Monday 13 May 2013

A sows ear



This is some TRULY HIDEOUS felt I made last Friday at the felt group.

 I thought I'd have a go with some colours I don't usually like and when I realised it wasn't going well I added some small pre-felt shapes which didn't seem to help but I had a cunning plan...
 I used them as a basis for some stitchy fun and eradicated as much of the nasty purple background as possible.

Its always a bit of a gamble because I don't know what I'm doing till I do it. I read the term 'Stream of consciousness' knitting' today so that's what I'm  calling my technique. 
I should have known it already  since we read James Joyce at school (Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man) but I hadn't thought of applying it to stitching. It exactly fits what I do.
 This is even less purple.

Sometimes I do a bit of Stream of consciousness snipping too. 
Spot the difference between the below and the picture at the top. 
I've made it brooch sized.


Limited Edition.


 I think it might be a plan.


I'm hugging myself in my sewing room today as I was given this lovely little thread stand on saturday. Aren't I lucky? I've wanted one for aaaaaaages but they are very hard to find here in UK. I still could do with a few extra shelves but it will do for now..more than 'do. '


I can always drill some more holes along the top and add more dowels.

I now have a spare Martha Pullen thread stand which was also given to me, as I'd gone on about wanting a thread stand for ages.(Thank you Sue)
I don't need it now so  if anyone would like it please contact me. It will be yours for the cost of the postage. It is in a large box but is fairly lightweight. Click HERE to see what I mean. As it was a gift to me, I feel I should pass it on as a gift. I think I need to limit this to UK readers. Email me if you're interested.

Now on Sunday straight after Church  there was a fundraising event which I would cheerfully attend every sunday! 
'Tea At the Ritz'
Well obviously we weren't at the Ritz but in the school hall, decorated beyond recognition, and rather early in the day we had a beautiful afternoon tea. 


 We had little delicious mini cornish pasties, smoked salmon and cream cheese blinis; teeny sandwiches; scones with cream and jam; malt loaf; mini cheesecake; and a light and fluffy mini pavlova. All washed down with lashings, yes lashings, of tea. (Or coffee if you are my husband)
My friends came too.



The school Mums all dressed in black and white and served us beautifully. I think the only difference between the event and the actual ritz was the noise level!! 
Much excitement and lot of children who had their own special menu and lashing of juice instead of tea.

 
 The source of all this yumminess was THIS PLACE which I really must visit to sample their Whinberry Pie. We used to have it at school dinners when I was little and it gave you navy blue teeth, but the flavour was amazing. We called them Bilberries and they grow wild on the moors here but are terribly hard to pick.
They deserve a crown ............I made one but it looks a bit like a strange monster.

I'll stick to the brooches.


31 comments:

natalia said...

So unusual and beautiful! Original your technique! Have excellent time!

Whitney-Anne Baker said...

now that is the mark of a true artist - to make something 'horrible' and then turn it into something fab. You'd never know to look at the finished pieces. When I worked with painted papers I used to rub gold paint over anything that had not turned out that good - wonderfully transformative!

jinxxxygirl said...

Love your limited edition brooches! And i had to savor a fragment of your writing......'they grow wild on the moor'...'wild on the moor' just sounds wonderful...lol Hugs! deb

silverpebble said...

Oh good grief, I adore what you made. Silk purse is quite right, you transformed the raw material entirely Jackie. What beautiful, subtle colours and inspiring shapes.

Your thread stand and the delicious-looking cakes have also made me very happy.

Els said...

Well Jackie, now you see : never ever say "hideous felt" again !!!! Look what gorgeous pieces you made out of it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ohhh my mouth was watering when looking at the Afternoon High Tea mmmmmmmmm !

Terri said...

You are amazing! You can take an ugly step sister and transform her into a princess. Love your latest! Now about the crown... it's the purple teeth that make it look like an extraterrestrial. And the berries sound yummy along with all the other food. Wish you were my neighbor!
Hug

Heather said...

Your 'hideous' felt became total gorgeousness. I love the colours and the shapes.
That's a super thread stand and the afternoon tea looks fantastic.

Maggi said...

Definitely turned it into a silk purse. Stunning design.

bea's blog said...

Oh Jackie, love the crown and all the other beautiful items! You are amazing!
Thanx for your kind comment to my blogpost yesterday; always great to hear from you. Seems you had a pleasure time looking around my blog!
.♥⊱╮.
Beatrice

chocolatefrog said...

Magical transformation! Maybe a good way to work, less inhibiting than stitching a piece of felt that's already beautiful in its own right? Or is that just me...

Carol said...

Hi Jackie,
I like the purple... and your plan for it was beautiful! You are amazing!

Vicki said...

Beautiful, as always.

Though, I have to admit I would love to see more purple. I adore purple - not nasty to me, but so many disagree.
It is a large part of my business name and is everywhere in my logo!

That's a sweet little thread stand too. Decorative and practical :)

Gina said...

What a fabulous job you made of your sow's ear! Afternoon tea looks delicious.

Sandies' Patch said...

I knew instantly where you was heading when you pictured the felt with the 'hideous purple'!
The brooch is fantastic, love it's fluid lines and natural looking plant-like qualities!
well done! The crown is lovely too!

Rachel said...

Great save, I agree. Maybe the purple can be used as accent fragments in something else - it seems a pity to waste all that hard work felting it!

Robin Mac said...

Wow, what a transformation, just brilliant. I love all the pieces. Love the look of the cakes too, lucky you to get to eat them. Cheers.

Linda Vincent said...

What a wonderful transformation .....I LOVE the new-style brooch (will you make more?)
But I may have to take a stand for purple......

Very envious of the afternoon tea would love to have been there. Better than Betty's ;-)

Shoshi said...

I didn't actually think the original piece was hideous at all! However, what you have done with it is a beautiful and total transformation. It's gorgeous!

I have just read on someone else's blog, "There are no mistakes in art - only layers"!! Great sentiment!

Shoshi

Anna said...

Super brooch and the tea looked delicious!

Cathie said...

HIDEOUS is a word you are not permitted to use when speaking of anything made by your hands! Your little organic creations came out lovely.

Julie said...

Wonderful transformations! I love the 'Streams of Consciousness', that's the way I seem to be working too at the moment. And Tea at the Ritz looks fabulous!

Ann Christine Dennison said...

I love your 'hideous' felt and what you made out of it :-)

Unknown said...

I love how you've taken something 'hideous' and made it not only beautiful, so so uniquely yours as well.

purplesusie said...

I really like this, i have a few pieces of hideous felt from my C&G days but would never be able to make anything as lovely as you've made here xx

Handmade in Israel said...

The brooch came out beautifully! It's gorgeous. Your tea looks very good too. Enjoy your thread stand. Isn't it funny how happy these things make us?

Heather Leavers said...

I love what you've done with the felt, although normally I would say that removing purple from anything is a crime ;-) Excellent result

Anonymous said...

Clicking between the 'before' and 'after' pictures I'm amazed at how the stitching and showcasing of the other colours really drives the purple so far into the background that it enhances the design rather than dominating it. Lovely!

Kathleen said...

Even though you thought that the beginnings of this were not up to your par - I loved it as I thought that it was a GREAT beginning...and I was right. This is a lovely piece - good work as always.

A time to dance said...

Hello my love....I have just done my first post in years and it feels great.....thought I would catch up with old friends....Hope you are well....take a peek at my little Polly all grown up....

Anonymous said...

Hi! Your works are amazing! I haven't done felting for a long time and your first photo made me almost run to my wools and start to catch colours. You have beautiful and exiting way to mix materials and stitching!
Sunny wishes from Greece! Teje

Rebecca E. Parsons/Cre8Tiva said...

LOVE LOVE LOVE! You have inspired me to dig out my felt and threads...this would so work on my purses. You gave me so many ideas!!! I am a life long fan....came from Fiber Arts Now on FaceBook!!



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