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Monday 21 March 2011

Seam Lines, Edges, Cusps and In Betweens


Sometimes between the end of one thing and the beginning of another lies a narrow stretch of something else.
I feel I am wandering a narrow strip of indecision ...
well, I hope it is narrow and brief.
Perhaps I am on the cusp of something new...
hope so.
Because this discontent with what I've been working on...
and not knowing what to do next is driving me crazy!

Must be Spring....
though it doesn't feel like it in my neck of the woods.


Edges can be straight and sometimes frayed...
or perhaps softened with stitch.


They can be torn and feathery or cut into sharp teeth.


Where tree lined mountains meet the pale blue sky
is a favourite edge of mine.

Drainage ditches form seam lines in between farmers' fields.
Snow still clings on wherever it can.
We are straddling an in between at the moment...
the edge of winter and the birth of spring.
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15 comments:

  1. kaiteM21 March 2011 at 09:09

    your words are so interesting, how you weave nature's patterns into your stitching lines and even your own state of being. thankyou.

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  2. Missouri Bend Paper Works21 March 2011 at 10:06

    The in-between place you're talking about is so familiar...it drives me crazy too...the kind of knowing that what you are doing is "over" but not yet having gotten to the next thing...it's too bad we can't be more relaxed and at home in that place....I have a feeling there is a lot we can learn there! Just like this in-between state we're also in here in South Dakota...not winter, but not quite spring! Cheers...I enjoy your blog and your work...even if I am mostly a silent reader!
    Patti/MissouriBendStudio

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  3. Penny Berens21 March 2011 at 10:18

    Yes, a lot of weaving going on nowadays, Kaite.

    Patti, you are so right. It is only after an in between stage that I think I should have appreciated it and learnt more from it. Will try and be in the moment.

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  4. deanna7trees21 March 2011 at 10:23

    your work is beautiful even when in the 'in between'. probably just means something magnificent is on its way so be ready...

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  5. bohemiannie! art21 March 2011 at 12:03

    I promise I'm not trying to preach...but your work is beautiful...amazingly so and I'm grateful for what you are doing today and for sharing it with us...and hope you will be too.

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  6. Joe Madl21 March 2011 at 12:34

    at the risk of standing in a canyon, or a very deep drainage ditch, and sounding the booming echo, your work is beautiful and provocative, even when in-between!

    it'strange how perspective can affect our ideas. having just come through one of thos in-between spaces myself...feeling stuck, dissatisfied, even lost...i find myself looking at your in-between space and thinking how wonderful it is...full of potential and promise!

    i shall have to be much more mindful and present when next i journey between the seams and see what lies behind the selvedges of our creativity...

    thank you for this gift of insight, penny!

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  7. Penny21 March 2011 at 18:07

    Perhaps as spring really does arrive in your home place the in between will be gone and a whole new world will be open to you. I know how frustating the 'unknown' feeling can be - and here you are making something beautiful from it.

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  8. Anne Marie - Toronto21 March 2011 at 20:20

    The in-between time is when I do swaps and small, experimental projects. Not a huge time commitment, but I do get the odd creativity break. I also get a lot of reading done. Art books, technique books, magazines, trashy novels, cereal boxes.....anything and everything. It's also a good time for a little photography, if the weather cooperates.

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  9. Penny Berens21 March 2011 at 20:25

    Thanks, Deanna - I'm ready and waiting!

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  10. Penny Berens21 March 2011 at 20:28

    Thank you Bohemiannie and thank you for dropping by. Writing always helps. As I reread the entry I told myself to lighten up and just go and play in the studio without any expectations. Spent a lovely day tearing up fabric and sewing it back together again!

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  11. Penny Berens21 March 2011 at 20:35

    Thank you Joe. As I wrote my entry I thought of you and how beautifully you had expressed your "in between time". And low and behold a magical elephant emerged!

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  12. Penny Berens21 March 2011 at 20:36

    Penny...I'm patiently waiting for a fresh new world to spring into life.

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  13. Penny Berens21 March 2011 at 20:37

    Anne Marie... cereal boxes?!

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  14. Judy Martin22 March 2011 at 02:10

    Ah Penny

    It's like a marriage I think, this creative life. There are wonderful times, and there are times when you just have to tread water and not drown.

    Crests and troughs I tell my daughters.

    And re: the edges you are talking about. They are so exciting right now, coming out of the snow. The light is changing, the snow is melting and making lakes out of fields. Spring is here and it is fantastic.

    Happy happy joy joy.

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  15. Anne Marie - Toronto22 March 2011 at 09:38

    Penny, I've been a voracious reader all my life. I'll read anything that's laying about....even the cereal boxes if there's nothing else. LOL!

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Thank you for taking the time to comment, your thoughts are most welcome.