Spring Project - Woven Fence

 I know, I am totally beating this Spring thing to death. For some reason I've had a really hard time with the cloudy days this winter and after having a beautiful weekend today's weather was like a punch to gut. We had hale. It was frozen. At 12:30 pm it was 58 degrees and at 1:45 it was cloudy, haling, and 45 degrees!

So, for the moment, permit me to live in the past.

 Every year, I clip my lilac bushes and apple trees and end up with this neat pile of perfectly straight, flexible switches. They lie there so compliant and just begging to used for something. Then a couple years ago I saw a picture of these woven fences. I gave it a go, learned a couple things on the way, and now it's an inaugeral spring project for me every year. This weekend I finished mine and planted some early morning glories underneath. And now I will stand back and wait and wait and wait and wait (it's great practice, I'm not very good at this...) for June when I can plant something else.

As you can see, this one still needs some filling in, but hopfully by July it will be barely containing a crop of technicolor zinnias. C'mon sunshine!

Out To Ice Cream

 Tuesday night we went out to get ice cream after the memorial. This is the best ice cream and frozen custard (NOT yogurt) spot in Keene, Rick's Ice Cream. The other really great places are all about 20 minutes out of town, so Rick's is good for a quick fix. Plus, they have really fun retro decorations...

Not to be mistaken for a retro decoration...^^

Looking sleeeepy...^

 London is crazy about ice cream! Well, anything sweet. But she sits like a baby bird pointing to her open mouth while she's waiting for the next morsel.

 

Big brother takes good care of her.

Signing off.
Cass

Weekend Snaps

Sketch Portfolio

In ancient Greece when someone was creative it was said that they had a genius, some kind of ethereal creature that would inhabit the walls of their creative space, helping them or guiding them in their work.

This kind of approach to the creative process lifted an enormous bulk of complicated emotions that artist nowadays carry. If someone is a genius then they have the possible stress of wondering what it would say about them should their next production be less appealing or meaningful than their last. Or perhaps it turns out very well and now they have to struggle with keeping their ego in check should lest they lose their friends.

Anyways, I didn't come up with the idea for this project on my own: I saw it in a genius of a book entitled "Improv Sewing". I loosely adapted it to fit the needs of my little artist, and am happy to say that my genius didn't let me down.

This was my first time "drawing" with the sewing machine (see bubbles and letters on front). You set the tension of the presser foot as light as it will go, or you don't engage it at all. Your stitches should be small, 1 1/2 or 2 at the biggest. Keep the needle going fairly quickly and move slowly. It's unsettling at first to have it stitching so fast without moving your fabric to match, but you get used to it and it makes the smoothest result.

Ta-dah!

Next time I will do the drawing before I attatch the inner lining(in this case the pink piece) because I can see the reverse image inside when the book isn't in. But oh well.

 

So next time you're feeling all Van Gogh about a creative hurdle tell your genius it's time for it to pitch in and pull it's own weight. You showed up for your bit; if it doesn't turn out the way you pictured, don't take off your ear for it.