Things I Love Thursday

Happy Winter Solstice!  We've had a snowless winter so far.  There was still green grass when the November frost came.

raspberry leaves in my back yard

I love to photograph winter light and soft frost covered palletes.

clematis vines in my yard

Then came the Winter Solstice.  It arrived here in Saskatoon at 4:44 am on December 21st.  As is our family tradition, we headed out to greet the morning sun.  These photos were good and late of course, around 9:30 am.

cell phone camera xo

Just like magic, THERE IT IS!  The sun rose up so quietly and the golden light just spilled over everything.  I can't tell you how much I adore this moment.  Unfortunately, it occurred after my kids went to school that day, so just my husband and me and my dog went out.

the tallest grasses catch the morning light first

Winter light is just so incredibly beautiful.  It was so still and quiet, hardly any snow and no wind.  Even our temperatures were above 0 that day.  Every year is different.

We headed back home, cleaned up the house and got the turkey ready.  Once everyone was home after school, we enjoyed a BIG meal - best so far!  And then we waited for the night to open our gifts, as is our tradition.  It was a nice night - a little extra special this time around as we added a seat for my oldest child's sweetheart around our table.  : )  They're growing up!  o my goodness.  It was the first year there were no toys under the tree.  The kids got gifts of makeup and sketch pads, tea and framed art.  Only the family dog hopped around like a happy little toddler.   : )

curly grasses coated in sparkles and sunshine

Later, I sat beside my husband to play a board game at the kitchen table.  Both of us, a little rounder with greying hair and donning our new reading glasses.  I looked at him and admired how handsome he is becoming, and reflected on what a different place we are in now.  I sure love my family.

I hope your Solstice was a meaningful one!  Enjoy your winter wherever you are.

xo

New Showcase in Saskatoon

I love gettin' things done.  LOVE IT.  Today I delivered a pile of threadpaintings and 40 new Prairie Postcards to the Sask Craft Council Boutique.

813 Broadway Avenue, Saskatoon

They're stocking up inventory for the you-know-what season.  ; )  I shipped another work of art off to an event.  I delivered some art to customers.  I restocked my Etsy Shop with postcard supplies & art.

Then this afternoon, I hung six framed embroideries on the walls at True Potential Health Services on 8th Street in Saskatoon for the offices of Dr. Jacqui Fleury, ND and her team.

#3 - 1810 8th Street East, Saskatoon SK

I met Jacqui 16 years ago when I was pregnant with my first.  I was a new patient and I thought she was amazing.  We've continued to stay in touch by coincidence, but maybe that's meant to be. She moved her practice not too long ago to a new space 8th Street, in the same parking lot as Dad's Nutrition / Organic Market and Bakery.  We see each other on Facebook, and this summer she asked if I would like to display my art in her offices.  WOW.  Yes, of course!  I went to visit and was thrilled to find lovely colourful walls.   I started to dream up what I would want to put in there and got to getting things framed.  Finally this afternoon, I was able to bring my work in and put it all up.

the front waiting room

Here are closeups of the two fibre art works that I have up over the chairs.  They are available for purchase but not at the clinic.  Anyone interested is asked to contact the artist directly.  Also, I am happy to ship world wide, so these pieces are not limited to being purchased by local folks.  I will be adding them to my website under, 'Available Artworks'.  I can go to the clinic at any time to pick up and ship art, and replace with new work.

click on image to view larger

That was one of Jacqui's favourites.  It's entirely hand stitched, 8x10 inches, framed under glass to 12x14".

The next one was part of the SCC's 40th Exhibition over the summer.  It is also available directly from me, but on display at True Potential Health Services.

And Roadside is still available as well.  It was hanging at Handmade House for the summer.  I had some pouts when I took it out for Jacqui, but it looks so good on her soft brown wall.

The photo doesn't do the art or the space or the wall colour justice, but there you have it.  Here's the close up image of the yarn embroidery, also available.

There are a few more, but they are in patient exam rooms.  So, what do you think?  : )  I feel so fortunate to have been given this opportunity.

I also have little yarn embroideries to add to Handmade House, along with more mini threadpaintings.  I'll be in there for my Friday shift, eagerly anticipating heading to the quilt show right after.  BUSY WEEK, yes indeed.  I will have to go with my littlest to the Prairie Ink Restaurant and listen to some music before bed on Friday night.  That's always a treat for us, and I could use the evening to celebrate.

Have a terrific day.  And THANK YOU again Dr. Fleury!  If you would like to learn more about her practice, she has a WEBSITE with a wonderful introductory video.

Things I Love Thursday

I ventured out one more time to enjoy them - those lovely crocuses!  This time I went to Crocus Prairie, where Central Avenue turns in to a gravel road.  When I arrived, I grabbed my little camera and started down a path.  A woman I had never met was just heading back to the parking lot.  She had a big smile on her face and said, "There's lots of them out there!"

I guess we all know what we're looking for. ; )

There must be two dozen in this 'nest'!  What a bouquet.  They are bursting, but becoming paler which was beautiful in the early evening sun.

I love when the light changes!  The birds were chirping shortly after 5 am this week.  The sun rises when we do, and it sets when the children go to bed.  It's a wonderful time of balance.

Look at them stretching!  I love this group.  It's like they are trying to see something out there.  It was a longer image, but I cropped the sky and pulled it down a bit.  Can you see there?   I love taking photos so much.  It feels so good to get out.

I love this time of year.  It sure was nice to get out and take a short break from the studio.  WHEW!

Happy Thursday!

Silk Ribbon Floral Embroidery Class

Friday, March 20th will be the first day of Spring!  From 1 to 2:30 that afternoon, I will be holding a silk ribbon embroidery class at my home studio in Saskatoon.  The cost is $20 if you are able to bring your own silk.  I have needles and hoops for you to use, as well as fabric to stitch on.  If you do not have silk ribbon, please bring $10 as a 'kit fee' and it will be provided for you.  Email me at Monika @ MySweetPrairie .ca to sign up.

1pm-2:30 (or 3 if we just cannot stop stitching) on Friday March 20, 2015

This class picks up from the tail end of my Introduction to Hand Embroidery class.  I always bring out the silk ribbon at the end, and there's so much Ooooooh & Aaaaaaah over the gorgeous sculptural quality of working with silk ribbon.  You don't need to have attended that class, but this will not be an overlap if you are interested in signing up.

silk ribbon leaves, petals, stems

If you want to be waitlisted for an evening or weekend class, please let me know.  For the rest of Spring, I am teaching and exhibiting around the province, however, I will be contacting everyone on my waitlist with May 2015 dates and times for weekend & evening Threadpainting classes in my studio, as well as Silk Ribbon Embroidery and Creative Quilted Postcards Workshops.  Thank you for all your interest - and your patience.  : )

Sunday Snapshots

Working from a soft pastel sketch of Sutherland Beach...

lights and darks

in-betweens and reds

fat yarn stitches like thick paint brushes

I can't wait to tell you the story behind this one!  : )  You'll have to wait until the big finish.

Happy Sunday!

* * * Around the World Blog Hop * * *

Welcome!  Today, I was tagged by a wonderful artist & online friend named Sharron Begg to be part of an artists' blog hop.  First let me tell you a bit about her.  Sharron's blog is "Threadpainters Art".  You can guess I found her by googling 'threadpainting'.  As it turns out, I happened to have fallen madly in love with her ink illustrations that can also be seen on her site.  There's just something about them - they look like stitching as well.  He art inspired me to begin sketching things out prior to stitching my art, which is something I had not done before.  I'm linking to her Blog Hop introductory post HERE, please stay a while and look around.  She does wonderful work with soluble stabilizers.

As for me, my name is Monika Kinner-Whalen.  (pronounced Moe-nee-ka, not Maw-nick-uh).  Welcome to my blog.  I live in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada with my family of 5.  I've been doing landscape threadwork for almost five years now, most of which is inspired by my deep attachment to the Canadian Prairie.  I was born and raised here, and moving away after university left me incredibly homesick.  Apparently, the Prairies can do that to you.  I had no idea what a strong attachment it had on me.  After setting up house with my husband and having three children, we moved back to Saskatoon; back to the big old flatland.  It was unreal.  It's like my spirit returned.  I could breath again.  It filled my heart to the brim with creative energy.  It was at the same time I had discovered fibre art, and everything just took off from there.  Our poured all this artwork!

I love what I do.  I work full time out of my home studio.  I teach creative sewing classes, but I see myself as an artist first and foremost.  Some of my key pieces are touring Canada (east and west) with juried exhibitions. I have had my art commissioned and sold around the world, including all over Canada, the USA, England, Scotland, New Zealand, Africa, and Australia.  I've won awards and have been extremely grateful to be published in books and magazines over the 5 years too.  Yeah, yeah... brag brag brag.  Well, this is a spotlight moment, right?  : )

So, what is it that I do?

I go on treasure hunts with my camera, looking for things to stitch.  I head out down little dirt roads to places unknown in any season and find beauty EVERY time.  Ditches are my favourite.  You might think the prairies are flat and lifeless - in fact, we are teased often that there's nothing to see here.  But like many of use here, I know how to look and where to look.  I find breathtaking beauty easily.  I look up.  I look down.  I look as far as the eye can see.  It's unrestricted and open, known as the quietest place on earth with some of the liveliest and biggest skies.

my daughter jumping waves on a wild & stormy day

And so, I sew it.  I collage a background with the right fabrics for my subject's colours, and then I bring it to life with thread.  I use a technique known as freemotion machine stitching to fill in the landscape.  I use freestyle hand embroidery to embellish and make my prairies pop.  Here are some examples of my work.  First up, She's Blooming!  This one is touring Canada with Dimensions, a juried collection of fine craft with the Saskatchewan Craft Council.

sideways - detail of canola field in bloom featuring thousands of French Knots

That's what you see in the summer.  Below is a piece that was inspired after a tornado warning had lifted one spring.  Trees at the Turnaround.  There was lots of rain and wind, and the sky began to clear.  This body of water was a flooded ditch lined with bullrushes.

This next one is called, The Skating Pond.  This brings back great memories of growing up on a farm.  I love winter so very much.  I truly enjoy our four distinct seasons here.  The landscape is always changing.

And autumn - lovely autumn when the wind changes yet again.  This was from a local conservation area called Cranberry Flats.  It's named, Autumn Blonde.

So, that's what I do.  Recently I've been experimenting with yarn.  I've played with the idea of stitching things a little closer to the earth but on a larger scale.  It's been really enjoyable.  I love what I do, and I look forward to the growth I see in my art with each new piece.

Awarded second place in Original Surface Design, Needlework.  Focus on Fibre Arts Association

What else can I tell you?  hmmm.  You can find me on Facebook HERE.
You can find my images sorted into albums on Flickr HERE.
You can shop for art, cards, and fabric postcard supplies in my Etsy Shop HERE.

You can also just hang out on this blog and click the tutorials or slideshow tabs at the top.  There's a lot to see here after five years.

I think this answers all the questions I was asked to address.  There was one more: 'What makes your art unique?'  I think my work is somewhat unique in that my threadpaintings are done without tracing, templates, or printing out backgrounds to stitch on.  It really is my own personal and original art.  I use only my own photographs as inspiration - so even right from the scenes themselves, they are my compositions from beginning to end.  They are completely my view of my world so to speak, and  done by hand and from the heart.  ; )

Thank you SO much for coming by!

June Grasses - in progress.  Currently touring with the Focus on Fibre Arts juried show in Alberta.

And now, let me pass the blog hop torch over to my friend Karen D. Miller.  Karen specializes in Hooked Fibre Art.  She lives and works in Ottawa, Ontario.  Karen blends alternative fibre art techniques with traditional yarn hand-hooking to create fresh landscapes and abstract close ups.  She has exhibited in Ontario, Alberta, Newfoundland, Ohio and Vermont and been featured in several publications, such as the forthcoming TextileArt Around the World.  Karen has been selected as an Honourable Mention (2014) and a Finalist (2013) in Rug Hooking Magazine’s annual “A Celebration of Hand-Hooked Rugs ”.  She blogs at Marzipan Road, and will be doing her blog hop post one week from today.  I'll put up a little remind for you at that time.

And thank you Sharron for including me. : )

My Open Studio & Art Sale Saturday

It's official.

I already announced it on Facebook and now people will come.  

Save the date!  My 'Studio Warming' (like a house warming) will be this weekend!

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

~ Studio Warming ~

&

Art Sale

at the home of Monika Kinner-Whalen

351 Crean Crescent in Saskatoon

* Saturday October 25th, 2014 *

11am - 4pm  &  6pm to 8 pm

** We will be closing from 4-6pm for our family's suppertime **

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

I'm thinking if you want art, you might want to come earlier.  If you want to catch up and drink wine, you could come later.  I really have no idea how busy it will be.  I suppose it depends on the weather.

Please be aware that my new space is down one flight of stairs.  I know that's an issue for two important people in my life.  Also, we have a dog in the house, but he is terrified of stairs and has never been in my studio.  The studio is pet free.

I need to announce here as well that this weekend's Art Sale at my home will replace my December Solo Show & Sale at the Centre Mall Galleries.  It would have been my 5th annual exhibit.  That's a big deal and a little bittersweet.  However, with building the studio over the summer and having stacks of commissioned art to complete before the holidays, I felt this was the right decision.  It's all good though.  I have handed over my December booking at the Centre Gallery to my friend Elizabeth Cuming.  She is an award winning established quilt artist who focuses on historical buildings around the province.  I am sure you will enjoy her work very much.

See you on Saturday - I guess I had better get prepared!

More Stitches, and Farley is Here!

It's been a full week, and a great week!  We made a couple trips to the lake (YAY!) during the day while the kids were in school.  He fished.  I painted with soft pastels.  It is so nice to finally feel summer.  My camera is KAPUT so I will have to show you later once I get that all sorted out.

I haven't been blogging because in all my spare time I have been stitching and stitching.  Handmade House keeps contacting me that they need more art.  I vow to keep this show stocked.  It's only been up for twelve days so far.  I have until the end of July.  THANK YOU to everyone who's been giving my prairie stitches new homes.  : )

mini prairie threadpainting ready to frame

And this bigger one is in there too now...

Also this week:
There was the the Farley Mowat statue unveiling.  Maybe you hear on the news?  The children involved were my daughter's class! 

a great spot at the University of SK Campus, under three tall evergreens.

It's a great story.   I don't believe the book is in the grade 2 curriculum, but Ms. Foley read the entire "Owls in the Family" to her room full of 7 and 8 year olds because she felt it was important.  (She rocks by the way.)  Each child then wrote and sent a personal letter to Mr. Mowat, asking him to please come visit.  HE WROTE BACK.  Actually - he typed back and ink-edited his little manuscript letter.  We all have a copy.  It's adorable.  In it he thanked the children but said he was too old to travel all the way back to Saskatoon.  He mentioned that a statue of him and his dog were en route to be unveiled, and he asked the children of Ms. Foley's class to please represent him in his absence.  Three weeks ago, he passed away.  So, the grade two class were in attendance on behalf of the late author.  The even was Wednesday June 11th if you want to google news sites.  We all got to meet the sculptor and Mrs. Claire Mowat.  We hugged Farley and pet his dog Chester.  The media were all over it.  And I got to be 'classroom photographer' which was terribly fun to be in there with all the reporters.  : )

Yes - she's holding his hand.  It's beautiful!  I heard her turn around and say, "well Chester.  I never thought I'd ever see you again."  He passed on 2 years ago.  As for the children, this was their first time seeing Farley.  The statue is him in their eyes.  So I don't think he feels gone at all.  He just lives here now under these trees.  It's really wonderful.

Isn't that a great story!? 

: )

Have a beautiful day everyone.  It's happy hour at Bill's House of Flowers on Broadway from 2-5:30.  I can't miss out on that!  If you are around Handmade House, maybe I'll see you this Friday afternoon.

They're Back! : )

Here are photos from my week... my WHOLE, entire week...

I stitched and stitched long landscapes on stabilizer.  I used Accent 12 wt variegated rayons, metallic, and holographic Wonderfil threads...    Sparkle, sparkle!  : )  Shimmer, shimmer!

I did some free motion in the clouds and some couched yarns on the horizons.  Then I sliced them all two inches wide.

Next, I hand stitched birds on some and glowing snowflakes on others.  Finally, I spent an entire day just satin stitching the edges of these teeny weenie landscapes.  (That took FOR - EVER!)

Here they are!  All finished up.

There are no two alike.

I love each and every one!  : )

Some are day scenes, some are night time.  

Some are early morning, some are colorful evenings.

i heart winter

Tada!

All back to back in shatter-proof snowglobes.  : )

Don't worry, the art is in a dry slot inside and won't get wet.

It's A Very Merry My Sweet Prairie!  

(shake shake shake)

they make sweet gifts

You can find them once again at SaskMade Marketplace on 8th Street in Saskatoon.  I supply them there every December for the holiday shoppers.  They will be there for sale until they are gone.

* Sorry * - because they are heavy and water-filled, I am unable to ship for risk of freezing.

Have a lovely weekend,