So, I came across an item in an online shop that was described as a metal heart from France. That's all the description said (which, for me, is as bad as dark murky photos, expecting you to buy something you can hardly see). On this metal heart, however, there was an inscription in French that clearly showed it to be a funerary item. It said something along the lines of here lies XX who died after an illness 1905 - 1964.  I really think that it behooves the seller to get a translation before they put something up for sale, for those unsuspecting customers who may think it's a romantic bibelot all the way from France....


Meanwhile...
I'm getting ready for my mini-vacation. I have to go out and do a few things, then pack my bag.
I'll be back Thursday night, so I'll see you on Friday.

Friday's child

Over the years, I've collected some very nice cabinet cards and old photos. I added a couple of tintypes to my collection, not really knowing what I would do with them. I also have a small collection of printer's blocks.

So I pulled out a No. 1 printer's block, trimmed the tintype photo, and this is the result. I really, really love it!

She may have been very restricted in those days, but time has gone by and her descendants have freedoms that she could only dream about.

Printer's block, tintype, watchface.

Remember, remember

What goes around comes around.

So, before you act or speak...

Have a great day!

Rescue me

I made this collage some days ago, using layers of old paper. When it was finished, I didn't like it. Something was wrong it; there was a layer of tissue showing that I didn't like because it didn't go with everything else. I covered it with other paper elements and photographed it (photos give me a backup idea of what something will look like), but it still didn't work. So I set it aside, knowing that in the fullness of time, I would know what to do with it, even it it meant discarding it (although I would preserve the old photo because I love it so much.
       Last night, my shadow-self picked up a pair of scissors and cut out the centre, then stitched fabric and lace on it. I photographed it, and put it aside until this morning.
       This morning, I signed it. It worked and I liked it very much. I sign my pieces only when they're finished.

The French note is signed by a dress maker

Hither and thither

This week is mostly about tidying up before a short trip south next week, a little vacation courtesy of my dear friend who is wintering in Florida and is giving me a few days of warmer weather as well as her precious company.
My right arm is aching, so it's in need of a rest!

Not that work stops. Not at all. This is a detail of the third quilt. The vintage donut is one of a pile that my friend Janey gave me at Silver Bella last year. Hello Chicago!!!

Winter nights were made for stitching. I finished another quilt, and started yet another. I think it may be the last one for a while. Or not. I go where my spirit takes me, and to be able to do this is my good fortune.

The collage is finished. It's now in my Etsy shop.

I've started a new quilt, so there will be stitching this weekend.
I love my work. I am so fortunate.

What saddened me though was that last night's episode of Medium was the series finale. I wasn't expecting that, so it was a bit of a shock. It's been a top favorite of mine, and I will miss it very much.

Friday's child...

.... is playing with paper.

These pieces are from an antique autograph book that I bought years and year ago. The time has come do do something with them. So I'm playing with composition. I'm as seduced by old and frayed paper as I am by old and frayed fabric. When I'm ready, I'll glue everything down. The little red bird is my contribution, like a little signature.

Letting it happen.
This piece happened, although with my hands to guide it. When I started I didn't have vision of the finished design. I like seeing what will come next, how it will develop. I finished it last night and, as usual, waited until morning to decide if I liked it. Because it's true that things look different in the morning!

This morning, I looked at it and liked it even more than I did last night. I used one of my paintings as a backdrop. (It's giving me ideas....)

Quilt is available in my Etsy shop.

The accidental bird

I was trimming some scraps, saving bits of lace, and when I looked at one of them, I saw that I had accidentally cut out a bird shape.

Here it is, stitched over a velvet heart. I often have "accidents" like this one, while working on my art in different media. Sometimes I'm convinced that they're not accidents at all. It's a reminder to pay attention...

Completion

I've completed both my current projects well ahead of deadline, and I'm feeling great. Finishing something always makes me feel a little high. I'm going to reward myself and go to Curry's (art supply store) and get a pad of my favourite watercolor paper.

This is a taste of one of my finished assignments. It's all I can show you until publication.

Be good to your friends -- Kevin Bacon

Chiaroscuro

"Think big -- it will let you accomplish lots of very small things"... [and as we know they all add up to big things] - author unknown. I believe this because I'm living it now.

This is the most honest statement I've come across in the slew of books telling you to think big to get big.

This piece got shaped over 24 hours. I put down the basics then kept coming back to it until it felt finished to me. I've learned to be patient with my work, to wait and let it speak to me. It always tells me what more it needs, and when to stop.  [edit. The piece is 8-1/2 x 7 inches]



The words for this are not the ubiquitous "fly" -- they are decay and rebirth in Nature.

Decay and rebirth

Sunday finds

If she hadn't emailed me asking for a little advice, I would never have discovered her magical little assemblage dresses. What can be more enchanting than this classical tutu and ballet shoes? I'm in awe of the work that's gone into making these. And the little horsey reminds of me my friend Danielle ;)

You can find Sue Griffiths' shop here.

Many thanks to Sue

My project is underway. Even though my deadline is April, I like to get things done right away. The article has a much earlier deadline, so I'll be working on that today. That doesn't mean I don't putter around my work table. I recently got some self-adhesive cotton tape and made this little jar, actually a baby food jar. I have to fill it with kisses, since I stamped kisses (bisous) on it, but then I thought, maybe the kisses are invisible, like air. We'll see...

It's snowing. We're expecting 4 cm today. Nothing drastic.

It's snowing stitches

I have to go out when it abates, but meanwhile I have the perfect excuse to stay home and work.

I have an article to finish; a project to start (and finish!) and a few other bits and pieces. No time like the present, especially when it's snowing...

My French linens.

Friday's child

What you focus on, grows. Let's choose to focus on good things.

Paper dress.

Words

In my world, if something is repeated too many times it tends to lose its meaning, or at least its meaning is vastly diluted. I mean no offence; if the words speak to you, that's good. But for me, sometimes it's so overdone that it makes you want to scream. Instead of screaming, I go for humour. This is one of those words, and the rubber stamp was perfect for it.

Other words ripe for humorous artwork: Believe (believe what?); Art (yes, obviously) ... So, go ahead. have some fun. The world needs more humour!!

[Stamp Francisco Rubber purchased from StampDiva.]

In the evenings, curled up on the couch, watching television, I sometimes go through my stash to refresh my memory. As you collect stuff, it's easy to forget what you have.

I pulled out an antique dress cuff, a length of lace, a rhinestone buckle, and the three pieces came together to crate a cuff. It was more a matter of combining than altering.

Like this:

I like looking at things and seeing what they could become. Show me something and I'll tell you its future!!!

Ordinary things

I'm tackling my chores today: cleaning, laundry, etc. Sometimes I'm grateful for these chores because I don't have to think about anything, give my brain cells a rest/rejuvenation moment. I tend to think a lot, to analyze, resolve problems, plan things. I'd rather be this way than be mindless, though, and I've trained myself over the years to keep my thoughts positive.

I have been asked how I do this It's very simple: I'm aware of my thoughts, and as soon as my thoughts turn to  painful or negative things, I cancel it immediately. This takes dogged practice because the pull to wallow in old hurts is seductive. The words I use are either cancel, cancel or do not go there or stop, and I say them forcefully. Then, without missing a beat, I think of something pleasant or innocuous, because nature abhors a vacuum....You have to replace one with the other.

The Eye of Horus, or the Third Eye. Watercolour/gouache in a tiny handmade frame.

Life goes on

It's a bright, sunny, cold and invigorating day.
This quiltie (detail) has a lightly stuffed heart. It makes it 3-D but no glasses needed!!!
I find that more and more I'm sewing my quilts by hand rather than machine. I like the quiet rhythm of it.

I rarely watch the news, but I did watch the horrific events in Arizona on CBC-Newsworld. In the face of all violent words and actions, this is the answer.

Thank you

Thank you for all the kind and understanding comments on yesterday's post. I really appreciate that you understood what I was trying to say.

Be aware. Reach out. Live.

It's been a difficult time around here.

I didn't know her well at all, I only knew her to say hello to as you do when you see the same faces over a number of years in an apartment building, a petite woman, perhaps in her 50s, who lived in the apartment directly below mine. She seemed to be an energetic career woman, and that's all I knew about her. At 10 o'clock in the morning, pushed by who knows what despair, she ended her life by jumping off her balcony, 15 floors down to the edge of the park. There's a fine line between thinking about suicide and actually doing it, and all it takes is a couple of seconds to cross it. This I know because I've been there, but with me it was never negotiable; my stubbornness pushed me forward, the stubborn thought that there has to be something better than whatever is making us think these dark thoughts.

And it's because I know what it feels like that I don't judge her. But I feel incredibly sad that no one she knew could help or even saw the signs. I feel sad that someone who knew her much better told me that she had lost a lot of weight and that her hands shook the last time he saw her. She hadn't opened her door for days and newspapers were piled up outside. And yet, and yet.... those who saw that didn't think to check on her. But I can't judge them either.

Her name was Wendy. I found that out today.

Zen habits

It is good to wake up in the morning and look out to a bright sky. It's good to have a few quiet moments of reflection or no-thought during the day. For years I've practised "stillness", although I haven't always been good at it and given in to the chaotic moments -- which is precisely when you need to pull back and be quiet for a few minutes. But then, we never stop learning, I believe we're not supposed to stop learning...

When I sit and stitch, or paint, or collage, I get peaceful even though I'm in action. The difference is that I don't force anything, I don't plan anything, I let the design come together as it will. It's as if my mind is switched off and lets my spirit do the driving.

Today's message from the Universe, paraphrased: We think our emotions arise from circumstances when in fact circumstances arise from our emotions. There's one to think about.

Variation on a theme

Doodling with needle and thread.

This started with a scrap of sheer fabric in which I tied knots. When I picked it up again, I gave it a background of heavier fabric. Then I started doodling, not knowing where it was going -- which is the whole point of doodling. And ended up with this.

Happy doodling.

One more day before we go back to normal. Today is a make-up holiday for New Year's being on the weekend, but only for the banks and government. Which means the post office is closed.

So while my packages are awaiting shipment, I'm making more stock...which is my favourite part, my work, my passion.

So to you, I say:

Je t'aime card

Great start to the New Year

I've been included in many Etsy treasuries lately...and honored by that...and today I made the front page
The treasury was created by Elizabeth Williams, whose shop has been in my favorites for years and who I met (accidentally) in Omaha last November!

And as I was composing this post, the item sold.

Thank you, Elizabeth.

Year 2011 First Day

Wet and misty.
The best place to be is home.

For everything to be closed on a Saturday is bizarre. If it clears later on, I'm hoping to get out for a walk.
Meanwhile: Have a bite!

Chocolate fudge ganache-covered tart. Very chewy.