Saturday morning was marvelous. I got to start the morning with my son, Justin, over breakfast and lots of coffee at a local cafe. I love well established cafes- I love people watching and the accompanying sounds and smells- clanking plates, wafts of bacon and coffee, and observing people as they arrive. Over our toast and eggs, we talked about art, art and more art. I spoke of what a lousy blogger I am. "I don't know what to say!" Justin told me that that is because I am an artist and the things I really have to say are made with my hands. He told me to just post pictures- so, OK!
This rug is about a dream I had early last summer. I had experienced a broken heart in magnitude I could never explain earlier in the year. For months, I worked through the stages of grief that we all know. One morning I awoke from a dream so real and so meaningful that in the days to follow, I knew I needed to 'record' it with wool- one loop at a time. This is the very beginning and possibly my very favorite place to start- the face. It is always a surprise to me when a face is hooked in and my hooked piece from the onset carries personality and helps me 'feel' the rest as I work away.
Rug hanging in wool studio where I can look at it as I come in and out- spotting problem areas or ideas. Here I have pieces of 'Midnight Blue' placed around to try to imagine what she will look like on the night sky.
I'm liking the night sky! A blend of my 'Midnight Blue' and 'Midnight in Paris.' The clouds and dress are both shades of Midnight Blue. I began hooking in segments of Sari ribbon through-out the sash.
At this point, I was trying to figure out how I was going to add the other details that I dreamed about.
In my dream, there was a cream colored 'globe' that represented the 'conflict' that I was so heart-sick over. My rug sat at this stage for quite some time until I decided to 'edit' what I actually saw. I was concerned that someone looking at it would not be able to figure out what was going on. What you see above is what I saw in my dream- soon to be 'edited.'
Do you see how I changed that globe to a moon? Oh, there is Mercedes who is at my feet every moment. She is a bit of a 'rug hooker' herself- she watches me dye and plan and hook and I actually talk to her as I work.
"Girl, I love you, Girl!
What do you think?
Should I make a moon instead?
Yeah, I thought so."
Besides my dream, Mercedes (name meaning, ironically is 'Mercy, Pity, and Favor and no, I did not name her- she came to me with that name during 2015 while I was working through grief.) She has been the sweetest and most comical friend. OH! At this point, I noticed that the lady's neck looked like it had been scratched! I meant to suggest creases in her neck as she turned it but quickly saw that she looked like she had got in a tussle with an angry cat! Those lines were taken out and softened.
'Dream' hanging on my easel outside my shop. It will hang over my desk where I will always remember that dream that spoke to me about detachment and rising above.
So what is next? A pattern that I am actively working on only because I was dying to use a new color I have, 'A Rose By Any Other Name.' I simply think it is beautiful and want to use various shades of it to show how pretty it is and I am loving the whole idea...which was another topic of yesterday's breakfast with Justin.
God bless you from my heart! Please visit my website at vintageheartrugdesign.com .
