Wishing Stars

Wish Number One

Dear Timothy,
I was inspired to add three wishing stars to your cloth. The thing is, I couldn't visualize what the stars would look like nor where to put them. 

Thinking I would add three small stars to the Jungle somewhere, I thought to rummage in the box of small scraps that I keep handy.  

Three Wishes.

Imagine my surprise when I discovered these three stars in the box. I had forgotten all about them. And if I had remembered, I would not have had a clue where to look for them. I put them in the box in the first place because I wanted to incorporate them in your quilt. Up to now, I could not visualize where to include them. 

I can't be for sure who pieced these stars. That is I'm not sure if it was one of your great grandmothers or my Granny. My Granny is your great great grandmother. What I do know is I made myself a top with the red, white and blue cloth in the middle star. And I recognize the plaids in the other two stars. I can see my Mother in those blouses as if it were yesterday. 

These three stars are beautifully hand pieced and near 50 years old. Serendipity is an odd feeling. These stars were just waiting for me as if I would know what to do with them when the time came. 

And I did. I knew immediately. I pieced the three stars together, called them wishing stars and included them on the backside where the traditional log cabin quilt pattern is growing. A perfect place for these vintage, four-point stars. 

Never stop wishing Tim. Wishes can come true. 

Infusion

a stitched booklet to celebrate a memory with a friend

 a friend named bloom and the great labyrinth story

Unknown Jungle Bird

Unknown Jungle Bird

The Ballarina Bird

The Ballarina Bird

Hides in the Jungle where all sorts of strange birds live.

A Rusty Moon

Dear Timothy,
As you know, I have been stitching. A lot. I am making progress because I have finished this Jungle Corner.

I did add this rusty moon to the corner. You will probably notice it is a bit of GP's shirt that I used on the backside except I laid it outside on some rusty stuff first. I love the rusty colors on this corner. 

Tim, I love you being here and seeing this as I progress.

Fall Jungle

Dear Timothy,
It was time to switch back to the front side. Since I didn't have components ready to connect, I'm adding this third side of the Jungle, the Fall side, a bit different. 

I started by attaching the base which by the way is from the underskirt of the Jesus Bed that you slept in as a tiny new boy. I really like the inclusion of it here even though it will be unseen as the piece in the middle that holds it all together. 

Then, I basted one of the sample fabrics in place before ripping the strips. I really enjoy the weaving of cloth. 

Corner Connection

Tim, just so you know, the new black and white piece added is from my friend, Susie's blouse. She was about to discard it as worn out but I knew I could give it new life. 

Timothy, I hope we have found new life together this week. You have my heart.

Thank You Tim

Dear Timothy,

Thank you so much for going with me yesterday to the Habitat Restore. I didn't go for these beautiful bits of fabric but as you saw, I couldn't help but pick up a few. In fact, twenty-seven is a few. I mean, at a quarter each how could I not partake. 

This first one is my very most favorite. I love the colors. I love how it feels so soft even though it is thick. I love the weave that is part of the design. And I have an idea about what I might make with it. 

I chose mostly linen, silk and cotton but that favorite piece has 63% viscose which I couldn't tell you what that was yesterday. Today, I can tell you that it is a special type of rayon. 

And I especially love the Ralph Lauren samples. They are a very generous size that I'm sure I will create something wonderful with. 

Another favorite is this sheer linen. I wish it were larger.

And now that I'm home with these bits of fabric treasure, I wish I had pillaged the whole lot. It is probably best I didn't though.

Thank you Tim for being such a good and helpful sport. 

Dueling Dragons

Dear Timothy,

The log cabin is growing. I now have to piece the shirt strips together to have a piece of the same shirt long enough to add. Slowly but surely I hope to finish this in our lifetime. 

 I really didn't think there would be a story on the backside as I only intended to quilt it to cover the messiness. 

But look! Dueling dragons. I thought that was what they were and I was thrilled when you saw the dye bath splotches and said they looked like dragons. 

Tim, I love that our imagination is "in sync".

Rorschach Inkblot

Dear Timothy,
I am making progress quilting the backside of your cloth where my story continues to develop. 

First of all, you probably won't recognize that I am adding the pieces of Grand Pa's shirt backs in a traditional Log Cabin patchwork design. When I planned this, it did not occur to me how symbolic the log cabin would be. In this case, GP's shirts representing home is so meaningful in a way only you might understand. 

I knew when this shirt came out of the dye bath it would take center stage. I saw the figure. I knew the flowers were about me. But the heart shape face had me perplexed; therefore, I left that area unstitched until last week when I finally understood the simple fact that this is the backside of the cloth and of course is the backside of the figure.

Today, as I look at this square I realize how much this looks like a Rorschach inkblot. My mind is tumbling with that thought and what my interpretation of it means about me. 

Tim, just know that sometimes we have to wait for inspiration. And I think you should also remember that everything we do says something about us. 

GP's Got Your Back

Dear Timothy,
I've known for a long time that I would use GP's old shirts for the back side of your cloth. But first I needed to over dye them in a green bath to bring them together in a color-way.  I ripped the backs from the shirts to start with, holding in reserve the fronts and arms. 

Tim, always know that GP's "got your back".  

I had no idea until I placed the first shirt back onto the center of the backside how attached I was to the stitches showing there. I frequently flipped it over to admire my handiwork. Aside from being beautiful in my eyes, to see all those stitches was some way of measuring my progress. Whenever I share your cloth with anyone, I always flip it for their response to the gazillion stitches. 

The stitches are becoming on the inside as I cover them with new stitches and GP's shirt backs.

Tim, sometimes we have to let go and just keep the beauty an inside memory.

Sometimes, I can't leave well-enough alone. I really thought I wanted to add color. I rolled and wrapped with twine this shirt-back before dropping it into the green dye bath. And I was getting excited about the image that emerged. I was thinking about how a story was coming forth on the backside of your cloth. And how this story was about me, the maker of Tim's Cloth.  And you know all of my stories are in color. But now, I wish I had resisted the color and just kept stitching. 

Tim, I'm going to remember that sometimes I should resist my first impulses. And maybe you should too. But most of all, I'm going to remember that "there is always two sides to every story".