A quick catch up

Well, I'm still in a frenzy thinking it will slow down but am coming to realize that this crazy life is probably going to be my norm. It just is. Yesterday, I started my one morning a week job teaching art to home schooled kids. It was really fun. I will enjoy working with the kids. The youngest I work with are the 3/4 year old age group. Right now, I only have one child signed up in that group so she and I did our thing yesterday. There is nothing like a 3 year old literally squealing with delight as she saw color changing when she mixed paint! :) I wanted to just squeeze her! And it's so fun doing stuff with a little girl for a change. Anyway, this is my every Wednesday morning job and I'm going to love it!



I will begin attending a new support group for woman which is being led by my therapist. It begins Monday night... she had so many women interested, she had to go into two nights for two groups! Anyway, she asked if I might have time to make some kind of name tag so no one had to just do the peel and stick thing. Since the group is focusing on healing hearts, I immediately got a visual of pieced fabric hearts that hang around the neck instead of pin on. Without much thought, I grabbed the first thing on my sewing table to use as a base, which happened to have just arrived in the mail.... recycled black felt. I received it from a fellow artist, Susan, who gets it supplied by a man that works with canoes and such. Apparently, the various boats arrived in this black felt. He didn't want to throw so much of it away so he passes it on to Susan, who, in turn, had so much that she passed some on to me! With this as my base, I began just cutting out hearts with no pattern so all of them are unique, different shapes and sizes of hearts. I then began haphazardly piecing them. As I began working on them, I started seeing underlying symbolism in how these were being made.
1.) the black felt: the color represents the sin done against us, sin we have committed, and the pain we each carry. I also like the fact that the felt came from protection of a vessel. But not just any vessel, one that floats and moves someone from one place to the next.
2.) no pattern: having no pattern for these tags allows the uniqueness to come out in each piece. No two are alike... just like us!
3.) the piecing: having random pieces all put together are like little fragments.. representing all those little fragments of our own hearts that are broken and wounded... but God can take all the little fragments and put them together into something beautiful when we allow Him to.
4.) random paths of quilting with thread... the weaving together; truth as a thread, giving stability.
I will be adding small rectangles of either torn fabric stitched on or paper sewn for names to be added.

I just have to show this... it's a very funky embroidered leather vest complete with a fur trim... 70's, obviously. A friend gave it to me from a yard sale! I'm thinking a new tote bag.....and lots of cat toys from that black fur!

And, here's a glimpse into my frenzied working space when I have so many things happening at once! Since my studio is my main living space and I have a 10 year old's spend the night birthday party here tomorrow night, I have lots of work to do so the boys have room to sleep! Gotta' go get busy!


Still working on one more proposal for AU too... Tuesday is the deadline! OK, off to clear sleep space for a bunch of loud, rowdy boys!