San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles

Our summer in California is coming to an end.  It did not go as planned (does anything ever go as planned) but it was a good summer.  I had a lot of grandbaby time and my friend Robin and I did some art and we "pole walked", a skill I will be taking home with me.

 One of the most exciting things that happened occurred on a trip to the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles (http://www.sjquiltmuseum.org/) .  I saw a post that they had a TECHstyle Art Exhibit ( TECHstyle Art Biennial 3 )  opening and mentioned it to Tom, he was willing to go so we set off on an adventure.  It is a lovely museum, dedicated to quilts and textiles and we saw 3 exhibits.  The first was of water color quilts made up of an astounding number of prints.  The second was  three women artists and their comments on what it means to be a woman (portrayed in altered clothing), becoming healthy (beautiful swimming quilts) and not fitting in (the third artist had been surgically altered as a child to make her shorter) it was very moving. Here is the outside of the museum

San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles

The third, and main, exhibit was the Tech Style exhibit, it was wonderful.  Many different types of textile art, weaving, crochet, quilting, image transfer, altered objects.  There had all been made using modern technology somewhere in the process.  some included sound, laser light patterns, photo technology and multimedia items, it was wonderful, even Tom enjoyed it.  This was one of my personal favorites.  Images taken of the changing shadows of the artists car while driving along, printed on fabric, enhanced and connected with plastic ties.




While I was there, one of the volunteers likes an amulet bag that I had made and introduced me to Louise Horkey, the Volunteer and Visitor Coordinator.  We agreed to meet later in the week to look over my "stuff" and possibly place it in the gift store on consignment.  I am still "over the moon" as my friend Cheryl likes to say.  Louise took nine of my amulet bags on consignment so now I can say..."as seen in the San Jose Museum of Quilts &Textiles ", how cool is that?!

Me and my Amulet bags on display

It is a great little museum and I heartily recommend it if you are in the area.

Crochet Challenge Week 9

Last week's challenge was to finish, work on or rip out WIP's.  I had previously posted two amulet bags I was planning to finish, well, I finished one and a half of that posting but I finished another bag also.  I also ripped out a scarf that wasn't going well (challenge give me strength Arrrggghhhh).  The bag I like the most is the Desert Amulet Bag.  It has a story that it told to me as I was making it. 

Desert Amulet Bag

You can see that story here (Desert Bag Story).  The bag is crocheted cotton #8 in turquoise, cream, tan and khaki.  Colors that remind me of the desert sky, sand and scrub brush.  The neckpiece is about 19 inches, crocheted with the cotton thread and fastened with a desert lizard toggle.  The beads on the front are drilled stone octagons with tiny carvings.  Closing the bag is a flap with loops, the loops slide over the mother of pearl "dragon's teeth" shell pieces.  Above the flap are two vintage brass beads and above that is a .... stone "hanging" piece that I bought at a trunk show in California.  It is supposedly from Afghanistan, but no one could tell me its real purpose, I think it makes a wonderful, mysterious addition to the bag.  This is not a glitzy bag and as such might appeal to men as well as women.  I am rather fond of this one and had a good time writing it's "story".

 

I finished another Amulet bag also.  The Earth Bag.  The bag itself is 3 x 3 inches with an additional inch of crocheted, beaded fringe with sandstone chips at the base of the bead loops.  The overlay crochet bag had a bead and vintage button clasp.  The 22 inch crocheted and beaded neck strap had a really nice feel to it, soft yet substantial.

 



















Sun bag

The last bag is not quite complete, the front and back are joined and the fringe is crocheted but not attached.  I have not decided on a neck strap yet.  This is my first try at enclosing a cabochon with crochet.  The center stone is a glass worry or meditation stone with a carving of a spiral sun in the center. Sorry but I have not figured out how to photograph that yet.  It was a bit loose so I had to tighten up the front and it turned out a bit off center.  I used gold metallic sewing thread and a size 12 hook to tighten it up.  The fringe is crocheted but not attached.  This one is telling me a story, but it isn't finished yet.  I'll post the story when it is done.


This week we are supposed to be organizing our patterns.  I intend to keep on working on those WIPS, I really want to finish some more amulet bags





 

Today is Hump day and I've been "Hookin".  In fact I am combining "Hookin on Hump Day" and the 52 week crochet challenge.  this week's challenge is to take a work(s) in progress and either finish it, work on it or rip it.  Since I am the queen of WIPs I have plenty to choose from.  I have finished a drawstring bag that I have been working on.  You may have seen some of my posts on Interlocking crochet.  This purse is Interlocking crochet in the round.  It is my first one, no pattern yet but I really like it.  I had two small balls of novelty yarn, not enough for anything big but plenty for this design. I started with a standard circle increase with one yarn.  Then, using both the red and the gold I built up the sides.  I finished off the top working the two colors together and then added the casing and shell border in the gold.  The drawstrings are just a chain stitch.

Interlocking Crochet in the round

These are my other WIPs that I am hoping to finish this week.  I have been making amulet bags and these two are my own designs.  The gold one has a clear glass "worry stone" with a spiral sun design on it which is encased in beaded crochet and then the flat background is worked around it, like a beaded cabochon.  The long oval bag will be hung from a small, sort of dumbbell shaped bead that I got at a trunk show in California several years back.  Supposedly it is from Afghanistan.  Both need to be assembled and have straps added.  The back of the gold bag needs to be finished.  The gold bag also will have a fringe.  I promise to post the finished bags when they are done.