The Great Dakota Gathering

This fall, we went to the Great Dakota Gathering in Winona, MN.

It was so inspiring...

the color, the craftsmanship, the generations together - 

it was a perfect day!

Happy creating to you.

Bead Dreams 2014

I mentioned that I was honored to be included in the 2014 Bead Dreams Exhibit.

Now that the show is over, I can share some images of 

my piece, Arabesque.

I hope you're enjoying a creative summer!

Comments are off while I enjoy mine :)

Bead Dreams 2014

Happy day!

I recently got word that my beaded necklace, Arabesque,

has been juried into the Bead Dreams 2014 show.

I'm super pleased to be included in this amazing exhibition!

There will be pieces in the show from as far away as Russia and Japan.

I can't wait to see them.

Wishing you a wonderful week full of 

color and good news.

P.S. we're in the midst of a huge snowstorm.

I bet you can't top that bit of craziness!

Comments are off.

VanDemark Designs

For some time, I've wanted to redesign my website so that it reflected

 all the different mediums that I enjoy working with.

Well, that has finally happened, thanks to lots of work on my husband's part!

Now, at VanDemark Designs you'll find beadwork, textiles, and photography.

We still have some things to tweak and a couple images to replace...

but, please take a moment to check out the new, improved

VanDemark Designs.

If you have an old link to my website homepage, replace it with this -

www.vandemarkdesigns.com/home.html
(blog remains - http://vandemarkdesigns.blogspot.com)

Wishing you a wonderful, creative week!

Bead Frenzy

There is a whole lot of beading going on in my studio

 as I'm working on an elaborate project for a show.

Since I want you to think I'm very neat and tidy,

there will be no studio photos today.

Instead, I'll tell you about what you'd see ~

a large Chinese Writing Stone Cabochon

from Gary B. Wilson Lapidary Design - it's a looker,

Swarovski crystals - the ultimate in bling,

Pyrite stone beads with an AB finish - subtle shimmer and texture,

seed beads - bags upon bags of them in a rainbow of colors,

drawings, tracing paper mock-ups, Ultra Suede,

 and the usual beading tools -

long beading needles, Nymo thread (size D), plus scissors.

If you're wondering what this amazing peacock street art mural

 has in common with my project....

well, they're both colorful,

both large (my necklace only in relative terms, of course),

and

both stop you in your tracks!

(hoping this necklace will when it's done - we'll see).

Wishing you a colorful, creative week!

This is a Test!

Last Saturday, I was grocery shopping.

With a full cart, and this banal chore almost done, I zipped into the checkout line

 expecting to be back home in no time.  It was then that I noticed the woman in front of me.

She was moving reeeaallly, reeeaallly slooooowly as she placed her groceries on the counter.

I looked for an escape route behind me, but two women already stood in line

(why is it most of the grocery shoppers are women?  Don't men eat?).

Trapped, I turned to watch the sloooow woman.

As I watched, my frustration turned into fascination.

Under her hand, all like-height cans stood together.

 These cans were also sorted by diameter size, with all labels facing one way.

Similar shape fresh veggies and fruit were grouped together, etc. 

Then came the bread... 4 loaves of cheap, gooey white bread

(ok, I admit I'm a bit of a bread snob since I like to make healthy bread in my bread machine).

Oh my God, one bread end was facing the wrong way!

Luckily, this was quickly rectified and all the butt-ends were matched up.

I bet you get the picture - 

this woman had a serious case of OCD!

So, here's the test - How are your OCD qualities looking these days?

1) Can you match or top this woman when you go grocery shopping?

(not me!)

2) Do you compulsively keep all your pencils sharpened to the same length?

(true story - a guy at my husband's old office)

3) Do you only drink coffee at pre-set times of the day

 and only from a freshly brewed pot?

(another former co-worker)

4) Is your clothes closet arranged by color family groupings?

(I confess, that's me.  After years of messy closets,

 I decided mine could at least look like an attractive rainbow)

5) How about your spools of thread, beads, or any other item you collect - 

obsessively arranged by color, size, or some other quantifiable  characteristic?

(bet you can guess my answer when it involves color!)

6) Do you sit in the same seat on the bus each day?  Pew at church? 

Chair at the business meeting table?

(hmmmm...)

7) Is your work or studio desk/table perfectly organized and 

continually kept that way?

(guess that's not me...my beading table currently looks like a bomb hit)

8) Do you always park in the same lot at the mall,

 preferably in the same relative spot?

(pass on this one, no malls in my world)

9) Finally, here's a fill in the blank question.

What's your favorite OCD activity?

(tell us please... we won't think you're nuts -  

apparently mine is picking out colors for the word OCD) 

Life's crazy, so why not channel a little OCD-ness today!!!

Happy, crazy day to you :)

The Latest

A couple bits of goodness ~

Recently, I was featured in the Impossible Project's Analog Travelog Series.

This is the Polaroid version of my summer trip to the city,

 taken with Impossible film.

Hope you can check it out - here.

Secondly, I just got back from teaching at the 

Indian Summer Quilt Show & Conference.

Many thanks to Muriel, Marcia, the friendly guild members, and all

the enthusiastic students that I had the pleasure of working with.

It was a delightful week!!!

Wishing you joy in creating.....

it's a wonderful way to live.

Chained

Currently I'm chained to my studio...well, figuratively anyway.

I'm busy working toward a bead show deadline.

Coming up for air in a couple weeks.  

See you then.

In the meantime, happy creating!

P.S. Check out this link which gathers together

numerous links showing how to convert

 a purse into an attractive camera bag.

I need to try this!

Dancing

Today, I want to share with you the color and bokeh dancing across my beadwork.

Enjoy!

Wishing you a colorful and creative week!

Beautiful Bokeh

Today, I am a guest contributor at the Shutter Sisters site.

Hope you can stop by, say hi, and soak up some bokeh and bling!

I'm also happy to have one of my photos recognized over at
 Darwin Wiggett and Samantha Chrysanthou's blog, oopoomoo.

Wishing those in the USA a wonderful, relaxing Labor Day.

Lensbaby Alchemy

Alchemy ~ any seemingly magical power.

One part beauty + one part "Radiance" necklace + one part velvet cape + 

one part rainy day light + one part Lensbaby =

magic captured.

Lensbaby 2012 Photo Story Challenge

Bead Heaven

Recently, I traveled to Milwaukee, WI to attend the annual Bead and Button Show 

and Bead Dreams Exhibition.

The Bead Dreams Exhibition included a group of amazing beaded pieces from around the world.

I was very fortunate to have my necklace, Tudor Splendor, juried into this exhibition.

Besides the inspiring jewelry, there was also a huge vendor mall.

It was like dropping into bead heaven!

Needless to say, I now have plenty of new, beautiful cabochons and beads

 to use in my jewelry and textile work.   

I'm feeling kind of like a magpie, as I eye my new stash of glimmer and bling :)

Hope you're basking in the warmth and sparkle of summer!

P.S. I've got comments turned off, as summer is so busy.

You can always reach me by email, if you'd like.

Theodore's Wisdom

Unfolding - quilt detail

Our daughter came home from college for the summer with a quote she wanted to share with us.

"Comparison is the thief of joy"  ~ Theodore Roosevelt

This quote certainly gives one reason to pause and think!

In how many ways has comparison touched our lives, and not in a good way?

All of us have probably compared our looks, intellect, talents, or material possessions 

to those of others, at some time or other.

When thinking about my own life, the competitive quilt shows 

that I've been involved in the last eight years first comes to mind.

Although I have a whole box full of prize ribbons -

along with prize money, they are the signs of success in this game -

I know all too well the joy stealing element that comparison can bring.

For me, true joy lies in the creative process and

 no one can tell me if I've succeeded in my vision for each piece,

as only I know the answer to that.

So, Theodore's wisdom now hangs, magnetized to our fridge,

along side family photos and other stellar quotes...

reminding me to hang on tightly to my joy and 

ward off the grasping hands of comparison.

Wishing you joy in all your creative endeavors.

See you again in a couple weeks. 

Beads, Bling, and Bokeh

Today, I'm linking into The Photo-Heart Connection with my favorite photo from last month.

Here's the story ~

In May, I will be teaching a textile workshop at Asilomar in CA (more about that later in this post).

So, I took a number of project photos for the students -  the f/8 kind with every bead, 

painted foil shape, and stitch in sharp focus (not pictured).

Then, I made some photos using a wide aperture... just for fun, just for me.

In these images form seductively slips into an abstract reality;

 with color, bling, and bokeh dominating.

The first capture in this set is my favorite.

But, quite frankly, given the dreary, colorless landscape outside my door, 

I think that I'd like to crawl into any one of these photos...

set up camp, and soak up all the luscious color!!!

The workshop details - Link.

Empty Spools Seminars at Asilomar, Pacific Grove, CA,

May 27 - June 1, 2012.

Workshop - Sumptuous Surface Design and Embellishment:

Come learn about foiling, bead embroidery, stamp-carving, paint stick rubbing, and 

creating dimensional bugs and dragonflies.

If you're looking for the perfect textile get-away,

ESS at Asilomar's "Refuge by the Sea" is the place to be!

Wishing you a colorful and creative week.
See you again in two weeks.

Linking at The Photo-Heart Connection.

Away

I'm away from my desk, enjoying some family fun.

See you in a couple weeks.

Hope your days are filled with happiness and creativity!

Creative ADD?

Someone told me I have Creative ADD.

I think they may have Tourette's Syndrome.

Seriously though, I will own up to finding joy in working in a variety of creative mediums.

I make art quilts for national shows and beadwork, too.

VanDemark Designs 

quilt photo by Steve Tiggman

(painted face on fabric)

I am fascinated with writing haiku and 

learning historical embroidery techniques.

I am totally in love with photography!

I don't see all this variety as a problem,

 but instead feel each medium informs and enriches the others.

It's like one happy, creative family working together.

So, where do you stand?

Do you enjoy one creative medium, or are you mistress to many?

Please tell!

Wishing you a wildly creative week!

Linking at The Creative Exchange.

Finish Line

I've been busy working to finish up a couple art quilt and beadwork projects.

These will be the pieces that I enter into shows in 2012.

I was thinking about how it feels to finally be finishing these projects after months of work ~ 

Pride? Joy? Exhilaration?.......

well actually, I mainly feel relief.

Relief because, now I can start something new.

I always have so many creative project ideas with only two hands and 

only so much time to do them in!

I'm looking forward to new beginnings :)

Wishing you happiness in all your creative ventures!

P.S. I've added a new category heading titled, Camera.
On this page you'll find info about what's in my camera bag and
a list of my favorite photography books, all with links.
I hope that you find this helpful.

Linking at The Creative Exchange.

A Bead

a sphere ~ a hole ~ a bead

so simple,

and yet,

combine hundreds....

it's complex.

Beading a Rainbow

Today, I'm contributing photos of my necklace, Radiance, to The Inspiration Studio. 

 Our theme is color and posts are all visuals, no text for two weeks.  

It's a gorgeous treat - a feast for the eyes!

We're also choosing a photo from the iStudio Flickr pool, each day.

So, add some of your best captures to the pool

 and you may be included.

Wishing you a colorful world!

Complements

"I cannot pretend to feel impartial about colors.  I rejoice with the brilliant ones and am genuinely sorry for the poor browns".  ~ Winston Churchill

This isn't about compliments - which folks go fishing for - but rather, complements, as in complementary colors! 

 If you know your color wheel, then you'll be aware that complementary colors sit across from each other on the color wheel.  That means that one of the complementary colors is warmer in hue, while the other is cooler.  I love to use complementary colors together in my quilts and beadwork because they set up visual vibration. 

 They dance, they sing, and they make magic together!