Catching Up Again

The last few weeks have been a mixed bag of busyness and a grotty cold.  We won't dwell on the cold which knocked me for six as I'm much better now, but I will share with you some of the busyness.

Last weekend I recovered enough to go on a coach trip to the Fashion Embroidery and Stitch Show at the NEC.  When I first arrived in the Halls I was delighted to see the guitarist that we had met at the Malvern Show.  David Jaggs played his delightful guitar music of all styles throughout the day and it felt very restful to enjoy a break from the hurly burly having a cup of tea and listening to his guitar drifting in the air.

If you go to David's site you can download sample tracks of his music which is very varied from classical through Spanish to versions of pop classics.  I treated myself to his Recitals CD.

I have to admit that Ididn't take many photos at the show but I will share what I did take.

 On the Madeira stand Michala who blogs as KaylaCoo was demonstrating her beautiful combination of felting and machine embroidery.  When I arrived at the stand she was wrestling a large blanket through the machine in order to add elaborate stitching.  It was interesting to see the amount of effort that was required to achieve a tension under the needle.  Michala's work has a wonderful painterly quality, inherited no doubt from the amount of preparation she undertakes with her paintings and drawings.  It was lovely to meet up with a fellow blogger.

An exhibit that caught my eye was the work of Susan Chapman.

I was particularly attracted to the flowing, drifting nature of her work.  You can read more about her work in the Gallery section of her website and she has some close up views of the work on the stand above on her Flickr pages shown in her sidebar.

Sadly Blogger is now refusing to post any more photos so I will cut short this post and try and continue tomorrow.  I still have to show you work by Christine Hudson, postcards by the West Country Embroiderers and some of the dresses from the series Downton Abbey (I need to write this here or I will forget what else I was going to say).  See you soon.

How Long?

Two weeks since I blogged?  Can't be!  Actually it is and it's not as if I havn't had things to blog about as I've been busy but I've also been exhausted and a bit bleugh about making the effort so I apologise for being a lazy Blogger.

First of all, I should say that with all the stuff flying about on the net about Pinterest, I have decided to leave until it all gets sorted out.  I have finally read the Terms and I feel it is a copyright minefield and I don't want to be the one who may get sued, and I also object to the fact that they can apparently sell your boards.  So, goodbye Pinterest!  Oops!  Should have bookmarked my favourites first!

So what's been happening in my neck of the woods?  Last week saw DH and I on a coach trip to the Creative Crafts Show at Malvern.  I've not been to this Show before and although it was a small affair we did enjoy our day.  It was a real mix of papercrafts, stitch, knitting and strangely people selling knife sharpeners!  What was that all about?  

 I did succumb to a little shopping.  The LOVE symbol is so Mum and I can hopefully indulge in a little collaging.  I won't call it decopatch as I didn't buy the papers but I'm hoping to interest Mum in sticking some St Ives-y coloured papers onto it.  And what about that fabulous yarn?!  It is the most sumptuous of sea colours and it just leapt into my hands!  What can I say?  The yarn came from the stall of ehdknits run by the very friendly Erica and if you visit the site prepare to be very tempted.  So many gorgeous yarns and threads, especially the sequined silk yarn!

Food played a lively part in the day and you can see DH enjoyed the Danish we shared. (Well I have to get my own back for a pic of me he's put on his blog!)

The Show didn't keep us busy all day so we set off for a walk round the grounds looking for inspiration.  The photos above, showing a very misty day, were taken through a metal gate and while they're not wonderfully inspiring and not the best photos they have a certain something.  Walking a bit further we found textures to inspire us.

An old notice board should give lots of opportunites to play and I couldn't resist the oak leaf in the tarmac below.

Mossy paving could be useful

and I love Silver Birch trees.

So what else?  Remember my excursion into Roman Stripes?  Well, I put the squares I had made in a safe place and, you've guessed it, they disappeared on a block vacation.  Having turned out every drawer and fabiric box over the last couple of weeks I finally decided I would have to bottom my sewing room if I was ever to find them.  Long story short, I started to straighten up my bookshelves and peeking out from under some sketchbooks, the blocks popped out.  Shrieking didn't come into it! lol  I am now busy making up the throw in a completely different arrangement from the ones I was considering before and I'll show you it when I've got it together.

I don't usually like to make any comment on current affairs in this blog but I feel I have to express my terrible sadness at the loss of six young lives in Afghanistan this week. R.I.P

Effie Galletly

Today was the Area day for Region 10 of the Quilters Guild which covers Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland and after an enjoyable morning of catching up with friends, quilters' bingo and a very tasty lunch we were treated to a talk and slideshow by Effie Galletly.

I had seen Effie's work a couple of years ago at Quiltfest in Llangollen so it was good to see her inspirational sources and to hear a little of how she constructs her quilts.  (For my sins, I didn't realise that Effie had been instrumental in setting up the Contemporary Quilt Group of the Quilters Guild).

It was very interesting to see the types of photographs that Effie uses when she is looking to make her quilts and after a short while I began to see the shapes that could be translated into fabric. 

Interestingly some of the skies were formed by long running stitch rather than actual piecing of fabrics but equally some were pieced to express the changes in light and the movement across the sky.  While Effie uses some of her own dyed and painted fabrics she also makes full use of commercial fabrics and batiks if they give her the tones and textures that she wants.

The quilts in this presentation reflected the scenery of the Outer Hebrides and other islands off the west coast of Scotland and as we are going to Arran and Mull later in the year I enjoyed seeing her photos and seeing it through her eyes, especially with the idea of making interpretations in cloth.  I shall be reviewing my photos of landscapes with new eyes.

I have been a fan of Effie's and of Susan Denton who Effie had learnt from previously for some time and just need to find the time, yet again, to explore the avenues their work opens up.  Sadly Susan Denton does not have a strong internet presence so I have not been able to include a link.  I can, however, include a photo or two from the 2010 Festival Of Quilts.

 Susan uses a lot of recycled material in her work and also makes use of surface stitching to add to the texture.  If the chance arose I would love to take a workshop with her.  Talking of workshops, the Festival of Quilts workshop programme is now available if you haven't already heard.  Nip over to the Twisted Thread site and see if you can be tempted.  Bookings for members open at midday on 1 March and for non-members at midday on 8 March.  Decisions, decisions!

Archi-texture

Today is reveal day for our third challenge over at the International Quilt Challenge Blog and for the first time I am actually at home for the reveal.  The title of the challenge was 'Archi-texture' and I reproduce here the post I put up on the blog this morning.

 I'll start from the end which is the piece I've reached by today's reveal date.  At the moment it's  called Archi-texture I as I've forgotten the name of the building that inspired it but it is all about decaying surfaces and is only one of the directions this challenge took my thoughts.

After enjoying the process of the Pojagi in the last challenge I was keen to carry on exploring layers and the idea of looking through. On a train journey from Cornwall I had plenty of time to let my mind wander and notes I made at the time include suggestions of monoprinting on cotton; building up layers of print on top; sponging; painting over stitched, quilted fabric, discharging, painting again; scribbled stitching.  As the train slowly approached London we passed a Macdonalds' with its iconic arched logo and that turned a light on.  Having recently seen Karen Turner's work I thought about layering fabrics over a textured basecloth and cutting the arches through to reveal the texture below.  I think that would have been a fun way to go but when I got home and started looking at my photos of texture and architecture I found an image I had taken in Leicester near the New Walk Museum of a very decaying building.

As you can now see the image at the top caught my imagination and I decided to explore that with surface design on fabric.

Using my own printed , dyed and discharged fabrics I cut and bonded the pieces to batting layering one or two sheers with text on them below the dyed net curtaining that forms the 3 neutral columns.  My free machining/quilting skills are distinctly lacking but I used a variety of stitching to describe the cracks that you might see as a building deteriorates.  The 'quilt' is A3 size and there is no binding, the backing was turned through and the edge closed with top stitching all round.

I have to admit to several influences while I was working on this piece including the work of Shelley Rhodes that I saw at Alexandra Palace last year and work by Mary Hettmansberger that had featured in Quilting Arts magazine.  Having linked to Mary's work here I wonder now whether that is what drew me to my photograph although I took the photo about 5 years ago.  Subconsciously the colours may have been a strong factor in remembering that image of the building.  Another piece of work that got me very interested was a piece hanging at the Beetroot Gallery in their open exhibiton.

This is 'Traces' by Lesley Bohanna and I love the texture she has brought to the surface with mediums and printing.  The piece is very tactile with layers produced by added mediums, fabrics, printing and stitch. As far as I can tell from Google Lesley is a member of Dewbury Art Club. While preparing the fabrics for my own piece I applied some acrylic texture medium to the fabric before printing but I want to go back and play more along these lines. 

The beauty of this challenge, as with the preceding ones, is that it has opened my mind up to so many possibilities and so many ways to interpret the texture in architecture and I could, and hopefully will, carry on exploring for many months to come.  I am hoping that the next challenge will lead naturally into related areas of work and I still have to come back to thinking about how pojagi and archi-texture can come together.

PS if you can't enlarge the images by clicking on them go and have a look at them on the International Quilt Challenge blog.

Textiles in Focus

I've had a lovely day out today with Wendy and Tina at Textiles in Focus in Cottenham near Cambridge.  Wendy very kindly drove us down there and we were soon enjoying this very friendly show.  

The Show consisted of two main exhibitions by Out of The Fold textile group from Bury St Edmunds and Running With Scissors (for whom I cannot find any internet reference).  Sadly no photography was allowed but you can read about the artists involved in Out of the Fold if you click on the link.  I was particularly impressed by the work of Jane Rowland and Caroline Brown who had a magnificent stitched sculpture.  

The bulk of the show consisted of two halls of traders stands with the emphasis more on stitch and surface design than on quilting which made a refreshing change. 

It was lovely to see my friends from Art and Stitch from Peterborough (in the photo above).

We decided on the spur of the moment to do a workshop to make a twisted bead necklace and earrings.  The workshop was very relaxed and I learnt enough to be able to continue at home and also to adapt the technique for decoration and embellishment.  

By the time we came out of the workshop there was just time to find Lynda Monk's stand and enjoy a chat with her.  She had a  lot of work on display including work from her book Fabulous Surfaces. 

If you purchase Lynda's book you can download extra free lessons from the d4daisy site.  Lynda is not only a very talented artist but a very generous lady.  I'm looking forward to seeing her again at the Fashion Embroidery and Stitch Show at the NEC in March.

I have to admit to a very little shopping which consists of a few threads and some evolon so not worth the photograph.  If you live within reach of Cambridge the Textiles in Focus show is on over the weekend and is well worth the journey.  The Show is small enough to get round easily but large enough to be worth the effort, especially if you are into textile art, embroidery, knitting or fibre work and there is quilting fabric from Art and Stitch and The African Shop on offer among others.  Refreshments are available throughout the day so you don't need to go hungry or thirsty.

Nottingham Light Night

My DH and I have just had a very cold but very enjoyable weekend with some friends over at Nottingham.  We met up with DH's fellow photo blogging friend Gailsman for Friday nights' Light Night celebrations and also to see DH's son performing with his Indie Band Red Shoe Diaries at their single launch party.

After a bit of a false start the front of the Council House was illuminated with changing patterns of light which were great inspiration but a little tricky to capture with the camera.  

These lovely clockwork images were all moving and were projected on the curtain wall of Nottingham Castle accompanied by a couple of daleks and a TARDIS.  We didn't get close enough to the daleks to be in any danger ;-)  It was very slippery under foot around the castle as there had been recent snow fall and it was freezing hard.  You can find some more images on my DH's blog here.

While we were in the castle grounds we were witness to a very romantic occasion,

 This very large heart was displaying messages throughout the evening and as we were looking at this one a young gentleman standing next to us went down on one knee! Sadly no pic of that.  The very surprised and delighted Sylvia said, Yes!

Aaaaaaaah!  I hope they are always as happy.  

Not to be outdone my DH had his say

Bless! xx

As did our friend Gailsman

 Who said romance is dead?

These illuminated figures were a lifesize family made from recycled plastic by Sarah Turner.  

To wind up the evening we went to the Cafe bar at the Nottingham Contemporary where my DH's son was performing with his Indie band Red Shoe Diaries .  It is not easy to get photographs indoors while everyone's moving but I managed one

 My stepson is partially hidden behind Leanne, the female vocalist.  The evening was a great success and launched their new single Ice and Snow.

You can listen to their music if you wish on Youtube

And here in Paris in 2010.

And finally

Since Dilly was asking me where my hat was the other day here's another hat photo taken in the lift at Nottingham Castle on Friday night.  Not a clue who the strange people in the background are ;-)

Snow Dyeing Results

There's nothing like a bit of snow to get you blogging every day ;-)  So, withiut further ado, here are the results after the fabrics were rinsed with cold, warm, hot with Metapex, lukewarm and lukewarm water (cos I can't stand the cold) and then spun and ironed dry.  The Metapex, or Synthrapol, is a detergent that holds the loose colour in the water and stops it going back into the fabric thus shortening rinsing time and saving sore hands.  (Many thanks to Annabel who gave me this tip a long time ago).

This (above) is what the silk noil and silk scrim from yesterday actually look like.  The colours from the scanner were well off the mark.

These colours are not totally accurate but they do show the exciting marks that the snow has given.  They remind me of storms brewing or of gas clouds in space.

The next images are from the tray dyeing,

Above is a piece of 80/20 batting, cotton velvet and a scrap of vintage cotton doily.

And finally the pieces that were in the pot

I can't remember what the fabrics on the left above were but I think one is a bamboo cloth.  On the right is the overdyed onion dyed cotton and the light fabric is Evolon.

This piece above is a very old piece of cotton sheet that is very thin and worn but which has taken the colour at the bottom of the pot beautifully.  All of the colours are a bit more turquoise than the computer is showing.

I am quite pleased that I did get some nice greys in a couple of the pieces and the rest are all leaning towards turquoise with deeper tones, all of which will make an appearance in some future project.  As ever I used a range of fabrics to see what happened but sadly I didn't note anything up so I can't be sure what I was using if I wanted to repeat the exercise.  Will I never learn? lol

My erosion bundles enjoyed sitting under their coating of snow for a couple of days and some of them disappeared completely from sight.  There are two bundles sitting under the snow on top of this old watering can.  What mysteries await?