September 3, 2010

ode to purple...

much to my 10 year old daughters horror
i hate the color purple!
i am sorry if you are deeply in love with the color purple.
{no.  not the movie}
but it is not my thing.  i don.t wear it.  i don.t write with it.  i don.t paint with it.
i don.t eat purple food.  ok, that.s not entirely true...i like purple grapes.
{can you see those hearts on my shirt?  i didn.t notice that sneaky purple one that hid there amongst all the other hearts...until...i was already home with the shirt in my bag.  
but this, my dear friends, is about all the purple you will ever see on chrissy.}

shout out for her creative color challenge..i was clearly not thinking when i admitted my loathing for purple. what part about "challenge" was i missing?  
of course miss louise was going to choose the color that would push my limits.  and that she did.  i bought purple paints and purple papers and 
purple wurple shmurple but nothing was working.
until
i stuck some purple thread into my 30 year old bernina nova sewing machine.
ahhhhhhhh!!! (insert trumpets and sounds of heavenly angels singing)
i started to "draw" with my needle. no rhyme or reason...just drawing.
 i think it took about 2.4 seconds for me to fall in love.
this is theraputic!  this is awesome!  this is fun!  this is creative!
oh purple i love you!
the end result was the most beautiful, swirly, freeflowing, funky purple tree that has ever been made on the face of this big ol' universe!!!
{click to see the perfectly imperfect purple stiches a tad better}
of course no tree of love is complete without a tenderly carved (or sewn) heart
declaring the adoration of the newly devoted pair

chrissy + purple
=
true 
love
forever

thanks louise for a wonderful challenge 
and thank you purple for opening a door to a splendid new art form that i clearly would not have discovered without you!

cultivate something challenging this weekend


39 comments:

  1. i am giggling and know exactly why i adore you!!!

    you know i LOVE purple....been my fav color for as long as i can remember!

    this funktified,
    fun,
    squiggly lined,
    heart filled
    blossoming tree
    full of purple love
    made me smile, smile, smile
    (especially the C+P....too cute my friend, too cute!)

    it was EXACTLY what i needed.

    lovin you
    k

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  2. This is FABULOUS!! and i said as much at the group page =-)

    How do you manage all the squiggly work in a sewing machine? Do you have a special presser foot I might be missing??

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  3. How awesome! I love the tree. I am not a fan of purple either but I see why you feel in love with it. Really fun! How do you do the squiggly work?

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  4. I immediately fell in love with this when I saw it on the flickr page!

    I think chrissy+purple=brilliant!!!

    xo
    Kristin :)

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  5. oh how i love that purple brought your pretty face back to my brain. just what i needed tonight! ps - thank you, louise.

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  6. You are so cute..I love the whole challenge aspect but i love that you took it on and bought purple stuff...so perfect are you..

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  7. when i was a little girl
    my dad would tell me
    bedtime stories
    about the
    yum yum tree
    & this was
    always
    magical time.
    your stitching
    has brought it
    back.
    i love it
    SEW MUCH!
    i want to
    walk along
    its' edges
    like one foot
    in front of the other
    along a
    sidewalk edge
    & sometimes
    hop
    like hopscotch.
    it is so
    loopty loo
    freedom in you
    & this must be
    why i love it
    true!
    what an unexpected
    purple gift.
    xxoo

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  8. I am not a purple lover either... but I love your chrissy + purple tree and I love Rachel Awes' little poem just above me. x

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  9. Gorgeous Chrissy. I love your amazing and creative stitching. Do a google search for 'thread sketching' and you will find all sorts of amazing stuff.

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  10. ~you have made me giggle this morning...to your new found l♥ve of purple...may it be a blessed creative journey...I L♥♥♥VE what you have done...i would have never thought to draw with my sewing machine...no reservation or limits or imperfections of straight lines...free and wild yet adorably sweet...much l♥ve and light upon you and yours always~

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  11. I love, Love, LOVE your tree! That is awesome!

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  12. I love this. Your tree came out incredible. You and purple may be starting a love affair ;)

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  13. This is the coolest thing! How did you do that without it zooming off the fabric? Ahh I thik the colour purple suits you...
    Beth

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  14. Awww, the beginning of a beautiful new friendship. You are too cute Miss Chrissy.:) I'm loving your purple creation, very clever just like you.
    Happy Weekend sister!
    ♥Jenny

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  15. Oh, Chrissy, I love everything about your ode to purple. I learned something new - I wouldn't have pegged you as a purple-hater. Who knew? Like Kolleen, purple has been one of my fav colors for quite a while - it's deep, it's rich, it's striking... have I convinced you yet?? Probably not, but sounds like you have found your own path to purple and are even wearing a bit of it! Your tree is absolutely super amazing - love it, love you!!

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  16. i love that purple stitched tree and you! now i want a stitched tree! missing you.
    xoxoxo

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  17. I have to agree with you about that PURPLE color!! You did a great job with the tree stitching....the pictures are so pretty :D

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  18. OMG! First, I LOVE purple! And second, WOW to the tree! That is perfectly perfect!

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  19. I have never liked purple - it may have started in grade 2 with the "Purple People Eater" song - my brother told me don't wear purple or he will get you..... and so I didn't, and still don't - BUT your purple funky tree is very fun! I will have to give purple another try!

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  20. Love that tree!!!! so glad you have come around to purple :) I have always loved it hence my name!

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  21. Oh Chrissy, this tree is adorable! You're a genius in free-style sewing, a new art form! And congrats to loving purple. I'd say - it's all in the mix. Every colour can look good in the right combination. To me, purple is mystic and special, although i don't use it a lot. xx, M.

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  22. ii am smiling .. i L.O.V.E your purple tree..amazing and fun

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  23. See purple is your new best friend I can see it and i think you would look gorgeous in it too. I LOVE LOVE LOVE your stitched tree. Hearts to you. xx

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  24. I love you that you are branching out, reaching beyond you~ Very brave of you...Love how unique and special your tree looks~ xXx

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  25. Not being a fan of purple myself I understand why you did not want to do this project. But your purple tree turned out fabulous, I love it and can't imagine it in any other color!

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  26. I love the color purple and I love your stubbornness to the color purple!! And then there was light and beauty and a beautiful squiggly tree full of love and happiness and freedom, and Chrissy.

    You created with abandon and we were all gifted with your vision, love. Purple rocks and so do YOU!!!!!!

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  27. Awesome work, Chrissy! I adore your purple stitches. I love the color purple although I don't wear it too much. It's the vibrant plums and pinky purples that melt my heart. I've not tried this free style on my machine because I thing you have to have a certain foot attachment? Anyway, it is on my list of things to learn!

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  28. Hi! I LOVE your purple tree and how free you were with the stitching! It turned out great! I love the perfectly imperfect lines (that's funny...I've been using those exact words "perfectly imperfect" to describe stripes that I painted in my hallway!) Anyway, I too had a hard time with this color, but the painting I did is now one of my favorites, and I want to do more! Isn't it fantastic? Is that what this challenge was all about? Yup. Can't wait to see more purple art from you! : )

    Esther

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  29. your tree came out great. i love the freeform stitching/drawing. and i think the c + p is so funny.

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  30. Chrissy <3

    only you could
    create a tree
    rooted in
    the dislike
    of purple
    and cultivate
    something so
    brilliant and
    s
    p
    e
    c
    t
    a
    c
    u
    l
    a
    r
    love love love
    crazy purple love


    ADORE this!!!! And i hope you wont hate me for loving purple ;) And this tree! And YOU!

    xoxox
    Carissa

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  31. I love your purple tree Chrissy- I would love to learn how to do that on my sewing machine. Purple is not my favorite color but it so funny that I just purchased a purple blouse- but I refer to the color as eggplant!

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  32. ~dear mrs. chrissy...i hope your toes are still dipped in purple! i am not sure if you do awards or not but if so there is one awaiting for you on my blog...wishing you well and blessings always upon you and yours~

    http://tofallorstumbleupon.blogspot.com/2010/01/happy-award-for-me-and-you.html

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  33. Chrissy this is great!! I can't even use a sewing machine! lol Amazing what you do with it! Your tree is so pretty! I am not anti purple....I can take it or leave it. I do however love lavender!

    You had me giggling with this post! You are too cute Chrissy! :)

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  34. purple used to be my favorite color as a young girl. i had a bean bag frog that was purple that i named mr. burple!
    i must say that my love of purple is not as great as it used to be. i used to think every room in my house would be purple when i grew up. the closest i came was my youngest that was in love with barney growing up!
    so i can understand the difficulty with creating in this color, i must say i do not use it much in my jewelry. however you have outdone yourself with this tree! I LOVE IT:)
    as barney would say...with a great big hug, and a kiss from me to you! XO

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  35. Awesome tree...purple and all. This post is the perfect example of how keeping an open mind can lead you to find unexpected joy.

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  36. ohmy that TREE? AWESOME. You are so funny...thanks for making me smile. Your tree rocks.

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  37. I'm really really loving your purple tree!! this post just made me smile and miss you terribly- all your goodness and bubbliness! You have the ability to just light up a room when you walk in it - I saw that in action at Artful Journey- but you also have the ability to light up a blog post! Now that's a talent!

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  38. HOoray for you...nothing like embracing a colour thats not in your palette. A few years ago I was painting all brights..and was asked to do a commission in all browns. Can you imagine the resistance I worked through? But it was the best thing. And now I use brights and muted tones + they work in perfect harmony.

    Nothing like being pushed out of your comfort zone.....

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your comments put the biggest smile on my face!
thank you so very much!