Don’t Ask, Don’t Get

I was in a local pho joint recently when I overheard the woman behind me place her order. She asked for beef broth, veggies, no tofu, shrimp, glass noodles, six lime wedges, and extra chili oil on the side. I was like, girl, yes! Ask for the exact thing you want, because you won't get it otherwise! Before I left, I stopped by her booth to say, "Ma'am, you really know how to order your pho!"

That's the spirit of this issue of The Fold. Ask specifically for what you want, or you'll get something else.

Less Staccato, More Legato

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Less Staccato, More Legato​
Reclaimed garments and other fabrics, machine pieced and quilted. 32 x 42 inches. $785
Machine washable, includes hanging sleeve. Click here to purchase.

I started this improv quilt in a workshop early in 2022. The assignment was to gather a group of fabric scraps and order them by tone from light to dark. Typically I choose fabrics to sew together based on the highest amount of contrast I can get, so pairing colors that have similar tones was a challenge for me.

​I worked and worked on this piece, moving chunks around, taking things apart, putting areas back together upside down. I kept asking the fabrics, What do you want to be? Where do you want to go? What do you want to say?

Finally I broke free of my typical staccato rhythm of lights and darks (like in And The Other) and put together passages with a more legato vibe: less dit-dit-ditta-dit, more laaaalalah.

Less Staccato, More Legato, is available now through my website. Free shipping in the US.

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Cake Days

I turned 42 this month. Woohoo! Possibly the nerdiest year in the human lifespan. Life, the Universe, Everything, all that. For this trip around the sun, I'm asking the universe to open up in a big way. I'm ready to receive.

In the weeks leading up to my birthday, I asked for a big helping of ...well, help. I wrote letters to my collectors, patrons, and friends asking for feedback. I also told everyone that custom-made quilt commissions are now open. I included a return postcard for anyone who was willing to write a short testimonial about my work.

I printed 100 letters, 100 flyers, and 100 postcards. I wrote 99 thank you notes to the recipients. 97 went in the mail. (2 were hand-delivered.)

This was a big ask for me, but you know what? It felt great. I had a little anxiety, but mostly I felt gratitude. I took time to think about how each person on the list had touched my life in a positive way. I put the envelopes into the mailbox with a full heart.

What gave me the confidence to ask 99 people for a favor? Practice. And reading The Art of Asking by Amanda Palmer. I can't recommend this book enough. If you're not familiar with Amanda Palmer as a speaker, start with her TED talk here.

Recommended reading for human beings. Grab your copy here or at your local book purveyor.

Transitions: Goodbye to Patreon, Hello to Weekly Folds

I've been running a Patreon campaign for about 6.5 years, and it's been glorious. However, I feel like that project has run its course, and as I'm pivoting to focus on commissions, I will be shutting my Patreon page down at the end of August. I know some of my patrons are reading this, and I want to thank you for going with me on the journey. You are a splendid person.

Starting in September, this newsletter is going weekly! Get ready for The Fold in slightly smaller doses, more often. Like a multi-course meal turning into snacks. Who doesn't like snacks?

A GIF for those who made it to the end:

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Peek-a-boo.

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