Here’s the apron I referenced the other day, back when it was just a bunch of woven strips attached to a rectangle of linen. I am wearing it now. It works.
For an apron to work for me, it MUST have strings long enough to tie in front, so that I can tuck a dish towel into it. Pockets unnecessary.
For the many quilters and fiber artists out there who make work as gifts or to sell, how do you know when something’s A KEEPER?
I knew I wanted this for myself, but sometimes I DON’T. One way to turn something I haven’t admitted I want to keep into a keeper is to price it too high. Ha!
P.S. This apron combines the learning from two Jude Hill classes (Spirit Cloth) — Cloth to Cloth and Contemporary Boro.
‘Don’t think too much’ is a pretty good philosophy.
Just finished “The Art of Fielding” where the story follows an incredibly gifted athlete who learns the hard way about how thinking too much can intercept and poison talent. Thought can interfere with one’s craft as well. Studying, plodding along, reworking, while essential components of completing work, are often not enough to resolve a project in a satisfactory way.
Which is why I pin works-in-progress to quilts that are already on the wall — so that I can look at them while doing the dishes, or talking on the phone, or while exiting the house in a mad dash. You get different ideas and solutions at those times, and they seem to come without trying.
This woven cloth is going to become an apron. Why? Because last night, after pausing in my stitching, I laid it in my lap. K. and I were watching a VERY long movie (“Henry Fool”), waiting for it to end, honestly, and I noticed that I really liked having the cloth there. In my lap. It seemed to belong there.
So, even though I never would have set out to turn this rectangle of linen into an apron HAD I THOUGHT ABOUT IT, I think it’ll be a really nice one. And a keeper.
Have you made any surprise decisions with a work-in-progress lately?
P.S. “Don’t think too much” happens to be a good mantra for the days following dropping a first born at college! In service of not thinking too much, my house is probably going to get pretty clean this week. A tiny compensation for C’s absence.
Still not used to effect of embroidery on these things. Not sure I like.
But I love this hand-dyed thread from India.
Made this little thread sketch over the weekend, using colored pencils to make the floral design pop a little more. Having just heard that Maurice Sendak died, I would love to make a sketch of one of his characters.
This apron was supposed to be for Newton Open Studios, but two things: one, I pricked myself and left a drop of blood on the trim and two, the edging looks too much like sheets from JC Penney. I AM employing a green sheet there for the edge, but I expected it to look a little transformed. Instead, my maroon trim made it look MORE like a sheet!
There are several pouches in various stages of finish.
Back to work!!
PS – I had to change the title because it was attracting fabric seller spammers! Ugh!
