Isn’t it lovely to watch the trees rock the full moon in their arms?
Sometimes the clouds pull up the blankets and we can’t see the moon, but still, we feel her presence.
She tickles and teases us and asks: Do you really need to sleep when you can be gazing at me?
This Woven Woman from my mixed media series: Oracle of Stillness is an homage to our friend the Full Moon. She is “Essence”.
I’m posting all the images from the Oracle of Stillness here on www.tottietalkscrafts.com
Filed under frame loom weaving, lace making, Loom & looms & small loom weaving, mixed media weaving, narrow band weaving, Oracle of Stillness: Weaving Coherence in the Chaos series of Woven Women mixed media weaving, tatting, Teneriffe lace, weaving & handwoven, Woven Women tapestries and woven works
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
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
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
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
This Woven Woman mixed media weaving is “The Heart of the Rose” from my ‘Oracle of Stillness’ series of tapestries.
She is in honor of and a celebration of all those that we hold most dearly in our hearts and souls, to infinity and beyond.
I’m posting all the images from the Oracle of Stillness here on www.tottietalkscrafts.com
Filed under Dreams and dreamwork, Goddesses Goddess, 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, tapestry, Teneriffe lace, weaving & handwoven, Woven Women tapestries and woven works
We have brought all the mixed media Woven Women tapestries of the “Oracle of Stillness” series home from #harcourthousegallery and our house feels like home again.
Not that it is easy to hang 50 tapestries in one small living room!
But it is lovely to be among all of them again.
My husband and I missed them when they were off in the gallery.
Today’s Woven Woman is “Sanctuary”.
I hope that your home is a sacred sanctuary that brings you healing, joy, respite, renewal and all good things.
I’m posting all the images from the Oracle of Stillness here on http://www.tottietalkscrafts.com
Filed under 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, tapestry, tatting, Teneriffe lace, weaving & handwoven, Woven Women tapestries and woven works
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
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
Filed under Goddesses Goddess, 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, tapestry, tatting, Teneriffe lace, weaving & handwoven, Woven Women tapestries and woven works
I love our 5 year old next door neighbour so much!
The doorbell just rang- He needed to tell us that he had shot his Nerf into the air and hit our roof and was sorry and could he have the nerf bullets back next spring when we clean the gutters?
And, he was freezing and could he please stay in the studio for awhile to warm up?
His Mum said ‘No… we can warm up at home’.
‘But I like it here’. (Aww)
We chatted a bit and then I gave our neighbor/friend back a plant that she had given me when it was tiny and it has now gotten too big for the shelf.
We laughed about trying to get rid of clutter, and the wee boy announced solemnly that Miss Noreen has a LOT OF CLUTTER.
Which I agreed to and then folded up with laughter as his Mum tried to shush his discussion of too much clutter and herd him out the door at the same time.
It was wonderful and I am still laughing. (But Mum, you SAID we have to get rid of our clutter!)
Which brings me to today’s mixed media Woven Woman from the Oracle of Stillness:
“The Songs of Motherhood: Love, Celebration, Laments, Loss, Learning, Essence” and how on earth did I forget to add “LAUGHTER” to her naming?
She hereby will be blessed with the addition of one of life’s greatest gifts: “LAUGHTER”.
And, of course, love… the best gift of all! ❤
Filed under 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, tapestry, tatting, Teneriffe lace, weaving & handwoven, Woven Women tapestries and woven works
This Oracle of Stillness Woven Woman is ‘ Grandmother Owl Dreams of Waking’.
She is one of the mixed media woven pieces in the Oracle of Stillness.
In the Oracle of Stillness series, there is a sequence that is based on images that arrived in dreams.
In the first dream, I dreamt I was in a gorgeous forest and the moon was full.
I looked up and there above me, was a shimmering Being who whispered that she dreams of waking. “How would that be?” I asked her.
“Like this” and she opened her wings wide, and it was like being immersed in the Northern Lights.
“And, like this” and she opened her arms wide, and I felt embraced by loving tenderness and ferocious Maternal passion with a cascade of images that flowed by so quickly that it was staggering.
“This is my coat, my Grandmother’s Coat- WEAVE THEM!!!’
– it was like a jolt of electricity shot through me.
And, then, she opened her eyes, and said:
“I am watching and waiting and dreaming”.
Oh my word! I sat bolt upright in bed and started sketching.
I had to make a loom that is specifically for weaving the Grandmother’s Coats (I’ll be showing photos of the other Grandmother’s Coat series soon).
I actually built and re-built the loom for each of the Woven Women who have emerged from the Grandmother’s Coat dreams.
The Grandmother’s Coats are still vibrating in me, and I have a feeling that they are going to be showing up in more new ways…. We shall see what dreams unfold of them and in them!
I’m posting all the images here on www.tottietalkscrafts.com
Sweet Dreams!
Noreen Crone-Findlay, designer and author
Tottie Talks Crafts Blog 