Tag Archives: the best of West Virginia

Recycling leads to Networking

My roots in Girl Scouting guides choices even in this decade of my life. Using scraps from another maker helps them clear space, lowers my expenses and increases a supply of materials but especially helps the earth … limiting landfill growth. We recycled in the 1960’s now it is called up-cycling and the Girl Scout motto includes “Make new friends and keep the old”, I definitely have expanded the artist network with this quest.

Wendy Clark is a fiber artist, weaving her hand-dyed threads/yarns into scarves, shawls and baby wraps through her company Wenweave in the mountains of West Virginia. She collects thrums (warp threads tied off between pieces) for me into garbage sized bags and then we meet up for the exchange. I get her “rats nest“ and we some inspiring conversation. One visit the talking lead to collaborating on a project. Hours after I have organized the threads they are ready to be hooked and embroidered into what I call my Thread Collection. Here are a couple from that series, the full collection will be available at Beckley Art Center during my exhibit August 7-October 17, 2020.

Sunset….threads from Wendy Clark, hooked by Susan L Feller

In future workshops bundles of these colorful threads will be shared with students and go out in the world of creatives spreading our mutual friendship and love for sharing.
I send off the snippets from my work to a spinner who incorporates them into colorful yarn. Zero Waste!

Visit Wendy’s site Wenweave.com and see her work in person at Tamarack, in Beckley, WV

Juried work in 2013

Haying Stages, Iconic Liberty, Caraway Garden Runner

The studio has offered me organized space to work and explore. Several pieces were submitted to different juried and invitational shows.

Haying Stages was accepted in 7Stitch shown at Morehead State College in Morehead, KY this summer. It was a Surface Design exhibit and juried by the President Jane Dunnewold. It was also accepted in the WV Div of Culture and History Biennial Juried Exhibition to be hung in the Dunn Building in Martinsburg, November 24- Feb 27, 2014.

Iconic Liberty received first place in West Virginia in the national theme American Heritage for the NSDAR.

Caraway Garden Runner was accepted along with Veins of Energy – Coal in the Best of West Virginia juried show at TAMARACK in Beckley, WV.

Best of West Virginia 2013 at Tamarack

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The summer show at Tamarack in Beckley, WV is titled “The Best of West Virginia”. Juried, 400 pieces were reviewed and 140 selected with awards given for Best in Show, 1st-3rd and Honorable Mention. The gallery exhibit and SALE is up through August 2.

This year I entered a traditional design inspired by floral Fraktur motifs. It was selected and hangs as a stunning piece of art right next to the Best in Show photograph. Guess that is good real estate. Visit facebook Tamarack WV and look for the photos of opening to catch a glimpse of Caraway Garden Runner over the shoulder of the Best in Show winner.

I decided to use a restricted palette of reds and oranges stretching this by including warm and cool members of each hue. The foliage is dull sage greens, neutral to the flowers. It has been some time since warm yellow was the background for a design but it lends a bright cheery mood to the feeling of “Caraway Garden Runner”.

Working from one end to the other, and alternating light and dark values in motifs (sort of), this runner was a delight yet challenging piece. I found the limiting palette needed some pick me ups and worked turquoise and purples into centers and the central motif.

Originally the edge was going to be a simple 1/4″ of red whipping yarn but that seemed too delicate for the raucous yellow. Looking back at Frakturs (PA German illuminated manuscripts) I pulled from their border techniques a simple geometric repeat to edge and contain the organic shapes. Using the yellows and greens I alternated pulling a loop which is a technique called “beading” in rughooking. It looks as if there are contrasting beads strung around the border. Still not satisfied that a thin red line would be enough, I played with widths of red fabric, settling on a 1 1/2″ wide one.

The design is available as a pattern for fellow rughookers at www.RuckmanMillFarm.com Below are some detail images, Enjoy. Click on the first image to view them larger in sequence.