Having Company

I've been joined be a bevy of Little People recently.

These two have been watching me closely.

I feel they have been trying to communicate what they want to wear and do! lol  They really do start to grow on you after a while.

I haven't rummaged for the right hair for them yet but this fellow most certainly had a say in being so hirsute!

My first beard and I really quite like it!

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Results of a Little Sorting

Now trying to get back on track after Spain.  The tidy up was quite fruitful in several ways.  I found quite a few bits that I could use.  Always preferable to buying again.  Isn't it??  

Anyway, the chatelain has been literally hanging around for a while and I've been wondering what to do about presenting it.  The rules don't actually state they have to be in a box or whatever but I would like this to have a little protection especially after the deadline and it's back into the infamous cupboard of Stuffiv'emadeanddon'tknowwhattodowith.  (I really should have that put on a plaque.)

This tube kept pushing itself towards me for use, and that was after it was empty, and a little rummage in a cupboard found a nice length of damask that just happens to be a smidge over the width of the tube.  I like it when things tell me they want to play together.  You will see where they take me later.

The half ostrich egg has had it's dangles added.  In fact there is a little room for some more but I will live with it a while first.  It's easier to add than to take away. 

I added some more porcupine quills I had for fly tying and a few of the bone and copper beads.

Actually displaying it was going to be interesting.  I seem to have quite a few bits of Mother Nature's own precious gems like bone, feather and antler.  All cast off's and no long used and needing their new place.  A couple of pieces of antler provided a nice cradle for the egg and I built them into a stand using air dry modelling compound. 

Ok not the prettiest of items but it adds to the totally organic nature of the piece.  

I also found a few of the Take a Stitch Tuesday samples I made in about 2008 so I thought I'd made a little book of them.

More of an exercise in making the book than showing the samples.

I really want to make a few more books mainly focusing on different spine treatments.  That's usually the part we see more of after all.

As usual the pictures are pretty standard for me.  Functional but not showy.  I have a plan however.  Chris likes taking photos and I have a lovely Nikon and lenses and we also have a photographer called Kris Dutson of Southern Scenic Photography who is quite local to us.  If you want to see my beautiful county at it's glorious best please do visit his site.  Kris runs workshops and sometime in the near future I will be doing one with Chris so he can learn about my big camera.  I really do not have a retentive memory for all the ins and outs of photography but I know what I need.  All this equals a camera being used, a son who can use it and a happy mum.

Well this weekend sees the start of quite a few Art Trails and Open Studios around us and we went and visited a few yesterday and we're just off to a couple more this morning.  A quick blast along the beach with the dogs and home to watch the F1.

I hope you have a great Bank Holiday weekend.

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Inspiration From On High

The tags have been painted, sprayed, spattered and daubed.

A branch has been repurposed from the garden and hung.

And the tags are being written on and dangled with bits of this and that as I find and see things.

When the window is open they flash the words at me and hopefully will inspire.  My favorite so far is...

I am hoping that having the windows closed means they don't move and won't set off the burglar alarm when we go out!

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Hola! We've Been Shirking

Just back from Northern Spain and Rioja.  If you remember back last September we went with our friends over there to do a recci for the car club. Post here.

When we went then there was a little concern that not everyone would enjoy an unstructured holiday.  No specific drive outs, no arranged tours, no holding of hands for every moment.  This time there was to be a place to stay, an area to visit and no holds barred.  Well response was fantastic and we ended up being a group of 42 cars in total.  Good job the hotels were up to it! As you've seen the photos in the other post I won't fill this post up with them again.  Besides I think most of the new ones are of John's ear, the wing mirror and the odd bush as we went past.  If there is anything interesting I'll let you know!!!  Oh and the reservoirs were very full this time! 

For stitching at the last minute I put together these silk fabrics under chiffon.  Sorry the colour is off as it was late! 

I made a few passes through with the sewing machine and then took a selection of silk threads and off I went.  I will show that a little later when I have done more to it.

As you may have seen in past posts my son Chris brings me back lots of sea glass from his surfing adventures.  Well they hadn't started raking the beach at the hotel this year and John and I had a quick opportunity to do a little collecting of our own!

The pieces Chris brings are very precious to me and I have been a little reluctant to start experimenting with drilling.  I now have plenty to practise on and not ruin the precious ones.  And the little brown stone with the stripe is fabulous. Its a slice of ammonite captured and worn away just right.

I think we are virtually up together again now.  Ellie managed to put a blackthorn deeply into her leg the day before we left which had to be removed surgically and stapled.  Luckily Elsa was persuaded bit my hand off to stay home for the week and puppy sit.  I was a hard choice for her. 

A nice relax on the sofa tonight with the pups and I have plans for a few of these too.

Have a great week

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Another Play Day!

Not sure where the time has gone.  I haven't been creating much but I have been busy, don't ask me what with though.  I think part of the problem is that Spring finally arrived.  Little bits of gardening need doing and then, of course there are the moments just sitting in the sun and enjoying it all. Those moments can easily stretch into a fair amount of time!  And why not?  We've been waiting too long for a drop of Vitamin D.  Speaking of which I finally had the news this week that I am still low on iron but I'm just out of being anaemic.  Perhaps the sun has helped there, it certainly lifts the spirits.

My studio is now tidy!!! I can find things.  And I have found things I forgot I had and can now put to use.  I have sorted a couple of other cupboards around the house and have put some of the more rarely used items away so freeing up other space.  I don't feel as though I'm drowning anymore and it's wonderful.

Last Friday Elsa and I went to the Creative Crafts show at Shepton Mallett and had a lovely day. We saw lots, bought a little and inspired the mind.  One item I did buy was a wheeled cupboard that has six 4 litre Really Useful boxes in and it's just right for the majority of my hand threads I was having trouble sorting before.  I can have it out next to my work area and not have to cover the desk with the boxes from the cupboard.  It was quite cheap as it was a strange colour.  I'm not worried about the colour, the size and functionality were what sold it to me.

On the top you can see a book I won, Tray Dying, from Marian at Textile Snippets.  I really must do some more of my own fabrics and this should inspire me! Thank you Marion!

Yesterday I had another play day   This time I took Hilary over to Carol's studio, (links in the last post), where we met Debbie Rijns who was over from South Africa and staying with Carol.  She had brought some ostrich eggs over with her for us to play with.

These are my two and a shard. (I finally re covered my ironing mat with calico, it almost looks too clean to use now. I re drew the inch grid.)

This one I had started to add to after gilding, the plain gold I wanted to work further into before adding my own beads so I saved that one for home.  We made some copper metal clay parts that Carol fired while we fiddled around with other bits.  I've placed a porcupine quill though the centre and it's held with my copper clay and bolts as you can see.  It still needs a lot of additions  and refinements, I'm going to look through my own stash of beads and see what calls to it.

Debbie brought some amazing pieces over with her for us to use and there were some to buy as well.  These are a few of the beads made in South Africa.  The larger ones are rolled paper.

A couple of brushes she finds in a Chinese market over there and lots of very old snake vertebrae. Not every ones taste I know but I think they're great. 

A lovely lampwork vial I intend to put some metal with but it's just so lovely to look at for now, a tiny wooden bowl turned by Debbie's husband and some of the leftover pieces of metal clay I made into torn shards.  I love the post fired colours of the copper! 

My head feels like it's full of lemonade it's so popping with ideas from yesterday.  I think I need to make some notes before I lose them all.

Have a great weekend whatever you're doing.

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