iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

I started painting the mushrooms this afternoon but the kitten needed my attention so I didn't get very far.

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Tried using alcohol marker for under painting a couple of small acrylic paintings. I have seen a couple of YouTubers do this and it seemed like something worth trying. Used browns and greys on the shrooms and did a straight grisaille on the teacup flowers. #artsky

Grisaille under painting done with alcohol markers.

Under painting done with alcohol markers

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Her shelter name was Oyster which we almost kept but it feels weird to say out loud. Nesta is a character is in the A Court of Thorns and Roses books. Our human adult children are also named after book characters.

And a big Thank You to @humanecharlotte.bsky.social for a wonderful adoption experience.

Terry @artcoffeewords.bsky.social · 07/08/2025

We adopted a new kitten this weekend 🐈‍⬛ ca. She is 4 months old and the most affectionate and cuddly cat I have ever met. her name is Nesta. Expect to see her quite a bit. #catsky

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Honestly, a little frustrating. The reactivating layers made me have to think. I thought I could glaze but that did not work at all. Next sketch I will know better. Gouache colors can be fugitive so I wouldn't put it on display. It is more of a study for a planned larger painting anyway.

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Terry @artcoffeewords.bsky.social · 07/08/2025

My husband surprised me with a set of gouache paints which I don't have much (any) experience with but had mentioned wanting to try. Used them to paint this tulip in a sketchbook. Finished it with watercolor pencil for more depth. #sketchbook #artsky #art #gouache

Gouache and watercolor pencil in a sketchbook

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Terry @artcoffeewords.bsky.social · 05/08/2025

Today's adventures in finishing projects. A little painting of mushrooms in acrylic on canvas. And a figurine of the Meowscular Chef palico from Monster Hunter (sculpt by NomNom Fugures). Now I need to clean my studio. #painting #art #3Dprinting #minipainting

6 inch square painting of mushrooms painted in acrylic on canvas

3D printed and painted figure of Meowscular Chef from Monster Hunter. Painted and printed by @terrymcclary sculpt by NomNom Figures.

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For my birthday a couple of weeks ago my son (adult) asked me what I wanted. I said I was running low on notebooks. He filled an entire large gift bag with just notebooks... hardback, moleskine, sketchbooks, spiral bound, all of the kinds. He must have given me 25 notebooks. Awesome gift!

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The tariffs will raise the price of all quilting supplies. And the de minimus exemption ending means an increase in costs in ordering any supplies from outside the USA.

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Hobby Lobby (yes, they are otherwise problematic) is stopping selling patterns and reducing their fabric discount from 40 to 30 percent and, at least my local stores, have reduced their garment fabric inventory dramatically. 3/🧵

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DGA, the company that owns all of the USA distribution for the pretty much all of the mainstream pattern companies and the notion companies has been sold to another liquidator and most of the assets are being shut down. This includes a lot of the needlwork kits and crochet/knitting supplies. 2/🧵

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Just this year Joann's went bankrupt, was bought out by a predatory liquidator, and shut down all of their stores. 1/🧵

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I will keep sharing here if there is interest. I know a lot people follow me for sewing. I am guessing I am not the only person looking to other creative outlets right now.

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I won't abandon sewing. The storage closet is big enough to turn into a small sewing room which I will do after taking a little bit of a break from thinking about it. I also set up a nice workspace for painting 3D printed minis. The painting in the 1st post is just started. Oil on a 16x20 in canvas

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Creating something beautiful on a blank canvas or a piece of paper always felt like an anchor. With everything happening in the world I feel untethered. I need an anchor again. My sewing room has been converted to an art studio and it feels right.

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I put my sewing machines away in a storage closet and dragged in my easels from the garage. Once upon a time I was a full-time artist. That part of my life got pushed aside for school and family and illness. But that work, painting, drawing, and photography, always felt the the core of my identity.

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Terry @artcoffeewords.bsky.social · 14/06/2025

After some serious soul searching I realized I am not enjoying sewing at this stage in my life. With everything happening in the sewing business world it is discouraging. I don't want to spend tons of time sourcing all of my materials online and I don't enjoy upcycling. So I made some big changes.

Unfinished oil painting of three peonies against a dark background by Terry McClary.

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I took a break from sewing for a couple of months. During my "sewing break" I finished three more nightgowns and pieced and basted a quilt. Clearly, I am terrible at taking breaks. Next week I am going to start free motion quilting the quilt.

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I politely but clearly expressed that to them. The good part is that everyone managed to stay friendly despite the clear differences in views. I still bought my mini quilting frame.

Tonight's project. From a the Bob Ross embroidery kit.

Bob Ross is embroidery kit project in progress

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I just turned my replies back to "everyone." I restricted them because I was getting a lot of weird spammy shit. But that reduced good interaction too. So we will see what happens.

Today I was determined to work on a machine embroidery/appliqué WIP. Spent hours on it. Hated the process. I will turn what I finished into coasters and move on. So nothing finished yet this week. Which is weird for me. Tonight I am working on a hand embroidery wip to relax. #sewsky #quiltsky

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