Well we have come to the last post in the challenge. I don't have anything for Z-zip so... This post is for YOU! You my crafting, creating, blogging friends. Thank you for hanging with me through this year's challenge. I hope you enjoyed each post and maybe learned something too. Each year I say "that is the last challenge I do!" But then each year some- thing nudges me to do it again. I learn too when I look up information for each post some more than others. So again THANK YOU!! Posting will resume on May 6th. Taking a bit of a break after the challenge of blogging almost everyday. ~Keep on Dreaming~
Who would have know there was an actual category for this? I thought I was making it up. :)
According to Wikipedia, this is "Artwear or art to wear." These are individually designed pieces of (usually) handmade clothing or jewelry created as fine or expressive art. The term "wearable art" implies that the work is intended to be accepted as a serious and unique artistic creation or statement.
Wearable artists use a variety medium in their creations. Fabric or other fiber pieces are used as materials made from non fiber pieces ie: leather, plastic, metal, sheeting etc. Information listed above is from Wiki- pedia, if you want to read more on this art form check out the rest of this article and others listed when you Google "Wearable Art." As I said above I thought I made up this category due to the fact that I could not find too many crafts that began with W. When I thought about it, I was thinking decorated T-shirts, jewelry etc. But what I read was interesting, again who knew? X is up but I have nothing for it so Y will be the post for Saturday. ~Keep on Dreaming~
Victorian crafts were a highly ornamented style of decoration that was popular in 19th century England. Young women were expected to be proficient with a needle and were encouraged to knit or crochet for those in need. This gave them something to do with their time while "the men" Fathers and brothers attended to business. Victorian crafts have been broken down by: Needlework-embroidery, macramé and hair braiding. Sculptural-shellwork, featherwork, mosaic and beadwork. Pictorial-textile or china painting, arranging dried flowers, leaf work or etching.
Also known as "Parlor Crafts." Women gathered in the parlor, sipping tea and working on their current projects.
Today, Victorian crafts can be
found in antique shops. Some are inherited from a family members. It is said that this particular craft should not be ignored due to the highly skilled craftsmanship. W is up tomorrow! ~Keep on Dreaming~
The definition I found states that Unique is being the only one of it's kind; unlike anything else. Now I am going to stretch this a bit and say that arts and crafts are unique. They are done by individual people the way they want do them. Take making jewelry for instance, one might see a bracelet, necklace or earrings and decide to make them but in a different color, pattern, use different materials etc. They are unique to that person because they made them. Scrapbooking can be the same way. You want to make a baby book, you look for examples of pages but you as the crafter you change paper, fonts for wording, the wording itself and so on. Knitting or crocheting. One picks a pattern but uses different yarn, thread, floss. You can change the color scheme, it all depends on what you are making the item for. Blogging is definitely unique. Each of us has a different theme, we either use Blogger or Word Press. We design our own pages etc. None of our blogs look alike, they are different to suite our needs. I think you get where I am going with this. Thought I would throw that in for U. V is up tomorrow. ~Keep on Dreaming~
This will be an obvious post for some. Here we go! Tools for Paper crafting- Scissors and paper trimmer Paper punches Craft knife (X-Acto) Circle cutter and mat Mod Podge and Foam brush Hot Glue gun and sticks Scoring Board and Envelope tool Washi Tape, Twine and Ribbons Chalk markers Regular markers, Gel pens and Colored Pencils Tools for Sewing- Sewing machine Needles Pins Thread Fabric Scissors Tape measure Pattern Iron Marking pencils Ironing board
Tools for Jewelry making- Beads Charms Wire Stretchy bands Pliers--Needle nose Scissors Jump rings Earring pieces Chains Magnifying glass Tools for Painting Paints (depends on the project) Brushes Canvas or Fabric Cleaning agent Tarp or newspaper Mason jars Craft boxes (Blank) Stencils Most crafters have a stash of tools depending on our projects. It is always a good thing to do an inventory each time a project is finished in case something needs to be replenished. My rule of thumb is to have more than I need so I don't have to go buy something for a particular project. But there are times that you will have to go get one thing cause you don't have it. What is in your tool stash?? I am skipping U so V will be up on Wednesday. ~Keep on Dreaming~
Remember the old school scrapbooks? They were composed of a leather bound book and paper pages inside. I had several of these but I used them more for souvenirs from activities, concerts, vacations etc. My pictures were place in the albums that had the protected pages that peeled back.
Today's scrapbooks are more photo conscious. Acid free materials are used and photo saving options are used. According to Wikipedia Scrapbooking is the preserving, presenting, arranging personal and family history in the form of a book, box or card. Decorations and journaling accompany the photos. Scrapbooking began in the United Kingdom in the 19th century but seen more in the UnitedStates today. We have gone from 15th century Common- place books to scrapbooks of today. A Commonplace book was a record of recipes, poems, quotes, letters and more. Each was unique to the creator as today's scrapbooks are. Joseph N Nicepe added the first photo in 1826. Books showcasing photos primarily were not popular in the United States until 1860. Today primarily our scrapbooks contain lots of photos. Did you know Mark Twain was a scrap- booker? Apparently he was known for inventing scrapbook supplies and carried one with him where ever he went. Old scrapbooks tended to have photos mounted with photo corners and journaling of who was in the picture and where it was taken. Scrapbooking today: Marielen Wadley Christensen is credited with turning scrapbooking from what it used to be (hobby) to what we see it as it is now ( a business of selling supplies devoted to scrapbooking. She and her husband opened a store in 1981 devoted to scrapbooking and it is still open today. Scrapbooking Stats: Over four million women consider them- selves scrapbookers. Over 4% of women have done some form of traditional scrapbooking and millions of others have done other forms of photo books. Scrapbooking is one of the largest categories of the craft/hobby industry. It is considered the third most popular craft in the nation. From 1996-2004 industry sales were high then flattened in 2005. From 2006-2010 traditional sales of supplies declined as digital forms began to grow. Independent stores went from 4,200 to 1,200. Manufacturers declined from a high 800 to under 250 around the same time. Now I know what happened to all the stores in our area. Interesting. Terms: Scrapbooker Crop (s) Journaling Supplies: Book (s) Photos Paper Tape/glue Embellishments Scrapbooking is a personal craft, no two are alike. Most have a theme. birthday, holiday, sports, dance, big occasion etc. My confession(s) I have ALOT of scrapbook treasures I have ALOT of scrapbook paper (most is used for school projects) I have started two and not finished either one. Someday? Do you scrapbook, know anyone who does? T is up on Monday! We are down to the letters that may not have anything to go with it so hang in there. ~Keep on Dreaming~
Ribbon is a versatile tool in crafting. It adds a finishing touch to fabric, journals, scrapbook pages, gifts.. It can be tied around branches, flowers books etc. Can also be used to tie tags or trinkets to bags or gifts. Cultures around the world use ribbon in a variety of ways: Tie in their hair Around their body As ornamentation Fabrics used for ribbon: Satin Organza Sheer Silk Velvet Grosgrain DIY with ribbon: Decorative Ribbon Balls Ribbon Flowers Lace ribbon Wands Ribbon Bookmark Hair Braiding Ribbon Lampshade Ribbon Mobile Ribbon Wreath Ribbon and Bead Christmas Trees To name a few. I will confess that I have my own addiction to ribbon. LOVE IT! Shouldn't buy it till I run out but that does not stop me!! Ha! What are some things you use ribbon for? S is up tomorrow. ~Keep on Dreaming~
According to the net, the word "quilt" comes from the Latin word "culcita" meaning stuffed sack. ORThe stitching of layers of padding and fabric. The quilts history began long before the European settlers came to the new world. One of the earliest quilts made was the Tristan Quilt made around 1360. It was made in Sicily in the second half of the 14th century and is one of earliest surviving quilts in the world. The Tristan Quilt, depicts scenes from the story of Tristan and Isolde. An influential romance and tragedy.
In the United States, quilt making was common in the late 18th century and the early 19th century. Women were busy spinning, weaving and sewing to clothe their families. Bedding made commercially or woven was more economical at the time, only the wealthy had the time to leisurely quilt. Obviously quilts of that time were not made of scraps or worn clothing for bedding. Instead they were decorative works made to display the needle work of the quilter. Quilt styles of the early 19th Century: Wholecloth--Early ones were made with three layers. Top fabric, filling, and backing. Stitches were seen as decoration. There seems to be a revival for this quilt, they are either made by hand or machine. Medallion--made around a center, sometimes from a solid piece of large scale fabric. The center was then surrounded by two or more borders. The Industrial Revolution brought a dramatic change in fabrics, they were made on broad scale and women no longer had to spin and weave to make fabrics. It became more affordable to make a quilt at that time. The invention of the sewing machine contributed to the making of quilts and Singer started an installment plans so that more household had machines. This gave the home- maker the time to make quilts faster and make clothes for the family too. Over the years quilts have been made for fund- raisers in the Civil War. The Abolitionists had fairs to raise awareness of slavery and quilts were sold to raise money. For the war effort and the troops. In 2014, The Wall Street Journal estimated that there were 21 million quilters in the United States. Much more can be said about quilts and the making of them, I could be here all day. Check out Google for a great listing of articles on the craft. My story: Many years ago a friend of mine and I made "Puff Quilts" these are made from 6x6 pieces of fabric pockets, sewn on three sides, stuffed with filling and sewn shut. The pockets are sewn together in strips for the size of your bed. Mine was made with a variety of yellow fabrics and the backing was a Hawaiian tropical fabric. It took a while to make this quilt but I was so proud of it. I still have it but it is not in use at the moment. Anyone a quilter?? ~Keep on Dreaming~
