Putting the Pieces Together

The story I have been working out in fabric reached a conclusion with the final 'surprise is the key' block. I last left my story rabbit inside the tunnel with the Blue Imp of Intuition - where she fell asleep and dreamed of a magnificent fenced garden, lush with lettuce, crunchy carrots and tender beet leaves. How she wanted those vegetables, but what if she was caught? Her heart pounded as she slipped inside the fence and snuck around, while secretly sampling here and there. When she awoke, she realized that the dream might be telling her something about how to outwit the question monster guarding all the questions locked in the treasure chest. She saw that she had risked going into the garden partly because of wanting nourishment to stay alive, but also, she had to admit that it had been a thrill to play hide and seek. So it was the sense of fun in life that had allowed her to risk discovery as a thief in the garden, and since that sense of secrecy with potential discovery was fun, what if it was the lure of the unknown that was the key to unlock the chest of questions - as in - surprise itself was the secret that would forever allow her access to the questions? As she had this thought, she felt certain it was true and the monster withered instantly because 'surprise' also means to attack unexpectedly and now that the rabbit had discovered the secret of the monster, it was no longer a surprise. And the chest burst open and all the questions took flight like bats into the tunnel and she knew that no matter how far down the tunnel she went, there would always be the lure of more surprises leading her to find and ask the questions. And that is when the story began... The moon fabric is the backing for what I am thinking of as my teaching cloth, since to me it illustrates my creative process. The last photo is trying on an applique technique from the online Spiritcloth class I'm taking on some of my hand dyed fabric. I chose a rainbow for the beginning of a new story because I think of rainbows as symbols for unlimited potential.

Climbing to the Moon

I wanted to use a pieced component in a next story, so I dug out one I'd forgotten I'd even made and this elephant and moon story I had started in the Cloth to Cloth online class suggested it had a place for it. When I placed my triangular pieced component on it, it fit perfectly as a mountain for the elephant to be climbing - only it was made of bright fabrics that I felt drew my eye away from the focus between elephant and moon, so I wondered what if I kept the same shape and used some organza instead, to be like the moon reflecting on the mountain? As I basted the mountain on, it kept niggling at me - why was the mountain transparent when it 'should' be very substantial rock - and represented by perhaps, darker, opaque fabric, maybe with organza on top? And it came to me that sometimes what seems like a mountain to climb can actually be less substantial over time - more 'see throughable', knowable and doable - so that 'reaching the moon' is a real possibility. Just yesterday, I dropped off 'Weaving the World' to the largest juried show in our area. It may not get into the show as about 1300 people apply and only about 300 make the cut, but what matters is that it symbolizes 'arrival' for me - arrival in a next level of being an artist. Since I first attended this show, something in me knew it was a mountain I was meant to climb, was the moon I was called to reach for. And now I have and what once seemed so huge and far away from being attainable is now much closer. The second photo is something I began playing with last night.

Done!

'Weaving the World' is now complete and I am hoping it gets into the Sooke Fine Arts show - but that will depend on the jurors and I know competition is stiff with only about 25 percent of the entries making the cut and a huge volume of entries from all over Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands. However, nothing ventured, nothing gained...

Shots in the Dark

Last night magic was in the air and I had tunnels on my mind. How tunnels are dark and it's hard to see inside of them unless there is a light. I explored what that was like with my camera, by taking photos blindly in the dark and then seeing what was there by what the camera caught in the flash - the way intuition can flash and I if I'm quick, I can catch it. Since I could not see what I was aiming at, the image was a surprise - although I did know I was in the local playground. I found a spiral tunnel...

And there was a Blue Imp of Intuition in this one:

So that became part of my story. A good friend to help the rabbit find her way through the tunnel.

Down the Rabbit Hole

Here's the next scene of my cloth story... I often notice parallels in my inner and outer worlds.

And I've got the top of 'Weaving the World' stitched now, with the fringe, backing, binding and sleeve left to complete. I considered various ways to stitch the moon before I remembered that when I first was designing this piece, I had intended to put this star doily on it and I was also thinking of the sun when I stitched the additional rays. Letting the heavens be our guide...

Holey Moley!

I was thinking about holes since one had appeared in my unfolding cloth story and rather unexpectedly, a hole developed in the middle of this glass as the contents were being stirred - you can see the water pouring from it.

And here's a light hole...

And an air hole... I suppose all holes are air holes, or space developing in form. And at a minute level, all form is filled with space, so holes are everywhere whether I see them or not.

And here's the hole the chicken has gotten started.

A Hole in My Story

I went to the Nanaimo Guild's Quilt Show yesterday and really enjoyed the variety and innovation there - not to mention that delicious tomato soup! On the stage at intervals they had a quilt turning where a speaker told the story of the quilt and its maker- some quilts were quite old and had been passed down through generations, while others were relatively recent. I like to notice what draws my attention as a clue to ideas I might like to try or as an indication of what is coming next into my creating, and I was delighted with this worn historical crazy quilt - all those loose fibres, the handstitch and the hole... Raw edges and handstitch have been fascinating me for some time now, but holes? Well it so happens that my developing cloth story contains a tunnel that is about to be dug and the head of the chicken who will start digging the hole is from 40's fabric I found at a garage sale, already pieced. Doesn't it look like eyes and a beak? Coupled with some feather fabric I printed, this new character was ready to perform. Also at yesterday's show I picked up a package of indigo squares at half price and when I went to make a next story block of the chicken's foot, in spite of having a fabric that looked like clods of earth flying upward, the indigo kept insisting to be used and I finally let the blue dust devils loose.

A New Story Begins

I am loving the dialogue in Jude Hill's online Spiritcloth workshop, with it's gathering of participants bent on sharing our creative expressions, exploring our questions and being inspired from that. This is my native way of working only it's amplified with others sharing and delving into their questions, as well - like being plugged into an electricity outlet! I have decided to do a series of six inch blocks that will unfold a story and I will put them together at the end. For the first block I wanted to reveal just part of something - a flirt of face and tail. The second block is of the Question Monster who keeps and guards all questions locked inside a treasure chest. Stay tuned...

Transition

The sun sets and a crescent moon reflects the ending of the Cloth to Cloth online workshop I've been taking and the beginning of the Spiritcloth online workshop that starts today. The river of life flows on, as do my stitches - a sprinkling of stars and lines of latitude have appeared, now. I wonder what's around the bend?

Summer Hum

Summer seems to be bursting with activity right now and every time I look out my window I see something new - good thing I usually carry a camera in my pocket! And the stitches are burgeoning, too.

Charting a Path

Basted together and the waves of stitch have begun...

Noticing

Raindrops on a heart shaped petal. The place where water touches the shore, a feather, and how the shadows of the trees extend across stones and into the sea. And attending to a change in value to the line dividing the moon from the ocean - to make it more noticeable. Merging through the weave and emerging through the added darker value. The moon and it's reflecton are appliqued down.

Moving On

Safekeeper is complete now and is reversible. We all have different sides and even a small act can shift us from experiencing one to another. I will move on to stitching a next piece...

A Secret

So nice to sew outside on this sunny day, listening to the birds and my neighbour's whirlygig. I did decide to sew a treasure into this piece for safekeeping. The key to someone's heart? A symbol for unlocking doors we need to move through or a keeper of answers, of wisdom? It's a secret only you and I know :)

Weaving the World

A new day brings the open promise of anything being possible and I've made this new piece with a special intention in mind. I'm calling it 'Weaving the World. So many symbolic threads woven in here - how, like each strip, each choice we make creates both our personal weaving and also ties in with the weavings of others, creating an overall pattern that becomes our world as a whole. The moon as symbol of the divine feminine, bringing the healing that is needed for our planet one stitch or strip at a time and we can all do our part. Lots of stitching ahead...