Inspiration

I started off the morning as usual, reading emails and blogs -- you know, the normal internet-addict's web crawl.  I was moving along pretty smoothly till I got to Cassie's  post  on passions and powers. (BTW, Cassie's doing some fabulous wool processing and spinning.)  I followed her links to Sara's blog, and especially to this post about dyeing knitted pieces, frogging them, and then re-knitting the yarns into new creations.  That tied in nicely with the article in the new issue of Southern Cross Knitting about cold-pad dyeing (link is to the second page of the article.)

So I'm thinking, yeah, this is pretty nifty stuff.  Lots of good ideas here.  This is stuff I'd like to try.

Then I followed another link to Sarah Swett's tapestry site.

Holy cow.  Y'all, go look at her tapestries.  I especially liked Hands (ties in with lace knitting),  Three of Spinsters, and The River Wyrd.  Tapestries like The Hut on the Rock, The Sea make me want to construct a whole story out of what was going on there.

You know, I've never really been a passionate person.  I get enthusiasms, and I play with them till the next shiny thing catches my attention.  I'm a dilettante, and I know it,  and most of the time I'm okay with that.

But when I see works by people like Sarah Swett, I'm stunned.  I sit in front of the computer looking at the images of her work with my mouth hanging open.  She does many of these tapestries using natural dyes, folks.  Some of them are made from handspun.  Neither of these is a small task.  Factor in the design of the picture, the color, and the technique involved in weaving these tapestries, and you've got something that is just astonishing.

I know I'm not an artist like Sarah Swett.  But I could do more than I'm doing.  What holds me back lots of times is fear of failing, fear of looking stupid or making something that looks dumb or ugly.  So I settle for doing what's safe and predictable.

I'm not getting any younger.  With all the other changes going on in my life now, maybe it's time to try something a little different with my crafts too.  Maybe I can branch out a little, use what I've got creatively now while money's tight, and try some new things. 

It's worth a try, I think. 

Thanks for the inspiration, ladies!   
 

Comments

[Cassie]

Sarah Swett is who I'd like to be when I grow up. If I ever grow up enough. I hate to sound like a sycophant but really, I adore her.