Fishy February

Where have I been since the last post? I don't really know. The time was once when I would photograph everything I did and blog about it but I suppose after 4 years the novelty has worn off.

 Its not that I haven't been doing anything . I've been busy-ish.

After the last post I made a brooch I absolutely love.

Its in my etsy shop but I don't know how I'll cope when it goes!

I've had my hair cut. Hetty's had her hair cut.

ermm..

I've read some books.

ermm...

I've been playing internet scrabble and winning some, but losing to a lovely lady called Patricia. I keep trying.

I have also been rather shocked by a 'scrabbler' who hoped I wanted to 'chat.' 

A young woman. 

I clicked ono her fb page where it says she is training in massage, and there were lots of photos of her wearing black, and some comments saying she was looking for middle aged ladies. 

Well I'm no longer middle aged and judging by the photos, she wasn't looking to sort out my sciatica or realign my chakras!

 I'd forfeit but I'm winning.

I've run out of all my making 'ingredients' at once so have had to buy new threads from Silken strands:

and new velvet which I have to dye.(urgh! Hate dyeing)  This time I bought it from 

Beckfords mill...cheaper carriage than Whaleys so for just one metre it was a better value.

New card for my labels from The paper mill shop

(Its white card..no pic needed)

And new brooch backs from Angela at The Bobbin Patch.

I recommend all these places for quick delivery and excellent service.

So for the moment I've had a lot going out and only a little coming in. Oh dear.

I've had a little play with some ideas for work for an exhibition in Summer.

I wanted to do 'collective nouns' so I started with ideas about a shoal of fish. Years ago I was a good drawer..but now I freeze up when I want something to be right.

I started some sketches in a little 'best sketchbook' but they weren't right. Then I went up to my sewing room and did some doodles on the back of a letter and they were more like it. This is all I've come up with for now. Just to see how it worked.

  From those I did some samples .

When I went to the felt group I made a piece with vaguely fishy shapes which I intend to stitch but I'm not liking the way its going. I think all will disappear into the background once stitched but I must give it a go.

I've also at last finished the final two pieces of the six I cut from a large piece of felt ages ago.

Here are the first four I made which I've already shown.

And these are the other two with details. I made the large motif separately ages ago.

And I've done a bit of gardening  weeding.

However, judging by the look of my front flowerbed which has sunk lower every year after substantial neglect and sporadic grass removal,  and is now a low lying clay sump full of water, I think the only way to go, as with my sewing, might be fish!

Another order-done

 The last few days have been spent fulfilling another order, not S.O.R this time.
I'd already made the Tweed Things the gallery wanted, and just had to spend a few days making silk Hearts, to go with some cuffs, so I thought I'd share them.

I had an annoying moment when I realised I'd spent ages on two gold ones and there was an obvious flaw in the fabric, so the above is one replacement, I replaced the other with a blue one.

These reds are my favourites but don't photograph well.

I think I like the one on the right with the navy stitching best.

There have to be silver ones too. Now, I've over cleverly edited this picture with the iphoto 'enhance' tool, and I don't think it does....enhance them I mean. They look a bit weary.

Speaking of silver and gold,

look at the sky we followed home from Haworth last Sunday.

We just had to stop and enjoy the sunset.

Now I am left with a sewing room like a tip after having to change boxes for posting my goods . 

The only one I could find had 'other stuff' in it.

What a mess!

I am going to tidy up and then have fun with felt.

Watch this space.

I'll be your tweetheart, if you will be mine.

Look who's hanging around admiring our fab new sofa.


Or are they gazing wistfully out of the window?
Looking for lost loves?


Tweethearts.



Green silk with a fuchsia pink beak, stitching and legs



and deepest red silk and velvet, with turquoise stitching legs and beak.



Love is in the air.
They will soon be in my etsy shop complete with a 'Be my tweetheart' or 'You are my tweetheart' tag. You can choose your own words.
'This afternoon I will be mostly making......
..... curtains.'

''This week I have mostly been making.......

....gold and red.''

These are by far the most sumptuous versions of my cuffs and brooches but the pictures are so disappointing.
The red is deep, deep, shimmery, subtle so I have chosen the pictures on the basis of colour not sharpness.


I just wanted to ask you dear reader, to ask all your blog friends,

to leave me your wrist size and preferred width of cuff

on my survey post which you can click here to visit.

I think to be a valuable survey it has to have about 100 participants.

If you have already done it, thank you, and please leave a comment here instead.

I love to hear from you.

I am doing a craft fair on Sunday if anyone lives nearby pop along to The Old School, Ulnes Walton near Leyland.

Porky and Blodwen will be there.

Picture Post

Despite the birthday celebration and an afternoon of hospital 'procedure' (ending in 'oscopy' )I managed to get a pile of stuff ready for The Platform Gallery Christmas Exhibition so now I'm going to bombard you with a few of the 40 or so pictures I took. For some reason I really like this whole collection (OOH! Get me! ) so I'm showing off.
Isn't that what blogs are for?
If you want more detail click on the pictures.
I bought some new silk from The Bombay Stores stand at a show so I used it to make these silk and velvet cuffs and brooches.

Don't you just love how it glows?


I tried to match them to encourage sales!



Then I started again with the Harris Tweed.
Round brooches.

Do you like the new labels?

Tweed cuffs with added silk and velvet,

This is a bit too macro,


and a new little type of purse.

I've tried a new fastening method , a strip of fabric

that goes round the back and fastens with velcro.

Here's a red/gold one.
They are outrageously expensive.


And I did some more tweed hearts.

Here's the tweed and silk together.

And the whole lot...

Oh and I finished decorating some books. They all have a little bit on the first page.

I delivered them on Thursday so I could see the Open Textile Exhibition. It was a really good mix of styles and techniques. I wish I'd gone earlier so I could have recommended it to you but it finishes today I think.

I've made a bit of a decision about blogging. I have Google reader so I can keep an eye on the blogs I'm following, but I just can't keep up with it and comment on every post of every blog I read, so I have decided to ease off on myself a bit.I add new ones every day, there are so many. I am still reading but I might not comment as much. That seems really selfish, and I love all the comments I get. I try to reply but even if I don't I am still very appreciative. (And if you don't have a blog and don't leave me an e-mail address I can't anyway)So here's a big Thank You to everyone who comments.

Now I have to tag 6 people.I was tagged by Highland Fairy . Its taken me a while to find 6 who haven't already been tagged but here they are:
Caroline Inckle
Cariad in Crete
Mermaids Purse
Fabulous Threads
Maureens Mixture
Creative Wabbit
You have to write 7 random facts about yorself and then link back to the person who tagged you (That would be me) and tag 6 more.
Or you can ignore it.
I must say I had a lot of fun when I wrote mine, thinking about which ones to choose..there are so many!