Brokem finger on (of course) my right hand

 I'm not posting a photo because you really don't want to see this finger. When the ortho surgeon

walked in the room he said 'oh no' after seeing the x-ray. Life is not the same. So, until after 

surgery and healing no sewing. Baa!

Kawanabe Kyosai

Kyosai is the artist who made the woodblock in my last post (1831 - 1889).

There's another print of the tiger being captured 'live' by a Norwegian.

Tiger (captured live) considers his future dinner

 I considered how to work with his woodblock print (I'll post the artist and

name when I come out of my  turkey stuper'. Without using paper piecing.

I think this works althought the lights could have been darkened a little. I can see why Jude uses single strand embroidery floss. It's so much easier to match colors.

I hope you're enjoying this day It's sunny and cold in Eastern Va. Great sewing weather.

Princess Tamatori Steals Ryujin's Jewel

 There's a LOT going on in this woodcut by Utagawa Kuniyoshi. I love the action

and the lines of movement in it. The story is that the dragon, Ryujin, an Ocean Kami (god)

very well loved in the culture of Japan has had his jewel stolen. You can see this jewel tucked

under the Princess' left arm. It's supposed to be a huge pearl. All of Ryujin's ocean helpers,

Jellyfish and small fish, are in the fight to retake the jewel. I just had to sew on this.

I wove  a length of cloth and cut it in half for the top and bottom.

Then added some of the Paper piecing on the sides. The moons always want to be

to be in on things. This desktop will not let me size, center or change

or work with type sizes. I have no idea how this will come up. 

Fingers crossed.

A great find and well worth restoring

 

I noticed this beautiful cloth bag at my local thrift store.

Then I turned it over...

and fell in love. I'll be restoring some of the broken threads.

Every once in a while something as beautiful as this finds me.

Cool and dry now after big rain last night.

Dark Comedy

 

In keeping with the spooky season, I've decided my approach to all this will

be dark comedy. This way I'll stay away from hurt or blame and just try to figure out what the heck 

went on. Social issues were to blame more than anything else but we were a crazy bunch. I'm laughing

already. 

 

Player piano

 The players 

 I'm working on this long project (long story and long fabric).

I grew up in the 50s and 60s. I had a horrible childhood with

many things torturing all of my family members. I mean, it was almost comic.

I don't want to tell the story literally because who the heck wants

to hear. I survived and am here to tell the story. Lately I want to put

it all behind me and forgive. Sewing on this I'm feeling my heart open

and anger softening a little. They've all died now so I need to get this done.

The tentative title is Player Piano. Each week new notches were punched

in our lives. This turned into a ribbon of habit that played itself without me

doing a thing- just providing the forward motion.

At the end I'll see what's left. Maybe the grace of forgiving.

There's so much more to do on this.