Spirit Cloth

s is for simple and Q is for questions

way back when, there was an alphabet sampler. i planned to use the letters on my last big quilt but i Simply couldn't cut it up. and i never finished it. and to Simplify things i have gathered together all this alphabet stuff and it will all be part of some kind of Series. i will work on S, just to Start Somewhere and Q too while i Quietly Question everything and Seriously contemplate QUITTING my day job very Soon.
i need help with this so i will be back with more thoughts on the Simple life.

freedom of stitch

...the bear block has received an extreme makeover.  somewhere along the line, i started to question a lot of the things. like aesthetic habits.  cute was one of them. who exactly decided that children would be entertained by what adults think is cute anyway? i don't think we evolve by mimicking nor judging what we all see around us. i think what defines our potential is that which we imagine.....and how well we can catch and share our thoughts. i imagine this is possible.
today B is for a Blushing Bear with a very Big Belly Button.

some details below, scribbled in honor of doodle wednesday.

becoming more

.....i have simply made B for Bird right now on the actual quilt. the butterfly has flown off on her own.  and what else am i actually thinking?
.... i am thinking ... i will do some more of these butterfly blocks, smaller and use them as appliques.
i am thinking ... i need to add evidence of the new moon on this one, another symbol of new things to come.
i am thinking ...that i want to embellish the wings more, more color, something splashy.
... i want the face to be less round.
... and she needs more personality, hair perhaps.
... the blue center background is too dull, may i will try painting something there.
i am thinking ... that this one should be opening from the center like a flower.
and it might be a pillow.

i wasn't thinking when i ironed the velvet, but the point of the iron left a lovely triangle embossed effect so i repeated it. i guess it will wash out, although i think it has a synthetic base so maybe not. something like heat setting i think ... a nice accident in any case.

yes i am thinking .... i can use this piece to practice becoming more.

i will make a new category for this one.

quilting craziness

when i began the alphabet soup quilt, i was practicing my machine piecing. leaving off details i couldn't handle. so now  after a bit of needlepatch, C is for that Crazy Checkerboard Cat that Can't stop smiling.

quilting leftovers

i will be working on alphabet soup over the weekend. some quilting planned while visiting mom. i put the whole alphabet together so it would form a rectangle. some letters stand on their own and i figured i would embellish them with embroidery or applique. so B was for bee, an embroidered bee. but B could have been for Bear or Butterfly.

SUN-day

the sun was amazing today. just for a short while it seemed like winter was over. right about when it started snowing i realized i was mistaken. an applique elephant was added for the E. it is so easy to sew in the sun. alphabet soup will be put away for the week.

i am packing up many hearts that are coming together for tomorrow's commute.

coloring inside the lines

thank you all for the burst of enthusiasm on my last post. especially all the new visitors. i am rushing off to spend some time with my mother this weekend. some comfort and wine. no internet. (gotta do something about that).
......i have chosen a kantha style stitch for this one. it will be very thready. i also thought i would treat it like a coloring book. quilting each section or piece with a different color. i just packed up that nest of thread ends and i figure it will be a good way to use them up. i was also hoping this would generate an interesting effect on the back.

......i like what i see so far. this quilt is batted with an old flannel sheet and backed with a lightweight yarn dyed tartan. functional quilts get dirty fast, the dark back and all those colored dots will camouflage stains well. so i start with A for apple and apple tree and we'll see.

something like chicken soup

i guess right now i am sewing for comfort. the whirring of the sewing machine works well to blur noises in my head into some sort of music so i worked on the quilt straight through from q-z.  i am naming this one alphabet soup (i chose this name because of a comment from carol ). it is basted into a "cloth". it is way bigger and more complicated than planned. sort of like my life.

stitching in the rain

sewing to the sound of rain is nice. very nice. z is for zebra.