Page 76 - The Digital Cloth Issue 3

Because I had been through years of paperbark from South Australia
uncertainty with my illness, I was open in a few of the pieces. My fabrics
to the unknown, and in fact, for the come from tea towels, linen
first time in my life, I relished it. Before table cloths, old blankets, and
I got sick, I would have tied myself up discarded baby wraps. I try to
in knots trying to get everything right buy as little as possible and be

and then I probably would have given mindful of all stages of my
up. Now, I take each day and each process - from using fallen
project as it comes. leaves, to water usage, to where
my fabrics and thread have
After a few months gaining come from.
confidence in dyeing fabrics, I When I’m not working on my art,
incorporated stitching and other I’m writing an eBook and
materials into my work. I’m inspired preparing plant dyed items for
by nature, always, but I don’t want an online store I hope to open

to be literal. It’s an intentional part of later in 2019.
my practice to move toward play,
curiosity, and the unknown, and away A couple of years ago I never
from my natural tendency to make would have believed it if
everything neat and perfect. It’s not someone told me I would be
always easy, but it is rewarding. spending my time creating
Right now, I’m working on a series textile art, but as I’m settling in
inspired by some photographs I took to my “new normal” now, I can
in the Central West, NSW, an area see that everything has lined up
suffering terribly from drought. I’m perfectly. The multi-day
using plant dyed fabrics and threads processes required to dye

and I’ve incorporated fabrics mean I can break up
tasks into bite sized pieces
depending on how I’m

feeling. Life is slower paced,
more introspective, and much
more connected to the
natural world. Gifts I would not
have been given had I not
found art.