I think I have finally settled into a routine back at
home. I get to weave every
day! It feels nice to return to a
regular rhythm in my art studio and at home with my family. The only other big project from the week
was to wash a pail full of rusty things.
Jim says I’m the only person he knows that washes rusty stuff. I found some of my treasures in Champaign,
Illinois, on our trip home from the Madison show. Champaign isn’t as meticulous at keeping all their roads as
spotless as Bloomington does.
We discovered
a secret gravel alleyway close to Papa Del’s where we found some great rusty
things all over the road, including a rusty caster from a chair. When I got home, I also discovered a
use for the boys’ jeans that are blown out at the knees and are no longer
wearable (that’s my opinion, anyway).
They make great drying pads for clean, rusty things! Who knew! Anyway, the rusty pieces will be for a new piece that
features a crocus emerging from the rusty ground. I have an orange, needle-felted crocus in hand from an
earlier project, so I’m hoping I can bring a piece similar to ‘Spring
Treasures’ together pretty quickly.
As I described last week, I had a terrific summer season
that depleted me of my finished weavings.
That translates into a need to make new pieces for the upcoming Fourth Street Festival. That’s my last
summer art fair of the season, held over the Labor Day weekend. I felt very comfortable making some new
birch pieces that feature water as I worked in the cool July air. How often do I ever get to report
that! I found several yarns that
are really good for making sparkly water, which is a nice shade of blue with
sparkly material incorporated into it.
I found it on our trip to Madison at the Knitting Tree. The owner saw my work at the show and offered
for me to come in to scour her place for yarns that might work in my pieces. The previous owner had purchased a lot
of novelty yarns, so there was quite a selection to look through. While I mostly use reclaimed and
recycled materials and dye and overdye a lot of my own yarns, sometimes I need
small amounts of materials to create a specific effect, like sun on the
water.
I’m really pleased with how
the water on my latest piece turned out.
The whole thing came together came together pretty quickly because I had
some birch trunks left over from a day-long birch wrapping fest earlier in the
year.
My family life has been pretty full too, since the boys
don’t go back to school until next Wednesday, August 7th. Last night we went to the Monroe County Fair to see the pigs and rabbits, and I got my annual elephant ear. I had to go through several rounds of “No,
we are not getting a pet bunny!” and “Yes, they are very cute!” Not always in that order, but you get
the idea. It has been a week of
birthday parties, trips to the pool, and zip lining at eXplore Brown County.
We had an amazing day in the park, with
75 degree weather and sunny, with a gentle breeze to keep it perfect. We had the option to do one run
backwards, free-falling off into oblivion.
That was quite a rush. We
zipped over lakes and threw in stones.
The people who ran the lines were friendly and fun, making it a very
pleasant day.
We went to the
farmer’s market before going to Bollywood at Panache Dance Studio on Saturday morning, and I got pretty excited
when Jim bought a big batch (three quarts) of perfectly ripe blackberries. Unfortunately, he put them in the
freezer for a winter pie.
Ouch! Oh, and the last big
news—I bought a trailer to haul my stuff to art fairs each year. Grandma snooped it out for us in Bay
City, and it’s just what I need.
We were planning on buying a used trailer in rough shape so we could
personalize it with our own graffiti, but this one is very classy. Hmmm. Did I say I didn’t get a pie?
Until next week,
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