I have to spend time playing with my raw materials ... textiles, threads, wires, stones, buttons, paper, dye pots, inks, paints, pencils, pens, stamps and ink pads.
I have to spend time with people who set off sparks in my head ... people who enjoy a good discussion ... people who go way beyond the "never say anything controversial" politically correct crowd.
I have to spend time with nature, exploring with my camera, or my rake and shovel ... getting in touch with the mystery all around ... marveling at the trees, the moon, the flower buds, the air.
In order to do those things which feed my passions and nourish my muse, I really have to spend less time on the computer. I know this is a familiar refrain, but maybe you've noticed that I actually am spending less time here lately.
I don't want to stop posting altogether, but maybe I'll post less often. I hope you understand. In fact, I hope you go spend more time with your art, too.
P.S. I like the Aynn Rand quote but please do not take it to mean I am or am not a fan - I've not read Atlas Shrugged and I just don't know enough about her, one way or another.
I recently learned how to make these wrap bracelets and I love them! They are fun to make, although a bit maddening to get started, and they look so fabulous. Perfect for when you want to wear a bracelet, and you want to sparkle, yet you don't want "jewelry" in the traditional sense. I guess they satisfy my inner hippie. :-)
There is an edge, softened with age. It's taken to curving in on itself.
Buttoned up. What would you see, if you loosened those buttons?
Would you see my dreams? I think so.
They're right there. Just look.
This piece is made with repurposed textiles, including a piece from the bodice of a 1940s silky blouse. The portion around the linen central "window" is woven strips of cloth, a technique I fell in love with while participating in Jude Hill's workshop. The border is made from cloth hand-dyed by Arlee Barr.
This piece of interactive textile art - thank you, Dee Mallon, for giving it that identity - is a diminutive 7.25" wide x 6.5" high.
Added 4/19/2011:
On my Flickr page, Dee Mallon at Cloth Company commented on the new direction taken by this piece. That got me to thinking about which aspect(s) would be perceived as new direction.
Stitching on this sort of textile? Well, I did do that ages ago, but then I was distracted by the beauty of the felted wool. And when I say distracted, I mean addicted! But I do enjoy traditional hand sewing and embroidery very much - the action of the needle on thin cloth is so rewarding; with felt it is so much more difficult!
Then there is the cloth weaving. I tried this exact technique with the felted wool about twelve years ago! The process was pleasant enough, but the result was not at all satisfying to me and I quickly dropped it. This, again with the "normal" textiles, is so much more wonderful. And learning from Jude, being encouraged to experiment with this and that technique, has made it extremely interesting to me. I hope to do more cloth weaving, for sure.
Finally, there is the pale palette. My pieces are usually so drenched in color ..... yet I often swoon when I see a piece that is all misty shades of fog. So, I decided to somewhat force my wild muse to settle down to this paleness, just for a bit. It was tough going --- she really wanted to add red --- and she got her way, didn't she, in the "dream field."
So, what's next? I have a felted wool project which has been bouncing around in my head for several years! I fear the beauty I am imagining will die, if I don't get working on it really soon. This reminds me of a book, Father Flashes, by Tricia Bauer. At one point in the book, the narrator describes her brother, saying he procrastinates "until possibility fades to loss." Is that not a perfect description of the sad truth? I have to thank Tricia; that one elegant phrase has provided a gentle nudge, much needed, to get to making.
It has been a fairly productive week! I had the third and final session of treatment for two root canals - and it was all painless. I love my endodontist - Evan Christensen, with offices in Ridgefield and Fairfield (CT), in case you're interested. He is so gentle and kind; a fun conversationalist, too. And, when he is done working on my mouth, he actually massages my Temporal Mandibular joints, ever so gently, to help assuage that horrible ache one gets after sitting with one's jaw wide open for an extended period of time! He even sent me home with a collection of tiny tools of the trade, because I was admiring them so much. I wonder what I will make with them. I have an idea, but we'll see what happens as I start playing with them.
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Sweet Baby Dreams
I am very nearly done with this latest in my Pieces of Dreams series. I really, really love it. I kind of want to save it, just in case I have a grandchild someday. Wouldn't it be just absolutely perfect, hanging on the wall in a baby's room? I have a friend who bought one of my Sweet Baby Stars at a craft show one year, saying "I'll just tuck this away for my first grandchild." I think that is such a great idea. However, my daughter insists she "lacks the gene" that finds children to be cute, so maybe I shouldn't start a Grandchild Hope Chest just yet!
Sweet Baby Stars
In a somewhat related vein, I'm not sure if I've already told you (i.e. bragged) that one of my little felted wool quilts was selected to be in a book! It is called 500 Felt Objects, published by Lark Books, and it will be coming out in the fall. More about this as we get closer to the date.
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I'm just starting on a little sewing project. It is a vintage quilt square - my favorite kind of pieced star, in beautiful blue and brown. I will be adding a thin filler layer, backing, and lots of stitching.
Vintage Pieced Star
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I've also been having a ball making wrap bracelets using leather cord and various beads. I love how they look and I am very excited to be able to feature some of my special antique buttons as clasps.
Double Wrap Bracelet with Antique Dyed Mother of Pearl and Cut Steel Button
Triple Wrap Bracelet with Brass Beads and Antique Brass Police Uniform Button
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Finally, I want to share a little video with you. It is quite strange, but I hope you'll stick with it - it is wonderful. It made me think about how I feel when I am sewing a doll. I often feel very uncomfortable about sticking the needle into the doll, especially as she becomes more and more real. The closer she gets to her finished state, the more I feel like I am injuring an actual being. Anyone else ever think about that? Or am I just too weird?
