Chicken Yard...

This is how Gunnr spends his time...

Click Images to Enlarge:

Gunnr is fascinated by Chickens

Sparky......the Rooster

Sparky is Gunnr's favorite

The chickens get so excited

when they hear the lawn mower...

We throw the grass clippings in the chicken yard.

The chickens like Gunnr

Rhode Island Reds

Barred Rocks

Buff Orpingtons

How do you spend your time ?

CLICK HERE to view Applique

CLICK HERE to view Cattle

CLICK HERE to view Flour Paste Resist

May Your Bobbin Always Be Full,

LuAnn

A day at the Coast

The Oregon Coast

Click Images to Enlarge:

The Oregon Coast was the place to be this week!

We are fortunate...

Just a one hour drive to reach the ocean.

The sun was shining and just a breeze off the ocean waves.

The sound of the waves and the smell of the ocean...

so relaxing.

Sometimes you need to stop the world...

and get off for a few hours.

The gorgeous colors,

the crashing waves,

the sun on my face....

It energizes you!

A change of scenery can do you good !

It's just what we needed.

This fellow definitely inspires me...

Please feel free to use him in your personal art work.

He is downloaded at a high resolution.

Click on him to enlarge him before you download.

CLICK HERE to view Adventures in Mixed Media Class

CLICK HERE to view Adventures in Portrait Quilts Class

CLICK HERE to view Thermofax Screenprinting

May Your Bobbin Always Be Full,

LuAnn

Gunnr is......... a Calendar Boy !

Announcing the 2012

Quilting Arts Calendar Artists!

Gunnr is ......... a Calendar Boy !

Gunnr 8 weeks

This is the first day our eyes met....

Nicholas & Gunnr 2006

Our son brought Gunnr, his puppy, home to meet us.

Gunnr quickly became part of the family...

Gunnr just adores our Jack Russell, Suzy

They spend lots of lazy days in the Thread Shed

asleep under the sewing machine:

So......you can see how I was inspired to create a Gunnr quilt.

Actually, I have made several quilts with Gunnr on them over the last few years.

My most recent quilt was picked as a finalist in the

2012 Quilting Arts Calendar

I am not able to show you the quilt just yet,

but know that Gunnr is quite excited about all of this

and plans to give out Quilting Arts Calendars for

Christmas this year!

CLICK HERE: Quilting Arts Website

This year’s theme, Getting Pet-ty inspired hundreds of you to depict your beloved furry or feathered friend with fabric, thread, and heaps of love. From the countless entries received, the decision to winnow the lot down to 13 was very difficult. We saw lizards, llamas, parrots, horses, mice, dogs, cats, iguanas, you name it.

Congratulations to the following artists whose art quilts will appear in our 2012 calendar:

LuAnn Kessi “Gunner”

Faith Cleary (Untitled, cow)

Nancy Brown “Opie and Mittens Go Birdwatching”

Sue Clayton “My Pet Llama”

Susan Brubaker-Knapp “Trouble in the Pumpkin Patch”

Susan E. Connor (Untitled, cat with fish bowl)

Lisa Encabo ‘Cutie says, “FEED ME! Throw my ball.”’

Nancy Hayes “Jazz Fetch!”

Loreen Leedy “Cautious”

Amber McIntosh (Untitled, frogs)

Joan Sowada “Agnus Ready”

Nanette Zeller “A Perfect Storm”

Jill Packer “The Iconic Miss Isabella (Iguana)”

CLICK HERE to view the Thread Shed

CLICK HERE to view more about Suzy

CLICK HERE to view my Adventures in Mixed Media Class

May Your Bobbin Always Be Full,

LuAnn Kessi

Western Cowman Photo Contest.......Winners

When I am not creating Textile Art...

I am helping my family here on the farm.

I never leave home without my camera!

Farm life has afforded me opportunities to take incredible photographs.

Last fall I entered a couple in a photo contest:

The Western Cowman Magazine

Photo Contest 2010

Click Images to Enlarge:

" Oregon Wheat Field "

By: LuAnn Kessi

Won First Prize

Summer Scenic Category

The next image won Third Place in

The Dogs Category

This Third Place photo has a true place in my heart

Here is why...

This is Brad baling hay a few miles from our home.

He spent a good part of July cutting, raking & baling hay.

Which translates to a lot of hours away from home...

Our dog, Gunnr, missed Brad terribly!

So, I drove Gunnr down to the hay field for a visit...

When we pulled into the hay field,

Brad baled off the tractor to greet us...

This is when the fun began...

Once Gunnr spotted Brad getting off the tractor...

He raced through the hay field like he had wings

Jumping and leaping over the hay rows!

He couldn't get to Brad fast enough...

This is the photo that won:

" The Embrace "

By: LuAnn Kessi

A dog isn't your whole life,

but, a dog makes your life whole.

CLICK HERE to view Gunnr's Portrait Quilt

CLICK HERE to view a slideshow of HOME

CLICK HERE to view Baling Hay

May Your Bobbin Always Be Full,

LuAnn

New Printer & Neocolor II Portraits

This new wide path printer will allow me to print images

13 x 19 inches

I am interested in printing onto fabric

Epson WorkForce 1100

My interest in this computer is the DuraBrite Inks

They are water resistant and fade resistant.

Which means, I can print directly on my own fabric.

I no longer need the commercial treated fabric sheets.

I can cut fabric to the size I need, and am not limited to the 8x11 fabric sheets.

This means freedom to print and create on fabric.

time to unpack it, set it up,

and let her stretch her legs...

I ironed 13 x 19 white fabric onto freezer paper

and made my first print:

This is our dog, Gunnr, printed on Fabric

He has a face that is just perfect for portrait work

I am making a 12 x 12 inch portrait

Neocolor II Water Soluble Crayons

are perfect for this technique.

I start with the lighter colors, then work my way to the darkest.

This is like coloring in a child's coloring book.

After all of the coloring is done, I use a brush to apply water to the fabric.

This brings out the vibrant pigments in the Neocolor II Crayons.

A hair dryer speeds up the drying process, and also helps inhibit too much color blending.

Gunnr 12 x 12 Portrait

This is now ready to be basted with batting and backing fabric.

Can't wait to get this under the needle...

I couldn't resist printing out a couple more images with the new printer:

Baby Goat

Suzy

The fabric sheets feed easily through this new printer.

I think it is a keeper.

Once I refine my techniques, I plan to develop this into a Portrait class.

CLICK HERE to view a Neocolor Tutorial

To print your image like a coloring page:

Import the image into Photo shop.

Using your filters: double click photocopy.

This will remove all of the color.

You now have a coloring page image to print out on fabric.

CLICK HERE to view Photoshop Elements Tutorial

May Your Bobbin Always Be Full,

LuAnn