The creative and spiritual journey of a (textile) recycler. . .

I have thought about starting a blog for a long time now. I just couldn’t seem to get started. I thought. . what would I say, what would I do and really . . . . . who would care.

Last year I had the great fortune to witness a ‘happening’. As a spouse at a reunion (I know, groan) I was both an observer and participant. This reunion was attended by some of the most creative and talented people on the face of the planet. Really, no exaggeration! But many were holding onto life long insecurities. They didn’t think they were talented enough and embarrassed to perform in front of each other for fear of . . who knows . . . finger pointing, whispers, laughter, ridicule of some sort for sure. Once it was revealed that many shared the same feelings, the healing began. And I was the lucky one. I got to witness it all and benefit as well.

So, the message is that we all think we are not good enough compared to someone else, but we are. Don’t let your fears and insecurities stop you. We can’t measure our own success by someone else’s talents.

This revelation and the kindness / support of strangers has propelled my creative journey to a place I had given up ever getting to. Tho I thought my creative juices were dried up forever, they have merely been reawakened. Many thanks to all involved in my process, including in-part . . Victoria B, Mrs. W., Charles Mc., Claudia H, Mary B, Cindy G, Sandy B, Traci B., Kat C, and my IAA family. So, thank you. I dedicate this blog to all of you!

Sunday, February 1, 2015

"Post 3 Pieces of Art a Day" Challenge - Day 3

The lovely Caryn Smith, artist extraordinaire, nominated me to take part in the "Post 3 pieces of art a day" for 5 days. Today is day three.

Since my moniker is Textile Recycler,
here are few small portrait quilts made from
recycled fabric, scraps & paint with freemotion to enhance the images.




So there you go. I did it!
It's day 3 and nothing bad has happened to me yet.

To keep the challenge moving,
I also have to nominate a new artist each day.
Watch out I might be nominating you next!

Or better yet, don't wait.
Challenge yourself to do something outside of your comfort zone.
The benefits maybe be bigger than you can imagine.

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

"Post 3 Pieces of Art a Day" Challenge - Day 2

So again, I've been nominated by Caryn Smith to take part in the "Post 3 pieces of art a day" for 5 days. For me, this was a much bigger challenge than she knew. I'm just not compfortable blasting photos of my work in the internet.... for lots of reasons.

So I held my nose, and jumped into the waters... and here we are, day 2!

Since my moniker is Textile Recycler,
here are few 'recycled' pieces of clothing that I have dyed and painted.





So there you go. I did it! It's day 2 and I'm still alive.
To keep it moving, I also have to nominate a new artist each day.
So watch out artists out there. 
I might be nominating you!

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

"Post 3 Pieces of Art a Day" Challenge - Day 1


I've been nominated by Caryn Smith to take part in the "Post 3 pieces of art a day" for 5 days. Yipes! I haven't really produced anything in quite a while and I'm a bit shy to post what I make anyway. What should I do? Accept, not accept, just freak out.....oh my... the pressure is killing me.

Then again, maybe this nomination is a good thing. Maybe it will force me out of my comfort zone... or maybe it will cause me to retreat more. Only time will tell. That artist insecurity creeps up and those voices start whispering in my ear telling me to run... and fast. But I'm going to ignore them for a change. I know, it's a shock to me too!

Since my moniker is Textile Recycler,
here are few pieces of recycled fabric that I have dyed. 




What my yard can look like on any hot summer dye day.



So there you go. I did it! I took the plunge!
To keep it moving, I also have to nominate a new artist each day.
So watch out artists out there. 
I might be nominating you!

Sunday, January 4, 2015

Making Lemonade out of Lemons

So for all of my positivity going into the new year, it sure started crazy. And not so positive.

Within the first 24 hours of the new year, my car is dead. I guess it's been quite a while since I drove it.

The same day, I missed a step in the house and went down to the ground. Hard. Ouch. My foot and ankle were twisted underneath me and oh oh... I went into shock. All I could do was wonder with morbid absurdity which I was going to do first, pass out or throw up. Both were rushing upon me quickly. Meanwhile the foot/ankle area was swelling fast. At least I had the where-with-all to pull myself up on a step, get off my foot, then roll into a ball to try to protect myself from what could have gotten much worse, like fall head first down another staircase.

So, to make a boring story a lot better, I've used my time in bed wisely. Yes, in bed. I've had my foot elevated and been pouring lavender oil on my back, side and hip to minimize the bruises. I can't really put much weight on the foot yet, so I'm doing 'bed' activities.. no not that kind!

I started a little creative project at the end of December. It was thanks to a FB artist friend. She was well aware of my creative insecurity and how my life issues have gotten in the way of doing anything creative. To bring it all home, I made a little video of the project:

This post is dedicated to you Mariette Hebert