it was a mad success...

i feel, days later that my feet can actually start touching the ground again, for my very 1st web show was a great success and filled me with glee, shock, 'no, it can't be trues....for i was sold out of my #1 pieces by noon...with many orders of game boards to paint for so many of you.

what can i say to all of you other than a big big thank you for supporting me, my family and my craft....i am looking forward to the snows ending and spring springing while sitting outside painting in these appalachian mountains during the month of may....











after a very hard winter and the overwhelming beginnings of the spring snows and floods, i'm going home - to mom and dad's....i want to play with my sisters, eat double scooped ice cream cones and jump into the gulf of mexico.....









but i will be checking my email just to make sure that you received all of your new pieces from the web show and that they arrived safely! in the meantime, if you would like to check out all the new designs on my web site, here's my link:

www.dallison.squarespace.com/

i'll be back to the mountain when my lilacs are blooming.....enjoy your spring blooming

welcome to the show!

shhhh, private web show just for YOU....

Thursday, April 14th - Midnight (EST)

through

Sunday, April 17th - 12:00 Noon (EST)

i'm filled with excitement, to see what you will say...

for i am introducing 6 new reproduction game boards

bringing 1 out of retirement for a short time &

1 gee's bend "arcola" piece is available

since i'm a newbie at web shows, i'm searching my mind for an 'easy' way for you to buy or order a piece or two...

so here's the info:

1st come, 1st served - (via email) just email me the name of the piece that you would like - emails will be time stamped so i will be able to go over them in order...

(but if you are not 1st you have the option to order the same piece so you don't miss out...)

i will ship your pieces out on tuesday or after i receive your payment...

discounted shipping of $10.00 on your first board, $0 on any additional boards...

show ends: 12:00 Noon on Sunday, April 17th - i'll contact you to let you know if you 'won' your piece!

here's my email: dianeallison@charter.net

(it is also posted on the left column of this blog)

now....let the show begin...

"the farmhouse"

i loved this piece the instant i saw it...it is a reproduction of a piece from the late 1800's...i do not know the area that it came from, information was long ago lost... eli named this piece "the farmhouse", which i thought was just the perfect name. for it has that 'farmhouse' look that i have in my mind; blue, red, off white, golden brown and green...just seem like farmhouse colors to me....maybe he remembers the time when his dad and i were determined to buy an old farmhouse, fix-it-up and call it home...we visited many old houses when he was small where he was able to run through pastures, climb into barns looking for treasures and imagining himself what it would be like to have a farm....

"the farmhouse" #1 in an edition of 10

19" x 19" - $220.00

(colors: blue, golden brown, barn red, dark green and off white)

"dad's irish eyes"

ode to my dad - an irishman who has raised irish daughters, need i say more? when my own irish eyes saw this piece i just knew that i had to make it, after all, we ARE irish! this is a reproduction parcheesi board that is based on a piece that was a bit smaller, 24" x 20", but in my mind i could only see it on a larger scale, so i did what was in my mind and stretched it out to a longer piece. the date on the original piece is the 1900's, but i have no idea when in the 1900's...it sold for $3,950.

"dad's irish eyes" #1 in an edition of 10

19" x 28" - $245.00

(colors: dark green, soft yellow and off white)

"capture the flag"

I found the photo of this piece on line - but was not ever able to find a date or the area that it originally came from...so when this happens, i play it on the 'safe' side and have to say the original is from the early 1900's, it may have been older than that, but it is at least 100 years old... i especially love this piece because it is so graphic which makes it able to stand on it's own making a bold statement or be mixed in with other pieces, still adding a touch of drama... it is a little pricier than other pieces for it took 7 coats of white paint alone....it has a black base coat, so covering black with another color can take endless hours...but i still feel that the price is very reasonable...

"capture the flag" #1 in an edition of 10

19" x 28" - $295.00

(named by eli, his favorite school game)

(colors: green, straw, white, olive yellow and a orangish brown)

"cops and robbers"

This is a reproduction game board - the original was dated back to the late 1800's and sold for $18,560. I chose the name 'cops and robbers' for it reminded me of kids playing outside, hiding behind objects with the sheriff in the center. I found being the mother of boys, no matter if you let them play with toy guns or not, they will take sticks or other found objects to make their own...

"cops and robbers"

#1 in an edition of 10

19" x 19" - $225.00

(colors: "wow" red, terracotta, choch./grey (charcoal), tans, soft yellow and golden brown....(this piece is way yummier in person)

"arcola"

gee's bend based design - as you know those quilts have grabbed my heart and move me to create game boards using the colors from these quilts...this is #6 in an edition of 20 pieces that will be made of this design...i thought it would be fun to have one done and ready to send out to you!

"arcola"

"19" x 19"

#6 in edition of 20 - $220.00

(colors: red, blue, latte, brown, golden brown and latte)

please keep scrolling down for "part 2" of the web show on the blog below...

show continued....

part 2 of my offerings...

"ruby slippers"

oh how this piece makes my eyes dance....i have so many favorites, but i think "ruby slippers" tops my list. I was not able to find a date for the original design that this was based on, for mine is a reproduction, but it is known that it came from Massachusetts. when i choose new designs to show i of course choose them by their appearance, and do i love it?, i have to ask myself...for if i don't, i will tire of making it....i also have to consider the amount of time i am investing in a piece...if i spend several days painting a piece, i will have to keep it for myself, for the cost to sell it would be prohibitive... and that is what i found with this piece - unaware when i went into the design, that it would take me days to paint...the stars alone took more than 3 hours...so that is why this piece is on the 'highest' end of the game boards that i have painted...but i did want to give you the opportunity to have it for your collection and not keep for myself...

"ruby slippers" #1 in edition of 10

19" x 19"

$325.00

(colors: a "WOW" red, santa fe rose, dark blue, forest green, gold, light yellow just to name a few)

"mi casa, su casa"

brought out of retirement (for a little bit) - This piece is a reproduction dart board that was dated to the early 1900's. Years ago i made 3 of these dart boards and then soon after retired it. I am bringing this piece back for a limited # of 10 pieces (7available). The difficulty of drawing this piece is far more difficult than the painting and finishing put together, but it is such a pretty shade of green, blue and white, that i just couldn't resist it for the spring...

"mi casa, su casa"

#4 in an edition of 10

19" x 19"

$245.00

(named by eli)

(colors: soft green, a somewhat bright blue (but not to bright), black and off white)

"kids play"

This is a reproduction game board that was dated back to the early 1900's. It is a variation of the game "skully", (a street game). I really love the look of letters and numbers, so i was drawn right to this piece. I especially like the added wood pieces that were attached giving it outward texture...just HAD to make this piece for myself!

kid's play

#1 in an edition of 10

16 1/2" x 18" - $175.00

(colors: this piece has dark blue underneath the darker green, but it's hardly noticeable, so i'm just going to list dark green, ivory and a red (not to bright of a red though))

I hope you have found a piece that you would like to add to your collection, or a piece to begin a collection with...

if you see a piece that you must have, just email me....i'll be going by the 'time stamp' on all of the emails...

if for some reason you were not 1st in requesting the piece, i am more than happy to make one for you....just allow me 6 weeks to create your special piece....

here's my email: dianeallison@charter.net

good luck to all of you!

tick tock, tick tock...

12:00 Midnight...the fun will begin...

latest news...

boy oh boy have i been running around like a mad hatter....i didn't think i would ever escape my falling down that rabbit hole weeks ago...but finally....

Web Show - Friday

phew....i wondered for some time would i have the 'time' to do all that was needed in making the pieces themselves for my 1st web show...

today i have finally finished, the finality of it all is leaving me somewhat confused...i think, maybe i should paint a bit, maybe i should start sanding some wood...maybe maybe...

so i'll head out of the studio today and enjoy this spring season that is poking it's head out and try to clear my head a bit...

but here's a little information on when and where the web show will take place;

friday on my blog -

i will drop you an email on thursday to give you the times....if you aren't on my email list, you might want to go ahead and sign-up now using the column on the left of the blog...

there will be 7 new game board designs introduced and 1 "arcola" gee's bend piece....these will all be ready to send to you the following tuesday....yep, no waiting!

so keep your eyes open to see the likes of 'ruby slippers', 'farmhouse' and 'capture the flag' to name a few...

see you then!

www.dallison.squarespace.com/

mom's done it again...

(who would've thought that this cute little girl would grow up to be such a great artist.... ) and her name is Rose...

my most amazing, talented mom has earned herself yet another ribbon at the quilt show...woohoooooo!

for any of you who are quilters, i know you are familiar with the crazy quilt...for those of you who are not, wow is the word that comes to mind to describe these quilts and their makers - the many fabrics, embroidery techniques along with the adornment of treasured pieces that are used, make each and every quilt a story in itself.

awesome quilt mom - keep them coming!

here is an article that i thought was not only interesting but fun to read from "womenfolk"...

"The 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exposition was a big event in Victorian society. One of the most popular exhibits was the Japanese pavilion with its fascinating crazed ceramics and asymmetrical art."

The Birth of the Crazy Patchwork Quilting Craze

Women were eager to incorporate this new look into their quilts and with the help of popular women's magazines the making of crazy quilts became quite the rage. Creativity was wide open with women sewing asymmetrical pieces of fabric together in abstract arrangements. This enthusiasm for this quilting fad continued until about 1910. Early quilts made in the crazy style were more show pieces than functional and were often made as smaller unquilted "lap robes" that were used to decorate the parlor. They were fitting showpieces for the lavish interior decoration of the day. These quilts were usually made using velvet, silk and brocade fabric, cut and pieced in random shapes. What a perfect way for women to show off their needlework skills! Using silk thread, women placed lovely decorative stitches on each seam. Intriguing names like feather, herringbone, fly and chain describe just a few of the intricate stitches. The imagination and skill of the seamstress was the only limit.

Each Quilting Patch Carefully Planned

To the Victorians the word "crazy" not only meant wild but also broken or crazed into splinters; a good description of the look the various triangles and other odd shapes gave to these quilts. Although crazy style quilts may appear haphazard they were carefully planned. Hours were spent cutting shapes and trying out various arrangements of the pieces before sewing. The following quote from an 1883 article in "The Chester Times", Chester, PA. gives an idea of how they were made. * "If your pieces are of good size, and all fresh and handsome, one way is to cut out blocks of cotton cloth, either square or diamond-shape. Cut enough blocks to make the quilt the desired size, then paste on the pieces of silk, satin, or velvet; lap the edges and turn the upper one under; then cover every seam with feather-stitch, cross-stitch, or any fancy stitch you can invent. "

Crazy Quilt Embroidery

We find a great variety of stitching styles and embroidered motifs on these quilts; sometimes small pictures were even painted on the fabric. Animals and flowers seem to be the favorite embroidery themes. Some quilters believed that embroidering a spider on its web would bring good luck to the quilter. Crazy quilts occasionally included embroidered verses and information recording family events.

i'll be going to visit my mom soon - i'm anxious to see what block she is working on now....

CONGRATULATIONS MOM!!