Kathleen Sullivan, Artist at Discarded Cloth

A couple of years back I popped into a thrift store and was absolutely delighted to find a piece of mud cloth from Mali, Africa. It was rolled up on a heavy cardboard tube, but I could see what it was. At $7.50 CAD how could I say no. Handmade Malian cloth has been woven and dyed by men using fermented mud dating back to the 12th century. The woven pieces are long strips of beige cloth about 6 inches wide. The strips are then sewn together to make a large piece of cloth. ... It is eventually painted with mud in gorgeous patterns that are instantly recognized as mud cloth from Mali. The mud is rinsed off after a week revealing the beautifully dyed fabric. (Of course this is a simplified version of the total process). The patterns are very meaningful and normally passed on from mother to daughter. So you can imagine how excited I was about finding this treasure. African art/colours/materials have always been, hands down, my favourite art. It was a typical size (42" x 72") so I had lots to work with, just afraid to cut it up. Eventually I made a purse with part of it and have just let is sit since then. Yesterday I was in another thrift store and they were having a huge sale. I was able to get four 20" square down and feather cushions for $9. I knew that I would be able to make 4 of the cushions I see in home fashion magazines. And so I did. I think they look quite amazing on my chocolate brown couch (and cost a total of $16.50). See the pics:

Interesting find

Many years ago I tried to piece together silk velvets and taffetas into two different crazy quilt. I thought that some of the blocks were really, ummm, ugly. Some were embroidered and some were not. The other day I dug them all out and cut them up into smaller squares. ... I have set the blocks on the floor to see how they might work together. I'll be playing with the sequences some more, but I kind of like how it is turning out. I'd like to add strips of black silk velvet in between the rows of blocks mostly because I don't have enough blocks to make anything substantial. It's great to use up what's available. Sometimes you have to re-work something that you started and didn't particularly like. Be brave or it will sit on a shelf forever.

Indian cotton voile indigo dyed. Beautiful, light and airy scraps that are so easy to hand stitch with. This and many others that are similar are in my Etsy shop. #indigo... #indianvoilecotton #boro #sustainable See more