an art of balance

What I dream of is an art of balance.
— Henri Matisse (1869–1954)

Like nos. 95 & 96, I wanted to do another "individual" herringbone stitch design. I think of these as "spirograph" designs, though this one is less so than 95 and 96, I believe because if how I divided the colors as well as fewer divisions.

Thread wrap in gray-brown; S16 division, guidelines removed after stitching; embroidery in 8 shades of silver-browns and moss greens. The quote above by Matisse is in the bell box along with 23 brass rings. Circumference: 9.875 inches / 25 cm; diameter: 3.14 inches / 7.95 cm. Completed 28 April 2012 (no. 116).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

wrote some blues

I merely took the energy it takes to pout and wrote some blues.
— Duke Ellington (1899–1974)

A variation of the wrap pattern I first used for no. 108.

Thread wrap in jet black; S6 but no marking lines. Embroidery in nine shades of blues, silver-blues, and grays. The quote by Duke Ellington is in the bell box along with 17 brass rings. Circumference: 10.325 inches / 26.5 cm; diameter: 3.28 inches / 8.43 cm. Completed 28 April 2012 (no. 115).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

destiny is made known silently

No trumpets sound when the important decisions of our life are made. Destiny is made known silently.
— Agnes de Mille (1905–1993)

This is another "sculptural" temari - an original "free form" design intended to be displayed with the north pole at the top or facing forward. I wanted to convey quietness yet strength; using ecru on ecru the pattern is subtle; fine gold highlights add grace.

Thread wrap in ecru; S6 division #8 perle. Embroidery in matching ecru with a few highlights in metallic gold. The quote by Agnes de Mille is in the bell box along with 27 brass rings. Circumference: 9.5 inches / 24.5 cm; diameter: 3 inches / 7.8 cm. Completed 25 April 2012 (no. 114).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

i shut my eyes in order to see

I shut my eyes in order to see.
— Paul Gauguin (1848–1903)

I love the ribbed kiku sitich (for example, no. 104), and decided to see what might happen if I layered it with traditional kiku — I think it looks pretty stunning! A new favorite.

Thread wrap in medium silver gray; S8 division #8 perle. Embroidery in matching gray, light yellow and very light green. The quote by Paul Gauguin is in the bell box along with 23 brass rings. Circumference: 10.25 inches / 26 cm; diameter: 3.26 inches / 8.27 cm. Completed 24 April 2012 (no. 113).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

at home in this universe

When I learn something new—and it happens every day—I feel a little more at home in this universe, a little more comfortable in the nest.
— Bill Moyers (1934– )

A symmetrical composition: an S20 division, each pole has four 5-point kiku herringbone stars in four colors. Browns for the nest, and midnight blue for the universe; the pattern & color placement create a kaleidoscopic effect.

Thread wrap in midnight blue; S20 division in metallic copper. Embroidery in four gradated shades from dark beige-brown to light-beige brown. The quote by Bill Moyers is in the bell box along with 17 brass rings. Circumference: 10.5 inches / 26.8 cm; diameter: 3.34 inches / 8.53 cm. Completed 21 April 2012 (no. 112).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

things do not change, we change

Things do not change, we change.
— Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)

A variation on no. 093 (which I liked so much I decided to keep it for myself). This temari has a reverse kiku herringbone pattern of two interlocked five-point stars—reverse means the kiku points are at the equator and not at the poles. The only problem is that it wasn't until the second to last row that I realized the mistake I had made at one pole! Still, if it sells, it will go for a good cause.

Thread wrap in purple; S10 division (guidelines removed); embroidery in 5 shades of very light lavender-white (not actually white) to dusky lavender to purple. The quote above by Thoreau is in the bell box along with 21 brass rings. Circumference: 10.5 inches / 26.8 cm; diameter: 3.34 inches / 8.53 cm. Completed 16 April 2012 (no. 111).


Sold (at a reduced price) to benefit Kiva.org.

oops! . . .

a creative life

To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong.
— Joseph Chilton Pearce (1926– )

Starting back with no. 103, I wanted to try to achieve a design that I've seen in some photographs from Japan — kiku herringbone with very thin / long inner points. This is another attempt, and I used pins as guides for the threads through the first three rows of stitching to help achieve this effect. It's much closer to what I'm aiming for, but I think I need more points (perhaps an S16 or even S20) and to work on the proportion of my spacing lengths in the petals to get the exact effect. I'll get it one day, but in the meantime, I like how this one turned out, especially the negative space at the poles where the guidelines have been removed.

Thread wrap in medium silvery gray; S10 division with guidelines removed. Embroidery in matching medium gray and light mossy green (a bit yellow-green). The quote by Pearce is in the bell box along with 9 brass rings. Circumference: 10.25 inches / 26 cm; diameter: 3.26 inches / 8.27 cm. Completed 9 April 2012 (no. 110).


Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

to be renewed

To be worn out is to be renewed.
— Lao Tzu (6th c. BCE)

This is another asymmetrical composition. An S20 division, the top half has four 5-point kiku herring bone stars in four colors, and the points end with several rounds of "kiku around kiku" (like nos. 94 and 101). The bottom half has four 5-point stars of layered reverse kiku herringbone in a slate gray that is identical to the thread wrap, which provides more of a textural than colorful effect. I chose the colors for the top half based on the quote: renewal > phoenix > peacock.

Thread wrap in very dark slate gray (almost black, but not); S20 division in #8 perle. Embroidery in dark teal blue, light blue green, silvery slate blue, purple, and dark slate gray. The quote by Lao Tzu is in the bell box along with 11 brass rings. Circumference: 10.75 inches / 27.5 cm; diameter: 3.4 inches / 8.75 cm. Completed 6 April 2012 (no. 109).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

a single thread in nature

If one pulls on a single thread in nature, you'll find it attached to everything else.
— John Muir (1838–1914)

This is a new variation on an S6 wrap design; I was inspired by earlier designs like no. 059 but wanted a fuller, lacier, more colorful and layered effect.

Thread wrap in dark chocolate brown; S6 but no marking lines. Embroidery in nine shades of browns, rusts and coppery orange. The quote by Muir is in the bell box along with 8 brass rings. Circumference: 10.5 inches / 26.7 cm; diameter: 3.34 inches / 8.5 cm. Completed 3 April 2012 (no. 108).


Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

to see our priorities

We often need to lose sight of our priorities in order to see them.
— John Irving (1942– )

This is a completely experimental temari, an original design that I created with the intent of evoking a rose or rosebud. The top pole (half) features the traditional "rose garden" pattern, stitched in squares on an S16 division with each new square starting one guideline from the last to create a spiral effect. The bottom pole (half) features 4 four-point reverse kiku stars, interlocked, like the bud / closed petals at the base of a flower. This is quite a departure from my usual temari (and temari in general) which are usually symmetrical, whether repeating the same design at the two poles on a simple division, over multiple poles on a combination division (such as six stars on the six poles of a C8 division), or an "all-over" type pattern (like a spiral).

Thread wrap in lilac/lavender; S16 division in #8 perle. Embroidery in many shades of purples, violets, lavenders, and greens. The quote by John Irving is in the bell box along with 9 brass rings. Circumference: 10.25 inches / 26.3 cm; diameter: 3.26 inches / 8.4 cm. Completed 31 March 2012 (no. 107).


Sold to benefit Kiva.org.