Time flies!

I can't believe that it's a week since I last posted anything.  Time certainly flies when I'm busy.  I'm under strict instructions from my son not to over do things today - it's his rewards evening at school tonight, and I have to be well enough to take him as his dad is working.  So I've been very careful not to do anything that might jeopardise my ability to attend this evening.  He has to go, otherwise he can't go to the prom, and since he is now the proud owner of a very smart suit he is not going to risk being banned!

Now to share some photos with you.  The photo below shows eco-printing on watercolour paper.  The very lovely and talented Marilyn Stephens has step-by-step instructions on her blog: http://marilyn-interlaced.blogspot.co.uk. Please pop along and look at her lovely work.

I'm going to post the pictures from the Textile Stories exhibition at Newbiggin Maritime Centre separately. 

It worked!

 

I got the eucalyptus leaves from Hardy's florist, and set to work.  The scarf had been soaking in a vinegar solution to mordant it in advance of starting the printing process.  I laid the felted scarf out on my longest studio bench, placed a line of leaves along it, folded it in half lengthwise so that the leaves were covered, and rolled it in a bundle around some plastic pipe.  I secured the rolled bundle with elastic bands and jute twine, then steamed it in (a non-food use) electric steamer for 1 hour.  I removed it, and left it to cool over night.  I unwrapped it today, and you can see the amazing colour that the eucalyptus gives on the wool.

Felt making project

This is a felt scarf I'm working on.  I bought the wool tops quite a long time ago at Woolfest, in Cumbria.  From memory it is Teeswater fleece, which has a lovely lustre.  I have no recollection what breed of sheep the curls for the ends came from.  I've wet felted it using Heartfelt Silks palm washboards.  These are great for anyone who can't manage the rolling normally required for wet felting.  You can buy them from their Etsy shop.  The felted piece is currently soaking in a vinegar solution because I want to try eco-printing onto it.  I'm off to see if the local florist has any eucalyptus leaves.  I hope to be back later in the week with the finished piece.

Pace, Pace and more Pace

If you are anything like me, dear reader, then patience with yourself isn't your strong point.  I can be infinitely patient with other people who need it, but when it comes to myself I want things done yesterday, if not before!  It's one of the many things that makes my MS so frustrating.  I say "my MS" because it is a disease that affects everyone differently, so other people with MS will have their own pet frustrations.  For me the lack of energy and fatigue are the things that most annoy me.  I have my wonderful new studio shed; I have a large collection of craft materials acquired over two decades, and I want it all in place ready to use immediately.  Instead it takes days of doing a little bit now, and a little bit again, with hours of rest in between.  Every hour of activity needs about 2 to 3 hours of inactivity for recovery.  Adding insult to injury are those wonderful female hormones.  Being 49 means I'm on the brink of the menopause; or to give it the correct medical term I'm peri menopausal.  Oh the joys that brings!  Hot flushes, mood swings, food cravings and an extra dose of tiredness just to kick a woman when she's down.  Yes, I know it could be worse; no, that doesn't help.  

Great to be back

Unlike the return to school following a holiday, I was delighted to get back to college today.  We had a number of potential students for next year's course come to find out just what is involved in the City and Guilds' curriculum.  I enjoyed having a chance to show my work to them, and discuss how much I love creating things, and learning new techniques.  They were all very interested and enthusiastic.  The joy of this course is that everyone doing it wants to be there, and so we are all of a similar mind set.  I am so pleased to have my studio space to work in during the summer, otherwise I'd have terrible creativity withdraw symptoms!  My biggest problem will be pacing myself so that I don't trigger a bad bout of fatigue; and of course any MS symptoms can strike at any time, even if I am "sensible".  Ho hum, fingers crossed and hoping for the best.

Ready for delivery

It has taken me a while, and now they are completed:

These are my Textile Stories banners about coal mining and South East Northumberland.  The only way I could think of to photograph them was to hang them on the clothesline!  The first one in the top left hand corner depicts coal mining during the industrial revolution.  At that time very young children, including an ancestor of Stephen's, were employed to haul heavy tubs of coal.  They wore leather harnesses, with chains attached to the tubs.  I dyed
some calico fabric with tea to create an aged appearance, and used leather for the hanging loops as a representation of the harnesses.  The second banner, in the top right hand corner, depicts the promise of safety and security by nationalisation.  The wording on one of the black and white adverts I have printed on cotton, and quilted, reads: "Miners, the skilled men the nation will always need", now so ironic.  The coloured pictures are copies of two works by The Pitmen Painters.  I printed them on photo canvas and padded the back.  I covered them with chiffon to knock back the brightness of the colour, and give a feeling of the past.  The third banner, bottom left, has images of the Miner's Strike of 1984.  This is probably the most controversial topic!  I used images of: striking miners being manhandled by the police; women protesting in support of the miners; and Margaret Thatcher, blamed by most people for the death of the deep mining industry in the UK.  The only bright spot of colour is Maggie's blue rust stained pussy-bow, symbolic of her Iron Lady status that eventually decayed.  Lastly, on a bright background fabric, with colour photos, is the Hope in the 21st Century banner, depicting some of the things we have to be proud of.  I hope my work will be included in the exhibition, which runs from 2nd to 5th May at Newbiggin Maritime Centre.

Hand made paper

This is a photo collage of the pieces of recycled hand made paper I created at my last workshop with the lovely Eve Studd at Cornhill Crafts.