kitchen towels and mathematical elegance

It would be hard to explain to you what I mean by 'mathematical elegance', but I see it everywhere, and when I get a moment to reflect on it, I try to capture the feeling. Being a synestheseate (senses overlap) it is like seeing music that is too complicated to be heard - deep wide music that stretches over and inside you at the same time.  You are part of the Universe with all of its patterns extending around you, rhythms and melodies and harmonies interspersed with color and light and space.  

I saw this on the way back from the school bus this morning and it played out a rhythm to me - staccato drums overlaid with a delicate pattern of bells and strings.  I love the way the colors of the sunrise came through as well, changing the timbre of the 'music' within the depths.

I was going to capture the golden grass in front of the fog, like the high tones of clarinets and other woodwinds and perhaps mid-tone violins in front of a quiet symphony of other small sounds. and then Daphne walked behind the grasses and added her own part to it.

 The fairyhouses have their own mathematical elegance, too

I liked the fog progression into the distance here, and it shows how the fairyhouses are stretched out across the landscape.

 Esme said this was a 'fairy moon' far above the fog.  I liked her description.

// other
I made myself some kitchen towels the other day - the patterns of the blue cacti fabric still clung to my mind weeks after seeing it - so I bought it and some 'Ursa Major' fabric with little stars and bears to go on the backside.  I had cut up some bright turquoise bird fabric that never became shorts (Esme just is too big for me to really make much for her now, the fabric cost to off-the-rack cost almost is the same now) and paired it with some polka dotted blue fabric I had in my collection.  I made three of the bird towels and one dishmat, and two of the loop-top kitchen towels to hang on the fridge.

 I made little loop tops on them - not extremely useful right now but it cost nothing to put them in - they might be useful later.

 They actually hang on the other side of the fridge - not in front of the door, but there is no sunlight there ;)

These are very cheerful.  Seeing their colors is like tasting crisp cherries buried in ice cream.

I did this one morning while waiting for Esme to get dressed for school.
We have a collection of coconut and pineapple things on the table to make some granola bars Mark has been wanting.. and I wanted to update the board that previously had the 'rabbits in rowboats'  She has a coconut on her head and is dancing the hula.

fabric blurb

As I page through fabrics to get inspiration I find myself drawn back to two fabric designers, Patty Young, and Anna Maria Horner. I have used fabrics from both of them in the past, and they have a similar but different 'nature dream' feel to them.


Anna Maria Horner's Slow Crush
copyright by Free Spirit Fabrics

This really shows the 'dream' aspect of it. I think it would make a beautiful skirt to a plain bodice dress.


Esme wearing her 'red dirndl' dress
with Andalucia Firey Stripe in floral by Patty Young

This was a single fat quarter I saved for SO long. It was so strong it drew me in, and yet the color combination seemed to toss it out of every other project until... as I was cutting out this red dress I needed something extra for a panel to make it a drop waist. This one piece was just the right size, and it seemed to speak out that finally, it had found the right place.


'Sanctuary', also by Patty Young
pretty oranges and lemons and cucumbers
I put this fabric away somewhere at New Year's and haven't found it since *growl*

I had several things made out of Chocolate Lollipop by Anna Maria Horner, but haven't been able to locate any pictures of them.

In short, I keep going through the pages and saying 'oh that is pretty', clicking, and seeing these two names. It is interesting to see it continue year after year, collection after collection. Patty Young's "new" Flora and Fauna collection is astounding me, as well. Beehives, hummingbirds and pretty saturniid moths can be seen at this Etsy search.

I might go dig for that orange and cucumber fabric ;) I should locate it and make something out of it.

fabric ideas

Making Esme's clothes means I never have to step into a department store and hold up expensive but cheaply-made garments to the child and wonder hmm... what would this look like on her? Instead I get to do all the fun parts, choose the style, estimate what size based on measurements, choose the fabric, and then make it real.


I have requested these two fabrics to be listed for me on a shop - and I have clear intentions for both of them, perhaps mixed with coordinating solids to make up the skirt on the dress (blue) and collar and sleeve cuffs and facings on the coat (pink). Below are some of the pack of twelve patterns I received from an auction listing. The smallest size is 5, which are chest size 24 inches. Esme is 22 inches now, which means it may be this time next year before these patterns actually fit her. But... hmm, does that mean I shouldn't try one of them anyway? I do have a similar size '3' breast 22 inch in the coat pattern... which I might make up out of some fabric I already have. If it looks like there is no room to grow, the pink coat will be the larger size!


The two that grabbed me immediately...
The blue coat on the left (but in pink) and
the pink dress on the right (but in blue) *haha*

Someone at work today saw Esme in her navy blue dress and said she looks just like a little dolly. I know part of that is because I make her dresses that, in this modern day and age, are not usually seen on children except at special occasions - but it is better than that, because I make them out of fabrics that wash and wear hard, which lets them be worn every day and not be ruined by an occasional trip to the mudhole.

Another lady at a park asked if I would make her daughter a dress like Esme's... but I had a hard time saying much more than where she could find me at 'usually' (workplace), because 1.) the dress Esme was wearing was made out of remnants (seen below) and I did not have any more of that fabric and 2.) most people can't understand that the dresses are made on chest measurement, and not on 'size'.


The dress made (in March) out of half yard remnants

I doubt I'd ever find that combination again, as the fabric was from a deep stash and done up as a stress buster project.

I still make size 3, 4 or 5 patterns for Esme - it all depends on how they are cut and what chest measurement they are recommended for. And sometimes even my 'best guess' is wrong. I made a pair of pants for Esme out of a pattern that she fit the dress for, and the inseam in it was too short to fit her for very long - I will need to make the next size up (that is also in the pattern) on my next pass.

saturday again and dreaming fours

It's been a whole week already again... so hard to believe.
I'm sewing some afghan squares together here and there. Esme is worrying me just a tad with a very odd color in her diaper - I'm blaming blue Kool-Aid. I just hope it gets "through" with soon or I'll start to worry more. Mark gave away the last of the puppies yesterday - so we are down to just two puppies (Nova and Esme). haha

It's odd how my imagination works. In my dream last night Esme was quadruplets - and I was trying to get them all ready for a trip to town. I was putting dresses on them - the raglan long sleeve dresses, but in different fabrics than I had made the real ones in. That was clue one I was dreaming (why wasn't the quadruplet idea clue one?) - the second clue was someone was asking what the girls' names were - and I said they were all Esme - as if it was normal - and that I usually only brought one to town but today we were going on a longer trip so we had to bring all four of them... which was difficult.

What spurred this dream? Esme woke up at 3 in the morning and demanded a drink cup refill - but she wouldn't let me change her diaper. And it needed it! Luckily I didn't have to change her clothes, as it wasn't wet through yet. It was such a fight that when I went back to sleep for a few hours before getting up for work - I dreamed what it would be like times four! I also thought maybe these were the different 'states' of Esme - upset, awake, asleep etc... one Esme had her hair wild and was running away from me, another was crashed on the floor of her room asleep, one sitting reading in her bed, one sitting at a table with her hair nicely put back etc...

I really liked two of the dress fabrics in the dream... haha, imagining a dress in a different fabric felt odd too.



One was a muslin cream with brown flowers on it like the upper left - and another was blue stars with white sleeves.. her bumblebee buzz dress (real) made an appearance as did the fabric from her Christmas dress.

Fabrics

Went to the upholstery store today.