Meet Chichi

Meet Chichi. Chichi is my favorite backpack that I bought during my trip to the market in Chichicastenango, Guatemala this summer. Chichi is a constant reminder of the colorful memories I have of back home and a constant reminder to keep my colorful dreams alive.

-Wendy

My garden

One thing I love to draw/paint/ look at/ roll around in.. if I could , are flowers. I am obsessed and when I don't know what to paint, thats pretty much where I start. Sad part is, every time I've ever tried to grow a plant or care for one growing up; It always died. I always thought I was cursed and did not have the "mano buena" like my mom would say. Pretty much, I didn't have the "magic touch" that is required to be able to keep beautiful healthy plants. So I was always afraid to plant any in fear that they would not last long.

Of course I did not think that my childhood bedrooms in NYC with tiny windows and little sunlight had anything to do with it. I know better now and have actually set up some plants in my new studio. Crossing my fingers! Below, a snap of my dream flower garden I've painted over and over.

-Wendy

Creative Space Update

It's coming along! My studio -part 2 is second space I decided to create for my bigger projects where I'll need more room. It's a little space which is closer to nature and where I get to chase bunnies around just outside the city. So far, I have yet to set up my easel so the canvases are just all over the place. For now, I've started in a small corner of the room and I'm excited with how it's coming along!

-Wendy

New Art Supplies

One of my favorite places to wander around is at Blick in NYC. Especially their Soho location which is huge! Theres always something new that I want to get. Who can have enough brushes or watercolors? I don't get excited about shopping for clothes and shoes, but put me inside an art supply store and I'll be there a few hours. I couldn't wait to get home and play with new paints.  This time I tried out a few new colors from Holbein "Irodori" Antique Watercolors.

-Wendy

Sketchbook Saturday

its a rainy day in NYC today. I'm visiting parents so of course I watched a movie and just doodled in my sketchbook. This time it was "Frida" which I <3 and I guess you could say set the tone for these sketchbook pages. 

-Wendy

Shibori and other goodies at TAC

More Textile Arts Center projects! I can spend entire days in this place. I have made it a personal mission to make time to just play. Get my hands dirty with no specific project in mind. This is something we stop doing as adults even though its where the most fun and best ideas can happen.  This time around it was all about experimenting with Shibori and awesome dyeing techniques. This was so much fun, I tried ice dyeing and other cool stuff.

playing with color

Shibori

Ice Dyeing

All my goodies at home and some artwork I created inspired by my dyeing experiments

-Wendy

New Journal

I've always kept journals growing up. Actually, there are a few from my teenage years still living in a closet that I told myself I would burn someday because they are so silly. For some reason, I stopped keeping journals as an adult. I had forgotten how good it feels to jot down thoughts and dreams on paper. So I treated myself to a beautiful grown up journal. October has been a hectic month with lots of changes and decision making and this little guy has helped me sort out my thoughts.

I challenged myself to pour out my thoughts every day first thing. After doing so,I can start my day with a clear mind and clean slate. Harder said than done but I'm getting better at it. Some days when I don't feel like writing a little friend from last night's dream will sneak in and make a cameo appearance. With that said, here's a journal glimpse.

-Wendy

Inktober

So I discovered Inktober, halfway through October. Inktober is pretty much a monthly challenge of doing one ink drawing/ Illustration a day for the whole month of October. There was no way I was going to catch up but nonetheless I joined in on the fun. Because, why not? I had not idea what to start with and was just looking at a blank page, so this happened.

-Wendy

Late Night Studio Doodles

It's hard to force myself to sit down and get into "creative mode" late at night after a long day but sometimes it works out when you just show up and at least try. Snapshot of some of my late night doodles playing with some watercolors. 

-Wendy 

Chichicastenango Craft Market - Guatemala

During our time in Quetzaltenango- (Xela) in Guatemala I knew i wanted to visit the market in Chichicastenango which I heard is a must. I am from Guatemala and have never been before. We arranged for a bus to take us with a guide. On our way there we passed by a "mirador" or a lookout point where you can get nice pictures taken. Of course, we stopped and this is when I realize my digital camera battery is about to die. I snap one shot in my panic and pout all the way to Chichicastenango. Taking pictures was the most important part! So many colors, textiles to see and me with nothing but a disposable camera I had in my bag. In the end, it might have been a blessing in disguise. I only had 24 shots in my disposable camera so this forced me to just give up on the thought of endless colorful pictures and just enjoy the moment. And it was wonderful. With that said, I actually enjoyed getting the little disposable camera photos developed in a little shop in Xela and having my 24 tangible photos of this trip.

-Wendy

Trama Days

My long awaited trip finally happened. I had read about Trama Textiles year ago and had always known I'd make the trip to visit them one day in Guatemala. I have a special place in my heart for Guatemalan art and textiles since It's the place where my roots are. Theres more info about Trama on the Trama website. To make a long story short, me and Uy went to the highlands of Guatemala and spend all our time with the most adorable women who taught us the art of the traditional backstrap loom. We were in over our heads, but weaving this way was a true lesson in patience and one I will cherish forever.

Shay's Wedding- ( and my bridesmaid screw ups)

Being maid of honor means making sure everything runs smoothly on the big day. Well, I think I did pretty good. Even if I screwed up on some things such as...

1. Running out the door I thought of ONE thing only. Grab her wedding dress. ( Which of course meant I would forget my own bridesmaid dress only to realize it at midnight a few hours before the wedding ceremony)

2. After a midnight panic attack and tears ( which we made sure the bride to be did NOT see) my amazing boyfriend drove almost an hour or more to go get my dress and bring it to the hotel where we were staying in the wee hours of the morning.

3. A few hours later when we were back on track getting the bride to be to look her best.  Which meant I would be running around like a chicken without a head and would  proceed to burn a fist size hole in the lining of my chiffon bridesmaid dress while trying to iron it. ( yes, the one that almost never made it).

4. Panic ensues as the girls do their best to cover up and do damage control. Alas, the bride never knew till after the reception when I showed her the mess that was my dress under the top layer of chiffon.

You wouldn't know all the stuff that went down from the AMAZING pictures taken on her big day.

-Wendy

PS: Can I say how obsessed I was with the way the bouquets and hand painted table settings turned out?! They were all a unique combination of gorgeous flowers. 

* Credit to J&R Photography who snapped these special memories.

When artsy friends get married

My best friend Shay is married ! Helping her plan this wedding was a blast even though we spent late nights changing color themes and discussing fonts for her invitations.

This is what happens when you have two people who are best friends (more like sisters) who both bonded as kids over art and now as adults work in graphic design and fashion. It was the perfect recipe for brainstorming sessions and DYI projects. Shay designed her own invitations and letterpress plates. YES, we hand made her invitations and save the dates. This meant rolling on the ink and pressing down the letterpress at home till it was perfect. It also meant hand painting tiny canvases for all the table #'s during the reception.

All the work was worth it when you saw how happy she looked on her big day. I will post more pics of the big day on the next post. For now, below are some shots of us flower shopping in the flower district in NYC brainstorming bouquet ideas.

-Wendy

Katazome @ TAC

I've been spending some time at the Textile Arts Center this summer and I can say it's been the best use of my weekends. It's my time to just play. This project was experimenting with Katazome Resist Dyeing ( really cool Japanese technique). Of course, my sketch was of bold spring birds which would pop against the indigo dye. It went from sketch - to stencil- to applying resist paste - to indigo dye. Super happy with the result!

-Wendy

  

My Creative Space

Hello!

Finally made the time to sit and update the pending blog. 

Currently, I've been working on organizing my dream creative space. It began with a little messy corner (below) and over time it has become an ongoing progress. Some pictures below of some time spent at my little corner studio ( when it started, and still in it's messy state! I'll use this blog to update on the progress)

-Wendy <3

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About

Hello. Hola! 

I'm Wendy, I'm a Guatemalan born textile artist and new mom to a chunky little one. I've spent most of my life in NYC and currently living in NJ. I am the happiest when I'm in my little art corner or playing with dirt outside, this was my escape as a kid and still is today. Maybe it was the clash of the colorful Guatemalan memories with the urban streets of the Bronx growing up, but all these things influence and inspire my work ( You can read more about My Story here ).

Many of us lose that creative explorer kid inside us as we grow older (I am guilty of that myself). I've worked in fashion & graphic design in NYC and one of my many loves is exploring and being inspired by both my homes (NYC & Guatemala) so I hope you enjoy the pieces of colorful adventures and creations here on this blog.

You can shoot me a msg here: wendy.quiroa@gmail.com

Why yes, I'm on :Instagram , Pinterest , and LinkedIn. 

-Wendy

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My Story

I figured I could make one blog post where I could share the whole "enchilada". So here goes.

I was born in Guatemala and still have tons of family there. I visited a lot as a child and teen and spend summer vacations in grandpa's house where I was born. This is the same house where my dad and his 7 siblings grew up. It used to be a house made of adobe which has been fixed up over the years and has a lot of history.

my two aunties outside grandpa's house in the 50's.

Me and my parents moved to NYC, " the concrete jungle" when I was about 3 years old. I grew up in the Bronx playing outside in the bursting hydrants in the summer or rolling around in the snow in central park in the winter.

My life involved learning english as a young kid and learning to fit in. Believe it or not, there weren't that many Guatemalan kids in the Bronx. I would come home to eat tortillas and frijoles and lay on blankets with colorful Guatemalan patterns and colors.

the patio and garden in Guatemala.

tiny me feeling lost in NYC. What are all these layers?

I've been drawing for as long as I can remember and art was a way for me to get away and go into my own little world when it was a little rough fitting in. So it made sense that I gave up my gym class in middle school to take art class ( I had a better chance at succeeding there) and went to the High School of Art & Design next and FIT for my BFA.  I've been blessed that NYC has been my playground in HS when our school was just a concrete building. Central park offered the biggest playground a kid could want.

These days, I'm balancing working as a textile designer and making sure I don't ever stop playing and just getting my hands dirty doing what I love. This little place on the web is just a little piece of my world to share my doodles.

On a recent trip back home.

-Wendy