For The Children

Our country has far too many children who need comfort and joy in this holiday season.  So, I'm trying to do a little something about that in my county.

I live close to a JoAnn Fabrics store, which is a real 'plus' during the winter months.  I don't have to drive long or far in any traffic or inclement weather.  Every year, the store seems to offer a stuffed animal for sale at the holidays at very reasonable prices.  I've stocked up on a variety of animals during the past several years:  'boy' and 'girl' bears of many fur colors, white Husky dogs, and moose toys, too.  

The 'art' involved in this project is locating flannel with appropriate designs that I can sew into doubled one-yard square 'receiving blankets' for the stuffed toys.  Each animal is accompanied by a small book for the little child to have for his or her very own.  The animal, and the book, and the blanket all reside in a light canvas carrying bag that has been stamped in one front corner with a small rendition of Winnie the Pooh and Piglet.  I have included a 'name tag' in a plastic holder that is attached to a bag handle.  It states that it was made with love, and has a place for the new owner's name.

The filled bags will be delivered this coming Saturday to Issaquah, WA - not far from where I live.  The destination is a non-profit called KidVenture [formerly Eastside Baby Corner].  They are about to host a gift-giving event for families who are currently in financial distress and possibly homeless and living in their cars with children.  KidVenture is doing an amazing, herculean job keeping babies and children of all ages through twelve in diapers, clothing, and gifts.  All year long.

I have also created adult-sized double fleece blankets for the older kids, and age-appropriate fleece blankets for the younger ones.  It takes very little time and money to make an effort to help those so much less fortunate than I am.  It brings joy to me to be able to participate in such a worthy cause that KidVenture has taken on over the years.  They've grown exponentially as the need has constantly pushed their limits and beyond.

So, I get to play with soft fabric and colors and adorable stuffed toys and send my love to the kids that will soon take over the care of the animals for me. 

A Riot Of Color

Today's "mission accomplished" is a quilt top, batting, and backing that I finally put on my longarm APQS "Lenni" yesterday.  I completed the quilting this morning.  The photo shows the quilt after it was just unpinned and laid across the machine frame.  It's awaiting its trim and binding, and then it will be laid on the pile of quilts and fleece blankets I have previously finished, awaiting donation.

The weather in the beautiful Pacific Northwest is forecast to be summer temps again - including one day upcoming in the 90 degrees territory.  Then, as September approaches, so do the cooler temps.  We've not had a real day of rain in who knows how long - but it will come.  Forest fires are burning once again - in our state and surrounding states plus BC and Alberta to the north of us.  The first rains will bring welcome relief and much-needed help to exhausted firefighters.

The pile of quilts and blankets I'm accumulating will go into big boxes for shipping in the very near future.  Cool fall and cold winter come quickly to the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, to the Appalachia hills and hollows back east, to refugees from Ukraine and Afghanistan seeking new lives beyond their native lands, and to the small spaces housing homeless families in our area.  With the approaching seasons of grey and gloom, the "riot of color" in this and other quilts I'm making could offer a welcome reprieve from the world of neutrals that so many people inhabit.  

I love painting with fabric.  Moving colors and patterns around, cutting and resewing pieces into new designs and color palettes.  Art moves easily into life, and I love living in it and sharing it wherever it's sent.  

 

"Saturn, Interrupted" has been hanging on a wall in my kitchen for a number of years.  It's not the largest piece of art on display there.  In fact, it almost blends into the wall, rather like a fiber art wall-flower.  But, the impact this little work has on me is almost beyond words.

Today I shared with a friend via email just what this piece represents to me:  gazing into a limitless universe, beautiful beyond anything we can conceive in our own mind, where we can hear 'the music of the spheres' loud and clear.

I grew up star-gazing, partly because my father introduced me to its art and mostly because it took my eyes to a realm beyond my comprehension:  limitless, forever space and time and stars and planets and mysteries of incalculable types.  

This "three-part invention" [with a very strong nod to Bach] has brought the limitless Universe into my limited living space, carrying with it a lifetime of star-gazing memories and unlimited joy in the viewing. 

The images of Saturn that I manipulated were printed off of the Internet many years ago, from the NASA website, onto fabric.  Because the original photographs were taken through the Hubble space telescope with no participation by any other for-profit or non-profit entity, NASA has made these particular images available copyright-free.  Users simply need to acknowledge the source of the photos, and I am doing that here and now.  I am grateful that my tax dollars are at work in this fashion and totally for my enjoyment.