When Two Passions Collide

I enjoy both weeding and needleweaving, but they don't play well together. Each lays claim to my time and energy, and when weeding season begins my needlework suffers.

At the end of a day of weeding, pins and needles in my hand and shoulder make intricate tasks difficult. Often the pins and needles I use in weaving just drop from my hands.

Jewelrymaking seems better suited to the winter months when outdoor activities are limited and my wrists aren't overworked from gardening. When summer provides inspiration for needleweaving projects I want to get started on them right away—but those weeds are calling (and growing).

Weaving both demands and instills patience. The repetitive areas of a piece allow the mind to wander and the more intricate parts are mentally challenging. It's both relaxing to free associate, and stimulating to find solutions to design problems. A lot like weeding—only the challenges found in gardening are mostly physical.

Whether weeding or needleweaving feels like work or play depends on both the mind and body. Both activities help to heal mental stress but aggravate physical stress. When choosing between two favorite passions, the patience I've gained from both helps me to allow each its own season.

I Have an Idea!

Even with only 5 posts so far, you may have begun to suspect that I'm all talk but no action. It's true! Where is my needlewoven bluebird that I wrote so optimistically about in my first post? Still on the drawing board.

Ideas have always seemed to come to me when I don't have time to begin work on them (as in the middle of the night). That glimmer of an idea may fade away before I get around to starting a project. I know there are too many ideas to use, but I still don't want to lose them.

Recently I took a workshop with a local artist, in part to learn methods for conducting workshops myself, which I planned to do. The artist worked in a different medium than I did, but I figured teaching techniques were universal. I learned many things, both about collage (her medium) and instruction.

I learned one way to save my project ideas to use later. She had captured inspirations on an Idea Board, a large bulletin board covered with photos, fabric swatches and paper scraps, pinned together in appealing color combinations and arrangements. Future projects were represented by sketches and material samples, posted there as reminders of her original inspirations. It was a work of art in itself.

True to form, I did get a bulletin board—but there it sits leaning against a bookcase (my wall space is very limited). I also purchased a peacock feather to place on the board. It's a motif that I'd like to use in a necklace design (someday). Even though my Idea Board hasn't really gotten off the ground yet, it's still serving its purpose. When I see it I'm reminded of Dixie's Idea Board and the class I attended.

I believe that thoughts are circular, and even though I may never get around to following up on an idea, another will come along, perhaps at a time when the 'stars' of materials, motivation and time are all in alignment. Meantime, my idea board will hold those thoughts.



To see Dixie's work visit ferrergallery.com.

Beading for all Time—Caveman Chic

Have you ever wondered when people first begin using and creating decorative objects? Items valued not for practical reasons but simply for their beauty. Helen Banes' book, Fiber & Bead Jewelry, picures amazingly intricate Phoenician glass beads dated 900 BC. Although it's hard to imagine those times, the appeal of beads spans the centuries.

I couldn't begin to know how to discover or create glass, but someone did and soon someone else found a non-useful purpose for it. Beads. You'd think that there wouldn't have been enough hours in the day after the hunting and gathering was done to do something so frivolous as beading. Perhaps it's human nature.

But I wonder if the motivation was just a different form of human nature, i.e. I have something you don't have—na na na na na. Maybe they liked to know that their beads inspired envy in their fellow cavemates. Some things never change.

As much as I appreciate and make use of photography, I think that it changed the way people think about art and artists. Today, we take for granted the ability to capture a scene, memory, event, etc. Before photography you'd need an artist to do that. Their skills satisfied the need for both accuracy and aesthetics. Nowadays, it seems that art has lost its dual purpose and has suffered for it.

Asking which is more important (utility or beauty) is like wondering which came first, the chicken or the egg. Why do we need to rate them? It's hard to imagine a world without either so why not grant them equal value. Maybe our ancestors had that figured out.

Another thought: Were the artists of the cave paintings the hunters, or the gatherers waiting for the hunters to return 'home'?

Create a Chameleon Necklace

I received this beautiful dragonfly pin for Mother's Day which I will likely wear as intended, on a lapel or on the front of a dress or blouse. But another way pins can be used is by incorporating them into your needlewoven necklace designs.

When positioned over an unbeaded area of a necklace body, your cherished pin serves the same function as a large ornate bead—it becomes the focal point. And like a chameleon, it's changeable.

Simple shapes and limited color palettes work best for this project. Look over your collection of pins and choose a fiber color that coordinates with several of them. Use this as your background. This is also a good way to use a fancy yarn—a solid block of it will set off your piece of jewelry nicely.

Draw your pattern to accommodate the shape of the largest of your pins, then add about 1/8" more to the outline. I've noticed that finished needlewoven pieces tend to be a bit smaller than the pattern indicates. Usually that wouldn't matter, but if you are attaching a pin rather than incorporating a bead, you'll want to make sure there's plenty of border around it.

Here are some shapes to consider.

Think about what kind of neck straps you'll want to have. If your pins are of different metals, woven straps might be best. If all the pieces are of similar metals you could choose a matching chain for the straps. You might also make one necklace for your silver pieces and another for the gold.

The same goes for any beads you may (or may not) want to use as dangles along the bottom edge. Lay out all the pins you think you might be using so you can choose beads that 'go' with each of them. Remember that sometimes less is more. Beads and woven areas should accent but not compete with the pins that are the focal point of the necklace.

The completed necklace serves as a backdrop for each pin, making your jewelry collection a little more versatile. It's a nice way to dress up a plain T-shirt for example. Just sticking a pin on the front of a T-shirt looks a little out of place, but putting that same pin onto a necklace 'base' works just fine.

Why not give it a try? It's fun to 'mix-and-match' and get more use out of some of your jewelry. Like a chameleon, this necklace can change along with your wardrobe or your mood. Feel free to share photos of your results. I will, as soon as I get my necklace finished.

Inspired by Ironweed—Distracted by Discussion

This recently completed necklace was inspired by the color of Ironweed, a native autumn bloomer. I always enjoy seeing this wildflower in fields and along roadsides, often accompanied by Joe-Pye-Weed, another fall favorite of mine.

Ironweed isn’t a flower I usually think about this time of year, with all the spring ephemerals grabbing my attention, but completing the necklace took me back to that season. I began with good intentions, but something made me set that project aside and it was several months before I picked it back up again. Then there was another delay.

I attended a local fiber arts group that meets monthly at our library, taking the necklace with me. It was my first meeting and I found the show-and-tell format friendly and informative. The members spoke about their current projects while crocheting, knitting, weaving, etc. I learned a lot from them as they shared with me what they knew about needle weaving and pin weaving. I’d hoped that taking the necklace to work on would get me re-inspired to finish it—which it did. But I became so interested in the conversation that I wasn’t paying enough attention to my work.

Symmetrical designs should be woven by alternating between the opposite sides to ensure that both sides are evenly spaced and sized. Of course I hadn’t done that and it didn’t help that it had been months since I’d last worked on it. I was trying to figure out how I’d done the first side while listening to the other artists and absorbing lots of  information.

Weaving right along, by the end of the afternoon I’d accomplished quite a bit. Later that evening however, I noticed that I’d missed adding in a bead and two of the corners didn’t really match. Kind of a problem with a symmetrical design. Much as I hated to do it, in the the long run it was best just to take out all of the weaving I’d worked on that day.
But it wasn’t really a loss. I learned (and re-learned) several things in the process:

• Don’t mix socializing with work that requires lots of concentration—don't attempt color changes for example.
• Do follow the recommendation about weaving alternately to preserve the symmetry of the design.

Although it didn’t bring me any closer to completing my necklace, attending the meeting was a very enjoyable way to get my daily dose of fiber.