The Finish

Dear Timothy,

Your cloth is finished!

I was trying my best to finish by the end of August. So I guess going over two days is good enough. I did my best. 

Your cloth turned out quiet large. As a matter of fact I had a hard time getting photos of the whole cloth. Turns out the only place that worked was in the Garden Palace on the parlor floor around noon.

Green Moons Forest

Around the big green moon

Dragoneosorus

dra-gone-o-so-rus

On the Back

Corners

Timothy, as with many of my big projects, at the very end and when all is finished and done, I am left without words for a few days. However, I will share here one revelation that merely came to me while trying to get final photos. 

It is about the dueling dragons. It is simple and only you and I will understand. I now recognize their symbolic presence on the backside. They came quietly from the dye pot and when they did, we both knew what they were. But who were they? They are us. You and me. Timothy and Nana. The dueling dragons. 

Another Tree Corner

Here is another tree corner. 

Actually, I have progressed way past this stage. I don't like the middle print with the geometric design.

I do ♥ the dark blue floral that was from my skirt and I enjoyed all the stitching around it. 

I am also enjoying Jude's Magic Diary class and I am getting what I had hoped from it. Which is a focus and inspiration to continue with Tim's cloth as I will never get it finished if I only work on it during the cold months.  

Hello Skirt

This morning I was awake early which means I start my day like someone has turned the clock up a bit.  That's OK.  I did another block weaving before heading to the office.  It is very much like the first one because I laid it out together and planned it that way.  I want to connect them.  This one has another green introduced. My skirt. The one I cut the elastic band off of.  I have now ripped it.  You see I could have put the elastic band back on and shortened the skirt which is the reason that I no longer wore it. 

I wondered this morning before getting out of bed if my counter top would be deep enough for the components.  It is.  I can stand or sit on my stool to baste the block before stitching.  Good lighting here and this is actually where I used to paint before I got the big black desk.

The Beginning

Yesterday I helped Melissa with a garage sale.  She is living in my MIL's house and we never really cleared all of her things since she passed away last fall.  I knew she still had some treasures and she had enjoyed a long life sewing.  So I was pretty sure that I would find some remnants.  I did.  I also found a dress bodice that was still pinned to the pattern and I knew it would be perfect for the ground of my first cloth to cloth weaving shown above.

I knew I might find some stripe or plaid shirts to repurpose into this project.  I'm wondering now if I will ever actually finish this.  My guess is that I won't because I know myself really well.  My passions come and go and I enjoy the moment but get bored and move on to something else.  I will say that I have enjoyed quilting for more years than I can remember and have finished a few and have a few unfinished.

I have great intentions.

With time.

I will finish.

My first two woven components are about 14" square. I know it is hard to tell on the screen. 

The fabric I used for the checkerboard is a wonderful chartreuse green that is poorly shown here. I think I remember master bedroom curtains made of this and that is the type of fabric it is. The weave of the fabric is such that the back/wrong side is black and the front/right side is the green. I have used front and back of the fabric remnant for the checkerboard. I tore the fabric in random size strips to weave. I am not interested in an exact square of squares. 

I have watched in astonishment how Jude uses her textile without any notice or concern of the wrinkles and creases and I am convinced that fact could be one of the mysteries of the beauty of Jude's Spirit Cloths. Therefore, I have set aside my own compulsive disorder regarding ironing the remnants. 

Of course the first thing I did when I got home with my new stash was run all of it through the washer and dryer. Hoping, as I think Jude does, that colors will run and fade and color wash over the whole load. Another mystery to the cohesive integration of Jude's cloths. I'm sure.

Weaving within a weaving adds such mystery.

I think.

I learned a thing or two with this first effort and hope to remember them during my next try.

I have four grandchildren and following the tradition of my own grandmother of making a quilt for each of them is my motivation. Should I finish this one, it will be Tim's.

The blue gingham check is from one of his outgrown shirts. I wonder if he will remember it. He won't know about the other pattern in this 9" component. I think in the woven form here, it looks like a camouflage.

The fact is, the little square was laying handy by my chair and it is repurposed or reused times 3. In it's new life it was a house dress belonging to my Aunt. That would be my Mother's sister who married my Daddy's brother. I don't think Tim every knew her. I used it because it had green in the design and brought its compliment of an orangy red. Aunt Minnie had sewn a quilt top of random repurposed fabrics and gave to me years ago. And last year, I ripped it apart to reuse. So it was just a little 9 inch square that I anchored on the WIP bodice and then wove Tim's shirt into it.

Now they know each other.

I will continue making components and stitching and adding embellishment.

It took me a while to get started with this project. In my mind, I thought I would clean out my closet. And I will. But it is hard to just take the things out before knowing that I will use them. Clothes that I haven't worn for whatever reason in way too long. So I go to the closet thinking I will pull something out and just rip it up.

Can't.

I needed to start first with cloth remnants. I did take this skirt from the hanger and cut the elastic band off. It was a favorite that I haven't worn in several years. I took it off the hanger and held it up to me and thought, "I might still wear this". Then, I put it on and I thought, "No, I won't".

So I quickly cut the band off and washed it. Now the skirt is waiting for me. I have my eye on a black skirt next.