Tag Archives: Art

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Something New – The Pithy Dragon

All those years ago when I posted my first Pithy Ponderings, I could never have imagined I would still be intermittently sharing these blogs, let alone sharing videos and projects. Over the years, I have added Pithy History (a mostly retired section), Dust Bunnies and Daily Fiber, and Pithy Patchwork Projects to the topics I share. My fiber friends came to know me as Pioneerlady, Pioneerlady at Pithyponderings, and as Unwinding With Fiber and Fabrics. More recently some people over at NightCafe (an Ai art platform) have come to know me as @Unwinding. All of these changes reflect the changes in my life, and my growth. Sharing, whether through blog, vlog, or social media posts has challenged me to step out of my comfort zone. It takes much more confidence to share the things that bring me joy then it does to simply do the things that bring me joy.

Dabbling with Ai art was never something I expected to do. Fabrics and fibers are much more my kind of art, plus like many, I recognized the controversy of Ai “art”. You might say I fell down this rabbit hole much like Alice, very unaware of where it would lead.

I was simply searching for an image that would represent me in a Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) game. Simple enough to find, I innocently thought. It turns out, wrinkly and plump, attractive and resilient, irreverent and whimsical females are underrepresented Table Top Roll Playing Games (TTRPG), or at least in the art that depicts the worlds of TTRPG.

Dissatisfied with what my searches produced, and woefully unable to afford to pay an artist to render one for me in a more traditional fashion, I turned to Ai.

Over these past months, I have developed a style and a persona. In D&D, I’m on my third avatar, each one a bit more representative of who I am. The final one developing out of a conversation I had with my son about a creative journey we are embarking upon, a journey I hope to share here in my blog.

The third image is the human form of an amethyst dragon. A dragon it seems that has been my secret identity all along.

I have been known by many names, and now I add one more to the list – The Pithy Dragon.

So many of the creative pursuits I now embrace as necessary to my wellbeing began out of the desire to support my children. The Ai and D&D rabbit hole that has dominated my life these past few months is another example of this pattern. With time, (and with events outside my control wrapping up) I will find balance once again, but for now I will frolic in a new wonderland of purple dragons, brave heroes, and epic quests.

If fortune favors me, I will have content to share in the upcoming weeks. For now, I will be sharing images on Instagram, but it is my hope to have other content to share or link to as I continue on this journey.

Oh, and I will certainly continue to share all my other content as the mood strikes me. After all, the fiber and fabric, the pithy thoughts, and the joys of life will still need to be shared.

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Saith Me… Master and Beginner

We live in a world were we no longer seem to celebrate the concept of mastering a craft or in celebrating the beginning of that journey.

There is nothing wrong with intermediate, but that is not a place where we get to sit while putting down the beginners or scoffing at the journey of further improvement.

I will likely never be a master, but I will never stop improving, nor will I ever forget the joy of beginning. The process of self-improvement, even when it is diminutive improvement, is where the joy truly begins. For in that small, simple advancement of the skill, we are rewakening the memories of our first glorious attempts at something that inspired us to try something new.

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Daily Creativity Challenge

After spinning and vlogging every day for nearly a month, I was fairly worn out. However, I also felt mentally energized. It seems the daily challenge of getting at least one creative task in before slumber helped me combat the fatigue the state of world affairs seems to generate.

I have long known this to be a truth – creativity combats mental fatigue. Finding the way to fit creative pursuits in daily is not always an easy thing. Demands of life can disrupt even the fiercest determination. Setting a goal or focusing on a gift for someone else can help keep one on course. With this in mind, I have embarked on another creative challenge.

The Christmas Countdown Collection. It would be more aptly be called the Holiday or New Year’s Day Countdown Collection, but I liked all the Cs. To be completely honest here, I was only going to do a Christmas Countdown Collection but I had too much fun dyeing fiber. Yes, I admit, I just couldn’t stop until the rainbow was well covered.

So what is the Christmas Countdown Collection? Well it is nearly 10 pounds of dyed wool roving that I now must spin into nearly 40 skeins of yarn. Each skein will be divided into two sections. Each section will be wrapped in festive paper. Each package will be unwrapped one at a time beginning on Thanksgiving Eve and going through until New Year’s Day.  Due to the need to send one set of squishy packages overseas, all of this must be done as quickly as possible. Yes, it occurs to me that I should have stuck to 25 braids of roving, but the joy of dyeing overcame rational thought.

As my daughter pointed out to me, if I spin one braid a day, and ply multiple skeins every few days, I should have plenty of time to finish this spinning challenge by the end of Tour de Fleece 2.0 (or in non-spinning terms – the end of September).

So let the challenge begin (okay, so it actually already began, but I am just now getting a video posted).

 

Oh, and for inquiring minds – the yarn is going to be used by my kiddos to crochet Granny Square afghans.

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Unwinding with Fiber and Fabric

Enjoyment from sharing bits and pieces of one’s life can be the very salve needed for the wounds daily life can inflict.

I enjoyed sharing my Tour de Fleece 2020 journey though film, but making daily videos was more insane than spinning four pounds of wool during TdF.

Spinning yarn is a tremendous therapy for me, but it is something I often do in spurts. Many types fiber and fabric projects beckon to me, and my wheels can gather dust as I pursue other textile art.

With this undeniable truth in mind, I came up with the idea of sharing snips of creativity under the general umbrella of Fiber and Fabric. It will likely be a winding path rather than a direct course that I will follow, but hopefully it will be one that provides enjoyment or amusement… or maybe just a bit of respite.

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Things a Challenge Taught Me Today

Challenges can be good for a person. Self-imposed challenges can push us out of our comfort zones and teach us new things about ourselves.

Today I learned four things from a challenge:

  • Doing two hard challenges back-to-back is a bit foolish.

                              😲

  • I really don’t like making bouclé yarn.

                              😹

  • My family is very patient with me.

                              ❤️

  • I am pretty sure I need some rest.

                              🤔

 

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Saith… The Daughter

Oh the wonderful things my daughter says. We were having a very intense (pleasant, not contentious) discussion on a topic both confounding and current, when she summed up the situation in fabulous fiber artist form.

“It may be called a Cashmere Rabbit, but that doesn’t make it cashmere.”

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Spinning in Nature

Every year I participate in an event called Tour de Fleece. I challenge myself to spin every day and to try a few new spinning techniques.

This year I took on a new challenge – video record the journey.

Today I was able to spin with the birds for company. It was a lovely way to begin my day – wet feet, tall grass, and singing birds.

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Crafter’s 12 Days of Christmas

Another crafting year is nearing an end, and the 7 days of peaceful rest is upon us. Christmas Day marks the beginning of that period of rest – when all the gifts are finished or relegated to the “maybe by next Christmas” pile. In honor of the crazy rush to finish that we all seem to go through, here is an annoying little tune to hum as the sleep-deprived, caffeinated insanity rules our days.

Crafters 12 Days of Christmas

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Buzzing in just in time…

Having seen a number of these little guys buzzing around Facebook recently, I decided I needed one for myself. Meet Lil’ Miss Boobee and ornament for the season.

Requests for her pattern followed quickly after she made her debut. So gathering up my courage, I have tried once again to write a pattern. You can download the pdf here Lil Miss Boobee

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Unlike the pattern for the little fruit posted the other day, this one is not necessarily basic. It requires a couple new stitches and a bit more careful reading. Nothing too hard, but certainly not nearly as simple as a sphere. Yet, the fun this one brings (especially as people say her name out loud) is worth the extra work.

 

Happy crocheting!