It Was Time

I'm back in Lexington for a few days....and thanks to Anne and Dana we have a colorful and important sign in our yard.  It was time.

This patch of Black Eyed Susans in Lexington Center is in its prime. Lexington does a great job with its public spaces..... and It's always a pleasure to walk through town.

Jubilant Banners

"Choose Love Not Hate."

"Make Each Day Your Masterpiece."

"Justice!"

"Black Lives Matter"  

The students in Laura Meddaugh's art class.

My friend Laura teaches art to young people.  Her students recently made fabulous banners to hang in their front yards during these turbulent and uncertain times. The first photo was the result of the first step...and the next ones are few of the end products after some embellishing and finishing touches.

https://www.facebook.com/jubilantacrylics

So impressive....and so much fun.  They will really brighten and inspire their neighborhoods! 

The colors in the banners remind me of some new batiks I just picked up to fill in some gaps in my stash. I love the textures and earthiness of batiks....probably my favorite kind of fabric. I'm about to begin a larger stained glass practice piece....and I've prepared my new fabrics so I'll be ready to hit the ground running when I get back to my studio.  I've already got a big stash prepared waiting patiently there so I'm ready to roll.

The fusible is ironed on...and once I trim them up I'll peal off the paper revealing the other side of fusible and they'll be ready to cut up into little stained glass pieces.  

The nice things about this Pellon 805 Wonder Under is that at this point you could draw a fussy pattern on the paper and cut it out before you peel the paper off.  This works well for lettering...you just have to remember to draw them backwards.  

Joan and I did just that for the lettering on a church banner you can see in this post:

https://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/2015/02/ask-seek-knock.html

I generally save most of my scraps...but now I'm even more mindful of skinny strips knowing I can use them in "jubilant" swirls of color.  

Batik Meets Stained Glass

I've wanted to experiment with batik fabrics and a stained glass look ever since I did this piece a year or so ago.  

And...after being nudged by some friends who are interested in a commission piece for a new space in their home we started brainstorming ideas....this was one of the pieces they were drawn to. Amy and Lisle have bought several fabric pieces from my shows....so they know what they were getting into with me.

                 So over the last couple of days I've gotten back to fusing as part of my concept development.....and I'm loving the meeting up of batik and stained glass! The black border in this photo was added digitally so I could see how it would look. I will bind this small quilt in black and mount it on a black canvas. Hopefully it will be a piece ready for a possible next show.

I forgot to take photos along the way....I almost never forget...but here it is part way through. I drew my design with a sharpie on heavy weight stabilizer and puzzled in the fused pieces. The shapes didn't need to be perfect since all the seams would be covered with black.

Using Colorways hand dyed fabric I fused all the side branches....I do them first so the ends get tucked underneath the trunk pieces. I use hand dyed fabric for the trees because it fuses securely. I missed one branch....do you see it?  

Finally I added the trunks and horizon lines....and that missing branch which didn't get tucked underneath.

I think there's potential here and I'm excited about where it might take me!  🌈

My Black Lives Matter journey continues....and sometimes I feel compelled to share something here. As with everything I write....you're never obligated to read it. 

I got very emotional last night when I saw images on the news of the 110 foot monument and statue of John Calhoun being taken down in Charleston, South Carolina. As recently as just a month ago I wouldn't have had enough of a context for it to affect me so deeply. But I have since learned that John Calhoun was one of the most despicable defenders of slavery and white supremacy.

About a week ago I read  another article in the 1619 Project by the New York Times  called Undemocratic Democracy and was quite troubled by this John Calhoun quote: "Liberty is a reward to be earned, not a blessing to to be gratuitously lavished on all alike - a reward reserved for the intelligent, the patriotic, the virtuous and deserving - and a boon to be bestowed on a people too ignorant, degraded and vicious, to be capable either of appreciating or of enjoying it."  Liberty....was reserved for the the superior race....the white race...and black people were to be bought, sold, and used so white people could hold and gain more power.  

And...just yesterday afternoon I had a conversation with Paul about white power and supremacy...giving me even more clarity for last night's news segment. Today....I dug a little deeper and I came across this article in the New York Times about this particular monument and the story leading up to it being taken down.  The mayor of Charleston said the purpose of taking is down is "not to erase our long and often tragic history, but to begin a new and more equitable chapter of that history."  

A councilman said "We are not on our knees praying today - we are taking action today. Racism is violent and evil, and is the foundation of an unjust America.  This system, it's not broken - it was founded and designed on violent, vicious evil racism."   Oy!

Just two years ago another article was written about the history of the monument giving almost no hope of of it ever coming down.  What a difference a few years makes.

Both journeys continue.

It's Comforting

My friend Becky and I were just talking about the fact that Juneteenth was not something we learned about in the school system we grew up in.  This....and a whole lot of other things. There's so much I don't know. My journey may be a little late in the game...and a little slow....but I've started.

Two blooms from my garden in Lexington just starting their journeys.

Spirea

Hydrangea

I've been so taken with the world wide reach of the pandemic.....however awful that might be.  Everyone....all over the world has been going through the same thing...at the very the same time.  That over used phrase "we're all in this together" couldn't be more true.  It comes through in beautiful artwork and wise words and reflections on social media by artists I follow....and it's been comforting.

And now...I'm I am once again moved by my artist friends all over the world (most are white...working on that) who are standing together acknowledging and coming to terms with white privilege and the journey we all must begin to not just be anti-racist....but anti-racism.

Today I was quite taken with an Instagram post by my friend and teacher Philippa Stanton better known as 5ftinf from Brighton, England.  She used her beautiful table to feature her love for tea.  I've had tea at that table....and I love the beautiful stories she creates there.  But today she wrote about learning for the first time what Juneteenth was all about....and also spent time reading a bit about the real history of tea.

"I realized today the importance of acknowledging the real history behind the drink we think of as our heritage...it is stolen heritage, a racist heritage and a heritage steeped in oppression and appropriation of people and their countries for our own economic gain, whilst telling us that these people are not as good as us."

I highly recommend reading her whole thoughtful post and scrolling through the other images in it: https://www.instagram.com/p/CBoD2KaA3Tu/

We are all in this journey together too... and it's comforting.

I put together a Steller Story about my trip to the UK a little over a year ago....and having tea at "The Table" with #5ftinf.

You can view it here: https://steller.co/s/tea-at-the-9G3aZ5BLU3r/p/1  

Once you're there....click the arrows to scroll through the photos.

All my Steller Stories from my England trip and many others including the class lessons from the Consciously Creative class with Phillippa are here:  https://steller.co/joyfulputtering/

  

That class changed my life.

Washi Tape

I continue to fall in love with my new Bowman's Root plant from my sister. 

The blooms are so special and such a nice compliment to the larger rain lilies right next door.  It's an absolute delight.  

The rain lilies, by the way, are coming at a steady pace....one or two at a time. 

I'm guessing almost every crafter has at least a few rolls of Washi tape in their stash....and I'm no exception. Washi tape is similar to masking tape...but way better. "Wa" means Japanese and "shi" means paper...and Japan is where it originated and is made from natural fibers like bamboo or hemp. It comes in wonderful textures and patterns and has all kinds of uses in arts and crafts.  

So when I saw this puzzle in a store window in down town Lexington....it drew me right in.  The store was closed because of the pandemic...but the owner was inside and peeked out to see if he could help and I safely made my purchase right there on the sidewalk.

This puzzle could have been done in one sitting but I stretched it out over several days....and I loved every minute.  I loaned it to Margie first....and she loved it too.  

I used Washi tape along the back edges of this accordion rainbow book I made for Connie a while back. If you're interested you can read about that here.  All the posts I've written about projects I've done with Washi tape can be found here.....and I've just scratched the surface of how it can be used.

And today I worked on a little card project that started like this.....

but I'll write about that tomorrow....this post is already long enough.

Today I read the next article in The New York Times 1619 Project called "Traffic" by Keven M. Kruse.  Once again....I'm blown away....I've just never thought about some of this stuff.  

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/08/14/magazine/traffic-atlanta-segregation.html

"While Interstates were regularly used to destroy black neighborhoods, they were also used to keep black and white neighborhoods apart.  Today major roads and highways serve as stark dividing lines between black and white sections in cities.  In cities like Atlanta, daily congestion is a direct consequence of a century-long effort to segregate the races."  Fifty years later "the city is still stalled in the past."

Teeny Tiny

I'm not sure I could be more excited about a teeny tiny bloom...it's like a little pink fairy.

Last fall my sister Nancy sent me some perennial splits from her garden...most of which I enjoyed earlier this spring. This particular plant she called her mystery plant because it originally came to her tucked in with something else and she didn't know what it was at first.  Turns out it's Bowman's Root....and has become one of her favorites and I think it's going to be one of my favorites too. The foliage is dainty and pretty and the stems are red.  And...as I understand the plant has spectacular fall color....it's what we call a "handsome plant." 

I've been watching the tiny pink buds for weeks....and Paul watched them for me while I was in Lexington reporting in with photos every day.  I didn't want to miss the first blooms.  But today was the day...and it did not disappoint.  

There was just this one bloom all day long......

...then this evening another one opened in another spot.  Look at all those buds....lots of teeny tiny moments of joy ahead for me!  

Thanks Nancy!  

I'm way further along than this....but this puzzle with 

the not-so teeny tiny pieces is awesome and deserves its own post.

Continuing my anti-racism journey today I read another article in the 1619 project: "A Broken Health Care System" by Jeneen Interlandi.  It is difficult to comprehend the justification for injustice by our lawmakers of the past...and it horrifies me even more knowing full well it still exists today.

A few excerpts from the article:

"White legislators argued that free assistance of any kind would breed dependence and that when it came to black infirmity, hard labor was a better salve than white medicine." 

"No charitable black scheme could wash out the color of the Negro, change his inferior nature or save him from his inevitable fate."  

Walk the Yard

I drove to Portland today and the first thing I do when I get to the other place is walk the yard....there are always changes...always something new to see.  

The mushrooms are out in full force pushing their way through the mulch....and my love affair begins again.  And every time I get down on my knees to take a closer  I think about my friend Joyce. ..she knows that's a compliment.

The wine and roses Wigelia is in full bloom along the side of the condo...five days ago it was just getting started. And the dangly pearls of the Leucothoe  next to it were still as interesting and beautiful as they were before I left.

The first 5 rain lily blooms hung on for me to see and a 6th one just opened.  

And....I had almost forgotten that the last few days I was here at the condo I put together all the small  100 piece or less puzzles I own.....all but one from 5ftinf.  Joy sometimes looks like this!

In my quiet, one step at a time kind of way, I continue my commitment to learning more about why Black Lives Matter.  Reading about slavery and racism makes me uncomfortable and I've come to understand that avoiding it has been part of my white privilege. I'm going to continue to work my way through the articles in The 1619 Project from the New York Times.  The project gets its name with the premise that 1619 may actually be when our nation was born....not 1776.  In 1619 the first slaves were brought to this country....and "out of slavery-and the anti-black racism it required-grew nearly everything that has truly made America exceptional."

Today I read Capitalism, by Matthew Desmond.   Oy! It's much easier to just walk the yard.

"In order to understand the brutality of American capitalism, you have to start on the plantation." 

"Finding Joy is a Practice"

"It's okay if you don't feel all of the joy all at once...finding joy is a practice." Morgan Harper Nichols

As part of my daily practice of finding simple joy....I'm celebrating some wispy coral bell and astilbe blooms from my garden.  

I just started following Morgan Harper Nichols on Instagram.  She's a black artist and poet putting out "daily reminders through art, inspired by real stories."  Other artists I follow have quoted her...and I have taken notice....but today I wanted to know more. I wanted to know her story. 

I started by going through her instagram posts.....I was moved by her beautifully simple but profound art and words.  She strives to find joy....even when there's sorrow.

https://www.instagram.com/morganharpernichols/

Next I visited her website and linked to "a few notes" and I was moved by these powerful words.

"Engage in the long, faithful work. Surender the need or striving to the the best or always right and focus instead on leaning into Light, that reveals all things. All that is good and all that stands to be corrected, and redirected." 

Morgan Harper Nichols

Here is the link to the rest of her entry for "a few notes"......worth a few minutes of your time:

https://morganharpernichols.com/blog/a-few-notes

I've started listening to Morgan's podcasts....she has a lot to teach me.

P.S.  This is the first post I did from start to finish in the new version of blogger. It's still awkward...but maybe there's hope.

Surprised By Joy

"No one cherishes freedom more than those who have not had it."  

Nikole Hannah-Jones

There are parts of my gardens in Lexington I totally neglect....where I plop things....holding places for extras and broken plants needing time to heal and rejuvenate.

Those parts of the gardens are hardly even seen close up unless you walk that way.  And I hardly ever walk that way....and they were overrun with weeds.

But today I decided to start  my weeding in one of those places at the far end of the garden behind the garage. It hasn't been weeded yet this year.


This is what it looked like before I started.

This is part way through.

Now the back end of this garden looks almost as good as the front end.

But there was a little surprise today....which is actually the best part of the story. Because I started weeding at the neglected end of the garden I walked around the side of the garage a number of times to dump my weeds in the bins in the driveway.  One of the times I spotted a Jack in the Pulpit that came up through the stones.  I've never seen it there before....but there is was.  

I found this image on-line.

Do you see it under the ladder?....where sticks and hoses go to die. My first inclination was to dig it up and move it where I could see it on a regular basis.  But in the end I decided to leave it for someone else to find....so they could also be surprised by joy.....and Jack.

At the very end of the day I took another look....it was all shriveled up. 

I saw it just in time.

I started my day by reading an essay written by Nikole Hannah-Jones for The New York Times 1619 Project that examines the legacy of slavery in America. If I learned this stuff in school....I've forgotten most of it...or set aside because it was too awkward or painful.

It's never too late to be educated...or reeducated.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/08/14/magazine/black-history-american-democracy.html

"For generations we have believed in this country with a faith it did not deserve. Black people have seen the worst of America, yet, somehow, we still believe in its best." 

Nikole Hannah-Jones

An excerpt from the article by Nikole Hannah-Jones

First Blooms

"If you've never had a defining moment in your childhood or your life where you realize your skin color alone makes other people hate you, you have white privilege." 

Lori Lakin Hutcherson

As expected the first blooms of rain lilies at the condo opened this morning and Paul sent me these photos so I could enjoy them from afar. 

It may seem like a small thing....but it's actually a huge thing if you let it be.  Joy is like that sometimes.  Thanks Paul!

I read an article this morning where Lori Lakin Hutcherson, a black woman, responded to her white friend asking for personal insight into white privilege and her experience with racism.  I want to learn.  The article can be found here.

"White privilege is being able to move into a "nice" neighborhood and be accepted...not harassed." 

Lori Lakin Hutcherson

"If you've never had to mask the fruits of your success with a floppy-eared, stuffed bunny rabbit so you won't get harassed by the cops on the way home from your gainful employment (or never had a first date start this way), you have white privilege."  

Lori Lakin Hutcherson

You may have to read the article to understand the context of that last one.