Tidying up!

 Finally took the time to do some tidying up. I sorted through my toss away and keep pile...perfect place to find the square or circle that mixes with what I'm working on. Usually I keep them all in a huge zipper plastic bag and when I'm at a loss, I start picking and looking and it takes forever because I don't know what I'm looking for but I'll know when I see it??? Now I have at least organized these scraps by color and placed each one ironed in a much smaller zipper bag. I'll post the beginning of a new piece tomorrow and the funny thing is I didn't use any of these beauties. Focusing on my new love of slow stitching.
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Indigo Dusk

"Indigo Dusk", 8"x12", hand stitching.
October is my birthday month and I've gifted myself with three books, "Slow Stitching" by Claire Wellesley Smith and "Stitch Stories" by Cas Holmes and pre-ordered "Storytelling with Collage" by Roxanne Evans Stout. In the same week I also ordered online a blue plaid flannel shirt, jeans and a black cardigan with snaps....but then that is an unrelated art story!
The Slow Stitching book is beautiful and encouraged me to try slow stitching in creating this piece. Using several different fabrics was one of my distractions as well as my old eyes and stiff fingers. I'm rather disappointed with my large uneven stitches and some of this could also be my temperament. I have covered most of the surface with seed stitches, running and blanket stitches and I'm promising myself a smaller surface and less complications. This indigo piece represents my new series searching for the time just before dawn and the time just after sunset...that beautiful glow.