For the moment

April 22, 2017

The studio clean-up continues

I've hit upon the most scathingly brilliant idea to help me clean up the hideous studio mess. Instead of saving everything and trying to figure out how to store all the stuff I gather and hoard, I'll create nice little collections for other people to use in making their art! Good idea, right? I'm calling them Collections of Curiosities and the first five are up for sale at my WickedWaifVINTAGE Etsy shop. You can click on any of the pictures to see its listing in the Etsy shop.

Hear ye, Hear ye ... the latest cancer update

The incredibly good news: it appears the tumors have been eradicated, i.e. I do not now have any evidence of cancer. I hesitate to write it, say it, believe it. I do not want to tempt the fates. I didn't even realize the doctors had told me this wonderful news because they are so low key about it. It wasn't until a month or so later that I understood because I mentioned "my cancer" and they told me (again) that there were no tumors left. I was gobsmacked. I kept making them repeat it. I asked, where were the cake and balloons? They smiled their laid back smiles. I love my doctors.

Some less pleasant stuff: A common side effect of the treatment is called Radiation Pneumonitis, and I have it. Geeze Louise, it was hard to believe the good news when I was still coughing and breathless. Now I take a lot of pills and elixirs to treat the inflammation in my lungs and I'm slowly getting better, but some of the pills, probably the Prednisone (a steroid), caused their own hideous side effects which I suffered with, maybe for too long, because my situation became worse and worse until I landed in the ER recently, in agonizing pain. It turns out I have ulcers in my esophagus and a lot of inflammation there and elsewhere. But, I’ve stopped taking the Prednisone and I have pain killers to see me through while the healing takes place.

For the moment

And then there is this: I recently saw a pulmonologist in Danbury, someone new to me. He said, "You’re clear of cancer, for the moment." For the moment? Did he really have to add for the moment? That bugs me. Hopefully, it will slide into that place where so many memories get lost, but for now, I just can’t quite shake it.

The warm weather is on its way ...

I'm hoping I'll get more involved in the dying process ... that's as in DYE not DIE. (Macabre humor.)

On Exhibit - with reception this Saturday

April 21, 2016

BLOOD MOON :: 6.25" H x 6.50" W :: vintage cottons and linens, sourced from old clothing and quilter's scraps :: woven in strips, torn, patched, and heavily stitched.

I am honored to have my work selected for inclusion in Connecticut Scissorhands at the Canton Artists’ Guild at Gallery on the Green.

A curated exhibit by the Connecticut Chapter of Surface Design Association
April 22 - May 22, 2016

Opening Reception: Saturday April 23, 2016 - 6pm to 9pm

Blood Moon

January 11, 2016

I'm pleased to say that Blood Moon is finished. It needs only to go to the framer and then it will be really, truly complete. I'm in wonderment over how long it took me to travel from start to almost done to finish. I would never have made it at all, had I not had the benefit of Jude Hill's awesome examples and generous teachings.

BLOOD MOON (2016) :: a little quilt of cottons, 6.5" x 6.75"

I think next I will make objects ... dolls, critters, little boxes ... we'll see. And jewelry, new jewelry ideas are a poppin' in my head and I love it. .

"I don't know where I'm going from here, but I promise it won't be boring."

- David Bowie

UPDATE: It seems that Liz Ackert is on the same wavelength today, moon dancing over at her blog: I'm Going to Texas. Her blog is always worth visiting.

Do - Undo - Redo - Repeat

September 30, 2015

Perhaps you remember when I started working on this star. That was at the end of August,. It's been moving slowly. I used to bemoan the fact that I was such a slow worker, but now I accept that it's my way and that's okay. I don't like to rush the stitching. I like to spend time looking at it while I work. Another thing that causes the finish to move farther away - I often pick out all the stitches in a particular section and then start it over again.I don't enjoy that, but it's a necessity. I enjoy the result.

So, now it's nearing completion, and I have a name for it: Blood Moon. :-)

Stars and Solace

August 28, 2015

Weaving cloth, making stars the way Jude Hill taught in one of her online classes. It seems I've been obsessed with stars for a long time!

Two of my early felted wool patchwork stars.

Also loving the postcard India Flint sent, in celebration of her solace project, which I participated in. It looks absolutely wonderful, doesn't it? It makes me happy, just looking at the photos. .

PHOTO :: INDIA FLINT — PHOTO :: INDIA FLINT

Seeing Red

May 2, 2015

Starting a piece of cloth weaving, a technique made popular by Jude Hill (Spirit Cloth).

Step one is choosing a colorway, from that amazing stash of fat quarters I snagged at a local tag sale. (See my previous post to read about that.) As you can see, I'm going for a red hot palette, with smatterings of purple, ochre, and grey.

Textiles chosen, I tear strips and layer them, then weave the layers of strips and baste them in place.

Now I'm in the process of selectively cutting away ... it's both fun and a bit nerve-wracking. I'm hoping I'll soon have some stitching progress to show you.