#Why I Make

From time to time I get asked why I make what I make and how I came about it all.
This time I'm being asked by Love Crafts.

I have been surrounded with expressions of embroidery as I grew up. The sampler above was embroidered by my great great grandmother - Sarah K. in 1879. In fact my name is also Sara and the name has been handed down thorough successive generation to my paternal grandmother and then to me.
Therefore I feel a great connection to these pieces of embroidery.
They have inspired me to create my own sampler.

 For Sarah K. motifs of her religion and the tree of life motif dominate the sampler.

The altar, the tabernacle and the host for holy communion. She probably loved plants and flowers and embroidered the floral motifs.
Red must have been her favourite colour I'd like to believe because it dominates the sampler. So when I began my alphabet sampler I decided to limit my palette to red and two blues. It so happens that red is my favourite colour.
I almost feel it's a genetic compulsion because the women on both my paternal and maternal sides of the family have done a lot of handwork. Sewing and dress making, tatting, crochet, knitting and different forms of embroidery. Clothes were monogrammed and embellished with embroidery. Cushion covers, table linen and tea cosies to tray cloths and bed covers were all embroidered.
I learnt from my mother who is extremely creative.
Blogging opened up a whole new world of creativity and connections with other creative people around the globe.

 Inspired by the natural dyeing and rust dyeing I have created garments and scarves.

Currently Instagram has also helped to keep me connected with the creative world of fiber arts. It has got me involved in projects like the #25 Million Stitches public art installation. Sitting in a small town high up in the Western Ghats of India the internet and social media keeps me connected and helps me participate in such events. 

 My blogging has brought me commissions such as this piece. A favourite poem entitled Anyway which was for a retirement gift. Read more about it here.

 Blogging has got me involved in quite a few challenges such as the Take a Stitch Tuesday challenge run by Sharon Boggon at Pintangle. Which  in turn got me making fiber books such the one above - Monsoon - A Fiber Book. 
Doing the Take A Stitch Tuesday challenge I created two fiber books which I use as teaching aids 
when I teach embroidery and Traditional Indian Textiles to students in design schools.

Blogging and blog friends presented me with the opportunity to have my work published in the book Textileart Around the World.
People around the world are generous with their and knowledge and happy to collaborate.
I have many a fiber book created through  fiber book page swaps.

My blog is my online journal of my journaling on paper and fabric. It's been a joy sharing my work and getting acknowledged with comments, collaborations and commissions, all of this goes a long to way in keeping me motivated to do what I do. That's why I make.

One Year of Stitches 2018

I've decided to take up the One Year of Stitches 2018 challenge and combine it with Take a Stitch Tuesday. 

 I've begun with multiple rows of embroidery around the circle to create a border of sorts as well as to increase the size of the circle. Couldn't find a lid or anything else which is a 12" diameter circle.

I've decided to explore circles this year. So all the embroidery stitches or events I want to represent will have to take on a circular form. First to be represented are the kittens Gin and Tonic who we got in January. 

Gin is a white kitten with smudges of black and fawn on it's tail and ears. Tonic is a black and white  chap who reminds me of Socks. Gin and Tonic are brother and sister.

 Next to be embroidered is the Blue Moon, Blood Moon and Lunar eclipse which occurred on January 31st. What a spectacular sight. I used Blanket Stitch - Stitch #2 in TAST, to create the Blood Moon.

 Running stitch. My favourite stitch and Stitch #1 to explore in TAST this year.

 TAST Stitch # 7 - Feather Stitch. Another of my favourites.

Herringbone Stitch. TAST - Stitch #5

TAST - Stitch #6 is Chain Stitch. There's a circle of chain stitch around one of herringbone Stitch and TAST - Stitch #4 is Detached chain. I've embroidered a circle of Detached Chain stitches around the circle created with running stitch.

I'm pretty upto date with TAST.

Have a great weekend. I have to do some writing this weekend.

1 Year of Stitches - 2017 - Completed!

 1 Year of Stitches - completed.

 An unusual journal, a departure from the fabric journals I've been making.

 Spontaneous and kind of all over the place but I think the year was a bit like that.

 I've been listening to a lot of Reggaeton as I work and I turned fifty this year.Don't feel any different but it's been a good life.So much to be grateful for.

Learnt that life is so uncertain, one has to live in the moment and love and cherish family and friends.

I'm considering taking up 1 Year of Stitches 2018 and combining it with Take a Stitch Tuesday.
Will get 1 year of stitches 2017 framed.

Any other exciting challenges around?
Hope 2018 has been treating you well. Have a good week.

August CQJP

This space has been a tiny bit quiet but work is being done slowly one stitch at a time. Here's the Crazy Quilt block I created for August. Oranges, greens and whites - the colours of the Indian flag, August 15 India celebrated 65 years of Independence.  

The buffet Onam sadya at Coconut Grove was awesome. Can't imagine someone trying to cook like that at home - there must have been about fifty dishes and four payasams. 

The floral decoration made for Onam has been recreated on the journal page for August with beads and sequins. Our home is progressing, its the first time for R and me so there's so much to learn and understand but we're excited. 

September has been hectic but enjoyable.

Thank you for your comments and for choosing to follow this blog, to see the number of followers steadily increase is something I truly appreciate. Have a great week.  

July CQJP

Its been two weeks since I last updated this blog.( That does sound like I'm at confession).
Its been a bit crazy since we started building a house in the hills and the craziness will continue for atleast the next 9 months I think.
Work schedules have got disrupted but I have managed to make seven CQ blocks by August, Whoohoo that's an achievement and it feels good.
The modem gave up and its taken four days for a replacement and right now blogger won't allow me to upload pictures! Anyone else facing this problem? Lets hope its not going to take another day or two before this post gets published.

The Crazy Quilt block for July.

The journal page for July. 

The monsoon has finally set in, it rains every evening and the weather is cooler.
The festival season in India is about to start.
Happy Onam to all those who celebrate.

June CQJP

Got the CQJP journal pages done for June. Yipee!

The Crazy Quilt page. The Transit of Venus was big but it was a cloudy morning in Bangalore and I didn't see it. :( 

The journal page for June combined with explorations of stitches from TAST (Take a Stitch Tuesday). In June there was buttonhole wheel, cable chain stitch and palestrina stitch. 

Here's the journal page up close and personal.

Some catching up to do for the CQJP. Have the CQ block done for July, now I have to embellish the seams while recording the happenings in July in embroidery on the journal page.

Happy Janmashtami  to those who celebrate, we've been invited to a puja this evening.

CQJP March

March is spring in the garden city, all the trees burst into bloom. There's yellow, pink and violet of the jacaranda. So the colours and forms of flowers came to bloom on the crazy quilt part of my journal for March.  The printed patch is from my sister's shirt and I went out and got myself some floral laces, two of which I used and I've included the Barred Chain stitch and Running stitch which were two of the stitches in March for TAST.   

 That's a look at the CQJP and the journal half of the double spread for March.  

The journal page for March.
I spent a week with my parents so I could be there for my mum's birthday. Winning the Cleosara giveaway on An Indian Summer was exciting.
Great sense of achievement in being able to make super soft idlis. I was given this little steamer by a women's group in Kerala because I wanted to steam my natural dye experiments.From rice idlis I've moved on to Ragi idlis.
The first quarter of 2012 is over and I have three CQJP pages done so I've decided to start assembling the book.  Shall show you the progress in my next post.

Completed CQJP & Journal page - January

Here's my first CQ block completed for the CQJP challenge, just in time as January draws to a close.Embellished with stitches from TAST. I'm still working on the journal part of the page.
Update - 4th Feb
I decided to update this post with pictures of the journal page for January which I completed this morning.

This is how the two pages look side by side. 

This then is the journal part.I was looking for a cross stitch pattern of a Dragon for Chinese New Year and when I came across this free pattern here  I simply had to make it a part of the page although it extends a little beyond the page and I had to do away with the pattern at the top.

Its a busy weekend. I have to start on the CQJP and journal page for February and there's a certain scarf that I'm making very slow progress on - I need a longer day if that's possible to do all that needs doing.    . 

TAST completed

Yipee I've completed TAST ( Take a Stitch Tuesday). Here are the last three stitches - Chained Bar, Spanish feather stitch and Berry Stitch.

This means volume 2 of TAST can be finished now.

I'm going away for about two weeks on a project involving natural fibres. I'll be back with pictures and results of experiments involving tie and dye, marbeling and bleach. Until then take care and stay safe.

TAST - Pistil stitch and Knotted Cable Chain

TAST Thorn Stitch

At some point every second post was a stitch from Take a Stitch Tuesday. Now with the end in sight I find I'm juggling at least five different projects but I'm hanging in there, coasting along.

Some projects which will be completed thanks to my juggling skills shall be revealed next week maybe earlier if I can take juggling to the next level.

How has your week been? Any extreme juggling involved? Tell me about it.

The First Volume of Take a Stitch Tuesday

There you are the first volume of four. The second volume is being put together as I type.

TAST 2 begins March 3 so volumes three and four are still a year away.

Have a good weekend.