Piddling, paddling, it's all good.

I never get tired of catfish. When I was a kid I used to feed them like city people feed pigeons. Catfish raised on Wonderbread! This almost has an Amish feel somehow. Since I don't have a traditional quilting background I know it's an echo of some technique or style but can't say just what. I just know it was fun picking through the scraps. It's a bit too studied (once again) but they are just nailed in place to the wall for the moment. I'll fiddle them around a lot before I pin and baste (you read that right) everything in place so it travels/handles well. It's all going to be hand appliquéd but leaving raw edges everywhere.I like the way the fuzzy edges look water blurry. My point in setting this treat up is so that I'll have something to keep busy with while the dyes batch properly instead of rushing things the way I always do. I might even take it to the beach one afternoon.

We were blind but now we see

I found a scrap of silver lycra that could have come from a great Elvis costume. My little mudcats are very happy to have eyes now. After escaping unscathed through the wild weather yesterday, we settled in to watch three hours of Matt Damon being a stoneface in "The Good Shepherd". Slow but compelling. Three quarters of the way into the movie I smelled smoke. Thinking a neighbor had lit their fireplace to cut the chill and damp that had set in at dark, I dismissed the smell. A few minutes later I caught it again, this time stronger, insistent. I bolted upstairs to see if some nitwit had left the iron on my studio. Nope. A quick trip through the upper rooms and I could tell the smell was wafting in through the bathroom window and I caught an ominous glow just out of view. I dashed out the deck door to see a house completely engulfed in flames not more than a quarter mile away through the woods behind our house. As we stood on the deck watching and hearing that the firetrucks were already bearing down on that neighborhood we watched as the wind lifted sparks high in the air and carried them up over our house and the houses on both sides. We quickly went out and roused the neighbors on both sides (they were sleeping!) to be watchful and anxious with us. By the time we got back to our vantage point it was almost all over. Fortunately we found out today that no one was living in the house and no one in the houses close by suffered any losses. So frightening to think of losing everything in a matter of a few minutes.

hand stitching for stress relief...

[[For family & friends concerned about the tornado damage in Atlanta last night.We're all good, luckier than some with no damage here. We are 29 miles to the northeast of that part of the city and lucky to only have a summer style thunderstorm pass over us. Jim is making the grocery store run right now as we are in for another line of severe storms this afternoon.]] Jude, Lately, the hand-music is all your (inspirational) fault. You and them lions. I wish I could break out and be more free with it though. My stitches just line themselves up like so many little ants. Compulsive hand stitching should be a clear sign by now to myself that I am stressed and should be treated like a minefield until I can broaden my artistic gestures and horizons again. breathe. act. continue. "dervish" (above) and "little sweetie" date back several years.

More mudcats

I've been going back and forth between these little compulsively stitched pieces and the website work. Both things are some very narrow focus kind of doings but I only do what I like so it must be what's called for at the moment. I actually tried starting with a much larger canvas but after a long while of shuffling shapes around in space they wound up congregating again in a tight little ball - all whiskers touching. Must be Spring. (click for a closer look)

website 99% refurbed

I have been at this computer all day and it's still not finished but the fun part, the glory part is done. Now for some nitpicking and some verbiage but my brain is empty. Thanks to everyone who made suggestions and comments - I've made a list and will work through it as time permits. Karen- the "next" link thing was important. Don't know how I could have missed it. Deb -I'm still on the fence about using that nav bar graphic. It's been so long since I've monkeyed around with image maps I'm afraid I'd have to go back to kindergarten to recapture the moves. There are images scattered all over the place, some okay, some have to be re-shot. I'm beginning to worry that my A-95 is having issues. Every now and then the little iris that protects the lens doesn't open all the way instantly. I wonder if the focusing mechanism could be off too. Has anyone noticed that I'm not mentioning quilts or fiber alongside the images? I plan on yakking about my methods and materials in an artists statement kind of thing but I have to think about it some. All I want to do is make another cotton & scraps sandwich, choose some threads and settle in. Jude's Lions are so inspiring. Maybe something lots bigger this time.