Some people use calendars, others just keep everything they need to do in their heads, I keep lists. You know the old fashion, hand written list made on a scrap of paper or if I’m being really organized, on a note pad, preferably letter or even legal sized, as my lists tend to be pretty long.
Lots of lists I even have them organized into Designs, YouTube Videos, Livestream, and then a general ToDo list. This one is the beginning of what will become a two pager, just so you know.
I’m a big believer in lists. Also unexpected things happen throughout the day that can intrude, thus derailing my list. It’s comforting to know my list is still there, ready for me to continue checking items off once the intrusion has been taken care of or passed on its own.
Yesterday my friend, Anna Bates, of Quilt Roadies, and I decided we were going to do a Facebook live video together. We fully expected that as we both know our way around Youtube, have done livestreaming, set up large groups on Facebook, and in Anna’s case, even done a FB live video before, how hard could it be? Right? So when Anna’s husband helpfully mused aloud that maybe we should do a trial run before just launching in, Anna did what I would have done, shrugged this advice off, because we’ve got this! All I can say is that Anna was so utterly demoralized by the whole experience, she went on to do another video, this time on Youtube, just to feel better. And she does redeem herself in that video. Me, not so much. Instead I’m just writing this post about it, you know, to reduce the trauma. Oh! And by the way, Anna isn’t the “intrusion” in this story, but our failed FB Live so derailed me, all I could do for the rest of the day was work on my mother’s Making Waves: A Drawstring Bag, which is the second to last item on my todo list.
Still, Anna and I are determined, and one little mishap isn’t enough to keep us down. SO this Friday, February 19th at 10am PST, 1pm EST we are going to attempt another Facebook live video, this time, together! We even tested it out, as per G.’s helpful suggestion, and we’re good to go. This time (we are hoping) there will be a split screen with Anna on the west coast and me on the east coast chatting together about our stitching and all that we love. Unlike yesterday, when Anna, in a moment of desperation, (and a stroke of genius on her part) saved the whole mess by putting me on speaker phone so that people could, at least, hear what she was responding to, as my voice goes in and out. We did laugh though, quite a bit, even so. I will share this coming Friday’s video via my FB group, Ariane Zurcher Stitching Circle so anyone in that group will be able to watch it. In addition anyone who follows me and/or Anna on FB should be able to view as well. Anyway, that’s our plan. But no worries, we’ve got this. I swear.
Even with yesterday’s fumble, I was able to post this video this morning of my latest design onto YouTube AND I got quite a bit of stitching done. So there’s that.
Yesterday I launched my latest design, Making Waves: A Drawstring Bag in my Etsy Shop! I also made a short video for it. My instructions are very, very detailed. I include everything from how to begin, to how to stitch this bag together and film all stages of the process. YouTube videos demonstrate every step so you can follow along. Each video is embedded within the instructions using Hotlinks. As I spend, literally, hundreds of hours video taping, editing and posting each video before embedding it within the instructions, my downloadable patterns are a bit more expensive. Not much. A little. People tell me they are well worth it.
This project began as a Stitch Along with a group of 17 hand stitchers who signed up for the class, which took place over Zoom. Over the course of 8 weeks we stitched this bag together and had a blast doing so.
A couple of people have asked me whether I will be doing this class again, so if you’re interested let me know as I will do it again, if there’s enough interest. The Zoom classes consist of eight one-hour classes although I would be open to doing a five-day workshop with classes running a 3-4 hours each. You can use your own threads or opt for a thread kit. If you choose a thread kit I will need to order in advance and we will have to wait until everyone has theirs to begin. This can take anywhere from one to two months, depending upon availability of the threads and how many people want kits.
I am also beginning a new design, which will be another Stitch Along, meaning that I will be designing this project as we go! What’s fun about that is that each week I unveil a new part of the design, which is fun and exciting. Once I have the basic background concept designed, I will post more about it. Right now I’m in the midst of throwing a lot of different ideas around and seeing which one I like best as well as determining which will make the most sense to add a lot of embellishing to it. As with the Making Waves design, I will be incorporating a great many different techniques and materials, such as hand dyed t-shirt scraps, hand dyed cheesecloth, wool roving, Dorset Buttons, beading, ribbon work and other fun things like that.
Dorset Buttons in the Background of Making WavesHand-dyed and Ruched CheeseclothHand -Dyed t-shirt
I think of color as having personality. I get a sense of colors much the way I get a sense of people at a dinner party. There are those who dominate the conversation, others who are quiet, yet have really interesting things to say once encouraged. Some people light up when seated next to someone they enjoy or are able to bond with, others prefer to ask questions and listen, but however they behave, all are interacting with each other in different ways. Color is similar.
Olea – An improvisational stitching piece.
I did a Youtube video, Choosing Thread Colors a few months ago, but as I’m always thinking about color and since color is such a huge component of how I design, I thought I’d talk about it a bit more.
When I was at Parson’s we had semester long classes on the topic of color and color theory and while I’m grateful to know some of the basics such as cool vs warm, tint, shade, tone, etc, I also think it’s important to know what colors speak to you specifically. If someone tells you, green is a soothing color, which for many people it often is, but you happen to hate green, incorporating a great deal of green in your piece may cause you to not love the finished product.
I’m all about diversity. I want my eye to travel from one place to another. I want to see different things the longer I look. I like pattern, but I don’t want to focus only on pattern. I want to see things beyond pattern. I love curved shapes, but appreciate angular shapes as well. It’s the same with color. I try to listen to the colors I’m choosing and then make decisions on what I’m hearing. What I mean by that is if I’m working on a piece that has a really bossy color such as bright red (think of it as yelling at you, “Look at ME!”) then I’m going to think about what colors I can use around it. Now maybe I want that red to do all the talking and everyone else will be listening. Then I might use a lot of neutrals, maybe a bit of black somewhere, I might add something else, but I’m not going to add another bossy color to drown the red out. I want the red to stand out. On the other hand, if I don’t want the red diva to dominate, then that’s going to change what other colors I choose. But the point is I’m listening. I’m looking. I’m observing and then I’m making my decisions based on what I’m hearing.
My current improvisational stitching piece – a work in progress
I love warm colors: Red, Orange, Yellow, but also love cool colors: Blue, Green, Purple. And once you start combining them you can come up with a wonderfully, fascinating mix of personalities and conversations!
If you’d like to laugh and explore stitching (or in my case attempting to) with silk gimp and the thicker gimp that Painter’s Threads hand dyes, this was the live stream I did yesterday. Warning: We laughed A LOT.
My attempts at using the crinkly silk gimp became more comedic than informative… However, I am determined to continue investigating this beautiful, if challenging thread, and what I’m able to do with it. So this is just the beginning. By the way Mary Corbet, who is a fountain of knowledge when it comes to threads, stitching, and everything and anything to do with embroidery, is such a great resource. If you click on her name above, it will take you to her blog. She also has a YouTube Channel, where she demonstrates stitches.
So here’s the thing… I am a designer first and foremost. I love playing with threads and seeing how I can use an unusual thread in a different way. My approach to hand stitching is from a design point of view. When I’m working with a thread, like gimp, whether the crinkly silk gimp or the thicker cord Gimp from Painter’s Threads, I am thinking about color, texture, and how I can use it so that it creates something interesting. As I design, I’m considering size, shape, dimension and how all of that fits into the piece I’m working on.
For my River Rocks Pouch, I used all three of these gimps in different ways. A couple of the shapes on that pouch I added gimp French Knots, which I love.
I’m off to the last remaining quilt shop in New York City in a little while. I’ll be filming it, and will post tomorrow morning. So if you want to come with me on my little adventure, tune into my Youtube Channel Ariane Zurcher ~ On the Other Hand tomorrow. Until then, here’s to exploring and stitching!
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