Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Fairy Tales

So Mother's Day...that came and went. Here's the present I made for my mother. Not really a sentiment that I espouse...sometimes when I was stitching it, it made me a little depressed. Sure, shoes can give you special powers, but they're only a tool. I should have finish-finished it for Sunday but I'm a slacker so it just went out today. My aunt and grandmother were here though, so we had brunch at my sister's house. They got me a nice periwinkle lacecap hydrangea for... being a woman who chose not to use her womb? It's the thought that counts.

Today I went to see the dude's boss. The dude works in career services, so it's sort of a no brainer to get help from his office. She had a lot of good ideas for me. On the way home, at the bus station, this guy asked about the 104. Then he started chatting with me, telling me he was from Colombia and it was his first time on the bus. "A lot of blacks," he says. What the hell do you say to that? "In fact, Philadelphia is 45% African American." Then he gives me a look like that's a bad thing. So I say, "we're all the same: some rich, some poor, some bad, some good." He says, "But there's a lot of crime in Philadelphia." The conversation continues from there and it transpires he is from Medellin, Colombia. Um, MEDELLIN once the most violent city in the world. (Philadelphia isn't even the most violent city in America.) Oh, you clean up your act for a couple of years and you get to be the pot calling the kettle black? The mind boggles.

In the spirit of bringing together all races, I want to point out that I made that three color cord on the easel. I followed the not entirely comprehensible directions of Marcia Brown in the Fall 1998 issue of Fine Lines. (The dude read them and was at a loss.) Not bad, huh?



Oops almost forgot the most important part: the backing fabric. Thanks to dd (she of RR fame) who not only thought of it but also bought the fabric and sent it to me. Sweet!

Edited to add: The pattern is Lizzie*Kate's Cinderella. I changed the colors to make them match better with the backing fabric. That lime green is the called-for DMC; darker green is WDW spring grass; dark red is GAST cranberry; the star is GAST poppy; lighter blue is GAST Tropical Ocean. I don't know what I used for the darker blue and the medium red, but surely your conversion will be as good as mine!

17 comments:

valerie said...

Hey...great finish! Love the tri-color cording! I barely got single-color cording down.

Megan said...

Very nice! I love the cording - whenever I attempt it, I make a mess.

BronnyB said...

Splendid finish! The cording certainly does the trick. It looks familiar, but may we have chart details please? I know somebody who may appreciate this stitched for them.... thanks

Von said...

I haven't tried tri-color cording, but yours looks terrific! :) Very inspirational.

Edgar said...

What a great finish - and that 3 colour cording is top notch!!!

doris said...

Truly beautiful finishing. I'm thinking seriously of sending my cording needs your way.

As for the sentiment ... I'm one of those girls who love comfy shoes. Hard to say how they've changed my life, except that I'm able to walk without pain. That'll do for me.

Michele said...

love it love it love it! and the fabric is perfect! I have to find some. And your cording is perfect for it. Right now I'm jealous I'm not your mom! lol

Coral said...

In SA we would not say anything about 'blacks' it would delicately put as 'demographics' - hillarious, like no-one knows what you are saying!

Your cording is great!

xxx

Anonymous said...

Your color adjustments go perfectly with the fabric. I'm certain your mother loved it.

dd

Laura said...

Fabulous cording! The finishing is always what slows me down. I love how things look finished but I just hate doing it.

Chocolates4Breakfast (Terri ~ Boog) said...

What a cute finish! I have ruined my feet by wearing too many pairs of shoes that I thought for sure would change my life..... they changed it alright; just not in the way I thought they would. OUCH! Great job on the cording and finishing!!!

Adrienne Martini said...

You could always use your womb for storage, if you really feel that it ought to be used. I suspect it's also holding other organs in place and doing all sorts of other nifty things. That seems worth a hydrangea.

Love the finished piece, even if the sentiment is not my cup of ...um...shoes.

Deb said...

Beautiful job on the cording and finishing. I think I could take some lessons from you.

Michelle said...

Your finishing skills are amazing! Three-color cording!!!! I'll be sending my stuff to you from now on. I don't even know how to make cording!

mainely stitching said...

I tried to make a cable and wound up with a really ugly long knot. Good for you! This is cute, even if shoes don't change the world. ;)

Patricia Lessell said...

I love what you stitched and finished. I now you aren't too struck with it but I like it.

The thing I didn't like was what that guy said to you at the bus station. I would have been so aghast at his remarks that I think I might have, if I had thought fast enough, replied something like 'as it happens both my parents are African Americans and I'm just a throwback to when one of my ancesters was raped by a white guy'. But I generally need days think up good answers and I love Philadelphia! Lots of Love Patti xxx

Melissa said...

Cinderella looks great and as someone who isn't a shoe junkie, well I do think the right shoes can change your life at least for a little while.