Thursday, April 10, 2008

Fabric folding & Googlegangers

Now that I'm retired (will I ever tire of saying that?), I'm expanding my quilting horizons. I joined the Miniature Booty Swap for the chance to design a quilt that suits someone else's style rather than my own. I want to like the quilt, but it has to be something the recipient will be happy to hang on her wall. I was pleased to learn that some of my swap partner's preferences are just like mine (she has such good taste!), but a couple things are quite different (what, is she crazy?!). I spent a few days searching for inspiration, and it finally came. As you can see, it doesn't look like much yet.
This is my first attempt at making a 5-petaled origami flower in fabric. I got the instructions from Rebecca Wat's book, A Fresh Twist on Fabric Folding. My next step is to stitch the petals down in the center and trim away the excess fabric in the back. That will leave just the petals, which hopefully will look like the ones in the book:
Beyond that, I'm not willing to reveal more about the project just yet. But I did see a recent post on my partner's blog that makes me think my idea might be on the right track!

I enjoy origami, so the fabric folding idea appealed to me. In 1993 we spent 6 months in Ann Arbor. My daughters were only 6 and 9 years old then, and since they didn't have any friends in town when we arrived, we tried hard to find activities they would enjoy. We joined an origami group at the Ann Arbor Public Library and the girls were really good at it, much better than I was. They made all sorts of cool things.
There were some delightful people in the origami group. Two of the regulars were Laura, who designed amazing origami paper using computer-generated designs, and her husband, a paper-folding expert who was many years her senior. They were affectionately known as Laura-gami and the Older Folder!

And as for Googlegangers ...
Today's New York Times has a fun article about the fascination we feel with people who share our names. Have you ever googled your name just to see who else turns up? If so, you're not alone -- lots of people are curious about their same-name mates, their Googlegangers. Against all rationality, I confess to sharing this sense of connection with my namesakes. It's silly but I do feel it. So this morning after reading the Times article, I googled my name. I've done it before so I expected I'd read a bit about the reporter one state over who shares my name, but this time the first person who popped up was an Italian to English translator (a native English speaker living in Italy) who is also a sommelier. Wow! I have studied Italian and visited Italy 3 times in the last few years, and I am rather into wine these days. Am I entering the Twilight Zone?

And as long as we're talking a walk on the weird side, it turns out that my husband and kids know one of the people mentioned in the NY Times article -- how's that for 6 Degrees of Separation, another concept I find fascinating!

20 comments:

Vicki W said...

Here's what happened when I googled myself - I found a Vicki Welsh Ovarian Cancer Memorial Fund. That was enough curiosity for me!

I love your origami - can't want to see more.

The Calico Cat said...

I can't wait to see your flowers. I had no idea that you were an origami enthusiast... I used to be very good friends with John Montroll.

susan said...

hi i followed you over from a comment you made on someones blog. i dont know if you are a reader or not, but considering your last paragraph i think you would find the book eat, pray, love an interesting read. i cant wait to see how your flower turns out. that looks so neat!

Carin said...

That is very cool that someone in Italy shares yor name. My DH lived there for a couple years.

I love your flowers!

Readersraisinghell said...

Wow! It never occurred to me to wax eloquent in my blog... I just put in pictures of my grandkids! I feel like I know you so much better after having read just a few of your posts! What fun!
I guess my "original" genes manifest in knitting and retreat planning (where I get teased about all my "cut and paste" preparation and activities!) instead of paper folding and quilting...

Simply Stork said...

Hello fellow booty swapper...I am so excited about the quilt swap. Thanks for popping in for a visit with me today...I havn't gotten a chance to do the rounds of the quilting folks as of yet but it's on my list :o)

bye for now...
~simply stork~

Carol E. said...

Thanks for visiting my blog. and how cool that you used to live in Panama! I was only 2 when we moved away. I don't remember it at all, unfortunately. I love the flowers. Good luck getting them finished up.

Cathi said...

I am fascinated by your origami flowers and can't wait to see how they turn out! Thank you for visiting my blog and leaving a comment -- it led me here.

Quiltdivajulie said...

Julie is the French form of Julia: Latinate feminine form of JULIUS. This name was borne by a few early saints and martyrs and was also used by Shakespeare in his comedy 'The Two Gentlemen of Verona'

I'm no saint, that's for sure!!

Great post!

laura west kong said...

That origami flower quilt is going to look fabulous!

Origami flowers are so much fun. I have Rebecca Wat's book "Fantastic Fabric Folding". Check out Kumiko Sudo's books as well. She has a lot of fun fabric origami projects.

Finn said...

Hi Cheri, wanted to pop over and thank you for stopping by my blog and leaving such a nice comment *VBS*
The idea of a memory quilt from clothing isn't a new one. It goes way back in quilting history. I find that a comfort quilt size is just right.Uaually you need a backround fabric, or something to suppliment the clothing, but it's a rewarding effort. I think it would be rather like a fabric 'hug' from the person you lost. Neat blog you have, I'll be back *VBS*. Hugs, Finn

Val said...

I am amazed at your work. I am just learning to quilt. I love it. Maybe one day I will be able to try something new and different.

Colleen formerly of South Africa said...

The folded flowers are wonderful.Thanks for sharing them.

Sarah Nopp said...

I have No name doubles, I am unique as far as I know. Of course, if I had taken my husband's last name, I would have LOTS of those connections.

meggie said...

When I once googled my name, I was the only one!
An interesting post.
BTW, did you realise your ID photo does not show?

Tonya Ricucci said...

Hi, Cheri. Woohoo on the retirement and all these wonderful quilty posts! I'm the only me out there on Google!

Anonymous said...

Your origami flowers are so happy and lively. I love them. Can't wait to see what comes next.

Thanks for visiting my blog...if you have any "Squiggle" questions, please feel free to contact me.

Peace

Mrs. Goodneedle said...

I love folding techniques such as these. Your flowers are wonderful!

Tracey @ozcountryquiltingmum said...

Hi,thanks for visiting me and love the flowers. Must confess to being fascinated with my shared names on google. I did the search thing a few posts back on my blog that analyses the US records to see who shares your name and in the US alone there are 6,then more on Google all around the World!! I find it really odd, Tracey

Mom said...

I know you are not my partner (ugght...my partner emailed me and revealed her identity, much to my disappointment), but I sure wish I wa sgetting your origami flowers!!
lovely