WIP

Closing in on finished here, I've enjoyed working on this one with the simplest of techniques for me, hand  applique.

No trixie embroidery, no layering the threads, no crazed french knots - just a double strand of Sulky 12wt cotton in colors matching the fabric.

 Almost all the the fabrics are hand dyed damasks which has  tendency to creep away and fight the needle at every turn. The trick to needle turning this stuff is pins, pins and more pins and then stitches that are maybe an eighth inch apart. Sounds obsessive but the damask needles like butter.  I'd like to take this technique to a larger field for the next project.

Spring will be on us before you know and I'm daydreaming about the first dye fest of the year.
I have so much wonderful raw material at hand.

flings fly

In anticipation of spring this fling will be flying today.

It's been hanging around the studio since it was made and every time I unearth the thing it makes me grin so now it's going to make my mother and her friends at the nursing home smile and have a cackle.

groundwork

Just stitching on a passage thinking about the story.

I walked alone to school from day one. Across Main under the stern gaze of a crossing guard, down along  the dark side of Maple, past the front doors of the firehouse and the local newspaper and down a footpath through a dark wood.

There was a little wooden bridge over a brook and there were certainly trolls under that bridge but they could never catch me, I was running so fast. You had to hold your breath in the woods or they would be waiting when your feet hit the first board.

 At the end of the path the woods unclenched onto  the baseball field behind the school. It was full of cold sun with the block buildings squatting on the other side daring me come, full tilt.

traipsing

JR and I were loose on the streets of ATL yesterday on our bi-monthly mission of self indulgence. Nobody went to infirmary and nobody went to jail - mission accomplished!

 First  stop - IKEA! who is only too happy to feed people free breakfast so they will have the stamina to shop till they drop well after lunchtime. There was a real bedding frenzy going on..I got mine.  I have not been so inspired to nest refurbishment since Takashimaya was in NYC where I would spend my grocery money on a regular basis buying must haves like transparent turquoise and fuchsia plastic boxes, carved chopsticks in silk cases and acid green eye liner. Who needed to eat? Begging in the streets for Taka-money often crossed my mind.

On then to a quick visit to Phoenix and Dragon for a spiritual uplift and to take a few measurements (more about that later)  ..then we went  applying for part time jobs (just kidding folks)

 
Late lunch found us feasting at El Aztecas on Roswell Rd which had  moved across the street and upscaled quite a bit since the last time we ate there. Fabulous food and the waiter was most understanding about the no carb thing and made off with the dessert menu before I could read beyond Strawberry Cinnamon ice cream.

 Later we found out that "ESTATE SALE" doesn't necessarily mean there's any kind of estate involved. Just a lot of crap that was in the place when someone shuffled off and left it. They did leave this behind, to my delight!

inscription or tattoo

Jude says I have "Color and Heart"...
..thanks for the reminder lady.

"Hopped Up"   2007

(here's a little genesis for this one)