I just read a wonderful interview with Hazel Bruce on TextileArtist.org headed Hazel Bruce: ‘Make do and mend’ pieced fabrics connected by repeated stitched pattern blocks” under which is a pic of richly textured hand stitched straight-stitch patterns that really struck a chord with me. Further reading of Heidi Ingram’s interview article, I found more key words and phrases that rang my bell:

• make do and mend – tick – life mantra & recent banner on https://www.liftthesky.com
• repeat patterns – tick – these underpin most of my art
• sampling – tick – I frequently make samples for several reasons, including fabric/thread auditions, learning a material’s handling characteristics, or trying a new technique or stitch.
• repeat lines – tick – seams, stitch lines, applied shapes
• mark making – tick – every stitch is a mark and is placed purposefully
• Hazel said “I revisit my work quite a lot” – tick – and often see things I didn’t ‘see’ before
• Hazel sometimes cuts a piece up when it returns from an exhibition – tick though I haven’t yet… but am thinking about it
• re-working it and integrating it into another piece – tick just thinking about it …
• “I’m not very precious about my work” – I’ve certainly been feeling less so. A few years ago I did cut up set of pieces that formed one work; and might another couple soon: but earlier this year I sold a couple of older works to an important buyer, so it’s something to think about carefully !

When I found this sample today, I was surprised how old it was and how much it has influenced my work since I doodled with these ideas in 2013 …