Ocean View

Sometimes it feels right to step back and let the fabrics speak for themselves:  "Marbled, gelatin-plate printed, Procion MX dyed pimatex cotton, polyester organza."

8" x 10" Ocean View, photo and copyright Amy Mackinaw

Alaskan Winter Moon

Techniques of surface design: hand-dye, marbling, gelatin-plate printing, free-motion machine quilting and beadwork, collaged and overlaid with polyester organza to represent a moonlit night in an Alaskan birch forest.

Photo and copyright Amy Mackinaw 2018

Alaska :: Nothing but FUN!

A new series, playing with free-motion machine sketching and inking with Derwent Inktense pencils.  "Washed" and sealed with Jacquard Colorless Extender.

2"x2" Magnets copyright 2017 Amy Mackinaw

Denali Prints

Though her official height shrunk by 10 feet recently (due to more accurate measuring technology), she is still "The High One" to me.  Denali 20,310'

Denali original silk screen prints on hand-dyed cotton, 8x8"
photo by Amy Mackinaw

Springtime Snow Dyeing

It seems the snow always melts before I get the chance to snow dye...but not this year!

Set up with plastic-lined frame, stretched with snow fence.
One piece of cotton pre-soaked with soda ash solution under the snow fence to catch the melted snow and dyes.
Two pieces of cotton scrunched on top of the snow fence.

Sprinkling a variety of blues with an old spice bottle: turquoise, cerulean blue, azure blue, grape.

Added a strip of extra snow to see what happens if more snow added on top--
how much more pastel will the colors get?

Close-up of melting snow and dye on fabric.  Stay tuned for results--

Marbling Collection

Here's a new palette of marbled cottons using Jacquard Marbling Colors, each created in a 16x24-inch baking pan salavaged along the road and possibly used previously to catch old car oil?  Hard to say, but after lots of scrubbing, it's turning into a valuable tool!  Can't wait to start working with these fabrics---

16"x24" marbled cotton pieces drying by the woodstove, Jacquard Marbling Colors
photo by Amy Mackinaw

close-up of marbled cotton, Jacquard Marbling Colors
photo by Amy Mackinaw

Marbling process with paints, whisk, large baking pan
 and methyl cellulose medium to support paints

Something New Under the Sun?

We are in the middle of our March sunshine with dozens of inches of snow on the ground.  It's mostly blue and white out there, but who can resist throwing in some color?  Not me!

"Taiga" Tablet Sleeve, hand-dyed cotton, organza, beads, 1/4" foam
10 1/2"x12 1/2" -- photo by Amy Mackinaw

Animal Spirits: Shoulder Pouches

Here's a new batch of colorful shoulder pouches with inner zip pocket, hand-dyed and commercial cottons, lined with pre-quilted cotton. Original designs are silk-screened, and embellished with free machine embroidered quilting and beads.

Caribou and Chickadee, 8"x10"
photo by Amy Mackinaw

Grizzly and Moose, 8"x10"
photo by Amy Mackinaw

Denali Sunset

Denali Sunset  12"x30", Hand-dyed and commercial cotton, organza, machine quilting, glass beads
photo by Amy Mackinaw

Caribou, Moose and Grizzlies, oh my!

...and a little chickadee, raven and salmon, too--

Hand-carved, block printed, quilted coasters  5"x5"

Chickadee shoulder pouch  9"x11"

Moose shoulder pouch  9"x11"

Winter Work

Work from a recent local show:

"Skis on Rack" and "Freestyle"
each 12"x24", hand-dyed cottons, organza
photo by Amy Mackinaw

Alaska Range from the Trail  9"x11"

Birches in Blue  8"x10"

Spring Birch  8"x10"

Birch Hill Sunset    12"x30"
all photos/artwork by Amy Mackinaw

Winter Solstice

Counting down to the shortest day of the year on December 21st.  Here near the Arctic Circle, we will have fewer than four hours from sunrise to sunset, but for about an hour on either side of that--before the sun rises and after the sun sets, we have a period of time called civil twilight, and on cloudless days, that time offers up the most truly beautiful light--all around the sky, a blending of royal blue to lavendar to rose, with glints of gold and orange at the horizon--it's magical.

Mixed media collage, acrylic on watercolor paper, canvas and a chicken feed bag,
machine sewn with rayon thread, photo by Amy Mackinaw

Loons

This Loon Vase Mat is getting the final bead embellishments; then all layers will be sewn together and bound with colorful bias tape: the top quilt sandwich with polyester organza, waterproof nylon, heavyweight Pellon interfacing and duck cloth backing.  Ready to top a table or decorate a wall.

Portable bead work station--photo by Amy Mackinaw

Building Collage Inventory

While getting breakfasts and lunches ready to go, there is also time for some work with the brayer and a handmade foam stamp using Jane Davila's method.  These will go into the machine-sewn card-making stash.

Acrylics on watercolor paper, photo by Amy Mackinaw

Gelatin Plate Printing

Here's some late-evening gelatin plate printing with leaves just picked--ferns, wild geranium, wild rose--and some orange plastic fence material. I make my own gelatin plate with gelatin, glycerin and water and store it in the refrigerator, though I have read it is shelf-stable.  I leave it in the cookie sheet for easy portability.

I'm enjoying printing leaves for as long as they last, and then will have to move to inorganic objects--washers, keys, fence material, sequin waste, cheesecloth.  There are possibilities for all seasons...

Set up for gelatin plate printing, photo by Amy Mackinaw

Heading North

This wallhanging/centerpiece is made of small triangles of commercial cotton, polyester batting and cotton backing, with the central motif placed on top of the triangles.

The entire quilt "sandwich" is covered with a layer of polyester organza, pinned and stitched with free machine quilting using rayon thread.  A few beads were individually hand-stitched in place. Then several layers, including the heaviest double-sided Pellon fusible interfacing, heavyweight interfacing to back the fusible, a waterproof nylon fabric (to make it table safe if used under a vase) and cotton duck backing were all bound together with machine stitched, custom-made bias tape.

Heading North, 22"x22", photo by Amy Mackinaw

Let the Sun Shine In

Beautiful morning in my workshop, feeling inspired--

photo by Amy Mackinaw

Dimension

Fabric bowls are a great place to showcase hand-dyed, block-printed fabrics and specialty beads.  Here's how the pieces go together:

The pieces, fused and ready for satin stitch joining

The finished bowl, 8"x2"x8"

Wonderful Summer

It's been a great summer with plenty of visitors from around the world to Fairbanks.  Some of them have found their way to 2St Gallery.  Here are a few of my recent pieces--

Crane en pointe  18"x22", hand-dyed and commercial cotton, organza, beads

Mountain Flowers 5"x8", hand-dyed and commercial cotton, organza, beads

Field of Flowers Table Runner, 30"x16", hand-dyed and commercial cotton, organza, beads

Bird Inspirations

Here is a work in progress from free machine embroidery to beads to finished product.  After the power went out, I was determined to finish this and completed the binding with my Singer treadle machine.

Free machine embroidery on organza layered quilt - photos by Amy Mackinaw