Slowing Down
Am I slowing down or is the world speeding up? What I know for sure is that time is finite and I can only accomplish so much in a day. Now that it is Spring, with Summer on the horizon, instead of slowing down, I am being treated to a multitude of events to get together with friends, family and even some work opportunities. This is positive, but it does curtail the amount of time I can spend in the studio.
Rainbow Lorikeet
This week my studio practice was focused exclusively on thread painting the rainbow lorikeet.
I made steady, but slow progress. Thread painting, at least when I am doing it, cannot be rushed. It takes intense focus to achieve accuracy, but also to determine which thread to use next and where. I found my need to slow down in direct conflict with my desire to make more progress.
When the thread painting is done, I can move on to developing the lorikeet’s environment. I’m a long way from a finished piece. Despite historical evidence I remain optimistic about completing the piece so I can focus on quilting my 2024 Rainbow Scrap Challenge quilt.
Rainbow Scrap Challenge
I am ahead of schedule with my Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks for 2025. However, that will change next week, when May’s color is announced. 🙂
When I ponder my choice of where to focus my attention and question the answer, I can’t help but think of the lyrics to Cheryl Wheeler’s song, “Unworthy”. Here are the opening lines:
“I’m unworthy, and no matter what I’m doing, I should certainly be doing something else.”
How about you? Can relate to Cheryl’s lyrics?
I’m linking up to the following posts:
Oh WOW!!! That lorikeet is amazing! and so much work.
Time – slowing down speeding up – or??? having SO many things you want to do!! haha
Thank you, Alycia.
The lorikeet is stunning. I so admire your artistry. I’m unfamiliar with the song/artist you referenced, but I relate to the sentiment.
Cheryl Wheeler is a master singer, songwriter IMO in the folk genre. I’ve been fortunate to see her perform on several occasions. She has a great sense of humor, but can be quite poignant as well.
Thank you for the compliment.
OK, when I see something so extraordinary and majestic, I immediately give up any ideas of replicating it in fabric/thread or even in a painting. Kudos for attempting and then creating a piece that is a show-stopper in itself. About the song, regardless of what I am doing and what I will do, something else will happen automatically 😀 The Divinity that shapes our ends, rough hew them or how we will… Have a great weekend, Gwyned!
The trick is NOT to replicate it. 🙂 I’m very loose with my interpretation of what threads to use and where as I thread paint. I only use what I have on hand. True I have a range of colors, but it is amazing on how many times I may have the correct hue but wrong value or vice versa. I really struggled with the blue of the face. Voted it close enough. If you don’t see the original image it works. I can see you using the lorikeet to select your palette.
Yes, another saying, frequently attributed to John Lennon, is “Life is what happens when you are busy doing something else.
WOW, the thread painting is so accurate! That takes a lot of patience and time. I can identify completely with the sentiments from the song, I often feel I should be doing something other than what I am doing. Keep on stitching and feeding your dreams!
Well, I am thread painting directly on the image which I have printed on the fabric. That helps. 🙂 Still I must select thread from my collection and use a steady hand guiding the work under the needle.
What particularly strikes me about Cheryl Wheeler’s song, Unworthy, is how she goes from that sense that we should be doing something we haven’t made time for yet, to pure insanity of wanting to achieve more than anyone could during multiple lifetimes. It helps puts things into perspective.
Your thread painting is amazing, Gwyned! I can definitely see how that would require taking your time. I am often torn in many directions when it comes to how I spend my time. Should I be “productive” or should I just be? So, yes, I do relate to that song quote!
I wasn’t enamored with doing thread painting until a few years ago. Now I find myself turning to it more and more. I am so appreciative that it is being well received. Choosing what to work on be it which item in the UFO stack or quilting vs. gardening isn’t easy. That’s why Cheryl’s song is so relatable. We know when we make a choice something else isn’t getting done.
Gwyned, I can’t believe how much detail you’ve gotten done on this beautiful piece already!!! The colors and details are simply amazing!!!
Perhaps it is because I can capture more detail with threads than with piecing that I find myself drawn to thread painting. I love adding the reflection in an eye and seeing it come to life.
Amazing thread painting! It looks so lifelike already! That song is perfect, whenever I am doing one thing, I know I would prefer to be doing something else.
Of course the original photo that the lorikeet is based on is of live lorikeet. That helps.
When I first heard “Unworthy” I realized just how impossible it would be to all that she imagines herself doing. However, with time, I’ve actually become a practitioner of yoga and found I love learning languages. I’ve even run a half marathon and have always gotten up in time to see the sunrise. So maybe those goals aren’t as out of reach as they seem. It is accepting it takes time and that you can’t do them all and especially not all at one.
Your thread painting is amazing! Each thread brings more life into the bird! I can’t imagine the concentration it must take!
You speak the truth, Terry. Yes it does take concentration. That being said, I’m going for close enough, not perfection.
Those song lyrics are the way that I always feel. Your Rainbow Lorikeet is looking beautiful. I like your latest block also.
Cheryl has a wonderful way of capturing universal truths in lyrics. Thank you for your kind words.
Lorikeet = fabulous progress! Time is speeding up, for sure. Faster as I age, but I’m doing what I want to be doing & that’s good enough for me!
That’s a sentiment I love to hear. Yes, the SEDOSO and I talk about close enough – or as you phrased it, good enough. Life is happier when we are grateful for what we have.
Totally blown away and mesmerized by your lorikeet! Having done a thread painting piece for one of the Project Quilting prompts this year, I can appreciate how time-consuming and slow-going it is, and mine was not nearly this detailed. I disagree with Cheryl: we ARE worthy, and no matter what I am doing, I try my best to BE there wholly. (though guilt about not doing house stuff does loom!)
Good to hear from you, Sandra. Yes, thread is thin and therefore quite a lot must be stitched to be seen. If you read the full lyrics to Unworthy, you will see that Cheryl actually agrees with you, although she doesn’t say that directly it is heavily implied. It is like Robert Frost’s poem, Fences, with the line Good fences make good neighbors. Taken at face value they do, however a deeper read has you question that statement. So it is with Unworthy.
Oh wow, the thread painting is already finished? You were fast, and the result is stunning. Such a beautiful piece of art! I love all the tiny details. Thank you for sharing, and linking up!
Not quite, Frédérique. I still have the black and gray threads to do. Then I take a close look to see what I might have missed or need to enhance. It doesn’t feel fast, because the process takes so much longer per square inch than other techniques. I do love doing it, though. It’s good to know it feels fast to you. Thank you for the praise.
Your thread painting is incredible. Yes, I can relate to the lyrics. 🙂 More often than not…
Thanks for sharing in Sew & Tell
Thank you, Melva.