Bet You Can't Guess

where we've been?  The header's a big clue!  We got back last weekend from a two week break in beautiful St Ives which never disappoints and never ceases to recharge the batteries.  We decided that after all the worries with Mum, and now that she is settled and happy, we would have some time out in our favourite place.  We rented a flat overlooking the town and the harbour.

What do you think?  Isn't it a gorgeous view to look out onto and watch the world go by?  I love the colour of the roofs in St Ives.  The lichen changes colour depending on the amount of moisture in the air.

The flat was very high up so we kept very fit walking back up the hill every time we went out.

The flat is pretty much in the middle of the pic above and is stuck on top of the white horizontal block in the middle. (X marks the spot).  If you click on the photo you should be able to see that it looks very unprepossessing and quite ugly from the outside but inside it was roomy and comfortable and the view was to die for!

We had a view of the town towards the Tate Gallery,

Across to the left to some attractive town houses,

Down to Fore Street, St Ives' main shopping street, strangely quiet in the late afternoon sunshine,

Across to the harbour and the Island,

And out to St Ives Bay and Godrevy lighthouse.  The view in my header is almost the full panorama from our window.  Stunning!

We didn't go very far during the holiday, preferring to spend time pottering on the beach, watching the tide come in, watching the tide go out, going for a few walks and for me, playing in my sketchbook!  (More of that later).  One excursion we did take though was to The Eden Project which we last visited a few years ago with my Mum).  The Eden Project is built in the bottom of an old china clay pit and every visit is a different experience.  We usually go into the tropical biome first as it gets really hot and humid in there and then go round the temperate biome.  

 

You can get some idea of the size of the place from the photo above.  If you click on the image you should be able to see a platform high up in the roof with a walkway going towards it.  This is new this year and at times the temperature up there gets above 40 degrees with very high humidity.  Did we go up there?  Definitely not!  It was hard enough keeping going round the main part in the humidity there.

Oops!  Blogger won't let me load any more photos!  To be continued..........

ALQS5

I should have posted this some time ago so apologies to Tina for not trumpeting (!) her beautiful Elephant quilt from Kate North's 'another Little Quilt Swap'.  This is the 5th swap Kate has organised and this time we worked to an A4 or US equivalent sizing.  You can look at all the quilts made by clicking here.  You need to scroll through to the 1 February and earlier to see the quilts.  Kate has the unenviable task of sorting out everyone's requests and matching quilt to 'swapee'. 

I love Tina's work so I was really pleased to receive her elephant.  Tina's work is always very colourful and always involves a lot of handstitching and usually a fair scattering of sequins and embellishments.  This elephant is even more special because Tina made him and many others while undergoing chemo and this is the last of her chemo elephants. Tina is now well and fully recovered and I feel privileged to have this special elephant.  Do click on the image to see all the details and printing that Tina included in her quilt.

This is the quilt I made for the swap

The quilt was made from a piece of shibori dyed fabric that I made in a workshop a couple of years ago.  I decided to work it all by hand and it helped me get through some of the time when I was looking after my mum after her stroke. I always find hand sewing very soothing and I'm sure it lowers the blood pressure.

My quilt went off to Wil Opio Oguta who lives in the Netherlands and who is coincidentally a fellow member of the Contemporary Quilt Group of the Quilters Guild.  It's a small world, especially as Tina and I belong to the same quilt group too!

Memories

                                                                      26 March 1996

Flutter like a butterfly riding on the wind

Dancing and skipping over the land

Upon Copper Hill you will rest on my hand.

You can't stay put as time moves on

But remember the good times and be on your way.

So fly little butterfly, fly on the wind

And one day we'll meet again.                      love L

My Brother

has just reminded me that it's been a while since I've had anything to say here.  Bad girl!  I've been blog hopping and commenting but just haven't got round to committing my own words to the ether.  Equally I don't have a lot to share, although I did go to the Sewing For Pleasure show yesterday and had a pleasant time wandering around instead of dashing everywhere like a headless chicken as I usually do.  It was lovely meeting up with fellow bloggers Sandra, a special friend; Lynda (lovely to meet up at last!) and quite unexpectedly, Gina, who I have known since we both started blogging.  I did take a few photos but they're still in my camera so maybe next time for those.

Belatedly I have some photos for you of the trip I made to London 2 weeks ago to attend the annual meeting of the Contemporary Quilt Group of the Quilters Guild.  I hadn't been to an annual meeting before but it was a very enjoyable affair made more exciting by a talk from the guest speaker Jo Budd.  

I first came across Jo's work at the Festival of Quilts in 2008 and remember being blown away by the size of her work and the painterly quality of the way she used fabrics and colours.  Unsurprisingly Jo's talk was entitled 'Painting with Cloth' and that is precisely what she has spent her textile career doing after studying painting and textiles at University.  Jo specialises in layering different weights of cloth and using stitch as marks to mould the surface.  

She spends hours getting just the right quality of stitch to achieve the effect she is seeking and will rip it all out if it is not perfect.  Jo describes stitch as being the energy in her work. She has made much use of rusted fabrics and it was fascinating to see something of her process in her Powerpoint presentation.  Some of the marks she achieves are made by monoprint and her whole talk sparked off all sorts of ideas and kept my pen busy taking notes and ideas for future projects of my own.  I just need to find the time and energy to do them!

When the meeting finished I walked back to Kings Cross and quickly captured a few photos on the way.

The BT Tower just adjacent to our venue on Hamlet Court Road.

Just a few of the ladies gathering for the day's business.

What era would you say these shop signs date from?  This is Heals department store which has been trading for 200 years.

This enormous sculpture of Sir Isaac Newton stands in the grounds of the British Library and is the work of Eduardo Paolozzi.

This imposing sign proclaims the entrance to this grand building in case you were in any doubt.

I was struck by this view of the newly renovated St Pancras Hotel towering over the modern shapes of the library and its gardens and sculptures.  I think DH and I will have to have a day trip to the capital to see this properly and the new St Pancras station too.

On Sunday it will be 3 weeks since we brought Mum up to Lincolnshire and thankfully she seems to be settling into her new home.  She is missing her friends but is much more relaxed and has a big smile on her face whenever I go in to see her.  We are going to bring her to our house on Sunday for the afternoon so I hope that doesn't unsettle her but it will be nice to spend some 'normal' time with her away from the home. 

Whatever you are doing this weekend have a good time.

Photoshop Essentials Course

I'm just nipping in here to let you know that the very talented Kim Klassen is offering her Photoshop Essentials Course again starting on Tuesday this week.  If you missed out when Kim did this course earlier this year it's well worth brushing up your skills now.  Kim is an excellent teacher and she'll soon have you using Photoshop with ease.  You can link to Kim's site from the button in my side bar or by clicking here.  You can also sign up to receive her email newsletter and benefit from her free textures.  I don't have any affiliation with Kim, I'm just delighted that I have had the chance to learn from her clear and entertaining videos otherwise my Elements 6 would still be languishing unloved and neglected on my computer.  

I'll be back soon with a catch up but I must get to bed now.  Mum is happy and settling in well in her care home.  Her forgetfulness has its funny side, I went to see her on Friday around lunchtime.  The carers brought her lunch in to the lounge and after she had eaten half of it she suddenly got up and left the room.  When she didn't come back I went to look for her and found her in the dining room eating a pudding and drinking tea!  She'd forgotten all about me and her dinner!  Pudding was much more interesting! LOL

Belton House where we had a lovely visit with some friends today because I can't do a post without a photo :-)

MY heart goes out to the poor people of Japan who are facing such a terrifying time.  So many natural disasters in recent times.

You know you're losing it when

you can't find your mobile that you've just been using and it turns up on the landline charging dock!

Doh!!!  At least it's given us a laugh :-))

I'm pleased to say we have brought Mum safely up to Lincolnshire today.  She was a bit bewildered but still happy to be just up the road from us all now.  She arrived at her new home in the middle of a sherry party for one of the residents so there were more people than usual in the lounge but she had a little sing song with the birthday girl so that was nice.  My DH had spent part of the morning getting her room ready for her while my brother and I went to Essex to fetch her so the room looked lovely with things that she'll recognise and some flowers.  Thank you hun.  I wasn't going to go and see her till Tuesday but I think I'll have to go tomorrow just to reassure her (and myself) that we're close by.

Chocolate?  What chocolate?!  ;-))

I thought

it was about time I got back on here and gave an update on what has been happening since my last blog.  We ended up rushing off down to Essex because my Mum was starting to not know people, including me over the phone, and I wanted to see her before she forgot us altogether.  Initially when we saw her in hospital our worst fears were well founded as she didn't know me but slowly realisation came to her.  As a result of our arriving in Essex the hospital decided Mum was fit for discharge home!!  I could not believe that a lady of 85 with almost total confusion, not recognising her sister-in-law or her daughter, who had already taken an overdose of Warfarin was going to be sent back to the same situation that was making her increasingly confused and which was putting her at risk!  Fortunately my fears were acknowledged and the doctors decided that, with a low MMSE she needed 24 hour care after all.  The upshot is that Mum is now in a care home in Essex but will shortly be coming up to a care home near us.  I dread to think what would have to happen to someone without a family to stand up for them before they receive the appropriate care.

We stayed in Essex for a few days organising things for Mum's move and then came home to find somewhere for her to be cared for here. I had no idea how complicated this whole process is.  First, you have to find somewhere suitable and as Mum has dementia our town has less options able to deal with her particular needs so homes that I would have liked to choose are not available to us.  Fortunately Lincolnshire does have a good support service to help you find a suitable care solution which comes under the umbrella of Care Choices.  The most valuable piece of advice I have been given was from the hospital social worker who told us to take things one step at a time.  Don't rush, take your time.  Also, be sure to check out the Care Quality Commission report on each home and look out for any safeguards, which, despite the name, mean there may have been a problem. 

It feels as though it has taken months but in fact Mum has been in care less than 2 weeks and we have been successful in finding somewhere for her here, I just hope she likes it.  It is a home that I have known about for years and the atmosphere when you walk in is cosy and friendly.  The residents looked happy and relaxed and the manageress had plenty of time to answer all our questions.  We just need Mum to feel at home now when she arrives.    She will be able to have some of her own furniture in her room, which is surprisingly large and which overlooks the Parish Church.  She is telling everyone that she is looking forward to living near us so I hope that holds true when she gets here.   Perhaps unsurprisingly now that she is in a safe and stable environment her confusion has lessened but she still doesn't know who her sister in law is, she just knows she's a lovely lady.  I have had a couple of telephone conversations with her and she is calling me darling so hopefully that means she will know me when my brother and I go to fetch her in a few days.  

Once Mum is safely settled here the real work starts sorting out all the finances and that is going to take time.  Again I have found several organisations that offer help and guidance, most notably Care Aware who have information bulletins to download and offer help from local advisors which I am almost certainly going to take up.  I feel I am entering a minefield and am constantly having to remind myself to take my time.  I am sure that AgeUk will also be an invaluable source of advice.

The worst of all this, apart from the loss of the beautiful personality that has always been my Mum, is that crucial decisions have to be made at a time when you feel at your absolute lowest, exhausted from caring for a parent who has suddenly changed and is struggling themselves to understand what has happened to them.  The responsibility is huge and very frightening and eventually every small effort drains what little energy you have. I am very lucky to have a very supportive husband through all this.

Tomorrow we are going back to the care home to finalise the paper work and find out the arrangements for taking over the room.  Then we start a busy weekend of getting the room ready, naming Mum's clothes so they don't get lost in the laundry, making up photo frames with photos of people special to Mum and finally fetching her up to her new home.  Fortunately, although she is very confused, she does understand what is about to happen and although she will miss her friends she does want to see more of us so please keep positive thoughts for us and her in your minds.  Spring and a new awakening is happening all around us and I hope that some small awakening will come to Mum when she sees more of me and makes some new friends here.

 

Photoshopping

Not sure if I've posted this one before but I found a little time last week to catch up with Kim Klassen's Art of Texture class.  This peonie photo (courtesy of Kim) above started out as a bright, bold image and has been softened into this subtle, delicate flower.

This is a Thai Buddha statue that I have in my conservatory that I have been wanting to have a play with in Photoshop for ages.  I cropped the original image down and inverted it before applying some colour adjustment layers and a texture.

This 'Speedy Sheep' was a quick, fun project from Kim and was very easy to achieve with just a few adjustments.

Next, this is the famous 'Roger's Door' in St Ives which is actually a lovely flaking green colour.  With Kim's help the door has been changed to red, although I think I prefer the original patina.

This little angel came from a graveyard  near us and is my own effort.  I cropped the image, blurred the background, added a texture and text and stamped a few flowers.   The possibilities with Photoshop are endless.

I'd like to thank everyone who has left messages or emailed me with friendly and supportive words about my mum.  Sadly she has been having a really difficult time since we left her at her own home and is now in hospital, hopefully just for a few days, while they check out what is going on.  Her confusion is terrible and almost complete, to the point where she didn't know who I was when I spoke to her on the phone last night, even though she had asked the nurse to call me.  I am hoping that it is just worse because she is out of her home environment but I am very fearful for her.  We are taking each day as it comes and hoping.

We have had a very low key Valentine's night tonight and SH cooked tea (again) and made a lovely ice creamy, apple ricey, white chocolatey dessert.  He knows how to win a girl's heart :-)  I hope you've all enjoyed a Happy Valentine's Day with someone you love and care about.

There and back

If you wondered where I was we've been to Essex to take my Mum home and settle her in to her new routine of 're-enabling' carers who are going to come in 4 times a day to help her with the things she finds difficult, which is just about everything now.  My DH and I don't think living alone, even with carers coming in, is going to work and fully expect to be sent for quite quickly to make the ultimate decision about residential care.  Mum has dementia (isn't that an awful word when someone says it about your loved one?) and I cannot tell you how it feels to see a very special lady lose parts of herself and the things she used to love.  At least she is calm and still smiles sweetly in the face of her lack of understanding. 

Creativity has left me for now and I have to rest and recover my resources after the last weeks of looking after Mum.  I did make a little texture while I was away though inspired by my classes with the lovely Kim Klassen.

I made this texture from one of my mixed media paintings layered with the frozen pond I photographed in the winter and a white colour fill.  I then added ink splashes that I had made from Kim's workshop and brushed out the edge.  The next step is to use it over an image.

Kim Klassen Texture

I've been doing a little more work with Kim Klassen's  Art of Texture course.  Kim is a very competent and generous teacher and I am learning so much about Photoshop.  I have been playing with one or two of my own photos and incorporating the tips I have been learning.

The original photo below of cottages on the beach in St Ives was altered to remove the figure at the corner of the house and then textures and colour fills added in various layers to achieve the aged effect above.  I am not very good at keeping a note of where I have downloaded the textures from (sorry Kim, you'll have to slap my wrists).  There are a lot of free textures out there if you search the web.  I will try and remember to credit my source next time.

This image of hogweed (goutweed in America I think) is similar to the image Kim gave us to use in her course.

After a few adjustments it looks like this

The image was initially changed using the High Pass filter and then a texture and text were added.  I am really pleased with this manipulation and I can see a lot of uses in my textile work.  There is so much more to explore.

My final image is an aged-up photo of my beautiful great-nephew in a cable car with his Mum at New Year,

This was quite a complicated procedure where a photo frame was made, a texture added and the photo clipped to the photoframe. Additional colour fill layers were also added and attention was paid to the opacity of the layers.  I hope my nephew will forgive me for pinching the photo from his facebook page ;-)

A Grand Day Out and a little shopping

Well, you have to, don't you?  Yesterday my very good friend Ann and I went to York for the day to see the current exhibition at the Quilt Museum.  My brother looked after Mum for the day so that we could have a day off from caring duties and my DH went off to Lincoln with his friend for a photographic foray.   

Unfortunately you are not allowed to take photographs in the Quilt Museum so I can't show you what we saw but the exhibition, as always, was excellent and gave both of us inspiration for future project possibilities.  There are two exhibitions on until 29 of this month so if you live within reach of York there is still time to go.  The main exhibition 'Freedom to Stitch: The emergence of Embroiderer as Artist' included work by many well known names including Michael Brennand-Wood, Julia Caprara, Alice Kettle, Paddy Killer, and Audrey Walker and the additional exhibition of quilts by Barbara Bailey, whose generous legacy gave birth to the Quilt Museum, was so impressive.  Barbara Bailey's work was largely hand quilted and was beautifully and gloriously colourful. 

In a side room was a small exhibition of  quilts by members of my own Region of the Quilters Guild which I hadn't realised was going to be there.  That's what I like about belonging to the Quilters Guild and going to the Quilt Museum, the main exhibits never let you down in their interest and  work by people you know makes it delightfully personal.

It was lovely to see Gilli Theokritoff's beautiful 'Karma' quilt again.  There are over 4000 tiny squares in this mosaic and Gilli has embroidered the word 'Wisdom' in many languages across the quilt.

As you might expect a special day out with a good friend has to involve a little retail therapy and we couldn't let you down ;-)

My friend Tina has been nagging me to get a safety cutter so I can justify that little expenditure and I got it in the sale!  Bargain!  I couldn't resist the glorious threads and the jazzy fabric which I think will inspire my Journal Quilts for 2011.  I have decided to work on a theme of Gaudi and his works in Barcelona and I'm really excited to start this project.  I am hoping to work on the 12 pieces so that they can be made into a single wallhanging at the end of the year.  I bought the threads and beads at a fantastic little shop called The Viking Loom which is an Aladdin's cave once you step through the door.   I had to be very strong willed!  I bought the Janice Gunner book at the Quilt Museum as I like to support them when I go and I'd rather put the pennies in their till if I can.

Not much else to share with you at the moment.  I'm finding things tough with looking after Mum but I'm trying to stay positive.  We are seeing her social worker and stroke support worker this week to talk about where we go next and this week looks to be very busy so I may be missing for a while but I will still be browsing and visiting.  See you soon and hopefully with more textiley content.

2 for the price of one!

I have a couple more things to share with you today so thought I would put them in a separate post.  First of all I have joined a new monthly sewing group and thought I would like to have a project to take with me each month that I could work on over the course of the year.  I have been saving my offcuts and scraps for a long time and decided it was time I used some of them up in the spirit of reuse and recycle so I am making up scrap blocks with a view to making a bed quilt.  I must be mad!  I've only ever made a cot quilt before so I may rue the day!

I've made some squares at home too and I'm really enjoying seeing snippets of past projects and my hand dyed fabrics coming together.

I'm reproducing here an email that I received a few days ago from Colouricious who brought us the Talking Threads Series of videos. 

Talking Threads Series 1 -
Invitation to the
Private On-Line Viewing
Raise the profile of Textile Art

Textile Artists in our opinion, are unsung heroes of our time. The work they produce is totally outstanding and the passion and followings they create are contagious. There are thousands of creative textile lovers all over the world who crave more knowledge and understanding of the textile techniques that help unleash personal creativity. We at Colouricious have chosen some of Britain's top textile artists, to tell you their story. Where they derive their inspiration and how they became who they became may be something that you can relate to. Each artist will also share with you one of their favourite techniques, in simple and easy terms for you to follow.

As we so love creative textiles, as a Valentine's present to you, starting on February 14th 2011, we will be sending you one episode  of Talking Threads a week, for 10 weeks, running time approx 20 minutes, free of charge. All we ask in exchange, is that you tell everyone you know, so they can sign up too. Everyone will learn a great deal each week from each of our textile artists, not only about their life and skills but also about themselves as well. 

If you go to the Colouricious  website and sign up for their email newsletter you too can receive the free programmes for textile artists.  The original series was most enjoyable and informative so it would be good to support them in their bid to get more funding for a second series.

Talking of support, you may be aware that people are working together once again to make quilts for the people who have lost homes and possessions in the appalling Australian floods.  If you click on the link at the top of my right sidebar you will be taken to the blog of one of the organisers who has instructions for making very quick blocks.  This is next on my to-do list. 

I have slipped behind a bit in my work with Kim Klassen's Photoshop course and I am starting a new course tomorrow but this is my latest effort using Kim's source photograph.

I've even managed to make a stamp of my own name, not that I am claiming this as my own photo as the copyright belongs to Kim.  Kim's classes are excellent and her video instruction is very clear so if you've ever been tempted to learn more about photo manipulation don't wait for Kim's prices to go up as they surely will.  If you just want to sign up for Kim's emails and free textures just sign up here.  There are links there to Kim's other sites too.

Cheer up

I heard on the telly this morning that today is reckoned to be the most gloomy depressing day of the year so I thought you might appreciate a little cheering up.  Yesterday we had a lovely visit from our gorgeous great nephew and he brought his mummy and daddy and Duke the dog to see us too. Even though he hadn't seen us since the Spring last year and wouldn't have remembered us he gave us a beaming smile as soon as he saw us and treated us to a lovely couple of hours gurgling and playing away very happily.  

He also showed us his newly acquired standing and walking-with-fingers skills:

Mum was delighted to see her great grandson again and had a lovely cuddle with him,

It is lovely to see Mum's face shine with joy whenever she sees Max or photos of him.  I can't believe that Max will be one year old at the end of next month.  Where did that year go?

Since the new year began I have been waiting impatiently to find out what the new challenge is for the Contemporary Quilt Group Journal Quilts and Saturday brought the long awaited magazine with the details.  This year's quilts have to be made to a 10" square format and there are additional requirements to add to the challenge.  The first 4 of the quilts have to have a circle somewhere in the design, the next 4 have to include text and the last 4 must have a button or buttons included.  I am really excited by this new challenge and already have ideas buzzing around my head.  Not least, maybe some fabric collage by Susan Carlson that I saw on the Quilt Show last week which looked fun. 

Mum is still staying with us but moves are now afoot to get her back to her own home.  I have very serious doubts that she will be able to live alone now as she gets quite confused and I have fears for her safety but we will have to see.  I wish I could look after her myself but I am already exhausted and have to face the fact that I cannot do this on a permanent basis because of my own health issues.  Oh for the strength of youth!

And just in case you have drifted off into a low frame of mind on this supposedly low day of the year here's another photo to cheer you up

This jolly chap was part of a scarecrow celebration at Doddington Hall near Lincoln last year.  Remind you of anyone?

Luv ya hun!

Stay Home Round Robin 7

Despite being a bit quiet over the last week I have been managing to work on a couple of projects.  One I cannot show you as it is for Kate North's 'Another Little Quilt Swap' which you can link to from the button in my side bar.  The other piece I have been working on today is also fro Kate and is for her Stay Home Round Robin.

I have added the bottom strip of 3 rectangles, one measuring 6"x5" and two measuring 5"x5" (excuse the slightly wonky photograph).  This strip now completes the basic quilt top but Kate has 5 more stages for us to go through before the quilt is complete.  When I started this piece I didn't have any plan at all, I just followed Kate's instructions for the block sizes but slowly the colours and patterns evolved.  I have so enjoyed this project thus far and I can't wait for the chance to add stitching and embellishments to the surface.  I will, of course, have to wait for Kate to tell us where and when to embellish and stitch.  Can't wait!  Watch this space!

Very many thanks to everyone who has sent me good wishes for my Mum's returning health after her stroke.  She has made some good progress in some areas, her right arm is stronger than it was but she still has little sensation in it and this is causing some problems.  We've managed to get rid of the walking frame and come down to a stick and occasionally Mum forgets the stick indoors and manages without so that is progress.  She is still sleeping a lot but not as much as immediately after the stroke but her short term memory does seem to have been affected and is causing her some confusion.  The next step is to try and get her back to her own home with the support of social workers so I will be going with her for a hopefully short while until  a care package is set up.  I am already exhausted with caring for Mum so far (as I have my own health problems unfortunately) so, as much as I want to carry on looking after Mum, I know I have to hand her over to others to decide on the range of support she needs.  I have the feeling that while she stays with us Mum will feel like a guest and not make the effort she needs to make to take over more of her own care.  Fingers crossed she will get her wish to stay in her own home and we can support with more frequent visits.   

While we're on the subject of poorly people (sorry for the 'p' word Laura!) our dear friend Grace is still having a bumpy ride and has spent time at home and time in care.  Hard to believe she is now in the 100th anniversary year of her birth!  Life is not really being kind to her as she has had one problem after another to cope with, none of them serious in themselves but all combining to weaken her.  She can still crack a smile though.

At the risk of becoming tedious, here's another pic of our gorgeous great-nephew enjoying his Christmas dinner,

If all goes well I may be getting a cuddle at the weekend (as long as social services don't need us in Essex before then!).

Ooh yes, I nearly forgot, my Sketchbook Project has left for America!  Can't wait for the first email that tells me someone has borrowed it.  I left some half completed pages so I would love it if someone couldn't resist adding their own marks here and there.