5 o'clock crows

Marking Time

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 13:38:00 +0000

It's been a while since I've posted any updates on my Xs, and I have a good one for you today!

Marking Time (6 months)

installation view

Decadence, LSU School of Art Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge

Marking Time (6 months)

installation view

Decadence, LSU School of Art Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge

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breakfast in bed

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Tue, 31 May 2011 14:11:00 +0000

I was thrilled to see my Trellis napkins in this Breakfast in Bed blog post and treasury.

What a great idea- I want some breakfast in bed! Head over to The Fab Miss B to take a look.

Thanks Becky!

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trunk show!

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Sat, 07 May 2011 02:05:00 +0000

I'm admittedly late in posting this, but if you're looking for a last-minute Mother's Day gift or out and about in downtown Baton Rouge tomorrow, be sure to stop by the LSU Museum of Art Store in the Shaw Center for the Mother's Day Stroll / Trunk Show.

I'll be there, along with Beatrix Bell, creator of some of my favorite jewelry. Plus air conditioning, free gift wrapping, and refreshments. What's not to love? Stop by and say hi :)

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my creative space: april 27

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 04:58:00 +0000

I've had these white strips hanging around for quite a while, so I fused some blue Xs to them.

I'm not sure what I'll do next. Maybe I'll sew back into the strips a bit while I decide whether to wax them, cut into them, connect them, all of the above...?

Stop over at kootoyoo to peek into some other creative spaces.

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my creative space: april 21

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 12:47:00 +0000

I've started using the Xs and I really loved the piles of papers that were left behind.

detritus

I've been enjoying the gorgeous spring weather these last few weeks while I've taken some pictures around the neighborhood. The patterns and colors invariably catch my eye.

I really love the graphic red marks on my neighbor's amaryllis. They remind me a bit of carbon paper, or rubbings. That red dust that sticks to everything.

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my creative space: april 14

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 14:21:00 +0000

I've been playing with the Xs that I've been cutting out these last few weeks, deciding what to do with them. I think I'll work from a grid, but beyond that, I'm enjoying arranging them and taking pictures.

image: sara hopp

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Algebra of the 7 Deadly Sins

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 14:55:00 +0000

I love what I stumble across on twitter. The Algebra of the Seven Deadly Sins is hands down my recent favorite.

-- from Indexed

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my creative space : april 6-7, 2011

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 02:33:00 +0000

I've been a little obsessed with X shapes lately.

I've been using up a lot of my odds and ends of fabric cutting out a ridiculous number of these Xs.

The time is drawing near for me to actually do something with them, but for now I'm enjoying the relatively mindless process of making as many as I can. I've been ruminating on the final uses for these Xs and I have a few ideas, but it's always interesting to see what happens between the idea in my sketchbook and the idea that actually happens once I put fabric to fabric.

I'm happy and relieved to be regularly working in the studio again, and I can't wait to share the progress of these pieces.

I love peeking into people's studios and seeing what they're working on. If you do too, head on over to kootoyou and take a peek.

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Grandfather's Envelopes

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 03:15:00 +0000

I have a thing for envelopes. I've made quite a bit of artwork with them, and despite the fact that I now work with them in a more conventional commercial printing day-to-day way, they still provoke me.

I think it may be something to do with anticipation and surprise. How do you feel when you get a letter in the mail? How does the paper feel in your hand? Can you imagine the penstrokes seeping into the paper, the rhythm of the hand that was writing? How do you open it, and what is inside? Secret, private, protected contents, traveling in their paper case; the ensuing interaction between the sender and the recipient taking place at one remove...

Oh my, handmade Japanese envelopes... {swoon}. Perfection of craft for its own sake... {I can hardly breathe}

image: michael p silva

This is Grandfather's Envelopes, which I stumbled across on Zuihitsu a few months ago. If I'm lucky, eventually I'll track down a copy for myself, In the meantime, just contemplating it keeps my mind all aflutter.

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tea towels and bearnaise

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 14:27:00 +0000

I love sauce. You could say I'm a sauce addict and I'd have to agree. I've been known to decide on new recipes to try based on a sauce I want to use (I'm looking in your general direction, Donald Link's Jalapeno Remoulade!)

That being said, I was thrilled to see one of my tea towels in Frank McMains' photograph accompanying his recipe for Painless Bearnaise.

photo: Frank McMains

Head over to Country Roads to check out the recipe!

Thanks Frank!

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hello stranger!

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 14:27:00 +0000

Wow - it's been a busy few months, and I can't believe how long it's been since I last posted. Since my last post in October, I've moved, I was without internet for a while, my studio has looked like a hurricane swept through it, and everything's been all out of sorts. I'm thrilled that I'm finally getting my feet back on the ground, and my creative energy is returning. (I was a little worried for a while there).

I'm still working out some technical things, like trying to figure out where I might have put the memory cards for my camera, and how exactly to get the images from the cards onto this new-to-me computer, but in time I'm sure I'll get it all worked out.

I've really been missing blogging though - and I have to say I was a bit surprised about that. I'm sure many of you can relate - sometimes the blog can seem like a bit of a chore, especially in the beginning. I didn't realize how much I enjoyed connecting with other artists and how much of a community I'd built for myself until I went without it for a while.

So, I'm thrilled to be back in action, and I can't wait to see what everyone's been working on these past few months. I can't wait to show you what I've been working on too! Thanks to everyone who's been visiting - knowing that you were stopping by really gave me a sense of excitement about coming back.

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joanna newsom

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 14:29:00 +0000

I recently discovered Joanna Newsom's work and I can't stop listening to her.

Peach Pear Plum makes me catch my breath.

Her hands are so beautiful and mesmerizing.

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where we laughed

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 14:27:00 +0000

I made a note to myself about Jan von Holleben's work in my sketchbook a few months ago, and then I filled page after page, moving forward, moving on.

When I looked backwards I came across my note again.

Lately I've found myself in a period of nostalgia and loss and so it seems especially appropriate to stumble upon a body of work called "where we laughed".

The Lake

The Park

The Festival

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my creative space

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 12:54:00 +0000

I've been slowly working my way back into the studio since I've renewed my commitment to a 9-5 workday. It feels like it's been eons since I've cranked up the wax pot. I didn't realize how much I missed it!

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I've finally gotten some work done on my newest Swanson Stripe yardage.

Swanson Stripe

3-color hand dyed batik with bleach discharge

100% cotton

This is the shot of the last batch. This time, I've played with the brushes and coloring a little bit, and I think the result will be excellent.

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I've spent some time working on my triptych too, so I took a few progress shots of the pieces on my waxing table. The yellow areas are where I've painted with Presist. Next, I'll use a thickened dye solution on top of the Presisted areas. Hopefully, this will give me a good base to start working back in with some drawn lines / stitching / applique / knots.

I'm excited to see what comes next. It's nice to have taken some time with these pieces instead of feeling like I had to finish them in a hurry. Deadlines are good and I love them, but sometimes I think it's best to be a little counterintuitive (for me) and let my mind wander a bit.

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deborah bowness wallpaper

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 14:14:00 +0000

I have become smitten with the work of Deborah Bowness.

Wallpaper Tiles

Filing

{swoon!} hand printed filing cabinet wallpaper makes me weak in the knees.

Patterned Illusion 2

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via alamodestuff

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tea towel love

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:11:00 +0000

It's been a busy week here, and there have been a few changes. I've been fortunate to find myself some gainful employment. While I love growing my business, I really, REALLY love a steady paycheck and benefits.

image: goodLife {eats}

I don't think much is going to change with 5 o'clock crows. I've done most of my production work on the weekends for a while now, and I'll keep dong the arts market and blogging a few times a week. I need to get myself in gear for the holidays, and I'm looking forward to making some changes in January. In the meantime, a steady source of income means I don't feel so frantic and scrambly, and also that I can afford to be a little more selective about everything from participating in markets to developing my product line. Focus is good!

image: goodLife {eats}

I was thrilled to be featured a few times during my first week back to full-time work. Perhaps a little lightpost from the universe that everything is smooth sailing.

image : goodLife {eats}

My Hex tea towel in the Peacock colorway was used to style these photos of Quick and Easy Sesame Noodles on GoodLife {eats}, Katie Goodman's delicious (and gorgeous!) food blog.

image: craftzine

Katie also used the Hex/Peacock tea towel to style this article about baking bacon on Craftzine.

My Flamingo/Trellis tea towel was featured in Lindsay's antitreasury on shrimp salad circus.

And last but not least, my Butter/Trellis tea towel was featured in a shades of butter yellow feature on Crafty Dream.

Thanks, ladies! You made my week!!!

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my creative space

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 18:19:00 +0000

I've been moaning and groaning about my art block for a while now, so a friend challenged me to make a triptych, one panel for each complete decade of my life. I've had a few weeks to work on it, and it's supposed to be finished tomorrow (yikes- cross your fingers!). I keep trying to procrastinate by over-complicating things, but I'm doing my best to behave myself and stick to the deadline.

These appliques have evolved from the pattern drawings I posted about last week. I'd been thinking about pattern on pattern, and my experimental bleach discharge fabric seemed like the perfect choice.

After looking at these shapes for a while, I'm starting to see them as ladders, or spines, or maybe microscopic forms. Nothing is sewn or fused, but I'm pretty excited to see how these turn out. I have lots of ideas, and I wonder what will make it onto the fabric.

Don't forget to take a look at what's going on in other creative spaces today.

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brad miller's bubble shadows

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 14:15:00 +0000

I love Brad Miller's Bubble Shadow prints from Anderson Ranch Editions.

Bubble Shadow 8

10" x 12.5", Ultrachrome Pigment, 2006

Bubble Shadow 13

10" x 12.5", Ultrachrome Pigment, 2006

Bubble Shadow 19

10" x 12.5", Ultrachrome Pigment, 2006

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jamie hayon for lladro

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 18:01:00 +0000

I really love Jamie Hayon's Fantasy Collection for Lladro. How perfect! Who couldn't use a bit of fantasy on a Monday afternoon.

Love Explosion B

The Lover III

I love the figurative work, but Light Blue Cactus is my current favorite.

Light Blue Cactus

What do you think?

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i'm beside myself!

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 13:33:00 +0000

I was going to post my monthly goals today (late, as usual), but I can't let another day go by without mentioning the two wonderful things that happened this past Friday.

5 o'clock crows : tea towel

hand dyed batik on 100% linen : 16" x 24"

First, there was a great blurb (with a picture!) about 5 o'clock crows on Avenue Rouge, a site about Baton Rouge. The blurb will be up until this Friday, so if you want to read it, head on over to Avenue Rouge and scroll down to the Home & Garden section. yay!

5 o'clock crows : dinner napkins

hand dyed batik on linen/cotton blend : 19" x 19"

Later in the day, I found out that my napkins were included in Scoutie Girls's Zoomed Local feature on Baton Rouge.

How cool is that ?!?

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alexander calder's circus

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 14:35:00 +0000

Have you ever seen Alexander Calder's Circus? I saw it in college, and I remember feeling like my head had opened up. Art suddenly became so much more than something serious that you looked at in books and on the walls of museums and became something to engage with and to enjoy.

What do you think?

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my creative space

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 21:08:00 +0000

I've been playing with my pattern drawings since I posted the latest one last week. I love making multiples, so I decided to cut a few out of scraps of printmaking paper I had around the studio. I'm not exactly sure where I'm going from here, but I'm OK with taking things one thing at a time instead of feeling like I need to have everything figured out from the start.

At the moment I'm thinking I might do some applique based on the pattern shapes. I want to incorporate the pink experimental discharged batik fabric that's in the photo in some way or another, but I'm not sure whether it will be as the base fabric or the applique fabric, or maybe both. I might even get crazy and play with some raw edges, who knows?

I really like the shadows from these cutouts too, which gives me a few other ideas.

ETA: oops, I can't believe I forgot to post the link to the other creative spaces yesterday. Sorry!

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newest pattern sketch

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 18:26:00 +0000

I've mentioned before how I've had a bit of a block about Making Art (that should be said with a booming and intimidating voice) and how my sketchbook is full of ideas that, for whatever reason, don't seem to leave my sketchbook. I've come to the conclusion that part of my problem is that I'm beating myself up so much over what I'm not doing that I'm not seeing the great things that I have been doing. Like the pattern sketches.

I posted this one a couple of weeks ago. Here's another:

image: s.h.h.

I have a bit of a love-hate relationships with pattern and design. I really love playing with pattern but I beat myself up over not making more conceptual work. I have some thoughts floating around about how maybe the pattern is the concept, and that meaning can grow from there, but at this point I think it's important to keep moving forward. Ultimately, if playing with pattern is where things are, then that's a great place to be.

What do you do when you know you're getting in your own way?

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coming soon!

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 20:19:00 +0000

I've been working on getting my new dinner napkins photographed and available in the shop.

I'm having a hard time deciding on my favorite.

I love them in candy apple / trellis...

dinner napkins : candy apple / trellis

hand dyed batik on linen/cotton blend : 19" x 19

And bottle / chevalet too...

dinner napkins : bottle / chevalet

hand dyed batik on linen/cotton blend : 19" x 19"

What do you think?

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my creative space

noreply@blogger.com (sara : 5 o'clock crows) — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 16:11:00 +0000

I sewed up this quilt top months ago. I kind of didn't like it, kind of wasn't feeling it... the whole thing was kind of meh, so I threw it in my "to sew" basket and promptly forgot about it. After not looking at it for a while, I found it again and changed my mind. Here it is all layered, basted, and ready to be quilted - horray!

5 o'clock crows hand dyed batik on 100% cotton sateen

quilt dimensions: approximately 64" x 90"

Lately my studio emphasis has shifted from making tons of new work to finishing up what's already been started, so I'm rediscovering all sorts of old work I thought I didn't like. With a few notable exceptions, I don't see what was so bad about it in the first place. Isn't that always the way?

Don't forget to peek in on some of the other creative spaces today!

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