Spirit Cloth

new eyes

new eyes, new story. it's raining, i'm playing. i am intrigued once again with the images we present to children. and redefining cute.

i also really like this.

welcoming november

well the boiler is fixed but the wood is also stacked and dried so today i started the wood stove in the studio. a ceremony to usher in a new season. i have moved all my junk to the center of the room anticipating some new shelves and things which should finally get going soon. what a mess.

a small scrap landed on the floor during the upheaval. how great is this little silk print? a combination of stationary and mobile dots.  i did a bit of on the spot machine piecing (while i can still get to the machine)  to create a story background for this one. and to test a new color field idea i have been thinking about.

feline addiction

she-bori. one of a herd. tribe.

doodle wednesday nine patch

what if  repeating the same thing over and over is a sign of a trapped ego?

a while back i caught jacki using pens on fabric and i got turned me on to faber castell's pitt pens for artists. they are pigment, permanenent and a bit pricey in a big set but wow, lots of colors and completely washable. i found the best price here. and you should be visiting jackie at blissfully imperfect....she is always trying new things.

and speaking of new things....cathie cullis has changed her blog address so be sure to update your link and if you donlt have one yet, it's here... her new format is wonderful AND she is doing a series on natural dyes...

summer hours

i woke up to a mini coma this morning. still no sun here  and i seem to be moving to a new slow. i scribbled a border on The Shift...and i am being pulled by its spin. dizzying. i am planning a new posting schedule for the summer months at the same time i am thinking that this shifted design  could be a great border idea for a bigger coma. 
its a funny thing to say but it feels so good to be back in a coma again.

quilting and contrast

...as a continuation from here... yes i want to make a full quilt with the contrasting seams. i made a 'nine by nine patch' ...81 patch i guess, but the math changed when i broke the pattern a bit. working with one inch squares as a base....it is easy and soothing and begins to be an interesting puzzle when you vary the pieces. i have many ideas which i will log as what-ifs as i go. this is another kind of coma i think. i am using a relaxed and easy stitch, purposely not even, sometimes changing the thread thickness or color. i like how it looks mended. meanwhile i am finishing the rabbit and a few other things. different kinds of projects to keep my mind hopping and my soon-to-be-shop filled with some crazy variety of wacky stuff... i hope.

i added a link to Lotu (Lotta-pia Kallio) as  a new path about a week ago . there is no blog but the work on flickr is amazing. and in case you haven't seen her videos....take a look at  these.

doodle wednesday- ninepatches

.....still thinking about nine patch variations for coma.
.....  i tried one where i asked what if (#138) cut out the check sections and pieced them.
.....and then the dice version..... loving this and want to do more. i am thinking what if i scatter these game pieces throughout the bigger piece?  perhaps, by chance that might be a great idea.
i am inspired by this photo by jeff to include some transparency experiments also.

undoing pattern

.....i have been thinking a lot about coma in terms of perception from both sides. the lack of normal reference points and the unfamiliar landscape that results. and i am still assuming that the basic structure remains but that part of it gets covered up or temporarily lost... shifting patterns normally recognized and confusing the mind. and i am thinking that this can also be a creative process. breaking old habits and seeing things differently can often be a fresh start. i am interested in translating this to my way of creating a cloth. this project is moving very slowly... because building by undoing takes more time. fortunately , i don't have a time limit on this one. i have decided it is a gift...for me.
the nine patch is still a focus because it is so familiar to me as a starting point. and i have been playing with it. tearing it apart and putting it back together. and yesterday i went back to that woven pattern (another familiar place) as my guide and became curious about new patterns that might be created by hiding part of it. this is really a what if (#137) but i have changed the pattern of handling those too. i am basically shifting all my focus to this blog. i will post my finished what ifs as tutorials ...to the other blog... as a record (for me and maybe you).... but i will be be working here from now on. the reasons for this are many but in a nut shell, i am simplifying by focusing on  technique as a learning process while i am working on current projects.  i will create a what if category. which brings me to my big question today. what if a body of work can be created through the planning of another?

winter green

yesterday i was out and around.  the hill at the side of the house was cleared not so long ago. it is frozen and still. yet still it gives....kindling for the fire, a place to wander and think, a view to the sea... and the promise of next season's garden.
today i have forgotten the blues. i am enjoying a spring thinking ceremony. the snow is free falling and i am free piecing a few cool cats in the garden. those old color blankets are coming in handy.  i guess this will be a quilt. you can never have enough green, enough cats or enough quilts. (of course you can never have enough pillows either...???....) 

the winter weather has caused major commuter train delays. and i don't care.

patchwork cool

there is nothing cooler than a cat with shades.
and striped socks.

sateen cotton dot, kaffe fassett ikat body ( some fabrics just have to be bought) ... black and white poplin face with linen cheeks. hand dyed embroidered plum carpeting, cotton lawn ticking stripe socks. some plaid inserts to spruce up the tail.

a couple of recycled green oxford shirts corners.