Rachel Beckman » Weaver & Textile Designer

Yo-Yo Quilt Project

I’ve added a new link under the work menu to the left for an on-going project that starts right now! It’s a collaborative project, so I hope you check it out and take a liking to it.

August News

A quick snapshot right out of the package! This lovely fabric just arrived for me from Spoonflower- folktales, dancing bears, and rugs! Some of my favorite things. Which is probably why I draw them all the time. I’ve been slowly adding things to my recently reopened Etsy shop and the above will hopefully make their way in by the end of the week. Look forward to handkerchiefs, fat quarters, and a pillow/pillows. We’ll see how much fabric I have to work with when all is said and done.

Hopefully, soon I’ll have custom ordering stream-lined for fat quarter cuts and yardage of all of my designs. For now, there are plenty of samples of my work, as well as a limited number of fat quarters and plenty of woven work in my shop with new work being added weekly. If you are interested in purchasing a specific amount of my fabric, however, please don’t hesitate to ask!

Last but not least, I’ve entered one of my designs in one of the weekly Spoonflower design contests. The theme: Circus. Perfect! I’ve entered the above dancing bears design in red, which I’ve featured on my blog many times before. Voting doesn’t start for a week or so though, so I’ll post a reminder to vote closer to the date.

I lied! One last thing. I’ve recently started posting on tumblr, things like sketches, inspiration photos, more in-process weaving bits and pretty yarn, etc. I’ll continue updating my sketchbook page here as well as ye olde blog, but tumblr seems like a really nice community with a lot of resources and positive support. So, if you’re on tumblr, feel free to follow me and suggest other blogs for me to follow!

Happy August!

A Collection

What follows are images of the work I made at the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts this past June. With the exception of the last piece, which measured around 15 x 15,” each is a small table-top sculpture measuring no more than 5″  at its longest or tallest . Instead of talking about the work, at the end of this post I have included the 27 lines Warren Seelig asked us to write. I will let that speak for the pieces.

to swallow
to gulp, slowly, then frantically
a pounding (rocks)
to pounce, and leap, the way pathways are made winding through geographic puzzles and mazes
i sat and the waves tried to erode me like everything else but i wouldn’t let them; still i sat still
we surge, ebb
laughing, an open mouth, having invisible eyes and faces
playground, a playset, a rollercoaster, jungle gym, emphasis on the jungle
spirits
the ghosts, ancestors
prayer till three in the morning
a caricature
to flicker: flicker of a smile or a wink
or the tilt of a hat (a very small hat)
as moss, lichen
growths
arching backs and rolling necks
posing (for portraits)
curiosities, looking, being looked at, to stare
stillness- to freeze and hold one’s breath
a priest
a queen (or the queen)
a table and a confidant
gathered
a conversation, a conversation with a collection
chatter
taking form, being born, coming into being, the act of

Business Card and Postcard Designs

New business card design, featuring my Juggler’s Scarves set and one of the original sketches.

The front of my postcard for my thesis show boasts a detail of one of my Turkey weavings:

And the back:

As always, thanks goes to my wonderful boyfriend Bryan Connor for his super computer skills. And enduring patience.

Diving Dancing Bears Skirt

My Dancing Bears pattern makes a great skirt, but they appear to be falling and I suck at putting in zippers. Will wear with long t-shirts to cover up the mess.