Patti Edmon Artist

Who says you can't go to a yard sale 2000 miles away?! The boss of art and objects cool and collectible, Ms. Alicia Caudle , had hers and, trusting her as I do, I had her ship me a box. The contents eclipsed my wildest imagination and I considered posting photos of my new treasure but decided to skip to the best part. Alicia art. This altered tin blows me away. To say she's an inspiration doesn't cut it - I've always been in love with her work. I've also been experimenting with Frozen Charlottes lately and having a blast - I plan to post the three new canvases I've finished soon. The most amazing aspect of these porcelain babes is the incredible variety of uses; yes, they are always recognizable as an element, or focal point, but the options are unlimited! Charlottes (and Charlies) have a really cool history. The one-piece dolls were made in Germany between 1850 - 1920 and the smallest ones were often put in Christmas puddings as charms! I'll ...

In a post a while back I mentioned that the owner of the corner market has been kind enough to give me (by the dozen!) Swisher Sweet boxes. They are the most durable of all cigarillo boxes - sturdy enough to withstand paint, sanding and gluing, but without the complexity of a wood cigar box. Textured backgrounds are my most favorite part of creating. I've benefited from so many others' blogs,articles in magazines and books, workshops and tutorials... I decided to document and share my process. After a light sanding and coat of gesso, spotty pumice gel and some molding paste, I sort through the (exponentially growing piles) scraps left from previous projects and I save even the smallest bit so I don't have to do much ripping. Golden's Clear Tar Gel is so great for gluing, a habit I formed long ago, though there is likely a better (cheaper!) adhesive? It's actually cool to look at this photo and see history, tissue, strip from a wedding piece, pa...

When I started the Altered Fabric Book workshop , I couldn't imagine how 15 sheets of paper folded in half (three five-page signatures) could possibly end up thick and juicy like the wondrous creations of Nellie Wortman ! I've achieved bulk but I still have a long way to go! I've been prepping (60 surfaces!) and after a few rounds with a testy sewing machine, have managed to add stitching to quite a number of pages. Fortunately, the stitching isn't supposed to be straight, or even and the fabric is supposed to be gathered. I've mostly conquered the machine - winding thread along a very specific maze of knobs, hooks and levers, keeping the bobbin loaded and functional, not getting carried away or breaking needles, so now comes the fun part - attaching the signatures to the spine. Bookmaking has always seemed, well, complicated so I have zero binding experience. Should be quite an adventure! I had a fairly limited supply of fabrics and lace trims so I paid a ...

Alicia Caudill has published Art Bits' third ArtZine , and it's loaded with amazing black and white collage, assemblage, photography, encaustic, and mixed media pieces. Individually, the work is amazing, as a collection it's diverse, amazing, and takes several studied readings to soak it all in... which I've been trying to do for the past couple of days. Oh, and I am fortunate enough to be featured on page 13!! which really blows me away, considering the talent and accomplishments of the artists included in this issue - Seth Apter , the lovely Mistress Debrina , Kerin Gale , Alicia's own amazing pieces (including a sneak peek at a cool collaborative series in the works with her hubby), and dozens of other accomplished, talented artists. I hope you'll visit Alicia and take a look at the ArtZine - and Altered Bits , her gallery is fabulous and her shop is loaded with interesting and unusual treasures.