Tag Archives: #harcourthousegallery

The Oracle of Stillness- Cherishing

Cherishing is one of those ‘And’ experiences, isn’t it?

We love AND we cherish.

We hold someone or something close in our hearts

AND we are delicate in that holding close… not crushing or extinguishing, just the lightest touch or not touching at all….

AND then… a blessing

AND, sometimes, but not always, a release.

Like joy, cherishing is a bridge of paradoxes that brings the breath and the spaces between to life.

This mixed media Woven Woman for the Oracle of Stillness series is “Cherishing”.

She is one of 3 of my mixed media tapestries from the “Oracle of Stillness” series that are part of the fundraising Christmas/Celebration of Joy show at Harcourt House: Artorama

I’m posting all the images from the Oracle of Stillness here on www.tottietalkscrafts.com

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The Oracle of Stillness- Calm unfolds in a whisper

Living in a time of chaos is a rough ride.

The turbulence, drama, trauma and din is like standing in front of a huge screen that has the shock waves slamming across it.

When those harsh shocklines threaten to overwhelm,

it’s time to hit the pause button and take a deep breath….

Listen for a gentle whisper that slides in and starts softening and smoothing those sharp peaks and valleys

into curves and waves that lift and carry us,

one breath, one pause, another breath, another pause-

a gift from the Heart of Stillness that bring moments of clarity, calm and coherence.

That’s what this mixed media Woven Woman for the Oracle of Stillness series is all about.

She is: “Calm Unfolds in a Whisper”.

She is one of 3 of my mixed media tapestries from the “Oracle of Stillness” series that are part of the fundraising Christmas/Celebration of Joy show at Harcourt House: Artorama

I’m posting all the images from the Oracle of Stillness here on www.tottietalkscrafts.com

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The Oracle of Stillness: An Uprising of Joy

Joy is one of the great connectors of the Universe.

It can burst into a moment that launches the heart skyward, or it can slide in on a silent wave that somehow appears in the midst of suffering and sorrow and leaves a person riding a wave that lifts them when only a moment before, there was oppression, misery and despair.

Joy is a bridge that brings together paradoxes and stitches the Great Mystery and Beauty into a patchwork that says: YES to awe and to life.

When Joy burst into my life, I felt compelled to create this mixed media Woven Woman for the Oracle of Stillness series: “An Uprising of Joy”.

If you look closely at the feathers on the edges of her wings, you will see hundreds of tiny brass safety pins, which I adore as they are charming little bits of amazement that hold things together. And on each of the tiny safety pins, there are seed beads as a metaphor for how Joy seeds new life in us.

May Joy unfold in your life, too!

‘An Uprising of Joy’ is one of 3 of my mixed media tapestries from the “Oracle of Stillness” series that are part of the fundraising Christmas/Celebration of Joy show at Harcourt House: Artorama

I’m posting all the images from the Oracle of Stillness here on www.tottietalkscrafts.com

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Filed under Dreams and dreamwork, Goddesses Goddess, grief, lace making, Loom & looms & small loom weaving, mixed media weaving, Oracle of Stillness: Weaving Coherence in the Chaos series of Woven Women mixed media weaving, personal stuff, Simple Little Things That Make Me Happy, weaving & handwoven, Woven Women tapestries and woven works

Oracle of Stillness: The Mysterious and the Magical Have a Way of Waiting Patiently to Reveal the Astonishing

Today is the final day of the exhibition of ‘Oracle of Stillness: Weaving Coherence in the Chaos’ at Harcourt House Gallery in Edmonton, AB. If you are in YEG, do step over to the gallery, as they have done such an exquisite job of lighting the show that the Woven Women fairly dance on the walls.

I offer my most enormous gratitude to Darren Kooyman, Jacek Malec, Marija Nikolajev and the Board members of Harcourt House- it is such an honor to have been invited to exhibit at Harcourt House and I am eternally grateful for all the hard work that you have done to create and sustain such a wonderful centre for the arts in Edmonton!

The last Woven Woman that I wove for the series of the Oracle of Stillness is: “The Mysterious and the Magical Have a Way of Waiting Patiently to Reveal the Astonishing”.

She announced herself in a dream and I had to wake up to be sure to write down the correct words in the right order, as she was very clear that that was essential.

And, it was fascinating to feel that she was the final piece- the 50th one…. I knew that I would be weaving 50 Oracles of Stillness, and was intrigued by how that unfolded.

She was very clear about exactly what I needed to do to make her fully true and accurate to her raison d’etre.

There wasn’t enough room in the gallery for all 50 of the mixed media Woven Women Oracles of Stillness to be in the exhibition, but I will get all 50 of them uploaded here on: www.tottietalkscrafts.com

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Filed under Dreams and dreamwork, lace making, Loom & looms & small loom weaving, mixed media weaving, Oracle of Stillness: Weaving Coherence in the Chaos series of Woven Women mixed media weaving, personal stuff, Teneriffe lace, weaving & handwoven, Woven Women tapestries and woven works

Oracle of Stillness-The Writers Circle

Yesterday was a peak experience for me.

I was invited by a group of 7 contemplative writers to join them at Harcourt House Gallery as they gathered to immerse themselves in ‘The Oracle of Stillness: Weaving Coherence in the Chaos’ and then write about it.

I was feeling very sick and didn’t think I could make it, but I knew that I would regret it forever if I didn’t go.

And, oh my word! It was so powerful…. The energy in the gallery of kindness, respect, honesty, presence, integrity, healing and wholeness was like a tsunami of YES… this is the way the world should be!

I am in awe of the insights of this marvelous group of women sages and seers. To say that it was powerful is an understatement.

It was the perfect way to draw the exhibition to a close.

The show ends on Saturday November 22, so if you are in Edmonton, do step into the gallery- you can feel the magic of the writers circle still, I am sure.

By the way, I took one of my looms along to weave words as the other writers wrote. Magical.

Thank you to Marija Nikolajev and Theresa Belter for the photographs.

I’m posting all the images from the Oracle of Stillness here on www.tottietalkscrafts.com

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Oracle of Stillness Woven Women- Gratitude for the Bees

This is “Gratitude for the Bees”-

May the Sun and the Moon and the Goddess of the Bees always lead us safely home. 🥰

😍 My blessing for all who travel.

She is one of the Woven Women mixed media weavings in my series ‘The Oracle of Stillness’, currently on exhibition at Harcourt House in Edmonton AB.

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Oracle of Stillness- Finding the Way Home

Completing the “Oracle of Stillness” series of mixed media weavings has signalled some deep changes in our home.

This taken the form of a complete shift about of furniture and re-configuring how we use our spaces. Feng Shui in action!

This shape shifting has made us feel much happier with our little home as it feels more alive and cleaner and cozier and ready to receive the new work that is deliciously emerging for us… lots happening with new inspiration, but more about that later.


The decisions around ‘what do we let go of’ and ‘what do we use in new ways’ and’what do we need to bring in?’ has stirred all kinds of musings and dreaming about what ‘HOME’ is and how deeply the concept of ‘Home’ reaches down into our many levels of mind and also into our dream universes.


This Woven Woman from the ‘Oracle of Stillness’ series, “Finding the Way Home” is one of the ‘Grandmother’s Coat’ series, and is also a compendium of fleeting images from many dreams that I have had about the power of “home”.


My wish is: May everyone, everywhere find peace and healing in their homes
May everyone everywhere have safe harbor in their homes
May everyone everywhere feel heard and seen in their homes
May everyone everywhere feel welcome in their homes
May everyone everywhere feel restful repose and have sweet dreams in their homes
Whatever “HOME” means to you, may you find your way home to that…

I’m posting all the images from the Oracle of Stillness here to www.tottietalkscrafts.com

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Oracle of Stillness- Celebrating Lovely People Who Inspire Peace and Goodness and Imagination

Living with chronic illness is mostly really the pits.  But I have found that the sheesh-awfulness of it has honed my radar to notice and dive into the beautiful moments that unfold in unexpected and wonder filled ways. 

For instance, one of our neighbors is the loveliest person… you can feel him quietly walking down the street with his dear little dog.  He has a – hmmm- what to call it ???  a perceptible  quality of lightness and contemplative presence and palpable kindness that is a joy to behold.

( My husband has this same gentle, loving, powerful presence.)

Being grateful for these lovely people (and ALL the precious ones) who carry the energy of peace inspired me to weave the Woven Woman, “Peace” .

It may look like she is alone, but if you look closely, you will see that there are actually 3 figures all interwoven…. all 3 of them are Mermaids and perhaps the 2 smaller Mermaids are the gifts that Peace brings… perhaps they embody the wish for Peace to flow like the oceans…..

Oh! This reminds me of an adorable moment yesterday… I had stepped outside to say goodbye to my daughter and grandson as they drove away from afternoon tea with us.  I was chatting with our next door neighbors and we were utterly delighted when a gaggle of little kids burst out the front door, brandishing various bits and pieces of their Halloween costumes, and flew off the porch. The lead child trumpetted:  Imagination for the win!!!!  

And, we three adults all simultaneously put our hands on our hearts and swayed slightly and nodded: That’s what it’s all about! 

Out of the mouths of babes comes the truth  🙂

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Webs of Connection a Woven Woman mixed media piece from the Oracles of Stillness series

Thanksgiving is my most favorite holiday of the year- Canadian Thanksgiving feels very much like a Harvest celebration, as we turn to face the oncoming winter (which has actually arrived for some of us already… shudder) and say heartfelt THANK YOU for all the amazing goodness and miracles that still, astonishingly, surround us!

So HAPPY THANKSGIVING to everyone here in Canada, and also I hope that there will be beauty and peace and harmony flowing out in unexpected and lovely ways all over this precious planet!


I was thinking about which of the Woven Women in my “Oracles of Stillness-Weaving Coherence in the Chaos” series of mixed media tapestries, wondering… which one says thank you most clearly, and I realized that ‘Webs of Connection’ pretty much says it all….

Each of the pieces in this series is a kind of blessing, a kind of healing and I hope that people will feel the loving intention that is woven into every stitch of them!


They are at Harcourt House gallery (opening Oct 17- everyone invited 🙂 )


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An Invitation to a large solo show of my new work- The Oracle of Stillness

I have been working so hard in my studio for the last year, finishing this large body of work (some elements of the show have taken 10 years to complete!)- I call it ‘The Oracle of Stillness- Weaving Coherence in the Chaos’.

It’s a collection of 50 mixed media Woven Women based on dreams, meditation, sacred geometry, connection to the Feminine Divine and synchronicities in response to navigating intense health issues, grief, parodoxical uprisings of joy- all in the midst of extraordinary chaos in the world around us.

The techniques that I have focused on to create the Oracle of Stillness Woven Women are: small loom weaving, tatting and other lace making techniques, crochet, beading, wire work, painting and more. I designed armatures for the pieces and my husband welded them for me for almost all the pieces.

The exhibition opens on October 17th and my Beloved husband, mentor, guide and dearest life friend and partner Jim Findlay will be playing gorgeous music with his wonderful Trio for the Opening.

If you are in Edmonton on the 17th of Oct, please join us at Harcourt House Here’s a link to the show: https://harcourthouse.ab.ca/noreen-crone-findlay-2/

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