Liner Notes: October - Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds/The Ship Song/Jubilee Street

What I find fun about "discovering" a band or musician later in their careers, is that you get to go backward in time and listen to their earlier music like a little song archaeologist, digging through albums instead of the ruins of past civilizations. That's how I feel about "The Ship Song," my absolute favorite Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds song. It's from the 1990 album The Good Son. 

Come on! How freaking good is that song? I can honestly say I've never experienced the kind of romantic love Nick Cave songs sings about in a lot of his songs, but man, do I get it. "The Ship Song" gutted me when I listened to it for the first time. It's the same feeling I felt when I listen to certain songs on the Lungs album. Something just clicks in my brain when I listen to this song. Perhaps Nick Cave songs like this have ruined love for me. 

My second favorite NC&THBS song is "Jubilee Street," from my favorite of their albums, Push the Sky Away. 

"Jubilee Street" is great example of a modern murder ballad, although I'm not sure if the band considers it one. I'm going to spend the last week of this month talking about murder ballads in more detail, so I won't get into the finer details now. What I love about this song is the way I get carried into the song and the story. Push the Sky Away was one of the last truly narrative albums the band did; their music shifted to more abstract themes after this album. If you're looking for a movie to watch, I highly recommend 20,000 Days on Earth. The film is a blend of fiction and fact and includes scenes from the recording of this album. It's one of my favorite movies about a band; it's a little quirky and sad and ends with an epic performance of "Jubilee Street." 

So these were the two songs I listened to the most as I worked on this week's Liner Notes entries. Listening to your favorite songs is a lot like wrapping yourself in a cozy blanket. Even if the song is about something awful like "Jubilee Street," there's something very comforting about the song and the vibe. This whole month is about vibes. I finished up adding the "roads" to the piece and started work on the roses. The roses are a very big reference to the last week of this month, so more to come on the significance of the roses. I'm trying different stitches for each of the roses, including woven roses, bullion knots, and moonrise roses. I may try to do an applique rose, but the space is small, so I'm not sure how successful it will be. I'll see how I feel as I move through the remaining large roses. I may also add some smaller knots to act as rose buds. 

"Pro" embroidery tip: invest in the Tulip bullion knot needles. I bought them earlier this year and I love them. I don't use bullion knots in a lot of my work, but when I do, these needles make is so much easier to do. I know a lot of people recommend milliner's needles, but I don't think they work nearly as well. I bought mine on Etsy, but you can usually find them in needlework shops. 

Here's this week's Liner Notes progress:

October 11

October 12

October 13

October 14

October 15

October 16

October 17 - bullion knots with a smaller size perle thread (8). Perle 8 is similar to working with 3 strands of regular embroidery floss. 

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Liner Notes to date.

WIPs, Tiny Pumpkins, and Other Small Joys

I finally finished the first section of the Gardens panel for my sewing cabinet project! It only took a month and 12 days to do. Here's the finished section:

This took almost 5 skeins of thread to complete. I'm pleased with the end result. I like how the panel is coming together. The last few sections took longer than expected to finish; not because I wasn't working on them but because I had "help."

Why is she like this? She also tried to swat the needle out of my hand and eat scissors. She's such a unique spirit. 

The second section, Peacock Garden, is moving a lot faster. I picked a slightly less neutral color for the peacock body and the tree and leaves. I'm not sure if I like it or not. The original pattern in Zakka Embroidery uses ecru for this part. I have a similar thread, but don't love how it looks on the fabric. 

Bea has been a little less of a menace with this section. 

So helpful. 

Last Sunday was my October craft meetup. We had a themed craft for anyone who wanted to try it: tiny pumpkins made out of toilet paper or paper towel rolls. Super easy, super cute. 

They look a little like spaceships, which is also very appropriate for Halloween.

I also bought a few weeks ago and it arrived this week. I don't know how this particular vintage seller showed up in my Instagram feed, but she did and I'm very grateful she did. If you're on IG and want a super fun account to follow, check out Cream Vintage. Anyway, three weekends ago an image of a 1971 needlepoint showed up in my feed. I figured someone would have bought it given that it had been up for about 24 hours and it's the kind of thing that usually goes quickly. It hadn't been sold yet. Over the course of most of a Sunday afternoon, I kept checking. I gave myself stupid deadlines and put my phone in another room so I would stop checking. 

And then I messaged her and asked if it had sold. It still hadn't sold. I bought it. 

This is a Columbia Minerva needlepoint kit from 1971. Columbia Minerva was a needlework and yarn company that was popular in the 1970s and 1980s. The designs from the 1970s often featured collaborations with well known needlework artists like Meredith Gladstone and Margot Johnson. This one is one of Gladstone's designs. 

Why does this cat look like Keely? Perhaps my brain is doing something weird by thinking everything is about Keely these days, but why does it look like him? 

Monday is the second anniversary of his passing so I've been thinking about him a lot this week. Bea has also been spending a lot of time in my studio, which is where Keely and Pumpkin's ashes are. Is she communing with the spirits of her dead siblings? 

I haven't decided where the piece is going to live in my house. One option is over the television. The other is to move one of my prints to another location and hang the cat over my desk. I may try out the desk option this week. I also think the cat needs a name...right now I'm leaning towards Frank. 

I cannot stress this enough: buy weird art. Buy vintage stuff. When I die, I want someone to come to the estate sale and say, "Wow, this lady was spectacularly weird. Look at how many possibly haunted vintage ceramic cats she owned. That is a vibe."

Bea and I also want to remind you to get out and vote. I voted early this week, and you probably can too. Check your voter registration and get it done, y'all. If you live in Virginia, there are 3 constitutional amendments on the ballot and if you live in Fairfax County, there are 2 bond issues. Do your research before you vote.