The Doily

I lost my making mojo there for a while.

I have been busy skating, moving, organising and keeping warm.

But I think the mojo is back. I made this skirt for the hell of it this weekend. It's a bit small for me but I have in mind a little person who might like it.

When I first met my beau I made him this and it is still probably my mostest favouritest thing I have ever completed.

In replacement of embroidery floss I used strands of my hair.

The technique is a bit tricky, you need to use about 6 individual strands to form one 'floss' otherwise you can't see it properly.

I have been inspired by this blog post shown to me by a friend and have been fairly obsessed with the idea since.

I love that this piece of work contains literally a piece of my body, each strand holds the genetic information that makes me individually me. Yes, it's a little grotesque, but I think that's what I find so compellingly beautiful.

When I was a little girl I remember seeing a very, very old sewing kit in a stately home. The curator told me that the tiny little silver scoop it contained was for scooping out ear wax to wax the thread!

Don't worry, I didn't use my ear wax, but a little bees wax helps tame the 6 strands enough to make them easier to work with. Lucky my hair is very long right now!

Continuing the theme of inappropriate embroidery I am working on a series of re-loved doilies, adorning them with profanities.

I like the contrast between their prettiness and naughtiness!

I have never really played with embroidery before so my skills are a little shoddy, but I'm loving its portability. I can do it anywhere and even whilst I am engaged in other tasks, it even got whipped out this weekend at at training session on the updates to the roller derby rules!

Hopefully your are staying warm and cozy? Brrr... it's chilly outside!