think less. do more. allow the possibilities.

it seems a lot of people are taking stock of our tendencies toward overthinking what we do. i know i have mentioned it before here on manhandled threads. but that doesn't always mean that we are good at following our own advice!

recently, dee mallon wrote a post called "don't think too much" over on her blog. it caused me to stop and take a look at how i've been overthinking my art once again. worrying about whether i'm creating too many unfinished projects. thinking about which ones i should complete next. should i finish them all before starting another...or create a well-thought out schedule to balance old and new project completion? as a wise bear once said: "think.... think.... think. think. think." and "oh bother!"

i really liked dee's idea of living with one's unmanifested art. or rather...with one's ongoing art. and her gentle way of allowing the piece to make suggestions even when you are not looking for them, like how her beautiful woven cloth spoke up and wanted to be an apron while she was taking a break from her stitching to allow a movie to end! while i don't have a lot of wall space in my tiny home, and what i do have is filled with art, folk instruments, antique masks from the ivory coast and the congo, and the like...but i do have a plethora of surfaces! it's time to dig some of those ongoing pieces and live with them on a more daily basis, rather then the odd stolen moments while digging through my project baskets or when i actually take the time to sit in my studio and gaze at my design wall. not that utilizing a design wall is a bad thing...but i am curious to see how taking a more active roll in actually living with my art will make a difference in its culmination.

if nothing else, it will be an interesting experiment in seeing how i function...

namaste'

departure

i thought i would take a little departure from the norm today and try posting an audio file.  i've received requests for a sample of some of my guitar playing and if this works out, then i will most likely start murmuring every now and again about my clothwork as well. hope y'all don't mind sittin' back and playin' the guinea pig for me...

namaste'

sometimes found...

i've been thinking a lot about this ragged cloth lately. well, perhaps not immediately about the cloth itself, but about the emotion that seems to emanate from its fibers. there isn't anything particularly amazing about it. no fabulously wonderful fabrics were used. the crazy stitching is decidedly lacking in the "crazy" department as the creator used only two different stitches. even then, they were executed with a quiet innocence, not masterful skill. the backing is a dark flannel with little outstanding character. the batting too thick. rather than being beautifully quilted, it is plainly tied. there are chunks missing here and there as it was obviously used by someone else as a cutter. it is not an ugly cloth...but a decidedly...average...cloth.  marked  by its journeys and tribulations. tired. lost in a world that reveres youth, blind beauty, and skill.

oh, i'm sure that along the way this tattered cloth was was sometimes found by a kind heart or two. loved. allowed to embrace someone and bring comfort. provide warmth. just as it was also clearly used. abused. tossed on the floor. dragged about by uncaring fingers. put away in a musty trunk. forgotten again. later to be discarded. elated to be found once again by adoring eyes, only to find out those eyes harbored different ideas before cutting into its flesh with shears. tearing bits away from the cloth's filament to be repackaged into something else. distorted. the admiration aborted now that it was no longer whole.

truth be told, even i cast a speculative gaze upon this cloth with thoughts about how i might chop it up and utilize its lingering simple grace in something new. different. had given thought to what might not be salvageable for my own ends and what to do with the remains. but found this cloth to be filled with a gentle whispering. and, listening to these murmurings, can no longer bring myself to malign its nature further. this cloth deserves love and honor for its own sake. not for what i or anyone else can turn it into. there are plenty of other cloths about that would...and will...rejoice at being re-imagined. re-invented. re-purposed. but not this cloth. this cloth has integrity and wishes to continue to love and provide warmth.

i will listen closely. divine its yearnings and allow it to be what it longs to be. help it realize these dreams where i can. honor its life and will be simply be.

i understand this cloth more than you might know. as we travel through this life, there is an affinity residing between those things that wind their way into our lives and our own hearts... i wonder if i will some day be afforded a similar place in someone's life? honored. loved. allowed to be as i am. cherished for who that is...

isn't it odd where hope can be sometimes found...

namaste'

ed. note:  8/27 - 9:30 a.m.:  

gah! obviously, i need to stop watching romantic comedies and listening to adelle while working these long, lonely night shifts! ha!

silent sunday - 8/26/12

buddhist moon?

i've been playing around with a minor mixture of free-motion machine embroidery and hand embroidery on some scraps intended to become a greeting card for a friend with wildwood affiliations, and since there is a blue moon mounting in a few days, it seems to have become a focal point in this little dalliance. why the coneflowers decided to join the party in deep indigo frocks is beyond my understanding. ha!

meanwhile, another friend was asking me why i have such a strong affiliation with lunar cycles and with full and new moons in particular. she seemed to be under the misunderstanding that this sort of "stuff" was for pagans and so forth. but to buddhists, there is special "religious" significance especially on full moon days as many important and outstanding events are said to have occurred on these days. the buddha (referring to the gautama buddha) was born on a full moon day. his renunciation took place on a full moon day. his enlightenment, the delivery of his first sermon, his passing into nibbana, and many other important events associated with his 80 year lifespan all took place on full moon days. because of this, buddhists around the world tend to look more intently at their own spirituality and practice on full moon days. in many buddhist countries, full and new moon days were once declared to be public holidays. in some, this practice is gaining popularity once more.

of course, i live in a country with a very diverse spiritual and cultural panorama so i doubt i shall be getting a day off work every 14 days anytime in the near future. ha! but i still enjoy marking the cycles of the moon and the moon has a prominent place in my art and consciousness. perhaps it's time for me to revisit rabbit moon for the next few days...

namaste'

rediscovering my surroundings

for the past several months, i've realized that i have been nowhere except the cottage where i work and home. for fourteen to sixteen hours a day, i've been inside at work, and the rest of the short days have been spent either travelling between home and work, or in bed, attempting to catch up on my sleep. it is no small wonder why i have been creatively blocked lately.

this week i am seeing for the first time in months, my regularly scheduled work hours...without overtime or team meetings! this means i actually have three days off in a row!! having spent yesterday catching up on much needed sleep, i decided to take a ride around town and share with you the wonderful place in which i live.

billings is the largest and most populated city in montana. it serves as the regional trade center, transportation base, and medical hub. billings is nestled in a valley at the foot of four mountain ranges and is sheltered by a sandstone rim that runs pretty much straight through the entire town and nourished by the yellowstone river.

these views are from the top of the rims, alongside the airport. as you can see, the city stretches out for what seems forever under the big sky of montana. though our idea of a "big city" differs, i'm sure, from what most people think of as one, seeing as our population hovers around a meager 84,000+ residents. fortunately for us, this gives billings a wondrous small-town sense of safety and country friendliness not available in what most folks think of as a "big city." it's a place where vast ranches and lush farmland mix comfortably with tall office buildings (granted, there are only a few), and where horse trailers can be seen as frequently as diesel buses. we boast the finest of medical facilities in the four state area, museums, landmark attractions, symphony, opera, local theater, fine dining and more.

as beautiful as all this is, i have decided, however, to live outside the city's limits. in all my travels, i've had my fill of big cities and enjoy living on the outskirts...affording me the opportunities of a big city, but the quiet of the country at the same time. fifteen miles outside of town, just a short stroll down the road from my house, the countryside opens up into vast farmland, currently planted predominantly with corn.

jumping on the back of my vintage kawasaki and the short ride of a mile or two and these farms begin to give way to ranches...

though, closer to home, you are more likely to find small farms and pastures...

so i am surrounded by natural beauty, gorgeous countrysides, and innumerable opportunities for inspiration! i only have to get outside and soak it up! somewhere, i lost this focus. i used to spend countless hours walking along side the yellowstone river. riding the old bike out into the country, exploring roads that i had not yet been down. walking downtown, watching people and soaking up the historical offerings of an old western town. recording thoughts in spoken word on my ipod and sketched ideas in my art journal. or just taking my guitar up on the rims or out into the countryside and noodling around on the strings while the dogs romp and play without fences to hinder them. instead, i've allowed myself to be boxed in by walls. but today, with you along for the journey, i've begun to break out of those walls and rediscover my surroundings!

thank you for joining me...

namaste'

10 things you don't know about me

i have been rather quiet this past week.  not because i felt like neglecting all y'all...i've just been really focused on the restoration and modification of my kawasaki and didn't realize i haven't blogged in several days!
i know i've got some new readers, so i thought it might be fun to share 10 things you probably don't know about me.

1.  aside from fiber art, i'm also a woodworker. i used to turn lacemaking bobbins (mostly east midlands style) on my mini-lathe. i also like to whittle and carve...and i enjoy making rustic furniture from salvaged barn and other wood!

 2.  i collect and play musical instruments. i have 16 mountain dulcimers, 4 guitars, 3 ocarinas, 2 doumbek drums, a german zither, a lyra harp, and a chord organ (not including various assorted indigenous african and east indian percussive instruments such as rattles, chimes, etc.). i am currently focusing on blues style guitar. i was also given a lovely harmonica by my father on my last trip home, which i do not yet play, but intend to learn some day.

 3.  i spin and have recently reduced my spinning wheel collection down to one 114 year old swiss castle wheel, one 100+ year old oversized prairie wheel, one 6 year old custom charka wheel made by my ex, and several assorted drop spindles. i really love spinning, though have not had much time lately to do so which is why i have sold off my 4 other wheels. i hope to have time to spin again in the future.

 4.  i love to weave and have several looms. my favorite forms of weaving are rug-weaving and tapestry. i have recently divested myself of several larger looms and will be selling some of my table looms shortly due to space constrictions. one day i hope to have a full-sized garage again so i can begin weaving scandinavian rag rugs again on my old union no.36 rug loom.

5.  i am an avid wool-gatherer. not so much as in one who goes out and gathers wool that has been snagged on shrubs and bushes...but as in one who spends a tremendous amount of time thinking...gathering thoughts and pondering upon them. yes. it's true...i think. a lot.

6.  i *adore* all things japanese! you wouldn't guess it by my home at the moment as most of my japanese treasures are tucked away in storage. though you can find bits and pieces of my collections scattered throughout the house. a kimono here. a kwan yin there. a vintage cricket cage or two over yonder (ok...so those are chinese!). japanese paddle puppets on the wall in the sewing room... you get the idea. wondrously odd little snippets of my passion mixed in unexpectedly amongst a house full of rustic cottage decor!

 7.  i absolutely *refuse* to go out in public without first taking at least a shower, shaving, brushing my teeth, and putting on cologne.  not so much because i'm trying to impress anyone or because i'm prissy. those who know me, know i'm far from that! but because it makes me feel good. finished. ready to "meet the world".  i'm hardly a coiffed and manicured type...i tend to be a bit more rough around the edges rugged...but i do like to be clean and presentable. given my interest invintage motorcycles and tattoos, this frequently surprises people.

 8.  i really detest talking on the phone. i prefer texts, emails and tweets to talking on a phone. and more often than not, if i do use the phone and get voicemail, i'm highly unlikely to actually leave a message! i detest talking to machines even more than i do on phones!

 9.  if i could live anywhere in the world, it would be somewhere high in the mountains of japan in a small village overlooking terraced farms of one sort or another. i love ancient japanese architecture and the quiet, respectful culture of outlying villages that have not been westernized beyond recognition.

 10.  i am ambidextrous. admittedly my handwriting as written by my left hand is not as neat as my right, but mostly because i don't write left-handed very often and so my left hand is out of practice. however, i eat, use tools, open doors, play tennis, fence, shoot, and so on, with both hands equally.

 so, there you are. i hope this provided a little window or two into my world and helped you to know what makes me tick a little better.  or perhaps just to present you with that elusive "aha!" moment as you read my blog and suddenly realize why i do things the way i do!

 namaste'

silent sunday - 8/19/12

pondering

i've been pondering over the subject of this new venture. sketching ideas. entertaining the possibilities. unfortunately, this is where i usually find myself going astray. possibilities are limitless. a world without limitation may as well be a vacuum for the mind boggles and quits the task at hand in favor of watching ants toiling away at leaves...or any other simple scene that will take away the enormity of choices presented to it. to this end, i have chosen a buddha as my subject for this first large piece. it seemed fitting as the primary smaller piece i've been continuing with is the modern thangka, mind flowers (here).

it has been easy for me to observe my own tendency to become stricken with fear whenever i begin a new project. first there is the spark of inspiration. a moment that is filled with promise and joy and wonder! this, naturally, is my favorite moment in creating art. next is the exploration of the idea. here is where i begin to get bogged down. sometimes even abandon all hope of ever manifesting my original thought. but when i am able to muddle my way through this stage, the road begins to open once again and space is created for the inspiration to manifest. of course, this is an oversimplification for there are many other pitfalls along the way: boredom, overthinking, derailment by other ideas, etc.  i think i have come through that first hurdle with this particular project...

i have decided upon the blue sketch in the middle. i would love to say that there were cheers from the peanut gallery, or more grandly, symphonic strains of violins in the clouds, heralding a miraculous choice... and perhaps there were, somewhere in my imagination. but in a more consensual reality, i decided that i liked the simplicity of line and the quiet mood of the sketch. i know there is nothing spectacularly different about this sketch...but i want to be able to explore the foundation of this piece and allow the personality of salvaged cloth to define this element. to not lose the character of the cloth to the subject, so to speak.

now to begin burrowing through cloth and thread. here is the second pitfall to which i alluded. unfortunately, i have seemingly limitless choices in this department as well...and so i must keep my wits about me and make definitive choices so as not to get lost in the sea of salvaged cloth in my studio. ha!

namaste'