Friday Feature!

Today is my turn to be featured at The Needle & Thread Network.  It's a blog built to connect Canadian needle arts & crafters through link-up parties every Wednesday, and blogger profiles 2 Fridays per month.  Anyone can follow TN&TN.  Anyone can enter the upcoming giveaways.  

I am really enjoying the community we are creating there!

The Needle & Thread Network (click to link)

If you are new to my blog, WELCOME!  Please enjoy clicking on my links.  I work as a full time artist and dabble in teaching.  I exhibit & sell my work and take commissions as well.  I have a bazillion Flickr photos if you want to look there.  There's a growing CV at the top menu if you are into that.  There are plenty of sewing tips and tutorial posts up there as well.  If you get bored of all that, I have a big list at the very bottom of my blog for you to do some blog hopping.  ; )

ps.  You can also find My Sweet Prairie on Facebook.  Have a great day!

Finishing, Framing, and Friends

I feel so stress-free at this moment!  I have enough pieces framed for the Craft Council jurying on Sunday - even without finished the Tipi & Rosehips!  Awesome.

Wolf Willow & Prairie Lilies #2  (commission / sold)

I am happy that I finally feel that this process is easier than my first couple of times framing my own work.  Oh it was SUCH a learning curve.  I really wasn't expecting it to feel easier.  That's a good thing.

My Sweet Prairie, 2012 (sold)

It's a very nit-picky process.  People tend to look reeeeally closely at my work so it's important to clean the glass so it is completely dust & fibre free.  I swear I hold my breath the whole time.  It's pretty tense.  ; )  So now for the rest of the week, I am finishing a few dozen postcards.  They are all simple 4x6 inch prairie scenes in fabric with no fancy threadwork.  No two are alike which is pretty cool I think.  They are my 'art to mail'.  I have protector sleeves on the way for when I put them up for sale.  I have more stamps I LOVE coming in the mail eventually.  In the mean time, my job now is to trim up the loose threads and stamp all the backs for Sunday.

Fancy-schmancy.  : )

Linking to The Needle and Thread Network! ; )

p.s.  I must give a big warm THANK YOU and round of applause to all the fabulous people involved with TN&TN.  The Canadian WIP Wednesdays have been a real treat.  Feature Fridays is quickly creating some terrific connections.  And Rita (my new co-mod) has been such a great person to get to know.  She's in Ontario and I'm in Saskatchewan.  We've never met before.  We phone each other often now.  Can you believe her family immigrated to Canada on the same line of ships that my family did in the 1950's!?  She also has no middle name, just like me.  WHAT ARE THE ODDS?  What a small, small world.

Let me tell you about TN&TN

In the fall, I opened up a second blog.  It's not exactly mine though.  It's a place for Canadian bloggers to link up and showcase their crafts.  It's a place specifically for needle arts, Canuck-style.  This includes quilters, sewists, knitters, hookers, crocheters, doll makers, lace makers, embroidery, weavers, and any other related hobby or art.

So far, there's a link party where you can hook up a blogpost mid-week.  We have about 20 crafters sharing their projects regularly.  Anyone can follow the blog (Canadian or not !).  In fact, we encourage everyone to watch.  We will continue to showcase "Works-in-Progress Wednesdays", but once we get to 100 followers, "Feature Fridays" will be added.  THIS will be cool, because then you get to learn more about each artisan / sewist.  If you are interested in being featured as one of our Friday spotlights, please leave your name in the comments section here:  Feature Fridays @ TN&TN.  Don't be shy!  You'll get a permanent listing at the site that connects to your blog, online store, and any other links you want to.  You'll also get one of these fancy buttons, courtesy of the fabulous Rita Penner.  Thank you Rita.  She has stepped up to gather the Friday content to our blog.

If you just want to follow, you can do that too.  We are here for your viewing pleasure.  Down the right sidebar are links to Canadian publications and the Needlework Pages (what a terrific resource!).  P.S.  The editors of these publications might just be peeking in now and then, so here's a great chance to be noticed.  Head on over to The Needle and Thread Network to check it out and become a follower!  Help us reach our goal to surpass 100 followers!  : )

Click to Link:  The Needle and Thread Network

Thanks on behalf of Monika K. and Rita P.  ; )