This week: Martin Luther King Day, Inauguration of a new US President and Covid creation #4.
First, the dream of racial equality is still unfortunately very much a dream and a terribly slow work in progress. Judging a man by the content of his character instead of the color of his skin needs to happen much sooner than later.
Second, in 2 days, the United States of America will swear in its forty-sixth president. And not a day too soon! May the country begin to heal, put aside partisan divisions, believe in science, trusts real journalists, and promote better education.
And finally, I am delighted to present my fourth Covid creation from denim! This piece incorporates several techniques and is backed with Guatemalan fabric.
The process included several steps. First, deconstructing many pairs of pre-loved jeans. For the first time, I enjoyed using opened (elasticized) waist bands and hems that had faded beautifully through usage and washings. This gave a new visual dimension to the denim, and yes, even a tactile one, too. I also included the raveling of denim edges after cutting them.
Next, red, black and white embroidery threads were used to begin embellishing small denim pieces. Sashiko stitches were straight as well as circular. Applique and reverse applique (by hand and by machine) were used to give more dimension and interest. Letting the stitching “peek” through and go over raveled pieces was a new technique.
All the blocks needed to be assembled, but not at the same time. Smaller sections were sewn together, then trimmed, to await for other sections to join together. Along the way, there was a balance of worn, raveled, colors, etc. I really enjoyed the creative process on this one, but the stitching and weight took a toll and I stopped assembly when my shoulder, arm and wrist began aching excessively.
Finding an appropriate backing fabric was a challenge. I knew that I wanted a cotton, but there is little to be found in country. After several frustrating searches, I found a one-time order of 6 Guatemalan cotton fabrics for an artisan community and quickly purchased 3 designs.
The fabric was pinned to the front and the process of “tying” began. Dozens of little hand ties were made to secure the front and back fabrics together. This piece does not have batting, so no quilting was needed. The edges were machine sewn together.
The final step was to add denim bias tape around the 4 sides. It was machine sewn to the top then hand sewn down in the back.
The final piece is much smaller than what I had initially hoped it would be, but so much greater in what I learned and enjoyed along the way!
