The Thing You Just Knew You Could Do
Image: Sarah drawn by Sarah's Mom, circa 1984
Remember when you were a kid and when you saw someone do something, you thought, “I can do that, too?” And then you just DID it, in your kid way? That hopefully didn’t result in serious injury? :) What was that thing for you?
I remember an episode of Reading Rainbow that showed a person playing a Koto. (I’ve already gone down the Youtube hole looking for this episode, I think it’s s05 e04, “The Paper Crane.” Here's a different video example.) I gathered up an empty shoebox, paper cups, and rubber bands. I wrapped the rubber bands around the shoebox, using the paper cups as bridges. Then I put paper clips on my fingertips and plucked away at my instrument. And then it was time for dinner.
I haven’t always been that confident. But as an improvisational quilter, I keep that YES sign turned on. I learned to apply the “Yes, and” mentality to quilting from Sherri Lynn Wood. If that sounds familiar, it’s a principle of improv theater as well. In my studio, the conversation is usually, “What if I did ____?” followed by “YES. DO IT.”
Try saying "Yes, and..." to something today.
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The Business Tool No One's Talking About
A recent photo of my work table, showing a social media post that I composed in a plain text editor. Yes, the Triscuits are important. Never blog on an empty stomach.
tl;dr: Get yourself a plain text editor. You probably already have one.
Google docs. Sticky notes. Voice memos. Notebooks. It's a lot to keep track of. Don't you feel frustrated when you have a great idea, put it somewhere, and can't find it later? Ever write a killer blog post and click Publish, only to see an error message along the lines of "Oopsies, our bad, now your post no longer exists ha ha ha"? Ugh.
I’m not a programmer, or a novelist, or a journalist. But I do a lot of writing in the course of my work as an artist.
I compose all of my blog posts, social media posts, and even some emails in a plain text editor.
Not Word. Not OpenOffice, Google Docs, or any other text-capturing software. Not rich text. Plain text.
Why?
1. No weird formatting or metadata. Have you ever tried to copy a letter or outline from Doc to Word to PDF and had the spacing come out all wrong? Did you get up this morning thinking, "I want to fight with Microsoft Word about what is and isn't a headline"? Even copy-pasting "as plain text" isn't 100% reliable between platforms. Plain text is free of formatting, other than line breaks. When I compose in a plain text editor, then copy-paste to the text's final destination, I know I'll have the formatting under my control.
2. No bells or whistles. Sometimes I just need to write. I don't want to distract myself with fonts, line spacing, kerning, and all the things that make my document pretty, but should wait until after I'm done getting the words out. If I'm trying to write and I see a notification, popup, etc., my train of thought is derailed.
3. No vanishing acts. I use BBEdit on my Mac desktop and laptop computers. I save the files locally (see 3a). If my internet connection gets interrupted, my text doesn't disappear.
It's worth noting that I'm a ten-finger typist. I'm not great at writing on my phone. And while voice-to-text is getting better all the time, it still has a noticeable margin of error. So I prefer to write using a keyboard. (When I’m not scribbling on paper, that is.)
3a. My files are stored locally. I'm just not super comfortable with cloud-based storage. If that's a great solution for you, awesome. I prefer knowing that I can access my text files while offline.
BONUS: this makes it easy to recycle content from my archives!
I do back everything up; I use Time Machine for local backups and Backblaze for offsite.
4. A plain text editor is lightweight. No bloatware here. Text files (with the extension .txt) take up no space at all. It's easy to email them, put them on flash drives, etc.
5. Plain text is easily transferrable, for all the reasons I've listed here. I publish content on a variety of platforms, including Patreon, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Slack, WhatsApp, and my Squarespace website. I also use InDesign, Canva, and PDFs to run my business. I use Gmail for emailing. I can paste plain text into any of those without a hitch.
ARTISTS: This is especially useful when applying for shows, grants, residencies, etc. that have online applications. Compose your bio, statement, resume, or whatever in a plain text editor, then copypasta into the online form.
Composing offline, with minimal distraction, knowing that my text doesn't depend on a particular platform, makes a huge difference in my workflow.
Here's my favorite thing about plain text editors: most of them are free. Whatever operating system you're using probably already has one (including iOS and Android).
As I mentioned, I'm a Mac user, and BBEdit is my plain text editor of choice. When you install BBEdit, it will show that you're in a "free trial" period, but don't worry - you can still use the app for free after that's over.
What are your favorite tools for writing distraction-free?
Omakase II: Out On The Town
Above: Omakase II: Out On The Town. Deconstructed garments (new and vintage) and additional cotton fabrics, machine pieced and quilted. 42 x 63 inches. $1140
Omakase II: Out On The Town
Omakase II: Out On The Town is now available for sale! Click here to purchase.
Want your own custom-made version of Omakase II? Commissions are now open! Visit the Commissions page to get started.
Continue reading for the story behind this quilt.
Do you ever get decision fatigue?
Are you ever faced with so many choices, either good or bad, that your brain just wants to crawl under the covers and weep? We've all been there. Don't ask me to order from a case of baked goods because I want one of everything. And two of those.
Luckily, there's another approach.
Omakase Quilting
Omakase is one of my all-time favorite words. It comes from Japan, and has no direct translation into English. We can get kind of close by saying things like pre fixe, dealer's choice, or surprise me.
The phrase omakase, literally 'I leave it up to you', is most commonly used when dining at Japanese restaurants where the customer leaves it up to the chef to select and serve seasonal specialties. The Japanese antonym for omakase is okonomi, which means you are choosing what to order. In American English, the expression is used by patrons at sushi restaurants to leave the selection to the chef, as opposed to ordering à la carte. The chef will present a series of plates, beginning with the lightest fare and proceeding to the heaviest dishes. The phrase is not exclusive to raw fish with rice and can incorporate grilling, simmering and other cooking techniques. - Wikipedia
Omakase is an expression of mutual trust. I trust the chef to bring me the most delightful selections available, and the chef trusts me to appreciate the meal and pay whatever they charge. (Full disclosure, I've never actually done this at a sushi restaurant, but it's on my bucket list.)
I've been applying this principle to improvisational quilting. I dip my hand (literally or metaphorically) into the Cosmic Fabric Bin, pull stuff out, and make something with it. I trust the process. Enter the Omakase series.
Omakase I: The Blue One. I made this during the summer of 2021 and donated it to the Palliative Care unit of my local VA hospital.
Quilters call this a stashbuster. Most of us have more fabric than we will ever use (guilty). My rational brain wants me to use each fabric in a highly specific and planned way. My intuitive brain wants me to grab a handful and just go to town.
This fabric pull was mostly from donations, and became a quilt that I made and donated around 2015.
This is the essence of improvisation: I trust myself.
I trust my intuitive brain to make decisions and connections that I wouldn't otherwise make. I let go. I park my verbal brain in front of Netflix or an audiobook so it doesn't interfere with the creative process.
Omakase II includes bits that were trimmed off of Omakase I. Because food metaphors are my love language*, here's another one: It's like the pot of soup that never gets cleaned all the way out, so the soup's "secret ingredient" is the history of every soup it's ever held. Scraps from one quilt often go right into the next one.
* Think sourdough starter. Or a well-seasoned iron skillet. I could go on.
Like what you see, but want it in a different size?
Or with purple and green fabrics?
Or as a square instead of a rectangle?
Start your custom quilt order today!
Step 1: Click here to answer your questions about ordering your custom quilt.
Step 2: Ready to start the commission process? Click here for sizes, prices, and payment terms.
Step 3: Book your call with me and we'll finalize the details. After I receive your deposit, I'll create your custom, made-to-order quilt!
Cyanotype Presentation Version 1.2
Hello friends. I would like to share with you a slide presentation and some links to help you learn how to create cyanotypes on fabric (or paper, if you prefer). I have presented this information for several groups of quilters, and we always come up with more fun ideas while we’re talking. I encourage you to explore on your own, and please share the results!
Cyanotypes on Fabric (PDF, 6.3 MB) - click here to download
Slide notes (PDF, <1MB) - click here to download
Links from the presentation (Word document, less than 1 MB) - click here to download
This presentation is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).
You are free to:
Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material
Under the following terms:
Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes.
ShareAlike — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you must distribute your contributions under the same license as the original.
No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
For more information please visit the Creative Commons website.
Detritus, aka Making the Art Sausage
Note: This entry first appeared on my Patreon page, which is no longer active.
When we see a work of art hanging on a wall or seated on a pedestal, it looks like it appeared there by magic. You might get a hint of the work that went into its creation - brush strokes, fingerprints, chisel marks, and so on. But what don't you see?
The process of making a painting bleeds over into my surrounding workspace. There are a lot of leftover bits. Why let them go to waste?
Paint on the Palette
I'm using a glass palette these days for my acrylic paints. It's easier to clean than plastic, but there's an awkward side effect. When my acrylic paint begins to dry on the palette, it forms flakes that absolutely do not mix with wet paint. Grr.
My solution is to take a paper towel, fold it in quarters longways, saturate it with water, and squeeze out my paint onto that. I still use the glass for mixing color, and clean the mixtures off when I'm done.
If I unfold the paper towel carefully, the next day I have this cool object that's just begging to be collaged somewhere.
All the Trimmings
I've been using my extra paint to make postcards. They are standard-size and ready to be stamped and mailed. Or you can just set them on a shelf and enjoy.
I make these by cutting 9 x 12 Bristol board into quarters. However, there's a half-inch that needs to be trimmed in order to meet the USPS' standard postcard dimensions. I've been making a lot of postcards, and these strips are really accumulating. What will they become?
Trading Cards
Are you familiar with Artist Trading Cards? They're made where are collecting and business cards intersect. They're tiny - 2.5 x 3.5 inches - and that's where the standardization ends. I use ATC's as a great place to use up extra paint, switch gears, relax with a small piece, and then have something cool to give away or swap.* Will my Patreon patrons be getting Artist Trading Cards at some point? [Yes they did.]
* You can buy ATCs on eBay. But I prefer them to be gifted or traded hand-to-hand.