Don't Worry Spiders...

.....I keep house, casually.


My AAQI art quilt (now for sale) at the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative

The creation of this quilt was inspired by the wonderful Haiku of the Japanese poet, Kobayashi Issa. I love the contrast of the perfection of a geisha, with the seemingly imperfect world of liberated piecing, housekeeping, and of course...the spider ;)

Viewers admire its unusual piecing, and free form shape.... and then suddenly..there are those odd little spiders in the central corner ;)

Such is life, and all of the strange little balances, and imbalances that still create the perfection of the yin and the yang of the ever changing world of our lives.

8953 - Don't Worry, Spiders $75.00 8953

Michele Bilyeu
Salem, OR USA
Width: 11.5" Length: 9"
Designer: Original design
Materials/Techniques: Liberated free-pieced cottons and a variation of free motion quilting styles and off-kilter cut edges creates the balance of both yin and yang in this piece.
Artist Statement: I love the Haiku of Kobayashi Issa, a Japanese poet whose poem "Don't worry, spiders, I keep house casually" became the inspiration for this art quilt. I love the contrast of the perfection of a geisha, with the seemingly imperfect world of liberated piecing, quilting, housekeeping, and of course...the spider.
Dedication: To all of us who are "seemingly less than perfect", but who all deserve a space of our own in this world...a space where we are both loved, and appreciated for our unique perfection within.
Click to purchase and own this little quilt. Please remember..while you can...that your purchase is truly a donation to Alzheimer's research funding...save my sanity as well as your own, as the spiders invade 50% of our mental houses with time.


And a corollary quilt, also for sale:

8954 - Let Me Entertain You $70.00

Materials/Techniques: Free-pieced and raw edge applique combined with free motion quilting with metallic threads and beading.
Artist Statement: The word 'Geisha' is derived from two Japanese symbols. One stands for "art" and the other "artist." A Geisha was both an artisan trained in the highest art form of traditional Japanese entertainment, and an artist of song, dance and elegant tea ceremonies. Our misunderstanding of the geisha and her purpose in the world symbolizes so many other judgments and misunderstandings we often have of others.

Dedication: For my mother, who loved all things Japanese, and for my father, whose youngest brother was shot down by a Japanese bomber during WWII. Alzheimer's or dementia took over each of them and taught them that acceptance and love are what matters most in life.
Please love one (if not both of these art quilts) and consider a purchase of either of them, today!

Michele Bilyeu blogs With Heart and Hands as she shares a quilting journey through her life in Salem, Oregon and Douglas, Alaska. Offering thousands of links to Free Quilt and Quilt Block Patterns and encouraging others to join in the Liberated Quilting Challenge and make or donate small art quilts to the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative (AAQI) Help us change the world, one little quilt at a time!