In A Bind.

Reader, I finally did it.  I bound the first of the ME pieces, described here.  I used the feather fabric I found, kindly donated by a friend among some scrap she gave me from her stash. 

The binding is far from perfect, and perhaps that's not surprising; it's probably the first time in over twenty years that I've chosen to bind a piece. I don't like binding, but this piece seemed to need it.  And, imperfections apart, I don't like the binding on here, either, but it does add another layer of meaning.  It speaks of limitation, which is the core issue of ME.  I've always thought that binding on an art quilt limits the eye.  By that, I mean that it stops any movement contained in the quilt, at the edge.  I like to encourage the eye, and the mind, to wonder about what's going on outside the edges; the binding stops it dead.  How does that meaning, that movement, continue?  Does it stop, or does it continue into infinity?  I'm not all that fond of mounts and frames, either, but I think they're better than binding.  This piece, though, didn't seem to want to be framed; it's too tactile for that. 

I've said that limitation is a key element of ME: let's continue that theme.  Robin brought in a postcard-sized piece of Lutradur he found in the car...no, I have no idea how it got there.  This is what I've done with it :

It is made from some bits that were lying on my side table, left over from previous projects, plus a starfish from my bead and bit collection.  I started by stitching on the blue hand dyed silk organza, and then added the strip of fabric.  At that point, I realised what I was making.  This is a postcard from another lifetime, my pre ME lifetime, when I could do what I wanted, when I wanted.  I love the beach, and for the first time in our married life (39 years this year) we live near the sea.  In particular, I love beach combing...but I can't do it any more.  I can't walk far enough, and the number of wheelchair accessible beaches are very, very minimal (you need a special wheelchair.  Turns out there are two in Scotland).  Either way, though, I don't see myself visiting the beach any more...so this is a postcard from my previous, beach combing existence.  It's very simple; the sea, the sand, the starfish.  It was photographed on top of my laptop, so that you could see it clearly, but I need to think carefully about what I'll put behind it.  I think this is probably the first piece in a series, and unlike the quilt, it will happily take to small frames, probably box frames....the ideal would be to make frames from driftwood. 

I feel the need to say that this is not about self pity; it is about making something meaningful out of a bad experience.  The ME is unlikely to just go away, so I need to find ways to live with it that are meaningful for me...and this is it.  I have been contemplating a blog specifically 'about' ME, but the jury's still out.  There are a lot of ME blogs around, some more useful than others, and I'm not sure that I'd be adding any value.  Mind you, there's a lot of art blogs around to, but that fact has never stopped me blogging...

I'm pretty sure I have some more postcard sized bits of lutradur around, so I dare say I'll be making some more of these.  I think perhaps the frame needs to have a luggage label attached, with a personal story.  Clearly the making of books, and their associated poems, are having an effect on the rest of my work.  We'll see.

Nearly Done.

The first of the ME quilts is nearly complete; here it is. 

It pretty much turned out as I thought it would, though I did do one thing differently.  I had intended to put a spiral in that top left hand box, indicating energy, but when I began to stitch it, it somehow didn't feel right.  So, it became an oval, suggesting a head (in my mind, at least), with a bright red cross through the centre, to suggest the lack of energy that is one of the hallmarks of ME.  It echoes the three red to purple crosses in the bottom right hand side box.  The fabric in there has a postmark; it is intended to be a letter or message 'about' my previous, energy and activity filled life.  

So... the only thing left to do is to bind it.  Now that should be interesting, as I haven''t made any binding in nearly twenty years... so I'll be having a bit of a refresher course in that, YouTube here I come...   Meantime, I didn't think I had anything suitable for binding, but rooted out a couple of strips of fabric that I was gifted as scrap from a FB friend.  I think you'll agree, it goes perfectly in terms of colour.  It works very well in terms of symbolism, too; the feathers suggest flight, and my mind can fly, even if my body can sometimes barely walk.  The perfect fabric to edge this profoundly meaningful quilt.  It may, of course, only be meaningful to me, but that's enough.

Nearly There...

just the bias binding to do.  I've got that on the kiddy waistcoat, but I'm not showing that one, as my daughter in law has a tendency to sneak a peek at my blog, and I want it to be a surprise...

this one is for my mother in law, who isn't quite as keen on computers, and who presumably won't peek... and if she does, hopefully won't admit to it!

I'd forgotten the time consuming fiddly bits involved in this... not as much binding as on a quilt, but curved edges.  And then, of course, the inside seams.  I like my waistcoats to be reversible, in theory at least.  I do the quilted clothing equivalent of a flat fell seam, cutting back the gubbins inside the seam, along with one side of the front fabric, before stretching the remaining piece over the whole seam, and stitching it down by hand, thus completely covering it.

It's still a bit bulky, but I prefer doing it that way, to binding the seams with yet another piece of fabric, which makes it bulkier still.  Flat fell seams are usually top stitched; I don't do that to these just because of the bulkiness.  Hand stitching is quicker and easier, and looks better, too.

Now, all I have to do is add the binding, and we'll be done. One gift down, lots to go...