Quiltgranny's Shoe: Super Week

I've had a marvelous week, even though it's been cold, then in the 70's then cold again. That's winter in the Midwest, for sure! I haven't been able to ride my bike or start my C25K (Couch to 5K) program outside, but I have been working inside a little bit.

The two ongoing scrap projects I've been working on continue to excite me! I received my exchange blocks from Bobbi and Deck the other day! And they are as different from mine as they could be! If you have ever hesitated about participating in a block swap, hesitate no more! Get out there and do it! Just look at these beauties!

Aren't they wonderful?

Many of you know that I also am an avid reader. I belong to goodreads.com, and track my books there as well as share my reviews with others. And of course, I get reviews from the people I follow so I can possibly make good choices for my reading materials. Recently, I became a member of Net Galley, and I was able to recently read a galley copy of a new surface design book in exchange for a review on my blog. The book is Fabric Surface Design: Painting, Stamping, Rubbing, Stenciling, Silk Screening, Resists, Image Transfer, Marbling, Crayons & Colored Pencils, Batik, Nature Prints, Monotype Printing, by Cheryl Rezendes. Whew! What a mouthful! It will be available for purchase next month.

It is a most wonderful book! I truly think the title didn't really need to say all that, but all in all, I would buy this book in a heartbeat! The photographs are beautiful, and the explanations are very clear and informative. There is even a section on how to use the book to your best advantage. Sections on the fundamentals of setting up your workspace, organization, and equipment not only make suggestions but tell you why you need this.

Then there are the section on how to explore the media with a great tutorial on comparing textile paints. Selecting fabrics to work with, and how to prepare it for paint (stretching or flat), and then all the different methods of painting are reviewed. While there is not exactly a direct tutorial that you follow for each section, I was dying to get into the paint pots and stretch a piece of fabric on a stretcher frame, and try all the different methods the author shared, both in writing and in pictures.

And it doesn't stop there, either! The author goes on to explain how to add texture, and then goes even further to explain surface design techniques. There is a chapter on how to make your own stamps from different media. Stenciling techniques, nature printing, printing with plants, and many other types of prints are explained and shown for the reader. Interspersed with the chapters are full size pages of other artists and their work, and the types of surface design.

Beautifully illustrated, clearly written and basic instructions along with "exploration of possibilities) are the best reasons I have to recommend this book to you if you've ever thought about playing around with surface design. Get it!