Newest Project

Embroidery on a doily which was bordered in crocheted lace by my Great-Great Grandmother, Mira Marsh. This is a project almost 100 years in the making.

The embroidery thread is a cotton-rayon-nylon blend. The woven fabric is linen, which is bordered by crocheted lace in cotton.

It's been done for months, but I can publish it now because the magazine issue has been published. I would have done it sooner, but I forgot!

CLICK HERE to see the detailed instructions for how to make this at The AntiCraft.

 

Mash-up of Marvellousness!! Warning: Tim Burton and Billy Idol. May cause extreme giddyness.

>wipes away tears of joy<

A thing of beauty should not be kept to one's self.

That's the only animated Disney movie I love. All the others (Pixar doesn't count as Disney in my justifiably narrow-minded book; and Lion King is nearly acceptable) can die in a warehouse fire. But Tim Burton is sacred. Billy Idol adds preciousness.

Play again, and enjoy over and over and over!!

 

Today's blogpost on The AntiCraft...

It was long, and I'm proud of it.

Read it HERE.

I just wanted to replicate it SOMEWHERE.

 

AntiCraft Meeting: finally done. But I'm still laughing...

Best quote of the night was courtesy Anthony:

"ew. nose mango is the worst."

Awesome.

 

Why the screaming FRACK did she pick PINK????

Originally published in The Atlantic

Soft v hard: YES.

Metal v cloth: YES.

Man-world v Woman-world: YES.

Manufactured v hand-crafted: YES.

Hand-powered v fossil-fueled: YES.

Low-tech v high-tech: YES.

Shiny v matte: YES.

I love studies in opposites. I love the tension, I love the conversation, I love all of the everything. It really excites me. But come on!!! Pink is not exclusively the realm of girlhood, and it certainly doesn't satisfactorily describe "housewife" or "woman", either.

But that's my only problem with it. I would totally ride this bike. Or at least sit on it and submit to being photographed.

Full article HERE.

The artist is Theresa Honeywell, and I like her stuff.

(A late discovery has determined that pink may have been chosen simply out of preference for the color. I just saw a recent photo of the artist which shows her with hot pink hair. I am satisfied!!)

 

Las Calacas Danzantes

S. O. C. K. S. In other words: ¡Eso sí! ¡Que es!

Say it out loud and you'll probably get it.

(pronunciation hint for Rick and Daddy: there's no "w" sound in "que".)

Brilliantly designed exclusively for The AntiCraft by Erssie Major, a prolific and talented knitting designer in the UK. I am completely delighted by this pattern. It is at once challenging and entertaining, and I really like how it is turning out. I mean, it is simply just too much fun to knit!! I'm deeply impressed with Erssie's gift for design and whimsy.

 

Coming! Needles, Hooks, or Loom?

>SNERK< As if I need to be asked twice. "Yarn" is the new "shiny".

Garfield Minus Garfield publishes daily. It was my sister-in-law Leonor who introduced me to this very zen webcomic.

Of course, this particular strip was sent (rather pointedly) to me by My Beloved, who is still waiting for his first sweater and the half-finished half pair of socks I still have on the needles.

 

The AntiCraft Samhain Issue Is Published TODAY!

Time for The AntiCraft to publish! It's a good one. Again. As usual.

Our theme this quarter is called "Broken Bones", and it celebrates the Latin American festival Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead).

This is not a morbid day to wallow around in pathos and mourning. It's a day of bright colors and cheerful, festive music, generous food, family gathering, and celebration. It's a day to go and share the year's experiences at the gravesite of the people who have passed on, whether recently or long ago. In fact, sometimes it can go on for two days.

So click on the link and see what we have to say, craftwise, about celebrating the memories of the ones we love!

 

This is probably my only chance to either see or participate in ANY Olympics.

Let the knitting/crocheting/spinning (no not the biking sort) BEGIN!

Don't worry. I'll make something using wool. And there are deadlines (not the Johnson Island kind, though that would suit the group). So there will definitely be some perspiration.

Official rules? You betcha. Click! Nothing's said about steroids, and I have neither need nor interest; but if they try to confiscate my coffee, I will find a way to cuss them out in Mandarin, Zhuang, Cantonese, Hmong, and Uyghur.

Not that it matters. Our team isn't actually eligible for Ravelry's thang. We're doing it on our own. Heh.

 

Mute Musician on Coventry

No 'open mic night' tonight. Such a strange departure from my art school days... there'd always be something going on at the corner of Coventry and Euclid Heights Boulevard: rogue skaters, a sketch artist, spoken word of some sort, musicians of all sorts, someone selling beaded jewelry...

Makes me more than a bit sad. 'Bohemia' is indeed lost.

Remains of the Day

I drew this picture of the barn 5 years ago. All the Demolition Crew got to sign the mat today.

Something else that's cool? As long as the picture was out of the frame, I took advantage of the chance to 'correct' my name. Instead of the 'rjop' initials that applied to me at the time of creating the drawing, I was able to sign it as 'rjogarcia', a far happier name. The 'p' was for my ex-husband's surname, with which I remained saddled after my divorce.

My name is Rebecca Joy Oerkfitz Garcia. I am thrilled to have 'Principe' deleted from my name. I hated it. And I don't use the word "hate" lightly. Particularly, ESPECIALLY, when there are humans associated with that particular "4-letter" word.

I'll always be an Oerkfitz (my maiden name) and a Kopsell (my mother's maiden name), and I absolutely LOVE, and am proud to be, a Garcia. (I still can't believe how lucky I am!!!) (I wish my level of happiness for everyone getting married. Or WHATEVER venture. Really. It's amazing when you find your soulmate/calling.) It is such a blessing to be rid of unnecessary chains, such as unwelcome names/people/commitments. Marrying one is marrying ALL. 'Nuff sed.

It's far better to have both kept my birth name, and to have a married name with which I may be proud, and with which I may make them proud, too. I have a good heritage of my own. I have married into a family which has been blessed with abundances of inherited pride, from the Philippines and from Rural America, the same as my roots. How God has blessed me.

 

On the Porch with a New Assignment

Another editing project well under way. Some of these projects are downright adictive; some, I can't wait to see the backside of. It's the nature of vetting someone else's work. THIS issue, however, will not only be well-edited, but strong, design-wise. I am happy to say that I have truly enjoyed each project I've been assigned.

 

Holy. Screaming. COW.

Published. AND I got linked on Slashfood. How cool is that?????

(Really, the spotlight is on co-editor Carin's Baconhenge. And kudos to her, for devising a recipe that takes advantage of the season during which our magazine gets published. That's completely brilliant.)(Not only brilliant, it's delicious.)

 

I AM PUBLISHED!!!!!

Visit this link. Then click on the box in the very top right-hand corner.

(Failing that, click here.)

WooHOO!!!!!

 

Good Old Ride

Old military era jeep seen on the Murray Hill Art Walk. How did this not get labeled and lit? Who says this *isn't* art?

Inspirational Intricacy

Really great, insanely detailed polymer clay bowls. Highly inspirational for me.

Tiny Tin

Tiny retablos! I've never seen them so small! Very charming. These are in our favorite gallery, Galería Quetzal, on Mayfield Road in Little Italy. I like her gallery because she goes all over Latin America gathering the works directly from the craftspeople. I also like her because her gallery is vibrantly colorful and loaded with fantastic textures. Personally, I find her an excellent and beautiful human. I would give her name, but I am an idiot about remembering names.

Anything else? Well, yes! We found another gallery we love: Scaravilli Design. It's all photography, and ALL eye-poppingly lush. He makes Cleveland look as cosmopolitan as Prague and Amsterdam, and so very much more. It was a delightful evening, and we got to spend it all with Tim and Carlina (2 of our very favorite people!), too: bonus!

Day of the Dead Decor

Larger retablo. I adore tin folk art, but retablos take the cake.

Learning Something New Everyday...

The Marx Bros make an appearance at the 2008 Little Italy Art Walk! It's Groucho, Chico, Harpo, and Karl.

YES. Karl. Hilarious, right?

Tim pointed it out. Leave it to Tim to find the most ludicrous thing in a gallery full of wonders...

(This was in Pennello Gallery on Mayfield Road.)

 

Motif on Lisa's Purse

Ok, *how* can I copy this crocheted square?