F is for...

F is for my one of my other loves and that's fabric art. I love using printed fabrics to make quilts or taking plain white cotton muslin and painting my own patterns and designs. When I'm not making art dolls I make art quilts. These are a few of my quilted and fabric painted art pieces.

The Moon Watcher

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    

 

  Dreams Caught on the Wind

 

 





 

Kente Block Quilt

 

 

 

Fire On The Mountain





 

 

Looking Back

 

 

Talkin' To The Moon

 

 

 

Monterey Sunset

Sisters Under The Moon

E is for...

 

 

 

 

 

I don't have any dolls with names that begin with E so I will make this post simple and academic by using some defininitions used in textile art.

ELEMENTS of art: the basic components or tools of visual communication; include line, space, shape/form, value, color, and texture.

EMBROIDERY: decorating fabric with stitches.

EMPHASIS: the principle of design that is concerned with dominance; the development of a main idea or center of interest (focal point).

Sorry, this is kind of a boring post. I promise I'll do better tomorrow.

Good night.

D is for...

D is for of course, DOLLS. time is short tonight so I'll keep this short.

These are DOLLS waiting to be finished. You can tell that they're not very happy about it.

   DEANNA

                                                                                                  DREW

  DONNA

                                                                  DOLORES




It's been a long day. Good night, see you tomorrow.

C is for...

  C is for CRAFTER. I am proud to call myself a crafter. No longer are "CRAFTS" just something that kids do in the family room to pass time on a rainy day. Crafters have elevated their specialized skills to a level of professionalism that rivals any profession. The unique, one of a kind items that crafters design and create are sold at thousands of art and craft faires all over the world and on thousands of online sites.


Here are some more of my dolls whose names begin with today's letter C.










 

 

                                                                                                                           CHER

                       CARRIE

 

CINDY                                

CRYSTAL                   

B is for...

 

B is for BELIEVE. The other day for some reason this word kept popping up in a variety of places. First, I saw it on a picture frame in a store where I was shopping. Later that day, I was stuck in bumper to bumper traffic and the letters on the license plate on the car in front of me spelled BELIEVE. A few minutes later, I drove past a huge billboard and again I saw the word BELIEVE. I decided that something or someone somewhere was trying to send me a message. I've stepped out on a limb this month to make some changes in my life. Sometimes it feels like standing on two shores at the same time. One, the fear of failing the other the fear of succeeding. It feels like something is trying to tell me not to worry.


B is also for two of my dolls:

BARBARA LOUISE...

 and BRINDLE.

A is for...

A is for APRIL and again I will try to do the A to Z challenge. I was successful my first year and was able to complete the challenge. Last year I didn't do as well and only got through the first few letters. Work commitments and other projects were more than demanding and I couldn't get to my blog.

APRIL is also ALLERGY season for me although I have to admit that I've been sneezing since the middle of March.

 Being a doll maker and an ARTIST, I of course want to 'plug' my craft. So, A is for ARMATURE which is the wire and wood frame that most of my dolls are built on and for ART DOLLS my art and craft specialty and for Madam ALEXANDER Dolls.

 A is also for...

  ADAMMA,

                                                                                                                  ADILAH  

                                                                                
 and ALICE BLUE,
















three of my dolls who have happily been adopted and have become part of other families.

This is day one, so far so good.

EPiC Arts and Crafts Festival, Granite Bay, California

Just wanted to let you know where my Gloria's Girls Dolls will be appearing next month. We're taking our show on the road and traveling to Granite Bay, California. The East Parkway Church, 4700 East Roseville Parkway, is having an arts and crafts fair on April 13th from 9:00am to 3:00pm to raise money for their mission trip to Northrise University in Ndola, Zambia. 

Northrise University (NU) is a fully accredited regional university strategically located in Ndola, Zambia. The University is dedicated to delivering the highest quality of education through a comprehensive approach to teaching, research and learning.

Since its inception in 2004, NU has attracted local as well as international students who receive training in various academic disciplines at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Being a leader in education innovation, Northrise is the first University in Zambia to offer online programs.

I will be sharing my booth space with Jan Hollins, Quilts and More. We will be offering a beautiful and unique selection of art dolls, quilted art and home accessories.

If you are in the area or even better, just come out and see us and the other wonderful artists and crafters at this event.











You can see some of the items that will be for sale on Pintrest,    
http://pinterest.com/tamilynnlopez/. Or visit the facebook page
at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Epic-Arts-and-Crafts-Festival.

See you there.

A Stitch in Time at The Brickhouse Gallery

I will be doing a presentation at The Brickhouse Gallery, Oak Park in Sacramento California on Saturday, February 8th from 12 to 5. It is a "Tribute to African American Doll Artists" which will be part of The Sisters Quilting Collective 2nd Annual Quilt Show. I will have about 50 of my dolls available to visit and adopt.

If you're in the Sacramento are please stop by and see me and the other doll artists who will also be  presenting. You can also visit some of the other events happening all month long. The gallery is located at:
2837 36th Street
Sacramento  CA  95817
916-475-1240
http://www.thebrickhouseoakpark.com
https://www.facebook.com/SistersQuiltingCollectiveTheBrickhouseArtGallery

When Women Gather: Sunday and Zora

My trip to Charleston, South Carolina last September for the Mermaids and Merwomen in Black Folklore exhibit, was more than I had hoped it would be. The exhibit at the Waterfront Gallery at City Park was beyond belief. There were over 100 quilts and cloth dolls in the show and the gallery was absolutely beautiful. I was so proud to have three of my pieces as part of the exhibit.

There were many events and celebrations over the three day opening. One of the most moving events for me was the celebration of Yemaya's Feast Day at sunset on Sullivan's Island. We were all asked to wear white and about 100 or more of us from all over the United States met at this historic place.

Sullivan's Island was a main port of entry and was the macabre equivalent of Ellis Island for the slaves that were brought from Africa to North America. It was where slaves, passengers and crew members who survived the Middle Passage were first quarantined from the general population. Infectious diseases like cholera, measles and smallpox were a hazard.

 I've been to the East Coast a couple of times but I've never touched the Atlantic Ocean. It was a very spiritual experience. Our procession lead us from a pathway lined by ancient military canons, through a tall grassy field and to the beach when the sun was just setting. We were lead by a Yoruban priest who chanted while a drummer set the pace for our foot steps. Offerings of flowers and fruit were tossed into the ocean. We sang and watched the sun go down and just as we were leaving we could see a dolphin jumping in the water just a few yards from the shore.

I wanted design a group of dolls that reminded me of this beautiful procession on Sullivan's Island with all of us dressed in white. I've named it "When Women Gather" because this beautiful event and all of the other opening events was about creative women (a few men too) from all over the country who came together and traveled to Charleston, South Carolina to share their textile art, quilts and cloth dolls.

 This is Sunday, she has a beautiful bouquet of orange flowers to offer for the feast of Yemaya.

 Zora also has an offering of flowers.

These are the first two dolls for "When Women Gather". More ladies in white will join this procession.

Mumps

I got a very unusual present for Christmas this year. I am the mother of two adult sons and grandmother to four grandchildren so I am well past the age of juvenile infectious diseases. I can remember having measles, German measles, chicken pox, whooping cough and numerous bouts with tonsillitis but I don't remember having the mumps. When I was growing up, we didn't have vaccines for any of these. It was just a rite of passage that you caught these miserable little diseases as a part of growing up.

I got up Christmas morning to make the fabulous dinner I had planned for my family. For about three days before Christmas I had a horrible headache that wouldn't go away and I felt tired and achy. I was trying to taste a sauce I was working on and when I put the spoon into my mouth the worst pain went up the left side of my face behind my ear and down my jaw. When I put my hand on my jaw it felt sore and tender. I went to the mirror and the left side of my face was swollen and 'deformed'. It was so tight it felt like it was going to bust. I couldn't even enjoy the Christmas dinner I had prepared.

I found out the next day that I had the mumps. You can only catch the mumps from another person when they cough or sneeze. I guess when I was in the crowds of shoppers doing my Christmas shopping, someone was out there sharing this very 'special' gift. I wouldn't wish this on anyone, so I'm staying away from people for another couple of days, the contagious period. Aspirin for the aches and a dry wash cloth warmed in the microwave is the remedy for the discomfort and swelling.

Beware of folks with swollen faces and please! stay away from coughing, sneezing people!!

Victoria Secret and Coconut Cream Pie

Every year before Christmas I take a deep breath, drive to one of the large malls in my area and I head for Victoria Secret for my annual shopping trip to buy the beautiful lotions, bubble baths and fragrances they carry for friends and the ladies in my family. 

I hate mall shopping and I avoid malls like the plague, especially at Christmas time.

I was in the store trying to focus on what I wanted to buy and I had to laugh at a conversation I overheard between the sales clerk and a man who was trying to buy something for his wife or girlfriend. The clerk showed him how to spray the sample fragrance on the little blotter sticks they provided so that he could decide on what he was looking for. The clerk asked him a number of questions about his lady's personality and what she liked. That didn't seem to help him decide. The clerk then tried spraying the sample fragrances on the blotter sticks and described each fragrance in detail. One she described as sporty and outdoorsy, the next she said was sexy and seductive, another she called sophisticated. The man still couldn't decide. The clerk sprayed another fragrance called 'Coconut Passion' on a blotter and waved it gently in front of the man's nose. 

She described it as tropical with a little hint of vanilla. She said it would make his lady smell like a coconut cream pie. He looked at her with disgust and said he didn't want his lady to smell like food, especially coconut cream pie because he hated coconut cream pie. I could see the frustration in the clerk's face and felt for her but I had to agree with the man I don't want to smell like food either. Anyway, it gave me something to laugh about on my dreaded trip to the mall. 

Cousin Ida Mae

I found a box of cards that someone gave me a few years ago. The series of cards was called 'Brown Sugar Babies'. 

The cards were a collection of vintage photographs of babies and children from about the late 1800's to the early 1900's all dressed in their Sunday best. 

The photos influenced some old fashioned doll designs that I wanted to do of little girls in lace dresses. 

I introduced Martha Sue a few months ago and I finally finished her cousin Ida Mae. She is all dressed in blue lace and satin ribbons.

She's wearing lace trimmed socks and matching blue shoes and She has her favorite stuffed animal toy with her to keep her company.

Angel Peace

This is my second Christmas angel, Peace. 

Even though she doesn't have a face, you can read her expression as she coaxes the scared little dove to fly.

She is dressed in a yellow gown with gold sequins and gold wings. 

She rescued the little dove after a fall and nursed it back to health until it was strong enough to fly again. 

The little bird is still a little frightened and needs Peace's encouragement.

Pre-Kwanzaa

Last Saturday I got a chance to attend a pre-Kwanzaa celebration for the Black Social Workers of Sacramento. I have been working or going to school for the last few years and have been out of touch with community celebrations so attending this one was very joyful.  

There was a wonderful storyteller who made us all begin to think about ourselves in a different way. So many of our young people have gotten caught up in this fast paced, high tech world and so many of us, young and old alike have put so much importance on our superficial images and have neglected the person within, the person we really are. It's become so much about what other people think of us and not enough about what we think of ourselves.

The food was deliciously prepared by volunteers who made sure that everyone had a good meal. There were African dancers and praise dancers to lift everyone's spirits and a powerful drum group that got everyone else dancing.

 Usually Kwanzaa celebrations begin the day after Christmas but this Pre-Kwanzaa celebration seemed so appropriate because it put us all in a celebration mood and gave us all a sense of community and connection to each other.