As soon as I completed my final commission piece, I revved
up my sewing machine and launched into one last push on Re-Shirts before the
Unitarian Universalist Art Fair this past weekend. I managed to assemble a few more from fabrics I snipped into
shape and stored for the occasion.
I wanted to have a nice selection because the Re-Shirts were a big hit
at the ‘UU’ show last season. I
even picked up a few shirts I had at 'The Gathering' in town and ended up with
sixty-two Re-Shirts. Just as I was
building up artistic steam for the show, a big storm came barreling out of the
Midwest. It dropped ice on us
during set-up, then eight inches of snow overnight and through Friday.
The schools were closed and the town
pretty well shut down, but I drove in to meet the enthusiastic crowd of eight
or so shoppers that braved the weather.
On the bright side, I had lots of time to needle-felt, talk to my
friends and even do some Christmas shopping without any crowds! Saturday dawned a little cold and
crispy, but more people did venture out.
It was good to see some familiar faces that I get to see only once or
twice a year and catch up. The
smaller crowds yielded longer and more meaningful conversations, which I
liked.
The good news is that I have
plenty of Re-Shirts for the Bloom show in February! I'm sure I’ll till make a few more, though. I’ve had several comments or requests
for Re-shirts that are a little longer in the front. I re-designed my tank in all three sizes such that it is
about four inches longer both places.
I’ve created the pattern and I’ll try it out before Christmas. My plan is to give great Aunt Lois the
first one in blue, which is her color, so don’t tell her!
Partly because of the show, I have done a fair amount of needle
felting lately. I finished the
lemon and orange rinds for my fruit plate piece. That reminds me of the story of the piece, which is a nice
circle. My booth at the UU show is
next to Abby Gitlitz, the glass artist.
Last year we got to talking about Turkish food. Abby used to live in Turkey and she
speaks the language. She offered
to bring me a recipe for imam bialdi, my favorite dish at Anatolia on Fourth
Street in town. Abby brought me a
cookbook that happened to have an image of a bunch of vegetables laid out on a
plate as a salad, some assembly required.
That image inspired the “Summer Salad” piece, and now, a year later, “Fruit
Plate.”
I was also reminded that last
summer, Marcy Neiditz, ceramicist extraordinaire, gave me a pale green, thick, wool
sweater that she shrank. I’m never
sure what I’ll use materials for, but I discovered that the green was just
perfect for the inside of kiwis slices!
I added the brown skins onto the kiwi slices during slow times at the show. I even had time to work on the pink
fruit of watermelon triangles. I
previously dyed some fleece with cherry and strawberry kool-aid to get just the
right color. When the show was
finally over Saturday afternoon, we packed up in record time and celebrated
another successful show in our own special way, with homemade kluski and a warm
blackberry pie! I think there’s
still one slice left for tomorrow’s breakfast with coffee. Now I can focus on the holidays and
reclaiming the house. The power of
two boys to reduce order and cleanliness in a house should never be
underestimated. Then I’ll get to
move back into my art studio and weave!
I’m so excited!
Until next week,
Martina Celerin
