link love

Since you obviously know where to find me and my doings, I thought I'd take a post to thank just a few people who might have guided you here. More guidestars are found on my
"Naked in Public" link page.


Some, like Morna, have me in some pretty breathtaking company and I am honored.

So take a minute (or an hour or two) with the list that follows and wander around and discover some new artists, new art, new ways of thinking while I search through my stash for just the right piece of fabric for a special friend who is in need of a hat.


Sharon B's pintangle


Jude's Spirit Cloth

Elizabeth (Duchess of Lexulous)  Barton


The Fiber Gypsy

Marie Elkins

Textile Arts.net

Happy Friday

Time to find my Friday shirt and run amok! This is my first day off in ages and the start of a three day weekend. The other night my supervisor congratulated me on my 2nd anniversary with the company  and I didn't know what she was talking about. Time flies when you are making a living.

Nothing artful or interesting from me today but here and here are a couple of  eloquent posts about the importance of the critters we share our lives with.
See you next week!

Wip progress

Finding the tale in this one will be challenging. I keep coming across words, phrases, and suggestions. Stitching is the grammar and punctuation in a piece like this

back in the hoop

This one is just large enough for my middle sized hoop. I had pinned and basted this over a base of cotton batting but last night decided that the batting had to go. Picking it apart was a mess but also allowed for a few design changes.

This one has me in that same confused and uncommitted place that "Taken by the Night" had me in until it was nearly finished. This time I'll trust more about being in the dark as to where and how this one wants to go.

reopened at Big Cartel

 
It seemed like too good an opportunity to pass up so I reopened a store for some of my recent work at Big Cartel. I'm still fumbling around with their user interface but I named the store "Go on and touch it. You know you want to". Could garner some unusual traffic.

still celebrating summer!

Even though we are finally coming out of a week long winter freeze, I am going to celebrate summer again today and refuse to look at any winter pictures that the web is rife with at the moment.

This bundle of glory is from Marie Z.'s blog which is a constant source of sunshine and inspiration - back to you lady!

While rummaging through the files I came across this piece and wondered why it never got posted to the main gallery. Large, 60"x40" give or take, this is "Giraffe Crossing Against the Light" (after much group debate).

This was one of the pieces that I designed and completed with fabrics on hand and painted while I was at Mary McBride's Focus on Fiber at the ACA in FL where I had one of the most productive weeks of my life. I really, really need to go back again. Something to save for.

Last night I had one of those amazing, problem solving dreams where you wake up not remembering the fuzzy details but the lesson was clear, well founded and remembered and resonates with the work of the moment:

                      "Loosen up, be free and don't call it work."

detail from "Giraffe..."

ah summer....

The iced-overness continues here and looking back to summer dye days is so nice.

Melissa put a a really nice reminder of how good things happen unexpectedly when you dye your own.

something new

I took out some scraps to shuffle around a see if anything stirred and it has. I think I know what hound dogs feel like when they are on the trail and find the scent!

my crew

A while back someone remarked on the piece that could be seen hanging over my worktable. I couldn't find the image anywhere until this morning. For lack of anything new, here it is, something from my "gestures" series.

I have had another on my mind for while now but I have not even been able to draw it much less create it somehow with cloth. It's nothing like this one but still, a gesture. I'll keep trying.

the fun sort of work

We are snowed in today - a rare treat in Georgia. Now that the snow is tapering off we are in for 12 hours of freezing rain.  As long as the power doesn't go off we will be the snug rug bugs.

The boys are both in staying put mode at the respective GF's homes, and have made promises to drive nowhere.

All this gorgeous cloth? I have hand picked all of these for their "stitchability", that nice needle and thread, hand friendly feel that some cloth has.

These are all from my hand dyed, painted and/or discharged stash and include cotton - muslin, gauze, huck, flannel, lawn and damask. There is some silk, vintage sackcloth in several weights, a silk/rayon and all rayon scarf and a few hand picked commercial prints

I'm going to be cutting these up into fairly small pieces and grouping them into 3/4 hand bundles. You'll have to trust my (some have said) good colorsense - I won't have time to spread them out and photograph the individual pieces as I have in the past. Be assured each one will delight me before I name it and wrap it up.  I hope to have some up in the store by noon...and each bundle will include a treat until I run out of them.