stitch and paint.

Stitched outlines, watercolor wash on a recycled flour sack towel. Waiting until it dries and then I will go back in with additional stitching. 

Also working on this, and not sure yet where it goes from here. Might even be finished. I'll decide after it sits for a couple of days!

glass & dreams

The long, crisp weekend gave me time to really dig into the stained glass design.  I still need to decide what to call this.  It reminds me of peacock feathers, stained glass, old tapestries. 

More time spent with cloth in hand, running stitches put down. 

Took me awhile to thaw out over the weekend. To find my motivation. 

Happy though, by the end of it all. 

just a dragonfly...

...and pondering ravens.

As I believe I've mentioned, the raven is one of my animal spirit guides. For about the last week or so, I have been seeing ravens everywhere. Not uncommon, really, but it's never been just one.

Rather, it's been four. Always four. Every morning. I've seen four. And not just in the same spot.

I have been thinking about it a lot, and wondered what the significance was.

Couldn't be more spot on.

"The symbolic meaning of number Four deals with stability and invokes the grounded nature of all things. Consider the four seasons, four directions, four elements all these amazingly powerful essences wrapped up in the nice square package of Four. Fours represent solidity, calmness, and home. A recurrence of Four in your life may signify the need to get back to your roots, center yourself, or even "plant" yourself. Fours also indicate a need for persistence and endurance."
(from Spiritual Meaning of Numbers )

Especially these bits...

the need to get back to your roots
home
a need for persistence and endurance

I've been feeling especially restless. I have craved some sort of grounding. To reconnect, to find my creative direction.  Home? Well that is a given, and always my focus. Persistence and endurance, to get through this rough patch emotionally, financially, even physically. Not to mention creatively. 

It will be interesting to see if I see any other 'fours' popping up.

Day 8/365 Dragonfly Days

Started work on the stained glass design today, after changing up the colors yet again. I also did some research on 16th century embroidery and textiles for an upcoming collaboration with creative friends.  More on that as it progresses!

Now off to play with clay for awhile. The printer needs to cool off. Crazy hot after today's work!

365 dragonfly days

The dragonfly is one of  my animal spirit guides.  The raven, the other.  One of the things I really wanted to do in the upcoming year is to reconnect with certain aspects of myself that I have neglected.  While my guides are always with me and I see their influence in my life, I do not always stop to really think about what they represent in my life as often as I should.  

Both have been appearing more frequently. I think it is because I feel a major shift coming in my life. I've not identified just what it is yet, but I am restless.  

And I need to listen. 

--Day One/365 Dragonfly Days

summer solstice

Glory of the Day-Star, hail!
Lifter of the Light, Burnisher of the Sky.
Gifts of love to earth are bringing,
Summer’s shimmer, dew’s delight.

Dancing be the heart within us,
Open be our souls to bliss,
Courage vanquish every shadow,
Greet Midsummer with a kiss.
- Greeting to the Summer Solstice
from Celtic Devotional – Daily Prayers and Blessings© Caitlín Matthews

Creative 365: Day 18 tree spirits

The Spirit of the Trees

Am so in need of a walk in the woods. This was as close as I could get for now. Hopefully with a predicted warm week coming up, more of our snow will melt so I can at least get on the main path and walk! Meanwhile, playing with images of the forest will have to do until I can get out there and play with the trees myself!