Textile Artists Ask! Do you have a scary corner???
I have a scary corner in my sewing space. It is the place where all unfinished fabric lands. The place where all the materials I get for new projects that I LOVE the idea of, but can’t quite sit down to do, because its frankly lonely to try to figure it out on my own, especially when I am a person who LOVES to do anything cloth, thread, or dye related, and, (if I do say so) am pretty darn good at it, too.
Yet even I, a veteran at the trade, have things I can’t quite figure out. Knitting, for example. I have been teaching dyeing for almost two decades and countless knitters have come through my classes, arriving with enormous hanks of white yarn and leaving with rainbows that astound me. I watch them knit and watch their fingers fly, and I marvel. I tried knitting a tube once, in graduate school. It became a lumpy, misshapen rope and I turned it into a sculpture.
I still have not learned to knit. But, I have, over the years, both on my own and, when I get stuck, with incredible teachers, gained good results and joy in the textile art I create. I still have that scary corner though. Before the pandemic, I used to meet with like minded people and together we exchanged ideas and even fabrics. We would talk to each other, share knowledge, tips, and tricks. Now its harder. But I have slowly been learning to navigate the virtual world. I am amazed at how much I enjoy these experiences.
I am planning a virtual workspace where anyone who likes to fool around with fabric, at any level, can have fun and find great new ideas.
You can try out a free stitch meditation here at www.carollebarondyes.com
You can find out more about me at www.followcarollebaron.com
Carol LeBaron.
