Surface, Structure, Stitch at Cit Lit: Week 3 ( on vacation)

 I missed the 3rd session of  Surface, Structure, Stitch   at City Lit as  I was on holiday for the week in Weymouth( our 13th visit).   I'd had a discussion  with Louise the previous week on  how I might approach adding handstitch to my   machine quilted piece so I'd brought lots of supplies with me to do my homework, spreading out on the dining room table  in the cottage.  My mum was an embroiderer  but my stitching so far has been  very plain, variations on straight stitch,   so  I spent time on the train studying  my mum's copy of  Anchor pamphlet ' 100 Embroidery Stitches' ( Price  6p!)  and a more recent purchase of  Constance Howard's  Book of Stitches ( which  cost rather more  than  secondhand )   

 A lot  of restaurants and pubs were closed during our  stay for either holidays or refurbishment  so we had several meals  at old favourites the Cove House Inn in Chiswell, Portland and the  Taste Cafe at Chesil Beach Visitor Centre overlooking the Fleet lagoon.  Spending nearly a whole day there   on  Ian's Birthday, we were aware of the tides and the effect on the screened views from the underwater cameras ( which I drew  in my sketchbook)

 On the Wednesday when I would have been in my class, somebody posted work on Instagram  at lunchtime  so I could share  in what  other students were doing  . Several were using embroidery hoops so   I had a practice on a bit of old shirt sleeve  of some  new stitches - I particularly  like the 'wave' stitch in different  types of thread .

I then had the confidence to add  these to the machine quilted  piece I'd started  the previous  week 

When I got home, I cut it down to 9"  square, the format for this year CQ Journal Quilts  which has to contain a piece of  something repurposed , having had a previous  life.  My theme was going to be  " Assemblage"  but " Scavenged Scraps"  might be more appropriate since most of the fabrics came from the wondrous  collections of  dressmaking offcuts  and recycled  materials in the  City Lit textile studio  scrap boxes.   

 I'm also taking  part in an invited   Facebook group  challenge posting  a year  of  daily black and white photos " Small Reflections  2020" which  certainly  makes you look at the world differently. 

Daily Drawing : 30DaySketchbookChallenge2020 Part 2

Well I completed the #30daysketchbookchallenge2020   and stuck to the prompts ( mostly) although some of my interpretations  were  a bit  off piste. With the confidence of have drawn for a year, I didn't count it as cheating that some were done in collage, Photoshop, a piece of fabric or a copy of  some artwork done previously rather than   conventional art materials , it was more important that  what I  did   meant something to me or came from my own images . 

Like last year, for January 31st  I did a page of thumbnail sketches ( above) showing my responses to the prompts.  It was great to share my work and to see the imaginative  interpretations  of over 5000 participants (  and several of my friends also took part )     

 Day 15  'Something that Floats'    Day 16 'Something that smells good' 

Day 17 ' Something that smells bad'  Day  18 'Supermarket' 

Day 19 'Technology'           Day   20 'The Four Seasons'

 Day 21 'Reflections'  Day   22 'Cartoon'

Day 23 ' My Hobbies'    Day 24 ' The Zoo' ( woodlice in my compost bin and all the vernacular names for them) 

 Day 25 'Famous People' ( Zandra Rhodes in fluorescent markers)   Day  26 'Fairies and Goblins'  ( ancient goddesses )

Day 27 ' Weird Science'    Day 28 ' Favourite Place' ( Fleet Lagoon while I was there! )

 Day 29 ' Film'  ( Chesil Beach)     Day  30 'Goals'  ( Stitch Samples )

 1 and 2  February  :  Views from underwater camera at Fleet Lagoon;  Streets of Chiswell  

 The prompt for ' My Favourite Place'  was excellently timed for when I was actually at my favourite place, the Chesil Beach visitor centre overlooking  Fleet Lagoon !  And  I made a  good start continuing  in February drawing   while on  holiday in Weymouth.  

Marine Inspiration from Knit and Stitch

 Last week I helped out on the Quilters guild stand at the Knit and Stitch show at Alexandra Palace  and before and after my stint ( it was open until 7 on Thursday)  got to look round the galleries. A very good year, there was a lot of interest particularly with a  coastal theme. I  loved the intricate detail  in  the latest work ' Findings' by Alice Fox - I did  rust dyeing with her a couple of years ago and am doing another at  Eastbourne next June based on the seaside. She very patiently answered  questions on how she' d drilled holes in the limpets (with a Dremel )

 I spent some time absorbed in  the exhibition by Debbie Lyddon. I first saw her work at the Landmark in Teddington and have followed her blog ever since. The feeling for the landscape she's in  is integral to her work, I just love it.

 Also inspired by beachcombing and the seaside, the very varied pieces of work by 'UnFold' were so inspiring, reminding me of the 100 mussel shells I collected while in Puglia with Dorothy Caldwell  and also  ideas on how I might continue the work I've started using ' postcards in a more systematic way to explore textures and a sense of place.

 So  our  10th trip back to Weymouth staying at Mariners View is timely. Today after a very leisurely start ( we didn't leave the house until 12!)  We walked  out to the Chesil Beach Café and fortified by excellent lunch followed by coffee and Florentines we strolled back on the path of the old railway, beachcombing on the way.

2015 Journal Quilts

Looking forward to receiving my copy of CQ newsletter  and finding out what this year's Journal Quilt   Challenge will involve. This will the  10th year  doing them with CQ  but my 14th as I started in 2003. I can't stress enough how much I've learnt through the process of making them .Often they're samples testing out ideas for larger quilts or experiments from workshops or classes. More recently however I've been making  small collages using scraps  responding to places I'm visiting. My regular trips to Weymouth/Portland  and on retreat at Rydal Hall continue to be a source of inspiration.  We'll be in Weymouth again the first week in February and I'm already choosing scraps to take!
The montage of my quilts from last year is pretty diverse ( and yes I do know there are 14 - I got carried away with the B&W ones!), none of this designing them all at the beginning for me, that wouldn't allow for changes along the way. It also reflects what has been a year of  momentous change  for me  - I'll be doing another summary post in preparation for the 'change of address' letter we'll be sending out instead of our  annual Xmas one.

Another reason for looking forward to the CQ newsletter is that this JQ features on the cover to accompany  an article on eco-dyeing - Margaret Cooter is doing an excellent job as editor, she was so patient!

Running away to sea

We're not too far off putting our house on the market - painting finished, new carpet installed, blinds ordered  so when there was an 'open house' advertised for a  town house we've been tracking on 'Right Move', it seemed a good opportunity  for some further research in Faversham. The journey down was so much greener than last year ( all those apple trees) and there was wonderful local produce on sale in the market. It was a useful exercise   looking round the property - lots of space but   rather dark and a feeling of being hemmed in, so some revisions to the spec needed. After a late pub lunch  writing up my notes I wandered around to remind myself of why we want to move here: the creek, the  history, the countryside, the inspiration.



Then Sunday and Monday working in the garden sorting out the  crazy paving - some  refitting of the edges like a jigsaw puzzle and filling in the gaps with sand then pea shingle so it blends in very well with existing gravel area.   Ian was in Jonah mode about my methods: hearing "I'd love to be proved wrong" for the nth  time did not improve my mood so I did most of  the work myself.  I shouldn't complain too much though as he's been incredibly supportive including encouraging me to take some time off.

It's been  a hard, relentless few months physically, mentally and emotionally  and I really need a  rest,  so I'm off  for a few days on my own at the Heights Hotel in Portland. I'm taking  some books, my camera and some sketching materials  but no laptop or tablet and looking forward to  seeing the flowers and having some nice meals out. I know it's half term  but I know some quiet spots.

The final straw  was the long anticipated delivery from IKEA this morning  of various bits of  furniture.  The Ivar shelving I ordered for my workroom was all broken !!  I've  some  Ivar units in constant use for years but the quality has nose-dived out of all recognition. Any ideas about alternatives?
So glad I'm running away to the sea tomorrow!!

Journal Quilts and Difficult Decisions

 

 With  most of my energy and time at the moment focused on  sorting through house contents for  pre- painting storage ( 8th May) or disposal ( 30 April), it's taken  a   very focused effort to finish off   CQ January-April  Journal Quilts  before 30th April  deadline.  They're mainly machine rather than hand stitched for expediency but having made JQ's since 2003, it was important to me to  keep going  with them as these fabric 'sketches' are a crucial part of my artistic practice. 

 

April : Rodwell Trail. Positive and negtive monoprints of vegetation  

March : Weymouth Harbour ( from  Rodwell Trail)

February: Rydal Colours - 'sketch' from NW CQ retreat in Lake District

 

January: Red Loops- sample for International Threads ' Red  Stapelia '  piece

 

With most of my studio packed up ( apart from art materials, scraps for JQ's and an on-going hand stitched indigo piece ) and the first of  my courses for  University Certificate in Biological Recording  coming up this week with it's 2 assessed assignments, I came to the very difficult decision to stand down from the next round of challenges with International Threads. I've been very proud to be a member ( and my work will still be  touring to various exhibitions) and I've enjoyed working within  parameters  that stretched me.  I like the 40 x 80 cm size and this I may well be continuing with in the future.