Interconnected Leaves

The International Fiber Collaborative are my kind of fiber folk - they promote fiber art, encourage amateur and professional alike to co-mingle as equals, care about the world and people in general and they "tag" responsibly having gained permission to make the big statements.

Their first project culled volunteers from everywhere to make a fiber cozy for an abandoned gas station. Love that. Totally missed that it was happening but love it all the same.

Their current project is a giant tree exploring human interconnection where the individual leaves are made by... well... individuals. A community of individuals. How great is that?!

The call for volunteers asked for a leaf shape made in some form of fiber and just about any technique as long as it is 5x7" in size. Leaves are always a fun motif to explore and since I am working hard to make my own stubborn statement in this world by only producing crocheted art, my leaf is a lacy, open-work crochet kind of thing.

Here is my leaf for the tree project in green thread featuring stick figure people holding hands as the leaf veins. I blocked the living daylights out of it with undiluted fabric stiffener straight from the bottle.



I even got a little carried away decorating the mailer:




Hmm. Would have looked brighter on a white envelope in a room with sunlight. ;-) Probably should invest in some white mailers since this isn't the first time I've doodled on a package.

Anyway, to see my humble little leaf posted at the website (always a treat for me -maybe less so for other people?) just click on over. I'm seven down in gallery 11.

Do yourself a favor and make sure you check out the other galleries of leaves. Incredible work on display.

The assembly photos are mind-blowing. So many volunteers and craftspeople working so hard together.

Good causes and public messages make me happy. (hum to the tune of John Denver)

Hook on!
C

Fiber Postcard Book

Many, many moons ago (but not quite a millennium ago) a challenge was presented in the pages of Quilting Arts magazine to make a book of fiber postcards.

Oooooo. You don't know how much fun that sounds to someone who loves to crochet little vignettes. Then again, maybe you do. One shouldn't assume. ;-)

I started on the project and between fits of giggling with glee I started increasing the level of detail in the cards to the point that I managed to zoom past the deadline date without really noticing. After that, enthusiasm waned a tad, but I kept at it - honestly I did.

For a while anyway. :-}

Things came up, hurricanes came down, and finishing the postcard book came across as perpetual back burner material.

Until now!

Dum-da-da-daaa!

"Postcards from Home"



Even went insane and decorated the spine...festively.



Fluorescent orange dingle balls. ahhhh.

I'm not your sugar skull wearing, chalupa-image jewelry creating type gal, but I love that kind of stuff. Especially the chandelier drops. You know, the kinds of things that a self respecting Tex-Mex maiden and modern Latina is told she should be embarrassed to admit she has draped on her festive inner child. My response to that simply has to be, "My head, you get out of it!"

So a mere 3 years later, my fiber postcard book is done.

Now to other pursuits. Maybe some of these postcards will be revisited as prints and/or larger stand alone works. The possibilities. Squeal. A dignified squeal, but a squeal nonetheless.

Answering a challenge is always a good source of inspiration as well as a fantastic chance to grow as an artist. Even if deadlines still elude you (ahem), challenges are no pressure, no risk and always fun.

And that's why a stubborn, stead-fast crochet maven that owns the dustiest sewing machine in creation subscribes to a quilting magazine.

Expand the borders, explode the possibilities!

Hook on!
C

Window Cat Family - revised for humans to follow

I keep forgetting that people just can't read my mind. Thank you to KittyDobson for pointing out the confusion inherent to the instructions for the window cats posted here previously.

Yikes!

Apologies, y'all. It was one of my first attempts at writing things down and I'm still figuring out how to do it smoothly and with some elegance... or at least not littered with editor foibles.

I am always open to questions and editing suggestions. Seriously. Please let me know.

Here's the revised version: (free PDF availabe at my section of the Ravelry store)



Window Cats

C. A. Lira 2008 (rev 2009)

Note: crochet thread size 10
hook size 9 (1.75mm) (1.25mm)  oops - apologies

Wider Window Cat - finished height 1 3/8”
1) ch3, slst into 2nd ch from hook, hdc in 1st ch worked, ch5, slst into 2nd ch
from hook, hdc sc into next ch (3rd ch of ch5) , ch2 t   yet another correction thanx KAT
2) sc in sc of previous row, sc in each of next 2 sts, 2sc in next st, ch2 t
3) skip 1st sc, sc in next 4 sts, sc in turning chain of previous row, ch2 t
4) scdec (include 1st sc), sc in next 2sts , scdec (include turning ch of
previous row), ch2 t
5) sk 1st st, (scdec) twice (include turning chain in 2nd dec), ch2 t
6) sc in each of 1st 2sts (including 1st sc), 2sc in next st, ch2 t
7) sc in each of 1st 3sts (including 1st sc) , 2sc in next st, ch2 t
8) sc in 1st 5sts (including 1st sc), 2sc in turning ch, ch2 t
9) sc in 1st 7sts (including 1st sc), 2sc in turning ch, ch2 t
10) sc in 1st 8sts (including 1st sc), 2sc in turning ch, ch2 t
11) sk 1st sc, sc in next 8sts, ch2 t
12) scdec (include turning ch), sc in each of next 5sts, scdec, sk turning ch of
prev row, ch2 t
13) sk turning ch, scdec, sc in each of next 3sts, scdec (include turning ch),
do not turn
14) ch12, hdc in 2nd ch from hook, sc in next ch, 2sc in next ch, sc in each of
next 7 chs, going up toward head sk last 2 Rows of body, slst to next st
on side of body, end off

Rounded Window Cat - finished height 1 ¼”
1) ch3, slst into 2nd ch from hook, hdc in 1st ch worked, ch5, slst into 2nd ch
from hook, hdc into next ch (3rd ch of ch5), ch2 t
2) sc in sc of previous row, sc in each of next 2 sts, 2sc in next st, ch2 t
3) skip 1st sc, sc in next 4 sts, sc in turning chain of previous row, ch2 t
4) scdec (include 1st sc), sc in next 2sts , scdec (include turning ch of
previous row), ch2 t
5) sk 1st st, (scdec) twice (include turning chain in 2nd dec), ch2 t
6) sc in each of 1st 2sts (including 1st sc), 2sc in next st, ch2 t
7) sc in each of 1st 3sts (including 1st sc) , 2sc in next st, ch2 t
8) sc in 1st 5sts (including 1st sc), 2sc in turning ch, ch2
9) sc in 1st 7sts (including 1st sc), 2sc in turning ch, ch2 t
10) sc in 1st 8sts, 2sc in turning ch, ch2 t
11) sk 1st sc, scdec, sc ineach of next 5sts, scdec, sk turning ch of prev row,
ch2 t
12) sk 1st sc, scdec, sc in each of next 3sts, scdec (include turning ch), ch2 t
13) sk 1st sc, scdec, sc in next st, scdec (including turning ch), do not turn
14) ch12, hdc in 2nd ch from hook, sc in next ch, 2sc in next ch, sc in each of
next 7chs, working up toward head sk last 2 Rows of body, slst to side of
next Row on body, end off

Window Kitten Kitty - finished height 1 ½”
1) ch3, slst in 2nd ch from hook, sc in next ch (first ch worked), ch5, slst in
2nd ch from hook, sc in next ch (3rd ch of ch5), ch2 t
2) sc in 1st sc of previous row, sc in each of next 2sts, 2sc in next st, ch2 t
3) sk 1st sc, sc in each of next 5sts, ch2 t
4) sk turning ch of previous row, scdec, sc in each of next 2sts, scdec
(include turning ch of previous row), ch2 t
5) sk1st sc, (scdec) twice (include turning ch in 2nd dec), ch2 t
6) sc in each of next 2 sts, 2sc in turning ch, ch2 t
7) sc in 1st 3 sts, 2sc in next st, sk turning ch, ch2 t
8) sk turning ch, sc in each of next 6sts (include turning ch), ch2 t
9) sk 1st st, sc in each of next 6 sts, do not turn
10) ch12, sk 1st ch, 2sc in each of next 3chs, sc in each of next 7chs, slst to
body at end of Row 9, end off



Enjoy
Cecinatrix