ULLABENULLA

Feathered Tea...

I am enjoying the embroidery of Renie Breskin Adams, especially this one...  Wouldn't you love to have tea with the birds?

Trying To Stay Upbeat In A Lagging Economy...

I have so many things to be grateful for, so many wonderful things happening - and yet - it can be difficult to stay upbeat and happy.  I've had to cancel four classes in the last 6 weeks.  Scary for me, as this is my main income...  I was so used to my classes always filling and didn't account for the lag in our economy pulling my socks down so hard! Times are tough for many of us...

What I am grateful for today:

*Loving Family

*Health

*Wonderful Friends

*Home and Hearth

*Abundance of Inspiration

*Sunshine and Birdsong

*My WWC Photo Shoot

*Castle Family and Support

*Beautiful Space to Create In

*My Dog Sadie

*Opportunities In The Future

*Fresh Strawberries and Chai

*Wonderful Books To Read

*Spring Break Next Week (Yea!)

*Garden Beginning To Bloom

And last but not least, somehow I passed 1,500 Posts last week and didn't notice!   WOW!

Time goes on...

Birthing An Alligator - Part 1

When I think of Alligators I think:

*Big

*Powerful

*Frightening

*Primal (thank you Lea for reminding me of this!)

*And in the case of my 'Alligator Wall' - Fun!

So why work on an Alligator right now?  Well, partly once I assembled my 'Alligator Wall' I felt it needed something down in the lower left hand corner...  But I suddenly realized that there is Much Much more to this project then just creating a filler for my wall!  

I have been wanting to get back into TEXTILES for quite a while now.  Textiles is my background, I spent years learning about, playing with and creating with it in the form of wearable art.  I made dolls for many years and loved  'dressing them' the best.  Teaching at the CASTLE pushed my art much more towards PAPER.  I love paper!  But there is something really deep inside of ME that needs to work with fibers and textiles.

So I have started an Alligator...

Not just any alligator, but a BABY Alligator, and I thought you might enjoy hearing about my process as I take this leap back to my roots so to speak.

  

I spent some time looking for a nice Alligator silhouette, and decided I liked the one shown on top of this post the best.  After finding the image, I enlarged it 250%, so its more life-size.  In reality my enlarged version measures about 25 inches from nose to tail.  Feeling the need to stay 'sustainable and green' I also decided to only use fabrics and materials that I already have.  I first cut out the basic Alligator shape of a nice raw cotton batting.   Then I lay this on top of a shrunken wool sweater and traced the shape to re-cut.  But this time I cut the shape about a 1/4 of an inch smaller all the way around.  I'm totally in a grove now, not really thinking why - just doing...

My reasoning for using creamy whites here in the beginning has to do with my love of the 'White Alligator' that lives in San Francisco's California Academy of Sciences.  He is a real beauty and a true must see!

Next I stitched the two layers together with a darker thread, outlining the shape.  I worked fast, and left the loose threads.

At this point I truly wasn't quite sure how to proceed.  After letting it sit for a few hours, I decided to go back to one of my favorite techniques when I was in school - Reverse Applique.

"In reverse applique two layers of fabric are used and the top layer is cut away showing the fabric underneath."

As tempted as I might be to let it be finished now, I still feel it needs more.  I found THIS IMAGE while doing some computer browsing yesterday and something about it just struck a chord!  Partly it was the colors used, but also the simplicity of shapes.   I pulled out my box of Fabric Scraps and started digging - looking for colors that spoke to me.

After finding a few pieces that seem to say Alligator, I began cutting them into tiny squares and circles.  I also went through my button box and dug out a large handful of tiny mother of pearl buttons - harking back to the White Alligator who inspired the initial coloring.  

  

Now the fun part, how to use these little bits and pieces...  Here is what I have lain out so far.  I don't want the initial Applique cuts to disappear, yet I do want something NEW to happen.

I'm feeling inspired by how my embroidery threads happen to be arranged.  Haphazardly but in a definite color range.

Thats as far as I've come.  

I am finding it profound that I chose a 'Baby Alligator' to do this project.  I see this as a Baby Step towards going back to my fiber roots.  I hope you enjoy hearing about my process and following along on this new path...  

More Soon!  

Please Join Me In My Fairytale Altered Book Class This Saturday!

I am scheduled to teach my 'FAIRYTALE ALTERED BOOK CLASS' this Saturday at the CASTLE.  This is truly one of my favorite classes to teach as the variations and themes are endless!  I would love to have you come join me in discovering your own personal inner fairytale, and spending the day creating a book you will treasure!  

Inspired by a classic fairy tale or one you invent, this book showcases a different scene on each page.  Special pockets hold and hide one-of-a-kind paper dolls fashioned from vintage photos.  The dolls are attached to the books spine with a silk ribbon so they can travel from page to page.  Give free rein to your imagination while learning a variety of altered-book techniques needed to create this special and magical book.

Fee: $105.00, includes all materials.

Saturday March 21st,  10:00 am to 5:00 pm.

Call  510-204-9801 to sign up today! 

See more samples of my book HERE

and student samples from past classes HERE

Alligator, Alligator, Pudding Pie!

Don't you just love the way that sounds???  I have been working on a project for my 'Alligator Wall' which I will share soon.  Till then, here is a couple of sneak peeks at what else hangs on this wall. 

Alligator, Alligator, Pudding Pie!

Leprechaun Jewels...

What my daughter wore to school today...  Oh to be 14 again!

Behind The Scenes Of A Studio Photo Shoot - My Story...

It's 'the day after' and I am utterly exhausted and spent...  As a couple of you guessed, Jo Packham of Where Women Create spent yesterday morning in my little studio.  I was the next to the last artist being photographed in her whirlwind week long trip to Northern California.  The best word I can think of to describe this experience is 'Surreal'!  My emotions have run the gamut this week, a true roller-coaster event!  Having never been in a professional photo shoot before I had no idea what to expect.  With this in mind, I've decided to give you a day by day playlist of happenings from start to finish as a way to share my own personal experience and tell the tale. ENJOY!

Wednesday March 4th:  Jo emails me asking if she can come the following Tuesday to photograph my studio. This is the first I have heard that I am even being considered!  I nearly jump through the roof!  Talk about exciting!  I feel like I've been handed the moon!!!   THANK YOU KARIMA for recommending me!

Thursday:  I look over my studio space and make notes on what to 'clean', what to 're-organize' and what to 'store', and begin the process of making the studio 'photo-ready'.  As tempting as it may be to leave the space 'as is', I feel compelled to present it in its best light.  Wouldn't you?  Truth be told, I changed very little, merely primped, pruned and re-positioned.  Here is a couple of  Before and After photos that I took of my painting corner.  As you can see, the elements are all the same, I've just moved things around a bit, changed the wall decor, added a little lace to the windows and cleaned up my piles of papers.

Friday:  Jo decides to add a day to her trip, reschedules my shoot for two days later, Thursday morning at 8:00 am, (I will be the 9th of 10 artists she will see.)  I am elated to  have 2 extra days to fluff and pluck!  I continue taking little steps in cleaning and re-organizing.  It feels overwhelming at times, and I have to force myself to see the big picture and not get bogged down in little details!  I want to be sure the real me is on display... 

Saturday and Sunday:  I decide to weed the front yard, feeling the need to have a nice first impression, and aquire a couple of  big blisters in the process...  Husband paints the hallway leading into the bathroom in the house - a job that we've been wanting to do for 2 months, but just couldn't find the time for, and now seems to be priority.  

I spend a few hours here and there puttering in my studio - feeling more and more over-whelmed, physically tired but still happy.  My close friend and neighbor Deborah comes over for a couple of hours to help me 'style' my collections.  She has an uncanny eye and talent for placing things so they look their best!  Its amazing to me how hanging a picture 3 inches higher, or placing a shoe with heel turned out on a shelf can make such a huge difference - but it does!  Its still my stuff - just tweeked a little.

Monday morning:  Things are taking shape!  My display shelves look great, my supplies are organized as if I have a row of classes coming up (which I do!) and the spot in the garage dedicated to 'storage' is overflowing! Yikes!  All the windows have been cleaned and the resident spiders have been politely asked to move outside...  I am trying not to second guess myself - not an easy thing to do! 

Monday afternoon:  One of my dearest friends (you'll find out 'WHO' soon enough!) calls me on the phone,  (Jo just left her studio hours ago) and clues me in on how it went.  "Its all about you, Ulla!" she says.  Her parting words - "Ulla, this is your opportunity to show the WORLD who you are and what you do..."   

No pressure - right?  I am starting to feel nervous...

Monday evening:  The newest issue of Where Women Create arrives by mail compliments of  Jo Packham herself!  Its beautiful!  The artists and studios featured are amazing and truly beautiful.  I get feelings of doubt and 'less than' while comparing myself...

Tuesday:  I had a restless night filled with nightmares of earthquakes and horses stampeding through my studio! I plot the final 48 hours on paper, with 'Clean Bookshelves' on top of the list.  An hour into the bookshelves, my husband phones from work and asks how things are going, and I collapse in tears...  I'm tired, overwhelmed, excited, anxious, nevous, and a complete basket case.  It feels as if my Menopause has become a dragon and is frying me to the bone!  Ever calm and supportive, he tells me  "Its time to call in the troops Ulla!"   I make a few phone calls and re-plot my battle-plan.

Here are two Before and After photos of my bookshelves.  I am still amazed at how something as simple as re-positioning a stack of books, and weeding a few out can make such a big difference!

Tuesday afternoon:  I take an hour off and go over to our neighborhood Nursery and spend $45.00 on a crate of Annuals to fill 4 small pots. This will be the ONLY money I spend that has anything to do with the shoot.  Actually it was more of a 'feel-good' purchase, as I wanted to add a little color to the deck outside my studio windows.  (Ultimately no photos were taken of the outside - so it was pure selfish pleasure on my part...)

Wednesday morning:  My Mother arrives at 9:00 to help me sew two small curtains to place under my work table. Another project I have been wanting to do for ages, but just couldn't find the time...  At 9:30 Trish brings her beautiful calm presence to my house and quietly 'makes things presentable' inside.  Having focused the entire week on my studio, the house was filled with piles of various things and debris on all flat surfaces.  At 10:00 Lea arrives.  Despite having just been bitten by a dog the night before! -  she offers to clean the Labyrinth and do a little weeding in back by the studio!  Now the walk to my studio looks as beautiful as it should!  As these loving ANGELS work their magic, I begin crossing out my own to-do list, finishing the small chores and eliminating larger ones that no longer seem necessary.  

I devote the afternoon to fine-tuning my space, trying to decide what I should leave out 'for show' and wishing I had taken a run to the CASTLE to pick up some more samples of my work. 

Alas, time runs out - I tell myself that 'I have enough' and pray that Jo will feel the same.

Thursday morning at 8:00 sharp:  Michael Garland, the photographer arrives.  Friendly, and chatty he checks the studio for lighting and begins to set up.

8:35:  Jo arrives.  Excited about having spent the previous day and night at another Bay Area artists space she is delightful and charming.  She and Michael re-connect about the day before.  A few words are said about how to photograph my space, and the two seemingly have a telepathic ability to know what the other wants...  

The next 3 and a half hours are almost a blur to me now... 

Was it fun?  Yes!

Was it nerve-wrecking?  Yes!

Was it what I expected?  No...

As a successful and busy publisher and editor Jo spent much of this time multi-tasking.  Phone calls were placed, big decisions were made about the up-coming issue via computer and conversations with Michael and myself flowed in and out of this little studio.  There were times when I just stood there, feeling disconnected and alone, and times when I felt like I had just been given my best 'Five Minutes Of Fame'!  

Somewhere in the midst of this, my 14 year old daughter was fetched from School. When I showed Jo my daughters 'fashion corner' in the studio, (which she proudly styled all by herself!) Jo immediately said "Well - we need to photograph and feature her too!"   Michael seemed charmed by my daughters youthful energy and style, and a new photo session was created on the spot!

 

Around 11:30, mutual friend of both Jo's and I,  Anna Corba arrived - lending her quiet grace and lovely perspective to the reminder of the morning.  

A little after noon, the photo shoot was finished.  Jo treated everyone to sandwiches and salads which we ate while talking quietly and soaking up a little sunshine on our back porch. 

By 1:00 everyone had left for the next shoot, and I sat stunned and unmoving on the sofa in my studio...  Was it really only a week since the first email from Jo?  In some ways it seemed like a month, and in other ways like only yesterday.  

Today - the day after...  

A close friend described it wonderfully for me this morning;  "Ulla, its as if you just acted in your own movie, and then suddenly were told: Now you have to do your 'Nude Scene'."  In other words, I spent a week re-hearsing and preparing for this movie, but didn't really face the reality of seeing myself naked and exposed - putting my studio out there for the world to see!  My studio is filled to the rafters with things, projects, and inspiration that say'Ulla', speak Ulla and are Ulla.  I am by nature not good at self-promotion, and at times even a bit reclusive... This photo shoot forced me to open up - and show myself in ways I haven't done before.  I also discovered how wonderful it is to ask for help and receive it gracefully.  A true learning experience, that was amazing, exhausting and unforgettable, and filled with a kaleidoscope of emotions and feelings!  

THANK YOU JO  for giving me this marvelous experience and opportunity to grow.

I look forward to seeing how our story continues...!

Its All In The Details...

This last week has been Crazy-Busy in preparation for a special photo shoot happening in my studio tomorrow! When you have a space like mine, that shares room and board with hundreds of spiders and has so many little nooks and crannies (a few that haven't seen the light of day since they were established 14 years ago) cleaning and organizing can be a REAL chore!  Primping and preening the hundreds of little things that inspire and help me share what I create and love with the world takes energy and a focus of mind like nothing else.  Even bookshelves, the work-horses of my inspiration needed to be fussed over and re-arranged... Today I face the final hours of getting ready, with a handful of blisters and a full heart!  Tomorrow the world is coming to tea!

(More - plus what and when soon!)