Ceiling light fixture transformation

For two years, every time my eyes alighted on the ceiling of my living or dining room, I thought to myself, “this will not do”. The classic renter’s problem of ugly boob fixtures, made worse by heavy glass domes that wouldn’t stay put, and had to be removed for safety. It was a terrible visual distraction every time I lay down on my back to stretch.

How to fix it? I pondered for 2 years, until one day it came to me. MAGNETS. The outer round rim is metal! Magnets sewn into fabric shades, plus new, warm toned LED bulbs that won’t get hot.

I began by weaving strips of linen from a friend’s old sheets that were too tattered for bedlinen, but had a lot of good fabric left on them.

A simple square of woven strips takes on an interesting shape when magnetically attached to the circle of the underlying fixture at 8 points.

For the living room, a simpler five panel conical form with wavy seams.

I like how it resembles a little buttercream rosette piped onto the ceiling.

Oak Leaf Lamp

The daffodils are blooming, the air is warming, and my household is in spring cleaning mode. It’s time to retire the old string of lights that had been illuminating the entryway. This simple paper and wire lamp I made, (fret not, it’s an LED bulb that doesn’t get hot), throws great shadows. If only it were hard wired without the cord hanging down.

Antique Pack Basket

I found this basket at my neighborhood antiques shop and had to have it, despite it’s dusty, rickety state. I don’t have access to pounded wood splits to repair the weak points, so I wrapped the vulnerable spots with an old tooled leather belt. The top handle and the rim were loose due to the original material having cracked and broken off. I re-wrapped those areas with some rawhide lacing, and now it feels strong and ready for new adventures.

I wonder who made this basket. When and where did they harvest the tree that it was made from? What did they plan to carry in it? I hope they would approve of my repair job.

Safe Space

My friend Laura is a nurse practitioner and primary care provider in Maine. She was setting up two rooms to see patients in, and wanted some wall art that would signal to people that they are safe to seek care as their full selves. If you feel like you can’t be open about areas of life such as gender and sexuality, you can’t get the kind of holistic, non-judgmental care that every person deserves.

I made two circular weavings, more or less the same. I had some white wool roving that I dyed red, orange, yellow, green, blue and violet. I wrapped warp threads around thrifted embroidery hoops, and wove in the rainbow colors, as well as brown, black, pink, pastel blue, and white, incorporating all of the colors of the Progress Pride Flag.

Laura and I have been friends since approximately 1992, and we have made a lot of polymer clay doo-dads together over the years. The letters are made of Sculpey (also on hand from a past project!) as a nod to our long friendship.

A Shiny New Tool

After nearly a decade of stitching together, my 1960’s Japanese made Montgomery Ward sewing machine was limping along, no longer able to handle much more than a simple mending seam, (when the tension managed to hold). I finally admitted to myself that it was time for an upgrade, and ordered a Bernette Academy 05. So far it’s working out great! My sewing machine lives on my work table in the living room. Since it is always out at the ready, it needs a dust cover, and it might as well be a fun soft sculpture to brighten up the room when it is a baby playroom, yoga and stretching studio, or space to hang out with friends.

I found myself at home. Alone. On a sunny afternoon. Ideal creative conditions!

My friend Katy tried out sewing as a hobby. She recently decided it’s just not for her right now, and offloaded her supplies. A woman of decisive action! I was the beneficiary of a trove of nice fabrics, including swaths of linen from old sheets, and some vintage Marimekko textiles that her grandmother had purchased. I began my dust cover by tearing out seams and ironing out this bright yellow pillowcase with wobbly white stripes. It was just the right size for the main section.

I cut out semicircular shapes measured to fit the dimensions of my machine and quilted the yellow fabric together with another old cotton pillowcase and some cotton batting leftover from a long-ago quilting marathon with my friend Tuesday. I had a few yards of thrifted yellow calico with little flowers that was just right for a ruffle of petal rays. Lined lined with some thrifted interfacing, it has just enough structure to stand up. I love when everything I need for a project is already in my stash of sewing materials.

The new machine had no problem stitching through many layers of fabric and batting when I attached the border section to the front and back quilted arcs. I love how it turned out.

Et voilà, a sun/flower.

Now quick, put away that iron and cord before the baby comes downstairs!