Well I finished creating my Birds of Paradise. I had a day or 2 where I needed to intellectually rest. I wonder if that happens to other artists.
In the past few years when I create I go deep into the process much more so than I had done when younger. It might be something that comes with age or experience. I find myself needing to research techniques, colors and really getting deeply involved in the process, to the exclusion of all else. A deep sense of focus. I need to rest mentally for a day or 2 after that.
And now all of my ideas that I had before are back. Itching to go. I had begun to work on a circle piece,
I see something in my mind's eye and when I touch the fabric it does not sit right. I even have colors from that neverending pile of scraps
I might need to use a different technique than I had envisioned to achieve the result that I see. So that is going on the back burner for a while. In order for me to create It has to flow from my idea in my head to my hands to the machine in a smooth transition and that is not happening this time.
I also don't use other people's techniques. A huge, enjoyable part of my art is straining my brain to create a technique. Sometimes I really feel a sensation of gears working when I think. It will come to me at some point and then will be the thrill of that eureka moment.
What I am seeing and which I can create is a forest of lush vegetation. I see the bark of the trees and the leaves of the bushes. I can also feel the fabric moving the way that I want it to So that is what I will be working on next.
I use upcycled fabrics and am auditioning piles of sheets and men's button down shirts for the colors that I see.