Last night I spent time tying up some loose ends , answering emails, packaging and mailing some parcels, doing laundry and packing up and getting ready to travel to spend time with my mom and eldest daughter. Must be the full moon this week but the cats were especially seeking my attention constantly. Maybe they were just missing me in advance. I was trying to get a final picture of Maggie the Marmot , who will be going to live with Cassi of Belladia and Crafty Crow fame. My daughter drew her name this morning. 40 of you left comments so I am writing a cheque for 400 dollars to send to the organization that is attempting to breed these adorable little rodents so that in the future they may be removed from the most endangered species list in Canada. Thanks for helping me empty my pocket book. No sooner had I written that cheque that I get an email from the David Suzuki foundation that the woodland caribou in my own province of Ontario are in trouble. There are so many creatures that need our help. Our guild of the forest fern will do our part to help them, won't we. We have almost over 40 members so far and I am so happy that entire families have signed on. This is definitely a family thing. I will leave the comments open so feel free to join at any time.
That was Arwen and Edgar helping with the photo shoot of Maggie the marmot. In that picture you will also see the latest in my making mushroom obsession. I want to work on this a little more next week , plus I can't believe it but I ran out of natural linen fabric. The cap is plant dyed ( with goldenrod) felt . I love the pleating of the linen imitating the gills under the cap.
I already told you that I won the indie fixx second anniversary craftoff but I only found out yesterday which of my two finalists had won.
I borrowed that image from their website. Thanks so much for everyone who voted. It is the first time I have won anything like this other than ribbons at our local country fair.
So what else is happening in resurrection fern land? I am working on a new version of the crochet acorn necklace that so many of you adore. The original tutorial is still the most popular post on my blog list of over 200 posts ( I missed celebrating my 200th post). When I open my etsy shop I want to have a mailable version since checking into postal regulations for international mail I would not be allowed to mail nuts or seeds or plant material. Good thing there are no rules about stones. That brings me to my next new project. Something I am calling my matryoshka stones. I am using that word not in the literal sense of a stone within a stone within a stone but more in the sense of layers each with a different tactile emotional response. The idea came from a blog post I read just over a week ago by William Horberg. If you recognize that name it is because he is my amazing friend Elsita's husband. His post that day was about a review written by Tom Hall about the movie Bill produced , Synecdoche that was at the Toronto International Film Festival. In the review Tom said
"Synecdoche is a film predicated on the power of loneliness and longing, the deep and inarticulate desire to connect to life, to the universe, and it is this desire that delivers the film's dramatic thrust. Each emotional misfire, be it feeling overwhelmed by loss during sex, say, or humbling oneself in the face of a great untruth in order to receive forgiveness from a long, lost loved one (and have to have that forgiveness revoked), provides a new layer of meaning, another box within a box, a matryoshka of tears and triumph." I haven't been able to get that line from replaying over and over in my head since reading this. A matryoshka of tears and triumph . Brilliant!!!! So what does this have to do with stones you ask. I am working this out still but my idea is to start with a cold smooth stone , layer it with a complex , delicate lace pattern and then with a warm, soft layer of felt or to reverse the layers. I then want to leave small opening where you can catch a glimpse of what lies underneath . Here is a sneak peak at what I am working on. Before I embark on my journey I want to wish you all a wonderful autumn solstice , the forecast here is sunny days and cool evenings which is just perfect. I will be back here on Monday :)
Matryoshka stones! Excited to see what they will be like!
Posted by: saganaga | September 19, 2008 at 12:30 PM
I love your matryoshka stones' layers--of meaning, of pattern, of hard and soft. I think that's what we all are inside, essentially. Really complicated layers of experiences and emotions and learning, not to mention the parts of us that we absorb from the people around us. And that's why synechdoche--the literary term that means using the part of something to represent the whole--is evocative but ultimately incomplete, as the movie reviewer notes about the film itself.
Or, as Shrek would say, "Ogres are like onions. We have layers," or something to that effect (see, my allusions are more likely these days to come from an animated movie rather than an indie film).
Anyway, brilliant job, as usual, refining a very complex idea to a simple, elegant creation!
Posted by: Patricia | September 19, 2008 at 02:17 PM
Phew! Always so hard to follow one of Patricia's brilliant comments...
But, I think you must have some idea how excited I am about these stone matryoshkas. I'm certain that they will be stunning and moving. Have a wonderful weekend with your special women...I'll be thinking of you.
Posted by: mayaluna | September 19, 2008 at 02:41 PM
not only are the stones beautiful, but your generous donation to the marmot organization is beautiful as well.
Posted by: kelly | September 19, 2008 at 02:54 PM
What a wonderful donation to the marmots!
I'm so excited about the Guild!
Your crocheted stones are how I first found this blog, so I'm interested to see what the matryoshka stones will be.
Posted by: Emma | September 19, 2008 at 03:42 PM
the stones totally take my breath away.
Posted by: dawn | September 19, 2008 at 06:18 PM
All the cats I've ever known are as "helpful" as your Arwen and Edgar are. They sure HELP my spiritual balance. :)
Wow! $400 dollars to help rescue the Vancouver Marmot. Terrific!
Looking forward to what the Guild can do.
Blessings on your trip this weekend.
Posted by: NanaBeast | September 20, 2008 at 02:42 AM
it sounds like a wonderful idea. have a lovely weekend :)
Posted by: rebekah | September 20, 2008 at 12:48 PM
hey, congrats on winning the indie fixx! I voted for your owl and pussycat without realizing it was you, and here I've stumbled upon your blog (from a link on Crafty Crow) and there it is, again. I love the stones, too--the felt covers bring to mind tiny little moccasin slippers.
Posted by: trish | September 20, 2008 at 03:58 PM