Kaleidoscopic Curiosities

designers, make it work!

I'm so happy that Project Runway is back! I love watching talented people performing under pressure, and seeing all the different interpretations of each themed challenge. Helps me remember that there rarely is a "right" or "wrong" way to approach a problem.

But are the judges smoking crack, or what? Although it was lovely, Keith's episode 1 dress made out of bedsheets was hardly an innovative use of found materials, which was supposed to be the point of the exercise (let's hear it for the coffee filter dress, by the way!), and I loved the pageant gown from the waist up, but the puffy part at the bottom lost me (and made the model walk like Morticia Adams, but perhaps that is true of most pageant gowns). Well the beauty queen chose the winning gown herself so I can't blame the judges for that one. But what Nina Garcia saw in Bradley's last-minute doggy challenge outfit, I will never understand. I feel for the guy, I want to take him home and cook him soup, but he was a mess this week. And don't even get me started on Angela!

I did like Uli's winning doggy challenge dress -- you know I'm a sucker for leopard print trim -- but that jackety thing she showed on top of it was dumpy by comparison. And is Uli going to be a one-note designer? In every season there's one who just does the same thing over and over again. I know she was well regarded but I got so sick of Kara Saun using essentially the same neckline over and over again in Season 1... Hey, in fact, wasn't Keith's dog-challenge dress a LOT like his bedsheet dress? Different hemline, but still...

I look forward to the coming weeks, after the herd has been thinned and there is time to show more of the design and construction process. With so many contestants at the beginning, it's all the editors can do to cover the essential story points. I love this show!

melting...

Ugh, for the past week it's been way too hot to spend extra time at the computer. We've had a few rogue thunderstorms which raised the humidity levels to red alert, and all I wanna do is sprawl on the sofa with a popsicle in each hand and a fan aimed straight at me. Sounds like there's a lot of this going around. I hope that you are staying cool, wherever you are.

Subscribers west of the Mississippi are starting to get the Summer 2006 issue I bulk mailed about three weeks ago and so far the feedback is very positive! If you live in the eastern US, please hang in there because it takes almost a month and a half in some cases (to reach Connecticut, for example, and Florida). In the meantime, the website has been updated so you can catch a glimpse of what lies in store for you.

While many of you are just discovering the Summer issue, I am already laying out the Autumn issue! The new theme is "Shall We Dance?" and we welcome your artwork and article submissions. (The published announcements all say that August 7 is the deadline, but I can accept art material as late as August 14.) I would love to see what you've been working on lately!

eerily accurate...

Your Birthdate: December 17

You tend to find yourself lucky - both in business and in life. And while being wealthy is nice, you enjoy sharing your abundance with others. You put your luck to good use: you are very ambitious and goal oriented. Often times, you get over excited and take on more than you can manage. Your strength: Your ability to make your own luck Your weakness: Thinking you can do it all Your power color: Bronze Your power symbol: Half Moon Your power month: August

What Does Your Birth Date Mean?

a swappin' fool

I don't even knit (much) but I couldn't resist participating in the swapbot Magic Yarn Ball swap recently. A magic yarn ball is, um, a ball of yarn but wrapped up inside it you'll find little trinkets and treats. I forgot to take a photo of the one I sent, but it was about the size of a cantaloupe by the time I was done trying to conceal the fabric good-luck kitty, pink sparkle shoelaces, ice cream gift certificate and ballerina cake topper within the yarn.

The one I received came from MMD and I don't know yet what secrets lay within it, but the disco ball ornament bodes well!

Temps are in the upper 90s right now and knitting is the very, very furthest thing from my mind, but on the first coolish day of autumn I will try to turn this lovely yarn into a cable-knit hat for my sister Beth, who recently moved to Chicago where they actually have weather.

by the way

I'm sure all of you blog-savvy chicas out there have loads of good advice for me, like how to manage the photos better and how to customize the banner and just generally prettify this place up. I'm all ears! Teach me!

seeing spots

I've been participating in swap-bot exchanges for the past month or so (I know, as if I need one more deadline). I am terminally susceptible to mixed CD swaps, and the best part is that I enjoy making them so much, it almost doesn't matter whether or not I get any in return. Almost... I was bitterly disappointed to not receive anything in the Cover Yourself swap of cover tunes. If you made a cover tunes CD and have a copy to swap with me, let's talk! I need an infusion.

A few other swaps have lived up to expectations in a big way. The most recent one to arrive was this delightful assortment of polkadotted items from Mary Ann.

Dotted ribbons, dotted notebooks, dotted fabrics and dotted jewelry, all in a handsome dotted carrying case. I swear, it is amazing how uplifting a few polkadots can be! I grinned all afternoon. Thanks, Mary Ann!

And here's the assortment I sent to my assigned partner -- I'm delirious about the dotted flipflops and the frosting that comes with polkadot candy confetti! Of course I couldn't resist sending a copy of Polkadots & Moonbeams, Issue #10 of ARTitude Zine. :)

I have grown so accustomed to zeroing in on polkadotted items, I can't stop gathering them, so I'm sending a few little goodies to Mary Ann as thank you...

And here's a detail shot of a cute document folder I found at Kinokuniya, the Japanese bookstore...

A fine philosophy.

artFIBERfest quilty swap

Sharing some artwork sounds like a good way to start! I haven't yet figured out how to make the photos display at the size I desire, but I think you can click on them and a less-microscopic version will pop up.

Here are a couple 6x6 quilties I contributed to a swap hosted by Shari in honor of Teesha's artFIBERfest, a creative gathering held in Issaquah, Washington a couple weeks ago. Over twenty swap participants each made 5 or 6 quilties on the AFF theme of birds, nests and eggs and sent them to Shari, who swapped them all out and transformed them into exuberant wall hangings. Sadly, mine was lost in the mail along with a bunch of supplies I shipped to AFF, but believe me, it was lovely!

I have taken part in all six ArtFests in Port Townsend and both FiberFests in Issaquah, and I highly recommend them. Great people, beautiful environments and a creative vibe to awaken any slumbering creative muse. Plus, the price is right because the accommodations (albeit rustic) are included in the price of the event.

Whenever I work with fabric I wonder why I don't do it more often, because it feels like going home. I love how it tears with a decisive snap, pools on my lap as I work, and feels cool to the touch. Watch this space for more fabric-based creations coming soon. I just have a hunch...

At long last...blog

Starting a blog has been on my list for a year now, one of those things that got delayed and delayed while I took care of some other Very Important Thing. But today I realized that, if I stick to that way of thinking, any blog I might eventually create would hardly ever get updated, and what's the point of that? :)

So here it is, a blog by Suz, the chick with ARTitude (Zine, that is). Here I plan to post zine info, share funny stories and photos, and whatever else seems to fit.

I titled it Kaleidoscopic Curiosities for two reasons: first, my mind is a lot like a kaleidoscope: constantly shifting, rearranging and finding new patterns in the bits and pieces of my life. It's all crowded and jumbled, but when I squint and tilt my head it usually snaps into focus and the chaos resolves into something readable and maybe even beautiful.

The second reason for the title is that in March 2007 North Light Books will publish "my" book, Kaleidoscope: Ideas and Projects for Kickstarting Your Creativity, a book I didn't so much write as facilitate. The book is essentially a great big zine, with cool projects and intriguing essays written by thirty stellar artists involved in the current art zine scene. I was asked to round up the collaborators and give the resulting collection some form, some unity. Tumble it all around until patterns emerge... I didn't choose the book title Kaleidoscope but in retrospect I wish I had, because that word is a perfect description of the process I went through, as well as how I tend to view life.

But that's enough about the book for now. I will share more information as it becomes available.

In the meantime, there is a lot more schtuff to marvel about, and I've got to charge up the camera batteries and start redecorating this blank slate. I hope you'll check in occasionally to share your comments and participate!

Thanks for joining me,

Suz -- the chick with ARTitude