This is Ark Redux. Neither the buyer nor I could stand the gloom of round one. Now, the silk chiffon ‘rain’ is limited by the insertion of a brighter, focus panel behind the ark. I didn’t double the chiffon this time, so it’s a paler shade of grey. And, there will be a dove.
Smaller dimensions were also requested – which is a boon to the process of lap quilting! Some folds and junctures between fabrics are left ‘open’ during basting, in order to allow the insertion of paler fabrics.
I was thoughtful enough to stitch the windows onto the ark prior to assemblage. Why? Because a needle stitching in that area will now be passing through three or four layers of top fabric (and one of them batik) plus backing and batting.
The yellow silk version was rejected after my husband in passing asked, “Is that supposed to be the sun?” Well, no, but thank you for letting me know that the yellow isn’t working!
Speaking of boats and water, these people have the right idea for a hot, hot day. This picture was taken from the Old North Bridge in Concord, Mass. last week, but it’s another hot, hot day today. I’m running a small fan of water from the sprinkler again today, moving it on the hour — mostly for the birds, who have been congregating wherever its moist coolness is being delivered. Usually we just let our lawn brown out late in the summer, but this year our shrubs and trees seem to be at risk and it’s only mid-July!
[Re: “this is what climate change looks like at the personal level,” check out Elizabeth Kolbert in this week’s New Yorker – Talk of the Town section].
Most of the basting on the Ark quilt is done. This little nursery print (above) was pulled out for auditioning, for obvious reasons. Maybe I will use a larger piece to cover the back when I am done. I’m not sure I want all the stitching to be there, on view, even though it will be against the wall. The hideous 1970’s jacket that provided the bulk of the Ark is wonderful for the suggestion of wooden construction. I am weaving up some more rectangles for the sides, and decided to introduce more of that lavender. On another front, my indigo arrived from Dharma Trading, along with some white powders. If I can stand the heat, my plan is to set up a dye station in the back yard today, under the leafy catalpa. I will string rope from deck to D.’s mini-ramp (think ‘small half pipe’) to hang fabric from, and cover a folding table with plastic so that it can stay out in all kinds of weather. A neighbor and former student (she is 16 and will be a junior this year) has agreed to be my intern for a few weeks this summer and she will be helping me – pretty great, right?!!
P.S. A garter snake traveled past me this morning while I was waiting for Jack to complete his business — remarkable enough – I haven’t seen a snake around here in a long time. But then! It slithered right between both sets of Jack’s legs, narrowly missing being plopped on. And, perhaps most remarkable of all? I don’t think Jack really noticed.
This commission was made for a neighbor to give in gratitude to a bass-playing, Qigong instructor. I was told to give him a cigar, glasses, and to make him cool. Here’s his picture:
Jon Voight, Qigong instructor, bass player
Cool Cat with Cigar
It took three tries (first one was too feminine, second one looked like a “black dude with a tail” (it had no ears)), but it was worth it, I think.
If you’re interested in Jon Voight or Qigong in the Boston area, you can find more here: art-energy.org.
Originally, I was going to use all decorator scraps — but it didn’t feel youthful enough, so to enliven the design, I added some cows, some spinning stick figures (a chunk leftover from the Preschool Commission Quilt) and the Australian ocher birds . It was Danny’s idea to add the blue. Looking at it now, I think a little more of the mid-range green should have come out to the top edge. Tomorrow, I’ll quilt and bind it.
A neighbor commissioned a quilt to present to a preschool on his younger child’s ‘graduation’. The Dad wanted something to thank the school for eight years of terrific child care. The specifications were as follows:
bright colors (but not pre-school yucky colors)
youthful
no balloons
feature the words, “Well Loved”
The words were spoken during the first parent ‘pass off’ — “Don’t worry, S. will be well loved!”
