Therapy Stitching



Sunburst Spirals

We had a meeting with the contractor who is building our new house yesterday morning which gave me alot to think about.  I do my best thinking when I am cutting or stitching so when we were done, I headed downstairs and this is what I did while I was thinking.  I dyed the fabric 2 years ago, and had cut it up and sewed it back together quite a while ago.  It languished for some time because I wasn't sure what I thought of it, and what to do next.  Yesterday, I layered and quilted, then today I couched the spirals.  I am still not sure what I think, and I may not even finish it, but I do have a clear head!

This business of planning a house is hard work.  We want what we want, but don't want to build a giant house that will make it necessary to work until we are 90 to pay for it!  I am excited that I am getting a studio, finally.  I have had a space of my own for a few years, but it is in the dungeon with no windows, and in the winter I have to start an electric heater well in advance of actually spending time down there because it is cold.  It is a very small space and I have stored my fabric in totes that are piled up so when I am searching for fabric, I have to wrestle the totes around.  My new studio is a long skinny room-10 x 20, I think.  Lot of room, and although it is on the first floor of the house, it will have alot of morning light-perfect for me since I work nights and my studio time is generally in the morning.  The laundry room is immediately adjacent to the studio so my intent is to do my dying in there. 

We are building on the same site that we live in now, so very soon we will have to pack up and move out of the house.  We do have a place to go during construction, but still I feel like I will be homeless.  On my mind is what I need to keep with me during construction in terms of art supplies.  My sewing machine, thread, beads, some fabric-won't have much space to keep thing so I must keep it simple.  But some sort of a sewing kit will be essential to my sanity.  I am trying to get several pieces started so I can decide what I will need to complete them.

Another thing I have been trying to do is destash.  I know I have way too much fabric, especially since I have started dying and printing fabric.  I went through everything and sent 6 large flat rate boxes to Anchorage to my daughters, but I know more has to go.  I have so much fabric that I don't see half of what I have.  I am thinking that I will have a different sensibility about my fabric stash after I live without it completely for 6 months.  Perhaps when I move into the new studio and see how much storage space I have, it will be easier to let go.