Spirit Cloth

shadows

it stormed yesterday (in more ways than one) and it rained all night.  as the sun returned this morning, i left the curtain closed to enjoy the shadows of mom's gift of dried lavender against the ancient pattern on the cloth.  the shadows in the thin fabric seemed almost a watery reflection of my dreams last night. i dreamed of fabric. i dreamed of brother nemo who is walking around some where in asia . i woke thinking of my son. a reflection of yesterday.  a day filled with life and fabric and a few unexpected shadows.

light and dark still fills my focus...so i'm working with another long cloth this morning.... the one where she looked outside herself... maybe to get a better look at her own shadow i thought, which was really her reflection.  i want to express that in cloth but first i traced and cut her form from a cloudy plastic sleeve recycled from an old discarded photo album.  the pages are aged and the photos can no longer be viewed clearly.  this is making a great stencil for me to use as a guide.  and the milky translucent quality is just what i want.  i will search for a very sheer linen for this layer of self...i think i have it somewhere.  i am sure it is somewhere.  in some dark corner.

the nature the beast

.....i think we are drawn to know more about the things we cannot keep as our own. there is an excitement in capturing those moments... when we get to hold onto the something we have imagined to be more permanent than it will ever be.
today i am experimenting with merging the nature of this ikat fabric with the nature of the face of a new character. i like how the ikat  running through the face is like a smear of tears. i have mixed a bit of painting/ drawing with the stitching because i want to move more in that direction. i like how it all runs together.

and my ongoing investigation into the heart as a symbol has me thinking that loving something is like filling a hole in your heart, keeping it there for a moment, however fleeting that may be.

undoing plans

plans are really hilarious. it will be really busy around here for a few days. and although i had a plan for a tutorial on printing on fabric and some shop talk, i will just never get to it until next week. i am running around mailing packages after a flurry in the shop. and it is mother's day this weekend. and my son is back from a cross country trip. and we have visitors from turkey.
....SO... yesterday i was fooling around with a binding for crazy leaves  because i finished quilting them and they caught my interest because they are SILK. and i was  planning to finish this up as a mini quilt and put it in the shop. and well i got carried away into a swirl of color. the yellow was just what it needed.
.....i got caught in a pile of yellow scraps which got me started with some yellow ikat, cotton SILK of course.
and then....i got to thinking about that shibori silk and when it is flattened out how much it reminds me of leaves, the veins in leaves. this time spring leaves. yes, today after i take mom shopping i will take a little break and sit and experiment with  shibori applique in the form of leaves.
...this one will definitely make a strikng pillow. didn't plan that at all. and that's probably turned out to be a good thing.

inching toward a natural rhythm

....i was weaving at dawn. and after about an inch it was clear that the fast lane had become undone. i slipped back into a rhythm so familiar i hardly noticed. the right path goes everywhere at once. you can trust it.
...so it was what if i weave dots, and what if they are ikat, and what if i use marker, permanent marker? and what if it takes forever to finish. who cares?
...it is hard to put how good i feel right now into words. i will just let you imagine it.

new angles and old edges

....it has been very grey here lately. that old edge of winter that just hangs there. teasing. you know that edge. well this morning the sun came out full force. i noticed the changing angle of the shadows on the wall. everything seemed different. i cut away and old seam binding, the ugly edge (regular old store bought seam binding) of the old quilt that still remained at either end. i felt much better. i decided to continue the angles right to the edge by simple using a color slicing in two color combos of weft ikat, following the color scheme of the two corners on this side and covering the dotted fabric underneath. i can still cut through and play with it , i thought.....
...WAS got into the game by attacking that old edge even before it was all cut off. she wanted to to play. i couldn't help imagining a face on it. doodle wednesday a day early. it is now a mouse with a very long tail tale.

a new fabric friend

.....it is ikat, and it is a unique blend of cotton and silk. sleek and soft, exotic and home style. the nature of a fabric is something very special to me. on occasion i form a special bond that makes a big difference in my work. this is one of them.
the patterns and colors are amazing.
the loose weave gives the fabric  nice softness and and it is easy to layer and stitch. looks like silk, easier to handle.
the first edge went on like a dream. i love how it cuts into the design and forms all kinds of abstract shapes. the leftover triangles from the first fussy cut are being distributed on other edges.(can't waste any of this stuff, oh no!...) i think this overlay method will pull the whole thing together. i love how a final layer can do that.

....to follow this project use the FEVER category or view the flickr group.

flames in the fabric

ikat....is just such a burnin' type of motif.  i love how bits of the pattern gets away along the edges. it reminds me of sparks breaking off from the flame of a crackling fire.
....to cover up an ashen edge of fever, i have chosen to fussy cut some ikat flames to reignite the edge. there are also plans to cut through to reveal some smoldering elements beneath.
internet problems are keeping me from answering emails and commenting/ visiting blogs. sorry. it took me 5 tries to make this post.i am just going to sew for a bit and try again later.

quilting on the darkside

FEVER has become a weekend project because of its current size. 72" square. i  am working my way through the blacks, adding rustic kantha style quilting. there are also some dark moons i created with soft scrub discharge over ikat. and i've been applying that rag seam binding over some worn seam edges, to strengthen and decorate at the same time. i am pleased with that and will use it as a theme throughout where needed.
...an unexpected disturbance occurred while i was repairing the checkerboard. the grid was getting a bit boring anyway.

quilting smaller

......so. still in the spirit of getting back.....i have acted on a previous doodle wednesday...the lion block series. and i recycled an indigo ikat gift from acey.

with these blocks i will break my own record for teensy piecing. i don't think i can get any smaller.  these  tiny pieces are the keepers of my  life's purpose and the lions have become my personal symbol for  the journey.

unraveling dreams

fringe has been on my mind and i frayed some black and white printed lawn, the printed effect looks great on the threads, a bit ikat-ish. i tucked it into the seam while piecing, sewing against the un-frayed part of the fabric remaining. i like the way it shifts and changes.

the quilting is coming along nicely. this corner block is a special one. the sea is very much a part of my past, as well as my dreams.

some of my dreams aren't as serene.