Weavember!!!!!

Weavember is here!!

So many reasons to celebrate November! and So many things for which to be thankful. There is a day set aside  just to be thankful, but as with any list, there are bits and pieces that come together to make that list solid. And a firm and colorful list it is this year!!!

I'll try to keep this short but... it's me. 

I like stories!

A new project for this year- and it is a day I look forward to every single week! is the Tapestry Club at Leaksville-Spray Elementary School in Eden. The art teacher, Mr. Hart, an artist also, is very dedicated and volunteers his afternoon every Wednesday til he has to leave the school in January. We have the added experience of a former art teacher and current community art organizer/broadcaster/a lot of other stuff volunteer Ms. Debbie Moore. And we have this group of kids that are enthusiastic, fun, polite and have a great sense of cooperation for the project.

I want to point out the cooperation part for a few significant issues. 

This is not a school funded project.
 It is not a state funded project. It is a volunteer funded project. (If you'd like to help with the expenses of community projects please email me! we should talk and work together!). Sometimes it is important to just do what needs to be done. I wanted to share with my community... on a more hands-on level than I had been volunteering with in the past few years.
And, I am constantly inspired by success.  I had a wonderful experience once again, in Roanoke, VA at the Cityworks (X)Po, with so many stories of community, collaboration and embracing the positive spirit of neighborhoods.

Weaving is math.
It is soft, colorful, structural and concrete math. We talk about the "x" and "y" of the weft (woof- they like the word woof!) and warp. Weaving is a great way to see what 150 truly is when you see 150 threads in your warp, three weavers at the top and three weavers at the bottom weaving across and exchanging shuttles and talking about what they are doing, four people working independently on the sun, 24 cones of yarn and a finite number of times we will meet to create the tapestry. It is real art in real time with real people. It is not a small piece, either!

Art is the creative economy.
Art and craft create images, theme songs for our life, stories and theatre, and with those creations there is income, jobs and creative solutions using a variety of materials, technology and a wide range of talent. Art is important to engage in the global economy and that is where our local prosperity will gain it's momentum.

Working outside the classroom sets a standard for youth to understand community commitment and support.
Community art creates a strong stage where we can share the importance of working together as a supportive neighborhood, giving back as the generations that have come before us have contributed to who we are now. Children remember these experiences.. I remember them from my youth- the people that just did something- contributed their skills because it needed to be done.

Reading the news sometimes doesn't reflect that we have good in our society. Perhaps we are reading the wrong news. Perhaps we need to create better news to share.


So, looking at the word count, there will be more in the next post.
Homeschool Drawing and Painting class continues to be a wonderful group of kids, weaving special orders and items for sales in my studio and at the DyeCrazy shop online, working on grants for future projects are filling up the days. And all of this color! And the temperatures!!

So many things to be thankful for.

Meanwhile, Weavember moves ahead!
And please, support the arts, support the community and please shop local as the Holiday season approaches!