Dorset Art Weeks 2016

We're under way!! 16 days of showing our stuff right across the county.  I've just finished day two and things have been going very well including out of the door to new homes.  All great news as my charities, Combat Stress and GSP Rescue Services, will be very grateful of the money raised.

The samples I made at the Brockenhurst Needlework Fiesta were converted into notebook covers.

A fair bit of stitch and beading later and they are already going. 

Our dining room converted into a gallery space.  

The displays look good even though we only have a fraction of Jan's jewellery as she is at Highclere (Downton) on the deer stand at the Country Show for the Bank Holiday weekend.

Not as many books this year, which has been commented on! I think I'm seeing areas where I can add to and also, perhaps, expand into some demos too. 

There are a couple of red dots where the new owners have agreed to let me keep the item for the time being.  Frosty Fields I could have sold at least three times today! The cards are going well too and I can see an empty space I will have to go and fill in a minute.

Can you spot the difference in these two pictures?

Yes, Strata has gone to a new home too.  A lovely lady who came for a couple of visits last time and bought several of my Marrotte dolls.  this year she made a beeline here straight away and bought it. 

I've had several return visitors in fact and it's so lovely to see them again.  I know of two who actually follow this blog too, thank you so much for coming along, it really makes my day!! 

I will say that last time, and this so far, there have been a lot of comments from people who specifically look forward to the textiles.  There aren't that many of us out there.  If you do make textile items and you have an Open Studios event, I believe most counties do, it is so worth while and rewarding to do.  Really consider giving it a go especially if you have a friend or two to do it with.  They don't even have to be textiles themselves, a mix of media is a great draw.  

I'm for a glass of something nice and a bit of planning for day 3 tomorrow!! 

I Think My Feet are Touching the Ground!

A couple of weeks ago I picked up these three after they had come back from being shown in the L'Artishe Gallery, Swanage.  The other two were nicely replaced with a cheque.  

We also had coffee with a few others who are taking part in this years Dorset Art Weeks (DAW). This meant swapping some brochures and flyers so we can point visitors in the direction of other artists in the area.  Of course this also means we have to have the brochures and flyers all ready and printed! These are the things that have taken up a lot of time, along with a few other meetings and swaps, the website, cards etc, but if they're not done no one will know about you and won't visit!  

I did manage to make a couple of these in the same proportions as the Erosion pieces above.  

I liked them so much I made a few more in a larger size too. 

Sort of a cross between the Erosion pieces and the hangings Frosty Morning and From the Gate the Furrows Run.  All the same technique with a few tweaks.  Nice to sit and add the hand stitching and beads.  

I have also made 50 metres of bunting!  The very bottom of our drive is shared and I wanted to be clear on which side we were as it's quite a long one and you can't see the house.  All made so much easier with a pinking blade in the rotary cutter.  I became rather carried away though and now have a large pile of precut, pinked, 8 inch triangles leftover! 

Never mind. 

I have also just completed a two week course with Dionne Swift on using sketchbooks.  You know how much I don't use them.  Well I thought I'd have a look at this course, like I had time, and see where it took me.  

Some beginning to bulge sketchbooks!  

I think I can use some of her ideas and take it further. That should be useful as I am adding to my notebook all the time and I'm already looking to beyond the Art Weeks quite eagerly with so far two exhibitions and a couple of regular shows in the pipeline!

Along with new Gelli plates and Thermofax screens on my desk glaring at me wondering where their chance will come I have had to learn a whole new finance program as the last one really didn't like Mac and was constantly bucking the trend oh and live life in general!  

I have been having quite a cathartic time on the computer as a whole.  I have cleared out well over 100 people on my Facebook page whom I really don't have anything to do with or anything in common. Not just hide them but totally unfriend them.  I was pleased to look through my list afterwards and realise I was left with those I actually do meet or interact with or have an interest in and can automatically recognise their names in a context rather than wonder who the hell they are!  I have also spent a few days unsubscribing to dozens of emails I no longer need and that has taken a huge weight off of that chore through the day of just automatically clicking them into the bin not even opening them!  

Now I've finally managed this post, and probably bored you all rigid, I'm off to paint some more signs and then, hopefully, off to the studio to finish some more pieces for DAW.  Less that 2 weeks to go now.  Don't forget, if you're in Dorset for the first weeks of June pick up a brochure and come and say hello! 

Have a great week!