2010/04/27 - Poi socks

Well I've done my bit for the first batch of poi - should go out this week with any luck. My woven belt wasn't accepted for the Weavers Spinners & Dyers National exhibition - not particularly surprised, as it's probably not unusual enough! Now finished the tatted necklace and done some earrings to match - will photograph and post them later this evening (too sunny now)

2010/04/05 - April

Malvern show went well. Each time I am surprised by how much we make on secondhand patterns and magazines - recycling by re-use, by far the best way. Have done more tatted scrunchies (demonstrating at the NEC), and started on a beaded tatted necklace. My submissions to the RBSA Open exhibition - the Anniversary Garden watercolour and related embroidery, and the dragonfly jewellery, were not accepted, which was disappointing. But poi socks are now in production, and hyperlight poi may go on sale next week!

2010/03/01 - March already

Already March - realised I didn't put anything here at all last month. Never noted that I had one of my latest pictures - done on our holiday in Madeira - accepted for the RBSA Friends exhibition. Recent news on Madeira made us realise how lucky we were to pick the week we did to go there - otherwise our holiday would have been cancelled by the storms! I've not done so much craft things recently - cold weather getting me down. Just a few odd bits of tatting to keep me busy on the bus. Have probably finalised the design for poi socks for the hyperlights - might go in to production in the next month or so

2010/01/21 - facebook link

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2010/01/21 - New Year

Have realised I've not put anything on the blog for months. Too busy over Christmas - I did manage to paint a picture for the Christmas card, and produce the usual calendar from the year's paintings. Then we went on a spur-of-the-moment holiday to Madeira for a week - sketches from that will be added to the site once my new computer has the right program! Now I'm doing yet another dreadlock hat, and also some bits of tatting for earrings. I'm also trying to design a complicated waistcoat, using some Colinette yarn, some I dyed myself, and some which a friend dyed. Maybe it'll be started for the Malvern show in March

2009/11/14 - WSD exhibition 2009

A good day. The Guild exhibition went well in spite of the room having been double-booked. I sold most of my dyed yarns (see recent site update) and had lots of interest in my latest tatting and the Victorian purse and twinset-with-pearls. A pity it clashed with the MTF exhibition/symposium - I would have liked to go to that as well! Also seen the first demos of my son's "hyperlight" poi - really exciting. Altogether a positive day

2009/11/05 - November exhibtions

Working up to the Weavers Spinners & Dyers annual exhibition at Cotteridge. I've done another few embroidered cards, and wound a large number of cotton skeins to dye with fibre-reactive dyes. That's this weekend's project. Then next week I'm busy at work as well as doing things for the exhibition.

2009/10/18 - Autumn

Just back from the Hall Green Arts exhibition at the Botanic gardens - a good range of paintings, and I submitted 5 that were already framed. Too busy to do do anything that doesn't have a deadline at the moment - I really can't cope with starting any of the things I've got tentative commissions for

2009/09/17 - RBSA Friends

Wrote the last post then remembered, I did at least get a painting in the RBSA Friends exhibition - the one of Castle Sween I did 5 years ago - they didn't want the one of Kilmory Bay in the storm (mostly put that one in because it's a picture of my father) or the latest one of Castle Sween though

2009/09/17 - Catching up

A traumatic couple of months, with little craft work done. My father went in to hospital on 18 July, and died on 18 August. My mother is disabled, and not well, so there has been little time for any painting or embroidery - I still have the bus journeys for knitting and odd bits of tatting though

2009/07/14 - Scotland in June

We only had a week in Scotland this time - and half that time we had parents staying. I managed to do 3 sketchbook pictures, and one bigger one that still needs more work. Had the best weather we've had for ages there - maybe May-June is better than the end of June!

2009/06/24 - May - catching up with what happened

We had 3 days away with a hired soft-top car - in Cornwall - so of course it rained. Managed to do a few sketches though. The dyeing at Tolkein went well - I got a good rainbow of colours - though my Spectralite had gone off and I had to get some colour run remover from the local ironmonger to do the indigo bath. Lots of interest in how things used to be done. At the end of the month we headed North - that'll be the next blog!

2009/05/13 - May

Not much craft things in the last month - too busy catching up with the garden. But I did put some of the older paintings into the Hall Green Arts Spring exhibition (no sales), and I took my latest jewellery to the Weavers Spinners & Dyers members' meeting - both on Saturday, so a bit of a rush. Now getting organised to demonstrate dyeing at the Middle Earth (Tolkein) days at Sarehole Mill in Hall Green this weekend

2009/04/14 - Easter catch-up

A busy month since the last post - I decided to do another embroidered picture for my cousin Amy's wedding (started only 3 weeks before the wedding, as that's when I decided what to do). Printed out one of my watercolours on white cotton fabric, machine embroidered, appliqueed and added tatting. Finally finished it on holiday in Kilmory. Also decided to do a "fascinator" for myself, using fabrics from my outfit. Again I did the machine embroidery before we went, and finished it in Kilmory (more hand sewing than I'd like). Combined with trying to do some things for the latest RBSA Open exhibition (all rejected), think I spent a bit much time on craft stuff last month. Now trying to catch up in the garden!

2009/03/19 - Tatting at the NEC

An enjoyable day on Sunday tatting at the NEC with Jane Eborall. My "Garden Reflections" picture was popular, and I tatted a wire dragonfly and quite a long piece of edging for a vest neckline. Jane took some good pictures - http://janeeborall.blogspot.com/ Now working on jewellery and updating the picture a bit for the RBSA Open - submission next week

2009/03/06 - MTF Golden Triangle exhibition at Droitwich

Two weeks to produce an exhibition entry isn't really long enough! I always intended to produce a garment based on my "Golden Triangle" photos and sketches, but when we were told on 17 Feb that we needed something for today (6 March), my first thought was that I couldn't do it. Then I thought of the dreadlock hats I'd designed for Jon's skiing hat, and thought that would actually fit the bill. Finished it on Tuesday (in spite of my sewing machine playing up) - and managed to make something of my feather weaving samples as well! Now recovering

2009/02/15 - Cheltenham show

Just had a very good exhibition for the Knitting & Crochet Guild at Cheltenham. I went down for Thursday to set up the show - people from the Cheltenham area looked after it for most of the time. The dreadlock hat (borrowed back from my son) was very popular, and so was my twinset-with-pearls, finally finished just in time.

2009/01/27 - Dreadlock hats

I had great fun knitting hats with dreadlocks attached for Jon and his girlfriend. (Lots of pictures on Facebook of them, but none very clear. I shall try to sort out pasting some on here as well). I've written/scanned in the pattern, so will post it as a pdf on the articles page of the site

2009/01/12 - Christmas knitting

Amusing that when I worked out how to add the picture of Caroline's new mittens to the blog, the last picture I added was her last year's ones - now mislaid of course Anyway here is a picture of this year's taken on my lap when I finished the sewing on our way to drop her back at Oxford after Christmas

2009/01/12 - New Year

I'm obviously not "in to" the idea of regular posts on the website- it's nearly a month since the last one. I've been busy with Christmas presents (will have to upload pictures - some really novel ski hats for Jon and his girlfriend)! I also did the annual pair of mittens/gloves for Caroline (with ribbon so she can hang them round her neck, and name tape with mobile phone number). Wonder if they'll come back from her trip to New York and Peru?

2008/12/17 - Happy Christmas

I've at last got our Christmas card painted (the latest picture on the website) - and have even got most of them printed, written and posted. Now producing calendars and trying to get the colour balance right on cream card.

2008/11/25 - RBSA Open

Well I put 3 textiles into the latest Open exhibition at the RBSA - but none of them were selected. I'm a bit disappointed, but apparently the standard was very high. To balance that, the write up of the WS&D National Exhibition has a good picture of my Night City II hanging, with an appreciative description - so today is not all bad. We had a Magpies meeting today, and I have finished weaving a pheasant-feather tassel. My sister-out-law wants feather tassels for a headdress for belly dancing! I then finished winding up the yarns I dyed last year - only this summer's ones to do now.

2008/11/11 - WSD exhibition

Well the WSD Guild exhibition went pretty well. We had over 40 visitors, as well as most of the Guild members there. I took winding of last year's dyed yarns to do - and didn't manage to start until about 11.30 as I kept being asked questions. Lunch was a bit difficult - every time I tried to get started, someone else wanted advice! I didn't get anywhere in the competition (though I did get at least one vote) - not surprised really as my split-ply braided mat wasn't that exciting. I did do spinning and weaving (well braiding - but NOT dyeing for once). Helen Tomes won with her "beach bunnies" - knitted from a commercial pattern - I couldn't have done the spinning of the fleece that fine, and she did them back in February -she was obviously inspired by this year's competition!

2008/11/03 - November exhibition

A week away in Scotland with my parents has reduced my output recently - but I managed to get some embroidered cards done before I went (just uploaded in a new section) - and I've done my ply-split braided competition piece. The Birmingham Weavers Spinners & Dyers annual exhibition is next Saturday, so I'm trying to have things for sale then - have wound lots of cotton yarns for fibre-reactive dyeing, as well as the embroidered cards. I will also print out some note cards for sale

2008/10/20 - October

I've just come back from delivering my Urban Landscape picture to a friend to get it to the MTF exhibition in Leicester. Still busy knitting, and thinking about an entry for the Birmingham Weavers Spinners & Dyers annual competition in three weeks - I've spun some fleece, not I have to do something with it. I'm thinking of split-ply braiding

2008/09/27 - Mid-September already

I've had 2 textile pictures accepted for MTF exhibitions - I entered three things for the selected exhibition in December, and the "Urban landscape" textile was accepted - I'm half way through remounting it because I got the two halves together slightly wrong when I first did it. I also did another "reflections" picture for the MTF open exhibition which is on now at Beauchamp College, Oadby, Leicester. It was going to be something to mount my tatted dragonfly earrings and necklace on - but ended up being a re-working of the watercolour "anniversary garden" - scanned in and printed out at twice the size on silk, then embroidered etc. I'm really pleased with the result!

2008/09/04 - Successes again

Another watercolour accepted for a RBSA Friends exhibition - the one of Jura from Port an t'Salainn which I painted this summer - just come back from the private view of the exhibition. I've also had my Urban Landscape textile accepted for a Midland Textile exhibition in Leicester in November-December (not added that to the website yet, as it's not for a while, and I've re-sewn it because the original version was distinctly crooked)

2008/08/26 - August

Almost the end of August and I've not added anything. Heard that my father has cancer, and that has stopped me thinking about this. However I have done a few things - another version of the embroidered foxgloves for my mother's birthday, and some more foxgloves on the curtain I did for my parents' diamond wedding. My Urban Landcape embroidery has been accepted for a Midland Textile Forum exhibition in November in Leicester.

2008/07/31 - Weavers Spinners & Dyers National exhibition

Just heard that one of my "night city" weavings has been accepted for the WS&D national exhibition - the first one for 8 years as the last one was cancelled. So it's on exhibition in Liverpool for a month. I think it's night city II, the one with the lights - they told us by the submission number, and of course I didn't keep a record!! I'm really pleased though. Will have to go to Liverpool on Saturday week to see it!

2008/07/19 - Holiday pictures

It's taken me two weeks to scan in and edit the pictures I did on holiday - but I also did another picture today as well. We had two wet weeks in Kilmory (mostly) with one night on Mull (also wet). I did quite a bit of knitting (a twinset-with-pearls for the Knitting & Crochet Guild annual competition, which I only got half way with the jumper), and some embroidery, and read a lot of SF. Weather too wet and windy for sitting outside painting!

2008/06/05 - Night City textile

Well I got the lace, felt, inkle weaving and electronics done, and all put together in time for the RBSA prize exhibition - but it didn't get in. When we went to the private view of the exhibition we were a bit disappointed - there were quite a few pictures and other things which I'd seen submitted which didn't get in, and I felt the selection was a bit pedestrian. Not got a good picture of the weaving yet - maybe after the dyeing day on Saturday - when we'll be doing natural dyeing and acid dyes on wool, with a bring-and-share lunch.

2008/05/18 - Middle Earth weekend

Just spent 2 days demonstrating dyeing at Sarehole Mill, Birmingham for the Middle Earth (Tolkein) weekend. A good range of colours, with some new successes - cherry laurel berries gave a grey-purple, and pecan shells a lovely pinky-brown. Will post a picture when I get them downloaded

2008/05/14 - The last few weeks

I've been working hard on a new textile picture - a revised version of the Night City weaving. This one is braided from fancy yarns, with felt sections, and will have an inkle woven header. It will also have LIGHTS - Peter is working out lights to represent the cars going along the roads. Was going to post a picture of progress so far here, but it's still on the camera! Also going to the "Middle Earth" day at Sarehole Mill to demonstrate dyeing this weekend - more preparations.

2008/04/29 - Midland Textile Forum day

A busy weekend with the second day of the Midland Textile Forum "voices from the Golden Triangle design days - I had not managed to do much, but the work that others had done was inspiring. I tried weaving on a "bow loom" - just a bent stick with 5 warp threads stretched across. They use them for weaving feather and bead "tassels". My experiment came out quite well (was going to post a picture but we've mislaid the camera cable). Then today was the local Magpies craft group - at my house. I finished a cardigan (only needed the last bit of sewing up) and got started on the lace for my next big picture.

2008/04/20 - Amberley Inn

Decided to do a quick sketch of the hotel where we celebrated the parents' Diamond Wedding. Colours not really quite right (stone roof should be browner) but I'm quite pleased with it.

2008/04/13 - April already

Not done much suitable for the website in the last few weeks - I organised a family party for my parents' diamond wedding, and that took most of my effort -but I did make myself a new skirt for the party, from some silk which my daughter brought back from Thailand. And I've almost finished the cardigan I'm making her from "limbo" variegated double knitting yarn. Just the cuffs and sewing up to do. I'm now trying to design a revised version of the "night city" woven/felted hanging, incorporating moving lights for traffic movements, in time for the RBSA prize exhibition at the end of May, and the Weavers Spinners & Dyers 4-yearly national exhibition in July. Maybe I should add another page for all the garments I've knitted or sewn over the years. My daughter suggested I should add the cookbook I developed when my son left home.

2008/03/18 - Success!

Both the pictures I submitted were accepted for the RBSA Open exhibition! I'm really pleased - a pity I can't make the Private View.

2008/03/16 - RBSA Open

I've just added two more pictures - I submitted them to the RBSA Open exhibition this morning - having spent most of my spare time in the last 2 weeks working on them - finished "the road to the Isles" about 11.40, photographed it, then took it in to the RBSA for the 1 pm deadline!

2008/03/12 - Pictures for RBSA open

I've now started on a net curtain - a picture of sunset behind Jura on shaded organza that the parents could use as a net curtain in their downstairs toilet - particularly if they decide to put a shower there. Got the fabric originally last summer, but the trigger was Mummy asking if she could have the copy of the foxgloves picture that I'd printed on to net as a diamond wedding present - the deadline of this week was a bit of a problem though! Almost done, then I'll photograph both and add them

2008/03/06 - More embroidery

This Tuesday I reframed the Dun-a-Bhuilg embroidery, so I can try putting it in to a RBSA exhibition (revised picture will be in the gallery next week). I t looks a lot better. I also started on a new embroidered picture - a sunset behind Jura, in organza to be a net curtain for the parents cloakroom

2008/02/24 - a busy three weeks

A very busy couple of weeks since we came back from Bryndias at the beginning of February. I did a couple of sketches there on 2 February, but then didn't have the photos I needed to finish them off. I organised a Knitting & Crochet Guild stand at the Knitting & Stitching show at Cheltenham last weekend (14-16 February) - then my mother came to stay for half of last week, and the Midland Textile Forum had its first course/workshop on Saturday (yesterday) - sketching textiles from the Golden Triangle (Burma/Thailand/Vietnam/China). However I've managed to catch up a bit now, and finished the sketches. The next project will be a picture for my parents' Diamond wedding - I hope to get it done for the RBSA Open in the middle of March - and re-framing the textile picture of Dun a Bhuilg, to put it behind glass.

2008/02/05 - RBSA Exhibition

I'm really pleased - the RBSA accepted 2 of the 3 pictures I submitted for the Friends' exhibition. I did some more sketching at Bryndias at the weekend, and was going to revise the sketches comparing them to photos I took - but I think I've left my camera there, so I can't do that after all!

2008/01/27 - Carolines gloves

Here is the picture of Carolines gloves that I have been meaning to add to the site. They are gloves without the ends of the fingers, but with a mitten section which you can tuck over. She was given some rather nice wool/silk yarn for her birthday, and asked me to knit them for her. Joined together with a ribbon, and with her name and phone number inside in case she loses them!

2008/01/22 - Knitting and sewing

My usual day off - and a "Magpies" meeting, so I have done a bit more craft work - took apart the "urban landscape" textile - it has always irritated me that I got the background at an angle to the foreground, so I've re-pinned it, and hope to straighten it out. Also started knitting a "beanie" hat, an example from one of the Knitting & Crochet Guild patterns that we will have on the stand at Cheltenham in February. My fingerless gloves are almost finished. The hat with earflaps was not a success - but I did make it a bit bigger

2008/01/15 - Peter's birthday

I did a new sketch for the series "a tidy house is a sign of a miss-spent day" for Peter's 60th birthday card - a picture of his corner of the loft, with the CNC machine that he's going to make for his birthday on the screen of his computer.

The jumper was reasonably successful (will add a picture when I download it from the camera) but a peaked cap I made him, with earflaps, came out too small. I'll have to take it apart and see if I can make it bigger.

2008/01/14 - Recent knitting

My latest knitting on the bus is fingerless "mittens" with a hand flap - on 4 (or more) needles, in stripy sock wool, which I got for Christmas. They are going to have fluffy cuffs to match my Mobius scarf. So far I've re-knitted the first one 3 times I think - I'm adapting a double knitting pattern to thin 4 ply, and combining 2 patterns as well to avoid sewing up.

2008/01/12 - Re-knitting

Having produced a chunky zip-up cardigan for my husband's Christmas present, I'm now having to re-knit the borders because the bottom one was "frilly" - and of course I'd gone all the way round in one go, so I had to take the zip off and re-do that too! This time I've done the bottom separate from the front borders, so if (when?) I have to reknit it, I won't have to do the zip this time.

2008/01/03 - Just starting

This is a new website - a Christmas present from my son. I intend to keep a record of my art and craft doings here, with pictures of anything interesting.