new from old

This morning I made a pot of coffee, sat outside for a little while as the air was just so wonderful after the thunderstorm we had at some point during the night. I heard the thunder but was just too cozy to roll and look at the clock. It took me awhile to decide what I wanted to do with my day, and I was through the first four-cup coffee pot (granted, my "cup" can almost accommodate one four-cup pot as it is!) before I decided what to putz with.

As mentioned in a post a few days back, I came across this wonderful black scarf at one of our thrift shops.

I have been playing with simple running stitches in a few other slow cloth pieces I've been working with, and decided to do something similar with the scarf.  The tapestry wools I found for a buck a bag at the same thrift store have been calling to me, so I picked a few out and got started.

The scarf is very long and very wrap-able and I am envisioning this sort of a pattern covering the entire thing. Kind of a Van Gogh-ish-Starry-Night thing. Maybe some beads on the tassels.

I want a raggedy, organic, well worn feel with this. I can see it in my mind, now comes the task of trying to translate that to the scarf.




I also started working on the first of two pillows that I am making for my cousin's grandchildren, made from their grandfather's flannel shirts. I made quilts for the boys in past months, and I have just enough left for the new additions.

Yesterday I made my way to the thrift shops. I didn't come away with a lot of things, but I did succumb to the call of a bag of upholstery fabric remnants.

They've joined my growing stack of "Scraps That Have Purpose That Will Become Apparent When I Least Eexpect It" pile.  I've some other things to sort through too, but will do that once I take over my college-bound son's bedroom as sewing room! There will be pictures coming as that transformation takes place! I promised him his bed will still be there when he comes to visit!

Now I'm off to chart some Egyptian border motifs. Or give it a shot, anyhow.

upcycle & recycle

I spent some time stitching today, but then ran out of the Kreinik braid I am using in the new tree design...so I sorted through my fabrics and  clothing I had intended to take to the thrift shops today. Of course a few items were pulled back out again as those ever-spinning wheels in my over-active head started their telltale "have I got an idea for you!" squeaking. 

I behaved myself, however, and tucked them back away...for now. There are, after all, other projects I need to finish first!

While I have always been one who has looked for ways to bring new life to old things, (and many of my cross stitch designs include a variety of embellishments I have found, rescued, collected and lovingly snipped off of clothing with patches on their patches.) I had not thought about clothing as medium for art. While digging around and wandering through a variety of images I found a few that I thought were intriguing.

Derick Melander  "Flesh of my Flesh" (2008) 

by artist Guerra De La Paz

http://inhabitat.com/rememberme-chairs-made-from-recycled-clothes-are-really-stylin/

I do not intend to do anything like this myself, but I always find it interesting just how many different ways clothing and other textiles can be used, even after it might seem to some that they are worn out!

another fabric group & a few found flowers

Over the weekend I finished up another group of fabrics. These, like the others, were done on scraps of muslin using both Jaquard and Tulip fabric paints. The red and green abstract on the left is coming up a little "pinker" in the photo then it really is. The red is closer to the red in the piece on the far right. 

I have been working on flowers again as well.  I haven't been able to find old wool sweaters to felt, so I have been working instead with scrap yarn and crocheting the flowers, then centering them with found bits of jewelry and broken pieces that I have been collecting.

Stitched for awhile tonight too, hoping to have the final portrait done for the new cross stitch release!