The Lenten Stole has been received

What a relief to hear that Jann received her stole today and is excited about it as I am.  Here in part is her e-mail... "it is even more beautiful than I imagined!  Strange to say I can't wait until Lent.  Your work is so creative and so spiritual...it just feels sacred.  I thank you so much and I will treasure this for the rest of my life, remembering the beginning of my ordained ministry."

And now, here are images of the finished stole...

The lower edges with the Celtic cross on the front

The two halves at about hip level

The lining with labels

The tri-spiral over the shoulder

Full view, front

Full view, side

A Deacon Stole is Taking Shape

I am thrilled to be back in my studio creating a Deacon stole for Lent.
At the end of November I was contacted by Jann Brooks, asking if I made Deacon stoles. Here is her inquiry in part:

"Hi Janet!  I saw your work on line and had tears in my eyes I loved it so much!

I am to be ordained a Permanent Deacon into the Anglican Church of Canada (Diocese of Niagara) on Jan. 29.  I too love fibre--I love to spin my own yarn from fleece and then MUST spend at least an hour knitting per day or I get the shakes!"

In a subsequent email, Jann told me a little more about herself, namely that her ministry is to The Mission to Seafarers in Southern Ontario, and she is Chaplain to the port of Hamilton.  She goes onto the big ships in the harbour, and that her work clothes include a pink hard hat and pink work boots! 

So, we're off to a good start.   Not only do I get to work in my favourite colours (purples) but I am creating this for a fellow fibre enthusiast.

I pulled out my purple boxes...

And selected some likely candidates...

The ties at upper right are potential piping materials.

Then created a couple of designs...

Jann chose the more dramatic version on the right.  I started work yesterday, cutting the strips in preparation for piecing...

Then started piecing....

Today, I finished the piecing, and will soon trim the edges, and sew the shoulder seam.

The Finished Ordination Stole for a Deacon

Finished the stole today once I got my printer issues solved....I like to print a custom label on fabric for the lining, and yay!  managed to troubleshoot it satisfactorily.  Here are the images of the finished stole which is now ready to ship...

Front

Side, showing the three pieces of cording holding the two pieces together.

Back

Upper front, detail.

Lower pieces

Cross stitched "United Methodist" symbol--this is a pocket in the lining.

I won't show the label because it identifies the new deacon by name and location;  this is a surprise for her ordination in June.

A Picture of Kimiko at her Graduation, May 2011

I was thrilled to open an e-mail from Kimiko this afternoon. Attached was this picture:

And this message from Kimiko:

Hello Janet
I've been holding off to see if I could get a good photo from my graduation with the stole. There isn't really anything that truly shows it off. In the attached photo I am wearing the stole. This is just after the graduation ceremony. This is me with my mom and her sisters who all came to be part of the celebration of ministry ceremony.

The stole really is beautiful. I have had many people ask about it and they are always intrigued at the history from which it is made. I have also pinned my dad's mother's deaconess school pin to it so that she is also part of it.

I have it hanging on the wall of my office when I'm not wearing it. It also looks lovely hanging. I will try to get a photo of me wearing it to send to you so you can add it to your blog. Of course you may post the attached photo if you like.

many blessings
Kimiko

The Deacon stole is finished!

I finished the stole this afternoon. Here it is on my mannequin. The edges are piped with two of the neckties provided by the family, and I had a little bit of piping left over to convert into covered cords for the "closure" at the hip (see the lower image for a close-up).


A friend dropped by this afternoon and said the swirling lines of blues and greens reminded her of the recent Winter Olympics in Vancouver and Whistler. Well, having been out of the country for the Olympics, I missed all that stuff. Apparently these colours were on all the Olympic paraphernalia as well as surrounding the hockey rinks and other venues. I can't claim to have been influenced by the Olympics! This design is a result of e-mails with the future deacon's mother who suggested the "water" theme, and the neckties and fabrics that she collected from family and friends.

I bumped into another friend in the library just after I'd been to the post office to confirm the shipping options, so I showed her...and she asked if this was my favourite one yet. Well, that's a bit like asking who your favourite child is! None-the-less, I am pleased with how this stole turned out. I'm looking forward to hearing about the presentation and to seeing their daughter wearing it. That all happens on May 10.

Now to turn my attention to the next stole which will be all white--what a change!

Next stages...the fit...

My 5'8" friend came over tonight to try on the stole and help me with the fitting. I received one other important measurement today--the robe that this stole will be worn over is 51" in back length. Pamela's dress in these pictures is 52". So, I'm able to shorten it from the shoulder and I've decided that I will round the hem. I'm ready to go now...should be finished this week!

The ordination is May 10 so this will be plenty of time. Whew! Long distance fitting is challenging!

Piecing is complete

Here's an image of the front of the stole, in process, on my cutting table.

I finished piecing the front about a half hour ago.

I wrapped my mannequin in some white fabric, and placed it on a foot stool to mimic the 5'8" height. Here's a view of the "finished" front pinned to the form. "Finished" meaning that the piecing is complete, but there's still a lot of work ahead (shoulder seam, piping, lining, hip attachment, label...) I positioned the mannequin in front of my mirror so that a bit of the back shows as well.

And a side view of both front and back showing off the spirals.

And finally, here's me in my new dress from India feeling pretty pleased with how this looks so far!

My 5'8" friend is away for the weekend, so I can't do any more until Monday. Then I expect to try it on her, and figure out the ideal length from shoulder to hip and from hip to the lower edge. I've left these edges unfinished until then.

Continuing with the back of the deacon stole

I feel I've made good progress with this stole over the past two days in spite of unavoidable appointments, a Hospice commitment, and several long telephone conversations with friends (all satisfying!) These images are of the piece which will become the back of the stole. The top two were taken when it was on my cutting table. The bottom two images were taken when the piecing was complete and hung vertically on my design wall. I'm struck by how "serpent-like" the sprial is (and I wanted it to represent water!) I browsed in the reference section of the public library today (so much more satisfying than using an on-line browser!) and found several books on symbols. Here's what Miranda Bruce-Mitford had to say about spirals in The Illustrated Book of Signs & Symbols: "Energy was once believed to flow in spiral form. The spiral symbolizes masculine and feminine energy and the energy of both sun and moon. It is the great swirling force of the whirlwind and the movement of the heavens. It is a manifestation of the energy in nature, and is related to the powerful imagery of the serpent. The spiral also symbolizes the circlings of the soul, which eventually return to the center, or truth."

Isn't that a wonderful sentiment?

Another challenge I'm having with this project is the fit. I'm sewing this for a woman who is 5'8" tall, and it's a surprise. Her mother has measured her, and I in turn measured a friend who is also 5'8"...well, their measurements from shoulder to hip aren't the same! That's a critical bit of information because the front and the back of a deacon stole are joined at the hip. I also wonder if the join should be at the hip bone (e.g. where the pelvis can be felt) or lower down at the widest part of the hip (which is where a dressmaker would measure the hip). Any ideas? Does anyone have an opinion about how far from the floor the lower edge should be?

I had thought that I would have to make these decisions at the outset, but I realized yesterday that I can adjust the length from the shoulder or from the lower edge. I've therefore cut the foundation fabric as large as I think I would need, and can trim as necessary.

Here are some more interesting quotes about spirals. Jack Tresider writes in Dictionary of Symbols, "The spiral as an open and flowing line suggests extension, evolution and continuity, uninterrupted concentric and centripetal movement, the very rhythm of breathing and of life itself." Another author, J.E. Cirlot, in A Dictionary of Symbols, writes "...most theorists are agreed that the symbolism of the spiral is fairly complex and of doubtful origin. Its relationship...with water has been provisionally admitted. Going right back to the most ancient traditions, we find the distinction being made between the creative spiral (rising in a clockwise direction...) and the destructive spiral like a whirlwind (which twirls to the left...)"

I am so happy that my spirals are twirling to the right and thus indicative of creativity!! But it probably has more to do with the fact that I'm right-handed, and this is how I naturally doodle and draw spirals!

Changing gears...back to liturgical stoles.

Back to work! I feel like I've wrapped up my Indian experiences, and can now focus on my creative work. I have two stole commissions in the pipeline. This one is for a young woman who will be ordained as a deacon in May. I won't identify her or her location because this commission is a surprise gift from family and friends. Water--oceans and rivers--is very important to her so I went to my "water" file to look for possible sources of inspiration.



















Family and friends have contributed ties and other fabrics in "water" colours...these materials arrived just before I left for India.

























Last week, I sorted them and determined that I needed a greater range in value and intensity. I found several ties from my stash (which is rather enormous--just last week an acquaintance dropped off a bag of ties on my front porch...) that will be appropriate. Here's an image of the augmented materials.




































The wave and water images above reminded me of spirals, and so I quickly played around with how I might stitch a spiral... When I do this again, I will use fabrics that have a greater contrast in value, e.g. very light and very dark, so that the spiral is more obvious.


















After deciding that yes, indeed, a spiral will be fairly straightforward to stitch, I opened my box of coloured pencils to see how this spiral might "unravel" into swirling lines of "water".


























A deacon's stole is designed like a sash across the upper body, with the two pieces attached in a seam at the shoulder and attached at the hip with a cord.

I sent these images to the mother of the young woman to ask for feedback and approval to continue, and was delighted to hear back from her this morning with a most emphatic "LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT!!"

Most reassuring! So now to get to work taking ties apart, washing and pressing, cutting and stitching. I'll post updates on the progress of the stole over the next couple of weeks. Your comments as always are welcome!