Ensó and the fire monkey

I have come full circle. A journey that started in 2008 has finally come to a close. The year of the fire monkey brings all that has passed to an end. I chose Ensó as one of the words I will work with this year along with 'allowing'. Ensó is a circle that is hand-drawn in one or two uninhibited brushstrokes to express a moment when the mind is free to let the body create.

I am embroidering a golden circle on my hanging, Not quite the spontaneous ensó, but a collection of silk threads draped and then sewn on to the backing. 'Allowing' the circle to emerge on it's own rather than me trying to control it into a perfect shape. All part of the process.

So in the spirit of the fire monkey 

'Anything and everything that is no longer serving your highest and best interest  has to go. It is time to end any thoughts, habits, beliefs, people, places, or things that are no longer worthy of moving forward with you into the new.'

Adding value and charity shop insider trading

Living on a small island means working materials can be difficult to come by. Things I took for granted in UK are hard to find here. For example certain fabrics, an extensive paint range and of course natural materials like waste wood and metals on which to paint. So I have had to re adjust the way I work and look for a ready supply of materials to use.
One thing we do have here are charity shops with bags and bags of unwanted clothes. Most of which one wouldn't want to wear but the fabric content is invaluable, I have always been a recycler and it's ethically a good thing to do for the planet. I love to use materials and discarded goods in my art work. Of course the money I pay for recycled fabrics also goes to benefit the charity concerned which makes us all feel good !
What is really important is that as an upcycler I add value to a piece before it is ready for resale. My reworked skirts have much time spent on them to add value and make them into a unique piece of wearable art.

It seems there has been some insider trading going on on the island ! Over the last few months I have noticed a decline in variety of garments for sale at the charity shop and enquired as to why. It appears that big bin bags of goods have been cheaply sold off from the shop for staggeringly below the going rate and then those individual items re sold at a massive profit at a car boot sale !!! Shocking ! What that says to me is that someone is making money at the expense of the charity (and the good will of the donnors) and at the same time depriving all us artists (!) of our natural resource, not to mention a Spring frock. You may think that is enterprising and of course it is, but I personally feel there is a fine line between making a living and cheating a charity. Now if the garments were bought at the charity shop for the going rate and then a profit made then we would all be happy. It's only my opinion ... just sayin'

Well that's this week's rant over and done with !
My new labels for my ReWorked skirts have finally arrived and I have sewn them on.. all ready to go.