Waste not: Palmer Ranch resident creates art from scraps

Christine O’Leary, 65, considers herself resourceful. She’s made most of the curtains and valances in her Palmer Ranch home. Her three grandchildren have all worn clothes that she’s sewn for them.

“I had a free period in high school, and I took a clothing class, and I learned the basics of sewing then,” O’Leary said. “I’ve made clothes for myself and my children as they were growing up.”

But after her many craft projects, she was usually left with scraps of fabric that she knew could be put to good use instead of thrown in the trash.

“I started looking around and I came across these fabric bowls,” O’Leary said.

Through a Pinterest search, O’Leary discovered a form of pottery that didn’t require any clay or a kiln: fabric pottery.

Now, O’Leary has become so proficient in the craft that her work is on display through the month of April at the Osprey Library at Historic Spanish Point. 

Fabric pottery uses a fabric coil reinforced with either cotton clothesline rope or decorator piping wrapped with strips of material to sculpt objects.

The coil is held together with a zigzag stitch that’s typically done by a sewing machine but can also be done by hand. The finished product is a free-standing vase or bowl that O’Leary has used as a basket around her home.

“They are pretty sturdy,” O’Leary said. “I started making them and giving them for gifts. Then, it developed as I got better to working with different shapes of the bowls.”

After mastering the basic round bowl, O’Leary elaborated on the foundation with oval shapes, scalloped edges and urn shapes. She’s made lids for the bowls, tote bags and Grecian urns.

Pat Alba invited O’Leary to display her work in the library as part of a series that displays work from residents each month.

“One of my volunteers told me about the baskets because they were unusual,” said Pat Alba, Osprey Library staff member. “They were beautiful. I hadn’t seen anything similar.”