Weight Loss, Finally!

I had my physical a week ago and have a nasty bruise on my arm to prove it. They took 3 vials of blood to run all sorts of tests and I'm anxious for the results. The one thing we could all agree about was that I am overweight. So...

On Sunday I finally started that diet I've been talking about for a year. I found Bob Harper's Smart Weight Loss Starter Kit and decided, why not? His plan consists of a low calorie diet, exercise and taking the pills 30 minutes before every meal. The pills, I found out, have a lot of caffeine in them. If you're a caffeine sensitive person, this plan probably isn't for you. I've been a hardcore caffeine addict for years and these pills have been making me shake uncontrollably. I've cut it back to just one pill before every meal instead of two. So far so good.

As for the low calorie diet, I've been doing well. Lots of fiber, protein and fresh fruits and veggies. I have a major sweet tooth so it's been difficult to say "no" to cookies and candy. To make up for that I've been splurging with 3 sugar-free wafer cookies after dinner. A major stride I've made is giving up soda. If you know me, you know I love soda. I've had a Dr. Pepper or Coke every morning since I was in high school.  haven't had one since Saturday. I've only been drinking water this week. Again, so far so good.

The exercise, on the other hand, isn't quite as easy. In the afternoons I've been working at my church to clean out and reorganize a craft closet and that's been a bit of a workout. No enough, though. I've got to work in some walking or crunches or something somewhere in my schedule. You know I hate exercising.

The good news: I've lost 3 pounds since Sunday! That's a pound a day! Amazing. I'm gonna be back in those skinny jeans by Christmas. (Okay, maybe by my birthday...)

A New Chapter.

Alright, folks. I'm moving on to a new chapter. I received my diploma in the mail yesterday and that means I'm officially done with undergrad. That means I'm done with school (at least for a bit). It was weird to not start classes this fall and I often have that "oh my gosh I'm late for class" dream. So now I'm doing the same thing so many other people are doing now: looking for a job. In the meantime, I'm helping clean out and reorganize my parents house while I live with them this month. I'm also reorganizing my church preschool's library for fun. Yes, for fun. That's how exciting I am.

The biggest stress in my lift right now is my health. Lately I've been getting lightheaded after I eat. I'm also way out of shape. So tomorrow I've got an appointment to have a physical. It's been five years since my last one and I'm afraid they won't have good news for me. Mom and I are already psyched to start a diet and exercise plan. This is supposed to be the part of my life when I look my best, right? Wish me luck.

In the meantime, here's a picture of my cat!

Beyond the art projects.

Finally a post that's not about my artwork! I cleaned out my studio last weekend and after I turn in my keys tomorrow I will say a final goodbye to the art building. It's been great art building, but I think we're going in different directions. It's not you, it's me.

So what am I doing now? Well, when I'm not working at the library I'm.... well, doing nothing. This week I've been house/dog sitting for Robin and the pups and I have been mostly chillin' all day. I may be a cat person, but who can resist this cute little face?

Also, on the 30th of the month I will be leaving Greenville for good. I'm going back home to Lewisville for a while to help mom prepare for the yard sale and to reassess what the heck I'm doing with my life. Most likely I'm be moving to Charlotte to live with my brother and hopefully finding a job down there. Wish me luck!

Write it down in your own handwriting.

My second art piece for the summer finished up very nicely. When meeting with my professor she made a good comment, "Why do these have to be on fabric?" My immediate response is "because I'm a textile artist," but I need more of a reason than that. So I decided to give the pieces some depth and interest with stitching. I found a quote online that summed up the idea of this piece: "Write it down in your own handwriting." So that's what I stitched with a few letters on each panel. I chose a light blue embroidery
thread that wouldn't be too distracting.

Then there was the problem of displaying these pieces. My first plan was to put them in a quilt. I decided that that was so... expected. Plan B was sandwiching each in a simple wooden frame. I bought the wood and had Richard but the pieces. Unfortunately, I gave him the interior measure as the exterior measure and the frames ended up being too small. I should not be trusted with a ruler. So I had to implement Plan C. This used the same frames but had the fabric stretched over them like a canvas.

That turned out perfectly and the piece was finished! Here it is hanging in a gallery (excuse the quality of my phone):

This piece turned out better than expected and I'm really proud of it. As for the first piece, I used the same hanging mechanism that I do on my weaving. I cut thin strips of wood and painted them white. Then I drilled two holes in each and applied a strip of velcro to the wood and the back of each fabric panel. Here they are:

As for the third piece, well... it's having technical difficulties.

All it took was a loom to brighten my spirits.

This weekend my family (and Richie) traveled to Asheville for some relaxation time. On Friday evening we arrived at the cottage where we would be staying and discovered that it was, well, less than wonderful. But, being the troopers that we are, we began to make dinner and settle in. Unfortunately, but not totally unsurprisingly, while making dinner we met three of the cottage's inhabitants. Three tiny brown mice come to join us for dinner in the kitchen. An hour later, we were relocated to a log cabin which was conveniently owned by the company right next to the first one. What a difference. This was the first place. And this was the second place. See what I mean?

The next few days we visited several art galleries including The Blue Spiral and The Grovewood Gallery. Both really nice spaces for artists. I even found weavings! But by far my favorite part was finding the Homespun Museum located right next to the Grovewood Gallery. The gallery space and adjoining buildings were once home to the Biltmore Industries textile business. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

The loom! A pretty fancy (and huge!) contraption:

Skeinwinder:

Fabric swatches:

Apparently this place was kind of a big deal. They had documents for orders from very important people like presidents and celebrities. There was an Antique Car Museum also, but if you know me you know that I was uninterested in that. While waiting for my car loving family to peruse the cars I fed the squirrels. These guys were obviously used to being fed on a regular basis as they came right in the door and looked at us expectantly. The guy working there directed me to where they kept the peanuts and I was more than happy to feed the cute little guys. The walked right up and took the peanuts from my hands. Cute!

We also visited the Biltmore Estate while in Asheville, a quintessential destination for any tourist. Gorgeous. Pricey, but highly recommended.

Now I have to finish up the last of my school work so that I can be officially graduated. Next month, I'm doing art for my own pleasure. Also, maybe learning to drive?

This week will be a saga.

The next week and a half will be action packed. But first, my first independent study piece is done (except for the hanging). I stitched up all the edges with white on all the pieces first and then used more white on the last four, beige on the middle four, and brown on the first four. The first pass with white made the darker colors of the first pieces stand out too much so I had to cover it with something darker. I think they turned out nicely and Christine agrees.

Here's the first panel (cave paintings) with the finished edges:

And here they are stacked up again with finished edges:

Now I'm working on the second piece. This one is about how personal handwriting can be and how the digital age is robbing us of that personal touch. First, I asked 11 of my friends for a picture of their writing hand. Then, I asked them to write some phrase or quote that was significant to them. I took these photos and phrases and layered them in photoshop. I then printed them out on paper-backed fabric that went into a regular printer. In case you're interested, I used Crafter's Image PhotoFabric and it worked perfectly.

Here are two of the printed pieces:

Now I plan to cut each to 8x8 and sew them together in a quilt fashion. I'm not sure whether I'll need some sort of stitching or other decorative element on top of that, but I'll have to see once everything is together. I think they turned out pretty well, even considering I used a mediocre camera.

As for the action I mentioned, this week is not only the ending of summer classes, but also my trip to Asheville. That means that I have to finish all three pieces, a midterm, an article review, a discussion board, and pack for a trip. Oh, and go to work. Action packed!

Almost Done With Project One.

According to my independent study proposal, I should start working on my third project this week. As it turns out, I am just now finishing up my first piece. To be fair, the first project is the most time intensive so it's not surprising that it took longer than my projected week and half.

Today cut the pieces to the proper size and finished the edges with layers of zig-zag stitching. A simple finish that turned out as well as expected. Before the stitching I noticed that the stacked panels made a nice gradient. Ignore my amateur photo skills with the obvious finger in the corner. Here's the ancient Greek and Telegraph panels, two of the most successful pieces:

After sewing today I'm pretty positive that my sewing machine pulls to the left. Is it something I'm doing or something wrong with my machine? Perhaps my feed dogs are messed up? It's not bad enough to warrant a trip to a repair shop, but it is troubling.

Tomorrow I'll start on Project Two! This one involves collecting photos of hands and handwritten quotes. Luckily, there's a party tomorrow where I'm going to bring camera and paper so I can get it done!

The Downfall of Iron-Ons.

Today I did the iron-on transfers for the last 7 panels. It worked, but it's not quite the look I wanted. There is an ugly outline around the whole area of the transfer and the dying only made it more visible.  It's bothersome, but not a total loss. It'll do.

Here are all 12 panels together before panels 6, 7, and 8 were dyed.

Here's a close up of panel 11:

I didn't like how shiny the iron-on was, but after washing it dulled down a bit.

I also starting the finishing on the panels today which consists of a a layer of thin fill in between the two layers of cloth and attached with fusible web. But of course, I ran out of fusible web on panel 8 so I have to get some more. Good thing I have a coupon for JoAnns!

The Dying Art of Communication

Before that shiny new diploma finds its way into my mailbox, I've still got two summer classes to finish up. There aren't too many classes being offered this summer that I haven't already taken (or want to take) so I'm doing an independent study. I could have just made more hoods to go along with my previous concept, but I think I'm done with that. I've said what I needed to say and I'm ready to move on to a new concept. This summer I'm working on three new pieces that are all about the dying of communication, especially the handwritten letter. I'll expand on that concept in future blog posts as I get more of the work done.

I started my first piece this week and it has definitely had its up and downs. Its a series of 12 panels that show the progression of writing from cave paintings to text messages. The first five panels are done with batik and that turned out wonderfully.

Here is the hieroglyphic piece with wax before dying:

And here it is after dying:

And here are the first five together:

The last 7 panels were intended to be screen printed. Unfortunately, I learned today that that isn't going to happen. After 5 screens and 2 tries exposing photo emulsion screens, it was apparent that the fine lettering was not going blow out and printing would be impossible. I first thought that I'd coated the screens too thickly with the emulsion so I tried some screens with thinner coats. Still no go. I don't know if it's the emulsion or my acetates or the light table or something else. Instead, I've decided to use the much less interesting route of iron-on transfers. Hopefully they won't look like something you'd put on a sweatshirt for your grandma. I think it'll turn out just fine since it's just a series of basic black lines. We'll find out tomorrow!

Goodbye, 3D!

After three tedious days, the moving process is finally complete. I walked down those three flights of stairs for the final time today. Goodbye squeaky floors. Goodbye green carpet. Goodbye leaky fridge. Hello, HHWW!

There's still a bit of settling and nesting to do, but the moving part is done. My anxiety has been so high for the past three (ok, four) days and so today I'm doing taking it slow. I can finally address those summer classes I've been ignoring during my move.

Goodbye after 3 years.

Guess what I've been doing for the past week?

Packing. I have a lot of stuff, to be sure, but I honestly thought I'd have more. Half of those boxes are kitchen stuff and then another third are books. The books are what make my room seem so cluttered. I can't keep myself from buying more. That's why I got a Nook. Now I don't have to curb my habit, but it will take up a lot less space. Unfortunately, there is no alternative to jigsaw puzzles. I have way too many of those. I'm not exactly sure how many I have, but it's probably in the ballpark of a gagillion. It's pretty bad. And no, I will not give any of them away. Yes, I'm the kind of person who does the same puzzle several times.

The move officially happens tomorrow as I make my way from 10th Street to 4th Street. Of course, the weatherman predicts rain for tomorrow. At least that means it won't be so stifling hot? Wish me luck! I'm strangely excited about a change of scenery. Also, good riddance to those noisy neighbors!

Remembering.

I like to remember things.

(...Wow, what a lame sentence to start with. Duh. Everyone remembers things. How do you expect to have a worthwhile blog with introductory sentences like that? Ok, let's expand on that idea and maybe we can redeem ourselves.)

Sometimes, moments from my past pop into my head and I will spend that next half hour or so just remembering that specific time.

(That's already better!)

Most often, it's places I've been and specific things I've done. For instance, two summers ago I spent a month in LA helping my mom clean out my grandmother's house after she passed away. I didn't really have much connection to that house and it wasn't an enjoyable time being there. Yet, every time I think about it I get this feeling like someone is standing on my chest and I am overwhelmingly sad. I get this feeling a lot when I think about the past. Maybe it's because I will never see that house again. Even if I did, it looks totally different now because new people moved in. That particular aspect of my past (and my mother's past) is gone forever. Maybe that feeling is because that time in my life was very stressful and my anxiety level was high. I had to fly alone for the first time all the way across the country. That alone sent me into an anxiety attack. Also, my poor mom had been in LA for months and was also anxious so that made me anxious.  Maybe remembering that time makes me remember that high level of anxiety.

Anyway, that's not the only time when I get this feeling. Any time I remember something from my past, like past places I've lived or vacations I had, I feel that crushing feeling. Surely I'm not the only one who is painfully reminiscent?

In a similar thread, I am terrified of forgetting things. I mean, our memories are crucial. Without them, it's like we're empty people. Our past is what makes us interesting. Sometimes I forget things that I previously knew so well. Like the address to that house in LA. I could have told you easily a year ago. Now, I can't remember. What if I forget something that only I remember? It's gone.

(Ok, calm down. Sheesh. A few more sentences and you would have gone emo on us! This isn't livejournal! Or that secret diary you keep on your shelf next to the Tolkien!)

The Art of Thank You Notes.

Now that is a beautiful sight. Finally I'm doing another name draft weaving. I've got about 3 or so more inches before I throw in a hem and cut off this beauty. I've really got to talk Robin into letting me weave just once more I have to give up my key. I love this stuff!

In other news, I just had to write thank you notes for graduation gifts. Thank you notes are always awkward. They start out with "hey so-and-so, thanks for the gift!" And then you're like, "crap. What now? I mean, that's the key point here." So, being the internet addicted person that I am, I googled how to write proper thank you notes. Turns out, the way the internet instructs me is the exact way I've been writing them for years. Apparently it's the most trusted formula. Thanks, Mom! I guess my 15 year-old self owes you an apology. Also, I sealed all my envelopes with Hello Kitty stickers. At first I thought to myself, "Leah, you're 23. Shouldn't you be over that phase by now?" Then I reminded myself, "Hell no! I've always loved Hello Kitty and I'm not stopping now!" I've got to stay true to my childlike heart and love of kittens. Childlike isn't a synonym for immature, is it? I'm willing to toe that line.

A Beautiful Sight

This is where I have spent most of my time for the past 2 years:

After this weaving is done, I have to leave the loom room forever. Unless my professor will let me sneak in and do a few more this summer. I have to start saving up for a loom of my own. As Richard said, "once you've known weaving, you can never not weave." So true. Even if I go into a field totally unrelated to art, I have to keep weaving. I love it.

I know that weaving looks weird right now, but wait until I weave the weft in. Pre-woven painted warps aren't my speciality, but I wanted to try it one more time. Also, you'll notice that I used orange! A first! I promised my professor that I would use bright colors just once before I graduated.

You've Been Warned.

This blog will probably be boring. I'm pretty average in all respects. But, this blog may just prove me wrong if I actually take the time to document what I do with my life.

At this moment in my life, I am one summer session away from graduating with my BFA in Textile Art. That means that I have to actually start looking for a real "big girl job". Unfortunately, no one is hiring weavers. Or artists, for that matter. I know what you're thinking. "Why did you get an art degree if you know that there are so few art jobs?' Well, I like art. It's been fun. I haven't had to pull all-nighters writing ridiculous papers or spend weeks cramming for a huge exam. I've actually had fun making lovely things. In the end, one degree isn't that different from another degree. I was once told that it didn't matter what that piece of paper said, as long as I had one. Well, in about a month I will have one.

Now what the hell am I supposed to do now? Anyone need a weaver?