Letting Go...For a Good Cause!

I just love creating art and sewing my heart out...I really do put the LOVE into my work and hope that when people receive my creations they enjoy them as much as I did when I made them.  It's hard for me to let them go sometimes, but I totally believe in the causes & people that I am able to contribute to from the sale of my goodies.

This year, I have really enjoyed a whole new world of crafting...mixed media!  I love it because ANYTHING goes...no rules!  =)  Inspired by Traci Bautista, mixed media guru and author of the best selling book, "Collage Unleashed," I ventured into the world of painting in a free and spontaneous manner.  Then comes the layers of texture, collage and free motion sewing...so much fun and totally addicting!  One of my favorite things about it is recycling & UPcycling paper & other things that would otherwise end up in a landfill as trash!

These 5 mini books are for a swap that I am participating in for the "Collage Unleashed" yahoo group.  Each of the participants are to create 5 mini books & send them off to the host...we get a return package of 5 assorted books from other artists!  What fun!

So here are the mini books I created...

hand painted papers...

I UPcycled an old dress that I got from my sewing class to create the red hearts!!!

UPcycled papers, various stencils and free motion sewing...

all tied together with string...have I told you how much I just love this stuff??!!

Here is my table with plenty of things going on!  Victorious for Elizabeth & Lymenaide mini books in the works...


...as well as the Victorious for Lyme Wrist Cuffs in the back...




...and some new things to help in the Gulf Rescue & Clean-Up efforts...

I have a show planned for Saturday, July 24th at the Cypress Community Festival & will be featuring several projects I'm working on for one charity or another.

I hope you'll stop by my booth, learn about Lyme disease & pick up some unique handmade creations, all made with love for a good cause. =)


If you are interested in contributing something on behalf of these or other charities, please let me know & I will make them available at my booth.  You can email me at: Nani@VictoriousVixen.com, or leave me a comment below.

Happy Creating!
--Nani

Victorious For Lyme: Art Quilt Project

Hi everyone, it's time for an update on Victorious For Lyme: Art Quilt Project and May is Lyme Awareness Month!

I have been taking online workshops & a Quilting Arts class to help me with this project.  The Lyme ribbon pictured here was done in class where I learned to applique using "Steam A Seam" fusible paper backing...I added my own crazy stitching to it to make it my own.  =)

I am incorporating many of the techniques into the art quilt that I'm now learning. Many people have asked me about the quilt & when it will be done. I plan on doing a series of art quilts, not one that you will snuggle up with.  =)   This is a work-in-progress & I am learning A LOT right now, that is for sure! I am not exactly sure what the end result will be, as I am working in a very free & intuitive manner...working from sketches of my ideas but not holding myself to them.  My 2 favorite artists that inspire me right now are...

Traci Bautista...check out her amazing book, "Collage Unleashed" as well as her online workshops.
Alisa Burke...she has an amazing blog where she shares simple but oh-so-beautiful projects & art.

Here are some of the pictures I have already printed on fabric...faces of Lyme, prescriptions, supplements, PICC lines, treatments...these pictures are so powerful!!  It's not too late to submit your Lyme pictures...submit them here on Facebook, or here on Flickr. 

I've been busy uploading a ton of pictures for you to check out...please share the Victorious For Lyme: Art Quilt Project Facebook group & Flickr link with your Lyme friends & family...I'd love to get more HEAD SHOTS of those with Lyme, as well as pictures of your PICC line, medicine counter, medical equipment, treatments, rashes, before & after pictures, hospital or surgery pics...you get the idea!

I have received a few boxes at my P.O. Box, but would love to see it overflowing with packages!! If not a package, then how about sending me a POSTCARD with your hand written message on it to be sewn into the art quilt? Put some paint on your hand & stamp it on an old t-shirt or a piece of paper, sign & send it to me. Write your thoughts on fabric or paper...whatever you have will work! Maybe you have denial letters or other papers that can be collaged...anything goes!!!  

Please send your Lyme Art Quilt contribution to:

Victorious Vixen
P.O. Box 2404
Cypress, CA 90630

I'll have more to share with you soon, as I have taken on more projects to help my Lyme friends. Until then, you are all in my prayers & I am so grateful for your help. I've been deeply moved by the many stories shared & hope to convey that in my work.

--Nani

Project Lyme Art Quilt

Well, my Christmas orders have been sewn up & sent off to their new owners...here is a just a glimpse of some of the goodies I whipped up.

Reversible scrappy headbands, zippered Hula Girl bags & more!

Wrapped with love using Victoriously Recycled bags & strips of fabric...all handmade...because you're worth it!!

One of my New Years Resolutions for 2010 is to make a series of Lyme Art Quilts.  I hope to help spread awareness & support the Lyme Disease Bills.  My dad was infected with Lyme disease 2 years ago while on a fishing trip to Mammoth, CA. Like most people with Lyme, his Dr. dismissed his concerns (my dad told the Dr. he was bit several times & thought he had West Nile or something), didn't test him for Lyme, and was later misdiagnosed with ALS. My dad had a PICC line put in & was receiving IV Rocephin, until his insurance company pulled his meds, despite seeing marked improvement with the antibiotics.

The more I researched Lyme, the more I found! I started joining the yahoo groups and was blown away at the number of people who had the same sad story as my dad.  I watched the IDSA hearings & participated in the twitter "lymewatch." The next day my dad told me that his antibiotics were cut by his insurance! I was burning with passion to get involved and make a positive change. Then I started reaching out to other Lymies on Facebook. I watched "Under Our Skin"...bonus footage and all. I am compelled to DO something!

me & my dad, Easter 2009

The suffering that a Lyme patient goes through is incredibly painful & consuming.  I see how my dad struggles to rise from a chair & walk just a few feet.  He can no longer work, help around the house or care for his beloved dog, Bo.  Lyme disease has totally rocked our world.  He now has Life Alert, so he can get the help he needs when he falls & is alone.  He had a stair lift installed, so he can make it upstairs to his room safely.  He winces in pain with each step he takes.  He spends hundreds & thousands of dollars on supplements, medications & treatments intended to improve his health.

This has compelled me to start Project Lyme Art Quilt, a series of collaged pictures that are sewn & quilted together from Lyme patients around the world. 

Please include your contact information, in case I have any questions about your photos.

***You can UPLOAD YOUR PICTURES HERE:  http://www.flickr.com/groups/1330619@N23/

***Add me on Facebook & post your pics to my wall...pics will be added to the Lyme Art Quilt album.

***Mail me your pictures & small Lyme-related objects which can be sewn onto the quilt as well. (Think the size of a pill bottle—not the size of a wheelchair or walker!) 

Items can be sent to:

Nani Luculescu
P.O. Box 2404
Cypress, CA 90630

My intention is to create impact pieces that will bring more attention & awareness to Lyme disease. I've found some common themes among the Lyme stories I hear about & want to bring them out into the open...this is a partial list & work-in-progress. Some of the themes I am planning are:

1. Faces of Lyme - I'll use the faces of real Lyme sufferers & stitch them all together
2. Cost of Lyme - pics of medicine, syringes, supplements, etc.
3. Lyme Dreams - prayers, dreams, hopes for a life after Lyme
4. Awareness & Prevention
5. Misdiagnosis
6. Poor testing
7. IDSA conflict
and so many more!!!!

If you'd like to make a donation to help with the cost of making the Lyme Art Quilt series, you can do so here.  Thanks so much...every little bit helps!

Please check out my writeup on the CALDA website blog: "Touched By Lyme".