I Don't Know Where to Begin

Last weekend in Edmonton I collected suggestions (and 'no thank-yous') re: Christmas gifts.  Thankfully, one of my own gift ideas is already under construction.  Yesterday I bought yarn for another...and photographed yarn for a third, sending the photos off just a few moments ago.  Patterns for all have been purchased.

Also last week I posted goals for the current Visioning Year.  I've been part of the SAQA Visioning Project since its inception as a wiki on the old SAQA website.  Now it carries on as two blogs -- for VP members only.  It's a place where participants set goals, check in regularly (or not so regularly!), post photos of process and progress, exchange information and gather feedback.  Right now, I'm working on short-term goals -- finishing "Posh Poppies" and The Door Quilt (for lack of a better title), for example.

Then there's the goal I set about continuing to make time each week for new learning, beginning with my new embellisher (needle felting machine) and Double Trouble's inspiring book, "Embellish and Enrich".  I've decided the best way to focus and learn is to work through it from cover to cover.

I awoke this morning with "wool-gathering" sitting at the forefront of my thoughts.  As I lay in bed, ideas crept in...about abstracts and wee landscapes and florals, mounted in shadow boxes.  The beginnings of a new line of textile exploration and creation...

My friend C is about to arrive for lunch.  It's been ages since we've hit the Whistle-stop Cafe for their yummy Friday chowder, the perfect reward for a walk in the brisk autumn air.

I'll figure out where to begin -- later.

A weak link to Off the Wall Friday, indeed -- but definitely appropriate to the topic!

I've Got a Little List*

1. Tomorrow is September.  Go figure.
2. Turn 60 a week from tomorrow.  Forty was England and Spain; fifty was a Very Ill Husband Indeed -- so sixty seems absolutely momentous!  
3. Down 22 lb in 20 months, and feel great!
4. Daily studio time now a habit -- even 'on the road'.
5. Identified some Goals and Dreams for the next year+:
1. Travel:
1. Attend another SAQA Conference -- ideally Santa Fe in April 2013;
2. "Home" to Quebec in June 2013;
3. Scotland -- Skye and Shetland -- for my 65th!
2. Reading:
1. The leather-bound Dickens, Bronte and various poets, belonging to my maternal grandmother, some of which I had restored years ago.
3. Creativity:
1. Finish my Level 2 C&G and see if there's a Level 3;
2. Contribute to the SAQA Benefit Auction every year;
3. Participate in everything SAQA Western Canada offers locally, and volunteer to help, too;
4. Continue to be active in the SAQA Visioning Project;
5. Renew membership in Focus on Fibre Arts and the Alberta Arts Council;
6. Work through the 'creativity' titles on my studio bookshelf;
7. Take lessons to improve my spinning/carding/combing skills and add to my textile repertoire;
8. Categorize and then finish or 'frog' my Unfinished Objects!
6. This is my 900th blog post.  The First One was here, 'way back in February 2003 You can tell this space has evolved since then -- including a couple of name changes, and I no longer post a quote every weekend (I can't even remember how long that lasted!) -- but I am blessed to have a place where friends do gather, and read, and share comments about topics close to my heart like "handwork, gardening and family life".  :-)
7. If you do the math,  you'll see that a Decade of Blogging is not far off!  There will likely be a fresh look, and perhaps yet another name change (the address remains!)...And yes, there will be a give-away...or two...or three.  This place is about fabric, and fibre, and floss, after all.  Stay tuned!
8. For those of you who like a post with photos, here's the second piece I finished to send off to Gail Harker Centre for Creative Arts' up-coming fundraiser:



'Caught' (C) 2012 - 5" x 7" on mat board

9. *With apologies to G&S, from whom I stole the title of this post, and the song so delightfully up-dated here by Opera Australia.  Enjoy!

Year End Post III

It's now early evening and very dark on this last day of 2011.  I've been pondering how I will summarize this year;  this is what I wrote on my SAQA Visioning Project page, earlier this afternoon:

• There was learning, and lots of it:
• About my abilities;
• About my limits;
• About my values;
• About my dreams.

• There were boosts to my confidence in the above areas -- and there were moments when I was brought up sharply to face what I really want for my life, versus the expectations of others;
• There's been a return to what is most important to me;
• There is a polishing of skills that is ongoing.
• There was my first quasi-solo show, with very modest success. (My daughter is keen that I do this again so we can share a booth!)
• There was the wonderful Denver Conference trip, where I met so many of Visioning Project members, learned so much, took in so much, enjoyed so much...
• There's a sketchbook full of ideas to bring to life in textiles; and
• There is a new health challenge. Though down 8 pounds since a year ago, due to improved nutrition and exercise (returning to my old ways as a long, slow distance runner, last seriously practiced in my early 40s), and feeling better than I have in years, I am facing hypertension...and working on alleviating it without medication.

At this time of the year, like so many of you, I make lists...and there is a great temptation to be overwhelmed by them! However, I am trying to keep it simple -- and not to plunge into new work right away. I will begin January by sorting and cleaning the studio (again, I know I'm not alone in this!) so that I can see where I am going. I have an idea...but I need to see the projects -- like ducks -- all lined up in a row.


First, the "Finishes":

"Stardust" - detail

• Finish the mystery quilt top (the quilting will come later), which has been a great holiday-time exercise for me. It kept me in the studio; it held me accountable for my piecing and sewing skills; it taught me more about colour and value -- even with 'neutrals' like black and white....
• Finish Activity 4 in my Module 5 of the C&G program, mounting the sample on a quilted background (a quilt on a quilt) for hanging.
• Finish two art quilt WIPs:
• "I Was Hungry"; and
• "Abandoned #2".

Next, the "Starts":

• Move on to Activity 5 of the C&G Module 5, in which I research a traditional quilt block, skew it in some fashion, and design a quilted piece with it.
• "Abandoned #3";
• A Knitted Garden;
• Two banners based on Canticles in the Anglican Church of Canada's Book of Alternative Services;
• "Sentinels" and "The Watchers on the Road" from photos taken on a retreat in southern Alberta in 2010.

There is a question of shows. I have a piece that I think will suit for the SAQA Benefit Auction 2012, so I'm alright there. The Focus on Fibre Arts Association Biennial show for 2012 has a theme that doesn't touch my heart. Ditto for an upcoming Quilting Arts reader challenge. I think I am going to continue to 'pass' on these things and focus on the Lacombe show in April, and on what I've lined up.

That, and losing another 15 pounds, increasing my running to an hour at a stretch, and lowering my BP.  If I don't regain my health (despite how good I feel and how misleading this is!), none of the rest will amount to a hill of beans.

"Stop, study, serve" remains my mantra for the new year. I welcome all who want to journey along, and thank you, gentle readers, for your gifts of wisdom, inspiration and friendship in the past year.

Should auld acquaintance be forgot, and never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot, and days of auld lang syne?


For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne -- 
We'll take a cup o' kindness yet
For auld lang syne. 

                      - Robert Burns

Happy New Year!