Selected Thoughts

I fell out of the blogging rhythm again. Its easy to do when you are busy and then all the thoughts sort of back up... too many things to talk about.
I spent a week and a little getting my production run done. A few odd thoughts

Tie dye/Dyeing has many things in common with old fashioned "housework" it is labor intensive

Although I consider myself a feminist and hope to be an artist, to my secret shame I like housework and simple tasks (although not exclusively) I can get pleasure from doing simple repetitive tasks well if I'm not worried about efficiency or money

There is spiritual worth to be found in simple labor, and our society has lost sight of the worth of working with ones hands.

Studio space matters, as does having the proper equipment. I've messed my back up a bit working on tables that are 10 inches too low.

While I am of the opinion that daylight savings time is pointless, I was happy to see more light in the afternoon. My rock art took on the appearance of an alien creature temporarily

I got back to the beach again... guess what I picked up?

Spring has sprung up with surprising speed in my yard. My earliest bloomers are back!

Tonight I will be experimenting again with a new idea/technique so I should have something to talk about tomorrow!

New Colors

Well here they are, these are the new colorways.

I worked all day on more of some older designs.

Tired, time to rest now...

Tie dyeing in quantity is surprisingly physical work!

A New Color

I'm trying a new color mix and style, doesn't really look like much yet does it?
I will be washing them out tomorrow, I expect they will be more interesting then.
We had beautiful weather here today so my plans to shut myself in the cellar and fold/dye shirts got a little subverted with airing out the house and sitting in the sun with the dog for a little while. I did get some of it done and I will be folding and dyeing like crazy tomorrow.

Pile Number One

Well this is what my weekend will be looking like.
I am embarking on a large production run of my inventory.
Mostly old stuff but I'm tossing in some new designs.
I just spent an hour and a half getting the studio set up. My studio shares space with the garage, the exercise area and the laundry area (AKA the cellar). Since I don't use the space every day I find the area becomes porus absorbing the runoff from other activities... plus last time out I left a mess by not cleaning up after myself.
Note to self: it is alot easier to clean up thickener when its fresh.

Anyhow I'm now ready to go!

Another experiment with burnt Shibori on rice paper.

I have to say that one of the most appealing things about shibori is the textures that the manipulated fibers take on.

I eventually will return to heat setting fibers...

I have ideas percolating through me.

In the meantime check out this!

Its inspiring me to get back to the heat setting sooner rather than later.

More Wrapping

This is something I was working on before life got me sidetracked.

Intstead of wrapping the stone and then attaching it to the background I thought I'd experiment with the wrapping anchoring the stone.

Kind of a spiderweb effect...

Fine filaments trapping and wrapping.

Pearls of Wisdom

Grandma Hazel Sorensen's pearls. A recent gift to me from my stepmother on my visit to Wisconsin.
They are lovely, a gift to Grandma from Grandpa, I don't know if they were for some particular occasion or not.
It seems an uncharacteristically extravagant gift for Grandpa who I always knew as frugal and suspicious of luxury. This side of the family has passed along a distrust of risk and a strong need for security, something which I'm both grateful for and resentful of.
I value the concept of not living beyond one's means, being a "responsible" adult as it were.
However that same coin has another side I often choose the safe path and talk myself out of the frivolous adventures life presents in the name of being sensible.
Honestly though, its just an excuse. Lets face it, I'm just afraid to leap without a net.
I wonder where I might go if I let go of that excuse?