Visiting fabric artist Judy Sall in Flagstaff

I've been gone from the blog awhile because I was in Flagstaff, AZ, visiting my friend Judy Sall and from there went to Gallop, NM, for a big pow wow (more on that in my next blog post).

Judy creates VERY colorful dyed garments and other fabric art from her home studio in Flagstaff. When I got there, she was in the process of ice dying the garment below, letting the melting ice pour over the tied and dyed wet garment and drain through the colander. This is the technique she used for the shirts she's holding in the first photo. She's perfecting a technique that she calls geode dying. The end product resembles the inside of a geode, like the blue and green shirt that she's holding. Very cool!

She also makes some amazing fabric bowls. That's how we met years ago. I had done a tutorial on coiled fabric bowls on my blog, which got her started, but now she's gone so far beyond what I'm doing with bowls! Just look at the tan and blue vessel above, which she made in two pieces and then joined in the middle.

She's very creative with endings and handles. In fact, she started a Facebook group called Cotton Rope Bowls Mats Bowl Cozies and Bags that offers lots of inspiration.

Here's a set of coasters with a bowl to store them in that was in progress in her machine when I arrived. Beautiful fall colors!

But she went way beyond the coiled bowls I taught her to make and has experimented with fabric collaged bowls and hand embroidered vessels. By this time next week she'll probably be exploring yet another technique.

This tall vase is one of my favorites because of the color and fabulous embroidery and embellishments. She made the outside first and inserted Timtex (a stiff fusible) and finished it with a lining. Go Judy!

She sells her art at Arts Connection in the Flagstaff Mall and the Sedona (AZ) Artist Market. Check it out if you're in the area! Her website is www.judysalloriginals.com. She'll also be selling her art at the Flagstaff Open Studios on Aug. 26-27 in Studio 14. 

There are a lot of books out there on creating fabric bowls and vessels. Here's a classic.

Parting shot: her studio view. 

And that's a wrap! Next up -- Gallop.

Have a colorful day