Our Story: In Quilt and Tapestry

9:22:25 PM EDT
Feeling Quiet

This is the Hebrew month known as Elud. It is the last month of the Jewish Year.

This month, we begin to reflect on the past year, and start house cleaning for the upcoming New Year.

Both our dwellings and our spiritual homes.

We reflect upon our sins, people we have wrong and the things we must get right. With G-d and our fellow man. There are morning prayers that lead into the New Year as we ask forgivness. We right wrong and we try to finish projects we have began the year before.

Yes, we should and must ask forgiveness daily, but this is a holy time, a time of self examintion, knowing that our G-d will forgive us and help us to grow into the heavenly beings we are called to be.

But I also like the thought that I am able to look back and see how far I have come as a person. How far I have to go. And see the diffenence I made. And the diffenece I can make in the years to come.

Part of my reflection is the projects I have going right now. I know Mark and Lizzie's quilts will not be finish by the end of this month. And that is OK.

Atleast I have started them and they shall be finished in G-d's time.

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4:45:15 PM EDT
Feeling Happy

While Mark at the store, I am working on little Yosef's Quilt.

It is coming along nicely. And we are having a blast working on it.

This is the front of the quilt. It is a Star of David with the jade coloured Peace cloth. I have a spoil power blue piece for the back.

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12:19:56 AM EDT
Feeling Adventurous

It has been awhile since I'd last written in this journal. Mark's quilt has come a long way and part of it was used on a Bride and Groom's table.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The material below is the material for Yosef's (Joseph's) quilt. Half of the Star of David is finished. I will finish the other tomorrow and then put everything together.

 These little guys are monkees, enjoying the ocean blue.

Padddingtion Bear (Mark's pick)

This is the background piece. The colour is jade-green with tiny gold Stars of David, Doves and the word Peace in Hebrew.

There is also spoil white, and a piece with baby toys that I need to include in the need post. It is coming along very nicely.

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7:40:09 PM EDT
Feeling Happy

Meet Florence.

Florence is the Greeter at The Knitting corner, where I buy my yarn. Right now, she is still in her winter shawel. This morning, I took a picture of her in her summer attire. Pictures soon to come.

So, if your ever in Virginia Beach and come to the Knitting Corner, make sure you say hello to Florence.

Her feelings get hurt very easy.

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6:44:33 PM EDT
Feeling Happy

 

 Turkish Delight.

Traditional Armenian (and Turkish) treat. In Armenia they usually leave it white while in Turkey they more often add the food coloring. Also called Lookoom.

3 cups granulated sugar
1-1/2 cups water
3 tablespoons white corn syrup
3 envelopes unflavored gelatin
juice of 1 lemon
3/4 cup cornstarch
1 tablespoon of rose water (or vanilla)
3/4 cup coarsely chopped pistachio nuts
powdered sugar
red or green food coloring (optional)

Combine granulated sugar with water and corn syrup in a heavy saucepan and boil until it reaches 240 F on a candy thermometer or soft ball stage. Keep hot. In a small bowl, soften the geletin in the lemon juice. Set aside. In another small bowl, dissolve the cornstarch in 1/2 cup of cold water, the pour it into the hot syrup. Stir gently and simmer slowly until very thick. Remove from heat, add gelatin and lemon juice and stir until gelatin dissolves. Stir in rose water or vanilla, nuts and 2 to 3 drops food coloring if desired. Sprinkle a generous layer of powdered sugar in an 8-inch sqare pan. Pour in mixture and let set in a cool dry place (the refrigerator is too humid) for 3 or 4 hours or until set. Sprinkle with another layer of powdered sugar and cut into 1-inch squares. Dredge each square in powdered sugar. Store in an airtight container. I prefer a plastic bag, then a very pretty box fi given as gifts.

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11:14:04 PM EST
Feeling Quiet

This is one of  the projects I plan to do.

I rather like the idea of doing in on black Aida than white. I think the colours will show up better.

For Betty; I have taken some recent pictures of my work. I will post them soon.

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10:39:26 PM EST
Feeling Happy
Hearing The Twight Zone, Queen of the Nile

Exdous 35:35

"Them hath he filled with wisdom of heart, to work all manner of work, of the engraver, and of the cunning workman, and of the embroiderer, in blue, and in purple, in scarlet, and in fine linen, and of the weaver, even of them that do any work, and of those that devise cunning work."

While  I like to call myself a Tapestry Maker, because  my work does tell its own story. But to be honest, I am  really NeedleWorker, enjoying the major of needle, colourful threads and Aida fabric.  Tapestrry Makers are weavers; my is stitch work.  A nd while I like  the sound of tapestry maker, to be true to my craft, I shall call myself from now on a NeedleWorker. And like my aunt, grandmother and great-grandmother, a fine one too.  I love to see what comes forth from when thread means fabric. I prefer to make big pieces; that is when the story really unfolds.

 I do  enjoy designing my own patterns as gifts for birthdays, holidays, weddings, etc. Many people have asked me to create a work for them and they do pay me for the work I do.

For work I enjoy.

My flavorite is  Teresa Wentzler.  Her patterns are awesome  and have the feel of an old fashion tapestry. It is very detailed and takes time, but I love her work and learn something new about myself with each piece of her I finish. Though it has been only two. With Mark in Iraq, Teresa's work will help get through many lonely hours.

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3:43:23 PM EST
Feeling Happy

E N Q U I R E R   L O C A L   N E W S   C O V E R A G E

Saturday, April 5, 1997 Quilts like open book on life Exhibit shows black women's art BY KYM LIEBLER The Cincinnati Enquirer Olivia Baker, 80, of Woodlawn, stitched her first quilt at age 16. This month, she will participate in a filmed quilting bee to acoompany a summer exhibit at the Cincinnati Art Museum. (Tony Jones photo) | ZOOM | LINCOLN HEIGHTS - Pieces of dishrags, drapes and clothes leap from the fabric of one of Olivia Baker's cherished quilts. Patched together, the multicolored square scraps found ''here and there'' tell the story of the 80-year-old woman's life. ''This was a suit,'' Ms. Baker said, her fingers falling on a patch of blue pinstripe. ''This was an old blouse,'' she pointed to a sunny yellow square and laughed at the idea she ever wore a blouse that bright. Ms. Baker, of Woodlawn, is representative of African-American women who have subtly sewn their life experiences onto cloth and transformed what had been a functional chore into an art form that captures joy and despair. ''We're people with a lot of stories to tell,'' said Forest Park's Carolyn Mazloomi, a renowned quilter. ''Our quilts are narratives, and the stories can be quite powerful.'' If you go''In the Spirit of the Cloth: African-American Quilts'' will open May 17 at the Cincinnati Art Museum in Eden Park. The exhibit will showcase quilts from across the United States, including one by Forest Park's Carolyn Mazloomi. The show ends July 27. Ms. Baker stitched her first quilt when she was 16 years old and living with her grandma in Gaffney, S.C. Her grandmother made her finish a quilt before she could get married. Ms. Baker is among a group of Cincinnati women who will participate this month in a filmed quilting bee to accompany ''In the Spirit of the Cloth: African-American Quilts,'' a traveling national quilt exhibit to be displayed at the Cincinnati Art Museum. Exhibit organizers underestimated the interest of local African-American women. ''It's got everyone talking about the old quilting bees, getting cotton from the mill and stomping on it to beat out the seeds,'' marveled Forest Park's Charlotte Hunter, who is coordinating the video. ''These women don't know the value of their work.'' That's one reason Mrs. Mazloomi formed the Woman of Color Quilters Network in 1986. ''A lot of the quilt folk were getting ripped off,'' Mrs. Mazloomi said. ''They didn't understand the monetary value of what they were doing.'' One of Mrs. Mazloomi's 200 quilts, ''Ode to Kahlil Gibran,'' will be on display at the art museum. Her story quilt is a tribute to Mr. Gibran's book The Broken Wing. ''I read that book and reread it so many times, I just thought it would make a wonderful quilt.'' Although Ms. Baker has completed dozens of glorious quilts, she has never profited from the hobby she credits with taking her troubles away. Her quilts have names and themes. One is the ''Tree of Life.'' Ms. Baker gave that quilt to a cousin who was dying of cancer. Another quilt she calls ''Tumbling Blocks'' is set aside for a grandchild. To Mrs. Mazloomi, Ms. Baker's quilts sum up what quilting means to most African-American women: their life experiences.''That's why the exhibit is called 'In the Spirit of the Cloth,''' she said.

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3:42:35 PM EST
Feeling Happy
Hearing The Twight Zone Season 5

Erika loved the tapesty I did for her. I have got to get those pictures posted. I did find a beautiful frame for the piece; an old english gold that brings out the other colours. Her parnets were touched as well.

Beth loved the granny square aftan I did for her grandson and no sooner had I given it to her, than she wrapped her grandbaby in it. He looked so cute.

I am now going to work on Nathan's baby aftan. Her colours are rather unusal. I had never seem this yarn before and grabbed it. The baby wasn't ready for the shower yesterday, but I still have two weeks before the baby arrives. I plan to take pictures of it and post as well.

I confess I have not gotten to the quilts yet. I had these projects to finish up because Lizzie and Mark's quilt is going to take longer.

I am hopeful to get it well on the way when Mark comes home for R&R

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12:46:25 PM EST
Feeling Happy
Hearing Twlight Zone

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