so, for the past couple of days i have been thinking... and thinking hard. i've been rather lazy for the past month which could have to do with the fact that my boyfriend of five years and i are no longer together, that i do not have a car, and that i still do not have a steady job because the economy is brutal and the world hates me. i don't know if it is because i just started volunteering in the costume and textile dept. at the pma that i suddenly realized that i should be devoting my summer to developing my artistic skill and adding to my portfolio, which has - let's just face it - not happened at all so far. Or maybe it has just been my sudden re-emergence into the world of textile design blogs that i let sit in the back of my brain. Whatever it is that has woken me up from my laziness, it made me think of what i need to do.
i need to loose weight. i need to eat healthier. i need find my retainer because my teeth are creating a gap again, and while i'm at it, i need to whiten my teeth too. i need to reawaken my creativeness and start documenting everything around me so i have constant inspiration and ideas. i need to start sketching again. i need to get the rest of my things out of my boyfriend's apartment. i need to start
really painting and creating prints like i said i would, for my portfolio. i need to experiment with the jacquard dyes i bought, soon - like i said i would. i need to clean out my pile of junk, old design projects from freshman year, and consolidate my art supplies in the basement. i need to spin yarn again, i miss it. i need to starting working on my fellowship for iceland. i need to get financial aid and loans ready for this year. i need to keep busy. i need a car. i need a job. i need an apartment in the city so i can be close to school in the school year. i need to re-work this blog. i need to tell a certain someone how i feel. i need to realize a lot of things- especially about myself -one of them being that i can not experience life the way i am living it now. i need to tell myself that this is not just a wish list, but that it will all be checked-off by the end of the summer if i really want it to.
ahhh, ok. so, yes i have been thinking a lot since thursday, (these things being only a few) and i would like to start fresh and get motivated again to start working on my portfolio or just polishing my skill. i have a lot of things that i want to try and keep up with and hopefully i can handle it. the summer really seems to drag you down and keep you away from doing anything remotely productive. in the near future i am most likely going to begin posting more frequently again and the content of future posts will be of a higher quality and better understanding - hopefully. so, wish me luck and you shall see me again soon.
-K
i made this bookmark on a whim last week i think(?) and i realized i really needed more practice so...
i made this tonight for some practice. this printed fabric is a design that i had printed at Philadelphia University.
it was raining cats and dogs outside today and the tree across the street from us fell over!
bad picture that was taken from the upstairs window of my backyard being rained on like crazy
i have been interested in tarot cards for a very long time, and found them important for life lessons and how to deal with problems. my dad used to read them for people but stopped a long time ago; i remember getting my first set at the pennsylvania renaissance faire when i was in 6th grade i think. i've been getting back into them recently and bought a new set and a new book. the rider or waite deck (pictured here) is perhaps the most universal and the illustrations are amazing. i would love to do a print based on tarot cards someday.
new zealand, a place that has been at the top of my list for ages, will never leave it's cozy spot of number... 3. i mean, who doesn't want to go to the "adventure capital of the world" or where they shot Lord of the Rings? that makes seychelles number 4 i'd have to say ( i posted it last week?) these are some shots of the other island of fire and ice from National Geographic, i especially love the one below (that one for some reason really makes me want to go there). 
it would be a great place to study nature and natural patterns. it's full of beautiful rock formations, odd creatures, and intricate maori art objects. again... some day kathleen, some day...
i found this awesome engraving in National Geographic magazine from a few years back, and was a compliment to a piece they were doing on the chunnel between england and france. the article in the mag was not that interesting ( i usually only look at the pictures, i know i'm like a child) but i saw this on the margins of the page. it is an 18th or 19th century engraving from england on the fear of french invasion by digging a tunnel under the english channel. i just thought this was quite fantastic. i love old engravings, tin types, photography, etc, i think they are so amazing. there is a great blog called BibliOdyssey that features drawings and prints just of that sort, i actually have the book of their pictures i bought from barnes & noble. anyway, if you like this, you should check them out, they are one of my favorite blogs.
after flipping through my old sketchbook today i found a few self-portraits mostly from 2007. here's what i found and what i once drew. i also did a couple drawings of my legs, they are they favorite series i've done i think. after looking through these i hope to continue. it would give me something to do at least.
hmmm, could they actually be a source of inspiration for a print or woven design? maybe, i mean they are a little more like wildflowers, we haven't been taking care of them as much as we used to because my mom and her financee have been "redoing and rearranging" the house inside and out, trying to give it a makeover. apparently we are putting in a small coy pond, which would be nice, but i think it's too small for the fish. anyway, i'd thought i would share some pictures of the "nice" flowers in our backyard. 
these pictures are from the book, Tricia Guild: Inspiration and are just the tip of the iceberg. tricia guild is a textile designer and her book is full of excellent pictures and great ideas for projects and designs.
i really enjoyed designing my children's wear print in the fall semester and i think that McCay's illustrations are definitely a unique and refreshing source of inspiration for an old fashioned-ish children's print. i could really see myself doing a print inspired by these in the near future.
