Planning

A sketch,
thinking the story through
I've almost finished stablizing the back
Its large
56" by 44"
and it may get larger before its done

Some things persist even as I release others. The wall is still full of birds and moons

 The shibori nest is growing a thicket to support it

Pieces of a night sky are slowly knittting together.
And stones are gathered in the corners of the room waiting with patience

Release

dusty and funny smelling

Life is disrupted, the house is under upgrade/construction
(repeat as much as necessary "it will all be worth it, it will all be worth it ...")
First we painted the Living room; then the contractor began the finish work on the cellar (this continues); next the heat quit taking out our hot water on Thanksgiving during Brians visit from NB; then the dogs both got sick and had to see the vet/rounds of medications; the dishwasher broke (whatever); and now the heater has broken again. I am presently cold and dirty and the boy is having a nervous breakdown because strangers are entering the house 5 days a week.

on alert

Getting the cellar done meant relocating all of my supplies, inventory, and old portfolios as well as everything else down there out and into the garage. Here is a picture of my dye studio at present

uncondusive to dyeing, or anything else

Its that old crisis-opportunity deal.
the word of the year has been chosen.
Release.
I have too much stuff I'm hanging onto
A whole inventory of shop stuff, the unresolved stuff, a whole past of stuff

30+ years

These portfolios are heavy, they weigh on my heart.
30+ years of classes and artwork that I don't really know what to do with or what it was for.
I do know that it adds up into me as I am now
I would like the space to begin moving forward unimpeaded by old unresolved questions so I can explore some new unresolved questions.

still thinking of nests

It will take some time to process and to release it all.
I've done this process before up to a point this time I'd like to go deeper.

Homemaking

My attraction to nests is ongoing.

A small shibori nest, stitched last spring...? Perhaps earlier than that.
The fabric is from my first karate ghi, a really strong cotton twill.
I will tack it down when it is dry, no ironing, I like the shape of it.

Finding the Steps

I've begun the process of connecting the weave with stitches.
finding the best path.
the one that gets me to a stabilized fabric,
as well as the one that brings out the best of the design.
its a really slow form of drawing,
it might be fun to play with paper this way, faster, more immediate, a way to sketch ideas while
using the process.

Merging

I've rethought the weave
now I am using it to blend 2 different fabrics
pieces of a night sky

Connecting

Still puzzling out Moon Dance
how all the pieces fit together
what all the pieces are
dancing with the weave.

Fall Nine Patch

I keep wandering off, feeling disconnected  on one level and deeply involved on another...

I'm hoping to get back here more often soon.

Experiencing Failure

I'm listening to Lucinda Williams while I write, it seems appropriate.
Earlier this week I read Lisa Call's post on Failure.
Its about her experience with that time between
deciding to learn from my failure
and
doing something else

that sticky little"and" where its so much easier to avoid acting and just find something else to do
(TV, cleaning, puzzles etc)

It was very honest, to hear it spoken about out loud like that.

When I experience that stuck place, which is far more often than I would like, I have an impulse to keep quiet about it. I'm really not sure why I think its better not to speak of it, but there it is.
After it has eased, and I have moved into the "doing something else" phase I can look at it with a little more objectivity.
Last spring I was going strong on the stones. trying new things, playing with ideas even sharing it on Facebook.
Then I got stuck
I lost the thread when I realized that they were incomplete, they needed homes.
I didn't really know what the homes would look like, I got slammed with a bunch of ideas at once
I got overwhelmed, ashamed, vulnerable and hesitant.
I failed to act, and it lasted all summer*
I'm not sure if I did anything in particular to change it but as it becomes fall it has eased off
I've made a couple of decisions, and invested some brainpower and cash.
I think I may be ready to start again.
I expect many misadventures.



*Netflix is a strong sedative

Harvest Moon

Tonight's Harvest Moon synced up with my addition of shrouded moons to the crow and the 'pie
I guess if you stitch enough moons its bound to happen sometime.
A hopeful thought.

This cloth has begun to tumble forward rather easily, solutions are presenting themselves
to questions as they arise. That is a welcome relief after being so stuck (again!) for the last few months. I'm even beginning to feel glimmers regarding the katchina* series...
I will probably be picking that up again soon, I feel like I'm remembering the questions to ask again...
and the questions that are better avoided.


*I am uncertain that this will remain the title for this series. I need to look at it closely before it is decided.

Wings to Fly

The moon has wings tonight.
Perhaps its the indigo and white, or the moon itself...
quite definitely the weaving
it all goes back to lessons learned from jude and her feathers
more will come in time.

Mid Sept

In the garden the winterberries have begun to turn, strange creatures are visiting them.

I have begun to tack together the dancing moon

Tracing feather patterns

Sept 4- Making String

 White cotton cord

 Dipped into navy dye and left to soak up the color

 Rinsed and untangled

Ready to be used in something...

Sept 3- Garden notes

I plan to add an element to the front point garden using this branch and a birdhouse.
I want to add some year round presence, normally I would gravitate to a conifer but this close to the road and its winter salt a pine would just suffer.
I am trying to use decorative elements sparingly, I prefer to use rocks and branches that are found on the property to create impact, although I do have some decorations that have been gifted or bought.

Not all of the stone walls we have put in are natural, last year Lar added a retaining wall and a garden bed to the top of the front yard next to the driveway, it was a problem spot always too hot and dry for grass so mulch and shrubs make a better solution.
The front yard is steeply sloped, I favor removing the grass entirely and replacing it with terraced beds... Lar is not convinced.

At the top of the driveway is one of the three original stone retaining walls. I am making slow progress on getting things to grow here. It is another very hot dry spot. My success with the succulent fountain this year has me thinking of applying that idea on a grand scale...
Building a series of succulent fountains in the wall and along the top.
It is a stage-like space so it needs more presence than it currently has. Adding some succulent filled structures will help it to express more personality, and succulents are able to withstand the desert-like conditions.
It will also help to define the stairs, creating a low barrier between them and the dropoff
and give the entryway a little more oomph.

Walking up the stairs feels a little precarious with such a steep dropoff

and it will help to frame the view of this dramatic white pine that grows at the foot of the driveway.

its a plan.

Sept 2- Garden Notes 1

I spent some time today wandering the garden taking photos.
I'm trying to notice the views that the garden presents and think of ways to enhance them.
I had many thoughts and took many pictures.
They will be coming to you in a series

Front Point
(frames the view of the house, the first garden I added to the yard)
This is the only garden I have done much work in this year, all the others are being left alone until the fall transplants get started. Last season I really tore this one apart moving things into the North Wall. I left it alone for the first part of the summer so I could get a good look at the surviving plants. I've had many problems getting plants to grow here so I figured anything that had survived had earned its spot.
I just had to find where that was.
Everything got redefined into neater clumps, or shifted to give it a better chance, invasives were removed and I mulched. It looks much better now. I will watch it and decide if anything needs to be added or removed.
I will probably put in some spring bulbs this fall.

Aug 31- Fading Beauty

Last weeks sunflowers are becoming more lovely as they wither.
Beauty transforming.

Aug 30- Last of Summer

Decorative Onions

Fading Hydrangea

Aug 29- Seed Heads

 Featherlike structures. Collected earlier in the summer they have been waiting to be photographed, tonight was their night.

Aug 28-Splash of Color

The heat is all summer yet fall colors are just beginning to show here

Aug 26- Sunflowers

Free sunflowers at the farmers market yesterday

fields of them 

just grab some clippers and carry them home.

Food for the spirit.

Some other things came home with us too, 

home baked honey wheat bread, fresh tomatoes and multi colored beans.

The bread and some tomatoes were immediately put to use in grilled cheese sandwiches,

later I tossed the beans with olive oil salt and pepper and roasted them.

They were like candy.

More tomatoes were tossed with pasta, fresh herbs and goat cheese for dinner this evening. 

no pictures were taken as it was eaten too fast.

Fresh ripe tomatoes are a wonderful thing.

I've come to cooking late in life. I was uninterested and rather intimidated when I was younger.

Lar cooked nearly all the dinners we ate for the first 5 years we were together.

Now I am the person more likely to try something new.

Always on the lookout for a good vegetarian recipe to try.

I think more tomatoes will find their way into a couscous salad tomorrow.

  

Aug 25- Whirlwind

Many thanks to our friend Chuck Davis who took us up today for a tour of the state in his plane. 

We lucked out with gorgeous weather. 

I took a few pictures and got to fly the plane for a bit!

(OK I held the controls which was a bit out of my comfort zone)

Mt Hope Bridge

Newport Mansions

Our house and my garden 

The highlight was getting to see my gardens from the air!

Aug 24-Smoke Bush

My computer is cranky, I may have too many photos on it...

Aug 23- Friday Night Plans

A bit blurry but I will be too in awhile!

Aug 22- Scraps of Land and Sky

Still Stitching...