Art Doll Quarterly, Spring 2007
I can' decide which thrills me more -- seeing my dolls (See My Heart, on pp. 74 - 77) or seeing my daughter's dolls and story on pp. 2 - 3. I wanted to share Katie's creativity and artistic enthusiasm, so I sent a few pictures of her dolls. To Katie's and my surprise they were featured in Michelle Flores' editor's letter! Of course it's gratifying to publish my stuff, but to see the look on my daughter's face when I showed her this issue was better.

Handmade valentines are the only kind, in my book. the surest way to guarantee you receive some is to join a valentine swap. Clever, isn't it? I've already received one from The Netherlands (lucky me). Mine went out a few hours ago. Yes, I used those plastic melty beads you get in buckets of 6000 for the kiddies to iron into shapes. I can't bear to sit and watch the kids have all the fun. I sewed the heart shapes onto magenta silk, then tulle, then purple metallic vinyl and stitched on words like "lover," "sweetheart," and "flame." I backed it with a favorite (loud) vintage fabric. Made with love for one friend and nine complete strangers. I heart swaps.

Lori's lettuce leaves Austin, full of fiber veggies and other goodies balanced on top. Once she sees all the gorgeous work here, she can arrange the ingredients and stitch them down. I didn't want to be the one to cover up the stunningly realistic greens toward the bottom. This dish was made by the same group of gals as the sushi box. They are: Lori Seavey-Christian (Lori's blog); Deb May (Deb's blog); Carla Barrett (Carla's blog); Laurie Giberson "morningk" on Flickr and Suanne Summers, the one who came up with the idea.

"Fiber Food is HOT," according to my fiber friend Laurie, one of 5 arty/crafty women with whom I recently completed a round robbin fiber project. Suanne Summers dreamed up the idea for a progressive dinner party and the project evolved from there. In August 2006 we each made a plate or tray of some sort and sent it along with suggestions for what we'd like served on it. This week, after 7 months, I received my lush bento box full of sushi and other goodies and practically swooned. It came complete with felted wasabi and velvet ginger...true to the Japanese custom offering different colors and textures on one plate. Collaborative art is a lot of fun. You receive a project in varying degrees of completion and must work with existing shapes, colors, and patterns; then you must add to it without duplicating or straying too far from the established theme. At the same time you get to suggest the beginnings of an idea and enjoy the gift of discovering how others transport your original creation to its final result. I loved the limits AND the freedom involved in this type of project, and will most definitely participate in something like this again.