I did it!

Do you remember when I went to my first Dallas Area Fiber Arts meeting and they sent me home with TWO bags from the "bag of stuff" challenge? Even though I did not submit a bag of my own?!

Here's the bag... as it sat for at least three months.

There were not any hard rules for the challenge --- just make something out of the stuff, don't add any fabric and use it all.

I really felt like I wanted to do something with it. I knew it would be a challenge that might stretch me a bit -- in a good way. Plus, I'm eager to get more involved in the DAFA group and participating in this project would be a good way. The DAFA programs for this year are all focusing on the Elements and Principles of Design... so I went with that. And I made a big fiber book. I also wanted this to be a quick project for me. I made sketches on Sunday night and finished it on Thursday, I think.

It. Is. So. Not. Perfect.

But... you know, you go with what you have. In this case, some of the stuff in the bag was lovely, and some was awful. I did not add any fabric at all to the project. And I tried to use at least a bit of eveything.

Here is the elements cover side. When you flip the book over and upside down, you have the principles cover. Those red handles are from the original paper bag that held all the fabric.

I fused on several blocks of handwriting with my personal thoughts about each element.

Here is the principles cover. I think I'll just leave that needle in the scrap of denim.


The pattern and scale spread. That animal print on the left also came in teal and fuscia. (Ah. Yuck.)


The gradation and color spread. Yes, there is the teal leopard print in the color wheel.


Here we have line and shape.

When I look at these pictures, I just think it all looks so sloppy and lame. Oh well. This was a project where the importance was in the "doing it" rather than in the arty-ness of it.

This is value from the elements side and rythm from the principles side -- that's why it's upside down. The book reads back to back. Get it?


From the principles side, here are balance and dominance. I think this balance page is my favorite. (So much easier to acheive in design than in life.)

I've since given the whole book a hair cut and trimmed all those loose threads.

Here is movement and repetition. Yes, all those buttons were in the bag of stuff.


The harmony and contrast spread.


And yet when the project was complete, I still had all these leftovers.

You may have to shield your eyes from that animal print. Yikes.

I pulled these treasures out of the leftovers to keep.


And the rest...


Now here is the funny and ironic part of the story. We are supposed to share our "bag of stuff" projects at the next DAFA meeting. I have another meeting that same night and I've decided to skip the DAFA meeting. It was a tough choice... but that's just the way it is going to work best. I'll bring it to the November meeting instead. But I'm sharing it with YOU now!