“Seashells” Cindy Grisdela

It was a beautiful fall weekend for the Great Falls Studios Ninth Annual Studio Tour! Sunny and brisk with the fall leaves just about at their peak.

I was in a new location this year at the Artists’ Atelier with 11 other artists. There was such fun and such energy there. Visitors were waiting at the door when we opened at 10 AM on Saturday, eager to stroll through each studio, sample goodies to eat and talk to the artists about their work. I saw many, many familiar faces and met some new ones as well.

“Seashells” at left, went to a new home this weekend! The person that bought this piece had been coming to the Studio Tour every year and had been looking at it for several years before deciding that this year was the year it needed to come live in her house. I’m always so gratified when one of my pieces speaks to someone enough that they want to take it home and have it be part of their lives.

I brought my sewing machine and my demonstration design wall in so I could show visitors a little bit about my Studio Tour 2012creative process. It’s always fun to let people see that my stitching lines are created completely freehand on a regular sewing machine–I don’t use a computer or mark the designs out ahead of time–I just draw them out with my needle as though it were a pen or a brush.

Two young visitors yesterday decided to add their creativity to my design wall!

Many people commented that I must have a lot of patience to create my pieces. It’s an interesting thought, because I don’t see it that way at all–in fact, my family often tells me I must have been standing behind the door when patience was being given out! I’m going to have to think about this one a bit and maybe write another post about it. It’s true that working with fabric takes longer in many ways to go from idea to finished product than working with paint or other media. But there are rewards to the process as well, and ultimately it’s the best way for me to express my artistic vision.

I have a busy schedule for the next couple of months leading up to the holidays. The next event is a Great Falls Studios Artist Boutique at the Artspace Gallery in Herndon, VA. It’s next week from Tuesday, October 30 through Saturday, November 3 at the gallery at 750 Center St. in Herndon. Visit http://www.artspaceherndon.com/ for times and more information.

2 Comments

  1. MOM on October 22, 2012 at 10:08 pm

    So glad you had a good week-end. Seashells is one of my favorite pieces. Gladit found a good home. Love you!!



  2. Dorry on October 22, 2012 at 10:16 pm

    I’m so happy to hear how energised you were by appearing in a new location for the tour this year. Regrettably I was away this weekend and missed visiting the Atelier and all the other artists. Your set up looked very exciting.