Big Clean Sigh

As you may know because I have already posted to Facebook, my sweet Arrow passed away. This animal wrapped his double paws right around my heart, he taught me to love him, to communicate with and listen to him, he loved me deep into my bones. I felt as though no day were complete without lap time. For the last two days of his life, I watched him pass, poured love and care into him, told him all the things he taught me, told him all the ways I loved him.

I made an appointment to have the vet come and help him pass. I told him the plan, told him what time David would return home. I encouraged him to stay if he wanted to, or pass if he needed to. Arrow waited.

Arrow was a gift, a true gentle cat. He is sorely missed. I grieve deeply for him. I am glad he no longer suffers and I feel proud to have been his companion.

Farewell, little man.

Because I turn to large cleaning projects when I am at a loss for true direction, I have decided to clean, deeply clean, my studio space. Creative organization is conducive to productivity and we tend to forget this. Over the next few posts, I will discuss overall organizational ideas as well as specific tips and ideas to get you and your space hopping.

I have had terrific studio space and passable space, but I don’t think the space is as important as how you maintain it and intend to use it. The space I am working in now is passable, workable, but not ideal. My husband and I live in a classic New York City apartment. We have three main rooms plus what might serve as a walk-in closet or child’s room. My art supplies, sewing machines, cloth and workbench take up about 1/3 the total living space that we take up. So my supplies need to be organized, at the ready and easily available, so that there are no impediments to engaging with the creative process.

I inserted the above photo of my mother in laws sewing kit because it contains everything she needed to repair and label her families clothing. Thread in every color, pins and needles, a piece of wax, and woven labels (my father in law was in the service and all clothing needed labels sewn into them). So, as far as her sewing kit was concerned she had everything at the ready to help her Man out.

So, are you ready to go on an organizational journey with me? I hope so. Lets get obsessive compulsive together!

First things first:
Make a list of the creative things you do
Make a list of things you would like to do

I:
Use dye
Machine sew
Acrylic paint
Hand sew

Right now I am not acrylic painting because I use my workbench too often to dye and hand sew, I would like to remedy this.

In my next post, I will discuss assessing your space and ideas that will help you see through the mess. If you want to go on this journey with me and are interested in sharing photos of your workspace, exploring ideas to change things up together, comment on this post. I would love to feature your photos (use Flickr) and/or blog, here. Lets link up.

Stitching away the Blues

I am stitching away on this Breastplate. I guess this is called a running stitch, I just pick up a few threads and then continue to stitch, maintaining a similar length of stitch for each. It creates little dots on the back of the work, which is very pleasing to me. So far I have used 4 different colors of hand dyed threads, and I love that I figured out how to eliminate the white spots in the dyeing process. 

My mother and I have a road trip planned for the weekend, we will be going to a craft fair. I am happy about this on so many levels. I need to get out of the house for one. And generally, I have been depressed and down lately.  I need a jog from normality. So, I am packing my bags, bringing my stitch work and hightailing it.

Off to make coffee and pack my bags!

Print and Stitch

I am happily sewing away over here, working three Breastplates at a time.

This Breastplate is the biggest of the seven. If I were to decide to wear them, rather than consider them an art object, this would be the one. Each of the Breastplates were made by ‘eye’ they are supposed to be clothing ‘like’. I love the shapes so much, I keep dreaming up new versions, with different cloth. But when I designed this one, I specifically cut it so that it would wrap around the sides of my body and ‘fit’.

I printed it using a stamp bought from Colouricious. This is my first time using these stamps and I must say, OMG. These are wonderful stamps. I now want more.

I am using my hand dyed threads to stitch and embellish the stamped shapes. I am using thread colors that blend nicely but show up well too. Nothing that might conk you over the head, but beautiful, embellished stitch. I printed this Breastplate in an asymmetrical manner, and the printing goes up the left breast.

I am loving each, beautiful, stitch.

Quiet hum.


I am changing the surface of this Breastplate by stitch, differences in stitch and thread quality as well as scale. This is the first application of stitch that I can see so far. This first application of stitch is hand dyed DMC 6 Strand embroidery floss.

My plan for this Breastplate is large stitch, geometric designs, 6 strands…

As I look at it from here, I wonder if I might use 2 strands in the breast portion, cutting the thread scale down. I think it would create a nice contrast.

Remember I bought that 500 gram cone DMC 6 Strand Embroidery floss, last month. That was money well spent. I may continue to dye threads until I run out of the cone, it won’t be long now. I have been dyeing threads in groups of 48, so my stash is growing exponentially. It is fun to watch, to open the orderly boxes of floss and look at the colors within.

 

I have my eye on this ebay item. I have not bought much on ebay, never direct from China and I don’t know what to think of this type of purchase. So I keep looking at it. Have any of you bought a similar item?

Right now I have an affection for wooden spinning tops. I went to etsy and found this store. I am in love with these tops. I want every single one and all of the top related items!  

My Mom and I will be going to a craft fair next weekend. I will wait to make a purchase, but that man’s tops are tops!

Breath of Fresh Air

Last week I took myself out for a much needed day on the town. I went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art where I stumbled upon what is probably the smallest exhibit there, Gems of European Lace. It took me about 5 minutes of trying to locate room 599 before asking a guard where the room was. When I finally found the room, I was quite pleased to be alone in it.

OMG. Usually when I go to a museum or gallery, it is my hope that something will affect me deeply. I hope to be able to have a physical response to what I see. I shed some tears, I was so deeply affected. 

One of the pieces on display was presumably used and worn by Marie Antoinette. I took photographs of every single piece. I tried to imagine who might have made the lace, man or woman. This needle lace piece? Those hexagonal supportive stitches that hold the piece together? 7 stitches per bar. Um. Wow. 

Ever since I was a child, I have held textiles, lace, embroidery, crochet, cloth, the items that are considered ‘feminine and female’ in the art world, in high reguard. I mean, just look at the story told in the lace above. Angels, a fountain, birds, flowers, tassels, bugs. All the good things, represented as a story and wearable too.

Experiencing a hand made item like this, one that is as old as it is, makes me want to be a better artist. It gives me something to  strive for. It might also suggest that I need to employ an army to get all the things I want to, done!

I am dyeing threads and trying to work all of the kinks out. See the threads in the box? The manner that I dye threads creates these white undyed spots (that show up as lightly colored flecks), which occurs every 6 inches or so. This week I am working on eliminating that undyed spot. It takes alot of time, because I am dyeing thread in groups of 48 colors. I think I figured it out, but, I need to wait for this last batch to soak and dry before I can confirm this.

And because I need something to embroider, now having gads of colors and thread options available to me, I started making what I am calling Breastplates. The rabbit from earlier this week is part of the Breastplate at lower right. I will stitch, sew and print these plates for some time to come.

The party begins.

Mish Mash.

I bought an album by Sophie Hunger. She is worth a listen. Check her out.

 

I really like Kellie Davis of Mother Fitness Revolution. I was introduced to her web site by Bret Contreras site (who calls himself The Glute Guy-which I think quite charming, albeit goofy) 😉 The two coauthored the upcoming book, Strong Curves, which I preordered, I never pre-order! I am quite excited about this book. Marianne has worked with Bret. In the fitness world it seems that people mentor and teach one another, it is quite an interesting place.

 

I own one piece of jewelry from these folk. I check them out now and again. Lil’ shopping. Then I head over here. I own a pair of boots from CYDWOQ. She says shyly. Riches! Honest to goodness riches. Those boots were comfortable from day one. Amazing. And they will last for quite a long time. These boots can be resoled, and there is a great cobbler in the neighborhood. My Man bought me a shirt sold at J Crew, made of Liberty of London cloth yesterday (I wish you could actually see the print). There will be many a fun day in that shirt! 

 

The Graffiti Breast Pockets are coming along. They need a super shift, a change, an intensity of color, additional motif, something. I have begun to push them in a new direction.

In Episode 6 of the last Mad Men season (4?), Peggy has this print by David Weidman hanging in her office, which I love. I am embroidering my version of these daisies onto the pocket at upper right.

Today I have a doctor appointment in the morning, then I plan to take my sewing supplies to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to stitch/draw. Excitement.

Hand stitch

Stitch, hand stitching is such a quiet endeavor. I love it for that reason. I love keeping the apartment so quiet that you can hear the needle break through the cloth. Over and over again. I also love the way stitch changes the nature of the cloth you work. 

This is a set of breast pockets that I am making in my own name. This will be a dense mix of thread and imagery, hand stitched ‘paint’ (no paint will be used, just hand dyed thread).

I am extending the deadline for the Breast Pocket Project, right now I need about 800 pockets to meet my goal. 200 pockets are a great accomplishment, and I did ask that you send the pockets during the week of the 22nd, which is today or now. I know many more pockets are on their way to my neck of the woods as I type, but if you have it in you to make more pockets, please do.

Brave, fiercely.

I have been conversing about cloth, it is a personal, ever growing and ongoing discussion, really. I have this ‘metallic’ white cotton, I bought it ten years ago, I don’t know its name. (Do you??) 

I am a total Mad Men Fan. And right now I have a crush in Michael Ginsberg‘s character.  Please repeat the above paragraph in Michael Ginsberg’s cadence and accent.

Please.

Use his gestures too.

See? I am revealing myself. 

ANYWAY. Back to the cloth!

I think the ‘metallic’ is plastic, I don’t know, it is a festive  cloth, whatever it’s content. I reverse basted some of the mettallic cotton cloth to the center front band of a tie front wrap. I love what the cloth has become.

But,

if this cloth has plastic content, I would like to say! Way to make plastic magical, whoever designed this cloth! Thank you! It is somehow, really magical.

I wish I had a selvedges that would tell me more about these different pieces and parts. I remember taking a steam iron to them early on and watching them shrink in front of my eyes, by inches! I knew it would happen and did it on purpose, so that I would get used to the eventual look, not the newly-bought look.

You know?

The graffiti Pockets are coming along! You can only see a bottom corner up center, top. I like what is happening with this set of pockets, but progress is slow. Stitch as color is infiltrating my thought process. Stitch as painting. Stitch as communication.

Either way, I am interested in stitch, clothing, cloth and what each of these ‘ideas’ brings to a garment.