Beads and Frogs and some Fun with Illustrator

I've been working on Cafe au Lait - added some bead froth. I'm going to have to rename it Cappuccino I guess! I also started doing some hand-quilting - I was using some variegated purple/black thread and following the swirls on the tablecloth. Right down the center of the white swirls. It had a dizzying effect. Too dizzying, so I ripped it out. I really just need to finish it up so I can bring it down to the restaurant.

I've also been working on my self-portrait. I wanted it to be somewhat realistic so I've decided to place myself in one of our Troutman rockers that I have up in my studio, next to the window and my sewing table. Of course there needs to be coffee in the picture.

My laptop has a built-in camera, so I took a couple of pictures of myself sipping coffee from my favorite cup. I had to do it twice - once holding the cup with my left hand and once with my right - so I could still click the button to take the picture. I then merged the pictures and placed them on top of my rough line drawing and amazingly everything lined up! Now to actually find the right fabrics. Maybe tomorrow? We're supposed to get a lot of snow tomorrow evening - if I get everything together I'll have plenty of handwork to do should the power go out.

Color Wheel 2.0

It was ever so nicely pointed out to me that I messed up - I was using RGB (Red, Green, Blue - the primary colors of the internet) rather than RBY (Red, Blue, Yellow - the primary colors of painters/artists). There's yet another set - CMY(K) which is used by printers (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and blacK) I thought the colors seemed a bit "off" but I just figured it was my monitor. Finding the right RGB values to equate to primary RBY is simple, but it got trickier with the secondaries and tertiaries. I think I've gotten it right this time. I actually did a google search to see if I could find RGB settings that would equate to RBY secondaries and tertiaries but came up emtpy-handed. I think this is turning into a bigger mathematical challenge than anticipated!

Playways, Illustrator, and a Color Wheel

Cool, huh?

So, first, I've been working on Playways Module 1 since the dawn of time, or so it seems. Dale Rollerson of The Thread Studio put a 5-module course together and it's amazing to see the work produced by some of the participants. I've started module 1 at least three times now, but I'm hoping this time I actually get through and make it to Module 2!

I'm also determined to learn how to use Illustrator to do some drawing for use with my art quilts. I thought it would be neat to try to complete the first set of "paper" exercises using Illustrator. One of the things I had discovered is a set of swirls that I would love to replicate in fabric. The artist has several Illustrator "files" that you can download and copy bits and pieces; she also created a set of "brushes" so you can actually "draw" your own swirls.

So, what you see above (click for a larger image) is a color wheel that started as a 12-point star with swirl "brush strokes" that were then straightened and the color set by adjusting RGB values equating to the primary, secondary and tertiary colors.

On to the next set of color exercises! Of course most of the course has to do with fabric and fiber, but a solid understanding of color is key. By jove ... I think I've got it!