Materials that remember

In the Threads of Memory workshop people bring a piece of cloth. A shirt, usually. Sometimes a blanket, once a curtain from a house that had been sold.

I never ask what it is. Some people say straight away. Some say nothing for three hours and then mention it on the way out, at the door, with their coat already on. That seems to be the easiest place to say a difficult thing.

Cutting is the hard part

The scissors are the moment. People hold the fabric for a long time first. I have learned to be somewhere else in the room when it happens, because being watched makes it harder.

Afterwards it is easy. Once the first cut is made, the rest is just work, and work is a relief.

If you are thinking about coming and the object you have in mind feels like too much: bring it and do not cut it. Weave with something else and let it sit on the table. That is a legitimate way to spend the afternoon.