FABRIC BOWLS

 These bowls are truly a labor of love. Keeping track of costs for materials & time kinda gets lost in my enthusiasm!  We are all aware of the higher cost of everything these days....premium gas here in CA is $6.59 a gallon!!

So for a reality check as I began making the first bowl, I recorded those details. (With the exception of studio equipment and energy costs.) 

Results: Bowls - batik fabric, canvas, fusible, & thread = $24.80 Time - 4 hours for a single bowl start to finish. 

CA Walmart clerks make $23 an hour - using that rate, the minimum price for one bowl should be $117.00.  Now, do you think I could sell one for that price??  NOPE! 

With rare exceptions, artists can not break even much less make a profit on their handmade items.  I was fortunate, my career generated income from teaching, judging, presenting lectures, authoring books & magazine articles, hosting quilting cruises & tours, commissions for designing fabric and other quilt related items. 

Many of you reading this are aware of the dilemma but perhaps others aren't.  Maybe now handmade items will be seen in a little different light.  I'm NOT whining....I can not imagine  life without the satisfaction and passion of creating each and every day.  Many thanks to our 55+ community for providing exposure to our talented artist residents!!

MY NEW DESIGN WALL

I've been busy assembling/hanging a new 'design wall'. It's where the components of my quilts are auditioned.

BACK STORY: To our utter shock, our NC home sold in one day and suddenly the planned move to CA took on urgency. As did the large commission I had just accepted. Thankfully the clients were not in a hurry, allowing ample time to begin the project when I got to CA.

BUT!!! I didn't have a design wall. Lowe's charge was $79 to deliver a 8'x 4' x 1" styrofoam insulation panel. NOPE....not happening. The result was ordering 15" sq. pieces from Amazon and taping them together. We must have purchased every kind of Gorilla tape available before finding one that would stick. Now 2 years later the pieces are separating.

Thanks to good friends with a truck, an insulation panel has now turned into a new design wall.  

Here's how one is made:

REMEBER WITH THANKS

 “Our flag does not fly because the wind moves it. It flies with the last breath of each soldier who died protecting it.” — Unknown

UNITED WE STAND  44" X 29" - by Mary Stori 2002

PURPLE SUNSET

Nearly 3 weeks into this project and it's finally finished.  It was transformed from the initial concept of recreating a photo using fabric as the medium, to simply echoing the majesty of a purple sky.  Purple skies are actually quite rare, but they are a completely natural phenomenon.

Sonji M. posted this photo on 12/2/25 on the Heritage Placer Vineyard Facebook page.....it immediately inspired me. I don't recall ever seeing one quite like this.  

Though my vision for this piece changed after several creative construction pivots.....I'm very pleased with the outcome. NOW SOLD!!!!

PURPLE SUNSET   -   SOLD!!!

14” X 14”

Artist hand painted cottons with water soluble wax crayons & 

pencils, gel printing, and Procion dyes.  Raw edge appliqué, densely

 quilted, hand embroidery, faced edges with hanging sleeve.

 

Photo credit Sonja Marino 12/2/25

PIVOTING

 Is the third time the charm?    

After two weeks, I have yet to capture the colors nor the desired airy appearance of Sonja's photo. So I'm pivoting for the third time. Now I'm considering Sonja's photo project as 'landscape inspiration', rather than 'fabric recreation'.

AND I'm totally okay with that!! No need to beat myself up by calling it a failure, instead this difficult project has evolved to a positive desirable outcome which utilized my depth of skills developed over 30+ years of quilt making.

THREE CHEERS!!! Reveal coming soon......

Thread painting partially completed

Background stitched

Background 'edited'

TRY, TRY AGAIN

 You know what they say....If at first you don't succeed, try try again......  In this case it might mean again & again.  

Using Water soluble wax pastels and pencils.....the background is now ready for some dense stitching which should further clarify the look I'm aiming for.....  stay tuned....

FAILURE??

 Geesh.....some projects are simply hair tearing experiences. I RARELY give up on a piece, in fact I can't remember the last time I did!

My current art quilt is now on its 3rd try! I spent an entire day gel printing purples/pinks and other "sunset" colors onto white cotton fabric. After overnight drying, the following day I was raring to tackle a scene depicted in a photo (thank you Sonja M.) posted in our community Facebook page. No matter how I manipulated the fabrics, the design failed to materialize. 

So I gave up working with those printed fabrics and decided to begin by creating a tree in silhouette form. It took me hours and hours to thread paint the shape onto water-soluble film. Once the film was dissolved I realized the stitching was too dense. Humm...will I make another thread tree or shift to fabric??

And finally more time was (perhaps) wasted as I attempted to 'dye-paint' the background fabric to obtain a less harsh appearance.

It has not been a joyful time in the Stori studio these last few days....stay tuned....I'll either solve the design problems or become bald. FYI: Sonja's inspiration photo is the last one posted here.....

TWEET TWEET

 JUST finished....30 mins. ago!!

Inspiration struck after noticing so many recent posts and references to bird nests.  Nature at her finest!

                                   TWEET TWEET - 15” x 15”

 AVAILABLE in online shop

Artist ice-dyed silk noil, gel printed cottons, rust dyed 

felted wools, batiks.  Raw edge fused appliqué, machine 

quilted. Double fold binding, hanging sleeved attached.

NEGLECTED BLOG.....

 I realized I've been neglecting this blog......so few readers access blogs these days, reverting to Facebook instead where I tend to post more regularly. My bad!!

I'm often asked where my design ideas come from. I don't have a written 'list' that I refer to, rather inspiration can hit from repeated images or a specific subject that I'm exposed to repeatedly, in a short amount of time, or one that begins as an itch and over time, needs to be scratched.

I wasted no time beginning a new project after the close out of our communities Spring Artisan Faire this past weekend. This theme was definitely a result of similar posts I've seen very recently. Can you guess where I'm heading??

NEW WORK - LADIES OF THE WOODS

 The redo of the silk noil from my previous post certainly was an inspiration for this new piece.

LADIES OF THE WOODS - 13” x 13”

$150

Artist dyed silk noil, mono printed cottons, Ultra-Suede, 

raw edge fused appliqué, & thread play. Wrapped on a canvas 

frame & secured in a black wood frame without glass. 

NOTE: White birch trees are so named because they 

are the first trees to leaf out in the spring.