Hello there! Thanks for dropping by FanningSparks. I’m Peg Frizzell and this is where I share my adventures in making, travel and decorating.

FanningSparks is about sharing the spark of an idea and fanning it into inspiration in the arts, crafts and decorating world. It’s my personal blog about artmaking, crafting, travelling and exploring.
As I reflect upon the journey that brought me to this point in my life story, I realize I’ve always experimented with a variety of arts and crafts everything from sewing to furniture refinishing to batik to mosaics to photography to woodworking. I must credit my Mother for instilling this love of “making things”. One of my earliest memories is of a quiet Sunday afternoon spent crafting. My Mother was at the sewing machine. My sister and I were “helping”. She made the most amazing little leather-like, full length trench coats for our Barbie dolls. The coats were black; one was stitched in purple and the other was stitched in red. How she managed to design, cut and sew those tiny pieces together I’ll never know. Our cool leather trench coats are long gone but the love of crafting lives on.

Neither my Mom nor I could remember when I actually embroidered the above sampler. But I do remember I made it with her guidance.  I’d guess I was probably around 6 years old at the time. It is, of course, very simple and not exactly a work of art. The amazing thing is that I’ve kept it all these years; it has moved along with me more times than I care to count. This simple little embroidery sampler has come to represent my entry into the world of making.

Having left the corporate world of IT behind, I’m fortunate to have the luxury of more time. I’ll have time to let my creative side stretch and grow! I look forward to deeper learning and experimentation and I look forward to sharing this next chapter of life with you here at FanningSparks.

Thank you for joining me,