Do you know anything about Boro quilts?
I didn't until Nova posted about them.
It's a way of patching that is common in Japanese peasant quilts. Boro literally meaning 'rags'. In Japan it would have been a shameful thing to have a Boro quilt, all pieced & sewn over & over. A sign you couldn't afford anything better or new.  However, they are getting some attention for their artistic measure recently. And, I'm enjoying the utilitarian turned art aspect of the whole thing.

The down side in my wanting to play with this idea is that if you Google 'Boro Quilts" & look at images you will notice my fabrics are way off. I didn't have a collection of linens & work related textiles to choose from, so I used my own form of rags - scraps. Which really, is fine, not traditional, but fine. After all, art is about interpretation, and boro is about using what you have. So, I did.

I also used up scrap bits of thread, er, embroidery floss. And, I played with some different stitches after a while because I got kinda bored. Yes, there is a reason I do not like hand-quilting! Even, I dare say, as an experiment, for play, for art & fun, on such a small scale. (It's only a little larger than a piece of printer paper.)

I did enjoy my little impromptu art project. It might even end up as a gift to a friend I think might enjoy it, & the idea of Boro history behind it. I also think I'd like to play with it again sometime & see if I can get closer to tradition with my fabric choices. I'm sure the hubs has some old shirts I can cut up somewhere! Or, better yet, I can put out a call to all my crafty friends (you, sweet readers, are definitely included) that I am in need of some linen, beige & blue scraps. And, the more scrappy, more ragged, the better! 

There is art in every little bit of life, all you have to do is look with fresh eyes!