from New England and across the country.  The exhibit is professionally curated and staffed, and showcases makers of bold, creative, and original work who "continue to grow as artists, push the boundaries of their media, and consistently produce unique, high-quality pieces."  NICE!

Dates of the Exhibit and Sale are November 24 - December 24, 2018.

This year, I'm showing something new - Penny Pockets.  These are little zippered purses that function as a place for spare change, or a holder for a gift card for the holidays.  They're made from felted sweaters in various colors.  Each piece is completely hand-sewn and embroidered by me.

Here's a peek:

I'm dropping them off at the gallery this Saturday;  I have to admit, I miss wearing that purple sweater.  :).

Thanks for taking a look.  

For the Love of Friends, Opening Night

Thank you to so many friends and neighbors who took time out of their busy lives to visit my exhibit on opening night.  Here are just a few:

What a show! 

For the Love of Family, Solo Exhibition

A HUGE thank you to my family for making the long trip to see my show!  I appreciate your love and support of me and my art.  It means everything.  THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

Me and My Mom

My Sister Angie and My Niece, Abbie

My Sister Corinna and Me

And a special thank you to family friend Siu Lan for capturing my night with so many amazing photos.  She truly has a gift for photography.  Thank you, Siu Lan, for creating so many lasting memories. 

Siu Lan

And THANK YOU to my many friends who made it out on opening night to support me and my work, and THANK YOU to the many more who wanted to come but couldn't make it.  ALL OF YOU have shown your support in ways big and small.  THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!  Please check back to see more photos in the next day or so!

Opening Night Photos - Remixed: A Kaleidoscope of Plastic

These are just a few photos from the opening night of my exhibition.  Please stop back in a day or two to see more!

 

 

Press, BioCT STE(A)M: Arts and Design in Science Exhibition

I am thrilled to be mentioned in this press release (see below)!:
 
 

BioCT holds Summer Kick-Off at in Groton

The weather cooperated beautifully at BioCT’s 3rd Annual Summer Kick-Off, held at The Innovation Commons in Groton June 12. “We were thrilled to see so many members, colleagues, and friends at the event,” said Dawn Hocevar, president and CEO of BioCT.

The evening started out with the first-ever BioCT STE[A]M: Arts and Design in Science Exhibition, featuring scientists who are artists or artists who love science from around the state.

One of the artists, Marsha Borden, said, “The entire art exhibition looked great last night!  I especially appreciated the installation of my piece. I’m sure it wasn’t easy to get that up on the wall. But it looked perfect,” she said, referring to her Trashy Coral piece made entirely of recycled plastic bags.

At 5 pm a commemorative plaque was unveiled, thanking Connectictut’s Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD) and Pfizer for making the incubator/co-working space at The Commons possible. Pfizer donated the building and DECD funded the buildout.

“Thank you to Pfizer for your continued efforts to give back to the Connecticut bioscience community, and thank you to Governor Malloy and Commissioner Smith for your dedication to growing bioscience in Connecticut,” Hocevar said. “We also want to thank Susan Froshauer, former president and CEO of CURE, for all her efforts, dedication, and hard work bringing The Commons to fruition." 

Capturing Time

Hello!

Once again this year, I participated in the Leonardo Challenge at Eli Whitney Museum in Hamden, CT.  Each year, artists are invited to create artwork around a certain theme, with proceeds of sold work going directly to the museum's programs.

This year's theme was Capturing Time.  The challenge was to capture the markers of time that give it meaning.  Time is the most commonly used noun in the English language and yet it is elusive.  Clocks and calendars tell time, but rarely its meaning.  Consider the cast off watches too precious to abandon that inhabit the depths of drawers and still remember the last minute and hour of their service.  Consider the lines on a door frame that your grandmother marked atop your head each year to remember your growing.  Consider the daughters of time:  Anticipation and Flight that stretch and compress experience.  Consider colors that change in the first light of dawn or the last ray of dusk.

For my project, I repurposed hundreds of metal keys that I gathered over time.  Many of the keys came from a local retirement community.  Others were given to me by neighbors and friends.   To me, each key represented space, time, ownership, freedom, authority, hopes, and dreams.  Collectively, the keys symbolized beginnings, endings, and the passage of time.

In addition to arranging the keys on the frame, I created several hand-sewn and embroidered key chains, each designating a certain place, location, or desire. 

I really enjoyed participating this year.  And the best part is that my piece sold!  I'm very proud of that...and of the fact that all of the proceeds from the sale go to further the museum's programs.

Please stop back again to visit my blog!  I will be posting some detail shots of this work, including close-ups of the key chains that were so much fun to make.

See you soon,

Marsha