Sunday, 11 April 2010
Making Big and Small
My sister and her family came to stay for a couple of nights whilst still in the throws of the Easter Holidays. Whilst here my oldest nephew requested the chance to make something in sewing, music to my ears! as his younger brother busily fashioned a space ship in Lego on the big rug so also a little fashioning went on at the dining table with a pair of (new and as yet unworn) socks to create a little sock dog based on their own dog, Gypsy. The concentration that took place brought tears to my eyes with both little boys busy and happy making.
Sewing for the first time is hard, like everything it gets easier with practice, and I hope next visit I can entice them both to have a go.
The next day a lot more sewing took place in our studio garden workshop building, the Light Box.
A local group of stitchers called Textile 10 came with their sewing machines and we had a wonderful sunny day of Machine Embroidery. Of course as what happens at these magical meetings, everyone involved was shown the technique and then everyone used it to create their own delightful pieces of solid stitch. Each piece made, unique to the maker. I just love it! I love being amongst a group of people all busy with their work stitching away and making something unique to themselves, the creative energy that takes place in a room is almost tactile in the air.
They were a very happy and creative group and by the end of the day the fruits of their labours had paid off and beautiful pieces were laid out for show and tell, and then whisked away home.
Sewing for the first time is hard, like everything it gets easier with practice, and I hope next visit I can entice them both to have a go.
The next day a lot more sewing took place in our studio garden workshop building, the Light Box.
A local group of stitchers called Textile 10 came with their sewing machines and we had a wonderful sunny day of Machine Embroidery. Of course as what happens at these magical meetings, everyone involved was shown the technique and then everyone used it to create their own delightful pieces of solid stitch. Each piece made, unique to the maker. I just love it! I love being amongst a group of people all busy with their work stitching away and making something unique to themselves, the creative energy that takes place in a room is almost tactile in the air.
They were a very happy and creative group and by the end of the day the fruits of their labours had paid off and beautiful pieces were laid out for show and tell, and then whisked away home.
Tuesday, 6 April 2010
We went to Cornwall and stayed with lovely dear friends. My friend Rebecca Ball makes the most wonderful quilts http://www.manycuriousthings.blogspot.com/ Rebecca showed me her latest quilt which was on her quilting frame stretching the length of her studio work room. She had begun the quilting of it. The quilt quite took my breath away, it is absolutely beautiful. She has incorporated plain and patterned silk and cotton fabrics into the design. My photograph of it has not done it justice, not even including the amount of hard work, time and love that has gone into it.
She has a wonderful sense and clever play with colours and fabrics and maximises them to their full potential, it is only when you look at her quilts that you realise how clever she is with her choice of colour and how each block piece is placed so simply and so succinctly with the next block to create a clever optical illusion of the most wonderful colours and clever use of shapes to create unique and very desirable quilts.
We visited Truro Fabrics http://www.trurofabrics.com/ and spent ages just walking around the shop in a haze of loveliness before choosing fabrics and trimmings to take home to use. (well, one day)
I went to visit Tuppenny Barn http://www.tuppennybarn.com/ in West Sussex an inspiring and long term vision incorporating learning, education and very very delicious organic fresh from the field produce. Maggie who runs it sent me on my way with the best flavoursome salad bag I have ever eaten.
My visit to Tuppenny Barn was a welcome break from the three commission pieces I am currently working on and have almost finished. The pieces have been very hard work, I did struggle with the drawings for the pieces, but the time spent has paid off and now the embroidered pieces work well together and now that I am on the last piece I feel as though I can relax a bit, I can't wait to get them framed and see them in their full glory.
She has a wonderful sense and clever play with colours and fabrics and maximises them to their full potential, it is only when you look at her quilts that you realise how clever she is with her choice of colour and how each block piece is placed so simply and so succinctly with the next block to create a clever optical illusion of the most wonderful colours and clever use of shapes to create unique and very desirable quilts.
We visited Truro Fabrics http://www.trurofabrics.com/ and spent ages just walking around the shop in a haze of loveliness before choosing fabrics and trimmings to take home to use. (well, one day)
I went to visit Tuppenny Barn http://www.tuppennybarn.com/ in West Sussex an inspiring and long term vision incorporating learning, education and very very delicious organic fresh from the field produce. Maggie who runs it sent me on my way with the best flavoursome salad bag I have ever eaten.
My visit to Tuppenny Barn was a welcome break from the three commission pieces I am currently working on and have almost finished. The pieces have been very hard work, I did struggle with the drawings for the pieces, but the time spent has paid off and now the embroidered pieces work well together and now that I am on the last piece I feel as though I can relax a bit, I can't wait to get them framed and see them in their full glory.
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