Blues
I remember saying, just a few short months ago, that since Remi for SURE wouldn’t remember his first year of holidays, we weren’t going to put much effort into celebrating just yet. This worked out fine for Christmas, when we were too tired to do much more than keep ourselves and the animals fed. Then Valentine’s Day passed without a thought. But I must be getting enough sleep now because, at the beginning of the month, I was suddenly Easter crazy.
We picked out a basket for Remi. Got him a couple spring-themed books and a handful of hollow wooden eggs to fill with rice and beans (to be used as sound makers!). I also threw in a few packages of seeds, so we can start talking about how things grow. But THEN - when I thought I was done (and Eric thought I was done), I came across the idea to use silk scarves in the bottom of the basket, instead of plastic or paper grass. And I thought, hey - I’ve got some of those, set aside long ago for dying with indigo…
And just like that, I was in full maker mode.
I pulled out the supplies (purchased way back in February of 2019, according to the shipping sheet) and went to town. I’d never dyed with real indigo before, so it was a bit of an experiment…but it came together beautifully. I used shibori techniques to pre-stitch the scarves (so they’d resist the dye in areas) and then started dipping. As the blues got deeper, I fell more and more in love.
After a thorough rinse and the removal of all my stitching, this is what I ended up with :
Along with the scarves, I also threw one of the wooden eggs into the vat and created this little beauty…
All of this is probably just the beginning of an indigo obsession. I mean, I’ve now got a whole five gallon bucket full of dye just waiting for me - the possibilities seem endless! More scarves? A t-shirt or two? Wooden boxes, wooden cabochons? Why not?!
Anyhow, in the end, everything got carefully packed up (along with a few sugary goodies for Eric and I) and Remi officially got to celebrate a holiday for the first time. Everyone’s been telling me that having a kid gives you a second chance to experience childhood, and I’m getting my first taste of that now - along with the excuse to indulge with a whole new level of creativity. Many thanks, dear Remi.
So much of my life has felt out of control lately. Schedules? Gone. Routine? Obliterated. It turns out there was a real sense of safety bound up in the predictability of my days that has now been lost. At times, that’s left me pretty lost, too - especially on the days where I don’t get a break. Thankfully, though, I’ve got a lifeline pulling me through.
Sewing.
Or, more specifically in this moment, quilting. Every day, I’m making an effort to add one little component to the quilt top I’m building - and it’s so peaceful. There’s a no-nonsense predictability to the geometry, a very logical way of connecting one piece to the next. Unlike metalsmithing, where I’m constantly problem solving and thinking my way through every little detail, this requires only the following of someone else’s directions. It’s quick - easy to pick up during nap time, easy to set down when nap time inevitably ends after thirty minutes. My oh my, it feels so good to be able to just relax and create.
I think I’ve completed the most complex element in the pattern now - this little guy, made up of seven little pieces. It took me a whole week, working in brief spurts at the sewing machine now permanently set up on the dining room table, but it’s just so precise. A little bit of order in my chaos. I’m so thankful for that.
Work on the pincushions continues as well. Since the last photo, they have nearly doubled in height (a feat achieved by continuing to hollow out my block, sinking the silver between each increase in depth), and I’ve begun to saw out the sections.
The sawing is brutal work, as I predicted. Each section requires a new, sharp blade and I cut tentatively, trying not to catch my fingers or bend the silver or saw outside the lines. There is going to be a LOT of cleanup to get these looking buttery smooth, but they are coming along and that’s what matters. I keep adding layers of meaning while I work, dreaming up details to add as I go. This is turning into a bit of a jewelry self-portrait. Is that even a thing? If not, I’m turning it into one.
The big question on my mind today is, beads or embroidery floss or BOTH? This will make sense eventually, I promise!