PLAYING TOGETHER resulted in a few very diverse entries. Spinners, weavers, dyers, felters teamed up with bead makers, woodworkers, quilters, and poets to produce these amazing results. Enjoy!
Mondo Bag - Prairie Wool Weavers
This bag was inspired by a Quiltsmart pattern called Mondo Bag. The Prairie Patches Quilt Guild in Davidson used it for a group project and a member of that group and also a PWW member, Christel K, suggested that we use it for our Playing Together effort. Members who wove yardage were Linda J, Elaine E, Jo M, Hilda D, Irene E, Dawn M, Dianna R, Wilma S and MaryBelle P. Andrea B did tablet weaving for the handle and assembled the bag. Christel K, Sanette C and Pat L were involved with cutting and ironing the pieces. Everyone who wove yardage was able to have a bag of their own. |
Viking Style Hood- Maryanne S. (cloth) and Alysa H. (beads)
The hood is twill-woven from spindle-spun two-ply wool (Blue-faced Leicester). The wool was dyed with madder (red), marigold (yellow) and alkanet (purple). The design of the hood is drawn from interpretations of archaeological finds, a simple pattern utilizing a rectangle and two squares sewn in as gores. |
The corners are decorated with tassels from the loom waste drawn through striped and speckled glass beads, also designed to match Viking-era finds. |
Weaving Is My SuperPower! - Kathleen B and Elaine C
W.S.P. was created by Elaine and Kathleen. Silk ties were woven and then machine quilted. The cord for the text was knit and twisted from hand-dyed and hand-spun wool. Then the hand-stitching began! When you first look at the piece you see the colours and then realize it is woven silk. Then, as you continue to look, you see the W, S and P. Next, you are drawn in to find out what all the other loops and lines are doing. Ultimately, you discover “Weaving is my SuperPower!” Just like the piece, weaving draws you in further and further, from a simple start on a simple loom to designing and weaving challenging patterns using the multi-harness floor loom. |
Purse - Emelie H and Flora T
Colour on the Current- Heather M and Marjorie Z
Heather and Marjorie collaborated to create this multimedia piece. It incorporates hand felting, hand wood carving, embroidery and crochet. The artists worked to let the materials speak, which resulted in a theme of nature mirroring nature. The piece took on the image of a flowing river, with drift wood, moss, stones and weeds being tugged and pushed along.
Betty Blue Eyes- Lynn M, Ted H, Cheryl M, and Jensen M
Based on ideas from The Complete Book of Soft Dolls, 1979, by Pamela Peake which I unwittingly purchased at the Library Book Sale some years ago, Betty Blue Eyes is a charmer. To set the stage for this playful project, a friend Ted Haas, wrote the poem, Song of the Loom. Ted is a local writer of poems, stories and is currently working on a book. My daughter-in-law, Cheryl M is a master knitter. Years ago she knit some mitts from unspun wool, which suddenly became felted. Cheryl turned this fine felting into Betty’s boots. Cheryl also embroidered the facial features which really created the personality for this doll. Granddaughter, Jensen M, fashioned the needle felted flower and used it to trim the straw hat. Betty and her garments were sewn by myself, Lynn M. The hair was spun from wool, dyed with tea and coffee and plaited. I wove the pinafore from cotton and trimmed it with vintage lace which also trims the dress. Betty Blue Eyes really is a joint effort and it was fun to Play Together for this project. Song of the Loom |