Weaving with New Materials

In the midst of this crazy time of year for me with orders to fill and work to ship off to galleries and art centers, it's always good to stop and take a break and breathe!  Breathing can be a day off, a day away, a day to read, or a day to learn something new and challenging.  I did just that this past Saturday.  I had the chance to learn something new, to work with materials I've never work with before, and to become a student again.  It was great to feel that excitement as I created something totally different than what I normally do in the studio. And I have to say I was proud of what I had accomplished by the end of the class. So what was it that drew me away from thinking about the ton of work I had to do to get work off to places "hither and yon"! It was weaving jewelry with wire and metal!  The feel of the material was different than working with fiber but the techniques were familiar.  We were doing simple plain weave and plying of the wire to create a piece of woven jewelry.

The class was taught by a wonderful artist, Anastasia Azure, a weaver who works with unusual materials - fish line being one of them.  Her work is fabulous and blows me away. You have to check out her website at www.anastaciaazure.com.

The class was held at The Mad Dog Artists Studios in Pawtucket, RI.  How's that name to get you in the mood for a creative experience!  As you might guess it is an old factory building which has been renovated into studio space where many artists come together to work. As one who works alone in my studio I am always a little envious of the inspiration one gets when being in the company on a regular basis of other artists.  So I live vicariously through one time experiences such as I had on Saturday. And it was great.

Here are a few pictures of what I learned to do.............................

Beginnings

Beginning the weaving. Aluminum base with colored plied wire.

Framed and finished pendant 

Close up

Can't wait to wear my new necklace!

What new experiences, learnings, or challenges have you had lately to get the creative juices flowing?  I welcome sharing in the comment section.  I'd love to hear what you are up to!

A Different Vision

For the last 8 months I've had the pleasure of working on an exhibit called "A Different Vision".  It is sponsored by the Plymouth Art Guild in Plymouth, MA, www.plymouthguild.org. The guild sponsored this exhibit in 2010 and then decided to do it again in 2013. A Different Vision is a tactile, innovative, and exciting art exhibit where the blind and the visually impaired as well as the sighted can enjoy the art.  Everything is touchable. Really, it's all touchable!  No please do not touch the art signs here, only Please Touch!

So my job was to help publicize this event by starting A Different Vision Face Book page.  You can find it at www.facebook.com/ADifferentVision.  It's been fun to connect with a whole new group of people on the page.  As administrator I am trying to get the word out to people who might not have heard of this event, artists and folks who would enjoy the show.  My goal is to have 100 Likes on the page by the opening which is May 11 at 7pm.  So stop by the page and give us a "Thumbs Up".

As an artist I was challenged by this exhibit to make something in my medium.  My normal wearables, while they feel very soft to the touch, were not going to be the thing that got them accepted into the show.  So I looked at the yarn on my shelves, put my weaver's thinking cap on, and decided to do something totally different than what I normally do. I knew I was going to create a scarf but it had to have a lot of texture and something special about it that a visually impaired person could see with their hands.

Yarns used to sample

I remembered taking a workshop one year at Convergence (Handweavers' Guild of America's biennial conference) on Shibori.  Normally Shibori is used as a resist dying technique.  But this workshop used it as a resist technique for texturizing cloth!  (find out more about Shibori at http://shibori.org) So when I was thinking about ways to texturize my woven piece for the exhibit, I thought about creating bubbles in handwoven wool cloth by using the Shibori technique. Wool shrinks and fulls (felts) so the resist would cause the bubbles to form. Then my mind took it one step further.  What if I made the bubbles spell out the colors of the scarf in Braille!  Oh sometimes the creative mind gets us into all kinds of trouble!  After trying several methods (round marbles, flat marbles, thread) for creating the bubbles, I settled on a method which used very tight elasticized bands. This proved to be the best tool to use. 

After much sampling (several 1 yard samplers) I realized that making the bubbles spell out the Braille words was just not going to work effectively in a scarf.  It was hard to scrunch up the fabric in the correct line that it needed to be in order to be read. Each time I applied the band to one area it threw the cloth out of line and I couldn't see if the next bubble was going to be in the right place. So scratch that!  Back to the drawing board.  I thought I had a good idea using the Braille but how was I going to make it happen?

Ah Ha! BEADS! Oh those wonderful glorious beads that come in all sorts of colors! That would do it.  So I wove beads into the scarf at the beginning and end to spell out the main color of the scarf.  It worked beautifully.  I was able to line the beads up in the correct place for each letter. One scarf was Blue and the other was Purple.  I decided to put the Shibori bubbles throughout the scarf which gave it a funky very textural feel.

Drawing up a pattern guide for placement of the beads. This spells purple.

Weaving the beads in place.

I added beads to the fringe and twisted the ends together to form a loop scarf.

I have to say creating these scarves took me out of my "box" and comfort zone but I love the chunky, funky look of these scarves!  

"Bubble Wrap" - blue

If you live near Plymouth, make sure you stop by the Plymouth Center for the Arts and visit the show.  Let me know what you think of my "Bubble Wrap" Scarves. 

"Bubble Wrap" - purple

Gallery Exhibit - Cranberry Country Weavers

Yesterday I spent the day helping to hang an exhibit of weaving done by the Cranberry Country Weaver's Guild members. The exhibit is at the West Bridgewater Library in West Bridgewater, MA where our guild meets once a month. www.cranberrycountryweavers.com.

It was a great collaborative effort to arrange and display the work so that no matter what the level of weaving each piece was presented with it's own special attention to detail and given it's own space.  This is the first time the CCW Guild has put on an exhibit. It was not juried which is a great tribute to how this guild works.  Everyone is treated equally and all weaving is appreciated. It's one of the things that makes this guild so special to me.  We are there to help and learn from each other and have fun along the way.

So here are some pictures of the exhibit. Of course if you live near W.Bridgewater, Ma I encourage you to go see this exhibit.  The work is great!

          Enjoy the exhibit!

Inspiration and Stretching!

I came across a website recently that talked about inspiration and how it showed up in designer and artist's work. It was mostly pictures so you could definitely see the inspiration and how it manifested in the work.  It could be color, drape, patterned, texture, or any other element that drew the artist in. Here's the site if you want to take a look, http://www.dazeddigital.com/blog/article/15837/1/the-rage-in-eden#.UT8MA8c_t-Q.facebook.

I've mentioned before how artist's work or designer's work has inspired me. Barnet Newman, abstract artist, influenced my "zip scarves" ( http://studiojottings.blogspot.com/2009/11/november-skies.html ),  Christo influenced the Ecclesiastical installations I did with my church
( http://studiojottings.blogspot.com/2010/03/ecclesiastical-installation.html ), and many years ago I won an award at the Philadelphia Guild of Handweaver's Annual Exhibit for yardage that I wove inspired by a Fortuny gown. Unfortunately I don't have any good pictures of the piece to show you.  I was inspired by the colors which used Lavender and Peach together, not a choice I would have made on my own.

"Zip" Scarves by Judy Connor Jones

Lenten Panels at First Baptist Church, Plymouth, MA

The point is, other artist's work not only inspires the work we produce but forces us to stretch and go where we might not have gone.

So what work has inspired you?  How did it stretch you as an artist?  Would love it if you shared your experiences and inspirations in the comment section.

Here's hoping today will bring inspiration to you!

Mandala, hand dyed silk by Judy Connor Jones

Butterflies Emerge! Part One

Butterflies have always been a lovely symbol for me.  The meaning and symbolism of these fascinating, beautiful creatures goes deep. They go through so many stages; birth, journeys as a caterpillar, quest for food, struggles for survival, risk, darkness, quiet, and then metamorphosis into something new.  Along the way instinct takes over but also a trust in the unknown that there is more to come.  Wow! How amazing!

Photo by Henry Holcomb

I feel like my artistic journey has gone through similar stages.  There is the larger picture of discovering a path that has lead to weaving and all things textile along with a discovery that I do have an artistic look at work and life.  It was always there.  As with many things in life, it just took a long time to realize.  It didn't happen without the help of others who saw it in me first.  I will always be grateful for their encouragement and support. But despite this larger recognition of discovery, there is always the dying and emerging of the parts within.  The caterpillar/butterfly repeats this pattern and survival of the generations goes on.  This dying/emerging thing also happens for me in my work and business enabling the work to go on.  Always present is looking toward doing a new thing - emergence. To emerge, something must change.  It can not stay the same. No looking back!

Many times if you look close you will find butterflies on or in my work.
 Butterfly Jacket by Judy Connor Jones

I mentioned in earlier posts that 2012 was a year of possibilities; exploring and developing new work,   a time of learning how to use social media, developing new marketing strategies, working on a new website, and finding new ways to sell my work. I spent most of the year concentrating on these possibilities while searching for answers that would work.

I'm happy to say the Butterfly is beginning to emerge in 2013 with many of these goals in progress or met.  As part of developing new marketing strategies my new and improved website is up and running.  It took 10 months from the time the contract with the web designer was signed to the completion.  The results have been fantastic. Thank you to Steve Culp of Culp Design, www.CulpDesign.com. It was a lot of hard work, back and forth, and took a lot of time to get all the pictures and content together and written. Feedback from family and friends was crucial in knowing how others perceived it, what content they would look for, ease of use, and the overall impression they got when they went to the site.  If you haven't been to it recently, please take a look at www.JudyConnorJones.com.  Let me know what you think.  What do you like about it?

Studio

As part of the new marketing strategies, you can now sign up for my e-newsletter by going to the website and clicking on the cute little "Mail Chimp" monkey icon on the Home page or by going to the Contact page.  This will take you to the sign up sheet. By signing up for the e-newsletter you will receive up to date information on what's new in the studio, occasional special offers,  show updates, and when and where you can purchase my work.  I promise not to bombard your inbox with newsletters.  You might receive 4 - 6 per year. You will always have the option to unsubscribe, although I hope you will want to stay connected to the news around and about the studio. If you have topics about my work that you would like me to discuss in the newsletter, e-mail me at info@judyconnorjones.com and let me know.  I will try to answer questions in each newsletter.

I look forward to this new adventure in my relationship with you, my supporters and followers. Let's stay connected. I always appreciate having a dialog with you. Thank you for being there as we journey together.  Here's hoping you begin to discover the Butterflies in your life!  :)

Gallery Spotlight: Elizabeth Stevens Gallery

I took a leap at the end of last year and began showing my work in Galleries.  I've done this before but on a very limited basis for short periods of time. As I get older it becomes more difficult to depend on the show circuit for the largest portion of selling my work.  Shows are very physically draining; getting ready for them, packing and traveling and unpacking, being "on" constantly during the show, not to mention the weather and  how it effects the financial outcome!  As in Real Estate, it is good to diversify how I sell my work.  As I've mentioned before in my previous blogs, 2012 was a year to re-evaluate and develop now products along with new strategies. One of those strategies was to see how I might fare in the gallery market.

I see working with galleries that sell my work as a partnership.  I am asking them to sell my work in a public space and take all the cost of doing that.  In return I feel it is my responsibility to let as many people as I can know that they can find my work in the gallery. In this way I can help support them and hopefully send some cutomers their way. 

So let me introduce you to the Elizabeth Stevens Gallery.  I first met the gallery owner, Bette Stevens, last February when I was in Sarasota to meet my first grandchild. Towles Court 3rd Friday Art Walk was going on while I was there.  So I spent some time visiting the galleries that were open that night. When I went to purchase an item in Bette's gallery we struck up a conversation; first about using "The Square" for credit card transactions, which lead to a conversation about the handwoven scarf I was wearing (which of course was my own work), to the fact that she is a weaver who used to do shows. We discovered we had a lot in common and I felt an immediate connection.  I left her gallery with a possibility of having my work there at some time later in the year. 

In October I shipped off a number of scarves that arrived in time for the October Art Walk.  How nice it was to receive a check in December for the sale of several scarves! In continuing this partnership, while in Sarasota, I visited the gallery and Bette once again. She has a new space in Towles Court and the work of many artists which is displayed is beautiful.  We connected again with the hope that the partnership will continue to be productive for both of us.  Check out her Towles Court website at http://towlescourt.com/e_stevens.htm. Even better, if you get to Sarasota, go visit her and mention that you read about her gallery on my blog.

Bette Stevens and me outside the gallery in Towles Court, Sarasota, FL

My work displayed in the Elizabeth Stevens Gallery

      

Reflection, New Beginnings, and Possibilities

Close up of Triangular Shawl by Judy Connor Jones
Photographer - Mike Ritter, Ritterbin Photography

This year has been a year of reflection and new beginnings for me and my business.  It has been a year of growth and new directions.  The funny thing is, many times this happens as a result of struggle and disappointment.  Believe me, 2011 brought plenty of that!  But if it hadn't happened I would still be doing the "same old thing" and wondering why the business was struggling.  Taking this year, 2012, to rethink how I do things has been a blessing.  It hasn't all been easy as I tried new markets and shows  not knowing if they would be successful or not.  Financially I worried whether I would make enough to handle all the ongoing business expenses.  The economy didn't help as my costs rose and my buyers had their own financial concerns to worry about.

A friend reminded me that I have "Dwell in Possibilities" stenciled across my studio steps.  (Sometimes we need to be reminded of our own mantras!) So I returned to that mantra and realized, once again, that there are loads of possibilities out there.  I just have to grab on!

So 2012 has been a year of grabbing onto possibilities. Sometimes they work and other times they don't and may even fail miserably.  But think about it.  A failed possibility can be turned into a learning experience which then leads to another possibility. Hope abounds! I am the eternal optimist!

As a result of  my reflecting, rethinking, taking risks, and looking for the possibilities 2012 has turned out pretty good.  I took the financial risk to develop my website to be more than a "splash page".  I had new photography done. I designed new woven items.  I worked on my social media presence. And I approached a friend to produce some videos which I will be able to use on my website.  I began to think about other ways to sell my work and as a result I have representation in four galleries in different parts of the country.  As an artist I am learning how to partner with these galleries and new relationships are forming.  You can visit the websites of these galleries by going to my website, www.JudyConnorJones.com, and clicking on the  Shows and Events page. If you live in or visit any of those places please support these small businesses. They work very hard to display and sell artist's work. Many of them have Facebook pages so you can Like them and get news feeds about what's happen in their gallery.

Artist Exposure Gallery in Plymouth, MA

Next week is Thanksgiving and I have much to be thankful for.  As I look to 2013, I am full of possibilities for new designs and am thankful for the time I have had to rejuvenate my creative soul.  Most of all I am thankful that "Possibilities" always exist.  I ask for the wisdom to recognize them!

Wishing all of you a Happy Thanksgiving and the gift of seeing the "Possibilities" around you.

How to Tie a Scarf.......

How to tie a scarf.......or I could title this post, "A Star is Born"!  You see I've had this idea........... for a long time I've wanted to do a video on scarf tying.  I repeatedly hear from customers that they never know how to tie a scarf or what to do with it. Along with how to wear a shawl, it seems to be the biggest fashion challenge for many.  So I am always demonstrating ways to wear scarves and shawls.  After I do this the next comment is usually, "Oh can you come home with me?  I'll never remember how to do that!" (Does this sound familiar?)  So I've been on a quest to find someone who could film a video of me tying scarves.  I could then put it on my website and customers could watch it anytime and remember how to tie the scarf that they purchased.

So one day a funny thing happened. As I was in conversation with a friend who had just lost her job in publishing,  she was telling me how she was looking at new options and what she might do.  When I asked what she was exploring, she told me about a class she was taking at our local TV station.  Plymouth TV has this wonderful program where they teach classes on videography along with providing assistance to help students make their own films.  Can you hear the wheels starting to turn in my brain?  Excitedly, the next words out of my mouth were, if you need a project to work on, I've got one for you!  After explaining my idea to video me tying scarves she was intrigued.  (I have this added bonus that she likes my work and what I do!)

After thinking it over she e-mailed me to tell me that she had been thinking about the possibilities and much to my surprise was not only interested in what I proposed but expanded the project.  Seems that when she ran it past PACTV they were interested in doing a series of shoots and putting them on the TV. Oh my gosh!  "Moi" on TV!!!!!! Of course immediately I started thinking, they say you look 10 pounds heavier on TV. Yikes!!!!!!!!! How fast can I loose some weight!

So Robin and I began to plan the project, what we would film, when we would do it, and how we would go about it. We started filming in May and met on Tuesday's as often as our schedules allowed and by the end of summer the filming was complete.  Not only had we filmed tying of scarves but also the weaving process, studio set up, and an interview, all to be aired on our local TV station, PACTV.

After Robin did the editing, corrections, and adjustments (I'm sure these are not the technical terms), the video was ready to be aired.  The first showing was this past Sunday, October 21.  The reality of it being on TV didn't hit me until the first frame appeared with the title "Scarves in Motion" and there I was talking to viewers about how to tie a scarf!

I don't know how many people saw it.  It is a small TV station and viewing audience but I couldn't believe I had actually done it and I have to say it looked pretty good!  (And no I didn't loose any weight before it aired.)  My husband thinks I came across with the presence of an HGTV host!  I may be hard to live with after this!!!!!!!

In case you missed the show and live in the Plymouth, MA area, tune into Comcast 13 or Verizon 43
at 8pm on one of the following Sundays - 10/28, 11/4, and 11/11.  Let me know what you think.  I'll be waiting to hear from my adoring fans!!!!!!!!!! :-)

      

Thanks to Robin MacFarlane and PACTV for making this experience a possibility. You are awesome!

National Spinning and Weaving Week

Did you know there is a National Spinning and Weaving Week?  There is and it is always the first week of October.  Many weaving and spinning guilds plan activities to get the word out that there is a thriving community which continues an ancient art to produce yarn and cloth.  It is a time to honor the importance of textiles in our lives and a time to educate the public, many of whom do not know how cloth and the clothes they wear are made.

The area I live in, New England, use to thrive on all the textile mills along it's many waterways. It was the industry that supported the economy for many towns.  Now many of these mills have become large old vacant buildings.  We are no longer a textile producing country. So when spinning and weaving week comes around, it is a great time to learn how textiles are made.  I encourage you to see if there are any guilds in your area and if they are having any special events this week. You can check the Handweaver's Guild of America site to find a guild, www.weavespindye.org. Or you can look up textile production on the internet and see what you discover.  You can also visit a textile museum.  If you live near the Washington, DC area, the Textile Museum of DC is wonderful.  It is located near Dupont Circle and well worth the trip, www.textilemuseum.org.  If you live in MA, the American Textile History Museum in Lowell is not to be missed, www.athm.org.  Lowell, MA was one of those towns whose existence and economy depended on the mills.  After decades of deterioration many of those buildings have been restored and they have become condos, offices, and artist's studios.

I will try to post some interesting facts or websites each day this week.  So check back and explore National Spinning and Weaving Week. It will be a great adventure into history along with contemporary artists who are working in this medium.

Off to Another Show

Looking forward to heading north to VT for one of my favorite shows, Mad River Valley Craft Fair, www.madrivercraftfair.com.  Weather is looking good for this weekend.  Yeah! (Maybe I won't have to dry my canopy out in the back yard after I get back!)  The valley is beautiful this time of year.  VT has done a great job of recovering from Hurricane Irene which hit this time last year. Roads are in great shape and mud and debris has been removed.

The Craft Fair is the end event of Vermont's 2 week long Arts Festival. It is always well attended and a fun time for all ages - lots of food, good music, and of course, wonderful crafts made by talented artists.

So if you are looking for something to do over Labor Day Weekend, head north to VT and visit the show. Stop by my booth and tell me that you read my blog.  It's great to meet the people who follow me.

See you in Waitsfield at the Mad River Valley Craft Fair

New "Ruffled Scarf" design by Judy Connor Jones

Off to a Show

I'm of to a show this weekend.  It's been a while since I've set up my canopy and sold at a show.  I've spent most of this year developing and working on new items along with developing a new website, getting new photography, working on my social media presence, and filming videos to use for instruction and advertising. The new website is up and running. (www.JudyConnorJones.com)  Not all content is there yet. It's still a work in progress but my show schedule is there along with some pictures of my work. Check out the new design and let me know what you think.

For now I am concentrating on getting ready for this show. I am finishing up items, packing the car, and doing last minute preparations.  Hoping the weather will be kind this weekend! :)

If you are in Maine and near Bar Harbor, stop by the show, visit my booth (#3 on the grass), say hello and see all my new work.

See you in Bar Harbor!

Recycling in the Studio

I love re-purposing materials. Weavers use a lot of paper when putting warps on the beam.  The paper acts as a separator for the layers that are wound onto the beam.  This keeps the yarn from snuggling down into the previous layer which in turn causes tension problems.  Tension problems can cause an irregular cloth that will do strange things to the finished cloth.  Tension problems are the "bane of a weaver's existence"! It is to be avoided at all costs. Unless of course you do it on purpose! (There is always the exception for the sake of design!)

Since these papers don't last forever when they get used day in and day out, a weaver needs a fresh supply. Now it can't be just any paper.  The weight of the paper makes a difference.  Too thin and the yarns will still sink into the previous layer.  Too thick and it builds up on the beam and long warps will not fit. It also makes it difficult to keep each layer tight.

OK, so what is the right paper.  The answer --------- Packing paper!

Now you can buy it at a packing supply store which I have done but I am always delighted when packages come and they have this great packing paper in them which is filling up the empty space in the box.  Voila! Eureka! New supply of paper to use when beaming the warps! Maybe a little crinkled but no problem.  Just iron it, roll it, and put it in my stash of paper, sticks, raddles, and lease sticks bin waiting to be used.

Creme de la Creme Models

Scarves by Judy Connor Jones

When I was in college at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, I joined Tri Sigma sorority.  During those college years it was the women of this sorority that were my support system.  They nurtured me in all aspects of life as one knows it on a college campus.  They encouraged being philanthropic, gave advice when needed, and supported high academic achievements. But it wasn't all serious. Spending time in the suite on Friday nights for "Chef's Surprise" was always a great way to relieve the stress of the week.  Creativity abound as we took turns being the "Chef" of the week.  The menu was always hush, hush until you entered the suite.  Tuna noodle casserole (remember that?) was always a favorite!! Also on the lighter side was running back to the suite after classes to watch a "campy" little soap opera called  "Dark Shadows".  Oh how we loved watching together as we booed and hissed and felt sorry for Barnabas Collins.  Since this soap was broadcast live there were aways the inevitable "live bloopers".  Technicians would appear creeping slowly in a lowered position in front of the camera as if no one could see them. Or trees in the set would fall over when one of the actors would lean against it. We had such fun looking for these mistakes.

After college and we all went our separate ways, a group of us remained in touch.  We traveled together to The United Kingdom and through Europe. We were in each other's weddings. We celebrated and welcomed each others additions to our families. And now we grieve together as we deal with aging parents and the outcome it brings. Some of us moved farther away but we always stayed in touch.  We had a tradition of trying to get together at least once a year for a "sister" reunion. We named ourselves "Creme de la Creme" (tongue in cheek, of course!)

The last reunion of Creme was 2006. Our lives have taken directions that have prevented our getting together. When the movie "Dark Shadows"  came out, the e-mails started flying!  Remember when? Who went to the suite to watch the soap?  Wouldn't it be fun to see the movie together? One thought led to another and then Creme 2012 was in the works!

So last weekend I flew out to Ohio to be with my dear friends who I have not seen for a long time. Amazing how even though it has been 6 years, it was like the other day when we all were together. These women are the ones who, besides my family, know me better than anyone else! We have a lot of history together. So how did the weekend go?

The Inn at Dresden

For starters shortly after we arrived at The Inn at Dresden, Dresden, Ohio (former home of the Longaberger Basket founder) a terrific storm came up.  The sky got very dark, it started to rain heavily and tornado force winds blew furiously, over turning furniture, blowing shingles off the roof, and knocking down trees. A PVC pipe went flying from somewhere on the Inn and I expected to see Dorothy and Toto flying by with it!  And then it happened!  The lights went out! All electricity went out! The AC went out (90+ degree temps). The pump which ran the well went out!  You know what that means?  No water to flush a toilet or shower or anything! And champagne wasn't going to help this situation a whole lot!

So we lit candles and said, we can deal with this. It will only be a few hours (maybe........)!  OK it wasn't too long before we realized that it might be days! So our gracious Inn Keeper helped us find other lodging which wasn't an easy task as half a million people in central Ohio were without electricity.  Thank you Burke for finding 5 of the last 7 rooms left at the Hilton Inn Express - in - wait for it - ZANESVILLE, OHIO, home of the Y Bridge.

So we made a caravan down the road to Zanesville, with stop lights out and all manor of debris and destruction along the way.

We were sooooooooo thankful to have a place to stay and soooooooo thankful to Burke for finding it for us.  If you are ever in Dresden Ohio, stay at The Inn at Dresden and tell Burke I recommended it. I'm sure he will remember the group of women who were having the reunion that weekend!

So once we were settled into the Hilton, the weekend could begin. One thing about this group is we love to do something crazy and silly and just be girls again!  Knowing how much they love to "ham it up", I asked them if they would help me out and model some of my scarves while I took pictures.  I wanted to get photos of average ordinary people wearing my scarves so those interested in my work could see them worn by someone other than a model.  And believe me this group is not camera shy!!!! So ham it up they did! They were the perfect models. Thank you my dear Sigma sisters.  You did not disappoint!!!!