Virginia A. Spiegel

Logo by Jeanelle McCall

The preview of ToteTuesday 2 is now up here.  Please bookmark this webpage as it is also the site of tomorrow’s ToteTuesday’s auction.

Warm up that charge card for the good cause that also lets you have a great time shopping.  There will be 13 themed totes (custom totes, artwork, gift certificates, books, DVDs, beads, hand-dyed fabrics, more, more, more) AND three very special individual artworks.

The donors/sponsors have been busy adding bonus items such as special art.  For example, Natalya Aikens has a tote based on her DVD, Texture Transformation.

You can imagine the fun materials she has pulled together for your own experiments in Texture Transformation.  BUT she has also added to the tote the cover artwork shown on the left side of the DVD above.  And Natalya’s not alone in her generosity.  Enjoy the preview and I will see you tomorrow when the bidding opens at 11 a.m. CST.

Logo by Jeanelle McCall

A preview of all thirteen totes and three individual artworks for ToteTuesday #2 will be up tomorrow on my website.  Stop by here on my blog for the link. The url for the preview and the auction will be the same.  So once you bookmark the preview webpage tomorrow, you will be good to go for the auction on Tuesday.

This is typical of the sponsor/donor generosity.  Larkin Van Horn has added this incredible beaded button to her tote and refused to raise the opening bid!

Everything will appear on the preview webpage exactly as it will for the auction except the Opening Bid, etc. will not be filled in.  It’s not that that is a big secret; it’s merely to avoid a premature bidding war. The opening bids will be posted at 10:50 a.m. CST with the auction opening at 11 a.m. CST and closing at 2 p.m. CST.  (Ready to bid on Tuesday?  Here is a checklist.)

Karla Overland of Cherrywood Fabrics has created this “Good To The Last Drop” tote. You don’t have to wait for the Preview tomorrow to find out the story behind the title of this gorgeous tote bag – check out Karla’s blog.

The totes this week have opening bids ranging from $49 – $199. Please remember that these totes contain unique artworks, custom-made totes, hand-dyed fabrics, items from artist’s personal stashes, creative packaging, little bonus treasures, etc.  The themed totes are as special as our FUNDRAISING cause.  100% of the proceeds from ToteTuesday are donated directly to the American Cancer Society through Fiberart For A Cause.

Thanks again to all the wonderful, creative, and generous donors.  And I truly appreciate everyone who makes the commitment to support ToteTuesday as a bidder.

Logo by Jeanelle McCall

There will be thirteen themed totes and three individual artworks up for bid for ToteTuesday on Tuesday, February 9.

A Preview will be posted on Monday, February 8 on my website.  Check back here on my blog for a link.  That same webpage will also be the Auction on Tuesday, February 9 from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. CST.

Why the change? So MANY great totes — time to move to my website so you don’t acquire carpal tunnel from scrolling, scrolling, scrolling on my blog.

I’m working on the Preview page right now and, believe me, you are going to need some time studying the Preview on Monday to map out your strategy for bidding Tuesday.  The Opening Bids/Go For Gold bids won’t be listed on Monday to avoid a premature bidding war.

Of course, 100% of the proceed are donated directly to the American Cancer Society. The first five totes raised $1518 for the American Cancer Society; how high can we go this Tuesday?

What can I tell you about the totes that will be up?  Some have custom-made totes which are worth the opening bid all by themselves.  But then the generous donors have stepped right up and stocked their tote with special items to inspire your creativity.  Perhaps an example is in order:

This is the Thread Calligraphy tote sponsored by Sue Kelly:

Lined tote bag made by Sue Kelly with hand painted canvas and hand painted canvas straps. The background is a colorwash of acrylic fabric paints. Paintstik rubbings add interest with more visual texture and color. Thread lettering done by Nancy Kazlauckas with metallic thread. The word ‘imagine’ appears on one side of the bag, ‘create’ appears on the other side.

Detail from Thread Calligraphy tote

The contents of the bag include a book, Thread Calligraphy by Nancy Kazlauckas, a pattern called Coneflower also by Nancy which includes instructions and stencils, four fat quarters of hand-dyed fabric by Brooke Strassburg, and a package of micro brushes which have an amazing number of uses.

What a beautiful combination of form and function.

The other twelve totes up for bid on Tuesday will remain a secret until Monday, but here are mini-previews of ALL the totes to be offered Tuesdays in February. There will only be two more ToteTuesdays after this one!

Logo by Jeanelle McCall

Peggy Schroder received such a great response from fiber artists for her Have A Heart tote that we just couldn’t bear combine the artwork in an actual tote.  Owning artwork is so personal that I felt you should have the choice to bid only on the pieces that speak to you.

So each Tuesday, the magical “HeART” tote will open and several individual pieces of artwork will be available bid during ToteTuesday.  Please note that the Preview and actual sale will now be held on my website. The urls will be posted here on my blog Monday.  Trying to showcase 12+ totes and these great artworks on a blog would lead to massive carpal tunnel outbreaks from scrolling.

Starting us off on Tuesday, February 9 will be these two artworks:

This is Ellen Lindner’s Emerging Hope.  It is an  8×10″ fabric collage and, yes, it is finished.  If you would like to see what it would look like mounted and frame, visit Ellen’s blog.  This artwork was custom made for ToteTuesday; you can read more about Ellen’s creation of this artwork here.

Karen Stiehl Osborn created Aurora especially for ToteTuesday and held strong when a gallery wanted to buy it. The dedication of artists to the cause is inspiring!  The artwork is inspired by the colors of a Winter sunrise.  Materials:  Canvas and Kona cotton cloth, hand painted and printed by the artist.  Approximately 10.5″hx6.5″w, mounted on 14″x11″ watercolor paper.  (I recently interviewed Karen about the change in her artwork to using canvas).

And that’s not all.

Marti Lew has organized a number of cancer survivors and their friends from the Quiltart list to donate art also for a special Celebrate Life tote.  Again, the artwork is just too wonderful not to be displayed and put up for bid individually.  The first of the Celebrate Life tote artwork to be up for bid on February 9 is Marti’s own Celebrate With Lupines in Winter. I had to leave this photo as Marti shot it as it’s perfect for the title.

Marti’s artwork was created by using hand painted fabric for the background, french knots, free motion stitching.  Measuring 4×4″, it was mounted on a 5×5″ canvas which was covered with hand painted fabric by Mickey Lawler.

All donations for ToteTuesday are made directly to the American Cancer Society through Fiberart For A Cause.  I thank the generous fiber artists and businesses who have so generously donated to ToteTuesday.  See you on Tuesday, February 9 starting at 11 a.m. when these wonderful artworks AND more than a dozen themed totes will be up for bid.

Logo by Jeanelle McCall

The first ToteTuesday was great fun and raised an amazing $1518 for the American Cancer Society.  Thank you for your support!

An even bigger and more exciting ToteTuesday is planned for Tuesday, February 9.

1.  Expect MANY more totes up for bid.  More totes=More variety=More donations for the American Cancer Society.

2.  Stop by Monday, February 8 for a full preview of the totes that will be up for bid.

Please note that the Preview and actual sale will now be held on my website. The urls will be posted here on my blog Monday.  Trying to showcase 12+ totes and three individual artworks on a blog would lead to massive carpal tunnel outbreaks from scrolling.

The opening bids won’t be shown only because that sometimes sets off a premature bidding war which is never a pretty thing.  You can check out the mini-previews of the more than 40 themed totes donated by generous artists and fiber-related businesses to ToteTuesday now.

Journey By Water by Laura Osborn (tote and accessories) and I.  I named this collection Journey By Water because of this poem by the same name in my book:
Listen to the waves, the trees,
The cries of the loons.
Hear the stillness;
Reflect and discover
The currents within you.

3.  Here is a checklist so you can be ready to bid on Tuesday, February 9.

Questions?  Suggestions?  Please leave a comment or e-mail me, Virginia(At)VirginiaSpiegel.com