Embellish, Stitch and Knit

Just to answer comments first. Heather: thanks for the lovely comments about WoW. I liked the collagraphs on your blog. The paint makes so much difference and I have found that it does not work at all well with runny acrylics. The extender is really useful as the paint dries out too quickly otherwise.

I am very grateful to you all for the comments on the embellisher machine. They are such fun but I think they are most useful when combined with stitching. I am also keen to make a finer fabric as the embellisher can be a bit chunky.

So I am using silk chiffon as a base, with applied silk fibres and fine stitching. I do plan to make a jacket, Lynne, maybe more than one. My tailoring skills are not great so it will be a very simple pattern. Also quite hooked on the idea of using knitting on a finer embellished surface. Chunky knitting to give a contrast. Sara Shinton has an article in the March Workshop on the Web on making and using strips knitting and I'm hooked - see below.

Not very sharp pics as I am using the tablet for this post but you get the idea. It's all such fun and is taking up so much time but I haven't had a big project on the go for a while so it's good.

We have a paranoid sparrow in the garden. He started by attacking his reflection in the car wing mirror (not to be encouraged) and moved on to the sitting room window. I was watching this pantomime unfold from the comfort of my chair. He disappeared, only to return almost at once for a repeat performance. By now, of course, someone else was on the case, and his third attack revealed a huge cat face on the other side of the glass. Haven't seen him since.

Lynda's book and Embellisher Machines

Forgive me if you have heard this elsewhere but Lynda Monk's third class on the book Exploring Creative Surfaces is up on the d4daisy site. I am bombarding you with this information as I had a lot of people who missed the last lesson (even though we emailed the list of purchasers, as well as blog and FB). I love what she does with scrim.

I have almost finished the work room sort out and (ta-da, fanfare of trumpets) today I am going to spend the whole day working on a new piece. While clearing the notice board I found some inspiration snippets, guess that is why I put them there, I also wound up with a very tidy board. Won't look like this for long.

I like to keep small pieces of work that I have been given, or purchased, as well as items torn from magazines, sketches and the like.

There is also the odd photo of a grandchild or, in this case, right, a drawing of a cat from many years ago. She was called Tigger Johnson and she was very grumpy. This is a typical Tigger Johnson pose - in a corner with her back to the world.

I do also have a big board on which I place work in progress to see how it is coming along. This has my birchwood stuff on it at the moment but I have become distracted from this by the arrival of a new embellisher from Janome.

A germ of an idea about making a DVD featuring the embellisher machine has taken root lately as my Embellish and Stitch book is almost out of print. I am especially interested in using the embellisher with paper for mixed media work as I developed a way of using printed tissue with it. Do you think this DVD would be a good idea? Are we still using our embellishers? Comments on this welcome.

I'd also like to make a jacket as I have lots of lovely fibres in greys (Shades of Grey again).

When the noticeboard was cleared I found a snippet torn from one of the Sunday supplements. It is in lace so I thought I would combine embellished fabric with stitched patterns.

Don't want a traditional flowery lace, but might use this page from one of my sketchbooks (based on rocks) as a starting point.  I will keep you posted on that.

Comments

Heather: I did wonder if it was you in the exhibition, was going to get in touch. It was a good exhibition, especially the thoughtful use of stitch.

Ann: know the feeling of not being able to open the studio door but I am quite smug at the moment. Won't last.

Robin: I hear what you are saying - especially about working black on black. These days I can't decide whether I see better with or without my glasses. Have to keep peering over the top!.

Technology is Out to GET ME

I have been pressing on with the workroom tidy but it is slow going. Is it just me or does this cold, miserable weather slow one down? 

It is looking quite respectable now and I have even managed to find room for the odd piece of work or inspirational artefact.

Needless to say lost treasures have been recovered. This book on using digitising software was a forgotten delight. This page shows African motifs digitised.

The one below is on the cover and explores a variety of surfaces with a simple design. It  made me want to explore that some more as I’d forgotten what fun it was.

I had also forgotten that I have these programs on an ancient, very slow, laptop so I tried to install them on my newer machines. Zero success on that, so far. I can foresee a chat with the guru, the wonderful Stephen Bogod, coming up in the next few days.

Being a glutton for punishment, I also tried to install itunes on the very new machine and couldn’t remember the password. I am now waiting for an email from Apple and feeling rather anti technology. Why did I think it was a good idea to do all this in one day?

On Saturday, we planned a day out as all this snow and cold has resulted in cabin fever. So we shot off to Cirencester to review the Bath Textiles exhibition at Corinium Museum - see below.

We also hoped for a relaxing lunch and a stroll around the shops. What we got was increasing snow fall which became a blizzard on the M4. So we just scuttled around the gallery (lovely exhibition – will be reviewed in the free bit of March Workshop on the Web) and grabbed an all day breakfast in the Little Chef on the way home. Not what we had in mind.

Thanks Lynn, Robin and Heather for the sympathy. The funeral of my cousin went well – it was a humanist service and the presenter was really lovely. Although not based on any particular religion, it was very spiritual. 

Work in Progress

       I am working on my walk in the woods piecee and have got as far as puttingit together. It is coming along nicely and I hope to do some more printing and finish the background this week.In the pic below you can see the pinning out - hopefully I am changing the colour as it runs down. There will be some maps on the bottom and some Google earth views.

A new way of working with the individual printouts is shown below - sort of pintucking, I guess, to give added dimension.

A very short blog today because I have to leave soon to go to a funeral as my much loved cousin has died. I have been asked to put together a short address which has been something of a challenge as it is made up of snippets gathered from the family. He was a great teller of tales which became more elaborate as the years went on, so I am basing the piece on the story tellers who have been with us through the ages. I shall incorporate some of his stories (cleaned up a bit).  I think he'd like that. Here's to you Den, wherever you are I bet you've got an audience!

Just a quick reminder

Back from the Devon show after lots of adventures. Still catching up but wanted just to remind anyone who has Lynda Monk's Exploring Creative Surfaces book that the second free lesson is available. Just go www.d4daisy.com and click the free on-lone classes button.

Will be blogging properly in the next couple of days when my brain catches up with my body.

Off to the Show

First of all, the give-away. I have addresses for Frances and Sandy for the giveaway but need Vicky and Lexa. I have a pack of Shrinky and some metal for you. Sending out has been delayed as 'staff', who does the sending, was delayed by the snow!

I am in a bit of a panic about going to the Exeter Craft4crafters show on my own but we are loathe to leave the house unguarded in this weather and the house-sitter is worried about leaving her own place unattended. She may still  make it so I have my fingers crossed.

I am so looking forward to working with West Country Embroiderers as I know that they have a lovely demo area and exhibition at the show. I am going to demo oiled paper, water-soluble stuff and pasta machine collagraphs.

I hope to get some work done at the show, making a start on the design below. It is a plan of a walk through the woods near our house with the main path depicted as a tree. On either side of this will be oiled paper prints, with stitching and there will be notes hanging from the branches. You can see the 'back of the envelope' version below.

I did a quick colour rough of how it might look. This was rather fun so I hope it works as a larger piece.

Some of the snow photos taken recently will be added.

Getting packed is taking ages. It didn't help that Smudge ran off with the large lump of Vilene for the backing and tried to hide it under the bathmat. I really don't know how he lifted it.

He hates the snow and has decided to resume his work for the RSPB by doing a bird count from the warmth of the windowsill. Preferable to his usual bird work, which involves culling.

The snow was great fun for everyone but Smudge. We live very near the trail-ways (miles of open country) where people hike, dogwalk and cycle, but mostly they are sledging just now. I love watching them all go by and this pack of wirehaired Vizslas, below are frequent passers-by. Folk are always jolly and chatty when off to do something they enjoy, don't you think?

Do come to the show if you can. I would love to see you.

Shrunken Books Tutorial

Phew! That was cutting it a bit fine, I had nearly finished the Shrunken Books Tute last night but today has been one of those days when everything took longer than expected. We had to fill in something silly for the bit of the bank that handles our e-finance and I had managed to forget all the log in details. Lots of time spent on the helpline. They sent the thing out on Christmas Eve so I tucked it away. We are usually quite organised about the business stuff so this really annoyed me.

Anyway here is the link for the little books tutorial.

HERE

I will put it in the proper place under the free tutorials tab a little later when I have a clearer head.

I have the four winners of the Shrinky plastic, metal and such stuff. They are (drum roll):

Vicki W
Smarcoux
Lexa
Maybird

Send me your snail mail addys (maggie@workshopontheweb.com) and I'll get them off to you. Will add a little surprise as well.