Because I am learning to focus

I'm learning to focus on what I like to do, and (at least in terms of art/craft), I am going to start delegating the things I don't truly enjoy.

With some shame, I admit it: I don't really enjoy quilting. Well, to be more exact: it's the the quilting part of making a quilt that I don't like: you know, the part where you stitch the top, batting, and back, together. I love the feel of a finely quilted quilt, and I know lots of talented quilters, but I don't enjoy it enough to put in the time to do it well. There. I said it.

I do love making the quilt top. I seem to always come up with a plan for a quilt design, and I have many quilt tops in the works, but doing the actual quilting has been such a task that I've postponed finishing the pieces I've started.

This summer, in the middle of my frenzied organizing/cleaning/refreshing/repainting, I discovered a beautiful quilt I'd made for Ada with the many of the same fabrics from her baby quilt. Above is a photo of the baby quilt, which I did for her while I was waiting for her as a baby. During that waiting time, I had so much frenetic energy that I made dozens of projects for her room, including the twin-sized quilt I found in the armoire this summer. As I examined it again, I realize had made a good start on it, with putting the layers together, and beginning the quilting, but there was a lot of work left on it.

Ada found me with the newly-found and unfinished quilt, and looked at it with such longing. I wanted to finish it for her, but frankly, the idea of cramming it into my machine to try to quilt it left me feeling overwhelmed. Suddenly it came to me: There are people who do this sort of quilting professionally. What if I found someone to do this for me? And guess what?

Ada's quilt was finished by a lovely lady with a longarm machine and a talent for fixing my assembly boo-boos. Ada and I are both really pleased with it. Ada and I worked with Sharon to pick a design for the edges--Ada chose butterflies--and wow!

Now I'm ready to move on to piecing Esme's baby quilt, which has been on hold for, oh, about three years. My new friend Ms. Sharon will be doing the quilting part, and suddenly I feel the inspired energy to pick up that project right away. I think knowing I don't have to spin my wheels with the quilting has made me feel more free to enjoy the process of sewing the patchwork.

What's funny is that feeling okay with delegating is a huge deal for me. I'm a do-it-yourself kind of girl, and delegating runs counter to that. Or maybe not. Because--especially with artwork--if I can peel off a few things that I don't love or that take more time than reasonable--then I will have more time to do things with my husband and girls, and more time to make things and do things that really make my heart sing. With that in mind, I am going to embrace a little delegation so I can really enjoy the work in my hands as much as possible.

Coming Along

I am a good cheerleader for myself. When I'm working on a painting, you might hear me talking to myself softly, saying, "Well, he's coming along."

The he in question here is Zeus, a lovely dog who belongs to my friend Dana. And while I don't know Zeus well, he is pretty strongly set into my thoughts these days. He comes along with me wherever I go; you might see me staring out into space sometimes lately while I try to figure out how to capture the brindled colors of the fur near his right eye. The photo above is a not-quite finished version. But it's close. This morning I've been puzzling over the details of his snout, Dana's hands, and those tags...If I am lucky, I will grab another hour this afternoon, and he will be done! What fun it has been getting to know him.

I must say that it amazes me that he even looks like a dog. I am not an artist by training, but I am one by will. This year marks 10 years of my practice with drawing and painting, and I feel as though I have more projects in my mind than ever. And lucky me, a few of them are close to completion! Zeus shares my thoughtspace and studio with 3 other paintings that are also "coming along." It is a quiet thrill that I carry them in my head as I go through my day...

UPDATE
Esme's naptime gave me chance to put the finishing touches, et voila!

Here is Zeus, just waiting to be signed and put in the frame. It feels great to finish a project.



UPDATE Again! Okay, I'm obsessed. Here he is, done, framed, signed. Whee! The last step is to get some nice giclee prints done so I have some copies. Now to get the skin tones blocked in on the beach painting.....

The Eco-bat. Because sometimes I fold things other than laundry.

Meet the Eco -bat.  He's the second iteration of an origami pattern I found in this fabulous book:  Advanced Origami by Michael LaFosse.   His forms are so charming--it's inspiring.  Of course, my bat didn't come out as well as his, but after only a year of folding paper, I'm not all that advanced...

I love to play around with papers and fabrics--it's a texture thing, I guess.  For this little bat, I was going to use some luscious Japanese washi paper, but the color and feel of a brown paper bag struck me as an interesting compromise.   He's recycled, technically, so he's an eco-bat.

I have a ton of ideas for folding different animals.  I'm a long way from making my own patterns, but with each model I attempt, I know I am getting better at approximating the folds.   What is so exciting to me is the step-by-step nature of origami.  If you follow each step with precision, you can end up with something entirely different from the simple piece of paper you started with.  It feels like a kind of controlled magic.  

Eco-bat started as a piece of 8x8 paper from a grocery bag.  I steamed, starched, ironed, and re-flattened it, and then I followed the 49 steps to get his form.   I wish I could say I could do something like this in one sitting--but he served as a bookmark in the origami book in between several stages.   When I finally put the eyes in yesterday, I was pretty happy with the end result.  The first bat didn't take the folds as well.  If I had the patience, I would do a third and fourth, and each would probably be a bit better.

But my origami bat needed to be completed soon--he's a gift for my dad, who is a bat aficionado.   I'm sending Eco-bat off this weekend to his new home.  

Evening Feeding, a work in progress

Surprising after yesterday's mammoth post, but it sometimes happens that I quiet the words in my head and on the page.    My hands busy themselves, and my mind is silent.

Here is a painting that I've been working on for years (years!), glazing and reglazing very thinned layers in oils.  I usually have four or five paintings on the go, and this is my favorite.  It gets pushed out of line by the other paintings because I'm so invested in it, and I want it to be "perfect."   I'm working on letting go of that.

From time to time, this painting calls to me to finish it, and I think I will answer it soon, paintbrush in hand.  Just thinking about it makes me smile.

Its working title is Evening Feeding.  I'm looking for suggestions on titles--ideas?  

Be Kind, Rewind

Okay, we don't get out much lately. Our days of dining out and seeing movies in the theater are on hold for a few years, mostly because we like to put the kids to be ourselves, but, let's be serious--we run out of energy to stay awake most weeknights!
For the most part, we resort to waiting for DVD releases.
And once in a great while, we find one that's a great, fun movie--like tonight. Be Kind, Rewind, with Jack Black and Mos Def, Danny Glover, and Mia Farrow. What a little gem. Funny and sweet, it's about making community, making a purpose for yourself, and connecting with art (in this case film) while making it yours.
I watched this movie with a goofy grin, and Ada watched it with us. I think she appreciated some of it, but I really can't wait to show her it again when she's older and after she's seen a few of the "real" movies this one remakes. Check out the website to see a preview. It's worth a watch.

The other thing I can't help but see is the similarity of this movie to the notion of collage and reclaimed/repurposed art. I've got a few projects going involving these, and I'm eager to get them done and on the wall. I'll post photos when they're ready.